Tim McManusESPN Staff Writer November 21, 2023, 2:10am ET4 minutes read
Aikman: The Eagles’ road win against the Chiefs is huge
Troy Aikman reacts to the Eagles’ big win over the Chiefs on Monday night and what it means for them as their schedule moves forward.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce picked up his first professional win against his brother Travis Kelce and his old coach Andy Reid, but he and several of his teammates left Arrowhead Stadium dissatisfied after a 21-17 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LVII rematch on Monday night.
“Listen, I’m really happy,” Jason Kelce said. “I probably would have been happier if we had had a really dominant performance offensively and played great. I think the fact that we didn’t make it a little bittersweet. I think defense is largely the reason we won the game today. Hats off to these guys and I’m definitely happy to be 9-1.”
With wind and rain present throughout the night, neither offensive fared particularly well. Jalen Hurts threw for 150 yards and an interception and was sacked five times, while Patrick Mahomes rushed for 177 yards with two touchdowns and a pick.
Hurts breathed life into Philly’s passing game midway through the fourth quarter when he hit DeVonta Smith for a 41-yard completion down the right sideline, setting up Hurts for a rushing score – his second of the night – that gave the Eagles the lead for good.
“I don’t think we played without mistakes tonight. I don’t think we met our standard – nowhere near our standard,” Hurts said. “But I think what you can’t test or quantify is the resilience of a team, the ability to persevere, see through things and overcome things, and this team has that.”
“When you win games like we won games, it builds a lot of character. I guess we’re kind of in character development mode with the games we’ve played and the way we’ve won. This can only serve us for great things in the future.”
The Chiefs remained scoreless in the second half for the third straight game. They are averaging 5.3 points per game in the second half, the lowest in the league.
Wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling could have scored on the Chiefs’ final possession, but he dropped a perfectly placed pass inside the Eagles’ 5. That was the biggest of four drops by the Chiefs in the fourth quarter.
The Chiefs’ wide receivers are dropping 9% of the passes thrown to them this season, the highest percentage in a team’s first 10 games in the last 10 seasons.
“People I’ve seen catch before haven’t necessarily made it,” Reid said. “They’re good players and we’re OK.” “We just have to make that clear.”
Mahomes similarly dropped a touchdown pass in a Week 8 loss to the Denver Broncos when wide receiver Skyy Moore dropped a deep pass in the end zone.
“You know I’m going to keep going,” Mahomes said. “That’s just who I am. “I’ll pass it to the guy who’s open and usually they’ll make the plays.
“Offensively, we’re just not where I want to be at this point in the season, and that goes for everyone. It starts with me.”
Still, the Chiefs (7-3) have the fewest losses in the AFC, while the Eagles have the best record in football. There’s still a chance they could meet again in Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas.
“These guys are going to be in the hunt just like us, so we’ll see how it turns out,” Kelce said. “Maybe there will be something similar in February.”
ESPN’s Adam Teicher contributed to this report.