Falcons 22 - 21 Eagles summary, stats, scores and highlights | NFL Week 2
There were a lot of people hopping aboard the Kirk Cousins bashing bandwagon, but he shut them up on a 65 second drive late in the 4th quarter. He knows he's got a long way to go before he is back to his best, and the team is going to need time to gel, but this is a huge win on the road after a disappointing opening to the season. They have Kansas City next on Sunday Night while the Eagles will travel to New Orleans.
There was still plenty of time for the Eagles to drive down the field and set up a field goal. They had 34 seconds and two timeouts, but Jessie Bates and the Falcons defense came up with the game winning play on this pass intended for Smith.
Cousins had a much better night than he did against the Steelers last week, but he still didn't have a great game. Until the final drive. Philly dropped into a prevent defense and let the Falcons march right down the field. Cousins went 5/6 as his receivers got open time and time again down the field and finally on the sixth play of the drive Cousins found Drake London for the game winning TD after a 70 yard drive that took just over a minute.
After making the Falcons spend all of their timeouts, the Eagles went to the air to try and close Atlanta out. Hurts had Barkley wide open, but the RB who had 3 TDs in his Eagles debut dropped it, stopping the clock and setting up a field goal with just under 100 seconds to go.
With the touchdown just a minute before, and this stop on fourth down it looked like the Eagles were in firm command of the game. With under six to go, if they could score a TD or even get a couple first downs they would be able to run out the clock and improve to 2-0. They were oh-so close.
The Eagles would respond and look to take control of the game as they used the Tush Push on a couple of different occasions on this go-ahead drive midway through the first quarter. They would convert the two point conversion and take a three point lead after Hurts' rushing TD. Hurts had 85 yards on the ground as Philly racked up 186 rushing yards, but it wasn't enough.
The Falcons needed to get something going on the offensive end coming out of the halftime break, and on the play before this TD they went for it on 4th and 4 from right around midfield. Cousins hit McCloud on a short pass to move the chains and on the next play it was Darnell Mooney taking this 41 yard TD to the house. He led the Falcons in receiving with 88 yards and a TD on just three catches.
Bijan Robinson might have won the battle of the running backs against Barkley. He went for 97 yards on 14 carries and had another 25 yard on 4 catches. He was ready for primetime as he continuously broke off big run after big run. That didn't help the Falcons get into the endzone in the first half. They had two drives that were stopped in the red zone one right before half that came to an end at the PHI 4.
With no AJ Brown available, it was next man up for the Eagles and that next man up was DeVonta Smith who put the Eagles up 7-3 late in the second quarter. He led the Eagles in receiving with 76 yards and a TD on 7 catches. Hurts went 23/30 for 183 yards with one TD and one INT, but the biggest play of the game would be one of his 7 incompletions which Saquon Barkley dropped.
Kirk Cousins and the Atlanta Falcons silenced a lot of critics on Monday night with their comeback win on the Philadelphia Eagles in the final minute of the game. Cousins had 241 yard and two TDs in the Falcons 22-21 win.
The Falcons took the lead early on thanks to the brilliant running of Bijan Robinson who nearly had 100 yards in the first half. Philly would respond but it took them a while to get going. Jalen Hurts showed some wheels of his own on a couple occasions during their opening TD drive, picking up this 4th down and then a long 3rd down conversion.
IT'S ALL OVER FROM PHILLY!!!
The Falcons come into Philadelphia and get their first win of the season in primetime on the road.
The Falcons call game when this Hurts throw to Smith was sniffed out by Bates and Atlanta come into Philly and stun the Eagles.
Cousins with his first marquee moment as the Falcons QB. He led a 70 yard drive in just over a minute, and the Falcons take the lead with a half minute to go.
INTERCEPTION!!!
Hurts felt some late pressure as he let the throw go down the left side for Smith, but Bates was there to swoop in and make the game winning pick!
ATL are going to win this game after some late heroics on both ends of the ball!
Hurts over the middle for Goedert for a gain of 13 to start the drive. TImeout PHI with 27 seconds left.
1st and 10 from the PHI 43.
PHI get the ball back from the 30 with 34 seconds on the clock and all three timeouts.
TOUCHDOWN FALCONS!!!
Cousins finds London on the out route to the right side and makes the catch at the front pylon! London was called for an unsportsmanlike penalty after doing a machine gun gesture to the sky, but Koo drills the nearly 50 yard extra point!
ATL lead 22-21 after a 6 play, 70 yard drive in just over a minute.
Cousins over the middle for McCloud and that pass was batted away in the endzone!
3rd and 5 from the PHI 7.
Cousins finds London on the left side for a gain of 5 yards and he gets out of bounds with 43 on the clock.
2nd and 5 from the PHI 7.
Mooney on the out route to the left sideline and Cousins finds him for a 26 yard pitch and catch!
1st and 10 from the PHI 12.
Cousins with a strike to Mooney who makes a sliding catch for 21 yards.
1st and 10 from the PHI 38.
Cousins looks for Pitts who moves the chains on a 10 yard catch over the middle.
1st and 10 from the ATL 40.
ATL get the ball from the 30 and have just under 100 seconds and no timeouts to get into the endzone.
FIELD GOAL!!!
The Eagles had a chance to end this game, but Barkley dropped the game winning pass and Elliott has to come out to stretch the lead to six with a 28 yard field goal.
PHI lead 21-15 with 1:39 to go.
Slip pattern from Barkley who was open on the left side and he had the first down, but he dropped it! Clock stops with 1:39 to go.
4th and 3 from the ATL 10.
Barkley gets the handoff out of the shotgun and he is taken down after a gain of 3. Timeout ATL, the last of the game for the Falcons with 1:46 to go.
3rd and 3 from the ATL 10.
Barkley with the run up the middle and he gets 4 yards. ATL take their second TO with 1:51 to go.
2nd and 6 from the ATL 13.
Hurts up the middle on the QB sneak and he moves the chains. Timeout ATL with 1:56 to go.
1st and 10 from the ATL 17.
Barkley up the middle and he bursts through the hole and he picks up 9 yards as we head to the Two Minute Warning!
3rd and 1 from the ATL 18 coming up after the break.
Barkley up the middle and he is dropped at the line of scrimmage.
2nd and 10 from the ATL 28
Barkley gets the pass to the flat and he lowers his shoulder for a first down and a gain of 3 yards with 3:00 to go.
1st and 10 from the ATL 28.
Hurts finds Goedert sitting pretty in the zone and he turns up field for a gain of 16 yards.
3rd and 2 from the ATL 31.
Barkley is wrapped up in the backfield by Bates and he loses a yard.
2nd and 18 from the ATL 47.
Barkley breaks a big run for 10 yards on first down but it's coming back after another hold on PHI.
1st and 17 from the ATL 46.
TURNOVER ON DOWNS!!!
Robinson got the handoff up the middle and Gardner-Johnson was there to stick him at the line of scrimmage and the defense comes up with a huge play that might seal this game for PHI.
PHI ball from the ATL 39 with 5:38 to go in the 4th.
Cousins finds London on the stop route but he is stopped a half yard short of the marker.
4th and 1 and the Falcons are going to go for it.
Cousins goes deep down the left side for Mooney but he stopped his route and that pass falls incomplete.
3rd and 9 from the ATL 31.
ATL star their drive from the 30 and Robinson gets a yard on the first down run.
2nd and 9 from the ATL 31.
The Eagles used the Tush Push a couple of times on that drive and they leads to a TD for Hurts.
TOUCHDOWN PHILLY!!!
The Tush Push does it again! Kelce is still in the booth on ESPN and you could here his delight both for the Eagles and for not having to be a part of that scrum.
PHI go for ttwo and Barkley leaps to the goal line and breaks the plain!
PHI lead 18-15 with 6:47 to go!
Hurts looks to the right and finds Barkley out of the backfield for a gain of 4! It was called a TD at first but his knee was down and the play was reversed.
1st and Goal from the ATL 1.
Barkley up the middle out of the shotgun and he gets a yard.
3rd and 3 from the PHI 5.
Hurts on the QB draw and he weaves his way through the middle and cuts outside for a 12 yard run.
2nd and 4 from the PHI 6.
Barkley gets the handoff out of the shotgun and he takes it to the left side for 8 yards, but a holding will take that run off the board.
1st and 16 from the ATL 18.
Hurts on the QB keeper and he moves the chains with a 2 yard run.
1st and 10 from the ATL 12.
Barkley up the middle and he gets 9 yards on the first down run.
2nd and 2 from the ATL 14.
Hurts up the middle on the designed run and he moves the chains with a 12 yard run.
1st and 10 from the ATL 23.
Out route from Covey and he gets 4 yards before getting taken down.
3rd and 2 from the ATL 35.
Barkley with the run to the left side and he cuts outside for a gain of 4.
2nd and 6 from the ATL 39.
The Tush Push moves the chains with Jason Kelce on the ESPN broadcast and the drive continues.
1st and 10 from the ATL 44.
Comeback route from Smith who makes the catch but he's just a yard short of the marker.
4th and 1 from the ATl 45.
Hurts finds Barkley out of the backfield and he goes to ground to make the three yard catch over the middle.
3rd and 6 from the PHI 49.
Hurts finds Covey on the sideline for a gain of a yard on first down.
2nd and 9 from the PHI 46.
Hurts picks up the first down with a roll out to he left side and he hits Covey on the move for a 9 yard gain.
1st and 10 from the PHI 45.
WE ARE HEADING TO THE FOURTH QUARTER FROM PHILLY!
Hurts over the middle and he finds Smith for a gain of 8 yards and that will take us to the end of the third quarter.
3rd and 4 from the PHI 36 coming up.
Pass to the flat for Covey who makes a couple moves and gets a big gain on the right side but it's coming back because of an ineligible man down field.
2nd and 13 from the PHI 28.
PHI get the ball back from the 30 and Hurts scrambles for 3 yards on the left side.
2nd and 7 from the PHI 33.
McCloud takes it to the house from 42 yards out and the Falcons are in the lead as the third quarter closes.
TOUCHDOWN ATLANTA!!!
Cousins goes over the middle for Mooney on the slant and he makes the catch, shakes a tackle and runs into the endzone for a 42 yard TD! ATL went for 2 but the pass to London was batted away!
ATL lead 15-10 with 1:21 to go in the 3rd.
The offense stays on the field and Cousins hangs in the pocket and finds McCloud over the middle for a gain of 11 on 4th down!
1st and 10 from the PHI 42.
Cousins with a soft pass over the middle for Pitts and he gets 8 yards but he's going to be 4 yards short of the marker.
4th and 4 from the ATL 47.
Screen pass set up for Robinson and he is dropped for a loss of 2.
3rd and 12 from the ATL 39.
Cousins was under heavy pressure and he had to throw it away after getting out of the tackle box.
2nd and 10 from the ATL 41.
Allgeier moves the chains with a 2 yard run to the left side.
1st and 10 from the ATL 41.
ATL gets the ball back from their 30 and Cousins finds London on the out route to the left side for 9 yards.
2nd and 1 from the ATL 39.
FIELD GOAL!!!
The Eagles showed that they were going to fake it, but let the clock run out as they tried to draw the Falcons offside. The plot didn't work, but Elliott hit the 29 yard field goal to put the Eagles back ahead.
PHI lead 10-9 with 4:28 to go in the 3rd quarter.
Hurts found Smith at the goal line but Bates comes in and knocks it out of his hand. Great defensive play!
4th and 3 from the 6.
Covey makes the catch in the flat and he is pushed out of bounds after a gain of 2.
3rd and 3 from the ATL 6.
Barkley on the run up the right side and he gets 4 yards on first down.
2nd and 6 from the ATL 9.
Hurts rolls to the right and he picks out Smith on the sideline for a 19 yard pitch and catch!
1st and 10 from the ATL 13.
Barkley on the left side and he picks up 4 yards on the first down run.
2nd and 6 from the PHI 32.
Hurts finds Barkley out of the backfield and he makes a move that gets him space to pick up 10 yards and a first down.
1st and 10 from the ATL 36.
Smith over the middle and he moves the chains of an out route for 14 yards.
1st and 10 from the ATL 46.
Hurts gets dropped by Judon for a loss of 4 yards on first down.
2nd and 14 from the PHI 40.
Barkley on the run up the middle and he moves the chains with a 5 yard run.
1st and 10 from the PHI 44.
PHI get the ball from the 30 down by two, and Barkley gets the handoff out of the shotgun and he picks up 9 yards.
2nd and 1 from the PHI 39.
FIELD GOAL!!!
Koo drills his third field goal of the game, this one from 34 yards out.
ATL take the 9-7 lead with 10 minutes to go in the third quarter.
Williams shot out of a cannon on the rush up the middle and he drops Cousins for a loss of 8 yards!
4th and long from he 15 and the Falcons are kept out of the endzone again!
Toss to the left side for Allgeier and he is pushed out of bounds after a gain of 2.
3rd and 3 from the PHI 7.
Allgeier gets the handoff and he picks up 5 yards on first down.
2nd and 5 from the PHI 9.
Allgeier on the run to the left side and he lowers his shoulder on the sideline for a gain of 12 yards.
1st and 10 from the PHI 14.
Screen pass to Robinson and he follows his blockers for a gain of 12 and another first down!
1st and 10 from the PHI 27.
Robinson up the middle and he picks up 5 yards on first down.
2nd and 5 from the the PHI 39.
Robinson to the left side and he turns the edge for a pick up of 19 and the Falcons are into PHI territory.
1st and 10 from the PHI 44.
ATL get the ball back from the 30, and Cousins finds Robinson on the right side for a gain of 7 yards.
2nd and 3 from the ATL 37.
WE ARE BACK IN PHILLY FOR THE SECOND HALF OF ACTION!
Bijan Robinson has been shining under the primetime spotlight. He's got 72 yards on 10 carries and is currently winning the battle of the running backs. Cousins has looked better than he did last week against the Steelers but there have been two drives inside the 25 that the Falcons failed to get a TD. That's why they trail by a point heading into the half.
After Hurts' heroics with his legs, he found Smith in the back of the end zone. With no AJ Brown, Smith is option No. 1 for the Philly QB. He's got 30 of Hurts' 70 yards passing on 9/13 throws. Hurts is also leading the Eagles in rushing with 51 yards, while Barkley has 37 on 8 carries.
Saquon Barkley had a great first drive, with four runs of 9 yards or more, but the Eagles went for in of 4th down inside the 10 and failed to convert. They didn't get on to the score board until Hurts started to use his legs to move the chains. This one came on 4th down, he had another conversion on 3rd down a few plays later.
WE ARE HEADED TO HALFTIME HERE FROM PHILLY!!!
The Eagles lead by a point after forcing ATL to kick a field goal late in the half.
FIELD GOAL!!!
Koo hits his second field goal of the game, this one from 22 yards out. Disappointing finish to a great drive from ATL.
PHI lead 7-6 with 6 seconds to go in the half.
Cousins had nothing open in the endzone and he throws it into the sixth row at the Link.
4th and Goal and the FG unit comes on.
Timeout by Philly this time with 14 seconds to go.
Cousins had pressure coming off the edge and that affected his pass to Mooney at the pylon.
3rd and Goal from the 4.
Timeout ATL with 17 on the clock.
Robinson on the run up the middle and he is dropped for a loss of a yard.
2nd and Goal from the 4.
Pass to the flat for Robinson and he is ripped down by the face mask as flags fly.
1st and Goal from the 3.
Allgeier with a tough run up the middle and he runs over a couple defenders for the first down. Timout ATL with 26 to go in the half.
1st and Goal from the PHI 7.
Allgeier up the middle and he gets 4 yards.
2nd and 6 from the PHI 13.
Robinson up the middle and he breaks a tackle at the line and picks up 14 yards. He's not just lightening, he's got a little thunder too.
1st and 10 from the PHI 17.
Pass to Robinson out of the backfield and he shakes his way down field for a gain of 7.
2nd and 3 from the PHI 31.
WE ARE HEADED TO THE TWO MINUTE WARNING FROM PHILLY!
Cousins over the middle for McCloud for a big gain of 18 yards but he got flagged for a unnecessary roughness after giving Johnson a little smack to the helmet after the play.
1st and 10 from the PHI 38.
Cousins looks to Moody on the long pass on the out route but that was batted away by Maddox who got back and jarred it out of the hands of the WR.
2nd and 10 from the PHI 41.
Cousins on the play action and he pump faked before ending up getting sacked, but he had to pump fake because there was illegal contact on PHI down the field.
1st and 10 from the PHI 41.
Robinson broke another big run on the left side and he takes it 15 yards into Eagles territory.
1st and 10 from the ATL 46.
Robinson running downhill and he picks up 9 yards on the first down run.
2nd and 1 from the ATL 39.
Pass over the middle and Cousins finds McCloud in the middle of the zone and he moves the chains after a gain of 12 yards.
1st and 10 from the ATL 30.
Cousins on the play action, and he had to get rid of it with pressure coming. He found Pitts but he is met at the line and dragged down for a short gain of 2.
3rd and 6 from the ATL 18.
ATL get the ball back from the 14 and McCloud gets the end around but he's pushed out of bounds after a gain of 2.
2nd and 8 from the ATL 16.
When you know that Hurts can run it, that opens up things down the field and Smith was the beneficiary on this pass to the back of the end zone. Eagles lead but it took 25 minutes to get on the board.
We haven't seen much of this from Hurts over the last half season or so. His knee is back to 100% which means he's going to be using his legs more this season, and that is huge for the Eagles. He had three runs that went for nice yardage on that drive.
TOUCHDOWN EAGLES!!!
Hurts over the middle and he finds Smith in the back of the endzone and gets two feet down!
Eagles take a 7-3 lead with 5:15 to go in the first half.
Pass to the flat for Covey and he gets hogtied after a gain of 2.
2nd and Goal from the 7.
Hurts' pass to Goedert is incomplete and a flag flies for ineligible man down field.
1st and Goal from the 9.
Hurts takes it all on his own again after rolling out to the right side and he lowers his shoulder for a gain of 15 yards and a first down!
1st and 10 from the ATL 4.
Hurts steps up in the pocket and takes off for a gain of 9 yards.
3rd and 11 from the ATL 21.
Toss to Barkley on the right side but that play was blown up by Bates for a five yard loss.
2nd and 20 from the ATL 28.
The offense stays on the field again on 4th down and Hurts works some magic as he escapes the pocket and bursts down field for a 23 yard gain! He got flagged for a delay of game after spiking the ball, but they keep the first down.
1st and 15 from the ATL 23.
Hurts finds Goederdt on the stop route but he is surrounded by defenders and brought down short of the marker.
4th and 3 from the ATL 41.
Barkley gets the handoff out of the shotgun and Judon chops him down for a loss of 2 yards.
3rd and 12 from the 50.
Hurts had a lot of time to look downfield but he ended up throwing it out of bounds.
2nd and 10 from the ATL 48.
Hurts with a nice pocket and he has time to find Smith on the left sideline for a gain of 19!
1st and 10 from the ATL 48.
PHI get the ball back from the 30 down by three, and Barkley gets the handoff to the left side and he spins forward for a gain of 4.
2nd and 6 from the PHI 34.
FIELD GOAL!!!!
It's the Falcons who get on the board first with a Koo field goal from 39 yards out after an 8 play drive that got cut short at the 21.
ATL lead 3-0 with 11:22 left in the first half.
Cousins pump faked and tried to tuck it but he was swallowed up by Sweat after a gain of a yard.
4th and 8 and the field goal unit comes on.
ATL take a timeout on a big third down play. Their first with 12:08 to go in the first half.
Robinson gets the handoff up the middle again and this time he is dropped after a gain of 2.
3rd and 9 from the PHI 22.
Robinson fumbled the football on the handoff and had to drop down and recover it for a loss of one.
2nd and 11 from the PHI 24.
Allgeier gets the handoff to the left side and he hits a hole hard for a gain of 15 yards and the Falcons are inside the 25.
1st and 10 from the PHI 23.
Cousins steps up in the pocket and finds Allgeier out of the backfield and he turns up field for a gain of 12 yards.
1st and 10 from the PHI 38.
Allgeier gets the handoff to start the quarter and he picks up 4 yards up the middle.
2nd and 6 from the 50.
WE ARE AT THE END OF THE FIRST QUARTER STILL LOOKING FOR THE FIRST POINTS OF THE GAME.
ATL get the ball back from their 27 and Cousins goes play action to start the drive and he finds London down the middle of the field for a gain of 19 yards on the final play of the quarter.
1st and 10 from the ATL 46.
Hurts was able to escape the pressure, and looked back to Smith on the sideline but that pass drifted out of bounds and the Eagles will punt.
4th and 4 from the PHI 31.
Out route for Smith and he makes the catch before getting popped for a five yard pitch and catch.
3rd and 4 from the PHI 31.
PHI get the ball from their 25 and Barkley gets stopped after a gain of one. That's the first time he didn't go for 9 or more.
2nd and 9 from the PHI 26.
Cousins looking for London on the out route but Mitchell pounced and jumped the pass. He had it in his hands but London did just enough to knock it out of his hands.
4th and 4 and the Falcons punt again.
Allgeier up the middle and Sweat takes him down after a short pick up of three.
3rd and 4 from the ATL 31.
Robinson with a run to the right side and this time he picks up 3 yards.
2nd and 7 from the ATL 28.
Robinson had some room to roam on the run to the left side and he makes a sweet move around a defender for a gain of 14 yards and a first down!
1st and 10 from the ATL 25.
Robinson gets the handoff to the left side and he is dragged down after a gain of 2 yards.
2nd and 8 from the ATL 11.
TURNOVER ON DOWNS!!!
The offense comes back on the field and Hurts rolls right this time before looking to the endzone for Goderdt but that was broken up by Hughes!
ATL ball from the 9!
Hurts rolls to the left side and fires a pass to the corner of the endzone for Wilson but that was broken up by ATL.
4th and 4 from the 9 yard line and the Eagles kept the offense on the field but called a timeout.
Gainwell gets it back from the shotgun handoff and gets cut down after a 2 yard gain.
3rd and 4 from the ATL 9.
Gainwell gets the handoff this time and he picks up 4 yards.
2nd and 6 from the ATL 11.
One more first down for Barkley who breaks a tackle and picks up 11 yards.
1st and 10 from the ATL 15.
Barkley with another big chunk after getting a huge hole and picks up 10 yards and a first down.
1st and 10 from the ATL 26.
Hurts rolls right and finds Calcaterra on the sideline for four yards and a first down.
1st and 10 from the ATL 36.
Bakley up the middle and he juked a defender out of his cleats before picking up another 9 yards.
2nd and 1 from the ATL 40.
Quick throw to the right flat for Dotson who sprints up field for a gain of 6 and a first down.
1st and 10 from the ATL 49.
PHI start their second drive from their 36 and Barkley breaks a run for 9 yards up the middle.
2nd and 1 from the PHI 45.
Cousins took a step up in the pocket and looks for Robinson breaking to the sideline right at the marker but he couldn't make the catch.
4th and 4 and the Falcons will punt.
Short pass on the comeback route to London for a gain of 6.
3rd and 4 on the ATL 26.
Play action from Cousins and his pass over the middle is batted down at the line.
2nd and 10 from the ATL 22.
Robinson with another handoff up the middle and e moves the chains before getting crushed on a spin move after a gain of 7.
1st and 10 from the ATL 22.
The Falcons start their first drive from the 8 yard line and Robinson gets the handoff to the left side before cutting back and picking up 7 yards up the middle.
2nd and 3 from the ATL 15.
Designed run by Hurts out of the shotgun and he is bottled up for a a gain of three yards.
4th and 6 from the ATL 48.
Covey on the left side and he makes the short catch before getting pushed out of bounds after a gain of 5.
3rd and 9 from the PHI 49.
Hurts takes off and makes a sprint to the edge but he's pushed out of bounds after a short gain of a yard.
2nd and 14 from the PHI 44.
Play action out of the shotgun and Hurts finds Cover on the slant but it's coming back due to an ineligible man down field.
1st and 15 from the PHI 43.
The Eagles get the ball to begin the night and they will start their first drive from the PHI 33.
Hurts finds Calcaterra over the middle right at the marker and he turns for a 15 yard pitch and catch.
1st and 10 from the PHI 48.
WE ARE UNDERWAY FROM PHILLY!!!
Calling on Barkley
With AJ Brown out, we can only imagine that we we will get an even heavier dose of Saquon Barkley tonight. What kind of numbers will he put up if he is set to see even more of the ball.
Tonight's odds
The Eagles come in to tonight’s game as favorites, but maybe not by as much as you’d think. They are -5.5 against the Falcons with the Over/Under set at 45.5.
The Eagles showed just how good this team can be in Sao Paolo last week. With the said, not having AJ Brown will make things a little more interesting if the Falcons defense comes out and plays like they did against the Steelers.
I’m still taking the Eagles to win big. PHI win 27-14.
Foles calls it quits
Former Philly QB Nick Foles signed with the Eagles today and then retired as an Eagles, brining a long career to an end. He was drafted by the Eagles but changed teams six times, last playing for the Colts in 2022. His best season came when he was a back up to Carson Wentz. He took over in Week 15 and led the Eagles to their first Super Bowl win in franchise history. He will go down as a Philly legend for the rest of time after bringing the city one of it’s most prized possessions since the Liberty Bell.
HEAD TO HEAD
We have seen 37 Battle of the Birds dating all the way back to the 1960s. In those 37 games, the Eagles have won 21 lost 15 and tied once back in 1970. They haven’t played much over the last few years but since 2016 the Eagles are 4-1 including a playoff win on Philly’s way to the Super Bowl back in 2018. In the last game between these two teams, the Eagles laid a beat down on the Falcons beating them 32-6 in Atlanta.
Falcons thin at WR
We can blame Kirk Cousins all we want for his subpar performance and the Falcons offense looking like they were stuck in the mud for the first 60 minutes of the season, but has Atlanta provided their QB with enough fire power at the WR position? With all due respect to Drake London and Darnell Mooney and Ray-Ray McCloud, there aren’t many people lining up to take any of those receivers in the first round of fantasy drafts. Mooney is the only one who has had a 1,000 yard season and that was once back in 2021. It was McCloud who led the team in receiving last week, catching four balls for 52 yard.
Tush push disappearing?
There is a changing of the guard (or center rather) in Philly and that has hindered one of their secret weapons. Jason Kelce, the Eagles long time center retired after the end of last season and with him went the unshakeable, always defender Tush Push or Brotherly Shove. Whatever you call it, it may be a thing of the past. With Kelce out, it’s Cam Jurgens in, and Jurgens almost fumbled a snap to Hurts late in the game on what could have been a game winning Tush Push play. Last week the Eagles tried the Brother Shove four times with a success rate of 50%.
Pitts homecoming
The Falcons Tight End is making a homecoming tonight has the Philly kid is back in the City of Brotherly Love tonight. After attracting attention from across the nation in high school Pitts signed with the Florida Gators where he was able to show just how dominant he could be even on a team that wasn’t very good. He was taken fourth overall by the Falcons, and was expected to be a big time piece of the puzzle to bring Atlanta back on the map, but QB problems have prevented Pitts from repeating a 1,000 yard season like he had his rookie year. He will no doubt have some family and friends at the Link tonight, and he’ll be looking to put on a show in his city.
Brown out
While the Philly offense looked like it was in mid season form to start the season from Sao Paolo, there will be a big absence in wide receiver for Jalen Hurts. AJ Brown has been downgraded to out after experiencing from hamstring tightness on Friday. He sat out practice Saturday and was ruled out yesterday. Hurts has other options at WR, but you could see those two were clicking from the very start in this Kellen Moore offense in Week 1. Brown had 119 yards and a TD on 5 catches against the Packers last week.
Time to panic?
It’s way too early in the season to panic, but if the Falcons don’t start to win soon there could be some alarm bells sounding around Mercedes Benz Stadium. This was one of those ALL-IN seasons for the Falcons who took a chance on some big summer deals hoping that they would be in a position to win now like the Rams did with Matthew Stafford a few years ago. Often times the ALL IN projects make a team good for a while but leave them in shambles in the aftermath. The way things have been going for the Falcons, they might stink now and stink later. Obviously they can calm the nerves of their fans with a primetime win in a tough venue from Philly.
Penix sitting and waiting
If, and that’s a big if, the Cousins project doesn’t work out, there is a contingency plan. It may not have made Cousins very happy after singing with the Falcons, but Atlanta took Michael Penix Jr. out of the University of Washington with their first round pick in the draft. He played just one preseason game, but impressed with his arm and accuracy. It’s much too early to go scraping their $180 million man under center, but if Cousins continues to struggle many Atlanta fans who questioned the signing of Kirk in the first place will be wanting to see the rookie as the QB1.
Cousins history
It was one of the headlines of the offseason as the Atlanta Falcons laid out a staggering amount of money to a 36 year old quarterback who is coming off of an achilles injury that kept him out for the second half of last year. The $180 million contract did’t look like the best investment in the Falcons game against the Steelers, but it is still very early in the season. When healthy Cousins has shown he can run an offense like some of the best in the game. He has had 7 4,000 yard seasons and 8 seasons throwing 25 TDs or more while maintaining one of the best TD to INT ratios in the game.
New coordinators in Philly
After last year’s late season collapse, the Eagles off loaded their offensive and defensive coordinators and brought in some fresh faces to try and revamp the image and the DNA of this team. Vic Fangio was brought in on the defensive end and Kellen Moore was named the offensive coordinator. None of the starters played in preseason so we didn’t get a glimpse of how things were looking in Philly but if Week 1 is any indication the offense looks like a well oiled machine. The defense still has some kinks to work out after giving up 29 points, but as long as Hurts, Barkley and the rest of the offense put up those kinds of numbers this is going to be a tough team to beat.
Saquon and only
It was the signing of the offseason and it’s already paying dividends for the Philadelphia Eagles. The New York Giants weren’t willing to pay Saquon Barkley after splashing cash for their franchise QB Daniel Jones. The Eagles were right there in the waiting as Barkley parted ways with the Giants. He signed with NYG’s division rival and eternal enemy the Eagles, and now has Philly looking like one of the contenders in the NFC. If his debut is any indicator than watch out NFC and NFL.
NFC Standings
After the second Sunday of the NFL season, the NFC provided us with a few surprises. Some teams that we thought were going to among the best in the league have already started to show vulnerabilities, while other teams we didn’t expect much from are undefeated and leading the division after the first couple weeks. Here is how the NFC is looking coming into this game.
Last season: Eagles
Eagles fans look away now. Philly started the season looking like one of the best teams in the league. They won their first five and rattled off 10 wins in 11 games to start the season, but somehow there was a lack of belief behind this team in the City of Brotherly Love. That cloud of doubt was well founded because the Eagles got smacked by the Niners in Week 13 to start the beginning of the end for the Eagles. They went from a guaranteed one seed in the NFC to a Wild Card team that just snuck into the playoffs after losing five of their last six and got demolished by the Bucs to bring their miserable collapse to an abrupt end in the first round of the playoffs.
Last season: Falcons
The Falcons weren’t a good team last year, but that didn’t mean they didn’t have a chance to make the playoffs. With Desmond Ridder as their QB they won the first two games of the season and there was suddenly hope in ATL, but the joy wouldn’t last long. They would lose six of their next eight, but coming down to the final stretch of the season they still had a shot at the division title in an NFC South that was sub par to say the least. They lost four of their last five games, three of those Ls coming to division opponents including the lowly Panthers and missed out on the playoffs for a seventh straight season.
Star watch: Falcons
The Atlanta Falcons have floated in no mans land for the better part of the last decade as they continue to try to recover from their Super Bowl nightmare in 2016. Since then they have been to the playoffs only once, and that might be a problem that you can chalk up to personnel. Bijan Robinson is trying to change that narrative for the Falcons who have been one of the least exciting teams to watch over the last few seasons. Robinson is the spark plug out of the backfield and can do it on the ground or through the air. He is going to have to be Cousins best friend and biggest ally if the Falcons are going to have any sort of success this year.
Star watch: Eagles
It wasn’t so long ago that Jalen Hurts was thought of as a primer QB in this league. The late season collapse last season seems to have erased our memory of a QB that put up record setting numbers in his first trip to the Super Bowl a few years ago. He’s got weapons all around him, and Barkley in the backfield is going to take some of the pressure off of him with a more balanced offensive attack. There is a long way to go between now and then, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see Hurts back in the MVP conversation at the end of this season.
Last game: Eagles
It was a shootout in Sao Paolo as the Eagles posted 34 points thanks to a monster debut from Saquon Barkley who scored three TDs in his first game in a Philly jersey. Despite the big game from their new RB, the Packers led for most of the first half. After the halftime break, Jalen Hurts hit AJ Brown on a 67 yard TD pass to take a lead that they would hang on to for the rest of the night. Hurts had 278 yards with 2 TDs and 2 INTs, Saquon had 109 rushing yards and two TD and another 23 yards and a TD receiving, and Brown finished the night with 119 yards as the Eagles held off the Packers for a Week 1 win.
Last game: Falcons
It wasn’t the Falcons that fans envisioned when they heard the news that Kirk Cousins was coming to town. The offense only put up 230 yards, turned the ball over three times and scored just 10 points as the Steelers defense shut down this new look offense in Atlanta. Pittsburgh didn’t do much on the offensive end thanks partially because of their struggles at the QB position, but partially because of the Falcons defense. Unfortunately for Falcons fans, the offense was held to less than 30 yards in the second half and shut out as the Steelers won the game with six field goals.
We are live from the Link
Hello everyone and welcome to Philly where this new look Eagles team gave an great first impression to their fans with a big win over a good Packers team in Sao Paolo last Friday. There were plenty of question surrounding this side after a disastrous end to last season, but after Week 1 the waters have calmed a bit in the City of Brotherly Love. Things are not as calm in Atlanta after the Falcons opening week performance against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Kirk Cousins and the offense looked underwhelming in their first game of the season and now things in the ATL have been turned upside down as people are already turning on their $180 million QB.
Falcons vs. Eagles
It’s a battle of the birds tonight from the City of Brotherly Love. Philadelphia return home flying high after a win in Sao Paolo to open the season and they welcome an Atlanta team that flat lined in Week 1 after making a big splash for an all-in season. It’s the Eagles hosting the Falcons on Monday Night Football and AS English will be with you all night providing live coverage, stats, highlights and analysis of tonight’s game from Lincoln Financial Field.