Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

Eagles suffer first loss of the season against the Jets in disastrous fashion

Originally posted on Philly Sports Network
By Liam Jenkins | Last updated 10/15/23

4th and 8. One last chance for the Eagles to save what had been a frankly disastrous game. Jalen Hurts lofts a ball into double coverage and sends the Jets to their first-ever win over the Philadelphia Eagles. If that doesn’t perfectly sum up Sunday’s action, I don’t know what will.

Despite leading 14-3 in the early goings, the Philadelphia Eagles buckled under the pressure of their own weight, giving Zach Wilson and the Jets chance after chance as they clawed their way back from the brink en route to one of the biggest upsets this season. The sad part is, many of those wounds were self inflicted.

Jalen Hurts had a great day at the office for the most part, throwing for 281 yards and a touchdown, willing a disjointed Eagles offense on against the dreaded Jets defense. He pulled off the occasional remarkable play and turned nothing into something, but the 3 interceptions he threw proved too costly.

They weren’t all entirely his fault, but the last certainly was. By that point, it felt like every card the Eagles had in their deck had been turned over. Injuries ravaged an already wounded defense, the ever-consistent Jake Elliott missed his second field goal of the season, and even a record-setting A.J Brown let up on what would’ve been a touchdown. From top to bottom, the Eagles were just sloppy and the Jets wanted it more.

The good luck ultimately ran out

The one person who should be void of criticism is Sean Desai. The man has been trying to coordinate a defense missing near enough a quarter of its starters for the entire year and suffered more cluster injuries in the secondary on Sunday, prompting Zach Wilson to challenge the likes of Josh Jobe, who was outclassed by Garrett Wilson on several occasions.

Desai had run out of options, out of talent, and out of luck. Despite saving the Eagles from imploding on a weekly basis, the task proved too much this time around. Jordan Davis and Haason Reddick were among those who tried to turn the tide of battle, but it would only come rushing back in their direction moments later.

How the Jets conquered the Eagles

Philadelphia’s offense has been the target of criticism all season long, and while this was hardly their weakest performance it was by far their most disjointed. An early injury to Lane Johnson didn’t help, but concentration drops reared their ugly heads, and the Jets defensive front did a great job of nullifying a usually-dominant rushing attack, holding D’Andre Swift to just 17 yards…

Without the run, the Eagles offense was forced to throw. Jalen Hurts made all the right passes in all the right places, but his receivers often let him down. When those passes ended up in the wrong places, it was down to a limping defense that had suffered blow, after blow, after blow, to somehow come up with another big stop.

This is a loss that, if I’m being honest, has been coming. The Eagles have left way too much Meat on the Bone this season but had scampered away from the opening stanza undefeated. A humiliating and humbling experience against the Jets might be exactly what this franchise needs to hit the reset button, iron out the kinks, and prepare for the gruelling gauntlet that awaits.

This article first appeared on Philly Sports Network and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: