Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver DeVonta Smith (6) Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

Watch: Massive DeVonta Smith catch leads to important Eagles TD

By Andrew Kulha | Last updated Jan 15, 2024 9:51 PM ET

The Philadelphia Eagles needed a big play, desperately...and when a big play is needed, few have been better downfield than wide receiver DeVonta Smith.

Down 16-3 and facing the real possibility of entering halftime two possessions behind the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in their wild-card matchup, quarterback Jalen Hurts found Smith running wide open down the seam and the two connected on a massive 55-yard strike.

JALEN HURTS 56 YARDS TO DEVONTA SMITH

(via @NFL)
pic.twitter.com/AVmFrMgq0Z
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) January 16, 2024

On the very next play, the Eagles drew up a beautiful play-action concept to spring tight end Dallas Goedert wide open for an extremely important touchdown:

And Dallas Goedert walks into the end zone

: #PHIvsTB on ESPN/ABC
: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/rFlj59UzNi pic.twitter.com/tItA8xNEM1
— NFL (@NFL) January 16, 2024

Philly decided to go for two after a defensive offsides penalty gave the Eagles a try from the one-yard line, but the all-but-patented "tush push" was unsuccessful — which has been a rarity this season.

Despite the failed two-point conversion, the importance of that scoring drive can't be understated for Philadelphia.

Andrew Kulha

Andrew Kulha is probably the only sports writer you know who also doubles as a mortician. Spooky! @KulhaSports

More must-reads: