PHILADELPHIA — Nakobe Dean is stockpiling what he calls “takeaway balls” in Philadelphia's linebackers room at its training complex.
The latest ball just might be the most valuable addition yet — Dean's two-handed, game-saving grab against Trevor Lawrence for the linebacker’s first career interception.
“I wasn't doing much else that game,” Dean said.
Saquon Barkley made a dazzling backward hurdle during a stellar performance and Dean went from not doing much to making a decisive play, leading Philadelphia to its fourth straight win, 28-23 over the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday night.
“A hell of a play. A big-time moment,” Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts said of Dean's interception.
Barkley had 27 carries for 159 yards and a touchdown. He also had three receptions for 40 yards and a TD.
The Eagles (6-2) held on after coach Nick Sirianni wasted chances to put easy points on the board. The Eagles went 0 for 2 on fourth down and were 0 for 3 on 2-point conversions, forcing them to let Jake Elliott try a 57-yard field goal with 2:16 left.
Elliott missed, giving the Jaguars (2-7) the ball at their own 47-yard line.
Eagles defensive back Avonte Maddox was flagged 18 yards for pass interference that helped move the ball to the Eagles 13.
But Jacksonville's second-half rally ended when Lawrence's terrible pass was picked off in the end zone by Dean.
The Eagles have found their groove out of the bye, riding a winning streak behind Hurts and Barkley that has thrust them into the thick of the NFC East race.
“We took our losses early,” Dean said. “We learned early how to fight through a game. How to build that toughness to play all four quarters. This was a big learning step in how to not get lax when we feel like we dominated the game.”
Hurts was 18 of 24 for 230 yards. He threw for two scores and ran for another.
DeVonta Smith nearly matched Barkley with a play straight out of a video game on a one-handed 25-yard TD grab — reminiscent of New York Jets receiver Garrett Wilson's catch last week — late in the fourth that stretched the Eagles' lead to 28-16.
“I knew where he was going to be. I have to see if it was a ball that maybe I could have gotten up earlier, but I threw it to a spot where only he could get it,” Hurts said. “And that’s a hell of a play he made.”
But all those lost points haunted the Eagles.
“Today it didn’t work. That’s the way it goes. That’s the hat I have to wear,” Sirianni said. “When we get a fourth down and we convert a fourth down, nothing is really said. When we don’t, I understand there will be questions.”
Lawrence — 16 of 31 for 169 yards and two interceptions — ran for two touchdowns for the Jaguars, including a 4-yard scramble with 4:04 left that made it 28-23.
The Eagles can credit Barkley for this win.
Barkley, already proving a pivotal free agent pickup for the Eagles, starred in another dominant effort with arguably the most acrobatic play of the NFL season.
The play that left mouths agape: Hurts dumped a pass to Barkley in the second quarter and he faked out one defender and used a filthy spin move that left another Jaguars defender flailing on the ground before he pulled off a split-leg, backward leap over Jacksonville cornerback Jarrian Jones for the 14-yard gain.
The reverse hurdle stunned the Jaguars and set up an Eagles field goal for 10-0 lead. But Barkley also had a costly mistake.
Lawrence ignited Jacksonville's second-half rally when he scored on a 1-yard run and threw a 2-point conversion pass late in the third to make it 22-8. Barkley then fumbled on the next possession, the loose ball scooped by Travon Walker and returned 35 yards for a TD. The Jaguars cut it to 22-16 after another 2-point conversion.
“You feel like you’re going to break through it. You’ve had this adversity, and this is the week we’re going to break through it,” Lawrence said. "And we thought this was the week, and didn’t get it done, didn’t finish. So, it is frustrating, but we know it’s going to turn. We have to keep working. That’s all you can do.”
The Eagles, wearing their fan-favourite, throwback Kelly green uniforms, let Barkley handle the bulk of the offence in the first half.
Barkley sure didn't settle for the routine plays for much of the game. Before he hurdled for a first down, Barkley hauled in an over-the-shoulder 20-yard touchdown catch in the corner of the end zone to make it 7-0 — significant for the lead, yes, but also the Eagles scored their first points in the first quarter all season.
After an Eagles touchdown was wiped out on offensive pass interference, Barkley got the ball on the next play and hustled 19 yards for the score and a 16-0 halftime lead.
Unhappy homecoming
Jaguars coach Doug Pederson fell to 0-2 against the Eagles since Philadelphia fired him after the 2020 season.
Injuries
Jaguars: OL Mitch Morse was treated for a concussion. ... OL Anton Harrison suffered a knee injury. ... OL Cooper Hodges was carted off the field with a leg injury in the third quarter.
Eagles: WR A.J. Brown suffered a knee injury. ... LB Ben VanSumeren also suffered a concussion.
Up next
Jaguars: Return home Sunday to play Minnesota.
Eagles: Travel for Sunday's game at Dallas.
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