PHILADELPHIA — Against the Jacksonville Jaguars, there was certainly early adversity for the Eagles, but Philadelphia used an excellent defensive effort to rally to a 29-21 win at Lincoln Financial Field on a rainy and windy Sunday afternoon. Miles Sanders rushed for 134 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Eagles’ offense, which gained 213 yards on ground in less-than-ideal conditions. The Eagles (4-0) remain the only undefeated team in the NFL.
Philadelphia, trailing in double digits for the first time this season, rebounded from a 14-0 deficit to grab 29 unanswered points to control the game. Jalen Hurts had a 3-yard touchdown run in fourth and scored from the 3-yard line to get the scoring going and make it 14-7. The Eagles followed that drive by forcing a three-and-out. In her next series, Sanders had a 10-yard touchdown run to tie the game at 14-14. Kenny Gainwell then struck from 10 yards to give the Eagles a 20-14 lead before halftime.
The Eagles had 20 points in the second quarter and have 85 points overall in four games in the second quarter, the most in NFL history. The dominance in the second quarter established a lead that they were no longer willing to relinquish.
Jake Elliott extended the lead early in the fourth quarter with a 28-yard field goal before Sanders put Philadelphia to 29-14 with a 5-yard touchdown run – his second of the afternoon. Sanders had an important third down run that went seven yards in the closing minutes in third and fifth and helped chew a few minutes off the clock late in the game.
Jacksonville took the lead early on a 59-yard interception return from Andre Cisco that gave the Jaguars a 7-0 lead. Jamal Agnew also had a two-yard touchdown catch that moved Jacksonville up 14 points in the first quarter. While Agnew ended the day with two touchdowns, the Jaguars were doomed with five turnovers and a stretch in which they went 13 plays for 27 yards while Philadelphia rebounded from their two-touchdown deficit to take the lead .
Haason Reddick was 29-21 with 1:48 left, forcing a strip sack fumble on Trevor Lawrence (his second of the game) to seal the win. The Eagles forced five takeaways and had three sacks that day.
Here are the key takeaways from the Jaguars-Eagles game. Recap all the action in the live blog below.
Why the Eagles won
The Eagles rushed for 213 yards against the Jaguars’ No. 1 running defense, despite being without Jordan Mailata for most of the game. Sanders rushed for a career-high 132 yards and two touchdowns in adverse weather conditions, while Jalen Hurts rushed for 38 yards and a result on the ground. Philadelphia went to their bread and butter by slowing down the game, letting the football run and having long, sustained drives that kept the Jaguars’ defense on the field.
In addition to the storming attack, the defense forced five takeaways – including two strip-sack fumbles from Haason Reddick in the second half to salvage the win. Jacksonville had a streak in which it rushed 16 plays for 27 yards as Philadelphia erased its 14-0 hole and took a 20-14 lead into the half.
Why the Jaguars lost
Five takeaways ended up wrecking Jacksonville, including four fumbles on a rainy and windy afternoon. All the fumbling led to Eagles touchdowns on the ensuing drive, and Reddick’s last ended the game when Jacksonville had the opportunity to equalize with less than two minutes left.
Christian Kirk was also mostly ineffective as he was targeted nine times and had two catches for 60 yards while Lawrence threw an interception at him in the third quarter. The Jaguars allowed 401 yards as the Eagles wore down the defense and ran 50 times on them.
turning point
The Jaguars went into the second quarter with a 14-0 lead on a fourth and three from the Eagles’ 34-yard line. A first down conversion would have been nearly fatal for the Eagles, but Lawrence mishandled the snap and the game resulted in a 14-yard loss, with Fletcher Cox recovering the fumble at the Eagles’ 48-yard line.
That gave the Eagles – and the rain-soaked crowd – momentum as they rushed for seven plays for 62 yards and one hit to reduce the deficit to 14-7. Philadelphia scored 20 unanswered points in the second quarter and went 20-14 at halftime.
game of the game
Jalen Hurts grabbed a 3-yard touchdown in fourth and third while the Eagles were 14-0 down in the second quarter. Hurts took the handoff and went past the open A gap into the end zone for the touchdown to reduce the deficit to 14-7. Not only did Hurts anticipate the hit from Jaguars linebacker Devin Lloyd as he crossed the plane, he delivered the hit as he was ready to lower his body and score.
The hit ended up connecting Hurts’ helmet to Lloyd’s, but both players were okay afterwards. Brave game of Hurts.
The quote
“I said to Doug, ‘I really appreciate you and have a lot of respect for you.’ I said thank you to him because you are the reason I am here, I have a lot of love and respect for him, his way of coaching, his coaching style, the way he does things and the great work that he’s doing Jacksonville now.
“I have nothing but respect for him. I wish him only the best.”
– Jalen Hurts on catching up with Doug Pederson after the Eagles defeated the Jaguars.
Next
The Eagles (4-0) travel to Arizona to take on the Cardinals, while the Jaguars (2-2) host the Texans next week.