After beating the Houston Texans 29-17, the Eagles are 8-0 for the first time.
In his Houston comeback, quarterback Jalen Hurts was 21-of-27 for 243 yards and two touchdowns for a 128.9 passing rating.
Miles Sanders’ 17 carries for 93 yards and the Eagles’ first score were spectacular.
A.J. Brown scored the third-quarter go-ahead touchdown, while Dallas Goedert led all pass receivers with 100 yards on eight receptions and a touchdown.
Defensive tackle Javon Hargrave sacked Texans quarterback Davis Mills three times, while safety C.J. Gardner-third-quarter Johnson’s interception gave the Eagles the lead and cornerback James Bradberry’s fourth-quarter interception halted any Houston comeback.
Drive-by-drive:
Q1
• Texans start strong. They drove 75 yards in nine plays, and tight end Teagan Quitoriano scored his first career touchdown by outmuscling safety K’Von Wallace to grab Davis Mills’ 2-yard pass. Phillip Dorsett’s 34-yard out-and-up route defeated James Bradberry. Amazing Eagles response. Miles Sanders scored on 4th-and-goal to end an 18-play, 91-yard drive with 1:33 left in the first quarter. Jalen Hurts completed 8-of-12 passes for 76 yards to six receivers. The Eagles won by converting three third downs and the fourth.
C.J. Gardner-safety Johnson’s is K’Von Wallace (UPDATE: Gardner-Johnson returned a short time later). No team injury update. Haason Reddick tackled Dameon Pierce for a short loss, forcing a punt for the Eagles. 3rd-and-6 false start by Laremy Tunsil. On 3rd-and-11, Davis Mills scrambled for 8, but missed the sticks. Eagles gain the ball at their own 20 after the touchback, but improved drive for the defence only allowing one first down. Jalen Hurts fumbles. Hurts was stunned by former Eagle Steven Nelson on a corner blitz after two 53-yard throws to A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith. Texans recovered at 35. The changeover was harmless. After Mills’ play-action bootleg for 14 yards, the defenders settled down. The drive ended when Javon Hargrave sacked Mills on third down.
• Eagles dominate. A 10-play, 79-yard drive finished with a Kenneth Gainwell 4-yard rush up the middle on 3rd-and-goal to give the Eagles their first lead. Gainwell started wide left, motioned into the backfield, and received the handoff to score. Sanders’ two 38-yard runs started the drive. First, a tight end screen to Dallas Goedert on the right side for 15 yards, then a wide receiver screen to Zach Pascal on the left side for 8 yards, keeping the Texans off balance. On the drive’s other third down, Hurts took the snap and ran left instead of a QB sneak. At 4:32, it’s 14-7. The Texans aren’t giving up. Rookie running back Dameon Pierce led a seven-play, 75-yard drive to counter the Eagles’ drive. Texans entered Eagles territory with a 36-yard run. With 37 seconds left in the half, Davis Mills rolled right and threw a 13-yard touchdown pass to Chris Moore. Pierce has 88 yards on 13 runs in the opening two quarters. • The Eagles have been productive in the second quarter this season, so 37 seconds was plenty to get in touchdown range. Jalen Hurts hit Dallas Goedert 21 yards on a zone coverage corner route. Hurts ran 7 yards to set up Jake Elliott for a 54-yard field goal, but Elliott missed wide right. At halftime, it’s 14-14, but the Eagles have the ball.
Q3
> Jerry Hughes beat Jordan Mailata twice for sacks on the first drive of the second half to force a three-and-out. \s| Eagles defence forces another three-and-out. Haason Reddick’s first-down holding penalty ended the drive. Davis Mills spiked the ball on 1st-and-20 under pressure. Josh Sweat tackled Dameon Pierce for a 2-yard loss, making it 3rd-and-22.
• On first down, Miles Sanders found a nice opening for 9 yards, but the Eagles stalled. After Kenneth Gainwell was stoned, Sanders got the first down behind an uneven line with Lane Johnson on the left. But Sanders’ knee was down short of the first down and Houston challenged and won to overturn the ruling. Two Eagles drives, two three-and-outs.
• C.J. Gardner-league-leading Johnson’s sixth interception! On 3rd-and-6, Mills was harassed and forced a deep down the middle, which Gardner-Johnson intercepted for the fourth straight game. • Hurts connects with A.J. Brown for a 17-yard score, his sixth of the season, to capitalise on the turnover. 21-14 with 8:04 left in the third quarter. • The Texans keep coming back. Chris Moore’s 25-yard wide receiver screen. Pierce’s 33 yards and Burkhead’s 9 yards set up Ka’imi Fairbairn’s 30-yard field goal to make it 21-17.
Fourth quarter: Dallas Goedert shines as the Eagles lead 29-17. He grabbed four catches for 41 yards, including a 4-yard touchdown, to make it 29-17 with 11:22 left. Eight receptions for 100 yards for Goedert. After a PAT offsides penalty, the Eagles went for 2 and Hurts scored to give Philadelphia a 12-point lead.
• Javon Hargrave’s second sack of the game ended the Texans’ drive after he was flagged for a roughing the passer penalty. Hargrave has multiple sacks in back-to-back games, playing nose tackle in the fourth quarter as he did with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Jordan Davis remains on Injured Reserve with an ankle ailment. The Eagles get the ball back but go three-and-out as Jerry Hughes almost sacks Lane Johnson for his third sack of the game. Hurts escaped the pressure, but the offence couldn’t add to the advantage. • Javon Hargrave earns the hat trick, sacking Mills for a career-high third time to force a 3rd-and-19 from the 21-yard line. On the following play, Mills pushed the ball to Phillip Dorsett, and CB James Bradberry intercepted it to stop the comeback.
More in Sports: https://buzzing.today/sports/