Eagles ride disciplined defense, just enough offense to post-bye win at Packers

GREEN BAY, Wis. — The new Bird on the block called game.

Jaelan Phillips, the 26-year-old edge rusher whom the Eagles acquired from the Miami Dolphins before the trade deadline, was the hero in the Eagles’ 10-7 victory over the Green Bay Packers on Monday night at Lambeau Field.

Alongside Reed Blankenship, he helped force a critical Josh Jacobs fumble on fourth-and-1 late in the game as the Packers tried to erase their deficit. Blankenship’s forced fumble and recovery helped squash the Green Bay comeback attempt, earning the 7-2 Eagles their third consecutive win.

The lack of a Tush Push attempt from the Packers — or even a quarterback sneak, for that matter — in that scenario was noticeable. After all, the Packers had submitted a proposal in the spring that would have effectively banned the play.

» READ MORE: Eagles grades: Defense overcomes sloppy offense

The Eagles offense couldn’t salt away the rest of the contest with roughly a minute and a half remaining. The Packers got the ball back with 27 seconds to play after the Eagles called a pass play that went incomplete on fourth-and-6. Philly native and Temple grad Brandon McManus tried to tie the game on a 64-yard field goal with two seconds left in regulation, but his kick was short.

The Eagles are now 5-0 coming out of the bye week under Nick Sirianni.

Here’s our instant analysis from the Eagles’ win over their conference foe:

Saquon Barkley didn’t pick up where he had left off before the bye week, at least on the ground. The running back was inefficient, finishing the game with 22 carries for 60 yards (2.7 yards per carry).

It didn’t help from a run-blocking standpoint that the Eagles lost Lane Johnson due to an ankle injury in the second quarter. Packers safety Evan Williams rolled up on Johnson’s left leg on a Barkley run play. Johnson eventually returned to action with just under six minutes remaining in the game.

However, Barkley provided the spark that ignited the Eagles offense 4½ minutes into the fourth quarter. He turned a checkdown on third-and-7 from the Eagles’ 23-yard line into an explosive play.

He spun away from Packers cornerback Carrington Valentine and sprinted down the left sideline for a gain of 41 yards until safety Xavier McKinney brought him down at the Packers’ 36.

» READ MORE: All the highlights from the Eagles-Packers broadcast

The Eagles kept their foot on the gas. On the ensuing play, Jalen Hurts connected with DeVonta Smith on a contested deep ball in the end zone. The Eagles receiver leaped to snag the ball over Williams, giving the Eagles a 10-0 lead.

Smith had just four receptions in the win, but they were significant ones. Aside from the touchdown grab, Smith had three third-down conversions. One of those conversions included a 16-yard sideline catch on third-and-12 late in the third quarter that helped keep the Eagles’ drive alive as they sought to protect their lead.

“I think he’s as dynamic as it gets,” Hurts said of Smith. “He showed up and made some big-time plays today. That’s what he’s been doing all year. So definitely don’t win this game without him making the plays that he made.”

Those sparks provided by Barkley and Smith were just flashes, though. The Eagles never scored again, relying on their defense to come up with a stop with just over two minutes remaining in the game.

The Eagles offense came out looking like it hadn’t played in two weeks. Hurts committed a rare turnover (on a rare designed run) on the Eagles’ opening possession, fumbling the ball away just outside the red zone on a nearly nine-minute drive.

Hurts was shaky in the passing game, too. In the first half, he had seven completions on 13 attempts (53.8% completion) for 48 yards, making some questionable throws into tight coverage. He finished with just 15 completions on 26 attempts (57.7%) for 183 yards and a touchdown.

The Eagles quarterback wasn’t the only player committing errors on offense. The group incurred three penalties total, including two false-start infractions on Jordan Mailata and a holding call on Brett Toth.

That sloppiness continued into the second half when the Eagles were called for a delay of game on third-and-7 just as they had reached the red zone on their first possession out of the break. Sirianni opted to play it conservatively, running the ball on the next play and settling for a field goal.

Jake Elliott broke the scoreless tie on a 39-yard field goal to put the Eagles up, 3-0, six minutes into the third quarter.

The Eagles defensive line dominated up front, especially on the interior.

Jalen Carter had a pair of batted passes at the line of scrimmage. Moro Ojomo was involved in both the run and the pass, generating a pair of quarterback hits on Jordan Love and keeping Jacobs at bay in the running game.

The new-look edge corps was active, too. Phillips, who was touted for his pass-rush ability with the Dolphins, was particularly involved in the running game in his Eagles debut. He notched six tackles, four of which came in the first half.

The 26-year-old edge rusher also recovered Love’s fumble late in the second quarter, which was forced by Nakobe Dean.

Phillips also helped set up Jalyx Hunt for his second sack in as many games early in the first quarter. On second-and-9 from the Eagles’ 38, Phillips shed Packers right tackle Zach Tom and lunged at Love, who attempted to escape the pocket by running toward his own end zone.

Hunt greeted him in the backfield for a sack and a loss of 11 yards.

In the fourth quarter on third-and-11, the Packers reeling after an illegal formation call backed them up 5 yards to the Eagles’ 40-yard line, Phillips registered a quarterback hit on Love on a throwaway. In a conservative decision of his own, coach Matt LaFleur elected to punt, which resulted in a touchback.

“I’m just glad I could help the team,” Phillips said. “My biggest thing coming in, no ego and just wanted to earn the respect of my teammates and my coaches and the fans and everybody. All I can really do on my end is obviously do my job and know my plays and everything like that, but just play with fanatical effort. And that’s what I do, play in and play out.”

Patrick Johnson, the practice squad edge rusher who was elevated to the game-day roster, was injured on a third-quarter punt return.