PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia Eagles’ offense has a plethora of problems. But the biggest issue was on full display during Sunday’s humiliating loss to the Dallas Cowboys.
The Eagles cannot run the ball. And there’s a potential solution to Saquon Barkley’s rushing woes that the defending Super Bowl champions have not utilized.
Barkley had 22 rushing yards on 10 carries in the 24-21 defeat at AT&T Stadium. Philadelphia jumped out to a 21-0 lead and failed to see the game out due to a lacking ground game. It was Barkley’s worst performance in a year that has been disappointing as a whole.
Barkley, who became the ninth player in NFL history to rush for 2,000 yards in 2024, has only 684 rushing yards on 185 carries (3.7 yards per carry) in 11 games. If you take out his 150-yard performance vs. the Giants on Oct. 26, he’s averaging 53.4 yards per game.
While Barkley wants to take full responsibility for the problem, there are a lot of factors at play. The offensive line isn’t performing up to its high standards. The play-calling from Kevin Patullo has been predictable and stale. And Barkley hasn’t been at his best.
But there’s an underrated aspect of the Eagles’ offense that is contributing to Barkley’s struggles — a missing piece that, if implemented, could change things considerably.
Jalen Hurts isn’t being utilized in the run game nearly as much as he has in the past. And if he was, perhaps defenses would be less inclined to key in on Barkley and tee off.
Jalen Hurts Eagles
Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts (1) gets past Dallas Cowboys' Kenneth Murray Jr. (59) and Donovan Ezeiruaku, right, as Hurts runs the ball for a touchdown in the first half of an NFL football game Thursday, Sept. 4, 2025, in Philadelphia.AP Photo/Matt Slocum
Hurts, one of the best dual-threat quarterbacks in the NFL, had only seven rushing attempts on Sunday vs. the Cowboys. He scrambled three times and had one tush push, meaning three of Hurts’ rushes — two RPOs and a QB draw for a touchdown — were by design.
Over the course of this season, Hurts has 80 rushing attempts. Of those, 29 have been scrambles, 23 have been sneaks and 10 have been kneeldowns, per Pro Football Focus. That means Hurts has 18 designed runs in 11 games for a 1.6 per game clip.
That’s way down from previous seasons. Here’s a look at the numbers from PFF.
2024: 55 designed runs in 15 games (3.7 per game)
2023: 59 designed runs in 17 games (3.5 per game)
2022: 73 designed runs in 15 games (4.9 per game)
2021: 67 designed runs in 15 games (4.5 per game)
In those four seasons, from 2021-24, the Eagles ranked first, fifth, eighth and second in the NFL in rushing. This season, the Eagles rank 21st.
Now, it’s a leap to say the Eagles’ run game would be humming this year if Hurts was more involved in the ground game. But it certainly wouldn’t hurt.
It wouldn’t hurt to have Hurts and Barkley run more straight read options, putting defenders in conflict. It wouldn’t hurt to have defensive coordinators think twice about sending run blitzes if RPOs were implemented more often. It wouldn’t hurt to run more draws; they work quite well.
So, why hasn’t Hurts been a bigger part of the running game this year?
Patullo was asked on Sept. 16 why Hurts had so few designed runs through two games.
“Don’t worry,” Patullo said. “We still have those.”
On Oct. 28, two days after blowing out the New York Giants, Patullo was asked about Hurts not having a single designed run in the 38-20 win.
“I think it just really comes down to, do we need it?” Patullo said. “Do we want to do it? Does it present itself? ... The way the game unfolded, we really didn’t need it.”
That makes sense. No need to put Hurts in harm’s way in the only easy win of the season. But the rest of the games haven’t been easy — especially for the ground game.
It’s understandable for fans, who are already beyond frustrated with Patullo, to blame the offensive coordinator. But Patullo isn’t the only party responsible here. Nick Sirianni hired Patullo, and, in a lot of ways, it’s his offense as much as anybody’s. Sirianni has a say in what plays are part of the game plan and which aren’t. And so does Hurts.
Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts gets tackled during an NFL game against the Washington Commanders
Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts gets tackled during an NFL game against the Washington Commanders on Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, at Northwest Stadium in Landover, Md. Hurts sustained a concussion on the play.(Photo by John McDonnell/ for The Washington Post via Getty Images)
The one thing that could be holding Hurts back in the run game? The risk of injury.
Hurts suffered a concussion last season against the Washington Commanders in Week 16 on a QB draw. The franchise quarterback, who signed a five-year, $255 million contract in April 2023, missed the remainder of the Commanders game. He also missed the meaningless Giants and Cowboys games in Weeks 17 and 18 while in concussion protocol.
That could be why Hurts hasn’t been utilized as much. To many in the front office, he’s an investment that has to be protected when possible.
But Hurts isn’t shying away from running the ball more.
“I’m always open to doing whatever it takes to win,” Hurts said Tuesday. “Just go out and execute it as it’s called. Go play the game. There’s always a different plan and strategy behind what KP has and what he wants to do going into a week.”
Asked if he would like to see more designed runs, Hurts said: “Whatever works. That’s my position on it.”
And this season, the run game as a whole hasn’t worked.
If the Eagles want a spark — and want to give Barkley room to operate — maybe it’ll take Hurts running the ball more.
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