Eagles earn points after defeating Jacksonville Jaguars

Instant play grades for the Eagles in their 28-23 win over the Jaguars:

Defender: B

Jalen Hurts was effective when he needed to be in the air and on the ground. He had a few questionable moments, but the quarterback played his fourth straight game without a turnover. He had two good touchdown passes to Saquon Barkley and DeVonta Smith and threw a beauty from the bottom green to the latter, setting up the eventual winning score. Overall, he completed 18 of 24 passes for 230 yards.

Hurts may have started too early in some cases, but he had some good scrambles, including a 7-yard third-down rumble in which he rushed forward for the first down. He almost got away with an interception when Jaguars cornerback Andre Cisco couldn’t hold on to a broken pass in the third quarter.

Running back: A-

Saquon Barkley again became the best player on the field. He rushed 27 times for 159 yards and caught three passes for 40 yards. He had rushing and receiving touchdowns. Barkley’s jaw dropped again, perhaps the first successful throwback in NFL history. Barkley’s ridiculous leap came at the end of a 14-yard catch in which he had already broken one tackle and run away from another.

He made a difficult over-the-shoulder catch in the end zone and just outside the boundary that gave the Eagles their first points of the first quarter this season. Just before halftime, Barkley threw a 19-yard touchdown in a 3-17 tie against a phantom Jaguars defense.

His third-quarter fumble was returned for a touchdown to give the Jaguars life.

Kenneth Gainwell gave Barkley a spell here and there and finished with five carries for 9 yards. Ben Van Sumeren entered the starting lineup as a defender. He caught his first pass in the NFL on a check. Van Sumeren left the game with a concussion just before the half.

Receiver/Tight End: B

DeVonta Smith scored in the fourth quarter in a balanced game. The receiver outran the Jaguars defense and caught the ball 46 yards. A few plays later, Smith made a spectacular 25-yard touchdown with one hand while dragging his feet in the back of the end zone to give the Eagles a 28-16 lead. He caught 4 of 6 targets that day for 87 yards.

AJ Brown left the game due to a knee injury. He was in no hurry to get up after getting hit late in the second quarter. Brown came out after the half with his sneakers next to him, but soon returned to the locker room and never returned. Brown caught two passes for 36 yards before leaving.

Rookie receiver Ainias Smith was shown on a jet jump and a screen pass – both of which gave the Eagles a small yardage gain. Fellow Newbie Johnny Wilson caught a touchdown briefly just before the half but was flagged for pass interference. Without Brown Jahan Dotson caught his first and only target of the game, a 36-yard juggle tackle, in the third quarter.

Grant Calcaterra started his third game in place of the injured Dallas Goedert. The tight end was often Hurts’ safety outlet and caught five passes for 30 yards. Fellow tight end Jack Stoll had some nice running blocks. He had a false start on his fourth attempt Tush Push on the Eagles’ first down.

Offensive Line: B+

The O-line helped Barkley rush for over 100 yards for the fifth time this season. This unit gave Hurts plenty of time in the pocket for most of the game. Fred Johnson hung in there for his third straight start at left tackle. Jaguars cornerback Josh Hines-Allen hit twice to the right, but Johnson wasn’t entirely at fault. He was up and down as a run blocker. He led Hurts in a touchdown, but was turned over by Cisco, who was penalized for jumping to his knees.

Correct tackle Lane Johnson was on the island against the Jaguars and Travon Walker and kept his side clean. Left back Landon Dickerson played due to a knee injury and together with the center Cam Jurgens and right back Bellows Bectonhelped keep the Jaguars from getting into Hurts’ pocket. Becton returned after missing the game with a concussion and had several key blocks.

Lane Johnson, Becton and Jurgens opened a hole for Barkley, who gained 11 yards first. The latter two had a combo block that paved the way for Barkley’s 21-yarder in the fourth quarter. Lane Johnson made an effective block on Barkley’s 13-yard rush from left end in the third quarter. Jurgens had a key second-level block on Barkley’s 19-yard touchdown run. He was previously flagged for holding up play in the second round. Becton was beaten inside on a Jaguars tackle. He had a false start in the third quarter.

Defense line: B+

The Eagles’ impressive defensive performance caught everyone’s attention. The D-line dominated the Jaguars up front and allowed just 60 yards on the ground. Jalen Carter was the monster in the middle. The defensive tackle destroyed a blocker at the point of attack and got a stop at the line in the second quarter. The Eagles didn’t use many five-man fronts, but nose tackle Jordan Davis helped to close the middle from the run-up. Milton Williams ate the blockers who helped the off-ball linebackers intercept the ball.

The D line was just as effective in the passing game. Carter rushed a couple of times. Defensive end Josh Sweet picked up a third down after rushing on the Jaguars’ first possession, thanks in part to Williams’ initial pressure up the middle. Bryce Huff for some reason I didn’t play until the end of the second quarter. The end put pressure on the inside rush that helped stop the third. He played sparingly the rest of the way.

Nolan Smith started and played significantly more snaps than Huff. He had a relatively quiet game, but got close to Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence and knocked him out of bounds on a short scramble. Brandon Graham There was also an increase in snaps, with Huff watching more than he played. He stalked Lawrence several times.

Midfielder: A

The Eagles’ off-ball linebackers were instrumental in the victory. Zach Baun was arguably the best all-around defensive back and led the team with 10 tackles. He also had his first interception of the season – and second of his career – when he caught a bad pass in the second quarter. On Jacksonville’s first series, Baun suffered a transmission breakdown. On the next play, he dropped a tackle block near the line. And then, a few plays later, he made an open field tackle on a checkdown.

Nakobe Dean caught the ball on the final interception. He didn’t interact with the ball as much as Baun, but he didn’t have any egregious incidents. He had a pass breakup on a throw over the middle in the first quarter and was in coverage when Jaguars running back Travis Etienne bounced to Baun for a pick.

Cornerback: B+

Isaiah Rogers received approval from outside Darius Slay aside. Rogers and his colleagues Quinion Mitchell deserve credit for keeping No. 1 receiver Brian Thomas in check. Thomas was unable to play due to a chest injury, but his two catches for 22 yards showed how the Eagles cornerbacks play.

Corner slot Cooper DeJean continued to shine in his first season. He beat Jaguars tight end Evan Engram to a pass breakup on fourth down — a week after he made another big stop on fourth down — in the second quarter. Driving later, DeJean had poor coverage on a third-down pass to receiver Austin Trammell, which he also knocked down to the grass. He trailed Trammell on his 18-yard catch in the third quarter.

Avonte Maddox Didn’t play much for the Eagles, but was flagged for pass interference late in the game.

Security: B

The Eagles’ safety played a significant role in holding the Jaguars to just 32 rushing yards in the first half. As Lawrence was forced to pass more after the break, there were several breakdowns in the defence. But Reed Blankenship And C.J. Gardner-Johnsonultimately, I was never beaten from above.

Gardner-Johnson had several downs on the Jaguars’ first touchdown and lost to Thomas on the two-point conversion. Blankenship allowed Engram to beat him on the Jaguars’ next two-point conversion. He had to stop but didn’t do any good on the Jaguars’ first series of the second half.

Special Teams: B+

Sydney Brown The Eagles made a big play for the first time in the game when he knocked the ball out of Trammell’s hands on a punt return and Keli Ringo recovered. The turnover was the Eagles’ first touchdown. Rookie Will Shipley had a tackle in the open field Braden Mannsecond punt.

Mann averaged 45 net yards on three punts. Kicker Jake Elliott he didn’t need much attention as the Eagles punted on fourth down and converted on two runs. He did make a 43-yard field goal and one extra point, but missed it 57 yards late. DeJean caught the ball fair on all four of his fumble attempts.

Coaching: B-

Nick Sirianni was probably sweating profusely towards the end of what probably shouldn’t have been a close game. He was on the losing end of several fourth-down and two-point conversion plays. But the coach has the Eagles 6-2 and on a four-game winning streak heading into the division matchup against the Dallas Cowboys.

While Tush Push wasn’t as effective on a pair of failed two-point conversion attempts, Sirianni’s decision to try a quarter-and-inch sneak fake late in the third quarter was questionable.

Kellen Moore embraced the Eagles’ new run-based identity, but the offensive coordinator may have been too conservative with one of the worst passing defenses in the NFL. He also had some pleasant moments. Moore picked up a quarterback draw — with a new wrinkle that forced Gainwell to move into the backfield — resulting in Hurts sneaking into the end zone from 18 yards out. Ainias Smith’s swings and fake shots didn’t make much difference.

Vic FangioThe defense dominated the first half, but not so much in the second half. He got good results from his players in clutch moments down the stretch.