Hurts so good

WASHINGTON (AFP) — Jalen Hurts threw for three touchdowns and ran for another as Philadelphia won a 33-26 last-play thriller over the Los Angeles Rams in a Sunday showdown of National Football League’s (NFL) unbeaten teams. 

The defending NFL champion Eagles were on the ropes until the final play, when Joshua Karty had a 44-yard field goal attempt to win for the Rams, but Eagles defender Jordan Davis blocked the kick and returned it 61 yards for a game-clinching touchdown.

"It came down to the technique and fundamentals of everything," Davis said. 

"We knew his angle. We knew his launch point. We just hit the gap, put our hands up at the right time and then I saw the ball on the ground.”

"I just took off from there. I wanted possession. I wanted to make sure we ended the game right. Didn't know I was going to go that fast, didn't know I was going to make it all the way to the end zone."

Hurts completed 21-of-32 passes for 226 yards and ran for 40 more while Matthew Stafford threw for 196 yards and two touchdowns in a losing cause.

"It was just a matter of figuring it out," Hurts said.

"We were gritty. We stayed together as a team. We did not quit. Nobody gave up. I'm very proud of that."

Tampa Bay and Indianapolis also improved to 3-0 with triumphs while Green Bay and Cincinnati suffered their first defeats.

Philadelphia's Zack Baun intercepted a Stafford pass on the opening drive and Hurts capped a 38-yard Eagles march on a one-yard "tush push" touchdown run.

Stafford completed a 44-yard touchdown pass to Davante Adams and Karty kicked field goals of 28, 33, 46 and 51 yards to give Los Angeles a 19-7 halftime lead.

Moments into the third quarter, Hurts was sacked by Jared Verse and Nate Landman recovered a fumble to set up a 10-yard Stafford touchdown pass to Kyren Williams.

But Hurts connected with Dallas Goedert on a 33-yard TD pass and hit A.J. Brown on a nine-yard scoring toss to pull the hosts within 26-21.

After Philadelphia's Jalen Carter blocked a 36-yard Karty field goal attempt, the Eagles drove 91 yards on 17 plays over 6:54 for Hurts to throw a four-yard touchdown pass to Devonta Smith with 1:48 remaining.

A Hurts two-point conversion pass failed but the Eagles still led 27-26, setting the stage for the last-play field goal block.

The New York Jets got a 50-yard touchdown return by Will McDonald off a blocked field goal attempt for a 27-26 lead at Tampa Bay, but Chase McLaughlin kicked his fifth field goal, a 36-yarder as time expired, to keep the Buccaneers undefeated with a 29-27 victory that left the Jets winless.