Eagles victimize Packers in hit and run, 40-33

Eagles defensive end Derek Barnett out for season with torn ACL

You knew going into this Aaron Rodgers was good for at least 28 points just by his mere presence, despite his broken thumb.  It was playing out to be a dramatic finish no matter who won.  Then Rodgers took a legal hit to the upper body, got knocked out of the game, and the Eagles ran with it.

Jalen Hurts ran for 157 yards to set an Eagles record for a quarterback, he also threw for 153 yards and two touchdowns and Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers injured his ribs in Philadelphia’s 40-33 victory over Green Bay on Sunday night.

Hurts helped the Eagles move to 10-1 for the fifth time in history. Miles Sanders ran for 143 yards and two scores as Philadelphia rushed for 363 overall, the second-best total for the franchise.

Run, Eagles, Run.  “It’s chasing greatness every week,” Sanders said. “Just trying to be as dominant as possible.”  This was pretty dominant: Philly’s rushing record is 376 yards against Washington on Nov. 21, 1948.

The major difference in the run game was the absolute rampaging of the Eagles’ offensive line as a unit. It created a huge margin of error for the Eagles defense, which despite getting decent pressure on Rodgers had an occasional bit of trouble stopping the run too. The Eagles’ run game also obscured the costly turnover of A.J. Brown on a key fumble, as well as the leaky special teams coverage on kickoffs.

Rodgers left in the third quarter with his team trailing 34-23 after grimacing his way through a drive that led to a Packers field goal. He had already been playing with a broken thumb and took several hard hits.

“The pain was tough,” he said. “I couldn’t really breathe or rotate my upper body.”

Rodgers said he planned to start Sunday at Chicago, if healthy.

Rodgers’ replacement, Jordan Love, kept the Packers (4-8) in the game by connecting with Christian Watson for a 63-yard catch-and-run touchdown that cut Philly’s lead to 37-30.

But the Packers ran out of time against Hurts, who had 17 rushes for a 9.2 average.

Hurts had 254 combined yards, including 126 on the ground, and threw a TD pass in the first half as the Eagles built a 27-20 lead. He ripped off runs of 42, 28 and 24 yards.

In the second half, he hit A.J. Brown for a 6-yard TD pass and a 34-20 lead that just added to his staggering numbers on one of the great nights ever for an Eagles QB. Hurts topped Michael Vick’s 130 yards rushing set in December 2010 against the New York Giants.

Rodgers was 11 of 16 passing for 140 yards, two touchdowns and two first-half interceptions.

Hurts put on a show in a lively first half that saw two Eagles get their first career picks and both teams miss an extra point while combining for seven touchdowns.  Bettors could have cashed in on the over in the first 30 minutes.

Philadelphia’s high-octane offense had slowed of late — notably during the first loss of the season in the previous home game against Washington and last week’s win over Indianapolis that needed a fourth-quarter rally — but Hurts put the Packers on notice with early rushes that would make an All-Pro running back envious. He ran for 52 yards on the opening drive and set up Kenneth Gainwell’s 4-yard TD.

Then the game got wild. Rodgers had his second pass attempt batted by cornerback Darius Slay and snagged by Josiah Scott. Three plays later, Sanders scored on a 15-yard run. But Jake Elliott missed the PAT.

Rodgers led the Pack right back. A.J. Dillon scored on a 20-yard run, Rodgers hit Randall Cobb for an 11-yard score, and it was 14-13 late in the first quarter.

Hurts, though, closed the half with a 42-yard run and a 1-yard run, close enough to the end zone to set up Sanders’ 2-yard scoring run on the first play of the second quarter.

Rodgers again came back and threw a 23-yard TD pass to Aaron Jones. Mason Crosby matched Elliott with a missed extra point and it was 20-20.

That was about all Rodgers could muster.

Hurts took it from there and threw a 30-yard TD pass to Quez Watkins — whose fumble against the Commanders played a pivotal role in the Eagles’ lone defeat.

INJURIES—-Besides Rodgers getting hurt, for the Packers: S Darnell Savage injured a foot.

Eagles: C.J. Gardner-Johnson, the NFL interception leader with six, suffered a painful rib injury in the first half on an awkward shoulder tackle.

  • DeVonta Smith was in the medical tent at one point during the second quarter but didn’t miss much time, if any.
  • Patrick Johnson got banged up on the punt return unit early in the third quarter. He was ruled questionable to return with an ankle injury.
  • Landon Dickerson got hurt early in the fourth quarter. He re-entered the game on the Eagles’ next drive.
  • Reed Blankenship got hurt late in the game. He had entered the game to replace the injured C.J. Gardner-Johnson. He then recorded his first NFL interception on a Rodgers pass which really impacted the game.  His exit prompted K’Von Wallace to enter the game.
Matchup Eagles victimize Packers in hit and run, 40-33 Eagles victimize Packers in hit and run, 40-33
1st Downs 19 29
Passing 1st downs 12 6
Rushing 1st downs 5 21
1st downs from penalties 2 2
3rd down efficiency 1-7 8-15
4th down efficiency 1-1 2-3
Total Plays 49 79
Total Yards 342 500
Total Drives 11 11
Yards per Play 7.0 6.3
Passing 236 137
Comp-Att 17-25 16-28
Yards per pass 8.4 4.6
Interceptions thrown 2 0
Sacks-Yards Lost 3-17 2-16
Rushing 106 363
Rushing Attempts 21 49
Yards per rush 5.0 7.4
Red Zone (Made-Att) 2-4 4-5
Penalties 4-35 3-25
Turnovers 2 1
Fumbles lost 0 1
Interceptions thrown 2 0
Defensive / Special Teams TDs 0 0
Possession 24:26 35:34
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