The Eagles revive the passing game as Jalen Hurts battles a broken finger

PHILADELPHIA – Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts said he is dealing with a broken finger on his non-throwing hand and that it affected him Sunday against the Pittsburgh Steelers. But he still did enough to improve a struggling passing game and lift the Eagles to their franchise-record 10th straight win after a dramatic week.

“So that’s what you all wanted to see, right?” Hurts asked as he sat down for his postgame press conference after Philadelphia’s 27-13 win.

It was definitely what wide receivers AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith wanted to see.

Both expressed frustration with the Eagles’ passing game after last week’s narrow home win over the Carolina Panthers, in which Hurts finished with just 108 yards through the air – the third straight week he was under 180 yards.

Brown’s comments that “passing” was the problem on offense and that there had been little communication with Hurts on the sidelines to patch things up led to Philadelphia defensive end Brandon Graham claiming that Hurts and Brown were no longer would stand as close together as before. That set off a media storm that took up much of the team’s week.

Brown said he and Hurts “let the team know that we were on the same page and there was nothing wrong or anything like that.”

Many “hard” and “uncomfortable” conversations took place inside the Eagles’ practice facility, Smith said. Brown spoke of additional meetings between players and coaches focused on improving details and communication in the passing game.

It all contributed to an extremely efficient passing performance against the Steelers, with Hurts completing 25 of 32 for 290 yards and two touchdowns.

Brown and Smith each ran for over 100 yards, marking the fourth time they have accomplished the feat and setting a new record for most such plays by a duo in Eagles history.

“The approach was a little different this week. The grass will be green where you water it and we decided to water it (the passing game) and you kind of saw the fruits of our labor in that,” Hurts said.

Hurts and Brown scored on a 5-yard touchdown pass late in the first quarter that gave Philadelphia a 10-3 lead. They then began a choreographed dance celebration.

“This was our moment to tell everyone to shut up,” Brown said.

Hurts injured the ring finger on his left hand last Sunday against the Panthers and was listed as a full participant on the injury report all week. Against the Steelers (10-4), he wore a glove on his left hand, which is not his usual practice.

Hurts lost a fumble when TJ Watt knocked the ball down in a scramble in the first quarter, but otherwise played a clean game.

“I can say that I don’t think it got any worse today,” Hurts said of the injured finger. “If it’s broken, it’s broken. It is what it is.”

The Eagles improved to 12-2 and were virtually locked in a duel with Detroit (12-2) for the top spot in the NFC after the Lions lost at home to the Buffalo Bills.

Philly’s defense continued to exceed expectations while the offense showed it was capable of getting the job done in a variety of ways on a night where running back Saquon Barkley (19 carries, 65 yards) was largely held under control.

“We know what the end goal is, especially me, DeVonta and Jalen,” Brown said. “We’re trying to get to the end and we’re trying to finish it. It’s good that we won ten games, but to be honest we’re not happy with it. In our eyes we have done nothing. That’s our mindset.

“It’s easy for us to have these difficult conversations to hold each other accountable because we know what we want at the end. It makes it easier when we’re close to each other.”