In the aftermath of his hit that knocked Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz out of their wild-card playoff loss against Seattle on Sunday, Seattle Seahawks defensive end Jadeveon Clowney said he “was just playing fast” and trying to tackle Wentz, not injure him.
Eight minutes into the game in Philadelphia, Wentz was tripped up by safety Bradley McDougald on a sack. As Wentz fell, Clowney dove at him from behind, and they banged helmets as he drove the quarterback down. Wentz stayed in for a few plays but didn’t return after that possession.
Clowney was not penalized, and referee Shawn Smith told a pool reporter after the game that Wentz “was a runner, and he did not give himself up. We saw incidental helmet contact, and in our judgment, we didn’t rule that to be a foul.”
Added Clowney, “I was just playing fast, and he [Wentz] turned like he was running the ball, so I was trying to get him down. It was a bang-bang play. I don’t intend to hurt anybody in this league, let me just put that out there. I’ve been down the injury road; it’s not fun.”
Eagles tight end Zach Ertz was among those critical of the hit.
“I thought it was late. I kinda knew something was wrong right away — just the way he got up. Devastated for my guy. Really tough. I mean, it’s a quarterback hit to the head. But it is what it is. I’m sure there was somebody in the way or something. They’re doing everything they can to protect players, and I’m sure there’s a reason they didn’t call it.”
Eagles left tackle Jason Peters, a nine-time Pro Bowler, was more direct in his assessment just after the play happened.
“I just told him, ‘Man, that’s a dirty play.’ He’s like, ‘My bad,’ you know, and we just kept playing. I just kept reminding him, ‘Come on, man, stay off my quarterback.’ ”
Josh McCown, the Eagles’ 40-year-old backup quarterback making his playoff debut playing for his ninth team over his journeyman career, came on for Wentz and completed 18 of 24 passes for 174 yards and no turnovers, but could not get the Eagles into the end zone. Philadelphia managed only three field goals from Jake Elliott in losing 17-9.
It marks the third straight year that Wentz was forced to the sidelines because of injury as the Eagles’ postseason run concluded, with Philadelphia rolling to a Super Bowl title to finish the 2017 season and losing in the NFC Divisional round last season at New Orleans. Both times Nick Foles, now with Jacksonville, handled backup duties — winning Super Bowl LII MVP honors in beating New England.
