Clutch, but incomplete: 5 takeaways from Eagles-Titans a day later

The Tennessee Titans have been a franchise since 1997. Not a very good one. They own a 482–530–6 record and have never won a Super Bowl. They are 275-234-2 at home all-time.

The Eagles have been three of those home wins. They had never won in Tennessee. Their first victory did not come easy on Sunday.

In what probably should have been a cakewalk at Nissan Stadium, which was packed with midnight and Kelly green, the Eagles pulled out a 24-20 win to advance to 2-0 on the season.

We saw the best and worst of the Eagles. Jalen Hurts threw two interceptions. The defense broke down a few times. But we also saw the best. Without Saquon Barkley, Dallas Goedert, and Landon Dickerson, that side was still quite magical in Nashville, Tenn., under the blazing heat.

“On a day like that, we needed everybody,” Hurts said. “I’m happy with the way everybody showed up.”

Here are my five takeaways a day after the win:

1. They made him a QB. They ate their words.

Earlier in the week, 2025 first-team All-Pro defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons said the Titans’ goal was to make Hurts “a QB.” This is not the first time Hurts has heard it.

“I heard it,” Hurts said after the game.

Did he care?

“I heard it,” he repeated.

The response?

“Happy we won,” Hurts said.

They wanted him to be a quarterback. Well, without Barkley and Goedert, who both exited with injuries (Barkley returned but was mostly absent), he played like a franchise quarterback.

It was not perfect; he finished 26-of-37 for 264 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions. He rushed for only 16 yards. The Eagles averaged only 2.8 yards per rush. Hurts needed to carry them with his arm. He did just that.

The interceptions were immoral. His first came on the first drive in the end zone and was returned for 98 yards, a huge early swing. His second, a pass he left short for DeVonta Smith, was a near backbreaker late in the game.

But with the game on the line, Hurts came through. How many times have we said this?

“He didn’t flinch,” Smith said. “We had some mistakes out there, things we could have been better at. But at the end of the day, he didn’t flinch when we needed it. Drove us right down there.”

On the 65-yard touchdown drive, Hurts completed six of eight passes for 61 yards and rushed for four yards. One incompletion came when he escaped a sack and threw the ball away. Before the final drive, the Eagles had four second-half first downs. They got four in the final 1:56 with no timeouts to win the game.

“When you talk about those moments, end-of-minute, two-minute drives, game-winning drives, you don’t think about the moment itself,” Hurts said. “You think about what led you to the moment, the foundation. Throwing at UCF. Spending time in Houston. Talking through tape. Breaking things down. Getting on the same page. Just the chemistry, and trying to build that, the effort to build that chemistry is very important for moments like this.”

His passes were surgical. He made big play after big play. 20-yard strike to Dontayvion Wicks on a third-and-six. Back-to-back nine- and six-yard completions to Smith. Then, on third-and-six, a 19-yard pass down to the three-yard line to Smith, which he went up, grabbed, and somehow kept his feet in bounds. Then, of course, the game-winner to a wide-open Darius Cooper.

With the game on the line, the turnovers, misfires, sacks, absence of a running game, comments — none of it mattered.

“That motherf***er balled out [Sunday],” Jordan Mailata said. “Jalen really got in his bag [Sunday].”

Sunday was Hurts’ 14th career game-winning drive and the 11th fourth-quarter comeback of his career. This was Hurts’ eighth fourth-quarter comeback since 2023, ranking second in the NFL behind just Jordan Love with nine.

It was not just the game-winning drive. Hurts threw for a first down on eight different plays of third-and-5+, a career high, and the most in a single game by any NFL QB since 2023.

There is the 17th-best quarterback for you.

“Your habits take over in these moments,” head coach Nick Sirianni said. “You can’t expect to be somebody different if you haven’t practiced it the entire time. And that’s how Jalen is.”

2. O-line struggles again, but credit is deserved

Another week where the offensive line really struggled. Hurts was under constant pressure again, was sacked three times, and just never got the protection he needed to play at a consistently high level. The running game could not get going again either. Barkley missed all but the first play of the first half with a stinger he suffered on the first play of the game and only had three carries after that, but although Tank Bigsby scored a short touchdown and Will Shipley did have a seven-yard run, the backs combined for just 89 yards on 32 carries for 2.8 yards per rush.

However, with Drew Kendall at center and Cam Jurgens at left guard playing there for the first time and trying to block Simmons with the game on the line, they got the job done.

Now, they should not have put themselves in that position, and they came up huge, giving Hurts time to win the game.

“That’s not what we intended on it being all offseason, all spring,” Hurts said on the changes on the o-line. “There’s a lot of changes going on, and with all the changes, all the newness, finding a way to win — that’s what it’s all about.”

And hey, for Kendall, making his first NFL start against Simmons, the 24-year-old hung in there. With a field temperature of 157 degrees at one point, he helped the Eagles win a ballgame. He will get better as Landon Dickerson continues to miss time.

“Now we have our starting five moving on,” Mailata said. “Now we have film on how we’re getting beat, how we’re not getting beat, and things to work on.”

3. Smith proves WR1 status, Wicks continues to shine

Smith had just three receptions in Week 1 against the Washington Commanders. He is the Eagles’ new WR1. He had a chance to prove himself in Nashville.

He excelled.

“I take a lot of pride in it,” Smith said. “I feel like it was time for me to go out there, time for me to show what I can do, that I can be that guy. I had the opportunity, and I went out there and did it.”

Smith had 10 receptions for 117 yards and a touchdown. Not just that, he made play after play on the game-winning drive, catching four passes for 38 yards. That toe-tapper on the right sideline and the big 19-yarder down to the three-yard line. His hands and body control are out of this world.

“It was fun, man,” he said. “It was fun. You know the game is on the line. It shouldn’t have been that close. But you live for moments like that. That’s why you play the game.”

It was not just him. Wicks is lining up to be an absolute steal. Coming off his two-for-73 game with a 64-yard catch and a touchdown against Washington, he was five-for-74 Sunday and made a bunch of big catches, many on third down. He and Hurts have developed a great connection quickly.

And Cooper having his first career touchdown be the game-winner? It does not get much better than that.

4. Defense not up to par, but outside corners have been as advertised

The defense, for the second straight week, was good enough to win but not up to the standard that is expected. Cam Ward was able to slice and dice at times, especially on the touchdown drive just before halftime. Then they let Ward pick them apart again on a 69-yard touchdown drive after halftime. It was so hot, and by the end of the drive, they started to look gassed. The offense was not helping them out much, either.

For the second straight game, they did not record a takeaway; they only had two sacks, and the tackling effort was weak at times. Still, they held Tennessee to 291 total yards. It is the first time in 31 years the Eagles have held their first two opponents to under 300 total yards in each game.

However, Quinyon Mitchell and Riq Woolen remained impressive. They have been as good as advertised.

Through the first two weeks, Mitchell has had seven targeths in 62 coverage snaps and allowed four receptions for 31 yards, and a 68.2 passer rating. Woolen, in 61 coverage snaps, has faced nine targets, allowing three receptions for 22 yards, a touchdown, and an allowed passer rating of 79.4.

Mitchell and Woolen have locked up Terry McLaurin and held standout rookie Carnell Tate to 27 yards on three receptions.

It is only Week 2, but this is one of the best cornerback duos in Eagles history.

5. Now, how about a complete game?

This may sound familiar, but the Eagles stil have not played a complete game.

At halftime, the Eagles had 21:50 of possession, while the Titans had 8:10. The Eagles had 213 total yards. The Titans had 96.

In the second half, before the Eagles’ game-winning drive, they had 63 total yards. Titans? 180.

This is not a new issue. The Eagles take a lead in the opening half, and then turn conservative in the final 30 minutes and rely on the defense. They are 2-0, but it is not a healthy way to play. We have living proof; just look back eight months ago.

Hurts, while coming up huge, had two deleterious interceptions; the run game was nonexistent, the protection was inadequate, their first downs continued to be unproductive, and the defense was gassed. They did not play complementary football. A win is a win, but this style will not prevail.

“Right now, we’re still waiting to see a full complete game,” Lane Johnson said. “[Sunday] wasn’t it. From a battle standpoint, it was big for us — the way we fought. I guess when you see it, you’ll know when it’s looking right. We will too. TBD.”

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