Jordan Davis blocked a last-second field-goal attempt and returned it 66 yards for a touchdown, icing the Philadelphia Eagles’ 33-26 comeback win over the Los Angeles Rams at Lincoln Financial Stadium on Sunday.
With three seconds left and the Eagles leading 27-26, Rams kicker Joshua Karty lined up for a potential game-winning field goal from 44 yards out. But Karty’s low kick was blocked, and Davis scooped it up and dashed to the end zone.
It was the second field-goal try blocked in the fourth quarter by the Eagles, who scored 24 unanswered points after trailing 26-9 in the third quarter. Jalen Carter blocked the other field goal, and those two plays helped the Eagles improve to 3-0.
The game was a rematch of last season’s NFL divisional playoff game, which Philadelphia won 28-22 on the way to a Super Bowl championship.
The Rams (2-1) endured their first loss of the season.
The Eagles’ offensive turnaround coincided with a change at right tackle and an improvement in field position. Starter Lane Johnson exited the game after suffering a neck injury during the first drive. Matt Pryor initially replaced Johnson, and the Eagles totaled minus-10 yards on the next six drives. Poor protection worsened the problems. Jalen Hurts was sacked three times by pressure off Pryor’s edge, including a sack-fumble to start the second half. Down 26-7, Fred Johnson subbed in for Pryor. The Eagles immediately scored a touchdown during a five-play, 89-yard drive.
Then the comeback began. Their field position was also disadvantageous. John Metchie III had difficulty catching Karty’s knuckleball kicks. But the offense still found its rhythm while starting deep within its own territory. — Brooks Kubena, Eagles beat writer
Well, it came down to a couple of clutch drives for these two teams, who met for a thriller on this field in last year’s playoffs. Hurts led a great one before finding Devonta Smith for a touchdown with just under two minutes to go, and then Matthew Stafford took over, looking for his 50th career game-winning drive.
Stafford made the plays to get the Rams in position for Karty’s field goal, but the Eagles blocked it for the second straight time before returning it for a touchdown. It goes down as a meltdown on all three phases — the offense for stalling in the red zone, the defense for getting lit up in the passing game down the stretch, and the special teams for two blocked field goals, either of which could have sealed a win. — Nate Atkins, Rams beat writer
A.J. Brown came alive in the second half — and so did the Eagles offense. Brown did not have a catch in the first half. He had six catches for 109 yards and a touchdown after halftime. On the Eagles’ critical fourth-quarter drive, Brown had two third-and-10 conversions with yards after catch from stiff-arming Rams defenders. Brown’s lack of involvement in the offense has been a bubbling storyline in Philadelphia. At halftime, it looked like it would be another week of wondering why Brown wasn’t involved. In the second half, the Eagles showed that good things happen when they throw Brown the ball. He was the key to the comeback. — Zach Berman, Eagles beat writer
This should have been a smooth Rams victory, even if the Eagles got their offense going with a new right tackle and have the stable of skill players that they do. Los Angeles’ woes in the red zone have popped up each week, and this time, it came against a team good enough to make the Rams pay. They should have scored a touchdown when Davante Adams couldn’t reel in a deep pass from Stafford. They had a holding at the goal line that wiped out another touchdown run. Settling for three field goal attempts in the red zone isn’t the way to knock off the defending champions and a team that has won 18 of its past 19 games — and that’s presuming the Rams could even make those kicks. — Atkins
The new-look secondary following top outside cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon’s trip to injured reserve had a tough day as time went on. When the Rams’ pass rush wasn’t getting home, and when Hurts decided to go down the field, he was able to pick on cornerbacks Emmanuel Forbes and Darious Williams. Neither one currently has the skill set to handle physical No. 1 targets like Brown, who feasted along the sidelines and finished with six catches for 109 yards and a touchdown against Williams; or a savvy route runner like Smith, who scored the go-ahead touchdown against Forbes. It’s going to be an ongoing conversation as the Rams face some of these types, and they have another on the schedule next week with Michael Pittman Jr. and the Colts. This could be a spot Los Angeles looks to address on the trade market as it gets closer to the deadline next month. — Atkins