Gardner Minshew II carries Eagles past Jets 33-18

Gardner Minshew II threw for 242 yards and two touchdowns in his first start for Philadelphia and Jake Elliott kicked four field goals as the Eagles defeated the New York Jets 33-18 at East Rutherford, N.J., on Sunday.

Minshew, who was 20-for-25 with no interceptions, was traded to the Eagles by Jacksonville in late August to make way for rookie Trevor Lawrence. He played in place of Jalen Hurts, who sprained his ankle last week.

Zach Wilson finished 23 of 38 for 226 yards with two touchdowns and one interception for the Jets (3-9) in his second game back after missing four games because of a knee injury.

The first six possessions of the game, three by each team, resulted in touchdowns. But the Eagles led 21-18 in the second quarter once that flurry ended after the Jets failed on all three conversions (two missed kicks, one pass failed).

New York wide receivers Ryan Griffin (ankle) and Corey Davis (groin) both left the game with injuries. Philadelphia center Jason Kelce (leg) left in the fourth quarter.

New York’s Braxton Berrios returned the opening kickoff 79 yards to the Eagles’ 21 to set up Wilson’s 3-yard scoring pass on a slant to Elijah Moore for a 6-0 lead.

Philadelphia answered as Minshew found a wide-open Goedert for a 36-yard score and a 7-6 advantage. The Jets responded with an 11-play, 68-yard drive, capped by Wilson’s 1-yard sneak. Alex Kessman’s second missed PAT left New York with a 12-7 lead with 3:18 remaining in the first quarter.

Minshew then went 5 of 5 for 64 yards on an eight-play, 69-yard drive that ended with another scoring pass to Goedert, this one for 25 yards, to put the Eagles up 14-12.

After Griffin’s touchdown restored the Jets’ lead, Kenneth Gainwell burst over left guard and scored on an 8-yard run to give Philadelphia a 21-18 advantage with 4:30 to go in the first half.

After the Jets went three-and-out, Philadelphia got a 31-yard field goal from Elliott with 19 seconds left to take a 24-18 lead into halftime. Elliott finished the scoring with three second-half field goals.

–Field Level Media