I'm going to go ahead and dispense with my normal position grades and just fire off some thoughts as I have them:
Just a weak and uninspiring effort all around; offense, defense, special teams and coaching alike all inconsistent. This was the first time this season that I felt we were fortunate to get off the field with a win.
Jalen Hurts did a few things remarkably well (ridiculous six for six on “and-one” sneaks, likely made the difference), but overall this was not his best game. He didn't have a pick but likely should have on that play that was overturned. He had 111 of his 300 total yards (37%) in the first quarter.
The offensive line held up reasonably well considering they were so banged up. I counted two holding penalties on them though.
I was tired of seeing receiver screens to the flat by the second quarter. It's like the staff forgot that they could throw the ball downfield. Smith was exposed to enough big hits that I wasn't surprised at all that he dropped that one ball down the stretch. One of the talking points I heard in the run up to the game was that the Cardinals DB room is so undersized, AJ Brown and Dallas Goedert should feast. Goedert did (he's my MVP for this game, 95 yards plus he carried Hurts into the end zone on his first score). Brown did not. I'm not sure he caught the ball at all in the second half.
Some of the talking heads are already on this, but I'm not sure why the Birds didn't run the ball more. The team averaged 4.9 yards/carry on non-sneak plays. I'm hoping they get back to this soon.
This was also the worst defensive effort since Week 1 in Detroit. The linebackers and the safeties spent half the game being caught out of position. The tackling was really poor as well.
The game was a statistical dead heat, with neither team holding more than a scant margin in yards, first downs, time of possession and plays run. Philly's streak of outgaining and outfirstdowning opponents came to an end today.
I do think this could have been even worse; Arizona did drop that one interception and had a few missed passes downfield (not to mention the shanked kick at the end). Covey's goof when he failed to call free catch and nearly lost the ball could have been devastating.
The defense played too soft on the final draft. Arizona had enough time to run their offense and the Eagles sat back and let them do it. A clock management goof by Murray and the Cardinals backup kicker bailed them out.
Given all this, how did we come out on top? Two things come to mind: first, the Cardinals are not a good team. Second, the run game was efficient overall (again begs the question on why it wasn't used more). Third, the defense, while I don't think it played well, did do just enough (this was the fourth straight time that we've held the opposition below their season scoring average).
Enough of the negatives; it's still good to get a win in a place that Philly has had no success since Arizona was in the NFC East. The last time they won there was 2001 (!?!). ESPN's hideous FPI metric actually called for a Cardinals win, so it's good to see that go awry.
Philly's top two picks showed up: Jordan Davis crushed their line on back to back plays in the fourth quarter. I think he's a player. Who's complaining about drafting a center today? Having a capable backup for Kelce in Cam Jurgens looks like a necessity from this point forward.
Philly fans traveled really well this week; huge credit to them.
I predict right now you'll see some comparing this game to their gutsy, season-defining win over Carolina in 2017. Ignore that; these games were not the same. Carolina was a playoff team that year, and Philly played much better that night. Still, one aspect of the comparison is apt: a shorthanded road win when it looked like you might lose can only build character.
From a big picture standpoint, this kind of game was needful for the Eagles for one critical reason: they really needed a game that slapped them in the face and reminded them that no matter how well they've played, they are never more than a game from humiliation. They'll need the fire in their bellies for this week of preparation; a monster prime time game against Dallas awaits.
I'll probably wake up tomorrow and feel better; it's always good to win no matter what else. This team just has some things to work on this week.
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