The Philadelphia Eagles got back in the win column on the road over the Minnesota Vikings, 28-22, after two straight losses to the Denver Broncos and New York Giants.
As always, win, lose, or tie, we hand out 10 awards.
1) The ‘Almost Perfect’ Award 🎯: Jalen Hurts
Hurts had one of the best games of his career, going 19 of 23 for 326 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INTs and the highest possible QB rating of 158.3.
He was efficient in the short-to-intermediate areas of the field, and he was deadly when he ripped shots down the field.
The green dots above are completions, the white dots are incompletions, and the blue dots are TD passes. I don’t know if that white dot on the left side is past the 20-yard marker, but if not, Hurts was 5/5 on throws over 20 yards down the field.
Hurts was decisive when the Vikings blitzed; he was patient when they only rushed three and dropped eight into coverage; and he made a number of off-schedule plays after escaping pressure with his legs.
Hurts was awesome on Sunday.
2) The ‘Happy Again’ Award 😊: A.J. Brown
It’s no secret that Brown has been less than thrilled with his usage in the offense, but he was a major factor against the Vikings, making 4 catches on 6 targets for 121 yards and 2 TDs.
He opened the scoring on the day with a 37-yard TD reception…
…and he closed the game with a 45-yard kill shot.
In between, he hauled in a 26-yard TD pass.
If the Eagles are going to make any kind of run at a Super Bowl repeat, they’re going to need Brown to play at a high level. He made a bunch of big plays in Minnesota.
3) The ‘Also Happy’ Award ☺️: DeVonta Smith
Smith had an even bigger game than Brown, making 9 catches of 11 targets for 183 yards and the following 79-yard TD:
On a side note, former Eagles CB Isaiah Rodgers had a tough day.
4) The ‘Maybe Just Let Them Coach Themselves’ Award 📋: The players
DeVonta Smith lobbied for the play that would become the 79-yard touchdown.
“He came in advocating for that play,” Jordan Mailata said. “He and [Landon Dickerson] were talking about it. Landon figured out the play that he was talking about — because DeVonta doesn’t know what we’re doing up front and what protection it is, he just knows his routes — and they got on the same page, and Landon advocated for that Smitty play, and shoot, the next drive we came out… (and scored).”
“He was chirping about it and it ended up getting called,” Hurts added.
Additionally, Hurts claimed after the game that he pushed for more plays from under center, which were very successful, at least in the passing game.
And on the other side of the ball, Moro Ojomo credited rookie Ty Robinson for pointing out a Vikings O-lineman’s technique vulnerability, which led to a key Ojomo sack.
5) The ‘EDGE Redemption’ Award 📈: Jalyx Hunt and Josh Uche
The Eagles’ edge rushers have come under fire of late, as they have struggled getting to the quarterback. On Sunday in Minnesota, they made a bunch of plays.
To begin, Jalyx Hunt made one of the biggest plays of the day, when he dropped into coverage, picked off Carson Wentz, and ran it back for a touchdown.
Additionally, Uche had a sack, and Hunt would have had another if Wentz hadn’t thrown the ball away for an intentional grounding penalty.
The Eagles still need help on the edge — and it’s very likely Brandon Graham is coming out of retirement to provide some help — but on Sunday, they played well.
6) The ‘Thanks Old Friend!’ Award 🙏: Carson Wentz
Wentz sucks. I mean, holy crap. There was a sequence of three Wentz throws that went:
- Pick-six
- Backwards throw out of bounds for a loss of 8.
- Interception
And this intentional grounding throw, lol (video via @TGLMSports)
Note the wide open FB in the flat.
He also made a poor throw to a wide open T.J. Hockenson that should have been a touchdown, but instead resulted in an incompletion. The Vikings have a good team, and they might have otherwise won this game if not for Wentz’s many mistakes.
7) The ‘Still Waiting’ Award ⏲️: The Eagles’ rushing attack
Saquon Barkley had 18 rushes for 44 yards (2.4 YPC) and a long run of 9 yards. The Vikings loaded the box and dared the Eagles to beat them through the air, which, you know, they did.
But we wait another week for the run game to look anything at all like it looked a year ago.
8) The ‘Walking Wounded Award 🩼: Cam Jurgens, Adoree’ Jackson, Azeez Ojulari, and Jeremiah Trotter
Jurgens, Jackson, Ojulari, and Trotter all left the game with injuries and did not return.
The most concerning injury is Jurgens’. The dropoff in play at center from Jurgens to Brett Toth was significant, and that’s with Jurgens already not playing at his best because of a lingering back injury.
9) The ‘Chutes and Ladders’ Award 🛝🪜: The Eagles, after ending their slide
After dropping two games to the Broncos and the lowly Giants, the Eagles pretty badly needed to put an end to their slide.
Did you ever play Chutes and Ladders?
You’re going to hit a chute (or slide or whatever) at some point. It’s just a matter of how devastating the slide will be. Like in 2023, the Eagles hit an “87 to 24” slide, as shown above. This slide was more like a “93 to 73” slide.
10) The ‘Talk the Talk, Walk the Walk’ Award 🗣️🚶♂️: The Giants
The Giants did a lot of talking after stomping the Eagles Week 6. And, well, it’s understandable why. They beat the reigning champs, and a team that has absolutely owned them over the last 15 or so years.
The Eagles will have a chance to get a bit of revenge on the Giants, as they’ll face their division rival twice in three weeks. And then… a much-needed bye.
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