Eagles topple Titans in sweltering game

Philadelphia coach Nick Sirianni had only one thought with his offense on the field on a day so hot he needed intravenous fluids to cool off: Play to win.

Jalen Hurts threw a 3-yard touchdown pass to Darius Cooper with 9 seconds left, and the Eagles beat the Tennessee Titans 24-20 on a blistering Sunday when the temperature on the artificial turf was measured at 69.4°C.

“They fought and they clawed and they scratched and did anything they had to do to get the win,” Sirianni said of the Eagles.

Tennessee Titans running back Tyjae Spears runs with the ball from Philadelphia Eagles safety Andrew Mukuba, linebacker Jalyx Hunt and cornerback Quinyon Mitchell during the game on Sunday in Nashville, Tennessee.

Photo: AP

Philadelphia (2-0) appeared ready to dominate Tennessee. The Eagles opened the game by stringing together three straight drives of at least 11 plays.

The Titans (0-2) sacked Hurts three times and picked him off twice, turning those into 10 points. Marcus Harris’ interception set up Joey Slye’s 33-yard field goal with 1:56 left, putting Tennessee up 20-17.

Hurts had 1:56 to drive the Eagles 65 yards for the win. He finished with 264 yards passing and two TDs. Hurts called the drive the result of execution, focus and perseverance.

“I’m not one to harp on the elements, but it was a challenge for us as a unit collectively,” Hurts said. “And I’m happy with how we weathered through that.”

The TD catch was the first of Cooper’s career. DeVonta Smith had 10 catches for 117 yards, Tank Bigsby ran for a TD and Jake Elliott kicked a 58-yard field goal.

Cam Ward got the Titans to midfield, but his final pass under pressure hit the turf harmlessly as time expired.

“It’s not a moral victory, it’s a loss,” Ward said. “That’s all it comes down to.”

Philadelphia improved to 15-4 in September since 2021 and remained tied with Buffalo for the most wins in the NFL’s opening month in that span. The Eagles had plenty of fans in the stands, making it feel like a home game.

The temperature reached 37°C in the fourth quarter and felt like 41.1°C. It was so hot the Titans squirted water on players’ cleats on the sideline to cool them off. Eagles left tackle Jordan Mailata said he had dismissed talk of the Titans’ cleats melting last week.

“It’s like a very deceiving heat out there,” Mailata said. “It just sucks everything out of you.”

The Titans had not started a season with back-to-back home games since 2010. It did not help new coach Robert Saleh as Tennessee lost its first two for a third straight season. Saleh said he thought his Titans outplayed the Eagles at times.

“They executed better in critical moments,” Saleh said.

Ward threw for 183 yards and ran for a pair of 1-yard TDs.

Three-time Pro Bowl running back Saquon Barkley suffered a stinger in his left arm on the opening play, though he returned to start the third quarter. He finished 9 yards on four carries, his fourth career game held under 10 yards rushing.

Philadelphia seemed ready to run the Titans off their own field, starting the game with a 15-play drive. But Hooker picked off Hurts’ pass to Smith in the end zone and set up Ward’s 1-yard TD run for the lead.

The Eagles led 14-10 at halftime despite holding the ball for about 22 minutes. Slye pulled the Titans closer with a 37-yard field goal as the second quarter expired.

The Eagles are 2-0 for the fourth time under Sirianni, which is the most by a coach in franchise history. Sirianni became just the fourth NFL coach to win the first six road openers of a career, joining Sean McVay, George Allen and Mike McCarthy, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.