PHILADELPHIA -- At least four times in his post-game press conference, Carson Wentz was asked if he was nervous as he played in his first NFL game. After all, he's a rookie from a small school who was playing in front of a crowd that was five times what he's used to. Also, he hardly played in the preseason as he recovered from a cracked rib, so nobody would have been surprised if he had a shaky debut.
But Wentz insisted he wasn't nervous -- "I really don't get nervous," he said -- and his play certainly indicated that. Wentz stood tall as he led the Philadelphia Eagles to a 29-10 victory over the Cleveland Browns on Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field. Wentz, the second overall pick in April's NFL draft, completed 22 of 37 passes for 278 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions -- a passer rating of 100.9 -- as he outplayed Browns QB Robert Griffin III.
"I admit it, he played better than I thought he would," Browns defensive end Danny Shelton said of Wentz. "He showed a lot of poise and toughness in there. We had good pressure on him a lot today and he never flinched. He stood in there and made plays and you have to be impressed with the way he played, especially for a rookie in his first game."
The Browns had that No. 2 overall selection before they traded it to the Eagles, as they apparently didn't think Wentz was worth that high a pick. And Wentz's statistics would have been even more impressive on Sunday, but at least five of his passes were dropped. The Eagles' Jordan Matthews was the game's top receiver, with seven catches for 114 yards and a TD.
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Griffin completed 12 of 26 passes for 190 yards and one interception, with no TDs, for a passer rating of 54.9, and said after the game he sprained his right shoulder on a hit in the fourth quarter. Griffin said he would be fine for Week 2.
His top receiver was Terrelle Pryor, who had three catches for 68 yards.
Wentz, who missed most of the preseason and a good chunk of training camp with a cracked rib, looked like a seasoned veteran. On his first possession he led the Eagles on a 75-yard, nine-play drive that culminated with a 19-yard touchdown pass to receiver Jordan Matthews that made it 7-0 with 9:50 left in the first quarter. Wentz was 4-for-5 in the drive for 57 yards, and his one incompletion was dropped by Josh Huff.
"That first drive was huge for my confidence and huge for the team's confidence," Wentz said.
Said Eagles tight end Brent Celek: "He came right out and made a statement and that was important for everybody to see. He got off to a great start and built on it and we're all excited to see him progress throughout the season."
Trailing 10-0, the Browns got back into the game thanks to one big play and one big penalty. The play was a 44-yard pass to Terrelle Pryor. The big penalty was a pass interference call against safety Malcolm Jenkins on an incomplete fourth-down pass. That put the ball on the 1, and on the next play Isaiah Crowell scored to make it 10-7 with 9:11 left in the second period.
After the two teams exchanged field goals, the Eagles picked up two cheap points when Browns center Cameron Erving snapped the ball over Griffin's head and through the end zone for a safety. Then the Eagles scored seven not-cheap points when Wentz lofted a perfect 35-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Nelson Agholor that made the score 22-10 with 6:17 left in the third quarter.
"I thought that was a key part of the game," Browns coach Hue Jackson said. "We were just behind by three (13-10) and had pretty good momentum at that point. Then they got those two points and got the ball back and scored [to make it 22-10] and then things got a lot tougher."
The Eagles then started to get pressure on Griffin and their defense took over the game.
"Once we got that lead we knew they'd have to pass to get back in the game. And any defensive lineman loves that," Eagles defensive end Brandon Graham said. "The offense got the lead and then we made sure we kept it. And that's how it's supposed to be done."
NOTES: Eagles P Donnie Jones got his 2016 season off to a great start -- his first two punts traveled 67 and 72 yards, his longest since he hit an 80-yarder with the Rams in 2007. ... Browns rookie WR Corey Coleman made his first NFL catch a memorable one -- the first-round draft pick from Baylor caught a 58-yard pass early in the third quarter that set up a FG. ... Carson Wentz' 271 passing yards is the third most ever by an Eagles rookie -- Nick Foles passed for 381 and 345 yards in 2012.
