PHILADELPHIA − No Jalen Hurts, big problem.
At least that was the case in the first half as the Eagles, behind Gardner Minshew at quarterback, were shut out for the first time in the first half this season as they trailed New Orleans 13-0 at halftime.
And the fans weren’t happy, booing the Eagles after each possession, the boos growing louder after each one.
And really, the Eagles didn’t come close to scoring. They didn’t get their first first down of the game until Minshew threw a 12-yard pass to Dallas Goedert with 12 seconds left in the first half.
They went 3-and-out on their first four possessions. The Eagles, without star right tackle Lane Johnson, allowed five first-half sacks. Mishew completed 6 of 10 passes for 70 yards.
It was only slightly better on defense, but the Saints were a perfect 15 of 15 for 188 yards passing until their first incompletion − a Josiah Scott interception with 34 seconds left in the first half.
The Saints had the ball for 22:50 in the first half, the Eagles for just 7:10.
But the Eagles did set the team sack record with two in the first half. That gave them 63 for the season. Fittingly, Brandon Graham got the record-breaking sack. That gave him 10 on the season, making him the fourth Eagle in double figures in sacks.
No NFL team has had four players in double figures since sacks became an official stat in 1982.
The Eagles also had a chance for several team offensive records on Sunday. Instead, they were closer for records for futility.
The Eagles will need a strong second half in order to win and thus clinch the NFC East and the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs, and the first-round bye that goes with it.
The Eagles were looking for their first 14-win season in team history. The Eagles have twice won 13 games in a season, in 2004 and 2017. Both times they went to the Super Bowl. The Eagles reached the 13 wins in 16-game seasons.
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The Eagles need to score 30 points or more Sunday in order to break the previous franchise record for points in a season. The Eagles scored 474 points in 2014.
There are personal records at stake, too.
Wide receiver A.J. Brown needs 106 yards receiving to set the franchise record for receiving yards in a season, set by Mike Quick with 1,409 yards in 1983. Brown had 2 catches for 15 yards in the first half.
But his 78-yard TD late in the third quarter got him to within 13 yards of Quick’s record.
At least the Eagles got the sack record.
“Man, that would mean a lot because we’ll go down in history for that,” Graham said. “But there’s no pressure. I’m just out here having fun … We heard about that (team) record for so long in this organization, so to be able to be two sacks away, don’t think about it, just be us.”
Dubious penalty negates TD, but Brown delivers
As if things weren’t going badly enough for the Eagles’ offensively, they had put together by far their best drive of the game when they started the third quarter with − get this − some running plays. They drove to the Saints’ 28 when Minshew handed the ball off to Kenny Gainwell, who found a hole and ran it in for a touchdown.
But left guard Landon Dickerson was called for a hold and the Eagles settled for a 56-yard field goal. Replays showed that Jordan Mailata might have been guilty of a hold as Dickerson “pancaked” his opponent.
A.J. Brown delivered a few drives later, catching Minshew’s pass for a 78-yard TD with 45 seconds left in the third quarter.
Josh Sweat has scary injury
It appeared that Eagles defensive end Josh Sweat suffered a significant injury in the first quarter. He was trying to make a tackle on Adam Prentice on a 3rd-and-1 from the 19. Sweat went down and banged his hands on the turf. But he didn’t appear to be moving his legs, so he stayed face down on the turf for several minutes.
A cart came on the field and Sweat was slowly lifted onto it as the entire team came over to wish him well. He appeared to be moving his arms, but not his legs as the cart was driven off slowly.
The Eagles announced that Sweat has a neck injury was transported to a local hospital for precautionary reasons. He has movement in all extremities.
Hurts not only key player out
The Eagles listed three key players on the gameday inactive list. Right tackle Lane Johnson is sitting out with an abdominal injury. The Eagles are hoping that he can return in time for the playoffs. Also, nickel cornerback Avonte Maddox is also expected to be out until the playoffs with a toe injury.
The other inactives were RB Trey Sermon, DE Janarius Robinson and G Sua Opeta.
The Eagles gave the practice-squad elevation to punter Brett Kern. That’s his third and final elevation. The Eagles will have to create a spot on the 53-man roster for Kern for him to play again.
For the Saints, starting safety Marcus Maye and guard Andrus Peat are sitting out with injuries. But CB Marshon Lattimore and WR Chris Olave, both listed as questionable, are playing.
3 things I’m watching
- No Minshew miscues: Gardner Minshew played a strong first game against Dallas, throwing for 355 yards and 2 TDs. But Minshew also threw 2 interceptions and was credited with a fumble on a bad exchange with Boston Scott. Minshew said he learned his lessons and will adapt.
- No Saints marching: The Eagles have the NFL’s top-ranked passing defense, allowing just 181 yards passing per game. But they got burned last week by the Cowboys, who threw for 304 yards. Dak Prescott threw a 52-yard pass to convert a 3rd-and-30. That shouldn’t happen against the Saints, who are 15th in the NFL in passing, averaging 223 yards per game.
- Gaining with Gainwell: The Eagles will no doubt try to establish the running game, but Miles Sanders was on the injury report early in the week with a knee injury. Sanders is eligible to play, but the Eagles might give more carries to Kenny Gainwell, who hasn’t had more than 39 yards in a game this season.
Contact Martin Frank at mfrank@delawareonline.com. Follow on Twitter @Mfranknfl.
