Eagles-Rams takeaways: The defense finds its fight, and Jalen Hurts’ legs reappear

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — The Eagles remained unbeaten on the road Sunday, pulling off a reasonably comfortable 23-14 win over the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium. Here’s what we learned:

In years past, one of the biggest discussion points after just about every game against a quarterback of Matthew Stafford’s stature would be the Eagles’ defensive coordinator.

Sean Desai’s performance Sunday against an upper-echelon quarterback in Stafford and play-caller in Rams coach Sean McVay was encouraging, especially when considering his predecessor Jonathan Gannon’s record in such situations.

It was shaky early on. Desai’s group gave up a scoring drive on Los Angeles’ first series much too easily, throwing a bevy of defensive backs at Cooper Kupp to no avail. The star receiver, returning from a hamstring injury suffered in training camp, had five catches for 56 yards against a combination of Mario Goodrich, Eli Ricks, Reed Blankenship, and others.

The following series, the Eagles threw newcomer Bradley Roby into the fire and then had Darius Slay follow Kupp on a few routes with mixed results. Slay said after the game that he asked Desai to match him up with Kupp to slow him down in the first half.

» READ MORE: Eagles grades: The Birds defense didn’t look good on the Rams’ first drive but bounced back

It didn’t always work — the Rams move Kupp around the formation, putting him in bunch sets and in the slot, which is all pretty foreign for an outside cornerback like Slay. Kupp beat Slay for a 39-yard gain in the second quarter, but it’s fair to say that the veteran corner helped stop the bleeding for most of the second half.

That’s where Desai deserves even more credit. At halftime, Slay said, Desai made the decision to go back to the slot-by-committee plan with which they went into the game rather than letting Slay follow Kupp. The trio of Roby, Goodrich, and Ricks settled in for the second half and kept Kupp in check with Roby in the slot in most passing situations and Goodrich and Ricks working in on earlier downs. Kupp finished with eight catches for 118 yards, catching just two passes for 23 yards in the second half.

While “adjustments” can often be overstated or nebulous when discussing a coach’s worth, Desai’s navigation after a turbulent start was impressive. The defense held the Rams out of Eagles territory for the entire second half, forcing three punts and a turnover on downs as the game slipped from Los Angeles’ grip. The Rams gained just 81 yards of total offense in the second half. It required some luck — Stafford had two costly miscues on a third-quarter drive that could have each resulted in a touchdown — but Desai deserves major credit for winning the chess match against McVay and Stafford.

» READ MORE: After Dallas Goedert stayed patient, the Eagles fed their tight end often in a win against the Rams

The Eagles offense seems to find another piece of its former self each week.

On Sunday, the group rediscovered Dallas Goedert’s dynamic ability to create after the catch, featuring the tight end early and often after four quiet games.

Perhaps next week they’ll sort out the red-zone issues that have ailed them so far.

The Eagles reached the Rams’ 20-yard line in seven of their eight drives. They were completely in control offensively, but they scored just two touchdowns on six trips inside the 20. The final red-zone trip came at the end of the game when Nick Sirianni prioritized running down the clock on a fourth-and-short sneak instead of going for a score.

Sirianni said the struggles can be traced back to poor production on first and second down, putting the offense in third-and-long situations.

Watching the game again, the lack of production came down to a few plays. On a third-and-2 in the second quarter, Quez Watkins made a head-scratching decision to bounce a screen to the outside for a short loss instead of hitting an emerging clear lane between DeVonta Smith and A.J. Brown. The next series, Jalen Hurts got picked off trying to hit Brown on a back-shoulder pass that Brown wasn’t expecting.

The rest of the missed opportunities came down to unproductive runs on early downs and Hurts missing an open Watkins in the back of the end zone. None of the series in isolation would be concerning, but the Eagles went into the game 25th in red-zone efficiency at 46.2% and are now at 42% (27th in the NFL), roughly 25% worse than their touchdown conversion rate last season.

A big reason the Eagles have won 22 of their last 23 regular-season games with Hurts under center is what they did for much of the second half in Los Angeles: salt the game away.

The Eagles had the ball for 19 minutes and 16 seconds in the second half compared to the Rams’ 10:44 time of possession. The Eagles are built for this game script, leaning on their running game and letting their pass rush key in on getting to the quarterback as their opponent begins to chase points by throwing downfield more frequently.

Jalen Carter said after the game that the Eagles worked out the timing of the Rams’ snap in the second quarter. The rookie defensive tackle and veteran edge rusher Haason Reddick were both the beneficiaries, logging sacks in the second half.

It’s a formula where the Eagles have been good, but not one to take for granted. They can ruthlessly close out games, which is a big reason they’ve been able to beat lesser teams even when they’re not at their best.

This was Hurts’ best game as a runner this season and it wasn’t particularly close.

It’s anyone’s guess as to why Hurts, who looked a bit uncomfortable running in traffic early this season, suddenly looked like his old self. But he was back to “getting freaky” in the open field Sunday, as Sirianni put it after the game.

I understand the arguments that the $255 million contract Hurts signed should result in him running less and taking fewer chances. There were moments when Eagles fans likely held their breath as Hurts worked through contact or had defenders grabbing at his legs Sunday. Still, that dynamic running ability is part of what makes Hurts special; it’s part of the reason he was worth the contract in the first place.

I think settling into a “have to have it” mindset for scrambles and designed runs is the happy medium here, and it’s a doable one. You don’t want Hurts taking shots in a September blowout, but cutting him loose in high-leverage moments, especially later in the season, could be the difference between wins and losses.

» READ MORE: Jalen Hurts ‘gets freaky’ with his legs, and all seems well again for the QB after the Eagles upend the Rams

Hurts’ interception is a good reminder that the term “50-50 balls” exists for a reason.

The Eagles have been able to make a living off contested catches the last two seasons, largely thanks to Hurts’ accuracy and Brown and Smith’s ability to win the ball even against tight coverage. But there is a downside, which was on display when Rams cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon toe-tapped on the sideline to pick off Hurts after the quarterback threw back-shoulder to Brown as he worked upfield.

It was a reminder that the types of throws Hurts is capable of making to Brown, with cornerbacks draped on him or with the timing between the two of the utmost importance, have risk involved. The Eagles’ talent makes “50-50″ throws more like 80-20, but the 20 still exists. It’s fair to say you’d take the bad with the good in this case, though.