Eagles stars address private meeting after loss to Broncos

After the Philadelphia Eagles fell to 4-1 on the season via Sunday's 21-17 home loss to the Denver Broncos, Jimmy Kempski of The Philly Voice reported that Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts, wide receiver A.J. Brown and running back Saquon Barkley "had a long, positive conversation" that "lasted a couple hours." 

While speaking with reporters on Tuesday, Hurts and Barkley confirmed that a discussion took place amid ongoing concerns related to the Philadelphia offense. 

Eagles offensive stars are "all friends" despite rumors, reports

"The focus was all about the team," Barkley explained, according to Johnny McGonigal of PennLive. "When you hear 'players-only meetings,' all hell is breaking loose. It wasn’t that at all. But we’re all teammates. We’re all friends. We were just having a conversation." 

Brown hasn't been shy about making his frustrations known regarding the Eagles' offense. On Oct. 4, Dianna Russini of The Athletic reported that both Brown and fellow Philadelphia receiver DeVonta Smith were "frustrated" over their production this season. 

"It was just talking about the collective, about us taking ownership for what we can, and talking about how we move forward as a team so we can continue to find ways to win games," Hurts said about the conversation involving the three players. 

How Eagles players plan to improve offense this fall

ESPN stats show that the Eagles enter Thursday night's game at the New York Giants (1-4) ranked 30th in the league in average total yards per game (261.6). Over the campaign's first five weeks, Brown recorded 19 receptions for 194 receiving yards and one touchdown. While Barkley has tallied the fourth-most carries in the league (83), the reigning Offensive Player of the Year is 22nd with 267 rushing yards. 

"I don’t think it’s that conversation," Barkley said about how he and others plan to silence hot takes about the Philadelphia offense this fall. "I think it’s the work that we put in. Sometimes it just doesn’t hit right away. I know it hasn’t shown in a consistent way throughout the first five games. But there’s been sparks. There have been halves. ...We just got to continue to have more halves playing at a high level. I don’t think it’s just our conversation. It’s the mindset of this team and this offense and how we work and what we believe we can be."

As of Wednesday morning, ESPN BET had the Eagles as 6.5-point road favorites for the upcoming "Thursday Night Football" clash. Perhaps notching a win against an NFC East rival would make everybody associated with the Philadelphia offense feel a bit better heading into the second weekend of October.