Despite Offensive Struggles, Eagles Win Low-Scoring Showdown on Primetime

If you like offense and football games that feel more like tennis, with the ball moving up and down the field, then the Monday Night Football game between the Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers was probably not an enjoyable watch.

If, on the other hand, you like games that are scoreless at halftime and without a touchdown until the fourth quarter, then Christmas came early for you.

Jokes aside, despite the lack of points, the game was engaging and entertaining. New Eagles acquisition Jaelan Phillips already looks like a menace. He recorded six total tackles and had a fumble recovery. Even on plays when he didn’t make a tackle, he still made an impact, and Packers fans will be happy they won’t have to see him again, at least in the regular season.

The Eagles’ defense as a whole was menacing, keeping Jordan Love and the Packers’ offense in check. In fact, “in check” sounds like an understatement. Love threw for under 200 yards, and Josh Jacobs was held to just 74 yards rushing. Although he did get into the endzone, scoring the Packers’ only points of the game. The Packers averaged only four yards per play, four yards per pass, and four yards per rush. They also turned the ball over twice.

While the Eagles’ defense played great, their offense looked anemic.

Jalen Hurts only had 183 passing yards. Saquon Barkley was healthy but had a limited impact on the game, rushing for only 60 yards with no touchdowns. AJ Brown was back, too, but it was hard to tell with how little he did on the field, only catching two passes for 13 yards.

There were also some curious play calls, such as throwing on fourth down late in the game with the Packers out of timeouts. This decision allowed the Packers to attempt a potential game-tying field goal. Granted, it was a 64-yard attempt that was blocked, but the Packers still had a chance to send the game to overtime.

If the Eagles had punted, the Packers likely would have had to move the ball much farther to set up a field goal attempt, and with no timeouts, it’s unlikely they would have. No harm was done since the field goal was blocked, but it serves as a reminder to Eagles fans that their offensive struggles and playcalling conundrums did not disappear over the bye week.

Up next for the Eagles is another primetime game, Sunday night against the Detroit Lions. Even with a standout performance from their defense like we saw Monday night, the Eagles will not be able to beat the Lions with just 10 points. They need to figure out what went wrong offensively and get it fixed before the Lions come to Philly.