Eagles Come Up Empty, Fall to Niners

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“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…”

                                                                -Charles Dickens

Remember last week when the Eagles were world-beaters? Me neither. The Philadelphia Eagles sunk to the San Francisco 49ers 17-11 in a game that showed both promise and growing pains. On a beautiful fall day in Philadelphia, Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni and quarterback Jalen Hurts failed to sync up on an afternoon that featured frustrating mistakes and missed opportunities. 

The problems started early for the Birds. Hurts lofted a beautiful pass to 2nd-year starter Jalen Reagor. The young wideout tip-toed the line before catching the pass and breaking free for the endzone. After a review, it was determined that Reagor had stepped out of bounds before the touchdown catch, and the pass was called back for illegal touching.

And that’s it. That’s the offense. The Philadelphia Eagles punishing offense who ripped a hole through Atlanta a week ago seemed like a paper tiger. The Eagles appeared deflated after the overturned touchdown, and never mounted a sustained comeback to seriously threaten the Niners.

Last week Eagles fans heaped praise upon Hurts and Sirianni. This week’s game revealed a blindspot in their connection. The Eagles offense was passable in the first half, stringing together a combination of high percentage dink and dunk drives. It was Hurts’ long ball that should give Eagles fans pause. Last week against the Falcons the Eagles rarely threw deep. This week Hurts went for some homerun balls and consistently short-armed his passes. 

Time after time Eagles receivers were forced to pivot back to the ball, rather than have Hurts hit them in stride. If this team has playoff potential, and I still believe that it does, then Hurts must give speedy receivers Quez Watkins and rookie DeVonta Smith room to showcase their talents. 

As much as Hurts was flat, Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni was equally humdrum when it came to play calling. Gone was the Eagles wide open offense of Week 1. The Eagles were content with inside handoffs that rarely broke through San Francisco’s line. Sirianni recalled the Eagles Super Bowl game by dialing up a muddled version of the Philly Special, but today’s effort resulted in a turnover on downs. Why Hurts and Sirianni failed to find a groove is difficult to say. There were flashes and there were sparks, but ultimately, the Eagles offense never fully ignited. 

On the plus side, the Bird’s defense fought valiantly the entire game. Too much was asked of them, when the Eagles floundering offense couldn’t maintain possession of the ball. Eagles first-year defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon made decent adjustments, but his squad came up empty in the turnover department. Gannon’s bend-but-don’t-break defense kept the Eagles in the game, but never did anything to shift the momentum. 

It’s been noted that Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni uses the game rock-paper-scissors to evaluate talent. With a potent Dallas team poised on the horizon for a Monday Night showdown, Sirianni finds himself between a rock and a hard place.

Can the Eagles offense find a way to get on the same page, or is the Nick Sirianni script already starting to unravel?