PHILADELPHIA − So much for the notion that the Eagles would build a big enough lead to get Jalen Hurts and many of the starters out of the game early in the second half.
Hurts, playing in his first game Sunday since spraining his shoulder Dec. 18, was clearly used differently. Hurts admitted after the Eagles’ tougher-than-expected 22-16 win over the Giants that his shoulder wasn’t fully healed.
The Eagles made that clear with no designed runs for Hurts. And it was clear Hurts was under orders to slide or run out of bounds at the slightest hint of trouble, which he did.
But as Hurts put it, his shoulder was “good enough” to lead the Eagles past a Giants team resting its starters and starting a practice-squad quarterback in Davis Webb, who had never thrown an NFL pass since he was drafted in 2017.
And it was good enough for the Eagles to accomplish their two main goals: clinch the NFC East division title and the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs, with the first-round bye that goes with it. They also set a franchise record for wins a season as they finished 14-3.
The Eagles won’t have to play again until the weekend of Jan. 21-22 against the worst-remaining team. More importantly, it will give Hurts an extra week of rest after he went 20-for-35 for 229 yards with an interception.
“I was pushing myself to be available, and it wasn’t an easy thing,” Hurts said. “It’s still not easy. But we’re here, we’re thankful, and we’re looking forward to what’s to come.”
Hurts was then asked when he expects to be back to 100%.
He replied: “Good enough to win today.”
But the Eagles played it very conservatively as Hurts ran 9 times for 13 yards, the last three were kneel-downs to kill off the last minute of the game. The Eagles settled for 5 field goals by Jake Elliott rather than risking Hurts to hits from the Giants defense.
Eagles coach Nick Sirianni admitted as much, sort of.
“I won’t get into too much of that, but sure, you didn’t want to take any unnecessary risks,” Sirianni said. “We needed to win the game however we needed to win the game.”
Hurts showed there wasn’t anything wrong with his throwing arm. His very first play was a slant to A.J. Brown that Brown turned into a 35-yard gain, in the process breaking Mike Quick’s record for receiving yards in a season. Quick had 1,409 yards receiving in 1983.
Later in the first quarter, Hurts threw deep for Brown, hitting him for 37 yards. The Eagles got a touchdown on Boston Scott’s 8-yard run for a 10-0 lead in the first quarter.
Brown finished with 95 yards, giving him 1,496 for the season. In addition, DeVonta Smith, with 7 receptions, set the franchise record for a wide receiver. He came into the game tied with Irving Fryar with 88.
Still, Hurts and the Eagles showed some rust. They went 1-for-5 in the red zone. That included Hurts throwing an interception into the end zone on the opening drive of the third quarter with the Eagles leading 16-0.
Perhaps a touchdown on that drive would have led the Eagles to pull him.
Instead, the Giants got back to within 19-9 on a field goal, then a touchdown with 10:44 remaining in the fourth quarter.
There was no pulling Hurts at that point.
The Eagles got another field goal with 3:21 left before Kenny Golladay’s 25-yard TD reception with 1:43 left provided the final margin. The Eagles recovered an onsides kick to close it out.
“That’s a lot of points we left out on the field,” Brown said. “I can’t really speak on what the (coaches) were calling, or how they were trying to play the game because of Jalen or whatever. Regardless, we still gotta execute, and I feel like we should have. There’s stuff to clean up.”
It was evident early on that Hurts wasn’t going to take any chances. He dropped back to pass on 2nd-and-1 early in the game and slid rather than take a hit. He lost a yard. Hurts didn’t try a QB sneak until their final drive in the fourth quarter.
Still, Hurts did take a few hits. The first time came when he escaped a sack and got bumped as he ran out of bounds late in the first half. Hurts landed on his right shoulder and bounced right back up on his feet.
On the same drive, Hurts was knocked down from behind after he threw. That was penalized as a late hit. Hurts was sacked twice on that final first-half drive which ended with a field goal.
But he made it through, and so did the Eagles.
“I’m just playing the game − playing the game and protecting myself,” Hurts said. “I think that’s what you all want to hear. I’m protecting myself.”
How did he feel after those hits?
“Good enough.”
And that, in many ways, describes how the Eagles were able to hold off a depleted Giants team without Daniel Jones and Saquon Barkley to got the top seed in the playoffs.
Chauncey’s return
Safety Chauncey Gardner-Johnson returned after missing the last five games with a lacerated kidney suffered on Dec. 4 against Tennessee. Despite missing so much time, Gardner-Johnson is still tied for the NFL lead in interceptions with 6.
Gardner-Johnson switched between safety and nickel corner in place of Avonte Maddox, who’s missing his second straight game with a toe injury.
DE Robert Quinn also returned from IR. He had played in five games since the Eagles acquired him before going on IR with a knee injury. Quinn hasn’t had any sacks since coming to the Eagles. But his return was needed because it coincided with Josh Sweat’s neck injury suffered last Sunday against the Saints.
Sweat, who has 11 sacks, was ruled out for the game.
Record for A.J. Brown
It only took one play for A.J. Brown to set the Eagles’ franchise record for receiving yards in a season. Brown came into the game with 1,401 yards, 8 short of Mike Quick’s record set in 1983. On the first play, Hurts threw a slant to Brown, who turned that into a 35-yard gain.
This is Brown’s first season with the Eagles.
After the game, Brown posed with Quick, wearing Quick’s No. 82 kelly green jersey.
“It means a lot to leave my footprint on this organization,” Brown said. “There were a lot of great receivers before me. For me to do it the first year, it means the world. I told Mike thank you for everything he has done for the game. It is truly an honor. He has been up there for (39) years and that says a lot. It means a lot.”
No sack record
The Eagles had just 2 sacks Sunday, falling 3 short of breaking the Bears’ NFL record in a season. Chicago had 72 in 1984. The Eagles finished with 70 on the season.
None of the Ealges’ sacks were on Webb. Cornerback Zech McPhearson had the first sack, when field-goal holder Jamie Gillan kept the ball as he set up for a field goal. Linebacker Kyzir White had the second, when TE Lawrence Cager tried a pass on a trick play.
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Eagles have a top-10 draft pick
New Orleans’ loss to Carolina on Sunday means that the Eagles will pick No. 10 in the first round. The Eagles made a trade with the Saints last April where, in essence, the Eagles sent 2 first-round picks to New Orleans (No. 16 and No. 19) in return for the Saints’ first-rounder (No. 18) plus a first-rounder in 2023 and a second-rounder in 2024.
The Saints went 7-10 this season.
Contact Martin Frank at mfrank@delawareonline.com. Follow on Twitter @Mfranknfl.
