Posted October 14th, 2026 | No Comments »We have talked about the agonizing nature of this loss enough. The final minutes have been dissected over and over so I’ll spare you more of that. I’m interested in a fresh perspective. Think of the game from the mindset of a Jacksonville fan.
The Jags came into the game as 7-point favorites. They were taking on an Eagles team missing their top two RBs, best WR, best pass rusher and a Hall of Fame OT. The OL featured three guys making their first or second NFL starts. The Eagles weren’t underdogs by accident. And yet the Jags needed a pair of impressive TDs by Parker Washington, a long KOR and a last second FG to beat the Birds.
The Eagles made QB Trevor Lawrence uncomfortable throughout the game. He finished just 24 of 39. He was sacked twice and picked off once. Coach Liam Coen made some questionable game management decisions. The Eagles were better on third downs and in the red zone, despite the makeshift OL. The Jags couldn’t hold a late lead against the banged up offense.
As bad as the ending was, there were some real positives. The Eagles played hard. They competed. They made some critical plays in the game, on offense and defense. If the team can play like that with Saquon, DeVonta and Jonathan Greenard in the lineup, they might start winning some games and get this thing turned around.
COACHING
Nick Sirianni talked about his team needing to lock arms during the week. He knew this would be an uphill battle and the guys would have to really come together as a team. Sirianni had the guys ready to play and they embraced the challenge. Kudos for that. The end of the game is a different story. We can debate whether he should have kicked off or just put the ball out of the end zone. There are merits to both points. I think he made the wrong choice, in part because the Jags returned the opening KO for a TD, only to have it taken away by a penalty.
I think the Eagles should have done a better job of working the clock once they got into FG range. Burning 2 seconds would have changed the outcome.
Vic Fangio mixed in blitzes effectively. He used a variety of personnel and had really good answers in the red zone. Jacksonville was 0 for 3.
Michael Clay’s unit was up and down. The Eagles were good on returns. They did not cover well.
OFFENSE
QB
Jalen Hurts was up and down. He finished 21-40-220 with a TD. The highlight was his TD pass to Darius Cooper. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted October 13th, 2026 | No Comments »Let’s move past the fact the Eagles lost to the Jags. That was a horrible outcome, but there are some real positives to take away from the game. There are absolutely some things to build upon moving forward.
The defense started to look more like what we expected. Jalen Carter played his best game in a while, finishing with 5 tackles, 2 sacks, 2 FF, 1 TFL, and a PD. He also drew a holding call (finally!). Carter created at least one TFL for a teammate (Coop). He was a disruptive force. This defense is completely different when Carter plays like that.
Carter won’t play at that level every week, but it was good to see him at his best for the first time this season. If he can be more disruptive, it changes things for the rest of the defense. The Eagles were credited with 5 QB hits and that pressure caused Trevor Lawrence to have a sloppy performance.
The secondary is still erratic, but it does feel like they are making some progress.
Cooper DeJean had a pair of TFLs on Sunday. Quinyon Mitchell is coming alive. He was good vs the Rams and then had hist first regular season INT vs the Jags. He also broke up another pass.
The Eagles are at their best when they have a strong OL. This season has been crazy upfront, but they may finally be headed in the right direction. LG has been messy all year. Willie Lampkin made his starting debut on Sunday and showed promise. He struggled initially, as you might expect from anyone making their first start. Then Lampkin settled in and adjusted to the speed of the game.
Landon Dickerson could be returning soon. We don’t know what he’ll look like after a month of rest and treatment. If he is at 75 percent of what he used to be, you want him on the field. He’s big and powerful. He can get real movement in the run game. If Dickerson still isn’t right, go with Lampkin and give him a chance to show what he can do. His performance vs the Jags was encouraging.
Drew Kendall will be back at center pretty soon. He’s played well this season and looks like he’ll be the center of the OL for years to come.
Markel Bell continues to show big time potential. He doesn’t seem overwhelmed as the starting RT, even when facing some good rushers. Bell obviously has plenty to work on, but you see the talent that made the Eagles so excited to draft him. He flashes in the run game and in pass pro.
If the Eagles can get some continuity on the OL, that group could start showing real improvement.
Mailata – Lampkin – Kendall – Steen – Bell
We’ll leave Lampkin at LG for now since he’s healthy and could also be part of the future. Dickerson is a mystery for now. We’ll see what happens with him. Jake Majors offers depth at center. The OL could be stabilizing and that would be very helpful for the whole offense.
WR Darius Cooper had a long TD catch and continues to show that he can be a playmaker. Dontayvion Wicks was 5-63 and seems to be establishing good chemistry with Jalen Hurts. If DeVonta Smith comes back this week, you’ve got a good trio of receivers, plus rookie Makai Lemon. He was 5-43 and even made a key catch on the go-ahead drive.
The offense still needs a lot of work, but there are some good pieces to work with.
It was great to see the Eagles march down the field for the go-ahead FG. They struggled for most of the second half, but came alive when they needed to the most. And Jake Elliott did his part, nailing the kick. He hasn’t missed a FG this season and looks better than the previous two years.
The ending was bad. Just don’t let that erase some of the good we saw in the game.
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