Five Key Plays in Eagles' Comeback Win
INDIANAPOLIS – There were plenty of good plays and bad plays from the Eagles in their 17-16 comeback win over the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium on Sunday.
Here are five of the most important ones:
1) PASS INTERFERENCE
Some penalties are easy to call, others not so much.
This one was.
Miles Sanders was deep down the field when Jalen Hurts launched a pass to him. Linebacker Zaire Franklin simply barreled into Sanders for an obvious pass interference penalty. This one went for 39 yards on third-and-two from the Indy 33.
It jump-started the Eagles’ game-winning drive, though it took nine more plays for them to finish it off from where the foul occurred, at the Indy 28.
“He said to me a couple times after the game, I make the teach tape?” said head coach Nick Sirianni about Sanders.
“I said, you're damn right you made the teach tape. Forevermore we'll be able to show Miles Sanders how to play a deep ball if it's underthrown. You got to put your guys in every position like that. That was a huge, huge play.”
2) FOURTH-AND-TWO
Before Jalen Hurts rumbled in untouched on a QB draw from 7 yards out to give the Eagles their first lead with 1:20 to play in the game, he had to convert a QB draw on fourth-and-two from the Colts 9. He gained three on a QB draw.
Why did the draw work so well on those two plays?
“Some that we hadn't really showed on film, so good time to pull it out,” said Hurts, who ran 16 times for 86 yards.
3) BRANDON GRAHAM SACK
Even after taking the lead, the Eagles had to go out and win it with 80 seconds left. All Indy needed was a field goal to win, and Chase McLaughlin had already connected from 51 yards though he missed later from 50.
The Colts picked up a first down and made it to their own 40. On third-and-nine from there, Graham bull-rushed his was right into QB Matt Rya, sacking him for a seven-yard loss. A false start penalty by the Colts’ offense made fourth-and-16, fourth-and-21.
They never came close.
“You love moments like that,” said linebacker T.J. Edwards, who made 10 tackles. “You understand that in order for a team to win games, defense has to make plays and get off the field. There’s never a lack of faith that was going to happen.
“When the offense was driving down, we knew they were going to score and we knew we’d have to go back on the field and win the game.”
4) HAASON REDDICK SACK
The Colts reached first-and-goal at the 5 with 5:44 to play. A TD would’ve extended their lead 20-10, a deficit that would have been difficult for Philly to return from. On third-and-goal from the same spot, though, Reddick decked Ryan for a 14-yard loss.
It allowed him to take over the team lead with 7.5.
5) QUEZ WATKINS TD
The 22-yard strike from Hurts started the comeback, making the score 13-10 with 13:31 to play in the final quarter.
“We’re gritty,” said Watkins. “We’re going to keep fighting. We’re not going to let anybody hold us back. We’re not going to fold. We’re not going to break. Whatever it is, we’re going to keep pushing through.”
Ed Kracz is the publisher of SI.com’s Fan Nation Eagles Today and co-host of the Eagles Unfiltered Podcast. Check out the latest Eagles news at www.SI.com/NFL/Eagles or www.eaglesmaven.com and please follow him on Twitter: @kracze.
