PHILADELPHIA – Jared Verse may have had the first, and second, word. Saquon Barkley and the rest of the Philadelphia Eagles had the last laugh, along with the final chuckle.
The Rams rookie edge rusher poked the bear midweek by saying he hates Eagles fans. And before Sunday’s NFC divisional round game, a 28-22 Philadelphia victory, Verse bravely patrolled the perimeter of the field.
During his stroll, he encountered Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter, and the two exchanged words (and Carter may have attempted to make a wager). After the game, Carter said it was all good-natured.
“That’s motivation, but it’s just small little talk,” Carter said. “It’s still cool, I love his game. He (is) a baller.”
Verse said stopping the run was the Rams’ main priority. That clearly did not go according to plan, as Barkley ran for 205 yards and two long touchdowns of 62 and 78 yards, respectively.
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“Can’t let them run all over the field,” Verse said. “He’s a dangerous running back, arguably the best in the league right now … he’s been dominating. He’s dangerous.”
On Barkley’s first touchdown, it was Verse who pursued him the closest down the right sideline. Barkley slowed up and turned around to slightly face Verse as he ran his final few yards and crossed the goal line; Barkley didn’t divulge what may have been said.
Verse displayed his athleticism on the play by running 21.6 mph in pursuit of Barkley, the second time he’s eclipsed 21 mph chasing Barkley this season, according to Next Gen Stats. Verse hit 21.48 mph on Barkley’s 70-yard touchdown in Los Angeles when the teams met Week 12. The Florida State product, who started his college career at Albany, is now responsible for the third- and fifth-fastest speeds by a defensive lineman or linebacker on a scrimmage play this season.
Right tackle Lane Johnson offered a rebuttal on social media after the game.
“Best verse: E-A-G-L-E-S (bald eagle emoji),” Johnson wrote on X. “With the best fans in sports! NFC Championship (soon emoji).”
Early in the game, the Eagles’ stadium operations crew displayed Verse sitting on the Rams bench on the Lincoln Financial Field jumbotron. A chorus of boos rained down upon him. He responded with a wink.
“Ain’t got nothing to do with me,” wide receiver DeVonta Smith said with a smile. “I don’t face him.”
Left tackle Jordan Mailata said there are enough other tasks at hand throughout the week to concern oneself with the talk of an opponent.
“We get tasked with enough up front. If you focus on that kind of stuff, you won’t be able to get out there and execute your job,” Mailata said. “One, he can go out there and do all that talking. Two, he’s a good player. So you’ve already got enough on your plate to worry about.”
Verse had a solid game despite the trolling effort in the loss. He had five pressures, four tackles, three tackles for loss and two sacks, both in the first half. After one of his disruptive plays, the home crowd started a chant typically reserved for referees in this stadium. Verse responded on multiple occasions by giving a thumbs down gesture.
The Eagles’ trio of explosive rushing plays from the Eagles – Barkley’s touchdowns and quarterback Jalen Hurts’ 44-yard score on the game’s opening possession – doomed the Rams, Verse said. “Football’s a game of inches” and comes down to whoever makes the most plays, he added.
“We shot ourselves in the foot on all three of those plays,” said Verse, the No. 19 overall pick in the 2024 draft.
Verse finished the regular season with 4 ½ sacks and had 11 tackles for loss with 18 quarterback hits and two forced fumbles, as the Rams learned what life was like without future Hall of Fame defensive lineman Aaron Donald. Against the Minnesota Vikings in last week’s wild-card game, Verse returned a fumble for a touchdown.
Verse said he wants to use the defeat as motivation for future seasons. The hurt he saw in his teammates’ eyes devastated him.
“I never want to feel like this again,” he said. “I never want my teammates to feel like this again.”