Carson Wentz Benched, Jalen Hurts Provides Spark, but Eagles Still Lose

It was the 4th straight loss for Philadelphia and, at 3-8-1, their season appears to be over without hope of winning the NFC East or making the playoffs for a fourth straight year

The Eagles needed a miracle to derail what looks like a Super Bowl Express for the Green Bay Packers on Sunday.

There was none forthcoming, as the Packers did what they had to in order to notch their ninth win of the season by beating the going-nowhere Eagles, 30-16, at Lambeau Field.

The Eagles, however, showed signs of life late, with rookie quarterback Jalen Hurts and rookie receiver Jalen Reagor doing some serious damage.

Reagor raced 73 yards for a punt return touchdown, the Eagles first punt return TD in exactly five years, when Darren Sproles went 83 yards against the New England Patriots on Dec. 6, 2015.

Reagor’s TD made the score 23-16 with 6:30 to play in the game and stayed at 16 after Jake Elliott missed his second straight PAT in as many weeks.

The return came just 82 seconds after Hurts threw the first touchdown pass of his career, a 32-yard floater to Greg Ward on a fourth-and-18 throw.

Hurts entered the game with 7:39 to go in the third quarter, and with the Eagles trailing 20-3. He immediately provided a bit of a spark, connecting on a 34-yard throw to Reagor down the sideline.

Carson Wentz never returned.

The starter was having trouble escaping pressure, enduring four more sacks to up his NFL-high total to 50. He was 6-for-15 for 79 yards.

It was in the fourth quarter when Hurts really settled in, taking the Eagles on their lone touchdown march of the game.

The drive started with back-to-back first-down runs by Hurts. It ended with his TD throw to Ward, a throw that required him to elude the pass rush and roll to his right.

The comeback, however, was short-circuited when the Eagles defense allowed Aaron Jones to break free for a 77-yard touchdown run with 2:51 to play.

Hurts and the offense had gotten the ball back prior to Jones’ run with a chance to score the potential game-tying touchdown, or game-winning score if the Eagles had elected to go for two.

But after picking up a first down, that opportunity fizzled, and the Eagles punted the ball back with just over three minutes left and all three timeouts.

The defense could not stop Green Bay from putting the game out of reach.

Hurts’ final numbers were 5-for-12 for 109 yards. He ran five times for 29 yards.

They may have been better, but Travis Fulgham dropped a 20-yard throw late and on the next play, Hurts threw an interception after having his arm hit.

It was the fourth straight loss for the Eagles, who are without a win since beating the Cowboys on Nov. 1. They are now 3-8-1 and all but mathematically eliminated from a second straight NFC East title and their run of playoff berths looks like it will end at three in a row.

With four games left, however, the story may shift to Jalen Hurts and the quarterback position.

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