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‘I got to grow the hell up:’ Chauncey Gardner-Johnson rebounds in huge way originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
The Eagles were up 24-14 early in the third quarter in Washington when C.J. Gardner-Johnson was ejected after his second unsportsmanlike conduct penalty of the game.
He watched helplessly in the locker room as the Commanders scored 22 points in the fourth quarter to beat the Eagles 36-33, ending their 10-game winning streak and preventing them – for the time being – from clinching the NFC East title.
And it killed him that there was nothing he could do about it.
“You get what you get,” Gardner-Johnson said. “You get the cards, you get the hand you’re dealt.
“I think it was a learning lesson. I got to grow the hell up. This team obviously needs me to be out there. I ain’t saying that like in a way as though I’m a superstar. No, like my presence being out there with the guys and having fun.”
Gardner-Johnson made up for it Sunday with two interceptions off Cooper Rush, including a 69-yard pick-6, in the Eagles’ 41-7 wipeout of the Cowboys at the Linc.
And the NFC East title and No. 2 seed the Eagles weren’t able to lock up without CJGJ last Sunday are now theirs.
“It hurt me not being out there and seeing them lose when we could have clinched the week before,” he said. “But I had to look at myself in the mirror and understand that this is a team game, not a me-game, you know?”
Gardner-Johnson’s pick-6 – the first of his career – gave the Eagles a 7-0 lead, and his second INT came deep in Eagles territory with the Cowboys driving in what was still a 10-point game late in the second quarter. The Eagles scored three plays later to make it a 24-7 game at halftime, and the rout was on.
“For him just to come up big in that moment, especially after the week that he had last week, we needed him bad,” Jordan Davis said. “And just able to get his name clear and just to get one in his hands and
running back for a touchdown. I mean,…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/got-grow-hell-chauncey-gardner-155324871.html
Author : NBC Sports Philadelphia
Publish date : 2024-12-30 15:53:00
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