Eagles’ Jalen Hurts hits his low point, which begs the question: Should he be benched for Tanner McKee?

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — It was all there for Jalen Hurts.

Despite the turnovers, missed throws, and maybe the worst four quarters of his NFL career, the quarterback had an opportunity to drive the Eagles to victory in overtime.

He did not.

Instead, Hurts tossed an interception — his career-high fourth of the game — that was deflected and caught at the 1-yard line and gave the Los Angeles Chargers a wild 22-19 win over the Eagles at SoFi Stadium on Monday night.

“As frustrating as the night was, we had an opportunity to win the game,” Hurts said. “In the end, I had the ball in my hands driving down the field, having everything on our terms to a sense, and I didn’t bring it home.”

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It was probably the best decision and throw of Hurts’ four picks. But Chargers cornerback Cam Hart somehow got his hand on a pass intended for wide receiver Jahan Dotson, and safety Tony Jefferson snagged the deflection to seal the outcome.

That Hurts would succumb seemed destined, however.

The loss, by no means, was all on the sixth-year quarterback. The offense was a disjointed operation and produced just one touchdown, on a fake Tush Push. Receiver A.J. Brown had a pass bounce off his hands to a Chargers defender and two deep Hurts teardrops that he failed to pull in that could have resulted in scores.

There were penalties that brought back successful plays. A missed field goal. And even the defense, which kept the Eagles alive with repeated stops and forced field goals, had the occasional breakdown.

But Hurts’ imperfections as a dropback passer were again glaring. He threw over and behind his intended targets. He made the wrong reads and missed receivers either schemed open downfield or on check downs. He was in a fog and couldn’t see the field, especially over the middle.

There were some good moments, no doubt. But not close to enough. It seems unimaginable that Eagles coach Nick Sirianni would consider benching Hurts for backup Tanner McKee. Opening that can of worms may cause more harm than good — especially in the long-term — but the idea has some merit.

Hurts has been in a free fall since the Week 9 bye. Each week has seemingly been worse with the quarterback uncharacteristically turning the ball over at a high rate. Sirianni can’t dismiss all that Hurts has accomplished. And he and offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo have to take ownership, as well.

But something likely has to change if the reeling 8-5 Eagles don’t want to repeat their collapse from just two years ago.

“It’s never just on execution,” Sirianni said when asked about Hurts. “We look at ourselves as coaches first to help them be in position to succeed and execute. Obviously, you never want to turn the ball over. We’re pretty good at that, and tonight was a little uncharacteristic of us.”

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But turning the ball over has become more the norm during the Eagles’ three-game losing streak. They committed nine turnovers over that span after having just four in their first 10 games. Hurts wasn’t involved in two, but the other seven have come from five interceptions and two of his fumbles.

The fumble vs. the Chargers was fluky and came after his first pick. Hurts didn’t see defensive lineman Da’Shawn Hand drop into coverage on a simulated third-down pressure. He forced a throw to Brown when it appeared that Dotson was open over the top.

Eagles running back Will Shipley knocked the ball out of Hand’s grasp and Hurts picked it up. But he, too, lost it for the rare double turnover. How rare? It had been 48 years since it last happened.

On the next series, Hurts was intercepted again when he threw behind DeVonta Smith. He settled down as the two teams exchanged field goals until Saquon Barkley broke through on the fake Tush Push and scored a 52-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter.

But with the Eagles finally ahead, 16-13, a high Hurts dart to Brown over the middle went off the receiver’s hands and into Hart’s.

“The ball over the middle — no, it wasn’t perfect,” Brown said, “but I’m more than capable to make that catch.”

Brown, who finished with six catches for a team-high 100 yards, said he also wanted back Hurts’ deep shot to him on the first play from scrimmage and a dime the quarterback dropped into his bucket in the end zone.

» READ MORE: A.J. Brown ‘wasn’t great when it mattered’ as key drops doom the Eagles in loss to Chargers

“I know there’s definitely some that he wants back,” Hurts said of Brown. “There’s some that we all want back.”

Hurts walked over to the receiver on the bench after the third interception and gave him a fist pump. Brown, whose chemistry with his quarterback on and off the field has come under question, defended Hurts after his rough night.

“You can’t just point a finger,” Brown said. “I think all of us have our hand in that pot and we’re trying to get better. Obviously, he’s the quarterback, he’s going to get a lot of stuff for it.

“But we in this thing together.”

Sirianni, who got more involved in the offense after the Eagles’ mini-bye, has to find a formula that doesn’t require Hurts to drop back as often as he has the last three games. The run-pass ratio favored the latter 45 to 21. Hurts completed just 21 of 40 attempts.

The tinkering of the offense resulted in more motion and passing concepts in the middle of the field. Hurts had some impressive throws in those scenarios, but there were as many bad ones. Against a good defense, the odds weren’t in his favor.

“Nick stepped in, and I think he played a very good role this week, provided some structure and kind of organized some things for us,” Hurts said. “Obviously, we still have ways and room for improvement. But I look at myself first. I look at the man in the mirror first.”

After the Chargers settled for a 54-yard field goal on the opening possession of overtime, Hurts ripped a 28-yard pass to Smith on third and 16 early in the next drive. Then he avoided a fourth-and-4 test when Chargers defensive end Odafe Oweh jumped into the neutral zone.

But after completions to tight end Dallas Goedert, Patullo dialed up a run-pass-run option play that had proved successful earlier in the game and a week ago vs. the Bears. Rather than have Smith as the read in a high-lo concept route, though, it was Dotson.

“I knew it was going to be a tight window throw,” Hurts said. “I’d have to watch the film to see it from the film’s point of view. Ultimately, it’s a play that I didn’t make.”

The Eagles locker room, when it finally opened to reporters, was full of players and coaches with blank stares. As Hurts sat silently on his stool, Smith was in the next stall over with his arms crossed and his head bowed for what seemed like eternity.

“It’s not nowhere close to 2023,” Smith said later when asked about this Eagles’ late-season swoon.

Brown was across the aisle catty corner to Hurts. He chatted with rookie Darius Cooper until receivers coach Aaron Moorehead came over and offered consolation.

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There were no overt displays of anger for public consumption. The players who didn’t perform took accountability. No one pointed blame. But frustrations with Hurts behind the scenes have been mounting, per team sources, and may have reached a precipice.

The lowly Raiders offer a chance for the quarterback to get right next week. It’s not all on Hurts. But he keeps showing that he can’t shoulder too much of the offense.

“It starts with me and how I play, how I lead, and how I go out there and do my job,” Hurts said. “So when I look at it at any point, it’s about how I respond to a test, and what level of resilience and resolve I have to push forward and figure things out.”

The division title and more is still there. Can Hurts get the job done?