Nick Foles

Nick Foles

refer to caption

Foles at the 2014 Pro Bowl
No. 5 Los Angeles Rams
Position: Quarterback
Personal information
Date of birth: (1989-01-20) January 20, 1989
Place of birth: Austin, Texas
Height: 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Weight: 243 lb (110 kg)
Career information
High school: Austin (TX) Westlake
College: Arizona
NFL draft: 2012 / Round: 3 / Pick: 88
Career history
Roster status: Active
Career highlights and awards

NFL records

  • 7 passing touchdowns, game
Career NFL statistics as of 2015
Passing attempts: 1,230
Passing completions: 740
Percentage: 60.2
TD–INT: 53–27
Passing yards: 8,805
Passer rating: 87.3
Player stats at NFL.com

Nicholas Edward Foles (born January 20, 1989)[1] is an American football quarterback for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Arizona, and was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the third round of the 2012 NFL Draft.

Foles played his first game with the Eagles in Week 10 of the 2012 season after Michael Vick left with an injury. Foles then made his first start the following week. In Week 9 of the 2013 season, he became the second quarterback to post a perfect passer rating (158.3) while passing for more than 400 yards, and also the first quarterback to post a perfect passer rating and throw seven touchdowns in a single game. It was the 60th time in NFL history that a perfect passer rating was achieved overall. Foles also holds the best TD-INT ratio in a single season, with 27 touchdown passes and only 2 interceptions, which he accomplished during the 2013 season.

Early years

The son of Larry and Melissa Foles, restaurateurs,[2] Foles was born and raised in Austin, Texas. He graduated in 2007 from Westlake High School, the alma mater of star NFL quarterback Drew Brees. A two-year starter for the football team, Foles threw for 5,658 yards and 56 touchdowns, breaking most school records previously held by Brees; he would play against Brees and the New Orleans Saints during the 2013–14 NFL playoffs.[3][4][5] Foles also excelled at basketball, where he started three years, twice received team MVP honors,[5] and was recruited by Georgetown, Baylor, and Texas. He also played High School football with Justin Tucker, kicker for the Baltimore Ravens and Kyle Adams of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers [6]

Foles originally committed to Arizona State but later decided to attend Michigan State. He ultimately transferred to the University of Arizona.[7]

College career

Foles at the Alamo Bowl in December 2010.

After attending Michigan State for a year, Foles transferred to Arizona and had to redshirt his 2008 freshman season.

After Willie Tuitama graduated, Foles entered a quarterback competition with expected successor Matt Scott. After spring practice Scott was given the starting role when the coaches felt that being a dual threat quarterback would open up the offense. Despite victories against Central Michigan and Northern Arizona, Scott struggled against Iowa and the next week Foles was given the chance to start. In Corvallis, Foles led the Wildcats to a victory against Oregon State. Foles continued to start for the rest of the year, completing 260 of 409 pass attempts for 2486 yards, 19 touchdowns, and 9 interceptions.[8]

As a redshirt junior in 2010, Foles was the unquestioned starter. Foles led the Wildcats to a 7-1 start which included a victory against #9 Iowa on national television. Foles led the game-winning drive that ended with a touchdown pass to Bug Wright. Against Washington State, Foles suffered a knee injury that kept him sidelined for two weeks. Foles finished off his junior year with 3,191 yards, 20 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions despite missing two games due to injury.

During the 2011 season, Foles completed 387 of 560 passes for 4,334 yards and 28 touchdowns. He ranked first in the Pac-12 Conference and fifth among all NCAA Division I FBS players with an average of 352.58 yards of total offense per game.[9] He also ranked second in the Pac-12 and 20th among all FBS players in total passing yardage.[10]

Foles graduated from Arizona with a degree in communication.[5][7]

Professional career

Philadelphia Eagles

2012

Foles was selected by the Philadelphia Eagles in the third round (88th overall) of the 2012 NFL Draft. He signed a four-year contract with the team on May 21, 2012. Despite speculation that Foles would start the Eagles' Monday Night Football game against the New Orleans Saints on November 5 (Week 9),[11] Eagles coach Andy Reid stated that Vick would start that game.[12] The following week against the division rival Dallas Cowboys, after Vick left the game in the second quarter with concussion symptoms, Foles made his NFL debut. Foles threw his first career touchdown pass to Jeremy Maclin for 44 yards and finished with 22 completed passes out of 32 attempts for 219 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. With Philadelphia behind 31-23 in the last minute, Foles lost the ball as he was sacked, and Jason Hatcher of the Cowboys recovered the ball in the end zone for a touchdown.[13] Vick was eventually ruled out of the following game against the Washington Redskins in Week 11, and Foles made his first career start.[14] Philadelphia lost to the Washington Redskins 31-6, and Foles was 21-for-47 in passing 204 yards with no touchdowns and two interceptions.[15]

Foles in 2012.

On Monday, December 3, 2012, Eagles coach Andy Reid announced that Foles would start for the remainder of the year, regardless of when Michael Vick returned from a concussion.[16] The following Week 14 game on December 9, Foles earned his first win as a starter in the Eagles' 23-21 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. With two seconds remaining on the clock and Philadelphia down 21-16 at the Bucs' one-yard line, Foles threw a 1-yard pass to Jeremy Maclin for the game-winning touchdown as time expired. Foles completed 32 of 51 passes for 381 yards and two touchdowns - both coming in the final four minutes. He also had 27 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown.[17] On December 23, Foles broke his hand against the Redskins, and was replaced by Vick in the season finale against the New York Giants.[18] On December 26, Foles was placed on injured reserve.[19]

2013

Going into training camp, new head coach Chip Kelly announced that Foles would compete with Vick and newly drafted rookie Matt Barkley for the Eagles starting quarterback job in the 2013 season. Going into preseason, it became clear that the job was a 2-way battle between Foles and Vick. Foles played average during preseason while Vick would excel past him. On August 20, it was announced that Vick would start the season and Foles would be the backup.

Foles saw his first action during a Week 4 loss against the Denver Broncos. He completed 3 out of 4 attempted passes for a total of 49 yards and one touchdown, with no interceptions.[20]

On October 6, Foles entered the game against the New York Giants in the second quarter, after Vick suffered a hamstring injury. Foles completed 16 of 25 passes for 197 yards and 2 touchdowns, leading the Eagles to a 36-21 win over the Giants. Later in the week it was announced that Foles would get the start Week 6 vs the 0-4 Tampa Bay Buccaneers, after Vick was declared unable to start due to his injury.

In his Week 6 start on October 13, Foles had one of the best starts of his career, completing 22 of 31 passes for 296 yards and 4 total touchdowns (3 passing, 1 rushing) in a 31-20 win over the Buccaneers, a performance that earned him NFC Offensive Player of the Week.

On October 15, Vick announced that he needed another week of rehab before he was able to start again, making Foles the starter for the Week 7 matchup against the Dallas Cowboys for the division lead. However, against the Cowboys, Foles would only complete 11 of 29 passes for a total of 80 yards, with no touchdowns. In that same game, Foles left in the 4th quarter after suffering a head injury, and was replaced by rookie Matt Barkley. Barkley would not perform well either, throwing 3 interceptions. The Eagles went on to lose 17-3 to the Cowboys thus dropping to 3-4 on the season and 1 game out of first place. The next day, Foles was diagnosed with a concussion and ruled out of any participation in the Week 8 matchup against the Giants on medical grounds.

Vick left the game late in the second quarter of the Eagles 15-7 loss to the Giants in Week 8, aggravating the hamstring injury he had previously picked up in Week 5.

Foles was given his 3rd start of the season for Week 9 vs the Oakland Raiders. Against the Raiders, Foles threw for seven touchdowns, tying a record held by six other quarterbacks. Foles is one of three quarterbacks to throw seven touchdowns and zero interceptions; he also amassed a perfect passer rating (158.3), having thrown more touchdown passes than incompletions.[21] Foles was awarded his second NFC Offensive Player of the Week Award of the season for his performance vs the Raiders.

In Week 10 of the regular season, Foles played in his 6th game of the season (4 starts) against the Green Bay Packers. Coming into the game the Eagles had lost to the Packers on the last 3 occasions the teams had met (including post season).[22] Foles completed 12 out of 18 passes for a total of 228 yards, 3 touchdowns and no interceptions. His passer rating was extremely high for the second consecutive week, finishing at 149.3 and becoming the first QB in NFL history to post passer ratings above 149 in consecutive weeks. Foles carried 8 times during the game, including a 16 yard long run, finishing the game with 38 yards total and one fumble lost. The Eagles won the game 27-13 and moved to 5-5.

Nick Foles during a four-yard touchdown run during a 24–16 victory over the Redskins on November 17, 2013.

Foles continued as the starting quarterback in Week 11 of the regular season against the Washington Redskins at home. For the sixth time this season, Foles’ passer rating eclipsed 100, as he completed 17 of his 26 attempts for 298 yards with 0 touchdowns and 0 interceptions. Foles rushed the ball on 9 occasions during the game, ending with 47 total yards and a rushing touchdown. He led the Eagles to a 24-0 lead at the end of the third quarter, before a comeback from the Redskins meant the game finished 24-16. The win moved the Eagles to an overall record of 6-5-0 and first position in the NFC East. The Eagles had not won at Lincoln Financial Field in 413 days since defeating the New York Giants on Sept. 30, 2012; ending a streak of 10 consecutive home defeats.[23][24] On November 27, Foles was named the NFC Player of the Month for his play during the month of November.

The Eagles did not have a game scheduled for Week 12 of the regular season, and so returned to action on Sunday, 1 December for a home game against the Arizona Cardinals. Following their bye week, the Eagles had slipped into 2nd place in the divisional standings behind fierce rivals the Cowboys. Foles was once again named as the starting quarterback, a decision which Vick (who began the year as the number one quarterback) fully agreed with.[25]

For the seventh time this season, Foles' passer rating eclipsed 100, as he completed 21 of 34 attempted passes for a total of 237 yards, with 3 touchdowns and 0 interceptions. He also rushed for 22 yards on 9 attempts and fumbled on one occasion, although this was recovered by his teammates - and did not result in a turnover. Following a closely contested game, the Eagles held on to win 24-21 despite a fourth quarter comeback by Carson Palmer. Foles set a team record for most passes without an interception (233), breaking Michael Vick's mark of 224 set in 2010. He also moved within one touchdown pass of the record 20 straight touchdown passes set by Peyton Manning and zero interceptions to start a season before throwing an interception in a blizzard game in Philadelphia against the Detroit Lions in which the Eagles won 34-20. [26] The win took the Eagles to an overall record of 8-5 and surpassed Dallas for the number one spot in the NFC East. A week later in Minnesota, the team's five game winning streak was snapped with a loss to Minnesota. However, Foles again had another impressive game with yet another passer rating over 100 and three more touchdowns and only his second interception of the season. The following week, the Eagles defeated the Chicago Bears 54-11 which saw another passer rating over 100 a completion of 84.0% of his passes, a career high. Foles helped lead the Eagles to their first NFC East division title in three years by beating the Cowboys in the regular season finale. Foles had his ninth game with a passer rating over 100.

Foles finished the 2013 regular season with 27 touchdown passes and only 2 interceptions, surpassing Tom Brady's 2010 season posting of 36/4 for the best TD-INT ratio in NFL history, and a season leading 119.0 passer rating and third in NFL history trailing only to Aaron Rodgers' 122.5 rating in 2011 and Peyton Manning's 121.1 rating in 2004.[27] Foles led the Eagles to a playoff berth, the first since 2010. Hosting the Saints in the playoffs at Lincoln Financial Field, the Eagles lost on a last minute field goal as the game ended at 26-24. Foles threw for 195 yards, 2 touchdowns, and no interceptions, for a passer rating of 105.0, in his postseason debut. Foles was awarded the "NFL Greatness on the Road" award for his 7 touchdown, perfect game performance against the Oakland Raiders during a road game in 2013.

Foles was also assigned to the 2014 Pro Bowl as an alternate and was drafted by Team Sanders. Despite losing the game, Foles went 7 for 10 for 89 yards and a go ahead touchdown. Foles won the Pro Bowl Offensive MVP award, which included a new GMC truck.[28]

2014

Going into 2014, Chip Kelly had cut Foles' #1 receiver, DeSean Jackson, but Jeremy Maclin, who had good chemistry with Foles in 2012, returned from an ACL tear and had a career season, gaining 702 yards and six touchdowns with Foles as QB, finishing with 1,318 yards and ten scores. He was also aided by rookie receiver Jordan Matthews, second year tight end Zach Ertz, and veteran running back Darren Sproles.

Foles and the Eagles kicked off their 2014 season with a Week 1 home matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Foles started the game poorly, losing 2 fumbles and throwing an interception in the first half. Foles only lost 2 fumbles and threw 2 interceptions the entire 2013 season. The Eagles defense also performed poorly, as they trailed 17-0 after the first half. However, the Eagles roared back in the second half, scoring 34 unanswered points to defeat the Jags 34-17. Overall, Foles completed 24 of 45 passes for 332 yards and 2 touchdowns, along with the 3 turnovers.[29]

Foles led the Eagles to a 30-27 win over the Colts after trailing by as much as 20-6 early in the third. Foles went 21-37, passing for 331 yards, 1 Touchdown and 1 interception in during the game.[29]

Foles played his best game of the young season in 37-34 win over the division rival Washington Redskins. Foles fought off the slow starts of games past, a strong Washington defensive front seven, and a brutal blindside hit from Washington defensive lineman Chris Baker which resulted in a major brawl between both teams and causing Eagles Left Tackle Jason Peters, the strongest player in their line, and Baker to be ejected from the game.[30][31] Foles finished the game completing 66 percent of his passes, going for 325 yards and three touchdowns. In Week 8, Foles set a franchise record for most completions in a game with 36 and threw a career high 62 times in a close loss to the Arizona Cardinals, finishing with 411 passing yards and 2 TDs. The following week in a game against the Houston Texans, Foles left the game during the first half with a broken collarbone, which lead to Foles being put on injured reserve, ending his 2014 season. Mark Sanchez would finish out the season as the Eagles starting quarterback.[32]

After a league-best 27-2 TD-INT ratio in 2013, Foles finished the season with 2,163 yards in 8 games, and a 13-10 TD-INT ratio. He also fumbled 4 times, only recovering it once. Overall, all of his stats were narrowly beaten by Sanchez, including turnovers (14-11 TD-INT ratio). On the bright side, he was on pace to have over 4,000 yards passing and he led the team to a 6-2 record as starter, first place in the NFC East and second place in the NFC.

Foles with the Rams in 2015.

St. Louis / Los Angeles Rams

2015

On March 10, 2015, the Eagles traded Foles, a 2015 fourth-round pick, and a 2016 second-round pick to the St. Louis Rams in exchange for Sam Bradford and a 2015 fifth-round pick.[33][34][35] Foles signed a two-year, $24.5 million extension with the Rams on August 7, 2015.[36] Foles' first game with the team came against the division rival Seattle Seahawks, who had the league's #1 defense in 2013 and 2014.Foles went 18 for 27 and passed for 297 yards in the game, and his lone passing touchdown came with 53 seconds left, bringing the game into overtime. He also ran for 11 yards and 1 touchdown, which put the Rams in the lead in the middle of the second quarter. In overtime, Foles threw a 22-yard pass to Stedman Bailey, which set up the Rams' game winning field goal over the defending NFC Champions.[37]

Following the dramatic win, Foles struggled against his former divisional rival, the Redskins. Although he didn't turn the ball over, he only completed 17 passes out of 32 for 150 yards and the Rams lone touchdown as they lost 24-10. Foles' accuracy improved the following week, going 19-28 for 197 yards, but he threw no touchdowns and his first interception as a Ram against the Steelers, and the Rams dropped to 1-2. Following the two losses, Foles bounced back, going 16-24 for 3 touchdowns and no turnovers to hand the 3-0 Arizona Cardinals their first loss of the season. After that game, Foles' problems with turnovers from 2014 started to show, as he completed 11 passes out of 30 for 141 yards, 1 touchdown, and a career high 4 interceptions against the Green Bay Packers. On November 16 Foles was benched in favor of Case Keenum. He won his starting job back 2 weeks later after Keenum was out with a concussion, but his struggles worsened. In a loss against Cincinnati, he went 30-46 for 228 yards (his second highest total of the year) and 3 interceptions, and followed it up by going 15-35 for 146 yards and 1 interception. Foles would again be benched after Keenum returned from his concussion.

Career statistics

Regular season

Season Team Games Passing Rushing Fumbles
GP GS Comp Att Pct Yds Avg TD Int Rate Att Yds Avg TD FUM Lost
2012 Philadelphia Eagles 7 6 161 265 60.8 1,699 6.4 6 5 79.1 11 42 3.8 1 8 3
2013 Philadelphia Eagles 13 10 203 317 64.0 2,891 9.1† 27 2 119.2† 57 221 3.9 3 4 2
2014 Philadelphia Eagles 8 8 186 311 59.8 2,163 7.0 13 10 81.4 16 68 4.3 0 4 3
2015 St. Louis Rams 11 11 190 337 56.4 2,052 6.1 7 10 69.0 17 20 1.2 1 5 2
Total 29 25 740 1,230 60.2 8,805 7.2 53 27 87.3 101 351 3.5 5 21 10
^† League leader

Personal life

Foles is a Christian. Foles reads the Bible every day and has spoken about his faith saying, "I'm a Christian and I believe in God... and when you do great, you stay humble and you give Him glory."[38][39] Foles is married to former Arizona Wildcats volleyball player Tori Moore, sister of former Eagles tight end Evan Moore.

References

  1. ↑ Texas birth index search
  2. ↑ Bowen, Les (2012-11-15). "Eagles rookie Nick Foles' father says his son is ready for start". Philadelphia Daily News. Retrieved 12 December 2013.
  3. ↑ "Foles finally meets Brees on the field". ESPN. January 2, 2014.
  4. ↑ "Drew Brees vs. Nick Foles: A duel spawned by Westlake High". nfl.com. January 2, 2014.
  5. 1 2 3 "Nick Foles Profile". Retrieved 24 October 2012.
  6. ↑ Wulf, Bo. "Reid Assesses QB Picture". PhiladelphiaEagles.com. Retrieved 24 October 2012.
  7. 1 2 "QB Nick Foles". PhiladelphiaEagles.com. Retrieved 24 October 2012.
  8. ↑ ESPN.com stats
  9. ↑ "Statistics - Individual (Total Offense)". ncaa.com. Retrieved November 27, 2011.
  10. ↑ "NCAA Division I-A Player Passing Statistics - 2011 (Passing Yards Leaders - All Players)". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 27, 2011.
  11. ↑ Warren, Micah. "Eskin says Eagles likely switching to Nick Foles". Off the Record (OTR). Retrieved 29 October 2012.
  12. ↑ Sessler, Nick. (2012-10-29) Andy Reid not ready to bench Michael Vick in Philly NFL.com. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
  13. ↑ Associated Press. "Cowboys capitalize on turnovers as Eagles lose Michael Vick". ESPN. Retrieved November 11, 2012.
  14. ↑ "Eagles QB Vick out; Foles to start at Washington". Yahoo! Sports. 2012-11-16. Retrieved 2012-11-16.
  15. ↑ "Philadelphia Eagles vs Washington Redskins boxscore". ESPN.com. November 18, 2012. Retrieved November 19, 2012.
  16. ↑ "Nick Foles to start for rest of '12". ESPN.com. December 3, 2012. Retrieved December 3, 2012.
  17. ↑ Associated Press. "Nick Foles' TD pass with no time left snaps Eagles' skid". ESPN.com. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
  18. ↑ Associated Press (2012-12-24). "Eagles: Foles breaks hand, Vick likely to start". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved 2012-12-24.
  19. ↑ Associated Press (2012-12-26). "Eagles place Foles on IR, Sign DT Dixon". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved 2012-12-26.
  20. ↑ The Associated Press (September 30, 2013). "Peyton Manning tosses four TD passes in Denver Broncos' rout of Eagles". The Associated Press. NFL.com. Retrieved November 11, 2013.
  21. ↑ Wesseling, Chris (November 3, 2013). "Nick Foles ties NFL record with 7 TD passes; Eagles win". NFL.com. NFL Enterprises. Retrieved November 4, 2013.
  22. ↑ Patrick Gilligan (November 10, 2013). "Philadelphia Eagles Vs. Green Bay Packers Results". Patrick Gilligan. The Football Database. Retrieved November 11, 2013.
  23. ↑ Smith, Alex. "Foles Proud To Help Deliver Home Win". Philadelphia Eagles Official Website. Retrieved 17 November 2013.
  24. ↑ "Philadelphia Eagles top Washington Redskins, snap 10-game home losing skid". The Associated Press. NFL.com. Retrieved 18 November 2013.
  25. ↑ Patra, Kevin. "Michael Vick: Nick Foles should be Eagles' starting QB". NFL.com. Retrieved 2 December 2013.
  26. ↑ "Foles leads Eagles to narrow defeat of Cardinals". The Associated Press. NFL.com. Retrieved 2 December 2013.
  27. ↑ For Foles, Dallas Now Behind Him
  28. ↑ "GMC Heads to the 2014 Pro Bowl and Super Bowl XLVIII". Retrieved 1 February 2014.
  29. 1 2 http://scores.espn.go.com/nfl/gamecast?gameId=400554223&version=mobile
  30. ↑ Gowton, Brandon Lee (September 22, 2014). "Eagles-Redskins: NFL Rulebook explains why Chris Baker's hit on Nick Foles was illegal". Yahoo. Retrieved 2014-09-22.
  31. ↑ Florio, Mike (September 21, 2014). "No suspension for Baker or Peters, but a "ton of fines" coming". ProFootballTalk. Retrieved 2014-09-21.
  32. ↑ Paige, Marissa (November 4, 2014). "Nick Foles reportedly won’t need surgery, but some doubt his future with the Eagles anyway". Retrieved November 5, 2014.
  33. ↑ Sessler, Marc. "Rams trading Sam Bradford to Eagles for Nick Foles". NFL.com. Retrieved 10 March 2015.
  34. ↑ Simmons, Myles (March 10, 2015). "Rams Acquire Nick Foles". StLouisRams.com.
  35. ↑ Florio, Mike. "Eagles give up 2016 second-rounder for Bradford, too". Pro Football Talk. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
  36. ↑ Wesseling, Chris (August 7, 2015). "Nick Foles, St. Louis Rams strike two-year extension". NFL.com. Retrieved 2015-08-07.
  37. ↑ Wagoner, Nick (September 13, 2015). "Led by Nick Foles, resilient Rams fight their way to victory". ESPN.go.com. Retrieved 2015-09-13.
  38. ↑ "Eagles' Nick Foles says he didn't choke against Dallas, trusts Kelly, God".
  39. ↑ "Press Conference: Nick Foles".

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