Week 5 Eagles grades by position after a big win over the Rams

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Week 5 Eagles grades by position after a big win over the Rams

Here's the report card after the Eagles beat the Rams to improve to 5-0 on Sunday afternoon.

By Dave Zangaro • Published 16 mins ago

 

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — The Eagles dominated the Rams on Sunday afternoon and improved to 5-0 on the season with a 23-14 win at SoFi Stadium.

That final score probably doesn’t look like a dominant win but that’s mostly because the Eagles once again struggled in the end zone. That still needs to be cleaned up but the rest of it looked really good on Sunday.

Here are our grades by position:

Quarterback

Jalen Hurts: 25/38, 303 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT, 87.9 rating; 15 rushing attempts, 72 yards, 1 TD

Sure, Hurts threw an interception on a miscommunication with A.J. Brown and he missed a few throws here and there. But overall it was a really strong performance from Hurts. He kept connecting with Brown and Dallas Goedert in this game, getting them both over 100 yards. And his ability as a runner showed up in a big way for the first time this season. Hurts had 134 rushing yards in the first four games and had 72 in this one.

Grade: A-

Running back

D’Andre Swift: 17 carries, 70 yards; 6 catches, 38 yards

While Swift didn’t have the type of flashy performance we’ve seen from him at times this season, he quietly went over 100 yards from scrimmage and picked up some tough yards in this one. It’s one thing to run through gaping holes but it’s another to show vision and patience and make things happen. He did that. And Kenny Gainwell’s stat line didn’t look great — 23 scrimmage yards on 8 touches — but he had a huge conversion on a third-down catch when he lowered his shoulder through the nickel back.

Grade: B+

Receiver

A.J. Brown: 6 catches on 8 targets, 127 yards

What Brown is doing right now is nothing short of amazing. He has 120+ receiving yards in three straight games, becoming the first Eagles player to do that since Mike Quick in 1983. We’re watching a great player in the prime of his career. It was a quiet game for the rest of the receivers. DeVonta Smith had just 1 catch for 6 yards and Quez Watkins had 2 for 4 and missed an opportunity to pick up a first down by not following his blocks. But Brown’s performance raises the grade considerably.

Grade: A-

Tight end

Dallas Goedert: 8 catches on 9 targets, 117 yards, 1 TD

This was the type of game we were waiting to see from Goedert all season. In the first four games of the year, he had a total of 13 catches for 88 yards. But he broke out in a major way on Sunday, picking up the second-most yards he’s ever had in a single game. Hurts got Goedert the ball early and often and gave him an opportunity to run after the catch. YAC is such an important part of Goedert’s game and that showed up against the Rams.

Grade: A+

Offensive line

Without starting right guard Cam Jurgens, veteran Sua Opeta filled in and seemed to perform admirably. The Eagles had a plan to stop Aaron Donald and that included a lot of double teams but it worked. Hurts was sacked just one times and even though a lot of the rushing yards were from the QB, the Eagles still had 159.

Grade: A

Defensive line

Jalen Carter: 4 tackles, 2 sacks, 2 TFLs, 2 QB hits

Once the Eagles got the Rams into known-pass in the second half, they began to get great pressure. Through five games, Carter looks like he’s going to be a perennial Pro Bowler in the NFL. He’s up to 3 1/2 sacks. And after going without a sack in his first three games, Haason Reddick has three in two games. Both guys picked up a couple each in this one. And without Fletcher Cox, the Eagles still held the Rams to 3.9 yards per carry.

Grade: A

Linebacker

Nicholas Morrow: 5 tackles, 1 TFL

Early in this game, Morrow had a chance at two takeaways and couldn’t come through. He dropped an interception and failed to jump on a loose ball. And even though it looked like he didn’t get the facemask, Zach Cunningham threw his arm out on a 3rd-and-long to try to stop a coward’s draw and was penalized. The Eagles might have Nakobe Dean back next week.

Grade: B

Secondary

Reed Blankenship: 7 tackles

After a very shaky start against Cooper Kupp, Puka Nacua and the Rams passing attack, the Eagles’ secondary really settled down in the second half. The Rams had five possessions after halftime: Three punts, a turnover on downs and the final possession that ended the game. The secondary was way better after halftime.

Grade: B+

Special teams

Jake Elliott: 3/3 on FGs, 2/2 on PATs

Another game without a major special teams blunder. In fact, special teams were a positive in this one. Elliott was — no shock — perfect on his kicks. The punter Braden Mann had his only punt downed inside the 10. And Britain Covey had another 20 yard return and an average of 17.5 on his two returns.

Grade: A

Coaching

Record: 5-0

There were some things we can nitpick. Like play-calling in the red zone, like the decision to put the ball in Watkins’ hands on a big third down or the plan on defense in the first half. But the Eagles put up over 450 yards of offense and adjusted really well in this game and they cruised to a win. Coaching has a lot to do with the 5-0 start.

Grade: B+

https://www.nbcsportsphiladelphia.com/nfl/philadelphia-eagles/week-5-eagles-grades-by-position-after-a-big-win-over-the-rams/539937/