Eagles dominate Saints in narrow, frustrating, gutsy, great win, 15 to 12

The Philadelphia Eagles are 2-1 after BEATING the New Orleans Saints in the Superdome! Final score: 15 to 12.

What a weird game!

This one was way closer than it really should have been. The Eagles outgained the Saints by 241 yards (460 to 219).

But the Birds just couldn’t get out of their way in this one, especially early on. Two first half turnovers from Jalen Hurts and poor decision-making from Nick Sirianni contributed to the Eagles scoring ZERO points in the first half.

The offense was very fortunate that Vic Fangio’s defense came to play in a big way. Entering this game, the Eagles weren’t showing the ability to either stop the run or rush the passer. The Eagles were very stout on the ground, limiting the Saints to just 89 yards (3.1 average) on 29 rushing attempts. The pass rush produced one sack and four quarterback hits, which isn’t awesome … but it was a Brandon Graham pressure on the Saints’ final drive that helped force Reed Blankenship’s game-sealing interception.

The offense ultimately did their part in the second half. And they did it despite a bunch of injuries: A.J. Brown not playing … and then Mekhi Becton, Lane Johnson (whom the Eagles almost NEVER win without), DeVonta Smith, and Britain Covey all notably leaving early. Saquon Barkley got the Eagles on the board with a huge 65-yard touchdown run. Goedert capitalized on a pick play that caused two Saints defenders to run into each other and allow the tight end to roll down to goal-to-go territory late in the game to give the Eagles a three-point lead.

Wow. Can’t believe they did it.

Things were looking bleak with the Eagles blowing a win to the Atlanta Falcons and then traveling to New Orleans on a short week.

But, hey, the Birds are 2-1 entering a Week 4 game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers … who just lost to the Denver Broncos at home.

Plenty of issues to clean up. And injury situations to monitor. And questions if the head coach is a liability.

But 2-1 is much better than 1-2.

Read on for a recap and stay tuned for BGN’s postgame coverage.

FIRST QUARTER

• The Eagles won the coin toss and elected to defer to put the Saints’ offense up first. The first play was an Alvin Kamara run, which went for no gain against the Eagles’ five-man front. Run defense = solved! Facing 3rd-and-1, the Eagles had the interior clogged up but Kamara was able to bounce outside to a wide open edge (seems like someone was supposed to be there! Bryce Huff?) for a first down. Kamara was dragged down and out of bounds by — who else — a pumped up and the Saints wanted a flag for a late hit but didn’t get one. Surprised the refs didn’t give it to them. Saints starting center Erik McCoy went down on the conversion and went back to the locker room. Josh Sweat jumped on the hard count to turn a 2nd-and-6 into 2nd-and-1. Facing 3rd-and-8 at the Eagles’ 40-yard line, Derek Carr was able to get it to Chris Olave over the middle for a first down with Quinyon Mitchell trailing. Facing 3rd-and-9, Carr found Olave for a first down again with Nakobe Dean trailing in a way where he didn’t seem to realize he was responsible for that area. Milton Williams was able to get to Kamara in the backfield for a big loss. Facing 3rd-and-15, Carr’s pass was deflected by an oncoming Jalen Carter who beat Cesar Ruiz 1-on-1 to be in position to make the play. Much-needed sign of life from Carter to force the Saints to a red zone field goal. EAGLES 0, SAINTS 3.

• The Eagles took over at their own 30-yard line. A zone read QB keeper instantly got obliterated for a 3-yard loss. A tight end screen to Dallas Goedert went for just two yards. (Hey, at least they got a designed touch to Goedert?!) Facing 3rd-and-11, a blitz quickly got home to Jalen Hurts. Three-and-out. Inspiring stuff! And definitely good complementary football after the defense was on the field for 8:09 of game time!

• Jordan Davis didn’t get picked up on a stunt (kudos to Milton Williams for drawing two blockers) and thus had a free lane to Carr for a big 12-yard sack. CJGJ nearly came up with a pick on second down. Facing 3rd-and-22, the Saints pulled a Nick Sirianni and went with a coward’s draw. Really good three-and-out stop by Vic Fangio’s defense.

• The Eagles took over at their own 23-yard line. A short Hurts completion to DeVonta Smith went for 21 yards with a bunch of YAC. Then Hurts hit an open Goedert, who had to make a tougher grab than he should’ve, for 43 yards to move into the red zone.

SECOND QUARTER

• Facing 3rd-and-9 after a Hurts run sideways for no gain (please stop the RPO stuff + Hurts should only be allowed to run downhill!) and a short swing pass completion to Barkley, Hurts threw into traffic in the end zone for DeVonta but the receiver’s route wasn’t as sharp as it needed to be and Tyrann Mathieu picked it off. Terrible to not get points there. Hurts’ fourth interception this second and his second that happened in the end zone. Just not taking care of the football well enough for a long time now.

• Carter came up his second career pass deflection on 3rd-and-2 to force another Saints three-and-out. Flat out dominance from the Eagles’ 2023 first-round pick.

• Saquon’s first carry came with just under 14 minutes remaining in the second quarter. Barkley’s second run went for a first down after Grant Calcaterra got absolutely blown up on a block … but effectively kept the defender from being able to hit Saquon! Britain Covey did a great job of picking up a first down with YAC after catching the ball in the flat on 2nd-and-9. A Cover 0 blitz turned into Hurts completing the ball to Goedert for a 4-yard loss. Facing 3rd-and-5, Hurts’ pass to Kenny Gainwell short of the sticks set up a shorter fourth down. Facing 4th-and-2, the Eagles lined up in the shotgun (NOT the Brotherly Shove setup) and Hurts tossed a short completion to Goedert for a first down. Good to see Sirianni actually going for it. Holding onto the ball for a long time, Hurts took off running but got stripped from behind (holding the ball with just one hand) by Carl Granderson (AKA the dude that Hurts crossed up in the 2021 Eagles-Saints game, so, revenge for him) for a Saints recovery. TOO. MANY. TURNOVERS.

• The Saints took over at their own 47-yard line. Carter, looking unstoppable, came up with a big tackle for loss. Facing 3rd-and-8, Carr aired it out deep to speedy Rashid Shaheed, who got a step on Quinyon Mitchell … but Mitchell was able to recover enough and barely just disrupt the catch to prevent a touchdown. Another critical play by the defense. Dennis Allen decided to punt from the Eagles’ 40-yard line (lol).
• The Eagles took over at their own 7-yard line with 3:55 left in the second quarter and three timeouts to work with. A short completion to Goedert went for two yards. Then Goedert failed to bring in a catch that he lost track of while turning his head back to the ball. Facing 3rd-and-8, Hurts targeted … Johnny Wilson! … short of the sticks and the big man broke a tackle to run for a first down! Talk about an unexpected development. Jahan Dotson had a catch … that was wiped out by holding on Wilson. Facing 3rd-and-11, Hurts made a real nice throw while moving to his left to hit DeVonta for a first down. Then Hurts took off running downhill (yes!) for a 21-yard gain into Saints territory while also managing to get out of bounds. Hurts to Parris Campbell (first catch as an Eagle) set up a short third down with the Eagles calling their first timeout at 0:58. Facing 3rd-and-3, a false start by Fred Johnson knocked the offense back. Facing 3rd-and-8, Hurts made a nice throw to a crossing Goedert over the middle for a first down just outside of the red zone. Facing 3rd-and-7, Hurts completed another pass to Campbell to bring up fourth down. The Saints took their first timeout with 0:14 left. Facing 4th-and-1 with one timeout left, the Eagles kept their offense on the field. They lined up for the Brotherly Shove … but handed off to Barkley on a fake ‘BS’ and he got stopped for no gain. Lol. What was the point of that? If they get the first down, they have to call their final timeout, and then they get a throw (maybe two) into their end zone from about 14 yards away? But you also risk the sack there. A rare time where being more conservative seemed like the play. Or, if they wanna be aggressive, maybe actually go all the way and pass the ball on fourth down?

THIRD QUARTER

• The Eagles began the second half by pounding the rock with Barkley. The offensive got set back with a Grant Calcaterra holding penalty (more blocking struggles from No. 81). Hurts hit DeVonta, who made a tough catch, to instantly get the offense back on schedule with a short second down. Facing 3rd-and-6 after another Calcaterra blocking miscue, the Eagles ran Barkley for three yards. Facing 4th-and-3, Hurts got sacked for another turnover on downs. I’ll defend Sirianni’s decision to go for it there. But obviously very frustrating to end up with no points once again. Hurts has to get the pass off.

• Quinyon Mitchell seemed to be in position for a pick-six but may have not expected the ball to come at him like it did, instead knocking the pass down instead of trying to catch it. Not a bad result but could’ve been a much, much better one. Shortly after, Mitchell ended up surrendering a first down. Womp. Facing 3rd-and-3, Carter got to Kamara for a TFL and yet another stop. Dennis Allen, apparently wanting to keep the Eagles in the game, punted from Philly’s 42-yard line.
• The Eagles took over at their own 15-yard line after a 6-yard return by DeJean. The Eagles slowly but surely drove past midfield. Hurts had DeVonta deep but got the ball out late and the ball was underthrown and off target for an incompletion. Facing 3rd-and-2, the Eagles got called for 12 men in the huddle. Dumbass penalty in a crucial spot. Facing 3rd-and-7, Hurts anticipated a zero blitz that didn’t come and threw very quickly to Gainwell … and well behind him. The Eagles brought out Braden Mann and an unblocked rusher blocked the punt for a Saints recovery. Incredibly frustrating.
• The Saints took over at the Eagles’ 27-yard line. Facing 3rd-and-1, CJGJ came up to tackle Kamara on a direct snap for no gain to end the third quarter.

FOURTH QUARTER

• Facing 4th-and-1, Allen actually decided to go for it … and Kamara was tackled by former Saint Zack Baun right around the marker … and the ref spotted it short for a turnover on downs!

• Hurts missed Goedert running wide open down the field to instead complete a pass to DeVonta for six yards. Two plays later, DeVonta took a late hit as his forward progress was already stopped and his helmet popped off and he laid on the ground motionless. How was there no penalty there?! Smith was eventually able to walk off. On the very next play, Barkley picked up the offense by exploding for a 65-yard touchdown run! ACTUAL POINTS! IT’S A MIRACLE. EAGLES 7, SAINTS 3.

• The Saints, trailing for the first time in 2024, took over at their own 30-yard line. Carr completed a 26-yard pass to Kamara on the wheel route with Baun in very tight coverage but defeated by a pretty great catch. Darius Slay broke up a pass to Shaheed to bring up third down. Facing 3rd-and-11, Carr’s pass was completed short of the sticks to bring up 4th-and-6. Good sure tackle by Baun to help force the stop. The conservative Dennis Allen opted for a 38-yard field goal try. EAGLES 7, SAINTS 6.

• The Eagles took over at their own 24-yard line with 9:44 remaining after Will Shipley decided to bring it out of the end zone. No A.J. Brown, no DeVonta Smith. Facing 3rd-and-5 after two pass calls (why no Saquon?!), a crossing Goedert made a great one-handed snag in stride on a ball thrown slightly wide to pick up a chunk gain into Saints territory. Facing 3rd-and-11, Hurts drifted left and threw the ball away downfield with pressure coming his way. Sirianni brought out Jake Elliott for a 60-yard field goal … and the miss wasn’t even close. Wide right. In a dome.

• The Saints took over at the 50-yard line. Facing 3rd-and-4, Kamara got the edge for a first down. The Saints got knocked back after the play with Trevor Penning getting called for unnecessary roughness for driving Darius Slay into the ground on the sideline after the play. Dirty play. The Saints moved into field goal range with Kelee Ringo immediately tested and beat by Olave. The Saints entered the red zone with a Kamara run to the Eagles’ 13-yard line. Carr lofted a ball to a wide open Olave along the left sideline for the Saints’ first touchdown. Allen had the Saints line up for the two-point conversion … and Carr’s completion was short of the goal line for an unsuccessful try. EAGLES 7, SAINTS 12.
• Gainwell’s return got to the 31-yard line with 1:57 left in the game. The Eagles had all three timeouts to work with. The Saints got called for illegal hands to the face to give the Eagles a first down and a stopped clock. Hurts took a sack and the Eagles took their first timeout with 1:21 left. A throw to Wilson hit the rookie in the hands but he couldn’t make the grab. Facing 3rd-and-16, the Eagles ran a pick play where two Saints defenders ran into each other to leave Goedert WIDE OPEN for a huge catch-and-run to the 4-yard line with 1:05 left! WOW. The Eagles then took their second timeout with the play clock running down. A handoff to Barkley got the running back in the end zone for his second touchdown. Did the Saints let him score on purpose? The Eagles went for two … and another Saquon run went for the successful try. Fantastic clutch response by the offense … but did they leave too much time left? They could’ve tried to at least make the Saints burn their final timeout there with a Brotherly Shove on first down. EAGLES 15, SAINTS 12.

• The Saints took over at their own 30-yard line with 1:01 left in the game. After allowing one completion, Brandon Graham got pressure on Carr and forced the veteran quarterback into a pass that was picked off by a diving Reed Blankenship! GAME!

• Victory formation!

FINAL SCORE: EAGLES WIN, 15 to 12

EAGLES INJURY UPDATES

• Mekhi Becton (finger) left the game to be evaluated in the medical tent on the Eagles’ third drive. Tyler Steen came in to play right guard. Becton headed to the locker room. Becton returned to the sideline and was seen trying to test out his left arm but not looking very comfortable doing it. Becton was ruled questionable to return.
• Britiain Covey (shoulder) headed to the locker room on the Eagles’ third drive. Cooper DeJean entered the game at punt returner. Covey was later ruled questionable to return. He was later downgraded to OUT.
• Lane Johnson (concussion), who threw up, had to be evaluated in the medical tent later in the second quarter. He was then taken back to the locker room. Fred Johnson came in to replace him at right tackle, playing next to Steen at first. Lane was later downgraded to OUT.
• DeVonta Smith (concussion) took a huge hit early in the fourth quarter. He was on the ground for a bit before being able to walk off. Smith was evaluated in the medical tent before heading back to the locker room. Smith was later downgraded to OUT.
• Darius Slay was down in pain after Trevor Penning blocked him into the ground after the play and out out of bounds for an unnecessary roughness penalty. Kelee Ringo entered the game at cornerback.