You could feel this game coming.
In Week 1, the Eagles struggled to beat the Commanders in Washington 24-22. They followed it up with a last-second, 24-20 victory on the road against the Titans, who finished with the NFL’s second-worst record a season ago.
The defense had put together two lackluster performances against weaker opponents. The offense was bailed out by Jalen Hurts playing hero ball.
And so last night’s 27-7 shellacking at the hands of Ben Johnson’s Bears in Chicago shouldn’t have been too surprising.
Hopefully, it’s a wake-up call.
Against an opponent superior to the two they played previously, Hurts couldn’t paper over the offensive line’s continuing and worrisome struggles, and the defensive line’s inability to pressure the quarterback continued despite the return of Jonathan Greenard. Meanwhile, the secondary suffered breakdowns throughout the game and allowed a third-string QB who they beat in the… checks notes… 2017 NFC Championship Game put up a 110.8 rating against them.
Yup, that was the same Case Keenum throwing for 247 yards, 2 TDs and no interceptions against a Vic Fangio unit that garnered a whole lotta hype in training camp. They’ve given up an average of 23.0 points per game through three outings, 16th in the NFL. They have three sacks thus far and have yet to force a turnover, sitting -5 in the turnover differential. Per [Sumer Sports](https://sumersports.com/teams/defensive/), the Birds are 23rd in EPA/play and 20th in success rate.
The safeties and linebacking corps haven’t looked good through three games. Drew Mukuba, Marcus Epps and Michael Carter II have missed tackles and blown assignments. Nakobe Dean’s absence has been felt, with Jihaad Campbell so far failing to replicate his predecessor’s performance. But the real issue stems from the defensive line, who quite simply, hasn’t delivered on their preseason promise.
A lot of money has been invested on the defensive line. Jalen Carter signed a 4-year, $152 million contract extension with $107 million in guaranteed money this off-season. Jordan Davis got a 3-year, $78 million deal with $64 million guaranteed. Jonathan Greenard received a 4-year, $98 million extension after his trade from Minnesota, and Jalyx Hunt will likely be the next lineman to follow with a similar mega-deal.
Greenard just this week returned to the field following two weeks on the injured list, so it’s unfair to expect peak performance from him as of yet, but there is little excuse for everyone else. Moro Ojomo and Nolan Smith, two young players looking to secure big deals of their own, have been largely silent.
One has to think Fangio’s guys will figure this out and get it together, but there is absolutely no excuse for getting shredded in a prime time NFL game by Case Keenum in the year 2026. A defense some believed would be one of the five best units in the sport has been middling through their first three games, and the onus is on the defensive line to make life difficult for opposing coordinators.
On the offensive side, preseason concerns about the O-line were well-founded.
Landon Dickerson’s inability to return to full health was less than ideal. Fortunately, last year’s 5th-round pick Drew Kendall has held his own thus far at center. The rest of the line has struggled.
Tyler Steen has been abysmal at right guard to start the season. Cam Jugens, who shifted from center to left guard with Dickerson out, can’t find any consistency. And Jordan Mailata, one of the highest-priced vets on the team, has simply not been the same player since the 2024 Super Bowl season. Lane Johnson has been fine at right tackle, but he can’t do it all alone.
On 1st-and-goal from just outside the one yard line in the 2nd quarter, the offensive line couldn’t generate enough push or open up a single lane to allow Barkley to run the ball into the end zone for the tying score. Instead, they forced Sean Mannion to try a pass play on 3rd-and-goal from the 2 with Andy Dalton, who threw an interception in the end zone.
A 95-yard drive ended in no points as a result.
Sure, Dalton is terrible, should not be on the roster and should not have been asked to throw a pass in that situation. But the O-line’s inability to get Barkley in the end zone on first and second downs shouldn’t be ignored, either.
In the first half against the Bears, the line looked like it was figuring things out. Saquon Barkley broke off some big runs and the running game looked good. Barkley ran for 73 yards on 11 carries before halftime and then came out and rushed four times for nine yards in the second half. Jalen Hurts’ pass protection was OK, but some killer penalties and poor execution on 1st and 2nd downs put him behind the sticks most of the night, resulting in an ugly performance in which he threw for just 153 yards with two turnovers. He was shut out in the 2nd half.
He was not helped by his coaching staff. Nick Sirianni’s decision not to go for it on 4th-and-1 near midfield in the 3rd quarter trailing 20-7 reeked of a lack of confidence in his unit. After the game, Sirianni, the team’s CEO head coach who says he specializes in his decision-making in just these kinds of game situations, admitted he made a mistake. He then went for it on 4th-and-5 later in the 4th quarter, after the game had largely been decided. None of it made sense. Play-caller Sean Mannion continues to call screen passes behind the line to Makai Lemon, and receivers weren’t schemed open this week.
It had been a bumpy first two weeks for the Eagles, but they had persevered and managed to pull out two victories against lesser opponents/coaching staffs. Against Ben Johnson’s Bears, they did not receive similar fortune.
Things won’t get any easier when Matthew Stafford comes to Philadelphia this week, looking to exact revenge in his own personal house of horrors. The Rams, 1-2 to start the season, will be out for blood. Then it’s on to Jacksonville to face a Jaguars team that has given up the fewest points in the league through the first three weeks.
If they play like they did last night in Chicago, the Eagles will be staring at a 2-3 record two weeks from now.
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