Jalen Hurts ‘doesn’t look the same’ and the Eagles ‘can’t beat the 49ers.’ Here’s what they’re saying.
Experts and media personalities react to Birds’ latest loss.
The Eagles are in free fall after suffering their third straight loss.
A mid-week change in defensive coordinator from Sean Desai to Matt Patricia wasn’t enough to stop the Seahawks’ game-winning drive in the final minutes.
The Birds are still in the driver’s seat for the top spot in the NFC East, but three uninspiring performances on both sides of the ball have many questioning how good the Eagles really are.
Here’s what the experts and media are saying about the Birds after the loss to the Seahawks ...
Local media
A lot of the noise surrounding the Birds has focused on the defense, but the offense has also struggled in each of the last three games. The Eagles averaged 16.3 points against the 49ers, Cowboys, and Seahawks, and that includes the defensive touchdown they scored in Dallas.
» READ MORE: A.J. Brown is fed up with Eagles fans blaming him: ‘Tired of y’all playing with my character’
Joe DeCamara, on 94WIP: “My main thought is the frickin’ offense, which knows the defense needs help, has to do its damn job! I mean, how many times do we have to be through this. They are talent deficient on defense, so the offense, which is supposed to be a frickin’ Ferrari, has to frickin’ rev the frickin’ engine. When it doesn’t, that is the primary reason why they lose. Whether you want to say it’s Hurts or the Sirianni/Johnson thing combined, or both – and let’s be real, it’s both – the combination of Sirianni, Johnson, and Hurts is killing them.”
Andrew DiCecco, on 97.5 the Fanatic: “It reminds me of the 2018 Eagles – a team that entered the season with so much talent and hopes – that just failed to reach expectations.”
National media
After the loss, Jalen Hurts said he didn’t think the Eagles were committed enough.
“I’ve been talking about execution all year, being on the same page, everyone being on the same page,” he said postgame. “We didn’t execute. I don’t think we’re, we’re all, we’re committed enough. Just got to turn it around. You know, it’s a challenge that we have to embrace. Just continue to see it through.”
» READ MORE: Eagles playoff scenarios: How the Birds can still win the NFC East, No. 1 seed
Shannon Sharpe, on ESPN: “Who’s commitment are you questioning? Things I never head when you were winning and you were skating by. You see, you were accepting things in wins that you never would in a loss. Now all of a sudden these things you were accepting when you were winning didn’t get corrected because you were winning and you glossed over them.”
LeSean McCoy, on Up & Adams: “I’m starting to get concerned [about Hurts]. He doesn’t look the same. I think he’s injured, even when he runs it looks a little shaky. We’re at a standstill right now where it’s like, ‘What do we do next?’ I thought the defense played fairly well against a really good offense until that last drive. Even on offense, we have good moments, and then a setback. I am nervous about my Eagles. I haven’t seen us look like this in a long long time, but I’m not really panicking panicking yet. We lost three straight games, which you don’t want, but we’re still one of the top teams in the NFL. We just have to find a way to get back clicking, get back playing Philadelphia football.”
Stephen A. Smith, on ESPN: “What I learned is they can’t beat the 49ers.”
Nick Wright, on Twitter:
Pat McAfee, on ESPN: “The difference is they don’t have the same coordinators. Both their coordinators were real good. Both their coordinators got head coaching jobs because of how good they were. Remember Shane Steichen took Jalen Hurts from being a guy who ‘Is he going to be in the NFL next year? Is he a backup?’ to highest paid quarterback in the NFL after the year we’re going to the Super Bowl. Shane Steichen was a part of that.”
» READ MORE: Zach Ertz’s mom wants to see her son back with the Eagles: ‘I would start my own petition if I could.’
Josh Kendall, The Athletic: “The Eagles are the most hand-wringing 10-win team in the NFL. They already have clinched a playoff spot and still have a good chance to win the NFC East, yet the team and its fans believe the sky is falling because it has hit a rough patch against talented opponents. The Eagles took control of the defense away from coordinator Sean Desai and handed it to Matt Patricia for Monday’s game. That didn’t work so well on the final drive as Drew Lock took the Seahawks 92 yards for the game-winning touchdown, but Philadelphia still has some of the most talented offensive and defensive lines in the league and will be fine in January.”
Ben Solak, The Ringer: “All professional offenses can drop 92-yard scoring drives on this team’s head. Once Drew Lock does it to you, everybody’s doing it to you. The reason is because personnel-wise, the Eagles last year were a great example of a defense that min-maxed…they filled in the gaps at the non-premium positions and super heavily invested in the premium positions…that was last year. This year is a team that tried to min-max and just went way too far…There’s no solution around the corner… The only way it happens is if Haason Reddick and Josh Sweat start taking games over.”