The darkest times can require the brightest moments. Moments that need heroes. Those built to both accept the reality of their situation and command it. Ignoring time and odds and probability to meet that moment. Think Batman in Batman Returns. Or Batman in The Dark Knight. Or…uh…Batman in the Robert Pattinson one. On a 100-degree day in Tennessee, the Philadelphia Eagles needed heroes.
The Eagles honky-tonked into Nashville to take on a downtrodden Titans team on what felt like the surface of the sun (or, as Nick Sirianni poetically described it, “hot as shit”). This is a Titans team that hired two bald former flameout New York head coaches to turn around their fortunes.
If you’ve never been to Nashville, it’s best described as a town whose main mode of transportation is a Pedal Pub driven by bachelorettes that blasts Party In The U.S.A. Eagles fans took over the city, making Nissan Stadium feel like a home game. You could hear an EAGLES chant with such clarity it felt like someone was yelling it directly into your ear.
In what should’ve been a blowout against the Titans (a team named the exact opposite of how they’ve performed on the field in recent history), the Eagles instead opted for a close game (side note: You don’t usually see the words “close game” paired with the words “Tennessee Titans.” Much like you don’t see Tennessee Titans paired with the words “winning” or “I want to watch”).
The Eagles celebrated Halloween early by going full Jekyll and Hyde. After a 15-play, 64-yard opening drive that brought the Birds inside of the red zone, Jalen Hurts threw an interception to Titans safety Amani Hooker, who returned it for 92 yards. A few plays later, Cam Ward snuck the ball into the end zone to give the Titans the lead at 7-0. A backbreaking decision by Hurts and one this team could not afford so early in the game.
But in response, the Eagles’ offense did this thing they do sometimes where they flash their potential. Like a really good first date or getting 3 of 4 numbers right on a scratch-off ticket. Hurts responded by completing his next 12 passes. Saquon Barkley left early with a stinger, but Tank Bigsby took the reins and made the most of his opportunities, often running through hordes of defenders to nail down extra yardage and scoring his first touchdown of the season. The Birds had their next two drives go over 10 plays and scored touchdowns on each one.
The passing game was electric. Hurts navigated endless pressure in the pocket to dice up Tennessee’s secondary, including a beautiful 22-yard touchdown pass to DeVonta Smith (Wide Receiver 1 on the depth chart and in our hearts). The Eagles dominated time of possession in the first half, holding the ball for 22 minutes, which is the approximate length of that Fresh Prince episode where Uncle Phil takes on those pool sharks.
The defense held Cam Ward and Tennessee’s offense down like a smooth shot of whiskey. But before halftime things changed. Ward and the offense used two explosive plays to get into field goal range and sneak points before the halftime bell.
There’s hell and then there’s the Philadelphia Eagles in the third quarter. Momentum shifted. Philadelphia’s offensive line blocked as well as toilet paper trying to stop a rocket. Hurts was under constant pressure, the running game crumbled, and the offense was immobile. Titans All-World defensive Tackle Jeffrey Simmons delivered relentless pressure that collapsed Philadelphia’s paper-mache offensive line and limited the offense.
Meanwhile, Tennessee’s offense punished an exhausted Eagles defense in the run game and with timely downfield throws to Calvin Ridley and Elic Ayomanor. The combination of Tyjae Spears and Tony Pollard (who I will be calling Tony Poultry because it’s funny to me) ripped off chunk runs. The Titans tied the game at 17 a piece with a Cam Ward scramble to the end zone. Towards the end of the 4th quarter, thanks to a 27 yard run by Tyjae Spears on a 3rd and 22, the Titans scored the go-ahead field goal to make it 20-17.
The Birds had 2:25 to go to exorcise their demons against Tennessee, a team they haven’t beaten on the road since the ‘90s. But heroes don’t panic. Jalen Hurts took the field and slowed down time. With his favorite crunch-time target Dallas Goedert out of the game due to injury, no running game to be seen, and relentless pressure, Jalen Hurts added another line to the legend.
And he did so by trusting in DeVonta Smith. The two synced up to work the Eagles down the field. Hurts hit Smith for a 22-yard pass on a 3rd and 6. And later hit Smith again for an insane 19-yard catch on another 3rd and 6. With 9 seconds to go, Hurts took the snap and found training camp hero Darius Cooper for a 3-yard touchdown pass. Ball game Birds.
On a day where the heat was as relentless as the pass rush. Where nothing was going well. The Philadelphia Eagles still found a way. Jalen Hurts still found a way. Oftentimes, NFL analysts don’t like to qualify winning as a skill. It’s hard to measure on an individual level. But at some point you need to take out your crystals and believe in the cosmic. That some people possess the innate ability to absorb the pressure around them. That some combination of nature and nurture can condition someone to turn the impossible into the inevitable. They say pressure makes diamonds, but Jalen Hurts has been shining for a long time. If doing what it takes to win is an art form, Jalen Hurts is Picasso.
The Eagles have a lot to clean up before a stretch against the Chicago Bears, Los Angeles Rams, and Jacksonville Jaguars. But for now we’re fortunate to come out of Music City with a W.
TRENDING UP
QB1: Jeffrey Simmons said the Titans needed to make Jalen Hurts a quarterback to win, and Hurts obliged. Jalen was dynamic in this one. To respond to an opening drive near-pick 6 by completing 12 straight passes shows his mental fortitude. He navigated the pocket well and delivered an iconic game-winning drive. Send this tape to Dan Orlovsky, the dude who claimed that Justin Herbert plays “the way it should look” and Jalen Hurts doesn’t. The same Justin Herbert who lost to both the Cardinals and Raiders at home.
WR1: If there was any question that DeVonta Smith could fill the void left by A.J. Brown, it’s been more than answered. On a day where the offense struggled, Smith reeled in 10 catches for 117 yards and a touchdown, including two 15+ yard catches on the final drive, each more impressive than the last.
Darius Cooper: Cooper caught the game-winning touchdown which was the first of his professional career. A player who’s been getting shine all offseason is finally blossoming.
First Half Dontayvion Wicks: First half Dontayvion Wicks is Marvin Harrison. Or Jerry Rice. Or Anquan Boldin. Or Clark Kent. Wicks was a first-down machine, catching big passes when Hurts needed him most. Wicks is quickly becoming a favorite target of Hurts. Now we just need that to translate to the rest of the game.
Tank Time: I’ve been beating the drum for Tank Bigsby to get more carries for a long time. With Saquon Barkley leaving the game, we finally got a taste of Tank Time. Bigsby’s 13 carries for 33 yards don’t look impressive, but the way he ran did. He received little to no blocking from the Eagles offensive line and frequently ran through defenders to squeak out extra yardage, resulting in a touchdown on the Eagles second drive of the game. Let Tank spin!
TRENDING DOWN
Paper-Mache Offensive Line: I mentioned last week how the Eagles offensive line will take some time to come along. They’re learning a new scheme and in this one swapped two positions on the interior of the line with second-year man Drew Kendall at center and Cam Jurgens switching to left guard. But this week, the line was abysmal. The integrity of the inside of the line collapsed which made All-Pro tackles Jordan Mailata and Lane Johnson look bad. They couldn’t stop pressure from Jeffrey Simmons and the Titans front seven all day. They made no room for the Eagles running game. What was the strength of this team is its greatest weakness, with pretty much the same personnel. Cam Jurgens, especially, looked rough at left guard. I don’t know the answer here other than hoping that with time they can get their sea legs. New offensive line coach Chris Kuper was booted from Minnesota after last season because he didn’t have any answers when their line fell apart due to injuries. We don’t know if he can be trusted to fix this thing. Without a strong line, this Eagles offense is dead in the water.
Run Defense: This week they allowed a combination of Tony Poultry and Tyjae Spears to run for over 100 yards on Fangio’s defense, with most of those coming in key game situations. I’m willing to forgive given the heat index on this one, but in the first two weeks of the season the Eagles defense has been unable to stop the run game in key moments.
Eagles in the Third Quarter: The worst third quarter team last season struck again. Today, the Eagles went 3-and-out twice in the third quarter while also coming away with a field goal. This team continues to struggle after halftime, forcing them to rely on late game heroics to churn out a win. It’s a trend that doomed the Eagles last season and could impact them again this season.
Early Down Eagles: The Eagles are a very bad early down offense. This stat from SumerSports says it all.
HOT TAKES
This Team is in Desperate Need of Jonathan Greenard: Though the Birds came away with two sacks in this one, including a timely sack by Jalen Carter at the end of the game, the pass rush hasn’t been the most inspiring these past two weeks. Jalyx Hunt has yet to take the leap we all expected and none of the Eagles depth pieces have flashed. The Eagles need a finisher. Someone who can take advantage of the double teams on the interior and hit the quarterback. Someone like…Jonathan Greenard. Once Greenard gets back it could take him a bit to get up to speed, but this is an Eagles defense that is struggling to create pressure without some juice from him.
I Would Have Kept Cam Jurgens at Center: Shout out to Drew Kendall for coming into a hostile situation in his first NFL game and keeping the offense on track on the game-winning drive. But Jurgens absolutely struggled at left guard. Granted he was going up against Jeffrey Simmons who stays on demon time. But in the long run, I think you cap the potential of the whole front by shifting a potential All-Pro center to another position rather than finding a new left guard. Hopefully Jurgens and the whole line can get up to speed, but this feels like an unnecessary risk for me.
Playing in the Heat is the Worst Weather: The beauty of football is in sometimes getting kicked in the teeth by the weather. But I am of the belief that playing in sweltering heat is the worst. Cam Jurgens mentioned that players had their cleats melting during the game. In the heat, there’s really nothing you can do. I can barely walk to my car in the heat. Imagine getting hit by a 300 lb man. Snowstorm? They have gear to keep you warm. Rainstorm? They have gear to keep you dry. But in the heat? You’re fucked.
THINGS ONLY I CARE ABOUT
Drew Brees. Beloved QB. Bad Commentator: Dear Drew, you don’t have to do this. You had a great career. Why don’t you open a car dealership or coach at a DIII college? Did you think it was good analysis when you said that Jalen Hurts should lower his shoulder and fight two yards for a first down in the first quarter? Did you really mean it when you said there is no better route runner in the NFL than Calvin Ridley? Have you even been watching the game? Go live your life. Be free of Sundays. Cut a ribbon on a new parking complex or run for office, I don’t know man anything but this.
Robert Saleh is Top Bald Man: If you are concerned about male pattern baldness I want you to look at Robert Saleh. The man has a perfectly symmetrical head. He is every bald man’s wildest dreams. He needs to be in commercials for head polish (is that a thing) or start his own shaving line called “Just for Balds.” As a coach, the jury is out. As a bald man, he is a star.
