PHILADELPHIA — The wingspans of Eagles defensive tackles Jordan Davis and Jalen Carter and the constant pressure applied by Philadelphia’s defensive line got the better of an elite Lions offense on Sunday night.
Play after play, Eagles edge rushers and defensive tackles were in Lions quarterback Jared Goff’s face, resulting in Goff finishing with a 37.8% completion percentage and a 60.1 QB rating.
Outside of a few explosive plays from Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs and wide receiver Jameson Williams, the Eagles’ defense dominated in the team’s 16-9 victory over the Detroit Lions in Week 11 at Lincoln Financial Field. Especially upfront with Carter, Davis and edge rusher Jaelan Phillips.
This was also the second straight week the Eagles played ugly on offense but won because their defense physically dominated the opposing offense. Vic Fangio’s unit held the Green Bay Packers to seven points in the team’s Week 10 victory at Lambeau Field.
But the defense has to keep playing this way for the team to go another Super Bowl run given their offensive limitations. It should happen because the Eagles’ defensive line is ferocious, highly skilled, smart and quick.
On Detroit’s opening drive of the game, Davis showed those attributes when he tipped Goff’s pass into Cooper DeJean’s hands for an interception. Davis and the other Eagles defensive tackles knew from film study that they could tip Goff’s passes because the QB throws from a low angle. Davis batted three passes and Carter finished with two.
“All those swatted balls, we have been practicing that,” Davis told reporters after the game. “I don’t know if y’all got a chance to see it in practice, but when we got out there, we put our hands up. We kind of knew that Goff throws at an angle. We just want to take advantage of that. I’m 6-6, not for no reason. I have to go out there, put my hands up. If I can’t get to it for a sack, QB hit or QB pressure, I just need to put my hands up to affect the play.”
The batted passes made a difference, as did the pressures, sacks and run stops.
According to the NFL’s Next Gen Stats, Goff went 0 of 12 under duress. He only completed 14 of his 37 attempts for 255 yards and one touchdown.
The Eagles generated two sacks and seven quarterback hits, creating disruption in several key moments. For one of Philadelphia’s five fourth-down stops, Phillips came around the edge, hit Goff and forced an incompletion in the back of the end zone.
“We just wanted (it) more,” Phillips said. “I thought we just played super fundamentally sound and they just didn’t have an answer for anything we were doing.”
Two weeks ago, the Eagles acquired Phillips from the Miami Dolphins for a third-round pick. He’s made the job easier for both the defensive tackles and fellow edge rushers. They have helped him make plays, too.
With 8:59 remaining in the first quarter, Carter bulldozed Lions rookie guard Tate Ratledge, forcing Goff to step into Phillips’ arms for a sack at Detroit’s 15-yard line.
“This is what we do, man,” Carter said. “We trust each other.”
The Eagles’ defensive line faced uncertainty heading into the year after losing edge rusher Josh Sweat and defensive tackle Milton Williams in free agency, plus Brandon Graham to retirement.
The Eagles fielded the NFL’s top-ranked defense last season, due in large part to the strong depth on the defensive line. Coming into this week, Philadelphia ranked 18th in total defense this season, but that ranking should improve as the defensive line reaches last season’s form—or surpasses it.
Graham came back from retirement before the bye week to join Nolan Smith, Jalyx Hunt and Josh Uche. With the addition of Phillips, the Eagles have a very good five-man edge rush rotation.
Hunt had three quarterback hits on Goff, the most by an Eagles defender.
Ojomo, who has seamlessly replaced Williams, made one of the game’s biggest plays early in the second quarter. He ran through Lions offensive tackle Taylor Decker’s block, tossed wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown aside and brought down Gibbs for no gain on fourth-and-1 from Detroit’s 48-yard line.
“It just shows what we have on our team,” Carter said. “We lost a lot of players last year (on defense). The word around town was that we needed this guy, this guy, which we do. They were our guys. We love them. We hope they have a good career where they are at right now, but it just shows that we are connected no matter who we have.”
Davis and Carter both agreed the defense is peaking at the right time, six weeks out from the playoffs. The 2024 unit also hit their stride around this point of last year, becoming dominant during the Eagles’ Super Bowl run.
As good as that unit was, this year’s defense might be even better. Phillips, Carter, Davis, Ojomo, Smith and Hunt are ascending players who have significant upside. They beat up on Detroit’s offensive line, which is considered one of the best groups in the league.
“We wanted to go out there and get it,” Davis said. “We want to attack it. We want to strike first. And I’m just super proud of the guys. I’m just really excited about that.”
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