PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia Eagles went from hot to cold on offense, and then did just enough to earn a narrow win over the New England Patriots on Sunday in their regular-season opener. Four days later, they seemed headed for more of the same.
“Sloppy” was how coordinator Brian Johnson described the operation of his Week 1 offense, with the first-year play caller including himself in the assessment. The sloppiness continued in the first quarter Thursday night, when the Eagles faced the Minnesota Vikings at Lincoln Financial Field. Philadelphia converted just 1 of 5 third downs, turned the ball over on an interception and failed to cash in on two fumble recoveries for any points.
You would have never expected the eventual offensive eruption that helped the Eagles to a 34-28 victory. Philadelphia finished with 430 yards of offense and at one point led the Vikings by 20 points.
Everything changed early in the second quarter, thanks to a somewhat unlikely hero and two of the Eagles’ strongest units.
The Eagles turned to running back D’Andre Swift, the Philadelphia native who went largely overlooked with just one carry for 3 yards against New England in Week 1. They also put the game on the backs of their offensive and defensive lines, the units in which the front office has invested most heavily and consistently. After that, the Eagles finally found a rhythm.
It started with a 16-play, 75-yard offensive drive that featured 13 runs — including nine by Swift for 45 yards — and was capped by the Eagles’ signature Jalen Hurts goal-line sneak. It continued with a disruptive defensive showing that bottled up the Vikings rushing attack, hurried quarterback Kirk Cousins frequently and finished with a total of four takeaways.
And the train kept on rolling: Swift rushed for a career-high 175 yards and a touchdown on 28 attempts to spearhead a 259-yard rushing day for the Eagles (2-0) as a whole.
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