PHILADELPHIA − A.J. Brown was so dominant that he couldn’t believe when he was tripped up from behind 11 yards short of his fourth touchdown of the game.
So Brown flipped over onto his back and lay there for a few seconds before getting up.
It hardly mattered. Miles Sanders ran the ball in on the next play, from 11 yards out. And Brown had already caught 3 touchdown passes, from 39, 27 and 29 yards, in setting a career-high with 156 yards receiving, on only 6 receptions.
In all, the Eagles dominated the Pittsburgh Steelers 35-13 on Sunday, extending their unbeaten streak to 7 games to start the season, tying the 2004 Eagles team for the best start in franchise history. A win over the Houston Texans on Thursday night would set the franchise record.
Brown wasn’t the only standout, either. Jalen Hurts set a personal record by throwing 4 touchdown passes, all from 27 yards are more, as he completed 19 of 28 passes for 235 yards before taking a seat early in the fourth quarter, allowing Gardner Minshew to get his first snaps of the season.
And the Eagles defense ganged up on Steelers rookie quarterback Kenny Pickett. Former Steeler Javon Hargrave had 2 sacks, including a strip-sack that Avonte Maddox recovered, and safety Chauncey Gardner-Johnson intercepted Pickett in the fourth quarter. That was Gardner-Johnson’s 4th INT in the last three games.
The only negative for the Eagles was that rookie defensive tackle Jordan Davis left late in the first half with an ankle injury and did not return.
By then, Brown and the Eagles were well on their way to a relatively easy victory.
Brown had 5 catches for 113 yards in the first half alone as the three touchdowns set his career high.
Brown is the first Eagle with 3 receiving touchdowns in a game since Riley Cooper in 2013 against the Raiders. He’s the first NFL player with 3 or more receiving TDs of 25 yards or more in a game since 2019 when Tampa Bay’s Breshad Perriman did it.
The last NFL player to do it in the first half was Tennessee’s Drew Bennett in 2004.
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The Eagles opened the scoring on their first drive on Brown’s 39-yard TD reception. He took the ball away from Steelers’ safety Minkah Fitzpatrick in the end zone. The Steelers came right back with a touchdown after embarking on a 7 minute, 26 second drive.
The Steelers’ drive stalled at the 2, but a Brandon Graham penalty moved them a yard closer, and Chase Claypool threw a halfback option to Derek Watt in the end zone.
But the Eagles kept going to Brown and he kept producing.
The Eagles faced a 3rd-and-8 from the Steelers’ 27 when Hurts threw deep down the right sideline to Brown. He caught the ball over the shoulder with a defender draped on him.
The two teamed up again midway through the second quarter. The Eagles started on their 40 yard line. Hurts hit Dallas Goedert on a 17-yard play, then DeVonta Smith for 14 yards. Then Hurts threw deep to Brown for 29 yards. Three plays, 60 yards, and just like that, the Eagles were up 21-7 with 6:13 left in the half.
The Eagles put the game away on their first drive in the third quarter, when Hurts threw deep again, this time to Zach Pascal, for a 34-yard TD. It was Pascal’s first touchdown as an Eagle.
The Steelers came back with a field goal before Brown’s final catch of the game. That was a short pass over the middle, when Brown pivoted, then took off down the left side. Fitzpatrick dove at his heels and tripped Brown up at the 11. Then Sanders took the ball in.
With that, Hurts and most of the offensive line took the rest of the day off.
Jordan Davis hurt
Eagles rookie defensive tackle Jordan Davis injured his leg late in the first half and had to be helped off the field. Davis was in the medical tent until getting carted into the locker room just before halftime.
Davis, who has played 35% of the snaps this season, was ruled out for the rest of the game with an ankle injury. The Eagles play again on Thursday night, so it would be a quick turnaround for Davis to play in that game. After that, the Eagles don’t play again until Nov. 14.
Another fake punt works
For the second time this season, the Eagles fell victim to a fake punt. Marcus Allen, the upback, took the snap and ran up the middle for 4 yards. The Arizona Cardinals also converted a fake punt against the Eagles, back on Oct. 9.
2nd quarter dominance
The Eagles kept up their second-quarter dominance. They came into the game with a scoring edge of 112-27. The Eagles added 14 points, increasing their margin to 126-30. The Steelers, in seven games, have scored 117 points combined in every quarter.
Eagles give up strange TD
The Steelers faced a 4th-and-goal from the 2 and lined up for a field goal. That’s when Eagles defensive end Brandon Graham was called for delay of game for making a non-football move. Apparently, he moved, simulated a snap. That moved the ball to the 1, so the Steelers decided to go for it.
Wide receiver Chase Claypool took the handoff from Kenny Pickett, then threw into the end zone to Derek Watt, tying the game with 1:57 left in the first quarter.
Quinn makes Eagles’ debut early
The Eagles made it official, putting defensive end Robert Quinn on the game-day roster. And Quinn made his Eagles debut midway through the first quarter. On his first play, Quinn was in the Steelers’ backfield when Brandon Graham sacked Kenny Pickett, but the play was nullified by an Eagles holding penalty.
Quinn was playing 68% of the snaps in Chicago, but he won’t play that much with the Eagles as they’ll rotate him in with Haason Reddick, Brandon Graham and Josh Sweat.
“We want them all to be able to rush,” Sirianni said. “We look to have good, fresh legs and waves coming at the quarterbacks creating pressure.”
As for the inactives, the Eagles listed QB Ian Book, CB Josh Jobe, S Reed Blankenship, RB Trey Sermon and G Josh Sills.
Contact Martin Frank at mfrank@delawareonline.com. Follow on Twitter @Mfranknfl.
