Doug Pederson made the decision to bench Carson Wentz and start Jalen Hurts in an attempt to give this team a spark.
Hurts gave the team just that on Sunday.
The Eagles secured their best win of the season on Sunday in their 24-21 victory over the New Orleans Saints, a win that got started with a great first half from Hurts, and was finished by a great fourth-quarter from the defense.
There will certainly be a lot to talk about from this one, but for now, here are some initial thoughts:
Quarterbacks
*** Hurts made an incredibly impressive throw for his first touchdown of the game, hitting receiver Alshon Jeffery on 4th-and-2 from 15-yards out. Hurts had Saints linebacker Kwon Alexander coming right at him, and was drilled as he threw it, but still put a perfect pass right into the hands of receiver Alshon Jeffery in the corner of the end zone.
*** The Eagles desperately needed a drive with some points in the fourth quarter, as they were holding a 17-14 lead but it was quickly slipping away. Hurts responded, leading the offense on a six-play, 53-yard drive for a touchdown. Hurts made two big plays on the drive, starting with a nine-yard run on the first play of the drive, then finding Greg Ward on the next play for a 14-yard gain to get the Eagles to the Saints 30-yard line. The drive ended in a one-yard touchdown run by Miles Sanders and gave the Eagles a 24-14 lead.
**** Hurts convert the first third-down of the game with his legs, scrambling to the left sideline on 3rd-and-four for the first down. Then, on 4th-and-2 on the same drive, he ran up the middle for another fresh set of downs. The two converted downs were a sign of things to come, as Hurts finished with 75-yards rushing in the first half, including 40 on the final drive of the half.
*** It is clear having Hurts under center is going to make the Eagles read-option plays far more dangerous. On 2nd-and-11 with just under two minutes to play in the second quarter Hurts held onto the ball instead of handing it off to Sanders and ran up the left sideline for a 15-yard gain. The run got the the Eagles off their own goal line, and two plays later, Miles Sanders went 82-yards for a touchdown.
*** It was impressive how calm Hurts looked in his first NFL start despite playing one of the better defenses in the NFL. He looked nothing like the rookie many expected him too, doing an excellent job throwing it away when he had to, keeping his eyes down the field and sliding to avoid hits at the end of the plays where he did run.
Jake Elliott
*** The Eagles had all the momentum and were looking to add to their 17-0 lead at the end of the first half when Jake Elliott missed an easy field goal from 22-yards out. Elliott has struggled recently but the miss was without question his worst so far — not only because it was an easy one, but it took away all the Eagles’ momentum.
Running Backs
*** Miles Sanders has struggled to get going what feels like all season. That changed on Sunday. Sanders had 105 yards off offense in the first half alone, including an 82-yard run just before the end of the half that gave the Eagles a 17-0 lead. His disappointing season seems to clearly be the result of a bad offense, as opposed to him not being the explosive player he looked like on Sunday.
Receivers
*** Jalen Reagor had a 39-yard reception but was in the medical tent after the play
** Zach Ertz made an incredible catch on 3rd-and-four, pulling in a pass from Hurts along the sideline, keeping both feet in bounds and fully extending to hold onto the ball. The call on the field ruled him out of bounds, but it sure looked like he came down with it and the refs made the wrong call.
Defensive Line
*** Javon Hargave had a sack for the second-straight game, bringing down Taysom Hill with just over five minutes to play in the second quarter. Hargrave recorded his second sack of the game in the fourth quarter, bringing down Hill on 3rd-and-8 with just over two minutes to play. playing better as of late is not surprising considering he missed the entire offseason, including training camp.
*** Josh Sweat stepped up and made a huge play when the defense needed it. With the Saints driving, but facing a 4th-and-1 on the Eagles’ 42-yard line, Sweat got to Hill and knocked the ball away. The fumble was recovered by Hargrave, ending the Saints’ scoring drive and preserving the Eagles 17-14 lead. He recorded his second sack of the game on the next drive.
Linebackers
*** Duke Riley made a great play on a tipped ball midway through the second quarter when he picked off Taysom Hill on the Saints’ 39-yard line. The interception gave the Eagles the ball in Saints territory, and resulted in a field goal to give the team a 10-0 lead.
*** Riley made another big play on 4th-and-1 later in the half, stopping Hill’s attempt to run up the middle for the first down.
*** Alex Singleton continues to look like a player that should be starting next season.
Secondary
*** The Eagles secondary suffered a few injuries against the Saints. Starting cornerback Avonte Maddox left the game in the second quarter with a knee injury and did not return. Safety Rodney McLeod went down with just over eight minutes to play in the third quarter on the same play that cornerback Darius Slay did. Both went to the medical tent. Slay did not return due to a head injury, McLeod was ruled out with a knee injury.
*** Without both of their starting corners the Eagles had to turn to to Kevon Seymour at cornerback and the Saints took advantage. Hill hit receiver Emmanuel Sanders for a 37-yard touchdown with just under two minutes to play in the third quarter, taking advantage of a one-on-one matchup with Seymour down the middle of the field. The touchdown pulled the Eagles to within 17-14.
*** Nickell Robey-Coleman missed what should have been a tackle-for-a-loss at the start of the fourth quarter, but couldn’t bring down Tre’Quan Smith, who instead got nine-yards on the play.
Doug Pederson
*** Doug Pederson said he was going to Jalen Hurts to give his team a spark and he coached like it. Pederson went for it on fourth down three times in the first half, and the Eagles converted two of them. It was clear his aggressive coaching style worked as the Eagles jumped out to a 17-0 lead.
*** Facing 4th-and-1 on the Saints’ 40-yard line and just over three minutes to play in the third quarter, Doug Pederson called a QB sneak up the middle with Hurts. It was stuffed for no gain. Hurts is not the big, strong runner that Carson Wentz is, and running a sneak with him felt like the wrong call.
You can reach Eliot Shorr-Parks on Twitter at @EliotShorrParks or email him at esp@94wip.com!
