Eagles Vs. Vikings Recap
Birds win and banish Carson from Wentz he came
In 1995, the Grey Wolf was reintroduced to Yellowstone National Park. The wolf population was originally eradicated from Yellowstone in the 1930s, and with their natural predator out of the mix, the elk population skyrocketed. Vegetation struggled to grow because the elk ate it all, beavers lost their food source, and rivers ran dry. The ecosystem was a mess.
But the reintroduction of the Grey Wolf changed everything. The wolf population hunted the elk, which in turn helped vegetation regenerate. The trickle-down effect grew the beaver population, which in turn built more dams that fostered aquatic life. The population of rabbits, bears, hawks, and other wildlife grew along with lush vegetation and bigger trees, which in turn magically restored Yellowstone’s rivers.
Well, much like Yellowstone National Park in the 90s, the Philadelphia Eagles are so back, baby. The wolf, in this instance, is our victory over the Minnesota Vikings. Once again, we are a city of winners. And not only did we win, but the Eagles made sure to give us several things to complain about. Celebrating and airing our grievances is a pastime in the City of Brotherly Love. It’s like Festivus every day. Our ecosystem has course-corrected. Rivers of Bud Light flow stronger than ever.
Through the arm of a career performance by Jalen Hurts, the Eagles beat messy ex-Carson Wentz in the city that Prince built. Jalen had a perfect passer rating, only the third time an Eagles quarterback has had a perfect passer rating in the regular season ever (and as Prince said, “forever is a mighty long time.”) I feel bad for Carson. It’s one thing to see your ex be successful after you broke up. It’s another thing to have to go to dinner with them and lose an arm wrestling match to their new partner.
The Eagles’ all-universe wide receivers AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith enjoyed their best games of the season (and Smith’s best game of his career), combining for 304 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Eagles are 12-0 when both A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith catch a touchdown pass. Despite Kevin Patullo and Nick Sirianni trying their damnedest to ruin the day with poor offensive playcalling, Jalen and the boys kept cooking like Gordon Ramsey yelling at a kitchen full of amateur chefs.
However, the win came at a cost. Cam Jurgens, Azeez Ojulari, Moro Ojomo, and Adoree Jackson, among others, left the game at some point due to injury. Something called a “Brett Toth” came in at center for the Birds and refused to block anyone. The shorthanded defense was tested by a late-game hot streak by Wentz, Jordan Addison, and the Vikings offense. But they managed to hold on.
Despite a strong performance from Hurts and his star wideouts, the Eagles’ offense continued to underperform for large portions of this game. The running game still feels as uninspired as it is unproductive. The playcalling fails to optimize the offense’s talent consistently. Meanwhile, the defense continues to wear down under the weight of carrying this team during long stretches. This wasn’t a perfect performance (unless you’re Jalen Hurts), but it was one the Eagles desperately needed. They responded how a veteran Super Bowl-winning team should. By molding the disappointment of losing into an outstanding sense of urgency.
The Eagles are 1-0 since Kelee Ringo cut off his dreadlocks. They are 5-2 since Jalen Carter spat on Dak Prescott. Nick Sirianni is 9-0 against NFC North teams. They are 9-4 against the Minnesota Vikings since 2001. As the owners of the Vikings, we should be entitled to claim at least half of Minneapolis as our own. We’ll call it North North Philly and open a Chickie’s and Pete’s there.
Next week, the Birds take on the Sigma Kai, AKA the Frat Boy New York Giants, AKA the 2025 cast of the Animal House remake. This is their chance to make up for their loss to the Giants two weeks ago on that fateful day. They have an opportunity to banish their demons (their demons being life-sized Miller High Life Cam Skattebo and CW teen drama star Jaxson Dart). I hope that this is the start of a special run. I hope that momentum wears Kelly Green. I hope that the offense continues to evolve as the schedule gets harder. With the trials and tribulations yet to come, we’ll find out who this team really is. For now, a win will do the trick.
Let’s get to the game recap.
If you stress-watched the game like me, feel free to skip the Game Recap and scroll to Trending Up, Trending Down
GAME RECAP
The Birds started strong. They opened up by getting Saquon involved with a few big runs. Faced with a 4th and 4, Hurts hit Arthur Juan Brown for a big 37-yard touchdown to give the Eagles the lead and lower A.J.’s chances of sending a cryptic postgame text.
It was a different story for Carson and the Vikings’ offense. Their first drive ended in a field goal after a bad snap flew over Wentz’s head in the redzone. On the Vikings’ second drive, Jalyx Hunt intercepted Carson and returned it for a touchdown (we here at Burds of a Feather love a defensive lineman interception). Wentz followed that up by throwing an interception on the following drive to rookie safety Andrew Mukuba after taking a big hit from Jalen Carter. Carter plays football like a combination of Stone Cold Steve Austin and Lawrence Taylor. He is a world destroyer on the field. Wentz never stood a chance.
The Eagles may have had momentum, but much like prior games, their offense stalled out. Starting center Cam Jurgens went out of the game with a knee injury and was replaced by human turnstile Brett Toth. The Eagles couldn’t block the Vikings’ front and left no running room for Saquon Barkley. The Vikings’ offense started gaining momentum as they tightened the Eagles’ lead to 14-6.
Before halftime, the Eagles had 59 seconds to score. Hurts hit DeVonta Smith for a few chunk plays to work down the field. With 34 seconds to go, Hurts was sacked, which kept the clock running. Despite having time to run a few more plays to get into field goal range, Sirianni made the inexplicable decision to let the clock run into halftime. Philly’s offense was down bad.
The Eagles held a tight lead at halftime thanks to Wentz’s relentless brain farts. After halftime, the Vikings drove down the field but were done in by Wentz throwing the ball at the line of scrimmage and drawing an intentional grounding penalty. They kicked a field goal to shorten the lead to 14-9.
Suddenly, the lights came back on for the Birds’ offense. Jalen Hurts tossed a beautiful 79-yard bomb to DeVonta Smith on a play action for a touchdown. It was the longest touchdown reception of DeVonta’s career. Carson Wentz and the Vikings offense answered with a big drive led by TJ Hockenson that ended in a Jordan Mason rushing touchdown to bring the score to 21-16.
Carson Wentz started to get hot and continued to attack the Eagles’ defense with a healthy dose of passes to Jordan Addison. They drove down the field to kick a field goal and bring the score to 21-19.
The Eagles answered with what might be the best drive of the season for Hurts. He scrambled on a 3rd down to complete a beautiful pass to A.J. Brown. He then ended the drive with his second touchdown pass to Brown on the day to bring the score to 28-19. Jordan Addison singlehandedly fried the Eagles’ defense as the Vikings worked their way down the field again. This time, Carson Wentz hit T.J. Hockenson for a diving touchdown reception, but the touchdown was overturned because Hockenson didn’t have full control of the ball when he hit the ground. Minnesota once again had to settle for a field goal to make the game 28-22.
The Eagles got the ball with 1:57 left in the game. After a great return by Xavier Gipson, Jalen Hurts hit A.J. Brown on 3rd and 9 for a huge gain to ice the game and deliver the Eagles the win.
Hurts ended with his first 300-yard passing game since week 3 of 2024. The Vikings gave up 200 yards passing for the first time this season.
TRENDING UP
Jalen Hurts: Jalen Hurts was balling. He was a meteor. He was like the Fresh Prince in that one basketball episode. The reigning Super Bowl MVP put on his best passing display since the Super Bowl and one of the best of his career. He looked confident and in complete control. This was a legacy game for Hurts. One where he showed the capability to elevate a flawed offensive system into the stratosphere. He stared down a ravenous Brian Flores’ defense and put his playmakers in positions to succeed. Hurts looked elite. It’s proof once again that his willpower is his superpower. That he’s at his best under the brightest lights in the biggest moments.
Wide Receiver Happiness: Statistics show this is the first Eagles game without an angsty postgame comment. A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith were like Shaq and Kobe. Brown put up two touchdowns and 121 yards on 4 catches for his best game of the season. Smith had the best game of his CAREER with 9 catches for a monstrous 183 yards and 1 touchdown. It was a huge game for two of the best receivers in the league. And an even better game for sleuths on Twitter trying to dissect A.J. Brown’s comments like the Da Vinci Code. This is the Birds’ offense at its best. We love happy wide receivers!
Play Action Passes: Though the run game is struggling, the Eagles still have one of the best backs in the league in Saquon Barkley. Everyone knows they’re going to try to run the ball. So why not take advantage of that assumption by running more play action to draw the defense in? For the first 6 weeks of the season, the Birds neglected to do that (despite all of us yelling at them). Today, they did, and it resulted in big plays, including the 79-yard touchdown to DeVonta. More play action, please!
Actually Returning Kicks: The Eagles usually return kicks like they’re slipping on a series of banana peels, but that changed today. We saw some great returns by Xavier Gipson and Will Shipley. Things are looking up!
TRENDING DOWN
Injuries: Azeez Ojulari, Cam Jurgens, Adoree Jackson, and Jeremiah Trotter all got hurt and had to leave the game. Even Saquon got dinged up towards the end of this one. The injury bug bit the Birds today.
Running Game: Saquon Barkley and the Eagles’ rushing attack are struggling to get any traction. Throughout this one, the Purple People Eaters were all over the Eagles’ run game like they knew what was going to happen. The reigning Offensive Player of the Year came away with 18 carries for 44 yards, averaging 2.4 yards per carry (big ew!). The passing game carried the Eagles this week, but they still need to find a way to get Barkley on track.
Brett Toth: Nothing good comes after the words “Brett Toth”. After starting center Cam Jurgens left the game due to injury, the backup offensive lineman came into the game and proceeded to block no one. He is allergic to standing in the way of giant men as they try to tackle his quarterback. He’d prefer not to get his jersey dirty. He plays in slow motion. Toth has come in a few times thus far in the season, and every time he underwhelms. He fails to whelm. The Birds need to look for other solutions. Just say no to Brett Toth.
Cornerback 2: Kelee Ringo may have got a fade, but he damn sure can’t defend one. Last week, I wrote how the second cornerback spot could bite the Eagles in the ass against teams with multiple talented wide receivers. This week, it came to fruition with a healthy dose of Jordan Addison as he tore a hole through the Eagles’ defense. I don’t know what the solution is here aside from trading for a cornerback or holding on for dear life.
Kevin Patullo: This is a rare game where your quarterback and wide receivers play perfectly, but you’re still pissed at the offensive coordinator. Per usual, Patullo has his moments of excellence. But the Birds’ offense was once again stagnant for long portions of this one, which almost allowed Carson Yucks and the Vikings to get back into this game. Going into halftime, the Eagles were stopped on three straight drives. Their first 3rd down conversion came at the end of the third quarter. Patullo tried different things by going under center more and working in play action, both of which had a positive impact. Still, he struggles to adjust to defensive changes and stack good drives. Great win, but the offense still needs a lot of work.
HOT TAKES
The Vikings should start Carson Wentz for the rest of the season. Now listen, Carson Wentz is not a good quarterback. He plays like Brett Favre and Nathan Peterman are fighting over the controller. He plays like the quarterbacking chip in his hardware malfunctions every 15 minutes. But the highs of the Carson Wentz experience are addicting. He nearly brought this team back from the brink with a mix of mobility and awe-inspiring passes (although being at the brink in the first place was caused by his own decisions). Wentz is still capable of tapping into that magic between trainwrecks. J.J. McCarthy has shown that he’s got the goods but still has some developing to do. This is a team that’s ready to win now. So maybe taking a ride on the Wentz Wagon is the best course of action. Although Kevin O’Connell did look like a broken man during this one. I mean, just look at him. Maybe the nausea caused by the Wentz Wagon isn’t for him.
Saquon Barkley has some of the greatest 3-yard runs in the history of the NFL. There were a few moments in this game where the defense had Barkley stopped at or behind the line of scrimmage. It’s like when Spider-Man was in a pinch against a supervillain. How is he going to get out of this one? But with great power comes great responsibility. Barkley tapped into his elite vision and spun out of a would-be tackle to turn a projected loss into a modest gain. The Eagles’ running game is on fire in a bad way. Barkley has yet to gain 100 yards from scrimmage 7 weeks into the season. The blocking hasn’t been there, and the playcalling and offensive line injuries aren’t helping. Here’s hoping the Birds get the running game back on track because they’re going to need it. Until then, I’ll continue to freak out about Saquon dropping defenders for 2-yard gains.
*Takes deep breath* I think Nick Sirianni and Kevin Patullo are too dependent on the Tush Push. I want to start by saying I’m a tush push fan. It is unstoppable. It’s the most effective play in the league, and only the Eagles can do it well. For people saying it’s a non-football play, it’s literally the only play they did in football when dudes were wearing leather helmets. But sometimes, the Eagles halt their own momentum on 3rd downs by running plays that aim to get them to 4th and short instead of getting them a 1st down. It happens every week. Hurts will make the correct read to Dallas Goedert or DeVonta Smith, where they catch a crossing route 3 yards short of the sticks. Or they’ll run a cowards draw with Saquon Barkley on 3rd down to get close to a first. Patullo and Sirianni know that on 4th and short, they can run a tush push and get the first. But that’s not always going to be the case. I’d rather see them stay aggressive on 3rd down and hit route combinations past the first down marker instead of short of it.
THINGS ONLY I CARE ABOUT
Will Reichard, I’ve seen you somewhere before: You’re not fooling me, Will Reichard. The Vikings kicker thought I wouldn’t recognize that he had a past life as Randall in the show Recess.
Justin Jefferson Dripping in Diamonds: I’ve never seen a wide receiver wear as many diamonds on the field as Justin Jefferson. The nerve. The moxie. No one else can pull this off aside from Justin Jefferson. They look natural. If he weren’t wearing them, it would feel weird. Part of the reason he’s so effective is that the shine from the diamonds blinds his defender. It’s all a part of the strategy.
Rob Gronkowski Doing Commentary: We as a culture love Gronk. He spikes things. He makes funny jokes. He’s a guy you want to do a case race with. He’s your buddy who draws things on people’s faces when they pass out at parties. Gronk fun. Gronk not a commentator. They decided to throw Gronk in a suit and have him talk ball with Howie Long, Terry Bradshaw, Mike Strahan, and crew. But we don’t want Gronk like that. I don’t want to know what Gronk thinks about the structure of the Miami Dolphins’ offense. They need a segment on that postgame show where it’s just Gronk spiking cans of beer for 10 minutes. Now that’s television. Free Gronk!
You had me at “from Wentz he came”!