The Philadelphia Eagles are not playing well enough right now; that’s not debatable. Unfortunately, Philadelphia is not dealing with one issue. This organization is facing several problems at once. This begs the question: Are many of the issues connected?
I started with the obvious.
The Eagles are dealing with major losses at key and core positions. Players who were penciled in to be major contributors, all-pros, not guys fighting for the 53rd spot.
On the O-line, they are likely heading to London without Landon Dickerson, Cam Jurgens, and the news that Lane Johnson has retired. That is 60% of their offensive-line starters, including multiple All-Pro selections.
To stay on the offensive side, DeVonta Smith, Dallas Goedert, and Tank Bigsby are out, and Saquon Barkley is questionable to play.
Defensively, they just played without another All-Pro, Linebacker Zach Baun, and against the Rams, Quinyon Mitchell and Jonathan Greenard both left hurt; their status for Sunday’s game is unknown. Jalen Carter has been playing with a broken wrist for weeks; Cooper DeJean left the game hurt and came back on Sunday, but both will likely play this weekend.
With so many starter injuries, the roster has been tested.
Every team in the NFL builds their roster expecting its best players to be on the field; the Eagles are no different. But when those players aren’t available, the depth gets tested and targeted, immediately. Eagles fans saw that when Quinyon Mitchell went out and Jonathan Jones stepped in.
The Eagles are facing so many injuries that even their top backups like Fred Johnson are injured.
Suddenly, players who were supposed to spend the year playing limited snaps, or even developing, like Markel Bell, who found out he was starting a game a few hours before kickoff, are playing vital roles.
That isn't evidence the roster was poorly constructed, but it is being stretched, and it has snowball effects.
The Eagles have to maximize practice-squad elevations in ways they didn't anticipate. Young players are being thrown into situations they weren’t necessarily drafted to handle immediately. As a result, many players who had very limited practice snaps with the first-team over the summer, or any since the season started, are now trying to execute a new offensive scheme they have barely been part of.
Sean Mannion didn’t simply change a few plays. He came to Philadelphia to install a different offensive system. The Eagles offense has shown glimpses of what they practiced over the summer, but it has largely been unable to execute it and has largely abandoned it.
We have seen more motion and different terminology, but not many different ways to attack defenses. It is a far cry from what was being implemented over training camp.
There are a lot of variables as to why it has been slow to transition or be successful, injuries to the OL being first, in my opinion.
A quarterback who can’t trust the protection can't get through all of the progressions. Many of the skill-position players who practiced all summer aren't there to execute the plays, so Hurts is relying on new faces, and not everyone is on the same page. It was always going to be difficult to operate in a new system early in the season; with what they have dealt with, it is proving impossible.
So how can it be fixed?
Howie has used the practice squad as an extension of the roster in the past; that won't be enough given what they are dealing with.
Many point to Roseman’s change with his use of a first-round pick at linebacker in 2025, and not selecting a first-round tackle in 2026 as a departure from what worked so well for him the previous few seasons. For the first time in a while, Howie Roseman is coming under attack too.
The approach deserves scrutiny, but it also deserves some time. I do not believe any draft could have prepared the Birds for the plethora of injuries this team has had.
Then there is the harder truth to accept: Philadelphia is simply not the same roster from two years ago. Age, contract extensions, trades, drafting for developmental players, and other personnel decisions have vastly changed the team that won the Super Bowl in New Orleans in February 2025.
That’s football.
Judging every individual decision as though the Eagles are playing with a healthy team isn't fair. But judging the Eagles’ personnel decisions as if they believed they would have remained healthy all year is fair game.
Criticizing roster construction and even Howie Roseman is as well.
Were they too ambitious with their new scheme considering the personnel currently on the roster?
Did they underestimate how quickly their depth would be tested and leave too many vulnerable positions?
Philadelphia has far too many issues for there to be a single solution or fault, and that makes assigning blame, evaluating what went wrong, and even improving so difficult.
If I had to narrow it down to one issue, it would be Philadelphia trusting personnel in both health and scheme adaptation. The reason is that most of these players aren't guys finding themselves on the shelf for an extended period for the first time. Relying on seriously injured or injury-prone players to improve and avoid complications may be the fatal flaw, and a major reason the new offense never materializes.
