National Football League

The Eagles tried to build a new identity, so why do they still look dysfunctional?

Published Oct. 2, 2024 5:56 p.m. ET

The Philadelphia Eagles feel a little flimsy.

Weak. Fragile. Maybe even on the verge of fracture.

They certainly looked broken in a 33-16 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday. Jalen Hurts took six sacks while averaging 5.3 yards per attempt, less efficient production than running back Saquon Barkley, who averaged 8.4 yards per carry. But because the Eagles were trailing — and their defense couldn't stop Baker Mayfield — Philly had to pass with Hurts instead of run with Barkley.

It looked systemically dysfunctional: the defense failing the offense, then the offense failing the defense — and the cycle continued.

And it's not just this year. The Eagles' dysfunction goes back to their late-season collapse last year. They lost five of their final six regular-season games and — who else? — the Buccaneers bounced Philly from the playoffs in a 32-9 rout.

The difficult part about what happened on Sunday was that it was the same result despite a totally different process. The 2024 Eagles deconstructed their identity from last year in search of something new. Thing is, they have yet to find it.

Just like last year, the problems center around Hurts and coach Nick Sirianni.

"I think there are a lot of teams at this point in the season that don't really have an identity. I think we're still trying to figure it out," Hurts said postgame Sunday. "I think it's challenging when you've had different moving pieces throughout. … It's truly a so-what, now-what mentality."

At the end of last season, Sirianni and Hurts were not seeing eye to eye — their relationship was frayed, according to reports.

It's unclear if they're on solid footing now. Hurts was asked Sunday after the game whether he and Sirianni will get together to discuss how to address the team's identity.

"We have our moments," Hurts said.

Doesn't really answer the question.

And also … awkward.

Sirianni, meanwhile, has been clear he doesn't blame Hurts for the offensive struggles. He even tried to explain away Hurts' turnover issues despite the quarterback averaging 1.75 per game this year. Sirianni called them a "team problem," but the blame clearly falls on Hurts. And this year, he's getting worse with his decision-making after posting 1.2 turnovers per game in 2023 and .6 per game in 2022.

Just about everything is trending the wrong way for Hurts.

GM Howie Roseman worked to rectify the team's issues in the offseason. From a personnel standpoint, Roseman brought in Barkley, who has been a major upgrade for the running and passing games. But even bigger than that, the Eagles changed their offensive system, hiring former Cowboys offensive coordinator Kellen Moore.

He was supposed to implement a modern offense that relied heavily upon motion.

Under former coordinator Brian Johnson, the Eagles consistently ranked last in the league in motion rate. Last year, it was 34.3% (32nd). This season, with Moore calling the plays, they are using motion on 57.1% of their snaps, which is a massive uptick, even if it's still the 12th lowest rate in the league.

But it's not as big of an uptick as many anticipated when Moore joined the team. In Week 1, they used motion on 65.8% of their plays. The decrease has led some to wonder whether Sirianni has limited or influenced Moore's playcalling.

That would be a shame, because the motion is working.

When using motion, Hurts and the Eagles have achieved the second-highest explosive pass percentage in the league at 21.7%, according to Pro Football Focus. Their yards per play on motion are 6.4, per Next Gen Stats. Their yards per play without motion are 4.7.

That hasn't been enough to get the Eagles back in the win column.

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Whether Sirianni is rejecting change or not, we're seeing Hurts struggle. He's not seeing the field clearly. He's hesitant. And he's not making the same number of creative and explosive plays out of structure. So then he's pressing, which has led to turnovers.

"It's not sustainable that we're minus-6 [in the turnover differential]. That's not a sustainable stat," Sirianni said. "Shoot, I'm not sure you're 2-2 when you're minus-6, many times. Somehow, we are."

Sorry Philly fans — that was, indeed, the coach saying the Eagles are lucky to be 2-2.

Injuries have been tough, too. Receiver A.J. Brown has missed three weeks and Devonta Smith also missed a week.

But here's where the problems circle, again, back to Hurts. Even with those injuries, Eagles receivers have generated the second-most separation in the NFL, while Hurts' accuracy ranks 25th, per Pro Football Focus. The players not named Brown and Smith are getting open — Hurts simply isn't hitting them.

This offense seems lost. The Eagles tried to do something new. They tried to rebuild their identity and the growth isn't heading in a positive direction.

"Identity is what you do well, what you do consistent, and what you hang your hat on," Sirianni said.

I'm not sure they have anything like that — not on offense or defense.

I'm not sure that Hurts has anything like that — not as a passer or as a runner.

Therein lies the Eagles' problem. And it's an even bigger problem if Sirianni is interfering with what the team hired Moore to do: help Hurts with a new offense. Because if Sirianni is stubborn about keeping elements of his offense and rejecting Moore's system, then they're caught in between. And that's why the team is lacking an identity, which would be why they have a quarterback playing poorly.

So if you're thinking the Eagles look a little flimsy, it's because they are. They might be the most fragile organization in the NFL — with all the talent they need to win a Super Bowl but all the baggage to prevent them from getting there. This isn't to say the Eagles won't snap out of it. They can get their season back on track, and they have a Week 5 bye to recalibrate.

But right now, it feels like they'll either make the Super Bowl — or miss the playoffs entirely and fire their coach. There's really no in between.

Prior to joining FOX Sports as an NFL reporter and columnist, Henry McKenna spent seven years covering the Patriots for USA TODAY Sports Media Group and Boston Globe Media. Follow him on Twitter at @henrycmckenna.