Nothing has changed. And why would anyone have expected that? This is who the Eagles are right now.
It wasn't going to change overnight just because they were in the playoffs.
They are not the team that took a 10-1 lead. They are not the team that beat the Bucs, Chiefs, Dolphins, Bills and Cowboys. They are not the team that had the No. 1 seed within reach just a few weeks ago. They hadn't been that team in a long time, and it didn't matter who they played in the postseason, they were going to lose.
You can't run. You can't throw. You can't block. You can't apply pressure. You can't tackle it. You can't cover. You can't train.
Everything else is alright.
The Eagles capped their epic collapse Monday night with a 32-9 loss to the underdog Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa.
They finished the season with six losses in their final seven games, with those losses by an average of 15 points and their only win since Week 12 coming after they nearly blew a 17-point lead against the Giants.
The 23-point loss is the second-largest in franchise history, the most since a 24-point loss to the Cowboys in a conference semifinal at Texas Stadium in 1992.
This was a fitting end to a lost season.
Awkward. Pathetic. Inexcusable.
Here are our observations on the Eagles' second wild-card loss in Tampa in the last three years:
1. I still think it's likely that Nick Sirianni is back, although based on what we've seen in the last two months? After what we saw Monday night? Anything Jeff Lurie does would be completely understandable. But there needs to be big changes on this coaching staff, starting with the coordinators. The Eagles went from having two of the best in Shane Steichen and Jonathan Gannon to having two coordinators (actually three) who were terribly out of their depth, and you can see how important it is to have the right people in those positions. And I don't think the offense's problems are Johnson's alone, but it's enough that the Eagles need to move on. Honestly, other than O-line coach Jeff Stoutland and special teams coordinator Michael Clay, I wouldn't have a problem getting rid of everyone. Nobody on this team got better. Everyone has regressed. That's up to the coaches. This team was unprepared down the stretch. That's up to the coaches. This team has lost its fundamentals. That's up to the coaches. This team kept falling behind early. That's up to the coaches. They kept screwing up big clues. It all depends on the coaches. And most of them have to go.
2. The performance we've seen from this defense lately has been nothing short of appalling. This is a Buccaneers team that struggled to get nine points in a competitive game against a Panthers team last weekend, going 2:15. The Eagles held them to 174 yards and 11 points in September. By midway through the second quarter on Monday evening, they had surpassed those numbers. Obviously the coordinator change was a disaster. At least the Eagles had some impressive wins when Sean Desai was their defensive coordinator. And when they were embarrassed, it was the 49ers and Cowboys. Under Patricia it is everyone. Guys running around with no idea where to go, what their job is, what their teammates are up to. The missed tackles became an epidemic towards the end of the season. The cover collapses. The messed up tasks. And on Monday it wasn't Mike Evans or Chris Godwin. It was Cade Otton. It was David Moore. It was Trey Palmer. The Eagles couldn't stop any of them. Howie Roseman has a lot of work to do this offseason as the Eagles need speed, physicality and playmaking at every level on defense. James Bradberry has to go. Nick Morrow has to go. Kevin Byard, Shaq Leonard, Bradley Roby, Zach Cunningham – they all have to go. This was just outrageous stuff we saw Monday night from a bottom-10 offense and a veteran quarterback. The Bucs finished the game with 426 yards, 23 first downs, 46 percent on third down, and Baker Mayfield threw for 337 yards and three touchdowns. Of course, the Eagles didn't force any turnovers. Worst defensive stretch in Eagles history? That says a lot. There were stretches in 1967, 2012 and 2015 that were truly miserable. And that 1937 defense, duh. But this was worse than all the others. There has never been a defense in Eagles history that has been torn apart week after week like this group has been over the past two months.
3. Before Hurts played a deep ball to DeVonta Smith with four minutes left in the second quarter, the Bucs had outscored the Eagles 174-38 en route to a 16-3 lead, and that was basically ballgame. A Buccaneers team that ranked in the bottom 10 in the NFL in both offense and defense this year had taken command of the game midway through the second quarter. The Eagles cut their deficit to one possession at one point, but this football team was not prepared for it. They weren't prepared. This coaching staff had eight days and couldn't get them ready to play. There is no other way to look at it. Coming out flat on both sides of the ball — and 174-38 is as flat as it gets — is a direct reflection of the coaching staff. The same thing happened last week against the Giants when the score was 24-0 at halftime.
4. This is almost unbelievable, but we just saw a 449-yard return in the two Tampa games. In Week 3, the Eagles outgained the Bucs by 298 yards (472-174). On Monday night, the Bucs outgained the Eagles by 151 yards (426-275). That says it all. Absurdly terrible.
5. If one play symbolized the Eagles' season-ending collapse, it was Baker Mayfield's 44-yard touchdown pass to David Moore that gave the Bucs a 10-0 lead in the first quarter. First: No pressure on Mayfield. Then Eli Ricks hit Avonte Maddox around 40 and fell to the ground. There was no Eagles defender within 15 yards of Moore when he caught the ball at the 36 yard. Darius Slay extended his left arm in a sad attempt to tackle Moore at the 17-yarder. Maddox and Kevin Byard sniffed inside the 10 yards. Bradley Roby had a shot at him at the 6, but Moore ran right through him. By the way, Moore caught five passes all year. But the Eagles managed to expose all of their defensive weaknesses in a single play – guys not being in the right position, lack of pressure, terrible coverage, terrible tackling. The defense on point.
6. This game reinforced the Eagles' need for more weapons on offense. Quez Watkins is not good enough. Olamide Zacchaeus a non-factor. Julio Jones, who left the game with a concussion, turns 35 next month. With AJ Brown out, DeVonta Smith was the Eagles' only offensive playmaker with 141 yards. Everyone else combined had 67. Brown is a tremendous talent, but you can't put yourself in the position of not having a viable No. 3 wideout who can move up to No. 2 if Brown or Smith are out. Maybe some of that is due to the coaches, but also Howie Roseman, because we've talked all year about how thin the Eagles are at WR and nothing has ever changed. The guys on the practice squad — Devon Allen, Greg Ward, Joseph Ngata, Griffin Hebert — are not the answer. AJ Brown will always be missed. But you have to have someone other than Smith who can play a role.
7. Jalen Hurts' passing numbers were fine – 25 of 35 for 250 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions. Had a decent passer rating of 100.9. But his inability to handle pressure — and it's not just him, it's the offensive coaches, the offensive line, even the receivers — was truly a glaring problem. The Eagles knew exactly what Todd Bowles was going to do and still couldn't handle it. Couldn't make any plays against it. Couldn't handle it at all. Nine points. They scored nine points.
8th. If only cleaning house were as easy as getting rid of all the old people. But Fletcher Cox has been the Eagles' best defensive lineman this year. Brandon Graham proved to be a situational edge rusher. Jason Kelce is the best center in the NFL. Imagine if the Eagles had to replace all three? Life without any of these guys is scary. Not because they are legends here. But because they are still three of the Eagles' better players. Who will replace her?
9. I have to give DeVonta Smith some props. When we say the Eagles have two No. 1 receivers, that's exactly why. With AJ Brown out, the Eagles needed something big from their third-year wideout, and Smith responded. He was nothing less than brilliant on Monday night, even if the Bucs knew he was the only one Hurts was throwing to. Smith tied the franchise postseason record of 148 yards with eight catches and became the first wide receiver in franchise history with two 100-yard games in his career. He also had 100 in the Super Bowl. Smith now has 405 career postseason receiving yards, just 60 fewer than Harold Carmichael's franchise record. On a night when nothing else was going on offensively, Smith was one of the few players on the team doing his job. Maybe the only one.
More to come…
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