EAGLES WEEK 2 RECAP

Ask anyone who follows the NFL in 2023 & they will tell you “It’s a passing league” brother. Quarterbacks & Wide Receivers , and subsequently the cornerbacks / safetys who cover them command top dollar in the landscape of NFL contracts.  Yet it was the tried & true, smash mouth, hard nosed, grind it out running game that made the difference in the Eagles victory over the Vikings in South Philadelphia on a beautiful early September evening, to become the 1st undefeated NFL team of the 2023 season. 

 

Vibes were high as we rolled into the lot at The Linc with the smell of BBQ in the air & music blasting from speakers in all directions, Philadelphia was ready to see the Eagles take the field for the first time at home this season. A jam crowd welcomed the hometown heroes with open arms & raucous ovation that has been months in the making. The fans let guest announcer Michael Buffer know that they were indeed ready to rumble.  

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After a slow defensive battle that saw both teams struggle on offense, it was the Eagles who struck first with a 24 yard Jake Elliot field goal. Minnesota answered back with a TD pass to Hokenson with the extra point to go up 7 - 3 Vikings. After more defensive battles & turnover woes, The Eagles battled back to score off a Jalen Hurts “QB Sneak” that isn’t really a sneak when you have one of the best offensive lines in the league combined with the dynamic athlete that Jalen Hurts is , when they have the ball at the 1 yard line, everyone knows what is coming and no one can stop it. Eagles go ahead 10-7 , then follow up with another Jake Elliot field goal , this time from 61 yards (!!!!) to go up 13-7 Eagles up at the half. 

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Last season it was in the 2nd quarter that the Eagles did most of their damage.  On this night it was the 3rd quarter that broke this game wide open for the Birds.  An early sack / fumble from Josh Sweat & Fletcher Cox set up another Jalen Hurts TD from the 1 yard line, with the extra point good from Elliot, it's now 20 to 7 early in the 3rd quarter. That drive was answered by the Vikings going 3 & out and the Eagles following up with a 3 play , scoring drive capped off with a 63 yard completion from Hurts to Devonta Smith to make the score 27-7  after the extra point.  

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Here is where it got ugly, instead of smothering the opposition like a wet blanket, the Eagles let the Vikings battle back for a pair of scores to make the game as close as it would get at 21-27 Eagles.  Instead of letting everything unravel around them, 1st year offensive coordinator Brian Johnson settled into a steady rhythm of D’Andre Swift , the talented running back brought in to help fill the role left by a departing Miles Sanders.  Swift set a new career high with 175 yards rushing on 28 carries with 1 touchdown, along with 3 catches for 6 yards, the most total yards for an Eagles running back since LeSean “Shady” McCoy did it against Detroit in the great “Snow Bowl” of 2013.  

 

With Swift’s TD the Eagles went up 34 to 21 with just over 4 minutes to go in the game. Kirk Cousins & the Vikings were able to answer back with another scoring play to Hokenson, his 2nd on the day, to make the game close at 34 - 28. But it was too little too late. The Eagles got the ball back with under a minute to go , victory formation & that's SKOL she wrote for the crew from Minnesota who were unable to overcome a bunch of turnovers and go home a winner. The Eagles looked far from perfect, they have much room for improvement, but they are doing so by still winning games and can go into an extended break before traveling to Tampa Bay for Monday Night Football on 9/25.