PHILADELPHIA Nick Sirianni navigated a string of questionable calls that still left Philadelphia’s fourth-year coach guiding the Eagles to the brink of a victory — with a win probability pushing close to 100% in the waning minutes of the fourth quarter.
The Eagles held that late lead over the Falcons even though, among just a few head-scratchers out of the playbook, they failed to call a running a play for Saquon Barkley on a stalled opening drive, a week after he scored three touchdowns; and rather than take a chip-shot field goal from Jake Elliott, their fourth-and-4 gamble at the Atlanta 9 in the first quarter failed when Jalen Hurts threw an incomplete pass.
Yes, Eagles offensive coordinator Kellen Moore is the play caller — Sirianni accused a reporter of trying to “stir it up” when asked during the postgame about decision making — but blame for the failed efforts falls on the head coach.
It’s a responsibility — and a hot seat — Sirianni has accepted since last season’s second-half collapse raised questions about his job security. His latest mess, a puzzling pass play with under two minutes left in the fourth quarter on third-and-short to Barkley in the flat that he dropped, and a conservative field goal on the fourth down that followed in a 22-21 loss to the Falcons on Monday night, only squeezed the short rope he faced headed into this season.
“Any time it doesn’t work out, you know, that’s why I’m sitting in this seat, the head coaching seat, I’ve got to be ready for the consequences of whether it works or doesn’t work,” Sirianni said
With time to spare in the fourth quarter, Kirk Cousins led a flawless last-minute drive for Atlanta and connected with Drake London for a 7-yard touchdown with 34 seconds left to help the Falcons pull off the upset.
Cousins had time, yes, but he also never faced a serious pass rush under the gun, another glaring Philadelphia weakness only two games into the season.
“Everything is thought out of what we want to do, but that’s this game of football,” Sirianni said. “Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t. In those cases, it didn’t, so I got to rethink it.”
Yes, that was Hurts scrambling, creating, thrilling on several runs that served as a flashback to his 2022 season. He had 85 yards rushing, scored a TD on a tush push and even ran for six first downs. That’s the dual threat Eagles fans remember.
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