The Philadelphia Eagles were on the verge of their second disappointing loss in a row on Sunday.

But a great play from Jalen Hurts to Dallas Goedert made the decisive touchdown possible and secured the exciting 15-12 victory over New Orleans.

The Saints took a 12-7 lead with 2:03 left on a touchdown pass from Derek Carr to Chris Olave. On Philadelphia’s next possession, they forced the Eagles to go for third-and-16. But Hurts found Goedert on a crossing route, who made it 61 yards.

Goedert stormed down the left sideline to the four-yard line and set up Saquon Barkley’s second touchdown of the day with 55 seconds left. Reed Blankenship then intercepted a pass from Derek Carr on the Saints’ ensuing possession, allowing Philadelphia to run down the clock for the win.

With the win, the Eagles are off to a 2-1 start after blowing a late lead to the Atlanta Falcons in Week 2. They overcame two turnovers, a blocked punt and two failed fourth-down attempts to secure the win.

The loss dropped the Saints to 2-1 and saw their previously strong offense, which had scored a total of 91 points in a 2-0 start, fall back down to earth.

Saints unable to capitalize on numerous Eagles mistakes

Philadelphia’s defense kept New Orleans out of the end zone until Olave’s touchdown catch late in the fourth quarter. It looked like mistakes would doom the Eagles to a 1-2 start, but late heroics from Hurts, Goedert and Barkley secured the win.

New Orleans struck first with a 15-play drive on its first possession, but the Eagles stopped the Saints on fourth-and-14, forcing a Blake Grupe field goal and setting the tone for an unexpected defensive struggle.

The Eagles were three and out on their first possession. Hurts then threw an interception to Tyrann Mathieu in the end zone, preventing a potential scoring drive.

Philadelphia’s third possession ended with another turnover by Hurts. This time, Carl Granderson forced a fumble on a second-down strip sack near the halfway line.

But the Saints were unable to capitalize on the turnovers. The Eagles limited them to a total of 21 yards on their possessions after the turnovers, both of which ended in punts.

The Eagles then had a chance to tie the game before halftime with a 15-play, 78-yard drive, but head coach Nick Sirianni opted to go for it on fourth-and-1 with 15 seconds left instead of attempting a 33-yard field goal to tie the game.

The Saints got the stop. Hurts lined up behind his offensive line in a tush-push formation on fourth-and-1, but he gave the ball to Barkley, who made a sweep that the Saints defenders blocked to preserve a 3-0 first-half lead.

Philadelphia then began the second half with another failed fourth down attempt. This time, defensive tackle Bryan Bresee sacked Hurts on fourth and 3 at the New Orleans 34-yard line.

Philadelphia’s next possession ended in even more frustration, this time on special teams. The Saints blocked a midfield punt, giving New Orleans prime scoring position at Philadelphia’s 27-yard line.

Eagles defense delivers

But once again, Philadelphia’s defense was successful and kept the Eagles in the game. New Orleans tried fourth and 1 at the 18-yard line. Philadelphia’s defense surrounded the line of scrimmage and stopped Alvin Kamara, who failed to gain any ground and suffered a turnover after the attack.

At this point in the game, the Eagles had lost a fumble, thrown an interception, blocked a punt, and lost the ball twice on downs. The Saints still only managed a 3-0 lead.

And this time, the Eagles’ offense finally paid for New Orleans. Barkley ripped off a 65-yard touchdown run on the fourth play of the Eagles’ ensuing possession, giving Philadelphia a 7-3 lead early in the fourth quarter.

The Saints responded with a field goal and Carr’s touchdown pass to Olave on their next two possessions to take the lead again with 2:03 left.

But the late third-down conversion by Goedert’s 55-yard pass enabled Barkley’s second touchdown run of the day, which turned out to be the decisive point.

Saints fall back to earth

The Saints scored 47 and 44 points, respectively, in wins over the Carolina Panthers and Dallas Cowboys earlier this season. On Sunday, the Eagles limited New Orleans to 261 yards and a single touchdown.

After averaging 5.7 yards per carry and 99 rushing yards per game in Weeks 1 and 2, Kamara needed 26 carries to gain 87 yards (3.3 yards per carry) against Philadelphia’s defense. Carr averaged 221 passing yards with five touchdowns and just one interception in Weeks 1 and 2. The Eagles limited him to 142 yards on 5.7 yards per attempt with one touchdown and one interception on Sunday.

Barkley, meanwhile, continued his successful season in Philadelphia with 147 rushing yards and two touchdowns.

It wasn’t the prettiest win for the Eagles, who raised many questions about their offensive execution and decision-making on Sunday. But it was still a win that kept them from falling behind 2-1 thanks to their defense and Barkley’s decisive run.