Jalen Hurts commands the stage as the Eagles blow past the Vikings, 24-7, but he isn’t satisfied

PHILADELPHIA — Quite a few Jalen Hurts No. 1 jerseys are gonna fly off the shelves, or off the Amazon trucks, over the next several days.

The Eagles’ third-year quarterback made a huge statement on the national Monday night stage, passing and running his team past the overmatched Minnesota Vikings, 24-7 in the Eagles’ home opener, in front of a raucous, delirious crowd.

Hurts completed 26 of 31 passes for 333 yards and a touchdown. He gave up an interception that bounced off the hands of running back Kenneth Gainwell — hardly Hurts’ fault. He also ran 11 times for 57 yards and two touchdowns, all the scoring coming in the first half.

BUY EAGLES TICKETS: STUBHUB, VIVID SEATS, TICKETSMARTER, TICKETMASTER

That last part did not sit well with Hurts, when he faced reporters afterward, wearing a black suit with epaulets.

“We operated at a high level early in the game, and I think that’s something we have to sustain throughout the entire game,” Hurts said, after he called the effort “efficient,” and “a great team win.”

Later, asked what play left him most pleased, Hurts said: “I’ll tell you what left me most unpleased — the way we finished the game on offense. … Gotta keep our foot on the gas.”

Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni said Hurts “has put in so much work” to improve.

“That’s why you’re seeing major improvement, because of the type of player and the type of person he is,” Sirianni said.

Sirianni said he was impressed with “83% passing, with that many attempts.”

This was the offense fans expected this season, with a healthy offensive line and A.J. Brown (five catches, 69 yards Monday night) added to Hurts’ weapons array. Last week, the offense put up 31 points in a 38-35 victory at Detroit, but Hurts, Brown and Miles Sanders did all the damage, Hurts often improvising after his protection broke down. This wasn’t at all like that; this was a masterful, mature effort by a quarterback determined to move into the league’s upper strata.

Hurts was sharp right off the opening kickoff, on a warm, clear night in South Philly. He moved the Eagles 82 yards in 11 plays, taking the ball in himself from three yards out on first and goal. He completed all five passes on the drive, including an 18-yarder to Dallas Goedert while Hurts was being chased and a third-and-13 completion to Brown that went for 19 yards.

Hurts made it 6-for-6 on the next drive, and at that point, each Eagles wide receiver had a catch. (No, we’re not counting punt returner Britain Covey in that number, since he had no offensive snaps.) The Eagles were driving when the first quarter ended, and Hurts was 9-for-9 for 101.

On the first play of the second quarter, Hurts got perfect protection and found Quez Watkins all alone downfield for a 53-yard touchdown. Minnesota safety Camryn Bynum seemed to break toward Goedert, who was already covered, as Watkins jetted past.

Want to bet on the NFL?

See the best NJ Sports Betting sites

That pass meant Hurts was 10-for-10 for 154 yards and a touchdown, making any criticism of his accuracy or vision moot. And making his critics mute.

Hurts scored the next touchdown with his feet, booting to his right from the 26 to inside the 5. Once there, he seemed to be stopped several yards short of the end zone — until he drove Bynum, the unfortunate safety from the Watkins bomb, backward all the way to pay dirt.

Overall, probably the worst performance by a Bynum in Philadelphia since Andrew.

By halftime, it was 24-7 and Hurts was 17-for-20 for 251 yards and a TD. Then there were the two rushing TDs, part of his seven carries for 50 yards.

The Eagles had 347 total yards by then, to the Vikings’ 93, and 18 first downs to the Vikes’ six. They were well on their way to a 2-0 start, with a trip to Carson Wentz’s Washington lair ahead on Sunday.

Five quick non-Hurts observations:

1. DeVonta Smith, held without a catch in the opener, caught five for 64 yards in the first half Monday night, seven for 80 overall.

2. Much-lamented Eagles 2020 first-round draft choice Jalen Reagor was booed each time he entered the game. Reagor had a nice run that contributed to the Vikings’ second-quarter touchdown drive, but he was swarmed on punt returns, much to the delight of the crowd.

3. Still not the greatest pass rush night from the Eagles. Something that could bite them eventually, if they can’t get it sorted out. But the pass defense was stellar. Three interceptions, and a quiet night for Justin Jefferson. With eight minutes, 18 seconds left, the Vikings punted, trailing 24-7. Jefferson had five catches for 43 yards. Darius Slay intercepted two passes intended for Jefferson. Jefferson finished with six catches for just 48 yards.

4. The officials decided that with the players and coaches from 28 of the 32 teams watching on TV, this would be the night to get picky about offensive linemen drifting downfield on pass plays. The Eagles were whistled three times for this, twice on left guard Landon Dickerson and once on right guard Isaac Seumalo. The Vikings got the ineligible receiver downfield flag thrown at them once, in the fourth quarter.

5. Eagles punter and holder Arryn Siposs, an Australian rules football player, ran down Patrick Peterson to prevent the Vikings from scoring a touchdown off a blocked third-quarter field goal, which was kind of a big deal.

Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting us with a subscription.

Les Bowen is a freelance columnist who covers the Philadelphia Eagles and the NFL for NJ Advance Media.

Note to readers: if you purchase something through one of our affiliate links we may earn a commission.