The Philadelphia Eagles went into New York last night needing a win. They came out weighed, measured, and found wanting. Here are some thoughts on what was frankly a horror show at MetLife Stadium.
A disasterclass
There’s no other way to describe the utter atrocity fans bore witness to yesterday. It would have benefitted the New York Giants more to lose than it did to win. The Eagles needed to win not only from a place of giving them a shot at the NFC East, but to gain some much-needed confidence. They fell horrendously flat.
So now, the Eagles will limp into the playoffs to face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on the road. They’ll do so on the back of consecutive losses against poor teams, and a dreadful 1-5 stretch to end the season. Every game for the past 6 has been called a ‘turnaround’ point, and all that has happened is things have gotten worse.
The Eagles are in a state of total disarray right now and I’m not really sure how that opinion can be changed next weekend.
A bad gamble backfires
The Eagles were in a spot where they needed to play starters in a bid to win the NFC East. However, the MetLife Stadium turf has become notorious for causing injuries.
It didn’t take long for the dominos to fall. Within the blink of an eye, Sydney Brown tore his ACL, A.J Brown was Carter off, and Jalen Hurts’ finger popped out of place.
So not only did the Eagles play their starters for most of the game, but they sustained serious injury blows that could impact their playoff hopes, AND still failed to win.
Brilliant.
Do the Eagles have ANY hope of igniting a playoff run?
Somehow, in some way, they’re actually favored going into next week’s playoff matchup. The Bucs narrowly lost to the Eagles earlier in the season, but this is not the same team. Their defensive coordinator has changed, all momentum has dissipated, and questions are being asked more frequently than ever before.
Of course, anything can happen in the NFL playoffs. But the Eagles have looked lifeless for 6 weeks now and there has been no sign of the bleeding stopping any time soon. Unless something drastically changes from the top down, then the Eagles are essentially going into this game hoping that this level of play is good enough and the Bucs throw the game.
If anything, that would be the worst thing to happen. The road ahead involves a clash with the Cowboys on the road AND San Francisco on the road. Either could be an absolute slaughter right now.
Should Sirianni be on the hot seat?
This deserves an article of its own, but my basic opinion is this:
Yes, Nick Sirianni has pushed the Eagles to three consecutive playoff berths and a Super Bowl appearance. Yes, he’s helped mold an MVP-level quarterback. But realistically, the team he inherited was already good and has gotten better each year.
If ANY new coach came into Philadelphia right now, what would your expectations for them be? It certainly wouldn’t be 11-5 with a 1-5 stretch to end the season.
This team is too talented to fall back into the wilderness of mediocrity. So yes, he should be on the hot seat.
But more on that later…
AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson
