Eagles' Jalen Carter held back by coaching staff after trash-talking Saints players
After an emotional, hard-fought contest against New Orleans , Philadelphia Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter turned his attention to any Saints fan or player who would listen to his trash-talking , as highlighted by NFL insider Ari Meirov. The Eagles won the game, 15-12.
The Saints weren't innocent in all this. What could be described as a dirty play by offensive tackle Trevor Penning resulted in Eagles cornerback Darius Slay getting blocked hard after the play on the sideline. Slay stayed down and Penning was flagged for unnecessary roughness.
Earlier in the game, Saints defensive tackle Khristian Boyd leveled Eagles receiver DeVonta Smith with a helmet-to-helmet hit . There was no flag on the play. After the play, Saints defensive end Payton Turner spat on Smith while he was down and very clearly injured on the play. Smith was concussed and would not return to the game. Eagles OL Lane Johnson also left the game with a concussion .
With all this turmoil in the game, it's no wonder much of it spilled over with Carter and others.
Lessons learned from Eagles finishing strong after slow start
Early in the contest, many fans took to social media because of some puzzling play calls by Nick Sirianni and poor execution by the Eagles.
Despite playing without A.J. Brown and some of the game without DeVonta Smith, tight end Dallas Goedert pulled through with 10 catches for 170 yards. RB Saquon Barkley added another monster game to his 2024 season by rushing for 147 yards on 17 carries and two touchdowns.
Considering all the jawing back and forth, there weren't a ton of penalties, at least not against the Saints. They were flagged three times for 25 yards although it remains to be seen what the NFL offices will fine the team for following the game.
The Saints fell flat on offense after their hot start, earning just 12 first downs and gaining 219 yards. They leaned heavily on RB Alvin Kamara who wasn't that efficient on 26 carries for 87 yards. It was the Saints' good timing on offense that kept the Eagles scoreless the first three quarters.
Derek Carr through an interception with a minute left to Eagles' safety Reed Blankenship, icing the game for the home team. On the previous drive, Carr marched the ball methodically from midfield, eventually connecting with Chris Olave for a 13-yard touchdown. That gave the Saints a 12-7 lead. Unfortunately for New Orleans, Jalen Hurts connected with Goedert for a huge 61-yard reception, which led to Barkley's second touchdown of the fourth quarter.
