By now, heart rates across the Greater Delaware Valley have returned to normal after the tense 24-22 Philadelphia Eagles win over the Washington Commanders Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field.
It wasn’t pretty for the Eagles, but it was a divisional game to kick off the season with a new offensive scheme and despite dealing with bumps and bruises, the Eagles were led by Jalen Hurts to improve to 6-0 in season openers under Nick Sirianni which is the longest active streak in the NFL.
Here are five takeaways from the win:
I know that Hurts will forever be one of the most popular players to talk about and analyze for as long as he plays. Talking about the Eagles’ quarterback, positively, but more so negatively, dominates the social media driven landscape that is dominated by clicks and views. But on Sunday, Hurts showed he will do whatever it takes to win games.
With an offensive line that struggled throughout the game, Hurts turned nothing into something more times than not. Perhaps the most impressive play was on 3rd and 18 when Hurts had to flush out of the pocket quickly due to a lapse in pass protection, scampering for a 22-yard gain to keep the drive alive.
Three plays later, Hurts threw a dart over the middle of the field, something he apparently can’t do well, finding Dallas Goedert for a 43-yard touchdown, giving Philadelphia a 24-16 lead with just over six minutes left in the game.
The quarterback finished with 203 yards, completing 14 of his 25 passes while not throwing an interception and posting a 122.1 passer rating. He also made two incredible throws to Dontayvion Wicks while adding 46 yards on the ground in the win.
After putting together a strong summer, Wicks showcased why he could be a good fit in Sean Mannion’s offense with the Eagles trading for him from Green Bay and immediately signing him to an extension.
He had an impressive first half, hauling in two catches including a 64-yard bomb from Hurts and then a nice nine-yard score. Wicks didn’t score until Week 10 last year with the Packers and posted only one game with 70 or more receiving yards. He checked both of those boxes off in the win on Sunday. He finished with 73 yards on the two receptions.
However, despite the monster first half, Wicks wasn’t even targeted in the second half, something that will need to change moving forward.
It still amazes me that the New Orleans Saints had this guy on their special teams and didn’t realize Baun's untapped potential. It has been a massive gain for the Eagles and benefited them once again in the big win to kick off the season. Baun was swarming all over the field Sunday, leading all tacklers with 12 on the night, falling three shy of tying a career-high. He also added a pair of pass breakups and had a big TFL on another pass play.
With a relentless motor, Baun was a difference maker for the defense that spent over 33 minutes on the field in the win..
With a fresh start to the season and seemingly healthy, Landon Dickerson and Cam Jurgens struggled throughout the game, giving up immediate pressures on multiple occasions forcing Hurts to flush out of the pocket much sooner than expected, throwing the timing off on pass plays.
The duo combined to be called for three holding calls, but Jurgens seemed to bounce back as the game progressed. The same can not be said for Dickerson.
According to PFF, Dickerson finished with a 40.3 PFF grade, ranking him 136th out of 138 qualifying offensive lineman who suited up so far in Week 1.
The Eagles will need to shore up the offensive line to ensure that this offense can run as efficiently as possible. Last season, it was the injuries that caused the poor play. Unless Dickerson pops up on the injury report to start this week of practice, both Dickerson and Jurgens will need to bounce back and prove that they aren’t liabilities.
Punters normally don’t get a lot of love, but Mann was impressive on Sunday, outdoing three-time Pro Bowler Tress Way of Washington. The Eagles’ punter racked up four punts that landed inside the 20, averaging 51.6 yards per punt on his seven in the game with his longest being 64.
He was able to get good english on the football in the final minute of the first half that took a sideways bounce towards the sideline and rolled out of bounds inside the five-yard line, pinning the Commanders back deep, nullifying any chance Jayden Daniels could orchestrate a scoring drive.
