Eagles vs. Packers Recap

Jaelan Phillips is a mad man and Matt LaFleur is just plain mad

Sometimes in football, we can confuse a shootout for a heavyweight fight. A shootout is pure electricity. It’s a transfer of energy between two high-powered offenses whose output could light an entire city. It’s unbridled explosiveness whose only limitation is time itself.

Then there are heavyweight fights. Unstoppable force meets immovable object-type shit. An exchange of jabs and right hooks that transforms the faces of both fighters into California raisins. It’s messy, sloppy defensive dominance. It’s 1950s NFL-coded. Two teams that rarely bend and even more rarely allow themselves to break. It’s what Vic Fangio dreams about at night. It’s Rocky going 15 rounds with Apollo Creed. It’s Ali versus Frazier if they decided to wrestle halfway through. It’s the Rock versus Stone Cold Steve Austin if the ring were made of quicksand.

Last night, the Eagles and Packers were entrenched in that very muck as both teams brawled for positioning at the top of the NFC standings. The Packers hadn’t beaten the Eagles since 2020, losing four straight matchups, including in last year’s playoffs. A hungry but beaten-down Packers team, coming off a loss to the Carolina Panthers, was looking to set their season right against a well-rested Eagles team coming off their bye.

Unfortunately for both offenses, this night belonged to the defense. In the cold of Lambeau Field, the opposing offenses were as ineffective as Leonardo DiCaprio facing off against that bear in The Revenant. Top 10 quarterbacks Jordan Love and Jalen Hurts were neutralized for most of this game while superstar backs Saquon Barkley and Josh Jacobs struggled to find running room.

This game went into the half tied at 0-0, the first scoreless half of NFL football in nearly two years, according to Joe Buck (and that’s in a league that includes the Cleveland Browns and the New York Giants), with fumbles by both star quarterbacks. But in the second half, the Eagles’ offensive talent rose above their inadequate playcalling to make just enough plays to put this weird game to bed, thanks to a field goal by Jake Elliot and DeVonta Smith touchdown catch that required him to temporarily shatter the laws of physics.

This game was won by a relentless Eagles defensive line, reinvigorated by the return of Nolan Smith, the unretirement “How Stella Got Her Groove Back”-ing of Brandon Graham, a finally healthy Jalen Carter, the continued rise of Jalyx Hunt, and primarily the acquisition of Jaelan Phillips. Phillips, namely, was a supernova. He was a human torch, burning everything in front of him. Being an Eagle for the shortest amount of time, Phillips made the largest impact with a game-high 7 pressures. He’s singlehandedly elevated the potential of a Vic Fangio unit that already carried this team at times throughout the season.

Unfortunately for the Packers, Jordan Love could not compute. The quarterback/maybe robot malfunctioned in the winds of Lambeau Field. Fangio’s defense made the Packers look the complete opposite of Matt LaFleur’s haircut, messy and unkempt.

Credit to Jeff Hafley (aka a man who most likely doesn’t know what it feels like to smile) and the Packers defense. Micah Parsons was inevitable, affecting every offensive play he stood across. His sheer presence shifted the course of the Eagles’ offense like the moons of Jupiter.

As for the Eagles’ offense, Kevin Patullo continued his bad habit of being in his bag before seemingly losing the bag entirely. Against a top Green Bay unit, Patullo and Sirianni once again forgot they have superstar wide receivers. They sought to establish the run with Barkley when the run wasn’t there to be established. After the first quarter, superstar wide receiver A.J. Brown wasn’t targeted again until the fourth quarter. If the Eagles faced the Giants every week, Kevin Patullo would be a top head coaching candidate. Unfortunately, we do not live in that sweet, sweet reality.

The Eagles’ offense is once again a question mark bailed out by the exclamation point that is Vic Fangio’s defense. Next week, the Eagles face a tough Detroit Lions team that sits 3rd in the NFC rankings. Despite being the #1 seed in the NFC, the Birds are a team that continues to lack consistency. Then again, if the only constant is winning, what does it matter? Winning ugly is a necessity in a league beaming with talent. But there is a fine line between winning ugly and not winning at all. And being an Eagles fan is living in fear that the scale will always tip in the other direction, and wondering if winning ugly is required when you have the best offensive talent in the league. This Eagles team continues to prove they can win however they want. Over the next few weeks, we’ll see how far that can take them.

(feel free to skip the game recap and check out “trending up, trending down” if you stayed up to watch this slop like me)

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GAME RECAP

The first half of this game can best be described as pure slop. Lumpy oatmeal. Big time muck. The Packers got the ball first and got running back Josh Jacobs involved early in the running and passing game. After converting a 4th down on a quarterback sneak, the Packers’ offensive momentum halted after Jalyx Hunt sacked Jordan Love. The Eagles forced the Packers off the field after a pass defensed on 3rd and 20 by star cornerback Quinyon Mitchell.

On the Birds’ first possession, they crafted a drive that was reminiscent of some of their most dominant games in 2024. They methodically marched their way down the field converting 3rd down after 3rd down on their way to the redzone. After driving down to Green Bay’s 26-yard line, Patullo called Jalen Hurts’ number on a beautifully designed quarterback draw. Hurts gained the first down, but unfortunately, Packers linebacker Edgerrin Cooper punched the ball out of his arms to force the fumble recovered by Packers safety Xavier McKinney. The Eagles had a league-low three turnovers at that point. Their 16-play 77-yard drive took 8:46 and resulted in zero points.

After that moment, offensive production from both teams was few and far between. Love continued to struggle with pressure from Jaelan Phillips and the Eagles’ surging defensive line, and Hurts failed to decipher the Green Bay secondary.

On the Eagles’ 4th drive, Lane Johnson left the field with an apparent ankle injury, limping off the field with a look of immense pain. After a Jordan Mailata false start and a big Saquon Barkley run that was negated by a Brett Toth holding penalty, the Birds were forced to punt again. A great punt by Braden Mann that pinned Green Bay within their 10-yard line was negated by a Kelee Ringo hold that forced the Eagles to re-kick. Mann shanked the second kick that landed at the Packers’ 33-yard line (a 25-yard difference from the initial kick).

The Packers used the field position to their advantage to drive the ball down the field with 1:54 left before the half. After getting into the redzone primed to score before the half, Jordan Love was sacked by Nolan Smith on 1st and 10. On the next play, Love fumbled the ball while being sacked by Eagles linebacker Nakobe Dean which Jaelen Phillips recovered. The game was tied at halftime with a score of 0-0. Hurts and Love both threw for under 50 yards in the half, and each QB had a fumble.

Coming out of the half, the Birds caught a little momentum. Barkley ran for 7 yards on the first play of the half. Hurts then hit Dallas Goedert for a 22-yard gain. After a big stop by Packers linebacker Quay Walker on Tank Bigsby to force a 3rd and 7 and an Eagles delay of game to make it 3rd and 12, the Eagles settled for a field goal and the first points of the game to go up 3-0.

The Packers responded. Love delivered a 20-yard pass to Christian Watson, but the drive was halted when Jalyx Hunt took down Josh Jacobs for a 4-yard loss. On 3rd and 9, Love hit a diving Romeo Doubs for a first down, but Doubs couldn’t hold on to make the catch. After missing a 4th and 9 throw to Packers wide receiver Bo Melton thanks to pressure by Jaelan Phillips, the Packers turned the ball over on downs.

Early in the fourth quarter, Hurts dumped the ball to Barkley, who hit a spin move on Carrington Valentine that may have banished him to the shadow realm, before taking it for a 41-yard gain. On the ensuing play, Hurts hit DeVonta Smith for a 36-yard touchdown pass in which Smith levitated over Packers safety Evan Williams to rip the ball from the sky, bringing the Eagles up 10-0. 77 yards and two plays.

The Packers worked their way down the field thanks in part to a Jihaad Campbell pass interference on Packers tight end Luke Musgrave that gave Green Bay the ball in the redzone. Packers running back Josh Jacobs took a goal-line carry through 4 defenders to score the Packers’ first points of the game and tighten the score to 10-7.

After forcing the Eagles to punt, Green Bay had the ball and a chance to tie with 2:18 left in the game. Unfortunately, the pass rush was all over Love. Nolan Smith forced a bad ball on a 2nd and 10 before Love hit Luke Musgrave to make it a 4th and 1. With the game on the line, the Packers handed the ball to Josh Jacobs, who fumbled on a Jaelan Phillips tackle.

Then things got weird. The Eagles ran the ball to bring the clock down to 33 seconds. On 4th and 6 at the Green Bay 35, instead of punting, the Eagles decided to go for it and called a deep shot to A.J. Brown, which Carrington Valentine deflected. That decision gave Green Bay the ball back at their 35, just needing to get into field goal range. Green Bay drove just enough to attempt a 64-yard field goal by Brandon McManus, which unfortunately fell short. Eagles win.

TRENDING UP

• Jaelan Phillips: Jaelan Phillips is on demon time. He is the unstoppable force and the immovable object. In his first game in green, white, and black, Phillips had a game-high 7 pressures and a team-high 6 run stops, according to Warren Sharp. He passed the eye test, hounding Jordan Love all game and making key tackles on running back Josh Jacobs. Phillips singehandedly transforms this defense, pouring gas on a pass rush that’s starting to get hot. He is the missing piece. The ultimate disrupter. Thank god for Howie Roseman.

• Eagles Defensive Line: We saw big games across the defensive line, including pressures from Moro Ojomo, sacks from Nolan Smith and Jalyx Hunt, and even a savvy play by Brandon Graham on a trick jet sweep play by Packers wide receiver Savion Williams. Somewhere, Vic Fangio is crying tears of joy.

• Being Talented: Who needs innovative offensive playcalling when you have the best roster in the league? The Eagles’ talent level continues to set them apart in these rough-and-tumble brawls. Big plays by Saquon Barkley and DeVonta Smith solidified this win for the Birds. Both plays required them to do something incredible outside of the offensive scheme. Most times, the Eagles’ offense feels like a superhero movie or a Dragonball Z episode. When their backs are against the wall, they remember how talented they are and win in the end. When you have that level of talent, it’s hard to lose.

TRENDING DOWN

• Coaching Decisions: Somewhere on the way to Wisconsin, Nick Sirianni lost his damn mind. With a little over 2 minutes in the game, Sirianni tried to run a 3rd down play-action pass with Hurts instead on a 3rd and 8 that fell incomplete and stopped the clock for Green Bay. Green Bay had two timeouts at the time, and now they also had the 2-minute warning. With the game in hand, Sirianni then decided to go for it on a 4th and 6 at Green Bay’s 35, dialing up a deep shot to A.J. Brown instead of punting. That left the Packers in position to gain 30 yards to get in field goal range. Sirianni’s game management fluctuates, as does his aggression. In what was a very conservative game for Sirianni, breaking character with the game on the line feels reckless and unnecessary. Luckily, Vic Fangio made sure Sirianni did not have to pay for his sins. But if that went the other way and the Packers eeked out a win, fans would be calling for Sirianni’s head.

• Offense: Before the widespread availability of color TVs and the invention of fantasy football, and TikTok, the Philadelphia Eagles defeated the Green Bay Packers in the 1960 NFL Championship 17-13. Green Bay’s Hall-of-Fame quarterback Bart Starr threw for 178 yards and a touchdown, while Philadelphia’s Hall of Fame quarterback Norm Van Brocklin threw for 204 and a touchdown. Both had better games than their modern-day counterparts. Jalen Hurts threw for 183 and a touchdown, and Love threw for 176.

• Kevin Patullo…again: For most of the season, we’ve talked about Kevin Patullo and his struggles. But in games against Minnesota and New York, Patullo seemed to adjust and finally find his footing. Unfortunately in this game, we got another dose of early-season Patullo. There was over-reliance on the run and an inability to get A.J. Brown involved. How you can’t dial up plays for your superstar wide receiver is beyond me. Brown finished with 2 catches for 13 yards. His sheer height advantage against 5’10” Packers cornerback Keisean Nixon should’ve been tested. There’s a severe lack of aggression that prevents the Eagles from being their best selves. We have yet to see Patullo call a great game against a true top-10 defense. Let’s hope next week against Detroit is a first.

• A.J. Brown’s Patience: See above. If I were A.J., I’d be doing situps in my driveway and holding a press conference by the end of the day.

• Discipline: Penalties played a major role in halting the Eagles’ progress in this game. Jordan Mailata had multiple false start calls. A hold by Brett Toth negated a huge Saquon Barkley run in the first half. Cooper DeJean was called for two defensive holding calls (that luckily didn’t count because the Packers got yardage the old-fashioned way). Jihaad Campbell got called for pass interference on a late drive that led to a Packers touchdown. Not the discipline you want to see out of a team coming off a bye week.

• The Rest of the NFC East: Despite the above, the Birds still beat a top team in the league. As for the rest of the NFC East, they are down the baddest. The Giants fired hotheaded mall Santa Brian Daboll (which…about time) and lost quarterback Jaxson Dart to a concussion. The Commanders were dismantled by the Detroit Lions as quarterback Jayden Daniels and the rest of their team continue to recover from injuries. The Eagles have a comfortable lead in the NFC East and may be the first back-to-back NFC East Champions since…the Eagles in 2004 (knock on wood). It’s a nice reminder that, as bad as it gets, it can always be worse.

Hot Takes

• Jerry Jones fears two things: the inevitable passage of time and Howie Roseman. Jerry Jones fancies himself a fearless man. He stands in front of journalists and proclaims so over and over. He makes the tough calls, like trading Micah Parsons for a 30-year-old defensive tackle and a late first-round pick. He operates with the urgency and bitterness of an 83-year-old man trying not only to leave a legacy but to see that legacy come to fruition. On Sunday, Adam Schefter reported that Jerry Jones put in a poison pill in the Micah Parsons trade. If Green Bay traded Parsons to Philadelphia, they would owe Dallas a 2028 first-round pick. This confirms that rent is free in the mind of Jerry Jones for Howie Roseman. Jones fears Howie Roseman more than the Grim Reaper himself. Both operate with an inevitability and an air of chaos. Howie is the NFL boogie man. He strikes fear in the hearts of old white men trying to put their oil money to good use. When Jones lies in bed at night, visions of Micah Parsons in midnight green shake him awake in a cold sweat. He thinks of the Dallas Cowboys first and the Philadelphia Eagles as a close second. Jones, like the rest of us, knows that Howie will find a way to get his man. It’s as guaranteed as the passage of time.

  

Things Only I Care About

• Head Coach Haircut Rankings: The over-under on how many times Matt LaFleur gets his haircut a week is 7. How he has time to coach a team while getting a tight fade that often is beyond me. But that begs the question: is LaFleur #1 in the head coach haircut rankings? Luckily, NFL coaching does not reside in the beauty industry. LaFleur is a distant #1 with DeMeco Ryans coming in at 2nd (and he’s bald). Stay tuned for more head coach haircut rankings, the hard-hitting news you’re here for.