Thursday Night Football: Minnesota Vikings 28 @ Philadelphia Eagles 34
The Eagles outlasted a great Minnesota offense, 34-28 Thursday night. The two teams put on a thrilling display, but both teams came away with huge question marks.
Even the NFL had questions after a Justin Jefferson fumble out of the endzone late in the first half. Fans are calling for a rule change because a fumble that goes out of the sides of the endzone gives the defense possession at the 20-yard line. Fans dislike this rule because a fumble that goes out of bounds anywhere else on the field gives the offense possession at the spot of the fumble. The NFL argues that this rule is logical because it is consistent with all live ball situations such as kickoffs and punts.
Kirk Cousins silenced critics with his performance, throwing for 364 yards and 4 touchdowns. One of the biggest knocks on Cousins has been his ability to perform in primetime games. Despite the loss, he had a phenomenal game and did everything he could to win. However, at the end of the day, the most important thing is wins and losses, and Kirk Cousins has not shown he can win big games throughout his career.
On the other hand, Jalen Hurts has shown that he can win playoff and primetime games. He may not have performed as well as Cousins statistically, but he was a big part of the Eagles’ win. There was a concerning argument between Jalen Hurts and star wide receiver AJ Brown. Brown has struggled to start the year with just 11 catches for 108 yards in the first two games. Following this argument, Jalen Hurts fed him the ball and I would expect this to continue in Week 3.
The Eagles defense showed up to play, forcing four Vikings fumbles and shut down a solid offense. Danielle Hunter was a huge part of that with three sacks, and rookie Jalen Carter has been very good as well. I would expect a monster game from this elite Eagles defense next week against an interesting Bucs offense on Monday Night Football.
On the Vikings side, TJ Hockenson has put himself among the best at the position. He is right up there with Travis Kelce as the best tight end in football. This offense is going to throw the ball a ton, and when it is not going to Justin Jefferson, it is going to go to TJ Hockenson. However, Jordan Addison could change that if he continues his very solid rookie campaign.
