Eagles stats: Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis’ first NFL sacks send a message that there’s ‘plenty more’ to come

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — The Eagles kicked off the 2023 season with a gutsy road win over the New England Patriots.

Here are four stats that help tell the story from the opener.

The Eagles converted just 31% (4-of-13) on third down. They also failed on their lone fourth-down attempt. This was well short of the team’s standard after it ranked third in the league in third-down conversion rate (47.6%) last season.

Additionally, the Eagles registered just 17 first downs. For comparison, that figure would have been the fourth-fewest first downs in a game in 2022, when the team recorded at least 20 first downs in 10 different games. Among other offensive woes, tight end Dallas Goedert was held without a reception, and he didn’t see his first and only target until the fourth quarter.

“We didn’t get the first down. That’s the biggest issue,” quarterback Jalen Hurts said. “Those things look different. And every time you have an opportunity to convert — we didn’t do enough tonight. But we won. Winning is the only thing that matters.”

Questions developed following former running back Miles Sanders’ departure in free agency. Fans and pundits alike wondered, who would step in as the starter?

Throughout the summer, coach Nick Sirianni insisted the Eagles would take a committee approach in the backfield after they acquired Rashaad Penny and D’Andre Swift, pairing them with veteran Boston Scott and third-year player Kenneth Gainwell.

But on Sunday, it was Gainwell who emerged as the lead horse. The 2021 fifth-round pick earned his second career start and led the team with 18 touches, including 14 carries, which matched his career high; he also had 14 rushes in the NFC championship game against the San Francisco 49ers in January.

» READ MORE: Kenneth Gainwell emerges as Eagles go with three halfbacks in the opener

Facing a stout Patriots run defense, Gainwell rushed for 54 yards on 14 his carries (3.9 average). He caught all four of his targets for 20 yards.

The Eagles clearly need to get Swift more involved. He and Scott had just one carry each. But barring a seismic shift in rep distribution, Gainwell — who already was cemented as the team’s featured tailback in the two-minute offense — appears to be the new RB1.

Welcome to the NFL, Jalen Carter. The No. 9 pick from April’s draft finished with an impressive six pressures across 40 defensive snaps in his debut. Carter also recorded his first sack with less than one minute remaining in the game, when he brought down Patriots quarterback Mac Jones to set up third-and-long.

Carter used a variety of pass-rush moves, mixing in his unique blend of strength and speed, to beat his opposition. His six pressures tied for the most pressures by any rookie defensive tackle in a single game over the past five seasons, according to Next Gen Stats.

“Oh man, I’m excited for him,” veteran defensive end Brandon Graham said of Carter. “I mean he was itching to get out there. We’ve got such a great defensive line ... It’s cool to see the young guys in shape and, on top of that, making plays. I was happy he got his first sack.”

» READ MORE: What we learned from Eagles-Patriots: Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis splash. Is spineless defense cause for alarm?

Josh Sweat thought he had it all planned out.

All summer, the veteran defensive end had regularly lined up from the edge alongside second-year defensive tackle Jordan Davis. The pair of players routinely practiced stunts and twists at the line of scrimmage, as defensive coordinator Sean Desai experimented with different personnel groupings.

During the bus ride from the team hotel in Providence to Gillette Stadium on Sunday, Sweat sat near Davis, and together they predicted they would record a combined sack during the regular-season opener. Sweat was so confident in their foreshadowing that he discussed a new sack celebration with Davis.

With less than three minutes remaining in the game, Sweat and Davis came through, combining for a split sack on Jones to record a loss of 7 yards and force fourth-and-17. Caught in the moment of recording the first sack of his career, Davis, the team’s top pick from the 2022 draft, forgot to execute the ensuing celebration that he and Sweat initially planned.

“I told him before the game we were going to split a sack this game, and we got the sack, and he ain’t do the celebration,” Sweat said with a laugh. “But I told him, we’ve got to coordinate better with our celebration and our rushes. It’s all good. We’re going to get plenty more. We just have to stick with it, know the ball will be out fast, just keep going.”