The Eagles didn’t lose in October, they didn’t lose in November and they’re off to a winning start in December.
After spotting the Ravens a 9-0 lead in the first quarter, the Eagles outscored their hosts 24-3 until a Ravens touchdown with three seconds left to play. That meant it was a 24-19 win that pushed the Eagles’ winning streak to eight games.
The winning effort followed a familiar path for the 10-2 Eagles. Saquon Barkley ran 23 times for 107 yards and a touchdown, they took care of the football — three turnovers over the course of the winning streak — and the defense forced the Ravens to settle for field goal tries after tight end Mark Andrews’s touchdown in the first quarter.
For many years, Justin Tucker’s presence would mean the Ravens were able to stay in the game but 2024 Justin Tucker is not nearly as reliable. He missed two field goals in the third quarter while the Eagles offense wasn’t moving the ball and he also missed an extra point after Andrews’s score. He’s now missed eight field goals and 10 kicks on the year.
The Ravens have stuck with Tucker through his earlier stumbles, but they may have to rethink things. A game like this in the postseason tournament would end the Ravens’ season and it seems unwise to not at least explore other options.
Ravens head coach John Harbaugh made a last grab at a comeback by going for it on fourth-and-8 from his own 42-yard-line with 6:11 left to play, but Lamar Jackson threw an imcompletion and the Eagles picked up two field goals before a Jake Elliott field goal produced the final points of the afternoon.
Jackson started well, but the Ravens never returned to the red zone after getting there the first two times they had the ball. He finished 23-of-36 for 237 yards while being sacked three times and Derrick Henry ran 19 times for 82 yards, but the Eagles’ duo of Barkley and quarterback Jalen Hurts got the better of things Sunday.
Hurts threw a touchdown to tight end Dallas Goedert for the first Eagles points of the day and then scored on a tush push late in the second quarter. It looked like the Eagles may have been guilty of a false start as the ball was slow to come out of the center’s hands, but it stood and the Eagles took a lead into halftime.
They’ll try for a ninth-straight win at home against the Panthers while the Ravens will have a week off before a road game against the Giants.
