January 12, 2025
Bill Streicher/Imagn Images
It was a turnover party for the Eagles' defense against the Packers in their Wild Card win.
Go wild, Philadelphia. At Lincoln Financial Field on Sunday, the Eagles prevailed in the Wild Card Round over the Green Bay Packers 22-10. Here some choice observations and takeaways from the win...
• An opening kickoff turnover, forced by Oren Burks and recovered by Jeremiah Trotter Jr., put the Birds in an absolutely ideal spot to begin this one. They were getting the ball at half and, just seconds into the first quarter, they had the ball at the Packers' 28-yard line.
A Saquon Barkley 16-yard run then and an ensuing one-yard carry gave way to a touchdown catch from Jahan Dotson, the Week 18 standout, of all people to put the Birds on the board.
Jalen Hurts waited, waited and waited some more before Dotson appeared open in the back of the end zone. The offensive line was elite, giving Hurts all the time in the world to fire that one in there.
After that? Eh. It was rough for a while!
Look, I get it's the playoffs. The teams that are here are the best of the best. Just winning outright even in an ugly manner is always preferable to the horrific opposite outcome. The Packers are much better than the average No. 7 seed that sneaks into the postseason. The Birds' offense, however, was sluggish against the Packers and that appeared to be more of a bug for the Eagles rather than a feature of the Green Bay defense. They totaled just 22 yards on three possessions in the second quarter.
The Birds' offensive coaching nucleus had few answers for the blitz following Hurts' early touchdown that necessitated Green Bay to bring pressure again and again. That's been the game on Hurts for years.
What turned the corner to give the Birds breathing room, however, was a third and three rollout late in the third quarter from Hurts. Hurts had looked brutal at times early on Saturday. He averaged just three yards per pass in the first half. When Hurts connected to a crossing DeVonta Smith for a 28-yard gain to put the team in Green Bay territory, however, things finally appeared smooth and a once-ferocious South Philadelphia crowd was reignited.
Another nine-yard pitch-and-catch between Hurts and Smith set up a 24-yard touchdown catch from Dallas Goedert. The oft-injured, undeniably talented tight end bashed through Packers cornerback Carrington Valentine with multiple stiff arms on his way into the end zone to make things 16-3.
On the Birds' first fourth quarter drive with their lead cut to just six points, Goedert snagged a one-handed catch for a 10-yard gain that helped to methodically move the chains. The Birds stalled out in the red zone with a couple of untimely holding penalties, but a much-needed make from Jake Elliott put the Birds up nine with under eight minutes on the clock. Another fourth quarter field goal with the clock ticking away made things 22-10.
There was no signature closeout offensive play, but it all worked. Eagles fans should revel in victory. They can recall going years and years in between playoff wins. The offense ultimately needs to hit a higher level though, one they are more than capable of given the pure talent at quarterback and with the skill guys they have, if they are going to keep advancing and reach the Super Bowl.
MORE: The pivotal plays from Eagles' Wild Card win over the Packers
• Looping in that game-altering opening special team play to kick things off, the Eagles were plus-four in the turnover margin. The offense scored seven points on the first turnover and, despite squandering their next two opportunities, it was the turnovers that told the tale of the game. Jordan Love is not a sloppy player. This was an opportunistic Eagles defense reaching yet another level under Vic Fangio.
Darius Slay had an interception, his first ever postseason pick on the opening play of the second quarter. That was a shutdown drive immediately following the Birds going up 10-0 on an Elliott field goal.
Zack Baun, fresh off a First-Team All-Pro nod, also snagged an interception off Love that gave the Eagles fantastic field goal position at the Green Bay 45 late in the second quarter.
The Eagles punted when they were back on offense both times. There was truly an opportunity to break this game open and cruise to a win. They didn't. They better capitalize in these moments when facing Tampa Bay or Los Angeles or Minnesota next round if they want to make a deep playoff run once more.
Love heaved the ball in garbage time with Green Bay down multiple scores into the arms of Quinyon Mitchell all the way down in the end zone. Mitchell was a Defensive Rookie of the Year-caliber player in 2024 and that was his first interception as an Eagle outright.
What else?
• Nakobe Dean was playing a phenomenal game before leaving the game due to a knee injury, particularly against the run. It's not a surprise that after he left, Packers running back Josh Jacobs began to find a groove. They didn't tackle as well without Dean, but still certainly hung strong. The fact that Dean was quickly ruled out for the rest of the night, rather than immediately getting a "questionable" designation, is concerning for his status next weekend.
• Nolan Smith is finally making postseason noise. He had multiple sacks on Love, flying by Green Bay blockers with his speed rushes. Smith had 6.5 sacks in his sophomore campaign, a huge leap from where he was as a rookie. This is exactly the player the Birds imagined they were getting when they selected Smith with a late first-round pick out of Georgia in 2023.
• To succinctly wrap things up: believe in Fangio.
MORE: Defense carries sleep-walking offense as Eagles advance
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