Jets takeaways from Sunday's 20-14 win over Eagles, including a championship effort by the undermanned defense

Sunday’s game was always going to be a tough challenge for the Jets, who were without three of their top four cornerbacks, including starters DJ Reed and Sauce Gardner. However, their defense forced four turnovers and a late Breece Hall touchdown gave them a huge upset win over the previously undefeated Eagles.

Philadelphia’s first possession was deflating. The Jets created pressure and made several good plays but failed to get off the field on third down, which seemed like an ominous sign for their overmatched secondary. Jalen Hurts gave the Eagles the lead with a controversial touchdown run to cap a 19-play, 90-yard drive. The Jets initially looked to have made a fourth-down stop, but the replay booth reversed the call.

Having pulled within 7-3, the Jets got the ball back on a Quinnen Williams interception, but they failed to convert on fourth down and then poor tackling on the next drive allowed the Eagles to march down and take a 14-3 lead on D’Andre Swift’s touchdown catch.

To their credit, the Jets (3-3) battled back to reduce the deficit to 14-9 by halftime and 14-12 by the end of the third quarter. With the Eagles (5-1) one first down away from running the clock out, Tony Adams intercepted Hurts for the Jets’ fourth takeaway of the game and returned the ball inside the 10. Hall’s touchdown run gave the Jets a late 20-14 lead and the Eagles turned the ball over on downs to secure the Jets’ first-ever win over the Eagles.

Here are the key takeaways…

- Once again, the Jets had to punt following their opening drive -- as they have in each of their six games this year. At least they picked up a first down this time, albeit on a defensive penalty -- that was the first time they’ve picked up a first down on their opening drive since Hall ran for a first down a few plays before Aaron Rodgers’ injury.

- With all the absences in the secondary, the Jets constantly rotated personnel with Ashtyn Davis, Craig James and Tae Hayes all getting extra reps and Michael Carter II sometimes employed on the outside. Hayes had only signed to the practice squad last week, but this patchwork group held up well -- especially after halftime.

- As was the case in the Bills and Chiefs matchups, it was turnovers that kept the Jets in the game with Quinnen Williams intercepting a pass and Quincy Williams recovering a fumble in the first half. Jermaine Johnson and CJ Mosley knocked the ball loose to create these turnovers. On Bryce Hall’s fourth-quarter interception, Johnson again helped force it by hitting Hurts’ arm as he released the throw.

- Aided by the fact that pro bowl tackle Lane Johnson left the game with an injury, the Jets generated good pressure on Hurts but struggled to finish, enabling him to extend plays and scramble for yardage. The Jets also damaged their chances with penalties and missed tackles, but once again seemed to settle down in the second half. They ended up with two sacks to go along with the four turnovers.

- After a career-high 177 rushing yards last week, Hall had just six yards on four carries in the first half, although he did make a 25-yard catch on a dump-off. He had a better second half with 58 yards on nine touches and the winning score.

- The Jets were driving in the third quarter, potentially about to take the lead when a personal foul for an Allen Lazard blindside block negated a big pass to Garrett Wilson into the red zone and pushed the Jets out of field-goal range. Lazard compounded the error with a drop on the next snap but then redeemed himself somewhat with a clutch third-down catch on the next drive.

- The Jets’ red-zone offense continues to be an issue, as they went 0-for-3 until Hall’s touchdown, where the Eagles seemed to be deliberately allowing them to score so that they had time remaining for a potential comeback. Zach Wilson had taken a bad sack on second down that forced the Jets to settle for a field goal down by five late in the third quarter.

- The Eagles’ final possession saw Jordan Whitehead come up big with a couple of pass breakups, including on a fourth-down bomb to ice the win.

Highlights

What's next

The Jets enter the bye week with their next game at Metlife Stadium against the Giants on Oct. 29 at 1 p.m.