Eagles vs. Steelers: The good, the bad, and the ugly

The Eagles’ absent “passing game” made an appearance on Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Along with it came the missing A.J. Brown and a vintage version of Jalen Hurts, circa 2022.

The Eagles established a franchise-record 10-straight victories with their dominant 27-13 triumph over the Steelers, placing them with an NFC-best 12-2 record with the Detroit Lions, who still own the tiebreaker over the Eagles with an 8-1 NFC record over the Eagles’ 7-2 mark.

The Eagles’ record 10-game winning streak breaks the previous mark held by the 1949, 1960, 2003 and 2017 Eagles’ teams, three of which won NFL championships (1949, 1960 and 2017).

The last time the Eagles lost two games or less in a season was the Norm Van Brocklin-led 1960 NFL champion team (10-2) that beat the legendary Vince Lombardi and the Green Bay Packers.

The Eagles have a chance of tying that record. They will close the season against the dreck of the NFC East, traveling to Washington, and a victory there would clinch the NFC East, then finishing at home against Dallas and the New York Giants. Washington, Dallas and the Giants have a cumulative 17-25 record and have been outscored by a combined 121 points.

Against Pittsburgh, Hurts completed 25 of 32 passes for 290 yards, throwing for two touchdowns and rushing for one. Of his 25 completions, seven were for 20 yards or more. The defense shutout Pittsburgh in the second half and held the Steelers to a scant 163 yards of total offense, and 10 first downs.

Hurts’ 290 yards were more than he threw combined in his previous two games (226 yards). His 25 completions equaled the number of completions of his previous two games. Hurts hit five different receivers, with Brown and DeVonta Smith combining for 19 catches for 219 yards.

There was a multitude of good, some bad, and some controllable ugly that needs to be fixed internally in a dominant 27-13 victory over a very good Pittsburgh Steelers team.

The Good

A.J. Brown had eight receptions on 10 targets for a game-high 110 yards and a touchdown. His biggest reception came on third-and-six at the Eagles’ seven with 9:47 left in the game. The 21-yard catch between Minkah Fitzpatrick and Damontae Kazee pretty much sealed the victory for the Eagles. The Steelers opted to punt the ball on fourth-and-seven at the Eagles’ 46 with 10:29 to play. Brown’s 21-yard catch extended the drive that allowed the Eagles to eat up the remaining time.

Hurts’ 23-yard carry up the middle on the Eagles’ second drive of the second half on a first-and-10 at midfield. The Steelers pushed up field on both sides, and no one was there in the middle. Hurts saw it and took it to the Steelers’ 23 inside of three minutes left in the third quarter. Hurts later scored on the drive for a 27-13 lead with 14:14 left to play.

Cornerback Darius Slay flopping on the Najee Harris fumble at the Eagles’ 26 on the Steelers’ first drive of the second half. A major turning point. The Eagles had just scored to go up, 20-13, and the Steelers were driving to at least tie, or go ahead. Russell Wilson pitched the ball to Harris swinging right, and Harris simply dropped the ball. Slay, for the second-straight week, was there to make a game-deciding play. The Eagles converted the turnover to a Hurts’ TD early in the fourth quarter for a 27-13 lead.

Edge rusher Nolan Smith Jr.’s 10-yard sack at the Eagles’ 43 on a second-and-10 with 48 seconds left in the half. Russell Wilson got the yards back on the next play when he hit Calvin Austin for a 12-yard gain, setting up Chris Boswell’s 49-yard field goal to bring the Steelers to within 17-13 at halftime.

The Eagles’ first drive of the second quarter. The Eagles took advantage of a short field with a nine-play, 45-yard drive that ended with Hurts hitting DeVonta Smith for a two-yard TD toss for a 17-3 Eagles’ lead with 9:07 left in the first half. Hurts was 4-for-5 on the drive for 42 yards, hitting three different receivers.

Cooper DeJean making up for a lost fumble with a 23-yard, second-quarter punt return that set up the Eagles’ 17-3 lead. DeJean later came up to nail the Steelers’ Van Jefferson for no gain at the Eagles’ nine on a second-and-goal. It was great anticipation by DeJean, who hit Jefferson just as the ball arrived.

The Eagles’ most impressive first quarter this season. With 3:42 left in the first quarter, the Eagles held Pittsburgh to minus-3 yards passing. The defense held the Steelers without a first down in the first quarter, while outgaining Pittsburgh 148-2, and averaging 8.2 yards a play to less than a yard for the Steelers (0.2). The Eagles had seven first downs in the first quarter, six of which came through the air of the Eagles’ “dubious” passing attack. Hurts was 8-for-8 for 104 yards and looked as sharp as he did in 2022. The Eagles held Pittsburgh to three-and-out on the Steelers’ first three drives and, overall, on four of the Steelers’ first five drives.

The Eagles closing the first quarter with a touchdown after losing consecutive fumbles. Hurts went 8-for-8 for 104 yards in the first quarter, and concluded the opening quarter by going 3-for-3 for 41 yards, concluding with a five-yard TD pass to A.J. Brown for a 10-3 first quarter lead. Hurts opened the six-play, 70-yard scoring drive with 16- and 20-yard completions to Brown. Barkley added 22- and 5-yard runs. The Eagles threw three times and passed three times, and Brown made it a point to seek out Hurts after the TD with 1:13 left in the quarter.

The Eagles holding Pittsburgh to a field goal after the first-quarter DeJean fumbled punt. After two lost fumbles in the first quarter on their side of the field, the Eagles were fortunate to get away with just a field goal.

Edge rusher Josh Sweat’s 11-yard sack on third-and-10 at the Steelers’ 44. On Pittsburgh’s second drive after the Hurts’ lost fumble, Sweat beat Steelers’ left tackle Dan Moore Jr. It pushed the Steelers out of field goal range, which they wound up getting anyway, after Cooper DeJean lost the fumble on the ensuing punt. Pittsburgh linebacker Mark Robinson nailed DeJean with a great hit that freed the ball at the Eagles’ 11.

Running back Kenneth Gainwell’s nifty spin move to convert a third-and-four on the Eagles’ second drive for a 10-yard gain. Hurts dumped the ball to Gainwell in the flat. As the Steelers’ cornerback Donte Jackson was converging on him, Gainwell spun free and got the Eagles a new set of downs at the Eagles’ 37. Gainwell later made a great play on a third-and-nine on the last play of the third quarter. Gainwell ran through Pittsburgh’s Patrick Queen and Joey Porter Jr. for a 14-yard gain to the Pittsburgh one. Two plays later, Hurts scored for a 27-13 Eagles’ lead with 14:14 left to play.

The Eagles’ first drive on offense. They did not come up with a touchdown once they reached the Red Zone, but did go up 3-0 on a Jake Elliott 34-yard field goal with 9:56 left in the first quarter. It was a drive that checked all the necessary boxes. Hurts went to A.J. Brown for a seven-yard completion on the Eagles’ second play of the game, after connecting Hurts connected with tight end Grant Calcaterra to the Steelers’ 48 for 22-yard completion. Hurts started 4-for-4 for 53 yards and the Eagles’ two first downs came on passes. If the Steelers were going to go heavy in the tackle box, which is what they showed early, Hurts was going to beat them up top, enticing Hurts to pass. Elliott got a confidence boost by nailing the field goal to conclude the first series.

The Bad

Linebacker Zack Baun making a rare error on the Steelers’ first play of the second half. On a first-and-10 at the Pittsburgh 30, Baun lost track of the ball on a flea-flicker, when Russell Wilson hit Calvin Austin for a 31-yard pass

The Eagles blowing a Red Zone opportunity on their first drive of the second half, after getting a break on Pittsburgh’s unnecessary roughness took

Running back Saquon Barkley missing the last 10 minutes of the second quarter. He had taken a vicious hit from Minkah Fitzpatrick on a first-and-goal at the Steelers five with 1:48 left the first quarter. Barkley was not on the field the last 10 minutes of the second quarter.

Punter Braden Mann’s 29-yard punt with 1:29 left in the first half gave the Steelers great field possession to set up a field goal.

Right tackle Lane Johnson getting called for offsides on a third-and-seven at the Eagles’ 33 with 2:00 left in the half. Then, T.J. Watt making Johnson look old on the following play, beating him for a 12-yard sack. It was Watt’s second sack of the game. By halftime, Watt had five tackles, four solo, and forced a fumble.

The Ugly

Sideline drama. This is a team that is going in a good direction. Head coach Nick Sirianni was clearly angry over Jalen Carter’s fourth-quarter unnecessary roughness penalty after a Pittsburgh punt with 10:29 left to play. It led to Sirianni and Eagles’ defensive line coach Clint Hurtt seemingly beefing on the sideline (with Hurtt no doubt coming to Carter’s defense)—while the crucial moments of a game were unfolding before them. A quality CEO head coach pays attention to what is in front of him, not caught up in triviality when his team is up by two scores and looking to seal a meaningful December victory. It is something that should have been put aside, and addressed on Monday in the privacy of the NovaCare Complex—not in that open moment ahead 27-13 in a crucial late-season game. That loss of focus is why Sirianni opens himself up to local criticism (that the national media does not see) with a Super Bowl-talented team that can only beat itself. That kind of bickering is reserved for Friday Night Tykes—not on the sidelines of winning NFL teams.

Safety Reed Blankenship’s unnecessary roughness call on a first-and-10 at the Steelers’ 47 with 8:03 left in the first half. Justin Fields

DeJean fumbling the ball away at the Eagles’ 11, after the Eagles lost a Hurts’ fumble on the previous drive with 4:13 left in the first quarter. DeJean was fortunate the Eagles defense clamped down to hold Pittsburgh to a field goal. As a team, the Eagles had turned the ball over only three times the previous nine games—and lost two fumbles within a minute against Pittsburgh.

Hurts fumbling on third-and-four on the Eagles’ second drive at the Eagles’ 45. Hurts had only turned the ball over twice during the Eagles’ nine-game winning streak, and that was the third when he tried a little too hard to stay on his feet, twisting through five Pittsburgh defenders. T.J. Watt made a perfect punch, popping the ball free.