Eagles-Raiders matchups to watch in Week 15

Eagles-Raiders matchups to watch in Week 15 originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Eagles (8-5) are back home to face the Las Vegas Raiders (2-11) on a short week as huge favorites.

Here are some key matchups to watch:

Vic Fangio vs. Kenny Pickett

It sounds like Raiders starting quarterback Geno Smith is going to miss this weekend’s game with a shoulder injury. That means former Eagles backup Kenny Pickett is in line to get the start for one of the NFL’s worst offenses. We won’t get that Chip Kelly Revenge Game because the former Eagles head coach was fired as the Raiders OC last month, but there’s at least the Pickett angle for this game.

Pickett, 27, spent one season with the Eagles in 2024 and finished off the Super Bowl LIX win in New Orleans with a big lead. Pickett started one game for the Eagles last season as the Eagles picked up a 41-7 win over the Cowboys. The Eagles traded him to the Browns in March and then the Browns traded him to the Raiders in August.

Pickett got into the game against the Broncos on Sunday and completed 8 of 11 passes for 97 yards and a touchdown. The Raiders lost 24-17 but 10 of their points came with under 3 minutes remaining.

It’s not like the Raiders can really rely on their run game either. They have the No. 32-ranked rushing offense in the NFL.

Eagles LBs vs. Brock Bowers

The Raiders don’t have many blue chip players but Bowers is really good. The 2024 first-round pick is the Raiders’ leading receiver with 53 catches for 619 yards and 6 touchdowns in just 10 games. Bowers missed all of October with a knee injury but came back on Nov. 2 with one of the best games of his career (12/127/3) against the Jaguars. Since then, Bowers hasn’t had outstanding production but he has been steady.

The good news for the Eagles is that they have been fantastic against tight ends this season. They have given up the fewest receiving yards to opposing tight ends in the NFL this season. Opposing tight ends have had just 51 catches for 428 yards and 3 touchdowns against Vic Fangio’s defense.

Eagles DL vs. Shaky offensive line

The Eagles’ defensive line had a dominant performance against the Chargers with 7 sacks and 28 QB pressures. They had a bunch of different players with multiple pressures and they should have a chance to get to the quarterback in this game too.

The Raiders have allowed 50 sacks this season, which is the most in the NFL. They have given up a sack on 10.8% of their dropbacks and a pressure on 36.9% of his dropbacks. The Raiders’ two tackles have given up a lot of pressure this season:

LT Stone Forsythe: (10 games) — 10 sacks, 33 pressures

RT DJ Glaze: (13 games) — 7 sacks, 36 pressures

This is a chance for guys like Jalyx Hunt, Jaelan Phillips and Nolan Smith to come through again. As long as the Eagles stuff a bad rushing attack, they will earn the opportunities to get after Pickett.

Fred Johnson vs. Maxx Crosby

If Lane Johnson misses his fourth straight game with a Lisfranc sprain, Fred Johnson is in line to start again. And he’ll have to deal with one of the best pass rushers in the NFL. Maxx Crosby is the Raiders’ best player and the four-time Pro Bowler is playing at a really high level again in 2025. In 13 games, Crosby has 10 sacks, 18 QB hits, 25 tackles for loss, 63 tackles 6 batted passes, 2 forced fumbles and an interception.

He also rarely leaves the field. Crosby has played 93% of the Raiders’ defensive snaps and has been at 93% or higher in each of the last four seasons. Crosby lines up almost exclusively on the defensive left. According to ProFootballFocus, around 87% of his snaps have come against right tackles.

Saquon Barkley vs. Raiders run defense

It hasn’t been the greatest season for Saquon Barkley, but he had his second 100+ yard game against the Chargers on Monday night and the run game is starting to look a little better recently. 

The Raiders’ run defense is middle-of-the-pack. They rank 16th in the NFL in run defense, giving up 113.9 yards per game. They have given up 18 touchdowns on the ground. While the Raiders have an OK run defense on paper, they are allocating a lot of resources to it. According to NFL NextGen Stats, the Raiders are using a stacked box (8+ defenders) on 50.5% of their snaps. That is by far the highest percentage in the NFL and the next closest team is the Browns at 37.6%. The difference between 1 and 2 on the list the same as the difference between 2 and 14.

The Raiders’ starting linebackers are Elandon Roberts and former Eagle Devin White, who actually leads the team with 133 combined tackles.

Dallas Goedert vs. Raiders defense vs. tight ends

While the Eagles lost on Monday night, Dallas Goedert had a big game with 8 catches for 78 yards. In 12 games this season, Goedert had 48 catches for 481 yards and 7 touchdowns. With four games left to play, Goedert is on pace for a really nice season.

The Raiders have been very good against opposing tight ends. While the Eagles have given up the fewest receiving yards to opposing tight ends, the Raiders have given up the third-fewest. Opposing tight ends have 47 catches for 487 yards and 3 touchdowns against the Raiders this season.

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NFL Playoff Picture 2025: Updated AFC and NFC standings, bracket, tiebreakers for Week 15

The Carolina Panthers moved into first place in the NFC South when the Buccaneers lost on Thursday night, and Week 15 will see several more games that impact the playoff race. Here's how the NFL playoff picture looks after Thursday Night Football in Week 15:

AFC Playoff Picture

DIVISION LEADERS

1. Broncos (11-2) If they win out, they're the No. 1 seed in the AFC, as they own the tiebreaker over the Patriots.

2. Patriots (11-2) Their lead in the AFC East looks safe, but to earn the No. 1 seed they have to hope the Broncos lose a game.

3. Jaguars (9-4) After beating the Colts, they're the clear favorites in the AFC South.

4. Steelers (7-6) Got their biggest win of the season in Baltimore.

WILD CARDS

5. Chargers (9-4) First in the wild card race thanks to a better AFC record than the Bills.

6. Bills (9-4) Probably won't catch the Patriots in the AFC East even if they win on Sunday, but in great shape for a wild card.

7. Texans (8-5) Own the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Colts.

OUTSIDE LOOKING IN

8. Colts (8-5) Getting to the playoffs may require a miraculous performance from Philip Rivers.

9. Ravens (6-7) Losing at home to the Steelers was costly.

10. Chiefs (6-7) Kansas City could be eliminated as soon as Sunday, and probably can't make the playoffs even if they run the table.

11. Dolphins (6-7) Best of the bad teams in the AFC.

12. Bengals (4-9) Clinched a losing record with their loss in Buffalo.

13. Jets (3-10) Mathematically eliminated.

14. Browns (3-10) Mathematically eliminated.

15. Raiders (2-11) Mathematically eliminated.

16. Titans (2-11) Mathematically eliminated.

NFC Playoff Picture

DIVISION LEADERS

1. Rams (10-3) Own the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Seahawks in the NFC West.

2. Packers (9-3-1) Big win over the Bears.

3. Eagles (8-5) Defending champions are on a three-game losing streak but still have a 1.5-game lead over the Cowboys in the NFC East.

4. Panthers (7-6) Took the lead in the NFC South for the first time this season when the Buccaneers lost to the Falcons.

WILD CARDS

5. Seahawks (10-3) Need to win their rematch with the Rams on December 18.

6. 49ers (9-4) Despite a lot of injuries, they remain in playoff position.

7. Bears (9-4) If they run the table they win the NFC North.

OUTSIDE LOOKING IN

8. Lions (8-5) If they run the table they're guaranteed of at least a wild card berth.

9. Buccaneers (7-7) Two games remaining against the Panthers will determine who wins the NFC South.

10. Cowboys (6-6-1) They probably need to run the table, and even then they may not make the playoffs.

11. Vikings (5-8) Last place in the NFC North.

12. Falcons (4-9) Mathematically eliminated.

13. Cardinals (3-10) Mathematically eliminated.

14. Saints (3-10) Mathematically eliminated.

15. Commanders (3-10) Mathematically eliminated.

16. Giants (2-11) Mathematically eliminated.

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A Hollywood ending? Inside the final days of LeBron James in Los Angeles

LeBron James is the NBA’s all-time leading scorer. Photograph: Mark J Terrill/AP

In a book about LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers, it’s only fitting that one memorable scene involves a Hollywood star: Will Smith.

Yaron Weitzman’s latest book is titled A Hollywood Ending: The Dreams and Drama of the LeBron Lakers. Suffice to say the plot thickens when Smith goes to the Lakers’ film room to speak to the team in 2022.

Six months had passed since Smith had slapped Chris Rock at the Oscars. Now Smith was participating in a series of celebrity talks to the Lakers, an innovation brought in by general manager Rob Pelinka. According to the book, James asked Smith question after question until a scheduled half-hour visit had ballooned to nearly twice that amount, with fellow Laker Russell Westbrook growing visibly frustrated, frowning in a team photo with Smith.

“You get to see the personal, intra-office dynamics that impact the game that you don’t always think about,” Weitzman says of the scene.

He notes that those who’ve read the excerpt “seem to be cheering on Westbrook” and “latching on to the idea that it was LeBron’s fault, LeBron was a phony.” He points out that Westbrook has played for multiple NBA teams, and in LA, he was “awful on the court, hardheaded, no willingness to adjust his game.”

As for James: “He is the defining, not just basketball player … but athlete of my generation,” says the 37-year-old Weitzman. And, the author adds, “It seemed like the ‘merger’ between LeBron and the Lakers was fertile ground for the sort of reporting and storytelling” that’s fueled by what Weitzman calls behind the scenes drama.

Weitzman is no stranger to dissecting NBA franchises. It’s what he did in his previous book, about the Philadelphia 76ers, Tanking to the Top. With the Lakers, though, the spotlight was more intense. There was the team’s location in America’s entertainment epicenter. There was a legacy of championships won by stars from Magic Johnson to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to Kobe Bryant to Shaquille O’Neal, the last two coached by the legendary Phil Jackson. (Last season brought another addition to the pantheon – Luka Dončić – but we’ll get to him later.) There was the role of the Buss family, especially the late longtime team owner Jerry Buss and his daughter, Jeanie, who succeeded him in the executive office. Then there was what Weitzman called the “merger” between the Lakers and James, who brought a star power all his own – as well as the increasingly powerful agency that represented him: Klutch Sports Group, run by James’ friend Rich Paul.

Related: The Luka Era begins: inside the transformation powering the post-LeBron Lakers

How rare is James’s status in the NBA? The book notes his estimated billion-dollar-plus worth while still on an NBA roster, and his dream of someday owning a franchise. Weitzman tracks the impact of James’ comments to the media – including some much-scrutinized remarks at a press conference after the Lakers’ 2023 playoff exit: “I’ve got a lot to think about, to be honest. Just for me personally going forward with the game of basketball, I’ve got a lot to think about.”

Neither James nor team ownership would talk with Weitzman for the book. He filled in the gaps by reading the news coverage from as far back as 15 years ago, supplementing this by watching documentaries, listening to podcasts and speaking with whoever would talk to him, a list that grew to almost 300. Keep an eye out for the footnotes while reading the book. Weitzman describes them as “like someone winking at the reader.”

On page 54, you’ll find not one but two footnotes relating to Daenerys Targaryen. Why? Bryant is quoted urging Jeanie Buss to emulate the Game of Thrones character in early 2017. That’s when, according to the book, she won a George RR Martin-esque power struggle for control of the team. The next year, James came to LA for four years and $154m.

“The Lakers were in a dark period,” Weitzman says. “They certainly needed LeBron. LeBron saved Jeanie Buss’ legacy by coming there.” He adds that unlike past stars such as Magic, Kobe or Shaq, LeBron came to the Lakers as “a fully formed icon, which they had not had before.”

There were significant if not immediate benefits: A championship in James’ second season with the Lakers, 2019-20 – a season that ended amid the Covid-19 pandemic and the Black Lives Matter protests. It was also a season that saw the death of Bryant and his daughter Gianna in a helicopter crash. Coach Frank Vogel kept the team focused as it played before empty stands in the NBA bubble. It was title No 17 for the Lakers, tying them with the Boston Celtics for the all-time league mark.

Would there be an encore? Pelinka tried to add more talent around James, and in 2021 he brought in Westbrook. Yet the 2021-22 team couldn’t even qualify for the playoffs to defend its title, and Vogel lost his job.

Darvin Ham succeeded Vogel as coach. James continued to dazzle on the court, yet the team struggled around him. The book finds a perfect microcosm: On 7 February 2023, James broke the all-time NBA scoring record, surpassing Abdul-Jabbar, in a game against the Oklahoma City Thunder. There were cheers for James after he set the mark late in the third quarter, and a salute from commissioner Adam Silver. However, as the book points out, it was the Thunder who won the game. The Lakers stood at 25-30, in danger of missing the playoffs once more.

Cue more plot twists. The Lakers traded away Westbrook, and saw their fortunes surge. They made the playoffs, going all the way to the West finals, which Denver swept. It was an encouraging first season for Ham, yet the following season the Nuggets ousted the Lakers again, this time in the first round of the playoffs. The hated Celtics won the title that season, moving them ahead of LA for that record 18th banner.

Parting ways with Ham, the Lakers flirted with UConn coach Dan Hurley before he ultimately turned LA down. The Lakers hired player-turned-podcaster JJ Redick and made a unique decision in the draft: They selected James’ son Bronny at No 54, setting up a rare father-son pairing in the lineup. Then, earlier this year, Pelinka made a league-shattering move, dealing Anthony Davis for Mavericks superstar Dončić, who is already one his way to replacing James as the face of the Lakers.

By that point, Weitzman thought he was finished with the manuscript, which initially ended with Bronny joining James on the Lakers. As they say in Hollywood, get me a rewrite.

“I live in New York. The Lakers were playing the Knicks that night at Madison Square Garden,” Weitzman recalls of the Dončić trade. “I was at the game, then I was driving my way home, saw the tweet – oh my God.”

The book wraps up in where-are-they-now style, giving readers updates on the cast. Among them: The Buss family has sold its majority stake to Mark Walter, the owner of the cross-town LA Dodgers, with Jeanie Buss remaining as governor and keeping 15% ownership.

“I’m curious to see where this goes,” Weitzman says. “Is she going to stay or go? I’m dubious whether she actually can stay … Usually, people who pay the money want to be in charge.”

As for James?

“Playing into his 40s, it’s something unparalleled,” Weitzman marvels. “In the major professional American sports, the four major sports, Tom Brady is the only comparison. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

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Eagles defense deserves better than they're getting this year

Eagles defense deserves better than they're getting this year originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Jalyx Hunt had one of the best games of his young career on Monday night. The second-year edge rusher had 2 1/2 sacks, 8 tackles, 3 QB hits, a forced fumble and 6 pressures.

And he couldn’t even celebrate.

“It might look good stats-wise but a loss is a loss,” Hunt said after the Eagles fell 22-19 to the Chargers in overtime. “I’m going to have to get on this plane with the dawgs and it’s going to hurt. It’s a long flight. 

“It’s cool, I guess. It’s cool for your mom to talk about, your dad to talk about. They be proud of you and whatnot. But, me personally, I don’t take any [consolations], nothing like that. It don’t feel good. It wasn’t enough, at the end of the day.”

Hunt is right: It wasn’t enough. But it should have been.

The Eagles’ defense on Monday night gave up a touchdown on the Chargers’ very first drive of the game but then tightened up. They allowed just five field goals on the Chargers’ final 12 possessions and gave up an average of just 16.25 yards per drive. They sacked Justin Herbert seven times and pressured him on 68.3% of his dropbacks, the highest single-game pressure rate of any team this season.

It was a great performance and it was wasted.

This Vic Fangio defense deserves better than this.

For what it’s worth — and it’s worth a lot — the players on defense have the right attitude about all this. There can sometimes be a fear, when one side of the ball is carrying the other, that it creates a divide in the locker room. Finger-pointing can happen. But it doesn’t seem like that’s happening here and when asked about that possibility earlier in the season, head coach Nick Sirianni praised the connection portion of his program.

“Just play our ball, stick to what we do and get better,” Zack Baun said on Wednesday. “We haven’t been playing our best either. We can only control what we can control and try our best to play complementary ball from doing what we gotta do.”

Even after a great individual performance, Hunt talked about looking in the mirror too.

“We made some mistakes on the defensive end that we need to clean up,” Hunt said. “We got to go in, [Brandon Graham] taught me how to attack the losses. We gotta get back in and make up for our mistakes. They scored, I don’t know, more than we scored. That hurts. The score hurts, all the field goals hurt. We gotta stop them a little bit more. We gotta go in and fix that.”

But you would think it would be human nature for some of the Eagles’ defensive players to look around and wonder: What the heck do we have to do?

“This is the ultimate team game,” Sirianni said on Wednesday, “and one phase has to pick up another and there could be games like that. There can be games the opposite way, but that’s the important part of always connecting with everybody in the building, controlling the things you can control, all those different things.”

The Eagles have the highest-paid offense in the NFL and through 14 weeks, they rank 19th in points and 24th in yards. And since the bye week, the Eagles have actually regressed.

In their five games since the Week 9 bye, the Eagles’ offense has scored just 8 total touchdowns. The only team in that span to score fewer touchdowns in five games is the Las Vegas Raiders, who fired offensive coordinator Chip Kelly last month.

The Eagles have had 59 total possessions in the last five games and have scored just 8 touchdowns for a paltry percentage of 13.6%. Even if you take away some end-of-half and end-of-game situations, the Eagles’ offense is still woefully underperforming.

On the flip side, the Eagles defense has given up just 9 touchdowns since the bye. Just one team (the Vikings with 7) have given up fewer in five games.

None of this excuses the way the Eagles played on defense against the Bears, giving up 281 rushing yards on the ground. That was a historically bad performance against the run. But, for the most part, the Eagles’ defense has been excellent, giving up just 17.2 points per game since the bye week.

If the Eagles (8-5) are going to make a run this year, it seems like their best hope is that the defense can carry the team as the offense hopefully crawls its way toward league average.

“We got this long flight we gotta get on,” Hunt said. “That sucks after a loss like this. Gotta restart. We got the Raiders coming up this weekend. We gotta look at them on film and just keep building.”

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Bo Nix closing in on Russell Wilson's record for most wins in a QB's first two seasons

When the Broncos drafted Bo Nix last year, they wanted a quarterback who could help them move on from their disastrous two-year experiment with Russell Wilson. Nix has exceeded expectations.

And by the end of this season, Nix may exceed Wilson's record for the most wins any quarterback has had in his first two NFL seasons.

The Seahawks won 24 games that Wilson started in his first two seasons, 2012-2013. The Broncos have won 21 games that Nix has started in his first two seasons, and the Broncos have four games remaining this season. If Nix leads Denver to four more wins down the stretch, he'll top Wilson's mark.

If Nix and the Broncos beat the Packers on Sunday, he'll move into a tie for the second-most wins by a quarterback in his first two seasons. Andrew Luck, Dak Prescott and Ben Roethlisberger all had 22 wins in their first two seasons in the NFL.

With four more wins, the Broncos would also clinch the No. 1 seed and home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs. Not many people expected Denver to be there two years ago.

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In Roob's Eagles Stats: Lots of Nakobe and Saquon and, yeah, Jalen too (sorry)

In Roob's Eagles Stats: Lots of Nakobe and Saquon and, yeah, Jalen too (sorry) originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Had enough of the negative stats? Seen enough about mistakes and errors and turnovers and blown leads?

Too bad. You’re in the wrong place!

No, just kidding. Thanks to the defense, we were actually able to stay mostly positive in this week’s Roob’s Eagles Stats, despite the excruciating overtime loss to the Chargers at SoFi Stadium Monday night.

If you really want the Jalen Hurts interception stats – and there is a Bobby Hoying reference in there – you’ll have to go all the way to the end. But, honestly, it’s worth it.

1A. We’re going to start out with the Eagles’ defensive tackles because it’s not too often you have one interior lineman with more than one sack in a game, and on Monday night the Eagles had two. And that hadn’t happened in more than two decades. Jordan Davis and Byron Young each had 1 ½ sacks, and it was the first time since a game against the Packers at the Linc in 2004 that multiple Eagles interior linemen had more than one sack in a game. In that 47-17 win over the Packers, Corey Simon and Darwin Walker each had 2.0 sacks. The only other times it’s happened were a 1995 win over the Giants at the Meadowlands, when Andy Harmon and Kevin Johnson each had 2.0 sacks, and a 1991 24-0 win over the Cowboys at Texas Stadium, when Jerome Brown had 2 ½ sacks and Mike Golic had 2.0. The Eagles sacked Troy Aikman 11 times that afternoon. 

1B. Staying on the topic of sacks, Nakobe Dean recorded his fourth sack in his last five games, becoming the first Eagles linebacker with four sacks in five games since William Thomas had four in 1997 from Week 8 against the Cards through Week 12 vs. the Ravens. Despite missing the first six games of the season, Dean is the first Eagles linebacker with four sacks in an entire season since Mychal Kendricks had 4.0 in 2014. The last LB with more than 4.0 was Willie T. with 5.0 in that 1997 season. 

2. It was a mixed bag for A.J. Brown Monday night, but we’re just going to focus on his third straight 100-yard game. Brown now has 23 100-yard games since joining the Eagles, one more than DeSean Jackson and Mike Quick and just one behind Pete Retzlaff for most in Eagles history. Brown set a franchise record with six straight 100-yard games in 2023, and the only other Eagle with two separate streaks of three straight 100-yard games is Quick, who had four straight in 1983 and three straight in 1985. After averaging 39 yards per game through Week 5, Brown is averaging 86 yards per game since Week 6 and for the first time is now on pace for over 1,000 yards this year. In just 3 ½ seasons with the Eagles, Brown is now 11th in franchise history with 4,830 yards, 20 behind DeVonta Smith.

3. With his eight catches Monday, Dallas Goedert increased his career total to 449, and he now needs just five to pass Retzlaff to move into fourth place in franchise history and 11 to pass Brian Westbrook and move into third. That would leave him behind only Hall of Famer Harold Carmichael (618) and former teammate Zach Ertz (612). Goedert’s 449 receptions are 6th-most among active players who have never made a Pro Bowl. The only tight end who’s caught more passes than Goedert without making a Pro Bowl is Ben Watson, who caught 547 passes in 16 years with the Patriots, Browns, Saints and Ravens.

4. Saquon Barkley’s 52-yard touchdown run was the 15th of his career of 50 or more yards including postseason, which trails only Adrian Peterson’s 16 in NFL history. Barry Sanders also had 15. Nine of those 15 have come in 33 games with the Eagles. Bosh Pritchard has the 2nd-most in Eagles history with five from 1946 through 1949. Barkley and Pritchard are the only Eagles with two seasons with multiple TD runs of at least 50 yards. Barkley also had six 50-yard TDs with the Giants, including three against the Eagles. He now has the most 50-yard touchdown runs for the Eagles and against the Eagles. Including postseason, Barkley now has 16 100-yard games in less than two years with the Eagles. Only Wilbert Montgomery (26), LeSean McCoy (23), Brian Westbrook (20) and Steve Van Buren (16) have more in Eagles history.

5A. Over the last four weeks, the Eagles have held opposing quarterbacks to 48.9 percent completion percentage. That’s Jared Goff (37.8 percent), Dak Prescott (63.9 percent), Caleb Williams (47.2 percent) and Justin Herbert (46.2 percent). That’s the lowest completion percentage against the Eagles in a four-game span in 17 years, since Joe Flacco of the Ravens (46 percent), Kurt Warner of the Cards (54 percent), Eli Manning of the Giants (48 percent) and Ken Dorsey of the Browns (39 percent) combined to go 66-for-137 for 48.2 percent in 2008.

5B. The Eagles are allowing opposing quarterbacks to complete just 55.8 percent of their passes, lowest in the NFL. That would be their lowest over a full season since the 2008 team allowed 54.1 percent and the lowest by any NFL team in nine years, since the Broncos allowed 55.4 percent in 2016. 

6A. Britain Covey averaged 18.0 yards on three punt returns Monday night and 25.8 yards on five kick returns. He’s only the Eagles’ fourth returner ever to average at least 18 yards on at least three punt returns and 25 yards on at least three kick returns. Al Pollard did it against the Lions in 1951 (18.7 punts, 28.3 kicks), Wally Henry against the Cards in 1979 (20.0, 28.4) and most recently Brian Mitchell against the 49ers in 2002 (33.0, 35.7). 

6B. Covey increased his career punt return average from 11.3 to 11.6 and moved past Darren Sproles with the highest punt return average in Eagles history with a minimum of 75 returns. Sproles averaged 11.6 also, but Covey’s 11.6 is 11.587 and Sproles’ is 11.573. Covey now has the 9th-highest punt return average in NFL history (minimum 75 returns) and highest ever by an undrafted player, just ahead of Paul Johns, who played for the Seahawks from 1981 through 1984. Johns had an 11.551 average on 78 punt returns.

7. Here’s an interesting one on the Eagles’ offensive line: The Eagles have gone five straight games without allowing more than one sack for only the second time since sacks became an official stat in 1982. In 2014 they went six straight games. That matches the longest streak by any team since the Steelers went 10 straight games without allowing more than one sack in 2020.

8. The Eagles have allowed only 13 passing touchdowns so far this year, That’s the fewest they’ve allowed through 13 games in 24 years. Back in 2001, they only allowed 11 passing TDs the first 13 games of the season with future NFL head coaches Leslie Frazier, Steve Spagnuolo, Ron Rivera and Sean McDermott on Jim Johnson’s defensive staff. 

OK … you’ve made it this far … here’s the weekly negative section! We kept it short this week. 

9. The Lame Offense Stats Section: 

9A. The Eagles have scored just 81 points in their last five games, their fewest in a five-game span since 2012, when they had 79 in a five-game span from Week 3 in Arizona through Week 8 against the Falcons. 

9B. The Eagles have gone 12 straight games without converting at least 45 percent of their third downs, their 2nd-longest streak since the NFL began tracking 3rd-down stats in 1991 and longest since a 13-game streak in 2005. 

9C. The Eagles have gone five straight games without recording at least 20 first downs, their longest streak since a six-game streak at the end of the 2005 season. 

10. OK, we put this off long enough. Let’s get to the Jalen Hurts stats. This is going to be painful:

10A. Hurts on Monday became the first Eagles quarterback in 28 years to commit five turnovers in a game. In 1997, in a 31-21 loss to the Giants at the Vet, Bobby Hoying was intercepted three times and lost two fumbles. That was Hoying’s fourth career start and his first career loss. 

10B. Hurts became the first Eagles QB to throw four interceptions in a game since Michael Vick in the 2012 opener in Cleveland, a 17-16 win over the Browns in which Brandon Weeden also threw four interceptions. 

10C. Hurts is the first Eagles QB to throw four INTs without a touchdown pass since 1991, when undrafted rookie Brad Goebel did it in a 13-6 loss to the Saints at the Vet. That was his second career start.

10D. Hurts’ overtime interception was the Eagles’ first overtime turnover since Mike McMahon fumbled when he was sacked by Osi Umenyiora in the Giants’ 26-23 win over the Eagles at the Linc in 2005. It was the Eagles’ first overtime interception since Tony Parrish picked off Donovan McNabb in the 49ers’ 31-28 win at the Linc in 2003. And it was the Eagles’ first game-ending turnover in overtime since Michael Strahan’s 44-yard pick-6 off Doug Pederson at the Vet in 1999.

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