October 30, 2022, wasn't just another Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field. Honestly, if you were a Steelers fan traveling across the state for this one, it was a rough ride home. The Philadelphia Eagles vs Steelers 2022 matchup was supposed to be a classic "Keystone State" rivalry game, but it turned into a masterclass in vertical passing that basically confirmed Philadelphia was the real deal that year.
The Eagles walked into that game 6-0. They left 7-0.
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The scoreline—35-13—doesn't even quite capture how helpless the Pittsburgh secondary looked in the first half. It was one of those games where you could see the momentum shifting before the first quarter was even over. Jalen Hurts wasn't just playing quarterback; he was playing point guard, and A.J. Brown was the guy he kept finding for the alley-oop.
A.J. Brown and the Three-Touchdown Blitz
Most people remember this game for one specific thing: A.J. Brown’s first-half hat trick. You've got to understand how rare this is. Brown caught three touchdowns in the first half alone. All three were deep shots.
The first was a 39-yarder where Brown basically climbed over Minkah Fitzpatrick. The second was a 27-yard loft. The third? A 29-yard dime where two Steelers defenders literally collided with each other trying to stop him. It was sort of comical if you weren't a Pittsburgh fan. Brown finished that half with five catches for 113 yards and three scores. He ended the day with 156 yards.
"I just said, 'One, two, it's not enough,'" Brown told reporters after the game, laughing about the taunting penalty he earned for pointing at the defenders he’d just burned.
It was a statement game for Jalen Hurts too. He finished with 285 passing yards, four touchdowns, and zero interceptions. His passer rating? A staggering 140.6. People were still questioning if Hurts was an elite passer at that point in the 2022 season. After this game, those questions started to sound pretty quiet.
Why the Steelers Couldn't Keep Up
Pittsburgh was in a weird spot. Kenny Pickett was a rookie, and he was getting his first real taste of a hostile Philly crowd. He wasn't terrible, but he was under constant duress. The Eagles' defense, led by Javon Hargrave—a former Steeler, ironically—sacked Pickett six times.
Hargrave had two sacks himself, including a strip-sack. It’s funny how the "revenge game" narrative actually played out here.
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The Lone Bright Spot for Pittsburgh
If you're looking for something the Steelers did well, you have to look at the trickery. Their only touchdown came from a wide receiver pass. Chase Claypool threw a 1-yard TD to Derek Watt on a 4th-and-goal. It was clever. It was also the first touchdown the Steelers had ever scored at Lincoln Financial Field, which is a wild stat considering the stadium opened in 2003.
But a trick play isn't a sustainable offensive strategy.
The Statistical Reality of the Game
When you look at the raw numbers, the gap in efficiency is glaring.
- Total Yards: Eagles 401, Steelers 302.
- Yards Per Play: Eagles 7.6, Steelers 4.3.
- Turnovers: Steelers 2, Eagles 0.
- Sacks: Eagles 6, Steelers 3.
Philadelphia didn't need to run a lot of plays. They only had 53 offensive snaps compared to Pittsburgh’s 70. They didn't need volume because they were getting chunk plays. Every time Hurts dropped back, it felt like the ball was traveling 20 yards through the air.
The Turning Point in the Second Half
Usually, the 2022 Eagles had this weird habit of disappearing in the second half. Fans were genuinely worried about it. They’d get a huge lead and then just... coast.
In this game, they actually kept the foot on the gas long enough to bury any hope of a comeback. Zach Pascal caught a 34-yard touchdown in the third quarter to make it 28-10. Then Miles Sanders iced it with an 11-yard touchdown run in the fourth.
Sanders, another Philly native with Pittsburgh ties (he went to Penn State), had a solid day with 78 rushing yards. It was a complete team win.
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What This Game Meant for the 2022 Season
This specific version of Eagles vs Steelers 2022 was a crossroads. For Pittsburgh, it was a realization that they were a long way from competing with the heavyweights. They fell to 2-6 after this loss. Mike Tomlin noted afterward that it was often "Steelers vs. Steelers" because of the penalties and mental errors, but he gave credit to the Eagles' playmakers.
For Philadelphia, this was the moment they moved to 7-0 for only the second time in franchise history. The last time they did that was 2004, the year they went to the Super Bowl. It felt like destiny was starting to bake into the season.
Actionable Takeaways for Football Fans
If you're looking back at this game to understand modern NFL team building, here's what to look for:
- The Power of the Alpha Receiver: Look at how A.J. Brown changed the geometry of the field. One elite receiver can make a "good" QB look like an MVP candidate.
- Interior Pressure: Hargrave's performance against his former team shows why paying for defensive tackles who can rush the passer is often better than overpaying for edge rushers.
- The Post-Bye Week Boost: The Eagles were coming off a bye week for this game. Nick Sirianni’s teams have historically been very sharp with that extra week of rest.
The Eagles vs Steelers 2022 game remains a high-water mark for the Jalen Hurts-A.J. Brown era. It was the afternoon where the NFL realized the "new" Eagles weren't just lucky—they were dangerous.
To get the full picture of that season, you should look into the Eagles' Week 10 loss to the Commanders, which finally broke their undefeated streak and exposed the blueprint for how to slow them down. That contrast explains more about the 2022 season than this blowout ever could.