Eagles visit Saints as New Orleans aims for its first 3-0 start since 2013
New Orleans Saints safety Tyrann Mathieu (32) reacts with teammates, including Kool-Aid McKinstry (14) and Jordan Howden (31) after intercepting a pass by Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in Arlington, Texas. Credit: AP/Jeffrey McWhorter
Philadelphia (1-1) at New Orleans (2-0)
Sunday, 1 p.m. EDT, Fox.
BetMGM NFL odds: Saints by 2 1/2.
Series record: Eagles lead 18-13.
Against the spread: Eagles 1-1, Saints 2-0.
Last meeting: Saints beat Eagles 20-10 on Jan. 1. 2023, in Philadelphia.
Last week: Eagles lost to Falcons 22-21; Saints beat Cowboys 44-19.
Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts (1) runs with the ball during the second half of an NFL football game against the Atlanta Falcons on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Philadelphia. Credit: AP/Matt Rourke
Eagles offense: overall (6), rush (8), pass (10), scoring (5).
Eagles defense: overall (30), rush (25), pass (28), scoring (27).
Saints offense: overall (3), rush (3), pass (11), scoring (1).
Saints defense: overall (7), rush (3), pass (20), scoring (4).
New Orleans Saints wide receiver Mason Tipton (84) and quarterback Derek Carr (4) react after a touchdown run by teammate Alvin Kamara during the first half of an NFL football game against the Dallas Cowboys, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in Arlington, Texas. Credit: AP/Tony Gutierrez
Turnover differential: Eagles minus-3; Saints plus-3.
Eagles player to watch
RB Saquon Barkley has rushed for 95-plus yards in consecutive games for the first time since December 2019 with the Giants. He scored three touchdowns in the opener and had 116 scrimmage yards (95 rushing, 21 receiving) last week.
Saints player to watch
RB Alvin Kamara 290 yards and five TDs from scrimmage in the first two games of the season, including 198 yards and four TDs rushing and seven catches for 92 yards and a TD receiving.
Key matchup
Eagles QB Jalen Hurts against a Saints' pass rush that has seven sacks times in two games. Hurts is an elite scrambler, who has 118 yards and a TD rushing this season. And he has given the Saints fits in the past. In two starts against the Saints (2020 and 2021), Hurts has 175 yards and three TDs rushing.
Key injuries
Eagles WRs A.J. Brown and Johnny Wilson missed practices this week with hamstring injuries. Saints TE Taysom Hill (chest), DT Khalen Saunders (calf), OT Landon Young (foot) and LB D'Marco Jackson (calf) also missed practices. CB Marshon Lattimore, who left New Orleans' Week 1 game with a hamstring injury and did not play in Week 2, returned to practice on a limited basis this week.
Series notes
The Eagles have won two of the past three regular-season meetings. Hurts played in both victories but did not play because of an injury when these teams last met near the end of the 2022 season. Gardner Minshew started that game for Philadelphia. The Eagles last won a game in New Orleans in 2007. Since then, they've lost two regular-season games in 2012 and 2018, and a playoff game in January 2019.
Stats and stuff
Hurts rushed for a season-high 85 yards and a TD in Week 2. It was his fifth regular-season game with at least 85 yards on the ground. Hurts has 42 TDs rushing in his career and can tie Steve Young (43) for third most by a QB in NFL history. ... WR Devonta Smith had seven catches for 76 yards and a TD last week. ... Eagles LB Zack Baun, a Saints third-round draft choice in 2020, had nine tackles in Week 2. His 24 tackles this season are tied for the NFC lead. ... DT Milton Williams had his first sack of the season last week. He also had a sack in the Eagles' previous meeting with the Saints. ... Eagles S C.J. Gardner-Johnson spent his first three NFL seasons with New Orleans ... The Saints have scored 91 points, the most by a team in the first two games of a season in 15 years and tied for fourth most by a team in its first two games of a season in NFL history. ... Saints QB Derek Carr has five TDs passing and a TD rushing in two games. ... Two of Carr's TD passes have been to WR Rashid Shaheed for 59 yards in Week 1 and 70 yards in Week 2. ... WR Chris Olave had 81 yards receiving last week. ... DE Carl Granderson had 1 1/2 sacks last week. ... CB Alontae Taylor had two tackles for loss in Week 2 and a career-high three sacks in Week 1. ... S Tyrann Mathieu intercepted a pass last week, giving him 34 interceptions for his career, second most among active players. ... CB Paulson Adebo had his eighth-career INT last week.
Fantasy tip
The versatile Kamara, who had 180 scrimmage yards and four TDs last week, has been New Orleans' most productive player early this season, and his role might increase even more with Hill potentially sidelined this week.
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