After getting called for a hold on a close play in Super Bowl LVII and even admitting that he was guilty of the penalty, Eagles’ cornerback James Bradberry still can’t catch a break. Especially not from the 49ers’ all-world wide receiver Deebo Samuel.
Philadelphia Eagles’ James Bradberry holds Kansas City Chiefs’ JuJu Smith-Schuster during Super Bowl LVII via Sports Man YouTube
Bradberry was infamously flagged in the fourth quarter on what turned out to be the winning drive for Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs. After a Harrison Butker field goal with 11 seconds remaining, the Chiefs would win the game 38-35.
Bradberry’s illegal play essentially set up the deciding score. With the game tied and just 1:54 to play, Bradberry was flagged for defensive holding on a critical third-and-8 in the Eagles’ red zone. That allowed the Chiefs to keep possession a little longer, run down the clock, and Butker to kick the game-winner.
.@buttkicker7 gives the @Chiefs the lead with 8 seconds left!
📺: #SBLVII on FOX
📱: Stream on NFL+ https://t.co/d8gBDzRt2m pic.twitter.com/zic4DWtJ0a— NFL (@NFL) February 13, 2023
That left Philly with only five seconds of regulation play remaining. The Eagles then needed a miracle, so they attempted a Hail Mary pass in the closing seconds.
It fell incomplete, and Kansas City earned its second Lombardi Trophy in four years.
appears Philadelphia Eagles really did assume Jalen “arm” Hurts could chuck a 70+yard bomb hail mary
Maybe he does it in practice, but this was very underwhelming #ChiefsKingdom #SuperBowlLVII #Rihanna #HalftimeShow #notunderwhelming pic.twitter.com/4MjkdTbtb5
— daniel (@Mr412_to_ca) February 13, 2023
Bradberry admitted that he was rightfully called for defensive holding on that fateful Super Bowl play, but that hasn’t stopped Deebo Samuel from burying him.
“Trash.”
That’s the one-word description that Samuel gave to Bradberry and his teammates just a few days after they lost the Super Bowl. The 49ers star didn’t spare the rod when it came to striking down the secondary.
“The D-Line makes both of (the Eagles cornerbacks) look like all-pros, Samuel stated on the I Am Athlete podcast. “Except Slay. I do respect Slay.”
But when asked about Bradberry, Samuel simply replied: “Trash.”
Deebo has fallen in line with several of his ‘Niners teammates, who feel like they should have been the ones who advanced to The Big Game in Glendale, Arizona. And if not for an unfortunate set of circumstances, they very well might have.
Deebo Samuel via San Francisco 49ers YouTube
San Francisco was shellacked for the NFC Championship by Philadelphia, 31-7.
The Bay Area was buzzing about those 49ers until all their active quarterbacks were knocked out of the most pivotal game of the year. From there, it just wasn’t much of a contest.
Deebo Samuel via San Francisco 49ers YouTube
Up to that point, unlikely hero Brock Purdy had gone undefeated down the stretch. He was knocked out of the game in the first half due to an elbow injury.
He would return in the second half, but only to hand the ball off on running plays. For their part, San Francisco held serve and mercifully just let the clock wind down as quickly as they could.
Brock Purdy via San Francisco 49ers YouTube
While the NFL schedule for 2023 hasn’t been released yet, there’s a good chance that the 49ers and Philadelphia – two of the top teams in the NFC – will likely meet up.
It will be interesting to see what happens the first time that Bradberry and Samuel are on opposite sides of the field.