Rob Demovsky
Tim McManus
Tim McManus
ESPN Employees Author
Tim McManus covers the Philadelphia Eagles for ESPN. He joined ESPN in 2016 after masking the Eagles for Philadelphia Journal’s Birds 24/7, a website he helped create, since 2010. You possibly can observe him on Twitter @Tim_McManus.
SÃO PAULO — The Inexperienced Bay Packers and Philadelphia Eagles flew all the way in which to Brazil to open their 2024 seasons.
It was an evening of firsts: The NFL’s first sport within the Southern Hemisphere, the primary opening week sport on a Friday since 1970 and the primary time working again Saquon Barkley performed as for the Eagles.
After a gradual begin to the sport, each groups went blow for blow within the second quarter, with two Barkley touchdowns and a pair from Inexperienced Bay receiver Jayden Reed.
The second half went back-and-forth earlier than the Eagles pulled away and sealed the 34-29 Week 1 victory.
Listed here are an important issues to know from Friday night time for each groups:
Philadelphia Eagles
It was the Saquon Barkley present, for all of the world to see.
Making his debut for the Philadelphia Eagles, Barkley dazzled in entrance of the capability crowd at Enviornment Corinthians, dashing for greater than 100 yards and scoring three complete touchdowns to push the Eagles previous the Inexperienced Bay Packers.
It is simply what the Eagles’ brass hoped for once they signed him to a three-year, $37.75 million contract this spring. He was a power on the bottom and within the air, highlighted by his 18-yard TD reception alongside the left sideline within the second quarter. They anticipated him to be revitalized enjoying behind a greater offensive line than he had with the New York Giants and alongside a plethora of playmakers, similar to receivers A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith, and the 27-year outdated appeared it.
Barkley is the second Eagles participant in franchise historical past to attain three touchdowns of their workforce debut, becoming a member of Terrell Owens in 2004.
There is a lengthy method to go. Barkley must show he can keep wholesome over the course of a 17-game season and past. However he is off to a sensational begin.
QB breakdown: Jalen Hurts had an uneven efficiency. He threw a pair of interceptions and was charged with a misplaced fumble. He may have value his workforce the sport together with his decide in the long run zone early within the fourth quarter. However he led a game-sealing drive within the closing moments to assist ship the Eagles again to Philadelphia with a victory.
Eye-popping stat: The Eagles’ 35 yards within the first quarter marked their fewest in a gap quarter since Week 17 of 2022 versus the Saints when a Gardner Minshew-led workforce had simply two yards. They had been held scoreless within the first quarter solely twice final season and misplaced each video games (Week 14 vs. the Dallas Cowboys and Week 18 vs. the New York Giants).
Troubling pattern: A protection that struggled badly in 2023 was leaky for a very good a part of the sport, serving as a reminder that new defensive coordinator Vic Fangio is not going to repair this factor over night time. There have been various missed tackles and explosive performs that bit them, as illustrated by Reed’s 70-yard catch-and-run within the second quarter. The excellent news: the Packers had been held to only one landing in 4 purple zone journeys.
Subsequent sport: vs. Atlanta Falcons (8:15 p.m. ET, Monday, Sept. 16)
Inexperienced Bay Packers
It may have been anticipated that the Packers’ protection can be a piece in progress, and that they may encounter points within the kicking sport. In any case, this was the debut of recent coordinator Jeff Hafley’s protection and rookie kicker Brayden Narveson’s first sport.
However Jordan Love and the offense had been supposed to select up the place they left off final season — as one of the crucial potent models within the league. Besides it could not sustain with the Eagles, and Love could not end the sport. He needed to be helped off on the third-to-last play with an obvious decrease leg damage in his first sport since signing a four-year, $220 million contract extension this summer season.
On a slippery discipline by which Love misplaced his footing and appeared to battle calf points, he accomplished simply 17 of 34 passes. And whereas he threw for 222 yard and two touchdowns with one interception, it wasn’t sufficient to beat Barkley slicing up Hafley’s D and a late missed discipline objective.
Promising pattern: Reed’s 10-touchdown (eight receiving, two working) rookie season was no fluke. Whereas it stays to be seen whether or not he’ll ultimately turn out to be the Packers’ No. 1 receiver in Yr 2, his knack for large performs seems to be actual. With a 33-yard dashing landing on an end-around and a 70-yard receiving landing, Reed turned the third participant up to now 40 years to have a 70-yard receiving rating and a 30-yard dashing rating in the identical sport.
Troubling pattern: It wasn’t one of the best of debuts for brand new kicker Brayden Narveson. After making quick discipline targets of 31 and 23 yards plus his first two additional factors, the rookie, who was claimed off waivers final week, hit the suitable upright and missed a 43-yard discipline objective late within the third quarter. He bounced again and made his subsequent one, a 26-yarder within the fourth quarter. Narveson turned the sixth kicker on the Packers roster because the finish of final season and was GM Brian Gutekunst’s alternative after a coaching camp competitors between Anders Carlson and Greg Joseph failed to provide a clear-cut alternative.
Troubling pattern II: Possibly it was simply an opening-game difficulty, however penalties damage the Packers all through. They dedicated purple zone holding penalties on their two first-quarter drives and needed to accept discipline targets. Within the third quarter, that they had two unlawful shift penalties on the identical drive and needed to punt. Once they wanted a cease to get the ball again on the finish, defensive deal with Kenny Clark was referred to as for a defensive maintain on a third-down play. In all, that they had 10 accepted penalties for 71 yards.
Pivotal play: There’s by no means a very good time for an interception, however the one Love threw within the third quarter was as premature as may very well be for the Packers. Clinging to a 26-24 lead and backed up in Eagles’ territory, Love floated a cross over the center towards tight finish Luke Musgrave that security Reed Blankenship stepped into and picked off. It led the one other Barkley landing to place the Eagles forward 31-26.
Subsequent sport: vs. Indianapolis Colts (1 p.m. ET, Sunday, Sept. 15)
