Top Five Reasons for Eagles' Offensive Struggles

For the third straight week, the Philadelphia Eagles came up short.

The latest setback was gut-wrenching 19-17 loss in the final second to the Jacksonville Jaguars Sunday in London, England. Here are the top five reasons why the Philadelphia Eagles offense has been grounded the past three games.

5) No Answer For Blitz Packages

Opposing defenses have figured out that the Eagles struggle to function under heavy pressure. As a result, defenses will overload one side of the line of scrimmage with more rushers than Philadelphia can account for. It is up to quarterback Jalen Hurts to recognize these pre-snap blitz looks and slide the offensive line’s protection scheme to accommodate the vulnerable area of the line. Also, there needs to be a hot receiver available either by design or by a Hurt audible.

4) No Time For Adjustments

It becomes nearly impossible to make all of the above pre-snap adjustments when the Eagles routinely break the huddle with less than 10 seconds remaining on the 40-second play clock. The Philadelphia offense needs to be at the line of scrimmage much earlier in the play clock in order to make meaningful pre-snap adjustments.

3) Hurts Lacks Autonomy

“It’s not my place. I’m prepared as a QB to not worry about those things. I honor the play call, honor the things that come into the game. When I’m up at night, I think ‘Should I have said something?’

That was Hurts’ answer after the game when asked about Philadelphia’s play-calling decisions. With three Pro Bowl appearances and a Super Bowl MVP in tow, it has long past time for Hurts to say something. If he sees a defensive look that will likely defeat the play that was called by offensive coordinator Sean Mannion, Hurts should have the leeway and flexibility to call something else.

2) Poor Strength and Conditioning

Much has been made about the myriad of injuries the Eagles have suffered this season on both sides of the ball. However, virtually none of these injuries are of the devastating season-ending variety. Rather, there are countless soft tissue strains and sprains that take players out of action for multiple weeks.

Perhaps it is time for Philadelphia to re-evaluate their strategy of resting starters for the entire preseason schedule. The load management philosophy appears to be backfiring in spectacular fashion as many Eagles players are not physically prepared for the rigors of an NFL schedule.

1) Poor Coaching

Head coach Nick Sirianni’s bone-headed decision to kick the ball to Jaguars return man Amir Abdullah ultimately cost Philadelphia the game Sunday. Sirianni also eschewed a 54-yard field goal attempt on the first drive of the game and elected to go for it on fourth-and-1 at the Jacksonville 37. Kicker Jake Elliott has a career long make of 58 yards, so this long attempt was well within Elliott’s range.

The fourth down conversion attempt was unsuccessful, and the Eagles came away empty handed. Handing opposing teams great field position in the closing seconds while simultaneously ignoring early scoring opportunities is a sure-fire way to let winnable games slip away.