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Oct 19, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts (1) makes a call during the second half against the Minnesota Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium. Brad Rempel-Imagn Images

Eagles' Gun Offense Goes Traditional To Rave Reviews

Originally posted on Philadelphia Eagles on SI
By John McMullen | Last updated Oct 21, 2025 4:12 PM ET

The idea was to get the running game going. The result was far more spectacular, a barrage of deep shots in the Eagles' 28-22 Week 7 win over Minnesota.

Typically, a "gun offense," Philadelphia went under center 16 times in the win when you take out push-play sneaks and victory formation snaps, a number that isn't exactly reminiscent of the 1970s, but you do have to reach back into the 2021 season to find the last time the Eagles have done it with that kind of frequency.

According to offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo, a bit of extra self-scouting during the mini-bye, coupled with the opponent, was the impetus for the plan.

"I would say both," Patullo said when asked by Eagles On SI what factored in more. "I think there's always things you want to get better at continuously to see if you can do them and develop them into something new."

However, Patullo noted you should never be doing anything just for the sake of doing it. Everything needs to be calculated when the team is in regular-season mode, which is always about the next opponent.

"It's got to present itself within the game, so you're not going to put something in or say, 'Hey, we want to get better at this, but we can't do it this week. We'll just have to wait for the next week,'" the OC explained. "It's one of those things that's kind of organic, you really want to say we want to identify things we need to get better at, but at the same time they've got to fit in each week.

"Then, how much can you do of it within the week, and then just build from there? [That's] kind of how it started and how it went."

Max Protection

Using an extra offensive lineman on eight of the 16 snaps (Fred Johnson) was the clear indication that it was a run-first plan that turned into a play-action one, resulting in the first 158.3 "perfect passer rating" in the NFL this season for Jalen Hurts and only 2.4 yards per rush over 18 carries for struggling running back Saquon Barkley.

"We were able to get out in the runs a little bit [early], then the rest of the stuff opened up," Patullo said. "I think that's kind of a piece of it. Obviously, late in the games in the fourth quarters, we've had a few four-minute drives where we're running the ball situationally.

"So situationally, statistically, they're probably going to go down just because of what we're trying to do with the clock in those moments. I think really when you look at it, it's sometimes the way the game has presented itself as far as getting the runs going, then the rest of the offense can feed off of it.

"That's kind of how the game went the other day [against the Vikings].

Minnesota, which came in with the second-ranked passing defense in the NFL, was taken by surprise with the traditional play-action that is not typically a staple in the Eagles offense.

The 79-yard touchdown strike from Hurts to DeVonta Smith was quintessential, old-school play-action with the QB under center, feigning the handoff with max protection, enabling Smith to get inside leverage on former Eagles' cornerback Isaiah Rodgers.

"Going into a game, you have the game plan and you want to emphasize and structure what you want to identify with early, knowing that you could get to the stuff later like we did," Patullo said of the shift from run to pass "That's kind of how it works.

"Jalen and I have a lot of conversations and he's definitely detailed up on everything. He does a tremendous job of understanding what we want to do and when we're going to get to it at certain times. I think when you look at that, you want to establish something like we did early with the run and it just opens up the rest of what we want to do the rest of the game."

The endgame was X play after X play in the passing game en route to halting the Eagles' first losing streak since the end of the 2023 season.

"Sometimes you have to be patient for it and wait for the right opportunities, and I think that's what presented itself in the game," said Patullo.

This article first appeared on Philadelphia Eagles on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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