Though it’s only week three of the season, the Eagles were coming off a bit of rest after a short week to play on Thursday Night Football last week, where the Birds downed the Vikings. This gave the team a few days over last weekend plus the one-day delay to Monday Night – time that may have allowed James Bradberry and Reed Blankenship to return to the lineup.
In their second prime-time match, the Eagles were taking on another undefeated team in Tampa Bay.
It was an impressive performance by the defense with some impressive offensive moments that often lacked consistency or were followed by poor decisions.
Despite a less-than-complete offensive performance for the third straight week, the Eagles remain perfect. Their defense has been putting the offense in a position that they can win games with a sub-standard performance and that continues to be the case against another championship contender.
A dominant third quarter is what put this game away with a dominant run offense and the sustained pressure of the defense.
Mike Evans did his best to breathe life into Tampa Bay on the lone bad drive by the Philadelphia defense, but by that point it was too late.
The Eagles offense continued to mesh into a more cohesive unit but has yet to get all the way there. It’s good news for Philadelphia that, despite this, they have beaten all three teams on their schedule.
Offensive MVP: D’Andre Swift
Of course, there has to be some props to the offensive line; a running back can’t do it alone. That said, Swift had just one run where you wondered what he was thinking. Otherwise, he was clearly the back that saw the field on Monday night and he took over the game for an entire quarter and reliving an inconsistent passing attack by being the backbone for two long drives that SHOULD have resulted in 14 points (though the second drive resulted in an interception). He posted an incredible 8.1 yards per carry putting up 130 yards on 16 runs. His chunk yardage put the Eagles well enough ahead that they could take a bit of a step back and not rush an injured Dickerson back into the game and could rotate in Gainwell to prevent any injury to Swift.
Defensive MVP: Reed Blankenship
Blankenship has become a core player so quickly. On Monday Night Football, he not only wound up leading the team in tackles, but he made impact plays in coverage. He picked off baker Mayfield in a play that really should have shifted momentum had it not been for Hurts quickly following with an INT of his own. He also had the toughest coverage on Mike Evans we saw in this game. While the corners almost never seemed to be near him, the top offensive play for the Bucs was a play which probably would have been a broken up pass by Blankenship for most receivers in the league – it was another great play that simply wasn’t rewarded for Blankenship in this contest. Seven tackles, a pass breakup, interception and a tackle for loss – this guy is involved in every aspect of the game.
Game Notes
- It’s not often you see a safety, but that was a great play by Nicholas Morrow. That’s some solid depth for the Eagles, especially considering the team cut him and he’s only on the 53-man roster because Nakobe Dean landed on IR.
- It was pretty rough sledding for Hurts again tonight. He threw two interceptions and the second should have been a touchdown if it wasn’t thrown late/behind. It’s still fairly early in the season, but the Birds could really use Hurts getting back to the level he was at last year and he just isn’t there yet. Really, it’s those two turnovers that held back the offense the most – that and his falling over of his own accord on an odd play in the fourth quarter.
- Evidently Quez Watkins won the third receiver role in camp, but Olamide Zaccheaus stepped in tonight due to an injury Watkins is dealing with. Zaccheaus was maybe one catch short of what the Eagles would ideally have as that third receiver. Two catches (58 yards) including the long 34-yard touchdown should be sufficient next to Smith, Brown and Goedert. It was the kind of performance that should make the coaches think about leaving the playing time with Zaccheaus.
- Sua Opeta has had his struggles in the past, but he came in and looked very comfortable. He may not be the same caliber player as Dickerson, but he certainly seemed to provide the offense very similar opportunity.
- Some poor luck for the Eagles receiving captains. AJ Brown racked up 100 yards, but he dropped his opportunity at a touchdown. Meanwhile, a bad pass by Hurts robbed Smith of what should have been a 41-yard touchdown reception in the third quarter.
Injury Notes
- Landon Dickerson went down after delivering a huge hit in the third quarter that helped to spring another long Swift run. He was replaced by Sua Opeta. The reported injury was a knee contusion and he was listed as questionable, but with the Eagles up three scores it was unlikely he’d have returned either way unless the defense totally collapsed.
Philadelphia Eagles @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers – September 25, 2023
| Team | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 |
|
Eagles |
3 | 10 | 9 | 3 |
| Buccaneers | 0 |
3 |
0 | 8 |
