It’s hard to get a full read on the defense when the quarterback is fighting the play-clock. The Eagles have been the Johnny Come Latelys of the NFL through their first five games, struggling to hike the football in a timely manner on nearly every snap. It’s a problem.
“I think when we go back and look at our offense, we waste a lot of time before the snap,” right tackle Lane Johnson told reporters at his locker. “We oftentimes snap it when the clock’s really late, so we’d like to get that fixed. Have a sense of urgency.“
While the Eagles rank fifth-best in seconds per play (28.1), the time it takes them to get organized at the line of scrimmage is costing them opportunities for splash plays. The ability to diagnose what the defense is doing — read it and react to it — cannot be overstated in the chess match within the game. The Eagles’ quarterback and offensive line aren’t in sync. Pinning blame on new center Cam Jurgens would be easy to do, but the problem is bigger than that. It’s an operational failure, one that starts and ends with the coaching staff. The play-caller — Kellen Moore or Nick Sirianni — needs to fix it, urgently.
“I think it’s just an operation thing,” Jalen Hurts told reporters. “Operation … everybody has to move with urgency, and I would have to be on the same page, I think that’s part of the navigation process that I’ve talked about, just with the new pieces we have on the team and on our coaching staff, everybody being on the same page in how we want to attack.”
Hurts’ comments could be interpreted as a criticism on everyone on the Eagles not wearing a No. 1 jersey. He went out of his way to cite “new pieces” (Cam Jurgens at center?) and “our coaching staff” (Kellen Moore or Nick Sirianni?) … although pointing undue blame has never been Hurts’ thing. Perhaps, the main point the franchise quarterback was trying to make was that everyone has a piece of humble pie to eat. Or, as he later explained in a tired cliched nuance: let’s keep “the main thing the main thing.”
“I think in the end it’s about continuing to build, continue to build, and ultimately keeping the main thing the main thing,” Hurts said. “I say it all the time but that’s all that matters. What direction are we going in? And are we learning from things? You know, everything’s not going to be perfect.”
“You’re going to run into different things, different obstacles, but in the end, it’s about, can I keep growing? Can I keep growing? Can I keep learning? Can I continue to be aware? And there are sometimes where some things slip through the cracks and that’s the goal as a competitor, is for that not to happen.”
Jalen Hurts addresses the Eagles slow starts
The Eagles QB has been reluctant to throw over the middle of the field. His first interception of the year came on a bad throw down the seam. Maybe he has PTSD. And, against Cleveland, Hurts targeted the middle of the field only once on 25 pass attempts. Why?
“Just kind of how it’s gone,” Hurts said. “It’s not I like throwing anywhere specifically, it just hasn’t panned out that way.” When pressed further, Hurts added “it’s not” a preference thing.
The Eagles have also been plagued by slow starts this season. The offense has yet to register a single point in any first quarter. Hurts explained the reasons for that.
“It’s a matter of getting the first, first down,” Hurts said. “Once you get the first, first down you put yourself in a really good position, so that’s what it’s about.”
One more nugget: Hurts is 1-4 all time at MetLife Stadium in The Meadowlands. That includes three losses to the New York Giants and one defeat to the New York Jets. Call it bad luck, not a curse.
“It just wasn’t my day on those days,” Hurts said.
Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images
