PHILADELPHIA – In a game where quarterback Jalen Hurts and the passing attack struggled, the Philadelphia Eagles leaned on their top-notch defense to hold off the Green Bay Packers 22-10 in the wild-card round of the playoffs on Sunday.

Packers quarterback Jordan Love hadn’t thrown an interception since Nov. 17 against the Chicago Bears – a streak that spanned more than seven games – but he had intercepted two passes in the first half, including in the final minute of All-Pro linebacker Zack Baun.

The Eagles finished the regular season first in yards allowed per game (4.7) and second in points allowed per game (17.8). Vic Fangio’s unit stifled a Packers offense that was missing receiver Christian Watson (torn ACL) and lost other players in the process, including fellow receiver Romeo Doubs.

Hurts was unbalanced after missing the final two games of the regular season due to a concussion. Receiver AJ Brown also didn’t show his usual dominance (one catch for 10 yards) after missing two days of practice this week with a knee injury.

The Eagles proved during the regular season that they are good enough to win even when one area of ​​their effort isn’t working, and they showed they can do it in the playoffs when the competition is tougher.

The offense needs to get better to keep the season going.

Amazing statistics: Hurts went 90 minutes between completed passes before things heated up late in the third quarter. He went 6 of 13 for 39 passing yards before going 3 of 3 for 61 yards on a drive that began with 5:46 left in the third quarter. Tight end Dallas Goedert capped the drive with a 24-yard stiff-arm touchdown reception.

Key game: Midway through the fourth quarter, the Packers trailed by nine points and needed a score to keep hope alive. It looked like Love completed a fourth-and-3 pass to receiver Malik Heath, but Heath’s catch went out of bounds, leading to a turnover on downs.

Most surprising performance: Former Packers linebacker Oren Burks set the tone for the game thanks to a huge hit on returner Keisean Nixon on the opening kickoff, releasing the ball for an Eagles takeaway that resulted in seven points. Burks also filled in on defense for Nakobe Dean, who left in the first half with a knee injury, and had five tackles. — Tim McManus

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The Packers’ defense contributed most of Sunday’s 22-10 loss.

The offense and special teams, not so much.

If that sounds familiar, it’s because the Packers lost a playoff game on Sunday in much the same way they lost to the San Francisco 49ers in the divisional round in 2021.

In this game, the Packers were the No. 1 seed.

This time they were the No. 7 seed trying to upset the second-seeded Eagles. The Packers pulled off the same 2-7 upset in last year’s playoffs when they beat the Dallas Cowboys. But this season, they entered the playoffs with momentum, winning six of their last eight regular-season games. This season they went on a two-game losing streak.

It didn’t help that Love finished the game without his top three receivers. After Watson tore his ACL in the regular-season finale, Doubs (who was being evaluated for a concussion) and Jayden Reed (shoulder) left in the second half. Love was 6-6 on passes to Reed and Doubs before their exit, but Love had little success elsewhere. He finished the game 20 of 33 for 212 yards, 0 TDs and 3 INTs.

The Packers went 0-6 against the NFC’s top teams and lost twice each to the Eagles, Lions and Vikings this season.

Worrying trend: If it’s a playoff game, that usually means the Packers are out on special teams. The game started with Nixon’s fumbled kickoff return, and then Brandon McManus, who had missed a kick all season, missed from 38 yards to the right edge in the second quarter with the Packers trailing 10-0. Last year’s playoff loss to the 49ers included a missed field goal attempt with 6:21 left. In their divisional loss to the 49ers in 2021, the Packers had a field goal attempt and a punt attempt blocked, the latter of which was returned for a touchdown.

Worrying Trend II: The Packers fell to 1-12 with Love as the starter when trailing by at least 10 points, including playoffs. The only win came against the Saints in Week 3 last season, when they turned a 17-0 deficit into an 18-17 victory. Since then, Love has lost 11 such games in a row.

Biggest gap in the game plan: The Packers had no viable plan after former Pro Bowl left guard Elgton Jenkins suffered a shoulder injury/stinger in the first half and did not return. First, they tried Travis Glover, a sixth-round rookie who had only played 13 snaps all season. Glover lasted just 20 snaps and was recalled after three penalties – two holds and an illegal downfield violation. Kadeem Telfort replaced him after the two-minute warning in the first half and was assessed a holding penalty in the third quarter. — Rob Demovsky