It was a case of two halves for the Philadelphia Eagles. After a dismal first half, the Eagles went into the locker room trailing 10-6 and came back to lead the Falcons 20-17 late in the game until a Matt Ryan to Julio Jones pass put the Falcons up 24-20.
The Eagles’ defense was able to keep them in the game despite the fact that on almost every other play, a key member of the Eagles was headed to the sideline with an injury. Wide receivers DeSean Jackson and Alshon Jeffrey and running back Cory Clement all left in the first half with injuries and did not return. All three injuries will keep the offensive weapons out of action for two weeks.
The Eagles also lost defensive tackle Tim Jernigan to a broken foot; he is likely to miss the rest of the season.
Nelson Agholor had a nice game with eight catches for 107 yards and a touchdown despite needing some treatment in the injury tent during the first half.
Tight end Zach Ertz made a nice grab with 38 seconds to go, but the replay official ruled the catch short of the first down marker and that was the game. Ertz finished with eight catches for 72 yards.
Neither team could get much going on the ground as the Falcons ran for 57 yards while the Eagles managed just 49 yards.
Philadelphia quarterback Carson Wentz did not look very comfortable at all during the game as the Falcons’ defense kept him scrambling a good part of the night. Wentz was sacked three times and completed 25 of 43 passes for 243 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions. Wentz seemed to lack chemistry with Mack Hollins and JJ Arcega-Whiteside after Jackson and Jeffrey left with injuries.
Julio Jones and Calvin Ridley were the offensive stars for the Falcons. Jones had the game-winning touchdown catch with 2:10 to go as Ryan and Jones hooked up for a 54-yard touchdown pass to seal the deal against the Eagles. Jones finished the night with five catches for 106 yards and two touchdowns. Ridley contributed eight catches for 105 yards and a touchdown.
Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan completed 27 of 43 passes for 320 yards, three touchdowns, and three picks. Despite recording just one sack, the Eagles’ defense was relentless all night in their harassment of Ryan.
Ryan acknowledged as much after the game, saying, “It’s probably the most all-out pressure I’ve seen in my entire career, consistently throughout the course of the game, and so when you’re going against that, there’s going to be feast and famine.”
Ryan has thrown five picks already this season after throwing just seven all of 2018.
