INDIANAPOLIS − It got to a point where Jalen Hurts seemingly said enough with the penalties, missed chances, turnovers.
The quarterback, playing without star tight end Dallas Goedert, took matters into his own hands after the Eagles fell behind by 10 points early in the fourth quarter, mostly with his legs.
Hurts ran for 87 yards, including the go-ahead 7-yard touchdown run on 3rd-and-goal with 1:20 left, giving the Eagles a hard-fought 17-16 win over the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday.
A few plays before, Hurts ran up the middle on 4th-and-2 from the 9, getting 4 yards to keep the Eagles alive.
Then on defense, Brandon Graham’s sack on Matt Ryan on 3rd down set up a 4th-and-21. The Colts didn’t convert and the Eagles could finally exhale as they improved to 9-1. The Giants’ loss to Detroit gave the Eagles a 2-game lead in the NFC East.
But it was anything but easy.
The Eagles desperately needed strong play from their two newest players, defensive tackles Linval Joseph and Ndamukong Suh. They played often and effectively. They even combined on a sack in the third quarter.
That’s because the offense misfired in penalties, sloppy play and missed opportunities.
The Eagles trailed 13-3 before Quez Watkins scored on a 22-yard touchdown pass from Hurts early in the fourth quarter. That made it 13-10.
The Eagles had one more chance, thanks to Haason Reddick’s sack on Ryan on 3rd-and-goal from the 5. That forced a 37-yard field goal and kept the Eagles within a touchdown with 4:37 left.
And the Eagles went down the field. Miles Sanders drew a 39-yard pass interference call to get to the Colts’ 28. But everything came down to one play, the fourth down from the 9.
Hurts ran the ball up the middle, and the Eagles kept the drive going. Hurts finished 18 of 25 for 190 yards and a touchdown.
The Eagles were much better on defense, thanks to Joseph and Suh.
Joseph, especially, was effective in stopping the Colts’ running attack, even on the first drive, when Jonathan Taylor rushed for 49 yards as the Colts scored a touchdown. But Taylor’s biggest runs, for 28 and 9 yards, came with Joseph on the sideline.
It was remarkable that both played as much as they did. Joseph, 34, was signed Wednesday and went through two practices. Suh, 35, was signed a day later, and went through one practice. Neither had played for a team this season.
The Eagles needed them against Taylor, the NFL’s leading rusher last season. The Eagles had allowed an average of 160 yards per game on the ground the last two games without rookie Jordan Davis, who’s on injured reserve with an ankle injury.
Taylor had just 15 yards rushing after that opening drive, and finished with 64 yards on 11 carries in the first half.
But the Eagles had trouble on offense without Goedert, both in production and in penalties.
The Eagles committed 5 penalties for 40 yards. They had three in a row on one drive that left them with a 1st-and-35. They punted. All three backup tight ends were called for penalties during the first half.
Later, when the Eagles faced a 2nd-and-goal from the 2 midway through the second quarter, Jason Kelce snapped the ball over Hurts’ head and the Eagles lost eight yards. They settled for a field goal, cutting their deficit to 7-3.
The Colts added a field goal with 13 seconds left in the half.
Then the Eagles’ follies continued in the second half. That is, until Hurts took matters into his own hands.
Mistakes keep coming
The Eagles, no doubt smarting from a bad first half offensively, were hoping to make amends by getting the ball to start the second half.
That didn’t work out. On the first play, Colts defensive end Yannick Ngakoue blew past left tackle Jordan Mailata and then Miles Sanders. He then hit Hurts’ arm as he was getting ready to throw, forcing a fumble that the Colts recovered at the Eagles’ 22 yards line.
The Colts settled for a field goal and a 13-3 lead. And the Eagles’ offense remained stuck in quicksand.
Joseph, Suh used early
Joseph was on the field for the first two snaps of the game. And not surprisingly, the Colts didn’t have much success on the ground, gaining 4 yards. Joseph even made the tackle on the first play.
But Joseph came out on third down, a passing down, and Matt Ryan completed a pass to Michael Pittman for a first down. Then Jonathan Taylor gained 28 yards and 9 yards with Joseph on the sideline, taking the ball to the Eagles’ 10 yard line.
Joseph came back into the game at that point. Suh was in as well. But the Colts scored for an early lead.
The Colts had 50 yards rushing on that opening drive, but the majority of those yards came with Joseph on the sideline.
1st-and-35?
The Eagles haven’t helped themselves in the first half. On one drive in the first quarter, the Eagles got a 1st-and-10 on the Colts’ 35. On the first play, center Jason Kelce was called for being an illegal man downfield, pushing the Eagles back 5 yards. On the next play, guard Landon Dickerson was called for holding, pushing them back another 10 yards.
On the next play, tight end Tyree Jackson was called for offensive pass interference. That gave the Eagles a 1st-and-35 from their 40 yard line. The Eagles ended up punting.
Eagles, Colts inactives
The Eagles listed QB Ian Book, CB Josh Jobe, RB Trey Sermon, G Josh Sills and G Sua Opeta as inactive. As for the Colts, both Pryor and Foles are among the inactives.
Contact Martin Frank at mfrank@delawareonline.com. Follow on Twitter @Mfranknfl.
