The Linc – Nick Sirianni among the top reasons for the Eagles’ collapse

Philadelphia Eagles news and links for 1/9/24.

Let’s get to the Philadelphia Eagles links …

10 reasons for 2023 Eagles’ epic collapse – NBCSP
1) Nick had no answers: His first two years here, every time his team faced adversity, Nick Sirianni’s message got through. Whether he spoke about connecting, core values, accountability or plants growing underground, he always had the right story to tell, the right allegory to share, the right video to show. And keeping 53 guys pointed in the same direction is just as important as the right play call or the right personnel change. Maybe his players heard the same stories or the same messages so many times the message stopped getting through. But it’s clear that all the motivational techniques that worked so well in 2021 and 2022 and even the first few months of 2023 have stopped working. Whether Sirianni can regain that touch remains to be seen, but if he can’t get through to his team this week, it’s fair to wonder about his future here. […] 9) Nobody got better: This is a reflection on the entire coaching staff, not just Sirianni and his coordinators. The usual veterans were solid – Jason Kelce, Lane Johnson, Fletcher Cox, even B.G. – but did anybody actually improve? Reed Blankenship regressed. Nolan Smith never got going. Carter and Davis went backwards. Hurts wasn’t as good as last year. Milton Williams didn’t make the impact he made last year. Josh Sweat disappeared. Haason Reddick wasn’t as dominating as a year ago. James Bradberry struggled badly. A few of the rookies showed promise – Kelee Ringo, Sydney Brown, Eli Ricks – but they have a ways to go to become consistent starters. And now Brown is out most likely into next season with a torn ACL. If you had to pick a most improved player on this roster, I’m not sure you could.

OchoCinco suggests the Eagles have been playing possum – BGN
There haven’t been a lot of answers out of the Eagles organization for why they’ve struggled so much these past six weeks, but now that the season is over and they’re headed to the playoffs, some possible explanations are being explored. Chad “OchoCinco” Johnson posted a video on Monday suggesting that the Eagles were actually playing possum with their terrible performances of late.

Eagles-Giants aftermath + Nick Sirianni on the hot seat – BGN Radio
Brandon Lee Gowton and Jimmy Kempski discuss where the Eagles stand after showing no fight in a Week 18 loss to the New York Giants. The guys discuss Nick Sirianni’s future and take an early look ahead to the wild card playoff game against the Buccaneers. Interact with us on social media: @BrandonGowton, @JimmyKempski, @BGN_Radio, @BleedingGreen. Check out Wrong Crowd Beer Company: wrongcrowdbeer.com! (21 or older, please enjoy responsibly). Use discount code BGN15 at RighteousFelon.com for 15% off your order! Same promotion applies at WildRangerPet.com. Buying, selling, or renting a house? Contact Kristin Roach at RoachRealtors.com

14 NFL playoff teams, ranked by their Super Bowl chances – SB Nation
11. Philadelphia Eagles. It feels like the wheels are coming off in Philadelphia. And given how we voted, this ranking certainly reflects that. Maybe it is the mounting injuries. Maybe it is the curse of the Super Bowl-losing team. Maybe it is the “Curse of Big Dom.” But after getting out to a 10-1 record with wins in back-to-back weeks over the Kansas City Chiefs and the Buffalo Bills, the Eagles limped down the stretch, losing five of their last six games to finish 11-6. Things got even worse on Sunday. They entered the final week of play still having a chance to win the division, provided they beat the New York Giants and the Dallas Cowboys lost to the Washington Commanders. But by the time halftime rolled around the Eagles were trailing 24-0, both A.J. Brown and Jalen Hurts were sidelined with injuries, and the Eagles fans who made the trip to MetLife Stadium were sending down a cascade of boos in their direction. Could the Eagles still make a run? Maybe. They’ll take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Wild Card Weekend, in a game that still looks winnable on paper. But things are certainly not sunny in Philadelphia, and it still looks like more questions than answers remain.

NFL Power Rankings: Bills, Texans on the rise heading into Super Wild Card Weekend – NFL.com
11) If you want you talk yourself into the Eagles’ loss to the Giants “not meaning much,” have at it. Meanwhile, I’ll be wondering how a team that came into this season with a lot of pride — and for darned good reason — let its last regular-season opportunity to send a message saying “We’ve got this” pass by so helplessly. Maybe the veterans were subconsciously storing up some gas for next Monday’s game, but come on! Philly came into the weekend with a chance to soar all the way up to the No. 2 seed in the NFC, so motivation shouldn’t have been a problem. I’m sure it isn’t very easy to ratchet things up when a team is fried — like these Eagles look to be — and doesn’t control its own fate. But then, the Eagles did have a chance to control their fate in Week 17 and still flopped, so this is the bed in which they now must sleep. It’s wild to say it aloud, but it’s hard to find a potential rallying cry for a team whose biggest opponent right now might be itself.

NFC Hierarchy/Obituary: End of regular season edition – PhillyVoice
7) Eagles (11-6): Since December, the Eagles have been one of the worst teams in the NFL. They’re 1-5 with a point differential of -50, and their opponents had a combined record of 49-53 (0.480). […] 6) Buccaneers (9-8): The Eagles have lost five of six. The Bucs have won five of six. They didn’t exactly play a murderer’s row of opponents, but 5-1 since December is better than 1-5. #Analysis.

Too Fast? – Iggles Blitz
Instant success has affected Jalen Hurts as well. The big plays that came so easily to him and the offense last year just aren’t working this season. Hurts is still forcing the ball downfield, though. Last year’s chunk plays are this year’s incompletions and interceptions. Sustaining success is a lot harder than having some success. Sirianni and his players are learning that the hard way this season. Maybe the failures of the 2023 season will serve Sirianni and the Eagles well in the long run. But that will only happen if Sirianni acknowledges the issues and is able to come up with good answers.

NFL Wild Card Weekend Opening Odds: Buccaneers vs. Eagles – Bucs Nation
The Buccaneers have not been able to produce much offense in two weeks and essentially limp, stumble, and go into the postseason flat offensively. Which Buccaneers team will we see next week?

2024 NFL Mock Draft 4.0: Bears reset at QB with USC’s Caleb Williams, Patriots land LSU’s Jayden Daniels – PFF
25. PHILADELPHIA EAGLES: CB QUINYON MITCHELL, TOLEDO. Mitchell earned elite PFF coverage grades in each of the past two seasons. In fact, no FBS cornerback forced more incompletions over that span (36) than the Toledo cornerback. He was primarily an off-coverage defender with the Rockets but possesses the quickness to also play press coverage.

The time is now! Why time is running out for the Cowboys to make a Super Bowl run – Blogging The Boys
The Cowboys hold the number two seed in the NFC. It’s the highest seed they’ve had since 2016 when they held the top seed in the conference. As it stands now, they’ll play the seventh-seed Green Bay Packers on Sunday. And if they win that game, they’ll play either the Detroit Lions, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, or the slumping Philadelphia Eagles in the Divisional Round. Both the Cowboys’ next two playoff games would be at AT&T Stadium. They haven’t had two home playoff games since 1995, when they last won a Super Bowl. The Cowboys wouldn’t cross paths with the NFC’s top team, the San Francisco 49ers, until the NFC Championship. This means the 28-year “can’t make it past the divisional round” curse has a great chance to be lifted and if they can put together a great game against the 49ers with a Purdy inexperienced quarterback, it could be on to Las Vegas for the Cowboys.

8 candidates to replace Wink Martindale as New York Giants defensive coordinator – Big Blue View
Sean DeSai. This might seem like an odd choice since DeSai recently lost defensive play-calling duties with the sinking ship that is the Philadelphia Eagles. DeSai, though, was a candidate for the Giants’ job that went to Martindale in 2022. It is hard to know if DeSai really was part of the problem in Philly, or if he just got scape-goated. Maybe Daboll gives DeSai a chance to prove the Eagles wrong.

Washington Commanders request to interview Philadelphia Eagles Assistant GM Alec Halaby – Hogs Haven
Tom Pelissero is reporting that Washington has also requested to interview Philadelphia Eagles AGM Alec Halaby. He started his NFL career as an intern in the Eagles football operations in 2007, and then again in 2009. He was then a player personnel analyst(2010-11) and a special assistant to the GM(2012-15). Halaby got a big promotion the following year to vice president of football operations and strategy, a job he held for five years. He was promoted to assistant GM in 2022, and has been in that position for two seasons. Halaby is seen as an analytics guy, but there are reports that he has been involved in the player development side. Pelissero makes the distinction that Halaby would be interviewing for their head of football operations job. Adam Schefter’s reports of interview requests have all mentioned their general manager job.

The official Panthers general manager candidate tracker – Cat Scratch Reader
Alec Halaby – Assistant General Manager, Philadelphia Eagles.

Monday Football Monday #166: Week 18 Recap, Black Monday tracker + Wildcard Round Preview – The SB Nation NFL Show
In this loaded episode, RJ Ochoa and JP Acosta recap all of the NFL action from Week 18, discuss the recent firings and look ahead to the wild card round matchups.

…

Social Media Information:

BGN Facebook Page: Click here to like our page

BGN Twitter: Follow @BleedingGreen

BGN Instagram: Follow @BleedingGreenInsta

BGN Manager: Brandon Lee Gowton: Follow @BrandonGowton

BGN Radio Twitter: Follow @BGN_Radio

BGN Cameo: Request a video message