The Eagles’ Downfall Was Unavoidable
In my latest blog post, I talked about the Eagles being “the NFC’s unavoidable team,” and now I’m here to admit that I was wrong. I completely bought into the idea that, despite the mistakes and close wins, the Eagles were just different. I thought they had the winning combination of talent, coaching, and culture that would allow them to outlast their opponents. I believed that the breaks they were getting were not luck, but rather the result of their opponents’ mistakes. I thought the Eagles demanded perfection from other teams and were so good that they didn’t make mistakes themselves, and would overcome the ones they did make. But now, looking back, it’s clear that this collapse was inevitable.
Jalen Hurts’ Backing of Sirianni Grows Stronger: A Wealth of Confidence
This collapse was due to the Eagles’ organizational philosophy, which is essentially “keep it simple, stupid” or K.I.S.S. In football, this means focusing resources on the offensive line, defensive line, receivers, and corners, while finding bargains everywhere else (except quarterback). This philosophy has kept the Eagles relevant throughout Jeffrey Lurie’s tenure as owner and Howie Roseman’s reign as general manager. But every philosophy has its limits, and the Eagles found those limits in every aspect of team building – from roster construction to defensive and offensive schemes.
Three Reasons Why Eskin is Incorrect about ‘Belicheat’ and Lurie’s Departure
Roster construction and defense go hand in hand for the Eagles. Their offensive-minded head coaches have allowed their roster construction to have an outsized impact on the defensive scheme. The “trenches and fringes” philosophy is most obvious on this side of the ball, with an emphasis on the defensive line and cornerbacks. The rub is finding value with linebackers and safeties, which is dependent on the skill set of the line and corners. The Eagles’ reliance on this philosophy has left a gap in the middle of the defense and has not produced the desired results.
Three Reasons Why Eskin is Incorrect about ‘Belicheat’ and Lurie’s Departure
When it comes to the offense, the “trenches and fringes” philosophy is more straightforward and effective. However, the Eagles’ offense has been described as vanilla due to its simplicity. The offense revolves around a “Bruce Lee” approach, focusing on a handful of passing concepts and relying on strong play-calling, zone reads, and RPOs. This approach worked well initially, but eventually defenses caught on and the Eagles didn’t have the necessary adjustments to counteract it.
The 2023 Philadelphia Eagles poured everything into building a strong foundation, only to realize they had nothing left to build a house. They ended up with a fancy pit, which functioned fine as long as things were going well. But when things turned difficult, the Eagles found themselves without a proper structure.
The Eagles’ Next Steps: What Comes Next?
The future of the Eagles is uncertain, with questions surrounding coaching changes and player interest. There’s uncertainty on the horizon, and all fans can do is hope for the best. It’s a challenging time for the team, but they’re in it together.
