Eagles OC Delivers Blunt Message on Offensive Struggles in 2 Recent Wins
One of the great signs of a good team is one that can win without playing its best. The past two weeks, the Philadelphia Eagles are playing at a high level on defense. But it’s been a different story for offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo and his unit.
The Eagles have scored 26 combined points the past two weeks. They didn’t eclipse 300 yards of offense in either game.
Against the Detroit Lions on Sunday, the Eagles went just 14 of 28 through the air with 124 passing yards. Philadelphia averaged 4.4 yards per pass, which was the team’s lowest output per attempt since the Week 2 victory against the Kansas City Chiefs.
Patullo addressed the team’s offensive struggles in front of the media Tuesday. Patullo assigned offensive blame to self-inflicted mistakes.
“When you look at situations we have when we’re on track, we do a pretty good job,” Patullo told reporters. “If we get off track a little bit, whether it’s a negative play or a penalty, that puts us in a hole. We’ve had some trouble with that.
“It starts with us as a staff to make sure we’re in a good play, and we’re executing at a high level, and we’re all detailed up. Then if something happens like a penalty, sometimes those happen, we’ve got to be able to overcome that.”
Eagles OC Kevin Patullo Addresses Offensive Struggles
Philadelphia’s offensive coordinator stated a bit of the obvious with his “on track” and “off track” remarks. Most NFL teams are good when their offenses stay ahead of the chains and struggle when they don’t. That’s one of the biggest objectives of offense — staying on track to convert into more first downs.
Bad offenses fall off track and don’t “overcome” second/third-and-long.
Unfortunately for Patullo, that’s been the Eagles the past two weeks. After recording a season-high 23 first downs during Week 8 versus the New York Giants, Philadelphia has 29 first downs in its last two contests combined.
Not counting penalties, the Eagles posted 25 first downs combined versus the Packers and Lions.
Quarterback Jalen Hurts’ efficiency dropped against those two opponents. Hurts has completed 53.7% of his passes with only one touchdown the last two weeks. He’s averaging 5.9 yards per attempt during that stretch.
Hurts had just 179 passing yards versus the Giants in Week 8. But he threw four touchdowns in the contest.
Eagles Offense Will Get Opportunity vs. Cowboys
While things haven’t looked great for the Eagles offense the past two games, the unit could have a golden chance to get back “on track.”
The Dallas Cowboys will enter Week 12 ranked 30th in total defense and 31st in points allowed. The Cowboys are also rated 30th in passing yards yielded and 24th in rushing yards allowed.
Dallas’ offense is an elite group. Therefore, the Eagles defense could face a difficult task on the road.
But if Patullo, Hurts and the Eagles offense struggles again in Week 12, then it could be a sign of bad things to come.
Granted, the Eagles didn’t exactly light up the Cowboys in the team’s first matchup. Philadelphia averaged 4.9 yards per play in the 24-20 victory.
But that came during Week 1 in what was a helter skelter type game because of a lightning delay.
Hurts completed 19 of 23 passes for 152 yards against the Cowboys in the season opener. The quarterback also had 62 yards and two touchdowns on the ground.
Shedeur Sanders Predicted to Get One-Upped for Browns' Starting Job
Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders finally made his NFL debut on Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens, but unfortunately, he didn’t help get them the win.
The Browns fell to the Ravens 23-16, and Sanders struggled in his first taste of NFL action. The Colorado alum completed 4 of 16 passes for 47 yards, he was sacked twice and threw one interception.
Sanders got the go-ahead to take over against the Ravens after Browns starter Dillon Gabriel suffered a concussion and was ruled out for game. Sanders is also expected to start in the team’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday, which means Sanders will have to worry about star defensive end Maxx Crosby, who leads his team with six sacks and 14 tackles for loss.
If Sanders isn’t able to rise to the occasion again, or even if he is, there’s a good chance the Browns will be looking at drafting yet another signal-caller in the 2026 NFL draft. Alex Kay of Bleacher Report has an idea of who could step in and potentially be the franchise quarterback that the Browns have wanted for years.
Kay notes that “it’s already become clear that a good chunk of NFL teams have a quarterback problem that will need to be addressed during the 2026 offseason.” For the Browns, he seems them drafting Fernando Mendoza of the Indiana Hoosiers.
“The Browns can’t afford to whiff if they decide to take a crack at a first-round quarterback prospect for the first time since selecting Baker Mayfield at No. 1 overall in 2018,” Kay stated. “With Cleveland trending towards becoming the first of many QB-needy squads to go on the clock during the 2026 draft, Fernando Mendoza would be the optimal choice.”
Mendoza has gained plenty of attention leading Indiana to an 11-0 record and No. 2 national ranking in the AP top 25 poll.
“He’s accomplished this while completing an impressive 73 percent of his passes for 2,641 yards and an absurd 30 touchdowns,” Kay added.
Kay even says that the Cleveland Browns “shouldn’t hesitate” to snag Mendoza as the No. 1 overall pick and “hand him the keys to their offense.”
