Eagles' Terrell Edmunds vs. Justin Jefferson Results in Play of Night for Philly
PHILADELPHIA – The turning point in the Philadelphia Eagles' 34-28 win over the Minnesota Vikings isn’t hard to find.
It came when Terrell Edmunds didn’t give up on what looked like was going to be a touchdown late in the first half from star receiver Justin Jefferson that probably would’ve given the Vikings a 14-10 lead at halftime with the guests slated to receive the ball to start the third quarter.
Instead, Edmunds raced over from his safety position to lay a hit on Jefferson, who was trying to reach the ball over the goal line. The ball was fumbled over the pylon. Originally called a touchdown, the play was overturned on replay and ruled a touchback.
“Honestly, I was just trying to get him down the best way I could because, like I’ve been preaching, I think we have the best D-line in America, so we give those guys some opportunities in the red zone, I don’t think anybody’s just going to run the ball in on us,” said Edmunds.
“I felt the ball coming out, I just didn’t know exactly if it went over the pylon or it didn’t, I was just hoping for the best. Then I saw the video and saw it and was happy about it.”
Terrell Edmunds was on the spot to force a fumble that turned the game around in the Eagles' 34-28 win over the Vikings.
USA Today
Jefferson had a strong game, catching 11 passes for 159 yards to become the first player since Steve Smith in 2011 to record back-to-back 150-yard receiving games.
“Nobody is more torn up about that one than Justin, but we try to emphasize only reaching the ball out on fourth down,” Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell said.
“He is a competitor, and he is playing a heck of a football game making plays, and he is trying to do whatever he can to win because that is ultimately what he cares about the most, but that was incredibly unfortunate on the timing.”
It was one of four fumbles the Eagles forced and recovered from the Vikings. There would have been five but Kentavius Street lined up offsides to negate the fumble caused by Mario Goodrich in the second half.
"It says a lot about our team about what we’ve been working on, what the coaches are preaching – punching at the ball, going for the ball, tackle at the ball level," said Edmunds.
"Just everything goes back to that. I think that was on display. We had some turnovers the first game, some this game, so hopefully continue to build on that and grow as a defense."
Edmunds' play on Jefferson turned into a 10-point swing, as the Eagles moved 37 yards in just 30 seconds and got a 61-yard field goal as time expired to extend their lead to 13-7 at the break.
“Excellent hustle by Terrell to finish on the play, right?” said coach Nick Sirianni. “Just a phenomenal hustle effort by Terrell Edmunds to get that ball out going into the end zone.”
Still possessing all three timeouts, the Eagles turned to Boston Scott on two straight runs, and he gained 25 yards on those carries to the 45. A Jalen Hurts scramble added four more yards and then another Hurts run tacked on eight yards before the Eagles called their final timeout to send out Elliott.
The reigning NFC Special Teams Player of the Week, who made four field goals in the win over the New England Patriots last week, including two from 50-plus yards, nailed it.
“We just wanted to see what was going to happen there, and Boston sprung two out and ended up getting in position for Jake to hit a huge –hey, when your kicker hits a 61-yarder that’s pretty exciting, right?” said Sirianni.
The kick sent the Eagles jumping for joy as they left the field and into the locker room.
“To say going up six at the half as opposed to three, sure, six is better than three,” said Sirianni, “so we were excited about that.”
