Eagles rookie QB Jalen Hurts, in his first career start, made a few plays, and with the help of Miles Sanders(115 yards rushing, one touchdown), who had an 82-yard touchdown run and an opportunistic defense that sacked Saints QB Taysom Hill five times and forced two turnovers, Philadelphia(4-8-1) was able to defeat New Orleans(10-3) 24-21 at Lincoln Financial Field on Sunday.
Hurts, who replaced an ineffective Wentz, was 17-30 for 167 yards with a touchdown and 106 yards rushing, played a solid game on Sunday against the Saints number one ranked defense, and was excited to get a win in his first career start.
“It felt good, it felt good. [It’s] always a great feeling to get a ‘W’,” Hurt said. “All week, we talked about going out there and executing and dominating our box. Coming out at halftime without looking at the scoreboard. I’ve said it a lot, just having a standard for play. We got this win, but is it up to our standard of play? No. So that’s why I say we have so much to build on and so much more to work for. [We] have to continue to build, continue to learn. Every game is an opportunity to learn, and we need to use it to our advantage moving forward.”
Eagles head coach Doug Pederson felt Hurts gave the team a spark on Sunday.
“Jalen got the start this afternoon, and I thought overall, there were some good things and really, kind of gave us a spark as a team that I was looking for, and I think we were looking for as a team,” Pederson said. “But you know, this win today is not about one guy. This win is about this team and how resilient this team is.”
Eagles WR Jalen Reagor(65 total yards) was impressed by what he saw out of Hurts and was proud of his performance.
“Ah man, you guys saw, he looked good,” Reagor said about Hurts. “He is a fearless guy, just like myself. He is a winner. He knows how to play, and I am proud of him. I am proud for him, and I am happy to see where he goes.”
When asked if Hurts will be the starter next week on the road against Arizona, Pederson has this to say:
“I’m going to enjoy this one. I’m going to go home and relax and be with my family tonight and enjoy this win and get ready for the week.”
Obviously, Hurts will start next week against the Cardinals. The rookie was solid today and used his legs effectively against New Orleans. Maybe this move should have happened sooner. Who knows. However, Hurts and Philadelphia have to keep it going, and this win against the Saints should give the Eagles some hope.
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