This one lived up to the hype in every way. Under the Friday night lights of São Paulo, Brazil, the Eagles and Packers made history in the first NFL game played in South America, and the 60-minute slugfest went down to the wire with the Eagles showing the most resilience, offering the last punch, having the strongest legs, and eventually prevailing 34-29 in a great Week 1 battle.
How did it happen? Let us count the ways. Running back Saquon Barkley put up three touchdowns and 132 total yards in his debut. Quarterback Jalen Hurts shrugged off three giveaways to lead the Eagles on a final, clock-eating drive that produced three points and breathing room on a night when there wasn’t much. Wide receivers A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith were brilliant as usual, tight ends Dallas Goedert and Grant Calcaterra caught and blocked and helped the offensive line, and the entire offense accounted for more than 400 net yards.
And the defense, against a potent Green Bay attack, produced a takeaway that led to seven points, two great red zone stands in the first quarter after Eagles turnovers, and some wild pass-rush action late in the game to clinch it.
Whew! Eagles fans partied in Brazil, they partied at Lincoln Financial Field at the team’s Official Season Kickoff Party, and they whooped it up in Australia, all exhausted by the end of the long, long night.
Here are some observations from a great, great Eagles win to open the 2024 regular season …
1. The red zone defense delivered
Let the record show that the Packers scored one touchdown in four red zone trips. After the Eagles turned the football over twice in the first quarter, Philadelphia held first and limited Green Bay to a pair of field goals and then, just like that, the Philadelphia offense came to life.
But make no doubt about it, the Eagles won this game in the red zone. Aggressive pass-rush pressure from the edges, good coverage on the back end, and sure tackling kept Green Bay out of the end zone.
While the Eagles gave up 414 total net yards, they limited Green Bay to a 3-of-11 performance on third downs. They came up with a couple of sacks and pressured quarterback Jordan Love into 17 completions on 34 attempts. Coordinator Vic Fangio has some teaching points as the Eagles gave up too many big plays, but there were good things to see with this defense.
2. Rookie Quinyon Mitchell can play
Sorry to be Captain Obvious here, but it’s worth noting: Mitchell stepped right into the starting lineup at cornerback and battled, made some plays, made some mistakes, and then came back and made more plays. He looks polished, poised, extremely talented, and on the path to big things. Very strong debut as Mitchell and Darius Slay started outside and Avonte Maddox played in the nickel. The secondary gave up too many big plays, but let’s give the Packers credit there: That is a very good offense that will give every defense a lot of problems this season.
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