Eagles’ Jalen Hurts overcomes shaky moments to make winning plays vs. the Giants

When Dallas Goedert’s head hits his pillow following the Eagles’ narrow 33-25 victory over the New York Giants on Monday night, he might have a bit of trouble falling asleep, he said.

The sixth-year veteran tight end slipped while trying to cut off the wrong foot on an out route just outside of the red zone in the third quarter as the Eagles sought to improve upon their 20-10 lead. Quarterback Jalen Hurts had already released a pass intended for Goedert before the grass swallowed up the tight end.

Much to Goedert’s chagrin, the ball fell into the eager hands of Giants cornerback Adoree’ Jackson, who returned the interception 76 yards for a touchdown and gave the Giants new life after going down 20-3 at halftime.

“Can’t do that in that situation,” Goedert said of his gaffe. “Can’t do that ever. I’m glad we got playmakers on this team that were able to make plays in big situations to help us overcome that.”

At the forefront of those playmakers who helped the Eagles survive their self-manufactured slopfest against the Giants, which included nine penalties for 65 yards and two turnovers, was Hurts. He led the Eagles on an eight-play, 90-yard scoring drive on the series following the pick-6 that ultimately solidified their first win of the month. Running back D’Andre Swift punched the ball into the end zone on a 5-yard run to help the Eagles go up 27-18, a lead that the Giants couldn’t overcome.

But the Eagles did their best to get in their own way early on in the drive. They committed 15 yards worth of penalties in a span of four plays, as right tackle Lane Johnson was called for holding and center Jason Kelce was flagged for a false start. That set up an improbable third-and-20 at their own 26-yard line, requiring the Eagles to pull off a feat they’d only achieved twice this season — convert a third down of 16 or more yards.

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The Eagles ran a 3-by-1 formation with the three-receiver set to the right and wide receiver A.J. Brown lined up outside in the set. The Giants rushed four and Pro Bowl defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence managed to get around Kelce and force Hurts to move off of his spot. A heads up, last-ditch shove of Lawrence from left guard Sua Opeta helped Hurts avoid a potential quarterback hit.

Hurts extended the play and lofted the ball up for Brown, the ball nearly tipped a few yards in front of the receiver by Giants linebacker Isaiah Simmons. But the ball sailed past Simmons’ fingertips and Brown snared the pass, good for a 32-yard gain to keep the Eagles’ drive alive.

“Just held up enough, maneuvered through the pocket, and was able to get it over the defender,” Hurts said. “A.J. made a great play. Staying alive and not letting the situation get the best of us. Finding a way to overcome that circumstance we kind of put ourselves in.”

Despite some of the chaos that ensued around him all night long, Hurts remained calm and kept the Eagles on track toward a victory. That chaos included corralling a botched snap on third-and-3 in the first quarter and managing to get a pass off to tight end Grant Calcaterra roughly 12 yards behind the line of scrimmage for a first down.

Hurts finished the night going 24-for-38 on his passes (63.2%) for 301 yards, one sack, a touchdown throw, and the interception for a 85.5 quarterback rating. He also had eight carries for 34 yards and a Tush Push touchdown. On that scoring play, Hurts set the record for the most rushing touchdowns by a quarterback in a single season in NFL history with 14, pulling ahead of former Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton.

He also survived the Giants’ blitz, which is a hallmark of defensive coordinator Don “Wink” Martindale’s scheme. Going into Monday night’s game, the Giants ranked second in the league in blitzes per dropback at 41.9%.

The Giants got theirs at times, but Hurts also made some plays in the face of the pass rush. On a simulated pressure shortly before the two-minute warning in the first half, Hurts evaded a sack from inside linebacker Micah McFadden and connected with running back Kenneth Gainwell for a 19-yard gain.

“Jalen really played incredibly well at times,” center Jason Kelce said. “Wink’s phenomenal. He’s a very good defensive coordinator. He’s gonna build everybody up on the front, bring it from the nickel, bring a safety off the edge, and make it very difficult. I thought Jalen was hot a lot of the game and made a lot of things happen. That’s one of the things that makes him a special player. You can’t pick everything up and he was truly remarkable at times in this game.”

Hurts, like the rest of the team, made his share of mistakes, too. As the clock dwindled in the first half and the Eagles inched closer to the end zone, he scrambled on second-and-9 and allowed himself to get tackled in-bounds instead of running out of bounds to stop the clock. With just four seconds remaining in the half, the Eagles settled for a 21-yard Jake Elliott field goal. Hurts owned up to the error after the game.

Even though the Eagles snapped their losing streak with their win over the Giants, Hurts displayed an understanding that collectively, the team has plenty to clean up as the playoffs draw closer.

“I think we’re hungry,” Hurts said. “I think we’re motivated, eager. Kind of the same things I’ve been saying just in terms of that standard we have for ourselves and demanding that of ourselves. I don’t think win, lose, or draw, there’s a circumstance where we compromise the standard of what we want and how we want to be.

“It’s just a matter of being together and committing ourselves to that excellence and chasing that.”