Getty The Eagles got to the quarterback and forced three turnovers Sunday in a 25-20 victory over the 49ers.
Do you believe in miracles? The Philadelphia Eagles are in first place in the NFC East.
Philly’s shocking 25-20 win over San Francisco late Sunday night gave the Eagles (1-2-1) sole possession of first place thanks to losses by Washington (1-3) and Dallas (1-3) earlier in the day. Somehow this team just seems to play their best football when their backs are up against the wall. It’s something the players talked about all week, especially as heavy criticism swirled around franchise quarterback Carson Wentz. It wasn’t always pretty in Week 4 (see: Brandon Aiyuk) but they got the job done.
“We didn’t talk about his being a must-win … we just owned it, took it upon ourselves to rally and support each other,” head coach Doug Pederson said. “It wasn’t pretty but it doesn’t matter. A win’s a win in this league and this gives us a little juice, a little momentum moving forward.”
Doug Pederson on tonight: "We didn't talk about his being a must-win … we just owned it, took it upon ourselves to rally and support."
"It wasn't pretty but it doesn't matter. A win's a win in this league … gives us a little juice, a little momentum." #Eagles #FlyEaglesFly
— Michael Greger (@mike_greger) October 5, 2020
Wentz finished 18-of-28 for 193 yards with a touchdown, highlighted by a 42-yard scoring strike to former practice-squad receiver Travis Fulgham. Wentz hit seven different receivers in the game while scrambling for 37 yards, including an 11-yard touchdown in the first quarter. Miles Sanders carried 13 times for 46 yards on the ground. After the game, Wentz revealed that he and Fulgham had repped the go-ahead score one time in practice. They connected for a touchdown on that one, too.
Give the defense a game ball, too. The unit accounted for three turnovers: Rodney McLeod’s interception, Cre’Von LeBlanc’s strip sack, Alex Singleton’s pick six. The Eagles hadn’t forced a defensive turnover since Week 17 dating back to last season. Philly hit 49ers quarterback Nick Mullens 15 times and tallied five sacks.
“If you’re hunting for turnovers, you’re going to put yourself in bad position and we have seen that for probably a hundred years in the NFL,” defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz said last week. “But if you’re playing physical football, if you’re playing responsibility, if you’re doing your job, and you’re around the quarterback a lot, I think the turnovers will come and they always have for us if we keep our eye on those things.”
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Eagles Twitter Trolls NBC Sports Analysts
Prior to the game, the entire panel at NBC Sports picked the 49ers to beat the Eagles in this one. The diss wasn’t lost on the Eagles who took a not-so-subtle shot at the network in a glorious post-game troll job from their official Twitter account: “For what it’s worth, we picked us to win.”
For what it’s worth, we picked us to win.
The Eagles still have much to clean up before they start patting themselves on the back. Wentz threw his league-leading seventh interception against San Francisco, while the injury bug continues to bite them. Starting right tackle Lane Johnson (ankle) was in and out on Sunday night, with linebacker T.J. Edwards (hamstring) and safety Rudy Ford (hamstring) leaving in the first half and never returning. But, for now, the Eagles are in first place … let that sink in.
“First place sounds really good, but we have a long way ahead of us,” Pederson told reporters. “Only the first quarter of the season is done. We got a long road ahead. These guys don’t quit. It’s a resilient group.”
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