Jalen Hurts overcame a slow start and put together one of his most efficient games of the season in Sunday’s 20-16 win over the Browns.
The Eagles quarterback missed his first five pass attempts of the game but completed 16 of his next 20 throws for 264 yards and two touchdowns. It was his first turnover-free game since Nov. 20, nearly a year ago, in a 21-17 win against the Chiefs in Kansas City and he was sacked only once.
It certainly helped having his top two receivers back. A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith combined for nine catches totaling 180 yards and one touchdown each.
Brown was particularly brilliant with two catches that few could make. The first was a 22-yard touchdown, the second a 40-yarder that sealed the victory. Kudos to Hurts, too, for putting the ball exactly where it needed to be because coverage by Greg Newsome on both plays was particularly sticky.
“They put it on me and A.J. and put it on the receiver room to go make a play,” said Smith, whose 45-yard catch and run was the sixth 45-yard plus touchdown of his young career. “That’s the type of trust that we want to have. That’s the type of confidence that we want to have. That’s how we expect it to always be.”
Hurts was blitzed on a season-high 53.6 percent of his dropbacks by Browns defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz, per Next Gen Stats, and he was 6-for-12 for 105 yards with both TDs against the blitz.
Now, comes an even greater challenge for the Eagles QB – finding a way to win at MetLife Stadium. He is 1-3 against the Giants in their backyard and 1-4 overall with a loss to the Jets thrown in for good measure. In the spirit of Halloween, this has been Hurts’ Haunted house.
He has thrown four interceptions in four games against the Giants. He threw three against the Jets. That’s a total of seven in five games.
It will be two years ago this December since Hurts’ only win at MetLife. He threw touchdowns to Brown and Smith from – who else? – that day, and ran for a 10-yard score in a 48-22 win. The Eagles also got help on offense from Miles Sanders, who ran for two touchdowns, and Boston Scott, who added another rushing score.
Saquon Barkley has taken their place, and this will be a revenge game for him. More to come on that later this week, for sure.
For now, though, it’s about Hurts and finding a way to build on last week’s strong performance and finding a way to win in the shadow of New York City.
