Iggles Blitz

by Tommy Lawlor

Oh the Agony

Posted October 11th, 2026 | No Comments »

The Eagles suffered their most agonizing loss in a while on Sunday. It wasn’t the worst because there were actually quite a few positives and things to be happy about. The team played hard and battled for 60 minutes. Or almost 60 minutes, I should say.

And then agony.

All the good plays and fun moments of the first 59=plus minutes were washed away when a bad coaching decision was compounded by equally bad kickoff coverage. The Eagles had just taken a 17-16 lead and were on the cusp of an impressive win.

I would give anything in the world for people to be making fun of me for worrying too much and not enjoying a great finish. But all you have to do is think back to BAL-DAL and that insane finish. Kickers are so good that you can’t give them a chance. And touchbacks come out to the 35 so those guys aren’t too far from getting in range when their team gets the ball.

Nick Sirianni made a bad decision and had Jake Elliott boot a returnable kickoff. Sirianni was hoping to burn a few seconds and force the Jags to run a desperation play to end the game. The problem is that Ameer Abdullah had shown some real juice on previous returns in the game, including a TD that was called back due to a penalty. And sure enough Abdullah took the KO and ran it back 53 yards to set up the winning FG.

There wasn’t a perfect option available. A touchback would have left the Jags just 15 yards from FG range. Little hit a 70-yard FG in the 2025 preseason. He has the strongest leg in NFL history. He had a 72-yard kick go wide right this summer. Dude can flat out kill the ball. The Jags didn’t have a timeout so advancing the ball and getting a FG attempt was far from a sure thing. And by taking away the KO return you remove the chance for them to make a game-changing play (like they did). So this sure seemed like the smartest option to me.

There was one even better option. The Eagles should have worked the clock better on their go-ahead drive and not left time for the Jags. I was shocked at the Eagles lack of awareness in that regard. I yelled at the TV repeatedly not to leave them time. Learn from the Cowboys debacle, don’t repeat it. Alas, they didn’t listen.

Agony.

Sirianni took full blame for the loss after the game. His KO coverage didn’t help him out, but the clock management by the offense was also a factor and that is on him. He and the offensive coaches had plenty of chances to let the players know to be smart about working the clock. Either they didn’t or the message didn’t get through. Neither is a good option.

Situational football is critical to winning. A team claiming to be “detailed” should be well versed in situational football. They should understand the importance of working the margins. That stuff doesn’t require talent, as Sirianni likes to point out. Simply put, the Eagles didn’t play smart football. And it cost them a game.

Plenty of people are going to scream about firing Sirianni. I certainly get the frustration. That was an ugly finish. Others are simply ready to give up on the season. I get that as well. This team feels like a mess right now.

I want to see how this team looks when somewhat healthy. Get Saquon, DeVonta and Drew Kendall back on offense. Get Jonathan Greenard back on defense. Let me see that group for a week or two. If they still stink, then the season is basically over. We saw enough good things on Sunday that I’m still holding out some hope. And remember the three teams that the Birds just played.

Bears
Rams
Jags

All three won at least 11 games last year and all three are expected to be Super Bowl contenders this season. The Eagles showed the last two weeks that they can really battle good teams. They had late leads in both games (before blowing them). The next step is for the Eagles to show they can finish and actually beat a good team.

Scoring a second half TD might help as well.

I’ll go into player performances on Monday and cover the things that did give me hope moving forward. I’ll tell you that seeing Jalen Carter come alive certainly put a smile on my face. He can be a true game-changer.

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