Eagles shock the Rams as Jordan Davis returns second blocked field goal for a touchdown at the end

PHILADELPHIA — Jordan Davis has the magic touch, and the wheels to boot.

The fourth-year Eagles defensive tackle blocked a 44-yard, walk-off field-goal attempt by Los Angeles Rams kicker Joshua Karty in the waning seconds of regulation, then returned the loose ball for a touchdown to secure a 33-26 win Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field. It was Karty’s second blocked field goal of the game, the first coming earlier in the fourth quarter at the hands of Jalen Carter.

The play capped a thrilling comeback by the Eagles, who trailed by 26-7 in the third quarter.

Here’s our instant analysis from the Eagles’ third consecutive win to open the season:

Brown gets busy

When A.J. Brown gets the ball in his hands, good things usually happen.

The Eagles’ star receiver finished the afternoon with six receptions for 109 yards and a touchdown. But it took some time to get him going. The offense floundered for the majority of the first half after tackle Lane Johnson exited the game with a neck injury after a Tush Push touchdown on the Eagles’ first possession of the game.

Matt Pryor took his place at right tackle. As a unit, the Eagles offensive front struggled in pass protection, leading to four straight three-and-outs in the first half. Jalen Hurts was strip-sacked on the Eagles’ opening possession of the second half after Rams edge rusher Jared Verse beat Pryor off the edge.

Rams inside linebacker Nate Landman recovered the ball at the Eagles’ 10-yard line, allowing running back Kyren Williams to score a 10-yard touchdown on a pass from Matthew Stafford on the ensuing play to put Los Angeles up, 26-7.

Pryor got the hook on the following possession in favor of Fred Johnson. Perhaps he was the good luck charm — Hurts completed a couple of deep passes, a 38-yarder to Brown and a 33-yard touchdown pass to Dallas Goedert, to reignite the offense and to make it a two-score game.

Hurts looked to Brown again late in the third quarter when the Eagles were in the red zone. The 6-foot-1, 226-pound receiver separated from Rams cornerback Darious Williams and caught a goal line fade on a 9-yard pass to make it 26-21, Rams.

On third-and-10 with the Eagles backed up at their own 9-yard line in the fourth quarter, Brown caught a pass at the sticks from Hurts, then racked up 15 yards after the catch when Williams missed the tackle.

Brown had another catch-and-run later on in the drive, which also came on third-and-10. From the Rams’ 38-yard line, Brown caught another pass just beyond the sticks, then broke cornerback Emmanuel Forbes’ tackle and added another 13 yards after the catch. DeVonta Smith scored the go-ahead touchdown on a 4-yard pass to put the Eagles up, 27-26, on the drive.

Defense tightens up

The biggest issue that plagued the Eagles’ defense in the first half was the Ram’s running game. The duo of Kyren Williams and Blake Corum gashed them on the ground, combining for 109 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries through 30 minutes. The defense gave up an uncharacteristic amount of missed tackles and the big men up front struggled to get off their blocks.

For the most part, though, the Eagles fared well in the passing game in the first half. They managed to generate pressure on the statuesque Stafford, which led to him completing just 8 of 17 passing attempts (47.1% completion) for 97 yards and a touchdown pass to wide receiver Davante Adams.

The Eagles’ coverage was sound, too. Pass breakups from Zack Baun and Cooper DeJean forced the Rams to kick field goals on two possessions. On two other Rams possessions that ended with field goals, Stafford made bad throws to his intended receivers, including one for Adams in the end zone and another for Puka Nacua.

The defense’s ability to put Stafford under duress continued into the second half. On the Rams’ opening possession of the half, Davis chased Stafford out of bounds on third-and-2, earning him a sack and forcing Los Angeles to punt.

Davis continued his dominance in the fourth quarter. He and Carter stuffed Williams on fourth-and-2 near midfield to force a turnover on downs.

The Eagles held the Rams to a fifth field goal attempt in the middle of the fourth quarter, but Carter blocked Karty’s 36-yard try. Carter was called for unnecessary roughness after the play, but the Eagles defense pulled through on the Rams’ attempted comeback drive to end the game on Davis’ field-goal block.

Kickoff woes

The Eagles offense didn’t get much field-position help from the special-teams unit, particularly on the kickoff. Returners Tank Bigsby and John Metchie muffed a total of four catches (three for Metchie, one for Bigsby).

Together, they averaged 12.3 yards per return on those muffs. Metchie’s longest return of those four — a 21-yarder — was brought back after Jeremiah Trotter Jr. was called for an illegal block above the waist.

Injury report

On the opening kickoff of the second half, Darius Cooper appeared to injure his left shoulder. He visited the medical tent and was later ruled out.

Adoree’ Jackson dropped out of the game with a groin injury in the second half. Jakorian Bennett took his place at outside cornerback.