Recap
The Eagles continued their undefeated streak on Sunday against the Steelers, winning by a score of 35-13. The team as a whole looked sharp coming out of last week’s bye and their high powered offense was able to put the Steelers away early. The large lead allowed the Eagles to rest their starters for the majority of the 4th quarter. The offense was firing, the defense held their own, and the Philadelphia Eagles were able to move to 7-0.
Positive Observations
1.) A.J. Brown
Brown had an absolutely monstrous game on Sunday; he caught 6 receptions for 156 yards and 3(!) touchdowns. Brown’s 3 TD’s are the most an Eagle has had since Riley Cooper in 2013; he has been an incredible acquisition by Howie. No matter how many times the Steelers sent a double team at him, Brown is (as the sign hanging in his locker says) always open.
2.) Jalen Hurts
Hurts had another incredible outing on Sunday and the “Jalen Hurts can’t throw” brigade is nowhere to be seen. Hurts compiled 285 passing yards, a 68% completion percentage, 4 TD’s, a 140.6 passer rating, and didn’t turn the ball over. The stat line is impressive enough, but what’s most impressive to me is the type of touchdowns that Hurts threw; all 4 of his TD passes were 25+ yard completions, and one of those aforementioned passes to Brown traveled 51.9 yards in the air. Great game from Hurts.
3.) CGJ
Chauncey Gardner-Johnson has had an incredible time in Philly thus far; he has anchored the defense and has brought a fire to the secondary. He continued his momentum on Sunday by tallying 8 tackles, 1 TFL, 1 sack, 1 INT, and a pass deflection. CGJ has elevated the play of the defense since he arrived, and Sunday’s game was evident of that.
4.) Defense
I have to give credit where credit is due; Johnathan Gannon and this Eagles defense have been lights out in recent weeks. After a rough performance in Detroit in Week 1, the Eagles seem to have turned a corner and have since given up an average of 13.8 points per game in weeks 2 through 8. The defense certainly still has some things to improve upon, but they have been playing at a high level this season.
Negative Observations
Honestly speaking, I don’t feel as if there were any glaring negative observations from Sunday’s game. Obviously the Eagles still need to continue to improve and grow in order to be the team that we are all hoping that they can be, but Sunday’s game really was a good game from both sides of this team. The biggest negative from Sunday’s game was that Jordan Davis went down with an ankle injury and has been placed on IR.
Standings
With yet another win, the Philadelphia Eagles move to 7-0 and stay on top of the NFC East standings. The East has been quite the surprise for many NFL fans; going from one of the most notoriously bad divisions in the NFL to being one of the best in the span of a couple years is wild. With that being said, the updated NFC East standings are as follows:
- Philadelphia Eagles: 7-0
- Dallas Cowboys: 6-2
- New York Giants: 6-2
- Washington Commanders: 4-4
Upcoming Game
The Eagles are on a short week this week, traveling to Houston to play the Texans on Thursday Night Football. Although every single game in the NFL is one that can be lost, I fully see the Eagles leaving Houston as an 8-0 team. The Eagles offense looks virtually unstoppable and the defense has been gaining momentum over the past few weeks.
Final Thoughts
This team has been a fun one to watch this season, and they look like they’re just getting started. Jalen Hurts has been monumental in the success of the Eagles, and he is showing why he is deserving of the franchise QB title. Obviously it is way too early to be making any wild predictions, but this team is one of the best ones that we have seen in recent years and I am definitely enjoying the ride. As always, Go Birds!
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Nate Eichner is a featured writer at The Birds Blitz. For more from Nate, check out his archive and read through our Eagles articles for the latest news about the Birds.
