RECAP: Breaking Down the Ups and Downs of the Eagles’ First Game vs. Washington
The season has officially started, and we got to watch our Philadelphia Eagles play football.
The game was far from perfect, but the Birds did win.
Listen, let’s say you’re some random guy, Carl, for example. Well, the football season is a bit of a dungeon crawl. So first off, congrats, dungeon crawler Carl, you beat level one. We’re going to break down the game and look forward to level two.
The most important thing to remember about the Week 1 game is that it’s the first game of the season. Who would’ve guessed that’s what week one means. The Eagles also follow the trend of not playing their main starters in preseason.
Personally, I hate this approach. It leads to games like we saw against the Commanders. The team looked disjointed because they didn’t get much actual gameplay together. You can see this in their drives.
The Eagles had as many scoring drives as three-and-outs. Not great.
Okay, let’s start looking at the actual game and some highlights. Where else to start first than with number 1 himself, Jalen Hurts. The numbers don’t jump off the page, but you saw it while watching. He came up big all day, especially when it mattered most.
Not only did Hurts lead two scoring drives to end the game, but he showed that vaunted running ability on a crucial 3rd and 18.
The truth is that when the Eagles needed a player to step up on offense, Jalen Hurts did what he always does: take control.
Next up, let’s look at Dontayvion Wicks’ game. Now, I don’t want to tell you I told you so, but I did. The Eagles have their wide receiver 2 for the season. Not only did he have a beautiful 64-yard reception, but he also got his first TD of the season.
Teams might look to cover DeVonta Smith and force the Eagles to beat them elsewhere. The Commanders tried this last week.
This is where Wicks should thrive.
Also a quick shoutout to Dallas Goedert. Came back on a team-friendly deal to the tune of two touchdowns, including the game-winner. Not to mention his second score was a route previously utilized by AJ Brown (who, by the way, had a real tragic, hate to hear, don’t tell me that, injury).
Crazy to watch the clip and see it’s the same play with very different results.
Let’s take a look at the defense. While they didn’t have any gaudy stats, no turnovers and just one sack, they did their job. Like Hurts, they stepped up when it mattered most.
Jalen Carter had a huge blocked PAT that would force the Commanders to go for 2 points later. Carter and Davis have worked on this in practice, and it’s clearly paying off.
It also shows the type of effort you want from your defensive player, where every play matters.
They also had a big stop on the aforementioned 2-point play. This was done by Moro Ojomo making a spectacular tackle. I want to make sure to give him his flowers because I want to see a big year out of him. You could also argue that this play won the game for them.
Sure, the Eagles would’ve had plenty of time left to go down for a field goal and likely couldn’t lose in regulation.
That didn’t matter, though, because this stop sealed it.
I’m not going to act like it was all sunshine and rainbows, though. The offensive line did struggle most of the day. Saquon Barkley had five yards before contact on Sunday. That’s total, by the way, which is bad. It’s great to see Saquon return to form and still get 83 yards on the day, but his line didn’t do him many favors.
They also didn’t give Jalen Hurts much help. Not only did he have to run around and scramble all day, but the line let the QB get sacked three times.
For a team that prides itself on the trenches, you hope this is just week-one warm-up jitters.
Speaking of offensive woes, a lot of this came from Landon Dickerson’s performance. He got a lot of flak after the game as people reviewed the tape, and I can’t blame them. Luckily, you’re reading this after the announcement that Dickerson is heading to the Injured Reserve list for at least four games. I’m not going to knock a player for fighting through injury to play.
That said, he did struggle. Even he admitted it before announcing the injury. I’m hoping this time off lets him return to his former Pro-Bowl-caliber self. In the meantime, it’s next man up. I’m personally hoping Willie Lampkin either fills in or the Eagles slide Jurgens down and Lampkin plays center.
Still, those are next week problems, and we should look at the next game.
Next week the Eagles have the Titans to play, and that should get you excited. If you didn’t know, the Titans lost pretty badly to the New York Jets. I think the Eagles are better than the Jets (bold take, I know).
This should put the Eagles in a great spot for a figure-it-out game. In fact, I’m going to guarantee the Eagles a win next week, and I’m willing to bet on it. Should the Eagles somehow lose, I will stick my finger in a mousetrap.
Let’s hope my typing fingers are right, but it’s now etched in stone.
Look forward to breaking it all down afterward, ideally after an easy win.
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