September 20, 2026
Andrew Nelles/IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Jalen Hurts was a quarterback against the Titans.
In Week 2, the Philadelphia Eagles faced an opponent in the Tennessee Titans that had a 3-14 record in 2025 with a point differential of -194, that was also dominated in Week 1 by, uh, the New York Jets. The Eagles eked out a win, but as usual, there is plenty to gripe about. As always, we hand out 10 awards.
With the Eagles' win on Sunday, Hurts has won better than 70 percent of his career regular season starts. He now has a regular season record of 59-25 (0.702). One narrative that has followed Hurts over the course of his career is that he has had great talent around him (unquestionably true) and has been carried to his impressive record (often unfair).
So far in 2026, Hurts has carried the Eagles to two wins when the rest of the team around him hasn't played all that well.
Hurts finished 26 of 37 for 264 yards, 2 TDs, and 2 INTs. One of the INTs was a terrible decision; the other was a misfire to a wide open DeVonta Smith, although he got hit on the play.
But the good outweighed the bad, and Hurts saved his best for a clutch 9-play, 65-yard, game-winning drive, all of which occurred on the other side of the two-minute warning.
The drive included a 20-yard strike to Dontayvion Wicks, a sneaky-impressive play where he got outside the tackle box under heavy duress and was able to throw the ball away instead of taking a sack, and a bigtime throw to DeVonta Smith to get the Eagles on the doorstep of the end zone.
And then on the game-winning play, when his primary target (Smith) slipped, so Hurts calmly lofted a TD throw to a wide open Darius Cooper in the back of the end zone.
Here are all of Hurts' throws on that final drive (via @ThePhillyPod):
During the week leading up to the game, star Titans defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons said the Titans defense needed to make Hurts "be a quarterback." Well, he was, and he let Simmons know about it after the game.
Outstanding.
Smith has been a very good receiver in his first five NFL seasons, but in 2026 he was going to become the unquestioned WR1 and focal point of the Eagles' passing offense with A.J. Brown no longer wanting to be in Philly.
On Sunday, Smith caught 10 passes for 117 yards and a TD, but the degree of difficulty on many of his catches was extraordinarily high. He is a human highlight reel with extreme body control.
In the first half, Wicks had four first downs in high-leverage situations:
And then as noted above on the Eagles final drive he had a 20-yard reception. That was on 3rd and 6.
That's six targets, five catches, 74 yards, but most importantly, five high-leverage first downs.
The Eagles have to be absolutely thrilled with what they have gotten so far from Wicks, if for no other reason than forcing opposing defenses to stay honest and not overcommit attention to Smith.
Being the dirty work receiver is hard. You play special teams and when you get in the game on offense you're usually just blocking or running pick plays for the star players. And yet, when you get your opportunities, you sure as hell better be ready because you're not going to get many of them.
Cooper had two catches for 26 yards, and the game-winning TD.
After two down seasons, Jake Elliott's 2026 season is off to a great start. He had a very good training camp and preseason, and so far he is perfect on all eight of his kicks. Against the Titans he hit a key 58-yarder.
It would be a big boost for the Eagles if Jake Elliott is good again. #Analysis.
The Eagles' rushing stats:
| Eagles rushing | Rush | Yards | YPC | TD |
| Tank Bigsby | 13 | 33 | 2.5 | 1 |
| Will Shipley | 7 | 24 | 3.4 | 0 |
| Jalen Hurts | 5 | 16 | 3.2 | 0 |
| Hollywood Brown | 2 | 12 | 6.0 | 0 |
| Saquon Barkley | 4 | 9 | 2.3 | 0 |
| Makai Lemon | 1 | -5 | -5.0 | 0 |
Add it all up and you get 32 carries for 89 yards (2.8 YPC) and 1 TD.
They also had four penalties for 35 yards on run plays. The Eagles' rushing attack stinks so far.
All week long the Eagles tried to hide what their offensive line configuration would look like on gameday. And, well, they were successful, as their decision — Drew Kendall at C and Cam Jurgens at LG — was an unexpected surprise.
Whether it was the right choice or not is another story, as Simmons wrecked the interior of the Eagles' offensive line all day. I'll wait until I re-watch the game to dole out individual blame, but collectively the Eagles lost in the trenches on the offensive side of the ball.
Aside from a Jalen Carter Peanut Punch that was recovered by Washington Week 1, the Eagles' defense hasn't come close to forcing a turnover yet this season, despite playing two of the worst offenses in the NFL.
They are one of just three teams that have not yet forced a turnover.
Takeaways aside, the defense has looked OK at times, but they have not been the top five type of defense many (self included) projected them to be.
It's a good thing the Eagles got to play two crappy teams to start the season, because they would not be 2-0 if they hadn't. And now the schedule gets a lot harder:
• Week 3: at Bears
• Week 4: Rams
• Week 5: Jaguars (in London)
They may have caught a break in their Week 3 matchup in Chicago, as starting QB Caleb Williams was carted off with a hamstring injury, but that will still be a better team than either of the two loser franchises they have played so far.
When you play a team like the Titans, ideally you just blow them out and leave no doubt. The Eagles didn't do that by any stretch, and if a play here or there went another way they'd be 1-1.
But ultimately, they played a fun game that ended with a clutch drive spearheaded by the weirdly maligned quarterback who just wins. Would it be cooler if the Eagles won 55-0? Sure. But also, your favorite TV show had some drama, and some payback for words spoken during the week, some adversity, and a happy ending. It was a good ep.
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