The Philadelphia Eagles escaped Nissan Stadium with a 24-20 victory over the Tennessee Titans on Sunday, improving to 2-0 while dropping the Titans to 0-2.
Jalen Hurts threw a three-yard touchdown pass to Darius Cooper with nine seconds remaining to complete a 65-yard drive after Tennessee had taken a 20-17 lead with 1:56 left.
The Eagles overcame two interceptions by Hurts, a sluggish rushing attack that produced just 89 yards and extreme heat that sent the field surface to 157 degrees. Titans coach Robert Saleh offered a blunt assessment afterward.
“I feel like we outplayed them,” Saleh said.
“They just executed better in critical moments. I told our team we’re gonna be sick when we watch this tape because we should be 1-1 right now. But we’re not, so credit to Philly. They executed.”
Tennessee led 7-0 after Cam Ward’s one-yard run in the first quarter, set up by a 92-yard interception return. Philadelphia answered with a two-yard Tank Bigsby run and a 22-yard Hurts-to-DeVonta Smith touchdown to take a 14-7 halftime edge.
Jake Elliott’s 58-yard field goal made it 17-10 in the third. Ward scored again from a yard out to tie the game, and Joey Slye’s 33-yard kick put the Titans ahead late.
Hurts finished 26 of 37 for 264 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. Smith caught 10 passes for 117 yards. Ward went 13 of 20 for 183 yards with no turnovers. Tony Pollard led Tennessee with 64 rushing yards.
Philadelphia held the ball for 36:25 and converted 11 of 18 third downs. The Titans managed 291 total yards to the Eagles’ 341 and committed no turnovers.
The Eagles averaged 2.8 yards per carry. Saquon Barkley was limited after an early injury, and Dallas Goedert left with a knee issue.
Philadelphia opened last season 8-2 before fading to an 11-6 finish and a wild-card loss to the San Francisco 49ers. Sunday’s mistakes — two turnovers that produced 10 Titans points and third-down lapses — gave the coaching staff film to study before Monday night’s game against the Chicago Bears.
Saleh said there are no moral victories and that every loss hurts the same. The Titans will try to learn how to close games they believe they controlled for long stretches.
The Eagles remain unbeaten but left Nashville with a reminder that close wins against 0-2 teams can expose issues that must be fixed quickly.
While a win is a win in the NFL, the comments from Saleh a clear reality check for the Philadelphia Eagles. Philadelphia has some work to do before it can truly be viewed as a legitimate Super Bowl contender.
