MINNEAPOLIS -- The Eagles almost made it. With less than 48 hours to go when it comes to media availability and avoiding bulletin-board material, Philly almost crossed the finish line before Alshon Jeffery decided to deliver what amounts to a guarantee of a Super Bowl LII win. 

Asked about what the Eagles might do "if" they win the Super Bowl, Jeffery said there "ain't no if" about it, that the Eagles are going to win and they are going to party. 

"Ain't no 'if,' man. When we win on Sunday, ain't no telling what we're going to do," Jeffery said. "But we're probably going to celebrate, have some fun."

It feels kind of dumb/cheap to point and scream at Jeffery and "HE'S GUARANTEEING A WIN OVER THE PATS!!!" but it is the sort of thing no one wants a player going against Tom Brady and Bill Belichick to do. Friendly reminder for people who don't remember the past: Belichick once read off the proposed Eagles Super Bowl XXXIX parade route to his players before the game just to motivate them. Anyone guaranteeing a win before a game of this magnitude will get on the general radar.

In fact, Arizona cornerback Patrick Peterson, appearing on our CBS Sports radio row show with Pete Prisco, said he wanted to pick the Eagles to win the game, but the Jeffery guarantee scared him off. It's not a superstitious thing, it's a "don't feed the bulletin board beast" thing when you're playing the Patriots. Any slight is an edge for Brady and Belichick. Peterson actually flipped and took the Patriots as a result of the guarantee. 

He might take the Pats in a blowout if he was aware of what Jeffery said about the Patriots dynasty. Asked about the Pats "mystique," Jeffery said he doesn't care about any of that.

"Man, I don't give a damn about all of that," Jeffery said. "That's in the past. We're in the present. It's 2018. It's a new year. All that stuff in the past, that's in the past. It's a new year, man."

Woooooooooooo, boy. That's a quote that will sit poorly with a number of different people in and around the Patriots organization. Pats fans will eat it up, noting that once again, they are being doubted as a potential championship team, even though they have won two Super Bowls in the last three years. No one doubts the Patriots but they manage to find a chip on their shoulder all the time.

On the other hand, Jeffery has been remarkable about predicting the future, noting while with the Bears he was going to win a Super Bowl the next year. The Eagles still need to close this thing out, but they're just 60 minutes away from making Jeffery look like a genius. 

Unfortunately the Patriots are just 60 minutes away from making Jeffery look like a dummy for handing them bulletin-board material that motivated them for Super Bowl LII.