Reality TV

The Eagles season opening win sure feels like a mirage after two straight losses, including tonight’s 41-21 beatdown at the hands of the Dallas Cowboys. That was an ugly game, with the Eagles getting out-coached and out-played. Other than that…

Some people are going to make too much of this game. The Eagles loss doesn’t mean they’re terrible any more than it means Dallas is headed for the Super Bowl. The Cowboys were the better team tonight and it wasn’t close.

What this game did show is that the Eagles are still very much a work in progress. They dominated a bad Falcons team. They competed with a Niners team that has offensive limits. Tonight the Eagles were sloppy and simply had no answers for a balanced and explosive Cowboys offense.

Giving up 34 offensive points and 380 yards isn’t all that unexpected. The Eagles allowed an average of 34.3 points per game in the previous three trips to Dallas.

The more concerning development is the Eagles offense. Jalen Hurts did throw for 326 yards, but he did not play well. The offense could not move the ball with any consistency. They would have a promising drive ruined by a bad throw, drop or a penalty. And this offense just isn’t good enough to overcome mistakes right now.

Penalties have proven to be a huge issue so far. The Eagles led the league in that category and added another 13 tonight. Ugh. This has got to be killing Nick Sirianni, who preaches the need for smart football. The Eagles have not been a smart team the past two weeks.

Sirianni didn’t do his players many favors in the game. He got away from the run early, feeling the need to score points so his team could try to keep up with the Cowboys. There were times when it was hard to get a feel for the offense because poor execution meant drives ended quickly.

Jalen Hurts was having none of this being blamed on the play-calling.

“Play-calling wasn’t the issue in this game, I was the issue in this game.” – Jalen Hurts taking a ton of accountability, over and over again, after this loss.

Can’t remember the last time an #Eagles QB took this type of ownership for an L, fair or not.

— Mike Kaye (@mike_e_kaye) September 28, 2021

That is a great answer from Hurts. That is the right mindset and sends the right message to his teammates.

That said, attitude isn’t enough. Great intangibles aren’t enough. Hurts has to play better.

Hurts underthrew Reagor on a play in the end zone and it was picked off. He missed a wide open Dallas Goedert on a play that likely would have put the Eagles in or near the Red Zone. He threw over or behind receivers multiple times. Hurts threw a pick-six, although that should be more on DeVonta Smith for falling down.

The numbers look okay, 25-39-326, with 2 INTs and 2 TDs. Reality says something very different. Hurts struggled, especially early. This season is a huge opportunity for him. Hurts can show the NFL he’s capable of being a good starting QB. Or he can play like tonight, where he looked like Rodney Peete or AJ Feeley. Teammates loved those guys as well. They just weren’t good enough to be consistently good starters.

The Eagles defense looked great for the first six quarters of the season. Things have not been the same since. They did have 4 sacks and scored a TD vs Dallas, but they just couldn’t get off the field. Dallas ran for 160 yards. Their RBs averaged 5.5 yards per carry. Dak Prescott had a QB rating of 143. The Cowboys were 6 of 12 on third downs and 4 of 5 in the Red Zone. Not good.

Not only did they move the ball, but far too often it looked easy. Give Dallas credit for a lot of that, but the combination of Jonathan Gannon’s ideas and Howie Roseman’s personnel did not work tonight. That was some ugly football. The LBs really struggled early on. Eric Wilson has been a huge disappointment.

The Eagles now have a short week and the Chiefs coming to town. If they thought Dallas had an explosive offense, just wait til Sunday. Gannon better figure some things out before then. It wouldn’t hurt to have Rodney McLeod get healthy.

Sirianni looked pretty darn smart just a few weeks back. Now his team is struggling and he’s got to find some answers for them and his QB.

Every week we get a hint as to whether the Sirianni-Hurts marriage can work. Tonight was a resounding “no”.

There is still a lot of season left, of course, and every game is a chance to show what they can do.

Next week needs to be a lot better.

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