October 27, 2024
Joseph Maiorana/USA Today Sports
The Eagles offense looked smooth with a 37-point performance in Cincinnati.
They weren't facing a floundering Deshaun Watson-led Browns team. They weren't facing an injury-depleted and frankly terrible Giants team. The Eagles went into Cincinnati on Sunday and took on a talented Bengals squad and pulled off a convincing win in a 37-17 victory.
Missing two starting offensive linemen, including one of the sport's premier left tackles in Jordan Mailata, plus tight end Dallas Goedert, the Eagles' offense had fewer hiccups than the fan base has been accustomed to seeing this season. On the opposite side of the ball, Vic Fangio's defense did enough to keep the superstar duo of Joe Burrow and Ja'Marr Chase in check as road underdogs.
After a 2-2 start that felt like the sky was falling across the Delaware Valley, the Eagles are now 5-2 with a winnable home matchup with the Jaguars on the horizon next Sunday afternoon. Soak it up, Philly.
Here are some choice cuts and observations from the Eagles' W over the Bengals:
• Following a one-catch performance last week against the Giants where he totaled -2 receiving yards, DeVonta Smith looked like the player he had been the first three seasons of his career on Sunday. A.J. Brown might be the best wideout in the NFL when healthy, but Smith is as good as it gets for a No. 2 receiver and would be the top dog on most teams throughout the league.
Smith put up a 6-85-1 stat line that includes this beautiful acrobatic catch on a 45-yard go-ahead touchdown:
HURTS LAUNCHES DEEP TO DEVONTA SMITH.
— NFL (@NFL) October 27, 2024
46-YARD TOUCHDOWN.
📺: #PHIvsCIN on CBS/Paramount+
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/u4yjFvgeOi
Smith followed that up with multiple key catches on the Birds' clock-killing, game-sealing TD drive late in the fourth quarter, too.
When both Smith and Brown are in a groove, coupled with Jalen Hurts playing turnover free football, the Eagles offense can still hit those 2022 highs.
• Speaking of Brown, he had an "off day" with "just" 84 yards. The offense on Sunday evolved beyond "let's launch it down to Brown and hope for the best because nothing else is working." Maybe Brown won't be putting up 120 yards per week, but that's just fine.
• Continuing with the "off day" fun, Saquon Barkley "only" had 108 yards after putting up 176 against New York last Sunday. In the open field, he's a one-of-one player.
• Hurts completed 80 percent of his passes for 11.8 yards per throw. That's the third straight week where he's averaged more than 9.6 yards per pass attempt. He's stringing together efficient outing after efficient outing while minimizing the back-breaking turnovers that plagued him to start the season.
Oh, yeah, he added three rushing TDs on the ground, too.
• Dallas Goedert is not in Wally Pipp territory, but Grant Calcaterra has been just fine filling in for the Eagles' big-name tight end as of late. After a four-catch, 67-yard performance in the Meadowlands in Week 7, Calcaterra put up 58 yards on a whopping 19.8 yards per catch in Cincy. Calcaterra is an absolute non-factor as a blocker, which limits his ceiling as a true TE1, an element of Goedert's game that's become underrated over time, but the Eagles are getting just what they need from the third-year tight end.
• An incredible third and three red zone breakup from Darius Slay early on was a four-point swing, preventing a touchdown and forcing the Bengals to settle for a 27-yard field goal. Slay left the game with a groin injury, but that was a game-changing play to make things 10-3 instead of 14-3 early on.
• How about the run defense? Cincinnati running backs Chase Brown and Zack Moss combined for 17 rushing attempts. They combined for 43 rushing yards on a putrid 2.5 yards per carry. Jordan Davis popped there, as did 36-year-old Brandon Graham. A run stuff from Graham on a third and one late in the third quarter was tremendous.
• After an unassuming rookie campaign that barely registered, 2023 first-round pick Nolan Smith has now recorded a sack in three consecutive games. He's coming along!
• Cooper DeJean had a tough-as-anything tackle on a Chase swing pass in the flat after for a loss immediately following that Graham stop. He's got the goods and can play anywhere. It's been just seven games, but it does truly look like the Birds nailed their first two picks on defensive backs Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean.
• Looking ahead... Doug Pederson is coming to town next weekend. If the Jaguars are 2-7 after that, does his NFL head coaching career end where it once reached its peak?
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