Eagles have ended takeaway drought in record-setting fashion

Eagles have ended takeaway drought in record-setting fashion originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Let’s put this in perspective real quickly:

From Week 4 last year through Week 7 this year – a span of 21 games and 1,350 snaps – the Eagles forced 12 turnovers.

About half a turnover per game and one every 113 plays.

Since then – a span of three games and 165 snaps – the Eagles have forced 10 turnovers.

Almost 3 ½ per game and one every 17 plays.

The Eagles couldn’t buy a takeaway for most of last year and the first two months of this year. They were only the third team in NFL history to get 12 or fewer takeaways in a 21-game span.

Now they can’t stop.

Two vs. the Bengals. Three vs. the Jaguars. Five Sunday vs. the Cowboys.

“We just balling,” Jalen Carter said post-game. “We feeling it. We all together. We all eating as one. And it’s showing on film and it’s showing in the game.

“Our goal was to get more and more turnovers. And the coaches told us that it’s going to happen. We ain’t got to rush, it’s going to happen. And to find out we have five, that’s a big accomplishment.

“And trying to get seven next week.”

Ten takeaways equals the most the Eagles have had in a three-game span since 2009. They also had 10 in three games in 2015.

And it’s been everybody.

Those 10 takeaways include two C.J. Gardner-Johnson interceptions and a forced fumble, a Zack Baun interception and forced fumble, a Nakobe Dean interception and forced fumble, a Reed Blankenship interception, a Milton Williams fumble recovery and a Bryce Huff forced fumble.

“Just focusing on it,” Dean said. “I know, the linebacker room, especially, but the whole defense has been making it such a point of emphasis in practice. And that’s where everything starts. That’s where the block construction, being able to get on and off blocks, the communication, that’s where it all starts, in practice.

“Just taking those habits into the game. I’m glad we are seeing things show up in the game.”

This was the first time the Eagles had five takeaways in a road game since 2010 at San Francisco and the first time they had five against Dallas since the legendary 44-6 game at the Linc on the final day of the 2008 season, a win that propelled the Eagles into the playoffs.

Last time they had five takeaways in Dallas was 1989 with interceptions by Eric Allen, Byron Evans and Mike Golic and forced fumbles by Wes Hopkins and Andre Waters.

“We’re holding ourselves to a standard,” Dean said. “We have set a standard to our play and the way we play, the way we take the ball away, the way we tackle, the way we execute, the way we make plays. We have set a standard and we’re trying to play that standard every chance we get.

“I mean, we had what, five takeaways? We haven’t had five takeaways in a minute. So yeah, being able to take the ball away, got everybody having fun, everybody eating.”

The Eagles are 35-10 under Nick Sirianni when they forced at least one turnover, 6-9 when they don’t. When they force at least two? They’re 18-1. When they’re plus-1 or better in turnover margin under Sirianni they’re 25-1 with 25 straight wins. They’ve been plus-2 or better in three straight games after not even being plus-1 in 14 straight games.

Last time they were plus-2 or better three weeks in a row was in 2013. They have more takeaways the last three games than in their previous 15.

“We harp on it,” Sirianni said. “Anytime there’s an opportunity missed at practice, that’s going to be in the team meeting the next day as far as, ‘You’re not taking a shot at the ball or you are taking a shot at the ball.’

“So it’s on our mind. It’s the same way we do it with the offense and how we take care of the football.”

Late in the game Sunday, the Eagles forced turnovers on three straight possessions – Huff’s strip sack of Cooper Rush, Baun’s forced fumble on Ferguson recovered by Blankenship and Gardner-Johnson’s interception of Trey Lance.

First time the Eagles have gotten takeaways on three consecutive drives in 10 years to the day, since a 45-21 win over the Panthers at the Linc on Nov. 10, 2014. That was a 34-yard pick-6 by Bradley Fletcher off Cam Newton, a Nate Allen INT off Newton and then a Brandon Graham strip sack of Newton recovered by Vinny Curry.

This five-game winning streak has been a remarkable stretch for the entire defense. They’re up to 2^nd in the NFL in overall defense, 5^th vs. the run, 3^rd vs. the pass, 1^st in first downs allowed and even 12^th in takeaways despite getting just two the first six weeks of the season.

It all came together Sunday in a stadium where the Eagles had lost five straight games by an average of 20 points. “It’s one of our best games with the takeaways,” Gardner-Johnson said. “We’ve got to continue to harp on that.”

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