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LHJ’s Five Observations from Eagles’ opening weekend victory in Brazil

Larry Henry Jr|

The Philadelphia Eagles’ first-ever trip to Brazil ended with Nick Sirianni’s men walking away with a vital 34-29 victory over the Green Bay Packers.

Despite some rough moments in the first half, the Eagles rallied late and hung on for an important momentum-building win on international soil. Running back Saquon Barkley and linebacker Zack Baun both delivered impactful debuts for the Eagles while quarterback Jalen Hurts made some important decisions down the stretch.

With the Eagles sitting 1-0 after 60 minutes of football, here are five of Larry Henry Jr’s Observations from the result.

1.) Zack Baun could be the defensive leader of Vic Fangio’s defense

Zack Baun is already on pace to set multiple career-highs after only one game with the Eagles.

Baun, a former third-round draft pick by New Orleans in 2020, joined the Eagles this offseason as a free agent signing. The 27-year-old made his presence known on Friday night, registering 11 solo tackles and two sacks, including one on the final play of the game.

With Devin White missing out of Friday’s game, Baun brought valuable leadership and a strong football IQ. He played a vital role in Reed Blankenship’s interception on Jordan Love, getting his hand in the mix before Blankenship held onto possession.

You can tell this guy loves what he does and helping the Eagles to a crucial opening weekend victory should provide major confidence for Baun in his new role.

2.) Saquon Barkley is a DIFFERENT level of running back

A few Eagles fans might have been worried when the team signed veteran Saquon Barkley this offseason, but those fears should have been eased a bit after Friday’s opening game.

Barkley registered 132 combined yards and three touchdowns on 26 total touches as the Eagles held on for a five-point win. The former Penn State University standout traded Giants’ blue for Eagles’ midnight green this offseason and immediately made an impact for his new team.

An 18-yard touchdown catch showed Barkley’s big-play ability while his pair of touchdowns runs showed both the quickness and bruising nature that he plays with.

The Eagles haven’t had a star running back like Barkley since the LeSean McCoy days and fans will all surely want Barkley to be in Philadelphia for a long time.

3.) Jalen Hurts overcomes a few blunders to help Eagles hang on

Jalen Hurts will be the first to tell you, Friday’s season opener wasn’t his best performance. But, the most important thing is, the Eagles walked away with the win.

Hurts completed 20 of 34 passes for 278 yards and two touchdowns, while also throwing two interceptions and fumbling twice. The fourth-year starter looked a bit lackadaisical at times, throwing into double and triple coverage at times. However, Hurts’ rushing ability late in the fourth quarter helped the Eagles grind out the clock and eventually put the dagger into the Packers.

Hurts also spread the ball out to six different teammates, with A.J.Brown registering 119 receiving yards and one touchdown and DeVonta Smith adding 84 yards on five grabs. New signing Jahan Dotson will also expected to see a larger role as the season pushes forward.

If Hurts can limit the turnovers going forward, expect the Eagles offense to do big things in 2024.

4.) 2024 first round pick Quinyon Mitchell excels in NFL debut

Quinyon Mitchell was thrown right into the fire in the Eagles secondary and overall the former Toledo standout delivered a positive performance.

Mitchell, the Eagles’ first round pick in this year’s NFL Draft, made five tackles (four solo) and defended two passes (game-high for an Eagles player). He was the most productive of the Eagles cornerbacks on Friday night, showing his abilities on passing and rushing plays.

Confidence will only grow for Mitchell if he continues to deliver performances like that.

5.) Offensive line does well against lively Packers defensive front

Losing a team legend like Jason Kelce is always going to be hard to replicate, but the Eagles offensive line did well to limit the Packers defensive front.

Jalen Hurts was only sacked twice and hit five times on passing downs, which is the same amount of statistics that occurred for both Jordan Love and Malik Willis. Jordan Mailata and Lane Johnson continue to anchor the outside of the Eagles offensive line while Landon Dickerson, Cam Jurgens, and Mekhi Becton did well to open holes for Saquon Barkley and Hurts (144 combined rushing yards by Eagles).

The offensive line remains a strength for the Eagles in 2024 and overall they did well against one of the league’s more impactful defensive units (Rashan Gary/ Quay Walker held to one combined sack)

You can follow Larry Henry on Twitter (@lhenry019) and e-mail him at [email protected].

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