The Eagles’ defense deserved a win in London against the Jaguars, plain and simple. Jacksonville has a good offense, so they were always gonna make some plays, but the Eagles’ D kept giving their team a shot with some absolutely outstanding individual performances, physical run defense, and those ridiculous goal-line stops. It was the other side of the ball that totally let them down, again. Being at that game was awesome, man. That goal-line stand in the first half happened right in front of where I was sitting, and it was easily my favorite moment of the afternoon. You could feel the intensity from that group.
The “Soft” Defense Talk Is Done
Remember all that criticism about the defense being a little soft this season? Yeah, some of that was fair, no doubt. But there was nothing, and I mean nothing, soft about those reps against the Jaguars. This group came to fight. It was so cool to see. This wasn’t a flawless performance, no, but when your offense coughs up a pathetic 10 yards over 15 plays across four consecutive second-half punts, you are just asking way too much of your defense. They kept coming up with stops anyway. It’s wild.
Hunt and Carter Were Absolute Beasts
Jalyx Hunt was just outstanding against the run in the first half. He was a huge loss when he went down. The Jaguars lean heavily on their tight ends in the run game, which means the edge defenders’ ability to handle those blocks is crucial. Hunt didn’t just hold his ground, though. He was straight-up knocking the tight end backward and blowing up the play before the runner even had a chance to get going. This wasn’t a one-off, either. Hunt did this multiple times before his injury, and Jacksonville legitimately struggled to establish their run game. The Jags finished with a measly 36 yards on nine outside zone attempts, which is seriously impressive considering that’s a big part of their offense, and the Eagles have struggled with outside zone runs at times this year. Hunt’s ability to defeat those tight end blocks was a massive part of that success.
And then there’s Jalen Carter. My word. When he’s healthy and moving like that, he’s as good as nearly any defensive player in the league, period. The frustrating part is getting that version of him consistently, because health has definitely been an issue. But against the Jaguars, the quickness and violence were back, and Jacksonville had very few answers in the first half. That club move of his is such a weapon, he can knock a blocker off balance and get past him before the protection can even recover. What I particularly loved was the finish he showed. Carter wasn’t content to just disrupt the play. He was finishing.
So yeah, the defense was fantastic, stepping up big time against a solid Jags offense. They kept forcing stops, giving the team chances. But the offense’s disappearing act, especially with those 10 yards on 15 plays and four second-half punts, is a serious problem. It’s tough to watch one unit fight like that only for the other to fall completely flat.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Bleeding Green Nation.
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