Meek Mill to the Philadelphia Eagles: “You’ve Lifted My Spirit by Rallying Around My Song”

A question that’s been thrown around in my friend group after the Eagles dominant NFC Championship Game performance was, ‘When did you know it was over?’. When did you know this was the moment and the Eagles were going to the Super Bowl? There are a lot of great options to choose from right off the rip. An obvious answer would be the Patrick Robinson pick 6 that turned the crowd into a borderline mosh pit. Then, you also have Legarrette Blount obliterating a grown man on his run for a touchdown. Let’s also not forget (and how could we) the Nick Foles bombs, one to Alshon Jeffery and the absolute DIME to Torrey Smith on the flea flicker. All valid answers with a strong case behind them. But, for me, when did I know it was over? Bout right here:

Game was over before it started. You may be reading this thinking I’m joking, that it’s just a hype viral video but it meant so much more. When the ‘Nightmares’ part dropped, it was the first indication that there was too much juice in that stadium for us to go home as losers. As you scanned the field pregame, the Minnesota Vikings went through the motions while warming up. The Philadelphia Eagles were loose and full of life as they bumped to the Dreams and Nightmares Intro. Even fucking Nate Sudfield is vibing to it. The energy coming from those two teams could not have been more divergent. The Vikings wanted to win that game. The Philadelphia Eagles KNEW they were going to win.

After the big win, Meek Mill released a statement from the federal penitentiary saying he had seen the videos of the Eagles going ballistic to his music and that it gave him hope. Meek stated:

“It really lifted my spirit to hear the team rally around my songs because thats why I make music. To inspire others and bring people together. The Eagles have also motivated me with the way they’ve overcome tough situations and injuries to succeed this year. I’m so proud of my Eagles for making the Super Bowl and representing the city of Philadelphia. I’m confident my guys are going to beat the Patriots and bring the Super Bowl trophy to Philly”

I love to hear that the Eagles have motivated Meek and vice versa. It is still an absolute travesty that he is wasting away in a federal prison over such mild probation infractions. I would love to have him home for the Super Bowl but I’ve become discouraged that he may have to actually serve his entire ludicrous sentence. But, in a way, we are all like Meek Mill. Now, his case is way more extreme and I’m not comparing my first world problems to rotting in a prison due to a broken system, but we all need some motivation in life. We all need our spirits uplifted by something hopeful to cling on to. Everyone faces their issues in life that cause overwhelming amounts of stress and angst. But, for three hours every Sunday from September to now February, the Eagles have absolved our problems and put on a god damn show.

Dreams and Nightmares is the anthem of North Philly and it should probably also just flat out be the National Anthem while we’re at it. For years, even before this magical Super Bowl run, my dream scenario has been Meek performing that song before the NFC Championship Game. The performance turns The Linc into an electric factory and the Eagles annihilate whatever God forsaken team had to step on the field to play them that day. Well, didn’t turn out perfectly, but much like this Eagles season, it came pretty damn close. #FreeMeekMill

By Aidan Powers | January 25, 2018