Star defensive tackle Jalen Carter made sure to protect Philadelphia Eagles fans with his words and his actions during Sunday’s divisional matchup against the Los Angeles Rams.
Carter had a pivotal forced fumble and a sack on the Rams’ final drive of the game to help the Eagles defeat the Rams, 28–22, to advance to the NFC championship game next Sunday against the Washington Commanders. Hours earlier, Carter gave Rams rookie edge rusher Jared Verse an unfriendly greeting for saying he found the fan base annoying. Now rowdy Eagles fans will get to host another playoff game, but don’t expect rookie Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels to follow Verse’s lead and provide bulletin board material.
Verse at least backed up his words by giving quarterback Jalen Hurts a tough time. But Carter’s defense was better than Los Angeles’s, forcing Matthew Stafford & Co. into two costly turnovers. Also, star running back Saquon Barkley was too much to handle for the Rams’ defense, starting the game with a 62-yard touchdown run and adding a 78-yarder late in the fourth quarter.
Here are the key points that decided the outcome of the game.
Carter, Eagles’ defense provide clutch plays
Carter and his Eagles’ defense needed an extra stop after the Rams found new life late in the game with Stafford moving upfield with a six-point deficit in the two-minute drill. A few plays after Stafford hit Puka Nacua for a 37-yard gain, Carter bulldozed through the interior of the Rams’ offensive line to sack Stafford and derail the potential game-winning drive. Carter finished with two sacks, three QB hits and five total tackles.
The snow that began to fall after the first quarter definitely caused problems, but so did the Eagles’ defense, which didn’t allow Stafford much space and time to operate in the pocket, sacking him five times.
The Rams had plenty of opportunities to erase a one-score deficit in the second half thanks to Hurts’s struggles against L.A.’s defense, but the offensive line got worse as the game went on. Carter forced a fumble by running back Kyren Williams that was recovered by cornerback Isaiah Rodgers. The turnover led to a Philly field goal to extend the lead to 19–15 early in the fourth quarter. On the following drive, Stafford fumbled on a strip sack from Nolan Smith Jr., leading to another field goal and a 22–15 lead. All-Pro linebacker Zack Baun had a sensational drive that ended with him recovering Stafford’s fumble.
Saquon Barkley gets the last laugh against trash-talking Verse
Verse received an unfriendly Philadelphia welcome from players and fans for the bulletin board material he provided earlier in the week. The rookie star edge rusher told the Los Angeles Times “I hate Eagles fans” and added that he finds the fan base annoying and dislikes the green and white colors.
Carter had some words for Verse when he spotted him on the field hours before the game. Later in the game, Barkley slowed down once he realized Verse was the last Rams defender behind him during his 62-yard rushing touchdown in the first quarter.
Barkley’s long scamper didn’t stop Verse from trash talking. The presumptive Defensive Rookie of the Year responded by sacking Hurts on third-and-8 and delivering two thumbs down for the crowd before the Eagles punted in the second quarter. What was more impressive was the pass-rush moves Verse displayed to lose right tackle Lane Johnson, followed by the strength to knock right guard Mekhi Becton on his behind before getting to Hurts.
Verse added a second sack to end the first half with the Rams trailing 13–10. On the prior play, linebacker Omar Speights sacked Hurts to push the Eagles out of field goal territory once again. Verse’s pass-rushing group and Barkley’s rushing attack set the tone for an entertaining playoff battle.
But Barkley’s 78-yard score made it a two-score game with less than five minutes left in regulation. He finished with 205 yards on 26 carries and two touchdowns.
Eagles’ O-line too much for Rams’ defensive front
The Rams tinkered with various defensive formations with hopes to contain the Eagles’ rushing attack, but not much worked against the best offensive line in the NFL.
The game resembled the Rams’ Week 12 home loss to the Eagles when Barkley rushed for 255 yards. On Sunday, the Rams’ defensive linemen struggled again to set the edge and defensive backs were helpless once Barkely and Hurts found the second level of Los Angeles’s defense. Hurts found a gaping hole on the sixth play of the game to produce a 44-yard rushing touchdown and a 7–0 advantage. Left tackle Jordan Mailata moved upfield with Hurts looking for defenders to block, but none were close to the athletic signal-caller.
On the Eagles’ third drive, Becton paved the way for Barkley’s 62-yard scoring run after knocking back linebacker Christian Rozeboom. The Eagles finished with 285 rushing yards, including 171 in the first half. Hurts added 70 rushing yards and 128 passing yards.
Rams struggle to get Puka Nacua going
Stafford (26-of-44, 324 yards, 2 TDs) had a tough time getting on the same page with Nacua against one of the best secondaries in the league. It also didn’t help that Stafford might have injured his ribs early in the game.
But Los Angeles did catch a break after Eagles rookie star cornerback Quinyon Mitchell was ruled out with a shoulder injury sustained in the first half. Stafford attacked Mitchell’s replacement, Rodgers, connecting with Demarcus Robinson for 48 yards and Cooper Kupp for 30 yards. But the shots to Rodgers’s side of the field were limited due to the Eagles’ pass rush.
Stafford nearly had a well-executed third-down conversion to counter a blitz play from the Eagles, but Nacua failed to catch the pass that would have kept the drive alive for the Rams. Nacua entered the fourth quarter with only three catches for 29 yards before his critical 37-yard reception with less than two minutes left in regulation. The Rams will be kicking themselves for quite some time for not getting Nacua (six catches, 97 yards) going earlier in the game.
Jalen Hurts’s lack of mobility hurts Eagles in critical moments
Hurts took plenty of punishment, which led to negative plays that cost the Eagles points—for and against.
Hurts was knocked out of field goal range multiple times after sacks, but matters got worse for Philadelphia after the athletic signal-caller lost his mobility due to a knee injury sustained in the second half. The Eagles made the mistake of having Hurts drop back into his own end zone with a brace on his left knee as defensive tackle Neville Gallimore rushed him for a safety, cutting Los Angeles’s deficit to 16–15 with 26 seconds left in the third quarter.
The Eagles’ offense struggled to help their defense after settling for a pair of field goals on two drives that ended in the red zone.
But Hurts, A.J. Brown (two catches, 14 yards) and the rest of the passing game weren’t needed with a stellar defensive performance and another monster outing from Barkley. They’ll likely be needed against Daniels’s red-hot offense next week in the NFC championship game. Hurts and the Eagles got the best of the Commanders in the first meeting, but fell in the second game partly because Hurts was knocked out early due to a concussion.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as NFL Divisional Rapid Reaction: Saquon Barkley, Jalen Carter Propel Eagles to NFC Title Game.