The Eagles’ slide continues in national power rankings after their loss to the Rams
The Eagles lost their second straight — and are dealing with injuries to key players. And it's affected how they stand in the national media's view.
Last week, the Eagles started a slide in the national power rankings. This week was an avalanche, as the Eagles plummeted in the rankings following a fourth-quarter collapse in their 24-20 loss to the Los Angeles Rams and a slew of injuries.
A disastrous second half led to the Eagles’ second-straight loss, which gave national media outlets a lot to discuss. Here’s where the Eagles sit in some power rankings before they head across the pond for a Week 5 matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars in London (9:30 a.m. Sunday, NFL Network).
ESPN: 13th
The Eagles fell from eighth to 13th following the loss to the Rams. For Tim McManus, the offense was to blame.
Between injuries to star offensive players like DeVonta Smith and Saquon Barkley, and a performance from Jalen Hurts, who “has fallen off after a strong start,” McManus said the offense is lacking identity.
“The Eagles have been outscored 31-0 in the second half of their past two games, the worst differential in any two-game span of the Nick Sirianni era,” McManus wrote. “They went 0-for-12 on third down and netted just 68 passing yards against the Rams. Their offensive line is shorthanded and looks disjointed.”
Sports Illustrated: 19th
Dropping five spots from 12 to 19, Conor Orr has the Eagles in the back half of the league after losing two in a row.
Again, the stats from the second half of the Sunday’s loss offer explanation as to why the Birds swooped so low. But Orr saw a silver lining.
“On one hand, the Eagles finishing a game this close to the Rams without literally eight of their nine best players is something to take to heart,” Orr wrote. “On the other, having the league-worst points per second half, yards per second half, yards per play in the second half and yards per attempt in the second half is straight up unfathomable. This team is impossible to figure out.”
» READ MORE: Nick Sirianni went for it. Failed. Now the Eagles are a team in crisis | Marcus Hayes
The Athletic: 16th
Sitting exactly middle of the pack, Chad Graff and Josh Kendall have the Eagles at 16, a three-spot drop from last week, and are “pushing the panic button.”
“New offensive coordinator Sean Mannion was supposed to make life easier for this group by moving Jalen Hurts under center and leaning into a revamped running game,” Graff and Kendall wrote.
But then they pointed out the Eagles’ second-half offensive stats and Barkley’s injury, part of “a slew” of ailments they’re dealing with as they prepare for a London game.
Bleacher Report: 13th
The Eagles slid down in the Bleacher Report rankings as well as they fell out of the top 10 from ninth to 13th. Kristopher Knox said injuries are putting the Eagles in danger of falling out of contention for a third consecutive NFC East title.
“They came close to upsetting the visiting Los Angeles Rams on Sunday, but we’re still talking about a banged-up 2-2 squad that recorded its two wins by a combined six points,” Knox wrote.
“Philly needs to get healthy in a hurry because the surging Jacksonville Jaguars are next on the schedule.”
» READ MORE: Eagles O-line is ‘hot garbage,’ Nick Sirianni is to blame, and what else they’re saying after the Rams loss
NFL.com: 21st
Nick Shook has the Eagles just outside of the bottom 10 teams in the league. They moved down six spots to 21st in this week’s rankings after a “new low” for the offense. Shook said the Eagles missing several players doesn’t excuse the whole loss.
“The fashion in which the Eagles let the game slip away is more concerning,” Shook wrote. “Philly’s defense hasn’t been as good as expected, either. This team must figure things out quickly with Jacksonville, Carolina and Dallas up next.”
Different year, different offensive coordinator, yet still, it feels like Déjà vu all over again. The Eagles had little margin for error Sunday vs. the Rams because of injuries. They played hard despite being shorthanded, but in the end, couldn’t put the Rams away, mainly because of poor execution on offense. Why hasn’t Sean Mannion's scheme clicked? How culpable are head coach Nick Sirianni and quarterback Jalen Hurts in the offensive rut the Eagles find themselves in? The Inquirer's Jeff McLane and David Murphy analyze the fallout from the 24-20 loss to L.A. Listen here.
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