LANDOVER, Md. — The Eagles dominated the Commanders, taking over their stadium and going into Week 4 with a perfect 3-0 record.
The Eagles won 24-8 at FedExField on Sunday afternoon and it wasn’t exactly close.
Here’s an overview of the numbers by position:
quarterback
Jalen Hurts: 22/35, 340 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INTs
The most telling thing about Hurts’ performance on Sunday afternoon is that he didn’t do much with his legs. He finished with 9 rushing attempt for just 20 yards. That ability is still there, but Hurts won this match with his arm. He missed a few throws here and there, but again a very strong performance from QB1. His passer rating of 123.5 was the second highest of his career.
Class A
run back
Miles Sanders: 15 carries, 46 yards
The Eagles didn’t get much momentum in their running attack on the commanders, but they didn’t really need it either. Sanders averaged just 3.1 yards per carry, Kenny Gainwell had 3 for 6 and Boston Scott had 2 for 0. None of the running backs did much in the passing game either.
Grade B-
Receiver
DeVonta Smith: 8 catches on 12 goals, 169 yards, 1 TD
Remember when some people were worried about DeVonta Smith after he didn’t catch a catch in week 1? Do not worry. Smith is still very good and he showed it on Sunday with some incredible acrobatic catches. This receiving corps as a whole is dynamic. Smith had a monster game on Sunday, but AJ Brown still had 5 catches for 85 yards and a touchdown. Quez Watkins had no catch, but pulled some big DPIs and Zach Pascal even added 3 catches for 18 yards.
Quality: A+
Tight ending
Dallas Goedert: 3 catches on 4 goals, 26 yards, 1 TD
The numbers weren’t huge for Goedert, but he was a man on a mission with his 23-yard touchdown catch in the second quarter to put the Eagles 10-0. Even when Goedert ran out of time, the other TEs joined in. Jack Stoll had 1 catch for 4 yards and showed his ability as a blocker. And rookie Grant Calcaterra had his first NFL catch; it went for 40 yards.
Class A
Attacking line
The Eagles OL kept Hurts pretty clean in this game, allowing him to throw 340 yards. But they weren’t that dominant in the run game. The Eagles as a team averaged just 2.4 yards per carry.
Rank: B+
Defense Line
Brandon Graham: 6 tackles, 2 1/2 sacks, 5 QB hits, 2 TFLs, 1 PBU, 1 FF
The Eagles had nine sacks in this game and eight of them came from their defensive line. It was as dominant a performance as we’ve seen from this device for quite some time. Graham and Fletcher Cox have really turned the clock back. Cox had 1 1/2 sacks, 2 QB hits, 1 TFL. Josh Sweat and Haason Reddick broke 1 1/2 bags each and Javon Hargrave had one too. The Eagles recorded 17(!) QB hits on Carson Wentz.
Quality: A+
linebacker
TJ Edwards: 10 tackles, 1 sack, 2 QB hits, 2 TFLs
For the second game in a row, Edwards looked like a star on the defensive. Kyzir White also added 9 tackles, finishing right behind Edwards for the team leader. These guys flew to the ball on Sunday.
Class A
subordinate
Avonte Maddox: 5 tackles, 1 PBU
Wentz managed to throw only 211 yards and many of them came in waste time. The tight cover from the back gave the defense enough time to fire Wentz when they weren’t there immediately. The rush and secondary work hand in hand and help each other in this.
Class A
Special teams
Arryn Siposs: 6 punts, 277 yards (46.2), 4 in 20, 2 touchbacks
Siposs had a good day, although a few of his punters rolled into the end zone for touchbacks. Scary moment on a muted punt return from Great Britain Covey; the Eagles were lucky enough to retain possession. Covey had 5 returns for 34 yards with a long of 12. DeVonta Smith got his first NFL punt return and took 12 yards. Still some work to do in the special teams area.
Grade B-
Coaching
Record: 3-0
If I really wanted to nitpick, I’d list some of the play calls that I didn’t like in this game. But it’s actually not even worth going into. The Eagles had a good plan both offensively and defensively and they dominated in a win. Also loved the moment the Eagles reached the line after a close Smith catch to play a game before Ron Rivera could throw the red flag; they were coaching Rivera at the time.
Class A
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