The Eagles cooled off offensively in the second half of Sunday’s game in Denver, but their first half fireworks and the work of their defense was enough to carry them to a victory.
Cornerback Darius Slay returned a fumble 82 yards for a touchdown on the final play of the third quarter to stretch the Eagles’ lead back to 14 points after the Broncos carried the play for most of the previous 15 minutes. Denver would never put any more points on the board and the Eagles are now 4-6 after a 30-13 victory.
Slay’s fumble recovery came after a Jalen Hurts interception that looked like it might swing the game in the Broncos’ favor. They drove for field goal attempts on their first two second half possessions -- one was blocked -- and looked set to cut the lead even further before running back Melvin Gordon coughed the ball up on a fourth down run.
Hurts dazzled by going 15-of-20 for 176 yards and two touchdowns in the first half, but he only threw three passes in the second half as the Eagles prioritized the running game. Jordan Howard ran 12 times for 83 yards, Boston Scott carried 11 times for 81 yards, and Hurts added 53 yards as the Eagles ground things down while winning in the second half.
Rookie wideout Devonta Smith caught both touchdowns, but the move away from passing meant he stayed at four catches for 66 yards for the game. The Eagles lost tight end Dallas Goedert to a head injury in the first half and Quez Watkins dropped what would have been another touchdown late in the first half.
The Broncos were able to string together 10 straight points to briefly tie the game in the first half, but playing from behind for most of the day isn’t a great look for their offense. Teddy Bridgewater was 22-of-36 for 226 yards, although 64 of those yards came on a catch-and-run by Albert Okwuegbunam so there weren’t a lot of big chunk plays for the Denver offense on Sunday.
The Eagles will be at home to face the Saints next Sunday while the Broncos, who fell to 5-5 on the year, will have a bye before returning against the Chargers in Week 12.