By: Kylan Watson

The Philadelphia Eagles started their 2022-2023 regular season in Detroit. Last year they destroyed the Lions 44-to-6, and it was thanks to their high-powered rushing attack. This time the Lions were ready, and Philly needed four rushing touchdowns to beat them 38-to-35.

The Eagles were not ready early on for Detroit. They used their high-powered rushing attack to go right down the field and punched Philly in the mouth early on. The Eagles played like a team that only played one preseason game with their starters. They were a little sluggish and Detroit took full advantage of some defensive miscues by Philly. They could not stop their rushing attack. Philly allowed 181 rushing yards. Most of that damage was given up thanks to a 50-plus yard run by D’Andre Swift. He had 144 rushing yards and one touchdown. Philly had no answers for him. He kept multiple drives allowed and kept Detroit in this game.

Philly did have it working on the offensive side though. They were also able to go up and down the field thanks to AJ Brown and their rushing attack. Brown had an early connection with Jalen Hurts. It showed as Brown had 10-receptions for 155-yards. He made Detroit pay for not giving him enough defensive attention. He kept drives alive and showed why the Eagles made that draft day trade for him. His talent should give the Eagles passing attack a much-needed boost. The passing attack was not really needed in this game for the Eagles as they were able to get four rushing touchdowns to get enough separation from the Lions. Who had no answers for it.

Hurts in particular continued to use his legs to keep drives alive and get the Eagles out of trouble when their offense got stagnant. He led a late-game drive that ended with a Miles Sanders 20-yard run that ended the game for the Eagles against a gritty Detroit team that made them work for it.

The Eagles will have a lot to improve on all sides of the ball. They left a few points on the board and could not stop Detroit consistently throughout this game. With a Monday night showdown against the Minnesota Vikings. The Eagles will need to be better on the defensive side if they want to stop Justin Jefferson and the Vikings receiving core. They will need to get pressure on the quarterback if they want to get their second win of the season next week.