With 2:40 to go in the fourth quarter and the 11-4 Philadelphia Eagles and 3-12 Arizona Cardinals at 31 points, a disgusted AJ Brown walked off the field, shaking his head at his team’s lame offensive play calling. The Eagles, already in field goal range and a reckless onside kick attempt giving them winning field position, went soft. On 1st and 20, they called a designed run on quarterback Jalen Hurts despite having one of the league’s most effective rushers in D’Andre Swift. Four meters gain. Hurts again ran on second down, this time for a loss of three yards. Even saddled with a 3rd-and-19, most teams closing in on an NFC East title and looking to return to the Super Bowl with last year’s MVP runner-up under center would take a chance. Not the Eagles. They called a tunnel screen on running back Kenneth Gainwell, who only gained four yards.
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From a playcalling standpoint, it was a pathetic series. Their conservative tactics against an overmatched Cardinals team that had nothing to lose after trailing 21-6 is a classic example of playing not to lose.
But speaking to reporters after the game, Nick Sirianni disagreed.
“I don’t think that’s conservative,” the Eagles’ third-year head coach said. ‘When they close the holes, you implement a hole schedule. We could have thrown it, but we chose to let it run, and it didn’t hit. It did not work. The screen, that will be difficult to change, the wind was blowing in our faces there. We had to get within range.”
Philadelphia converted the field goal but allowed the Cardinals to march down the field and earn a 35–31 victory at the death. Arizona running back James Conner, who torched the Eagles for 128 yards and nearly five yards per carry, scored the go-ahead touchdown.
Arizona head coach Jonathan Gannon, the Eagles’ defensive coordinator during last year’s Super Bowl run, called the perfect game plan upon his return to Philadelphia. Not only did Gannon’s Cardinals leave Philly with the shocking victory, they also held the Eagles’ suddenly anxious offense to 251 yards.
As fate would have it, the Eagles’ current defense, or lack thereof, was the biggest cause of Philadelphia’s disastrous loss. Arizona didn’t punt, not even once, and scored four consecutive touchdowns to close the game. Their run defense was torched by Conner and they generated almost no pass rush. Their third-down coverage was risky. That seemingly reckless onside kick with 5:19 remaining in a tied game that gave the Eagles a short field? Gannon had so much confidence in his offense’s ability to score.
Related: The spiraling Philadelphia Eagles are no longer among the NFL’s elite
What an epic fall from grace for the Eagles, who lost four of five games after a 10-1 start. More importantly, the Eagles just handed control of the NFC East to the Dallas Cowboys and face the prospect of taking their postseason run entirely on the road.
Even the big fix for Sirianni after back-to-back losses earlier this month, transferring defensive playcalling duties from Sean Desai to Matt Patricia, was a disaster. On Sunday, the Eagles, whose defense flirted with the record for most quarterback sacks last year, looked like the worst defense in football.
This is still a proud unit that should theoretically produce given the talent it has in guys young and old: like Jalen Carter, Brandon Graham and Fletcher Cox, among others. Still, Carter was handed the team’s lone loss against Arizona, which is a microcosm of the season’s decline. Philadelphia has just 41 sacks this season after 70 in the league in 2022.
Eagles players maintain confidence.
“We’re not that far off as a defense, man,” Graham said from his locker. “We have to end the season well and from then on it is week by week. …I’m not worried. I believe in us.”
Good for Graham, in his 14th year as the longest-tenured Eagle in club history, for staying positive. That’s part of the job, and the right thing to say.
But the truth is, aside from great placekicker and Super Bowl LII hero Jake Elliott, there’s still a lot to worry about in South Philadelphia. They started the day with an eye on hosting a play-off match and now they will likely have to win on the road.
It used to be sunny in Philadelphia, not too long ago, which is why the Eagles will be in the postseason no matter what. But unless this team finds momentum in the coming week, the offseason is upon us.
MVP of the week
Lamar Jackson, Baltimore. The Ravens thrived in all three phases in a 56-19 win over Miami, but it was Jackson’s masterclass in quarterbacking that stole the show. The 26-year-old punctuated his MVP trophy-in-waiting with a sensational five touchdowns, 321 passing yards and just three incompletions. Coincidentally (or not), the trifecta of Zay Flowers, Rashod Bateman and Odell Beckham has quickly become one of the most exciting and confident wideout corps in the league. With the 2019 NFL MVP playing the best ball of his career and giving OC Todd Monken endless options, the sky is the limit for the Ravens, who have now clinched the AFC’s top seed.
Video of the week
We saw some crazy catches in Week 17, including a beauty from the Ravens’ OBJ and what looked like several dozen one-handed snatches. But this beauty from Justin Fields to DJ Moore takes the cake considering the weather and overall difficulty. Moore finished the day with nine catches for 159 yards and a touchdown And the Bears acquired the No. 1 overall pick in the draft from the same trade. Take a bow, Ryan Poles.
Statistic of the week
17 consecutive seasons without a losing record. After a 30-23 win in Seattle, the Steelers ensured they will finish another season with more wins than losses, all under head coach Mike Tomlin. It’s a remarkable streak considering the natural ebb and flow of the NFL, especially for teams with uncertainty at quarterback. And the fact that some fans were hoping Tomlin would be fired at various points this season is absurd. What this man has done is legendary. As teams in actual need of a new head coach consider the options available, Tomlin has been putting on a clinic on the importance of organizational culture for nearly two decades. Build a statue for that man.
Elsewhere in the competition
• It wasn’t pretty or easy, but the surging Rams beat the Giants 26-25. LA has now won six of seven with a 3-6 start and has far exceeded preseason expectations. Matthew Stafford’s improved health and continued ability to make breathtaking throws have helped matters. That includes the incredible work of the Rams’ professional scouting department, which GM Les Snead affectionately called the “island of misfit toys.”
• The steal of the NFL trade deadline goes to the Bills and their acquisition of playmaking cornerback Rasul Douglas from the Packers. Douglas’ two interceptions, including one pick-6, played a crucial role in Buffalo’s 27-21 victory over the feisty Patriots. (A feisty Patriots defense, anyway.) It wasn’t Josh Allen’s best day, especially in the first half, when he was just 7 of 20 for 46 yards. He also threw his 16th interception of the season, a new career high. His sack accuracy needs to improve if Buffalo is going to make any noise this postseason. Although Allen does get a few redemption points for this cool rugby play:
• Baker Mayfield was brought back down to earth by New Orleans’ dominant defense in a 23-13 win that keeps the Saints alive heading into Week 18. But Tampa can still get the NFC South win and a Week 18 victory on the lowly Panthers.
• San Francisco bounced back from their Christmas loss to the Ravens with a convincing 27-10 win in Washington. The 49ers pulled away in the second half as Purdy looked increasingly comfortable. His 230 passing yards were enough to make him the 49ers’ single-season leader in passing yards, quite impressive considering the franchise’s quality at the position. By bagging the No. 1 seed in the NFC, the 49ers won’t play a meaningful game until the divisional round. It will be fascinating to see how much Kyle Shanahan plays his key starters when they host the Rams next week.
• Bears offensive tackle Larry Borom checked in twice as an eligible receiver in Chicago’s 37-17 win over the Falcons on Sunday, and both times head referee Adrian Hill made it clear he is no Brad Allen. No. 75 reports as eligible. No. 75 reports as eligible. No 75! Hill boomed. Allen and his team, following a controversial ending to Saturday night’s Lions-Cowboys game, remain under extreme scrutiny after failing to make such an announcement and then waving a flag after Detroit’s successful two-point conversion to Taylor Dekker, earning them a late decision would have produced. pipe. It was later discovered that Allen’s ineligible receiver verdict was incorrect and Dan Campbell is probably still screaming into the void. This is the same team that notoriously missed marking Green Bay’s Carrington Valentine in Week 13 due to clear pass interference on a deep ball to Chiefs wideout Marquez Valdez-Scantling in the final seconds.
• Sure, there were several other moments when Detroit could have won, including a better throw from Jared Goff on the Lions’ third (!) two-point play attempt. But these are defining moments at the end of games. The referee needs to be better or the NFL can stop with its “game integrity” nonsense.
• With Carolina’s shutout loss to Jacksonville, the Bears officially secured the No. 1 overall pick (via trade) in the 2024 NFL draft. If Chicago wants to send anyone a thank you card, make sure it’s Panthers standing next to DJ Chark, who somehow managed to drop three catchable balls on three consecutive pitches in Carolina’s 26-0 faceplant.