The Philadelphia Eagles came up with another goal-line stand against the Atlanta Falcons and eked out an 18-12 victory in an ugly, flag-filled affair to open the NFL regular season Thursday night at Lincoln Financial Field. Matt Ryan threw five incompletions from inside the 10-yard line in the final seconds, including a 5-yard fade caught by Julio Jones on the final play, but Eagles cornerback Ronald Darby kept Jones from coming down inbounds. That was after an extra chance for Atlanta after Eagles linebacker Jordan Hicks was called for illegal contact on fourth-and-goal from the 10. The Falcons had driven 70 yards on 12 plays before coming up short, as Jones made three grabs for 63 yards on the series, including an 18-yarder on third-and-17. But the failure on the final play was all too reminiscent of Ryan's incompletion to Jones on fourth down with 1:05 left in the divisional playoffs in January, again helping Philly survive. Jay Ajayi's second rushing touchdown, an 11-yard rumble, gave the Eagles the lead with 2:25 remaining, after Darren Sproles converted a third-and-8 on a 9-yard pass from Ryan and Corey Clement had a 21-yard run earlier in the drive.<doc-sep>The Philadelphia Eagles won an ugly, sloppy game against the Atlanta Falcons to kick off the 2018-19 regular season on Thursday. Nick Foles made the start for the Eagles, but it was more a defensive struggle than anything, with the Eagles winning, 18-12. The Falcons started off quickly, with a deep pass to Julio Jones that set up a beautiful red zone opportunity, but after going for it on fourth down, they missed out on points. They would go on to kick a field goal on the following possession. Philadelphia responded with a field goal of their own after being unable to convert in the red zone, and Matt Bryant sent another kick through for Atlanta, giving them a 6-3 lead nearing halftime. In the first half, Ryan completed 9-of-19 passes for 115 yards, 78 of which went to Jones. Foles was 11-of-18 for 65 yards, and neither team had much going in the running game. Things didn’t really get interesting until the second half, when both teams exchanged touchdowns. Philadelphia brought out a play strikingly similar to the Philly Special, and capped that drive off with a 1-yard touchdown run from Jay Ajayi. The Falcons got into the end zone after both teams exchanged picks and Tevin Coleman ran one in from 9 yards out. The Falcons missed an extra point though, making it a two-point game, and the Eagles went ahead and scored a touchdown to take the lead back with just two minutes left. They made it all the way to the 5-yard line, but ultimately couldn’t find the end zone — in eerily similar fashion to the way the Eagles beat the Falcons in the NFC Divisional Round. Same endzone, opposite side, same result. An Eagles win. Just insane and poetic that the title defense would start like this. #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/MwCIwLcl17 — Jeff McDevitt (@JeffMcDev) September 7, 2018 Foles finished having completed 19 of 34 passes for 117 yards and an interception. Ryan completed 21 of 43 passes for 251 yards and an interception as well. Julio Jones was the star of the game, with 10 receptions for 169 yards. Below is the live blog in reverse order: Eagles 18, Falcons 12, FINAL: Falcons take over at their own 25-yard line. Ryan hits Hooper for a 6-yard gain, and then he finds Jones for a 36-yard gain. Two-minute warning. On first down, Ryan’s pass to Coleman is incomplete. Then he’s sacked by Long for a loss of 7 yards. But on 3rd-and-long, Ryan finds Jones once again for a gain of 18 yards. On first down, it’s Ryan to Jones again, this time for 9 yards. On second down, Ryan takes another sack, making it a 3rd-and-8. Sanu catches this next one, and it’s a first down. The Falcons take their final timeout, and only 24 seconds remain. From the 10-yard line, he throws the first one away to avoid a sack (he should do that more). The second-down pass sails over Ryan’s head. 3rd-and-goal, and Ryan is hit as he throws, an incomplete pass. It will come down to a fourth down play with seven seconds remaining! Ryan overthrows again, but the Eagles are called for illegal contact! First down at the 5-yard line with one second on the clock. Empty backfield, Ryan goes to Jones, but he can’t get his feet down inbounds. Eagles win! Eagles 18, Falcons 12, 2:19, 4Q: The Eagles had a quick 3rd-and-8, but they convert it when Foles finds Sproles for a 9-yard gain. They then move into Atlanta territory with another pass to Sproles that goes for 6 yards. They elect to run it on a 3rd-and-short, and Clement finds a gaping hole to run through, picking up 21 yards to move into the red zone, and well into field goal range. But who needs field goals? Ajayi takes the ball and runs it 11 yards for a touchdown and an Eagles lead. Then Ajayi rushes in for a two-point conversion! Falcons 12, Eagles 10, 4:51, 4Q: Falcons ball, and there’s a holding penalty, followed by a pass to Sanu that loses 5 yards. Then Ryan fumbles the ball, but Atlanta recovers. A 3rd-and-28 is unsuccessful, and they will punt. There’s a penalty (shocker) on the play, a face mask on Atlanta. So the Eagles will start from their own 46 with under five minutes to go. Falcons 12, Eagles 10, 7:33, 4Q: Eagles get the ball back, and a third-down conversion is called back after an offensive pass interference call. So the Eagles are forced to punt it on 4th and long. Offsetting holding penalties force a re-kick, and the result is much less favorable for the Eagles: the Falcons will take over on their own 33 as opposed to their own 21. Falcons 12, Eagles 10, 9:48, 4Q: The Eagles take back over, and convert a 3rd-and-1 with a Agholor run for 16 yards. But on first down, Foles fakes the handoff and throws to Goedert, but it’s intercepted by Jones. So Falcons get the ball right back. Ryan immediately finds Jones for 18 yards, then Coleman rushes for a 9-yard touchdown, giving the Falcons back the lead! The extra point, however, goes off the uprights and is no good. Eagles 10, Falcons 6, 12:58, 4Q: Ryan is sacked to start the fourth quarter, but the Eagles are called for offsides, giving the Falcons a new set out of downs. And ... they don’t do anything with them, as Ryan lobs an end-zone pass to Jones that is woefully short of the mark, and it’s picked off by Douglas! Eagles 10, Falcons 6, 0:20, 3Q: Falcons take over on their own 40 after an unnecessary roughness call on the kickoff. Atlanta takes yet another penalty for tripping and they have a 2nd-and-25. They pick up some yards, but still have a 3rd-and-10 near midfield. Ryan had Jones, but Darby makes a great play on the ball to force a fourth down, and a punt. A very, very quick Philadelphia 3-and-out followed. And Atlanta faced a quick third down of their own as Ryan overthrows Jones on second down.<doc-sep>PHILADELPHIA — As the N.F.L. began a new season Thursday night, many things were unchanged. The home fans of the Philadelphia Eagles, among the league’s most vociferous, crammed into every available seat here at Lincoln Financial Field, where they cheered through a pregame ceremony of fireworks and fight songs. After a layoff of seven months, pro football was unquestionably being welcomed back by a crowd in full throat. And, just as familiar, almost exactly a year after N.F.L. players’ protests during the national anthem — to raise awareness of racial and social injustice — exploded into a polarizing political debate, thousands of eyes once again scanned the sidelines to see if anyone in uniform was kneeling, sitting or gesturing during the playing of the anthem. But Thursday, every player stood, with the exception of Eagles defensive lineman Michael Bennett, who paced several yards behind the lineup of his teammates and eventually took a seat on the bench near the end of the singing of the anthem by Boyz II Men. Soon after, the 2018 N.F.L. season resumed in every corporeal way, with league officials likely breathing a sigh of relief. The reprieve lasts until Sunday when 13 more games are scheduled.<doc-sep>That trade-off probably would serve as the basis for a compromise between the league and union if there is to be a deal struck in the coming days or weeks. It had been clear since last week that there almost certainly would not be a deal struck before the Eagles-Falcons game. That left owners and league officials curious to see what Jenkins and other players would do Thursday.<doc-sep>
PHILADELPHIA — Thursday night began with a "special Philly" kind of moment as the Eagles unfurled the first Super Bowl banner in franchise history. Later, the "Philly Special" returned to help catapult Philadelphia past the Atlanta Falcons 18-12 in the NFL's 2018 regular-season opener. On a night when he struggled noticeably, Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan's final pass to Julio Jones in the end zone was incomplete, producing a similar outcome to Atlanta's divisional playoff heartbreaker at Lincoln Financial Field in January. More:USA TODAY Sports' Week 1 NFL picks More:USA TODAY Sports' 2018 NFL predictions for Super Bowl LIII, MVP and more Jay Ajayi scored two touchdowns, the second an 11-yard dash with 2:19 left in the game that put the Eagles ahead for good on a night when neither of the NFC's past two champs looked particularly Lombardi-worthy in a sloppy game marred by penalties and uninspired offense. But Philadelphia did revert to some of its 2017 magic to get the victory. Reprising the team's famous Super Bowl trick play — coach Doug Pederson had hinted last month the "Philly Special" had been retired — Eagles quarterback Nick Foles caught a 15-yard pass from receiver Nelson Agholor on a reverse (Agholor stood in for departed tight end Trey Burton on the play) in the third quarter, helping spark what had been a largely dormant offense with the team's longest play of the night to that point. Five plays later, Ajayi scored on a 1-yard run for a 10-6 lead. Three other takeaways from Falcons-Eagles Atlanta offense still stuck in neutral: Two years removed from the offensive fireworks that propelled them to Super Bowl LI, the Falcons' struggles to generate points under coordinator Steve Sarkisian continued. Atlanta outgained Philadelphia 113-0 in the first quarter but only managed to take a 3-0 lead despite two trips deep into the red zone, the first ending when Devonta Freeman was thrown for a 1-yard loss on fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line. The Falcons' only touchdown, a 9-yard run by Tevin Coleman, was set up by Deion Jones' interception. Ryan, the 2016 league MVP, completed just 21 of 43 passes for 251 yards and threw an ugly interception near the pylon to kill one second half drive. Jones accounted for 180 of Atlanta's 299 yards, and the team converted just one of five red zone attempts on the night. Welcome back: Several key Eagles returned to the lineup after suffering season-ending injuries on the road to the Super Bowl last year. Running back Darren Sproles was used extensively as part of a backfield committee and on punt returns, totaling 61 all-purpose yards on 12 touches. Linebacker Jordan Hicks recorded 1 1/2 sacks and a team-high seven tackles. And perennial Pro Bowl left tackle Jason Peters was back anchoring the blind side in front of Foles. Of course, the Eagles were hardly at full strength with quarterback Carson Wentz (knee) and receiver Alshon Jeffery (shoulder) still not ready to play. Still not sure what a catch is: The NFL attempted to simplify its often perplexing definition of a catch in the offseason. Jones is probably still confused. Atlanta's star receiver seemed to corral a field-flipping throw from Ryan early in the third quarter, first bobbling the deep shot before appearing to gain control as he slid out of bounds. However the officials ruled he didn't have possession, an arguably dubious verdict that was upheld when Falcons coach Dan Quinn challenged it. Follow Nate Davis on Twitter @ByNateDavis.