The Eagles left Tennessee with a 24-20 win, but the film from this one doesn’t exactly scream “clean escape.” Philadelphia got to 2-0 thanks to Jalen Hurts, who fought through two interceptions and then authored a late drive for the kind of finish teams remember. Hurts is now the first Eagles quarterback with a game-winning touchdown pass in the final 10 seconds since Nick Foles in 2012, and the Eagles have won 70.2% of his starts as the starter.
That final sequence can’t cover up everything else, though. The Eagles spent most of the afternoon dealing with self-inflicted problems, and the offensive line was right in the middle of them.
The most jarring move came up front, where the Eagles slid Cam Jurgens to left guard and Drew Kendall to center. It created two new openings on the line, and the results were rough.
Jurgens was beaten six times in 43 pass-blocking snaps, a 14.0% beat rate, and one of those losses led directly to Hurts’ second interception. He also gave up three pressures for a 7.0% pressure rate.
Kendall, making his first game at center, allowed two pressures and a 4.7% pressure rate allowed per dropback.
The ripple effect hit Jordan Mailata too. The left tackle gave up three pressures and a 7.0% pressure rate, and the whole left side looked affected once those two changes were in place.
Jurgens and Kendall did manage to keep Hurts clean on the final drive, but that was about the only comforting part of the afternoon for that unit. If this is the new normal, the Eagles have a real problem.
Tight end is looking shaky too, and the issue got even louder when Dallas Goedert went out with a knee injury and didn’t return. Johnny Mundt became the TE1, E.J.
Jenkins moved up as the TE2, and the production was thin. Jenkins played 23 snaps and wasn’t targeted in the passing game.
Mundt was on the field for 46 of 72 snaps and finished with two catches for 8 yards. He also didn’t offer much as a blocker.
The Eagles tried to build depth here, banking on Eli Stowers becoming the TE2 and a pass-game asset, but that never came together over the summer and Stowers eventually landed on injured reserve. If Goedert isn’t back for Week 3, this is the spot that has to be addressed.
The Eagles need a pass catcher, and the source of that answer is obvious: Zach Ertz. There’s an open roster spot, and the Eagles need to use it on Ertz.
The run game didn’t help much either, and losing Saquon Barkley on the first carry only made it worse. Barkley was questionable to return with a stinger, came back in the second half, and then left again.
Tank Bigsby finished with 13 carries for 33 yards, a 2.5-yard average, while Will Shipley added seven carries for 24 yards at 3.4 per carry. The one truly effective run came on a reverse to Hollywood Brown, who had two carries for 12 yards.
As a group, the backs totaled 24 carries for 66 yards, or 2.8 yards per carry. The Eagles are averaging 0.63 yards before contact per rush, which ranks 27th in the NFL.
Against Tennessee, they had 15 carries for 47 yards when running left or middle, a 3.1-yard average. That’s not enough to survive with the blocking they’re getting.
The bright spot is at receiver, where DeVonta Smith and Dontayvion Wicks are giving Philadelphia a real one-two punch. Smith was the star of the day, making one highlight catch after another and finishing with 10 receptions for 117 yards and a touchdown. His 19-yard catch on 3rd-and-6 with 22 seconds left set up Hurts’ winning touchdown pass.
Wicks kept coming through on the money downs. He caught five passes for 74 yards, and every one of those grabs came on third or fourth down.
His 20-yard catch on 3rd-and-6 with 1:48 left jump-started the winning drive. Through two games, Hurts has a 145.8 passer rating when targeting Wicks, and that connection is clearly making life easier for Smith.
On defense, the Eagles are doing enough to keep games in reach, even if the group isn’t close to perfect yet. They’re allowing 21.0 points per game through two weeks and have held opponents under 300 yards in each of the first two games for the first time since 1995.
Still, there are warning signs. The 3rd-and-22 play that turned into a 27-yard Tyjae Spears run was inexcusable, and the defense has already been worn down late while also giving up a significant red-zone play in each of the first two weeks.
The pass rush has shown flashes, even if the sack total sits at 3.0 through two games. Jalyx Hunt posted a 17.6% pressure rate against Tennessee, and Nolan Smith added an 11.1% pressure rate and a sack.
Cooper DeJean bounced back in coverage, holding Cam Ward to 1-of-2 for 5 yards when targeted. Quinyon Mitchell and Tariq Woolen have been nearly impossible to attack at outside cornerback.
But there are still issues in coverage, especially with Jihaad Campbell being targeted often. Tackling has been sloppy at times, run fits haven’t always been clean, and the defense still hasn’t forced a turnover through two games.
The unit is good, and it should improve, but it isn’t firing on all cylinders yet. Maybe that changes when Jonathan Greenard comes back.
For now, though, the defense is doing the most important thing: hanging around long enough for Hurts to finish the job late.
In Other News...
Eagles Suddenly Have A Dallas Goedert Problem They Can't Ignore
Saquon Barkleys stinger against the Titans looked like the kind of in-game scare the Eagles could absorb, especially with early signs pointing to him being fine. The tighter concern came from the same game, where Dallas Goedert left with a knee injury and never returned, creating a far more complicated problem for an offense that leans on him as a reliable middle-of-the-field option.
The exact severity is still unclear, with outside medical projections ranging from an MCL sprain to a meniscus issue, and the uncertainty is what makes this linger. Philadelphia is already dealing with injury strain at tight end, so whether the answer comes from the current room or from outside help, the Eagles may soon have to decide how aggressively they want to reinforce the position. [Read more 🡒]
Jalen Hurts Had A Message After An Eagles Win Titans Fans Wont Like
Jeffery Simmons made it clear before kickoff that Tennessees plan was to keep Jalen Hurts from escaping the pocket and to cut off his running lanes, and for much of the day the Titans did enough of that to make life uncomfortable. Hurts was under pressure and sacked three times, but the Eagles kept hanging around, and when the game tightened late, the quarterback had one more answer left.
With the outcome in the balance, Hurts guided a 65-yard drive in the final two minutes and finished it with a touchdown pass to Darius Cooper to seal a 24-20 win. The comeback left Philadelphia at 2-0, and Hurts postgame message was the kind Titans fans probably did not want to hear after all that talk about containing him. [Read more 🡒]
Eagles Face An Early Test Chicago Could Complicate Fast
The Eagles are off to a 2-0 start and now head into a Week 3 matchup with the Bears in a spot that looks favorable on paper but carries a few wrinkles. Chicagos quarterback situation is unsettled after Caleb Williams suffered a hamstring injury, and backup Tyson Bagent may be the one lining up against Philadelphia if Williams cannot go. Even with the Eagles favored by 3.5 points, this has the feel of an early-season checkpoint for a team still trying to sharpen itself.
Philadelphia has not covered the spread in either of its first two games, so a clean win would do more than keep the record perfect. It would also help answer some of the questions that have lingered through the opening stretch, particularly on defense, where a return from Jonathan Greenard could give the group a timely lift. For an Eagles team trying to separate itself from the pack, this is the kind of game that can either calm the early noise or keep a few concerns hanging around. [Read more 🡒]