By Teddy Brenner
Jalen Hurts became the first quarterback in Eagles history with three rushing touchdowns in a game, and the Eagles crushed the Saints 40-29 at the Linc.
Hurts led the Eagles rushing attack that rolled up 244 yards.
Hurts finished with 18 carries for 69 yards and three touchdowns, the final one coming on a 24-yard run with 3:59 to play to seal the Eagles’ victory. Miles Sanders led the Eagles with 94 rushing yards and Jordan Howard added 63. Hurts finished 13 of 24 for 147 yards throwing the ball, which wasn’t needed much with the way the Eagles controlled the game on the ground.
Darius Slay had an interception return for a touchdown in the final minute of the first half to give Philadelphia a commanding 27-7 lead heading into the break. Slay has three touchdowns in his last four games, which leads all NFL defensive players this year.
The Saints’ lone touchdown in the first half was aided by a Sanders fumble (forced by Christian Ringo) deep in Eagles territory. Trevor Siemian found Adam Trautman for an 18-yard touchdown on third-and-18 to cut the Eagles’ lead to 14-7. The Eagles answered with two field goals from Jake Elliott, 50 and 37 yards, to make it 20-7.
New Orleans scored two touchdowns late to cut Philadelphia’s lead to 14. Siemian found Marquez Callaway for a 26-yard touchdown to begin the fourth quarter and Siemian ran for a 17-yard score (the longest run of his career) as New Orleans cut the deficit to 33-19. After the Saints’ defense forced a three-and-out, Siemian got the offense into the red zone before Brett Maher kicked a 28-yard field goal to cut the deficit to 33-22 with 7:14 left.
Siemian finished 22 of 40 for 214 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions. Mark Ingram had 16 carries for 88 yards and Trautman recorded five catches for 58 yards and a touchdown.
The Eagles essentially sealed the victory with Hurts finding J.J. Arcega-Whiteside for a 23-yard catch on the ensuing drive for a first down. The target was Arcega-Whiteside’s first of the season. Sanders followed later in the drive with a 14-yard run for the first down with 4:30 to play that put Philadelphia in field goal range and chewed more clock. Hurts followed with his 24-yard touchdown run three plays later.
Takeaways from this game will be coming shortly, so make sure to follow along in our live blog below for a recap of this one.
