Eagles Hall of Famer has harsh criticisms for 'lack of creativity' offensively

“I think the lack of creativity is a problem. And I think the route running is a problem,” Joyner said while appearing on 94.1 WIP. “We talked about it yesterday. We just run routes. We don't stem our routes at the top of the route. We don't drive against leverage to go the opposite way. And that allows a lot of you know, especially on the short routes, it allows cornerbacks that are supremely talented to jump routes and challenge throws ... When you look at a guy like Sean Payton and Andy Reid, you know what they do? They layer their routes in order to beat coverage. We just run routes and hope that we win, and when we don't win, everybody's like, 'Jalen (Hurts), throw the ball, throw the ball.' But when you look at the All-22, there ain't a soul open sometimes.”

Joyner also addressed the ongoing saga with star wide receiver A.J. Brown, who has complained about his lack of getting the football. Joyner tried to counsel Brown about not giving the sports media the ability to create a narrative, but instead to explain explicitly what he meant, after Brown's  since-deleted tweet went viral. 

Joyner has some credibility regarding navigating tough questions and setting the narrative. A member of the media and also knowing a thing or two about Philadelphia, he emphasized that instead of Brown talking about how the Eagles were 4-0 heading into the game against the Broncos, the narrative was about him not getting the ball.

“The problem never solves itself, because if people aren't driven to be their best, and coaches aren't equipped with what they need to, you know, help you be successful and the team be successful, all of that chatter doesn't do anything but make the situation even that much worse,” Joyner said. “That's what I was trying to, you know, get across to him is that, you know, the cryptic tweets, especially in the city of Philadelphia, because if you don't tell the Philadelphia media what you mean, they will give it meaning for you, and then it just takes on a life of its own. And lastly, I said that it's Thursday afternoon. The Eagles are 4-0, I'm gonna go a little AI [Allen Iverson] on you for a sec. It's Thursday afternoon. The Eagles are 4-0, but we're talking about A.J. Brown not getting targets. Seriously, the team is 4-0, and all week long, we talked about A.J. not getting targets ... I'm done with it.”

Eagles can fix all this against the Giants 

Playing the Giants on prime time on “Thursday Night Football” won't help the critics go away if the Eagles don't have a monstrous game against one of the worst defenses in the NFL. The Giants have done well in keeping Brown in check for his career, as Brown has 343 yards on 20 catches and two touchdowns against the Giants in his career (five games), per StatMuse. 

Fellow Eagles wideout DeVonta Smith has similar numbers to Brown during his career against the Giants (six games), with 310 yards on 24 catches and three touchdowns. Quarterback Jalen Hurts has done his best when playing the Giants, which could help facilitate Brown and Smith getting their targets, as he's thrown for 1,244 yards with six touchdowns and six interceptions in nine career games versus New York.