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  • Eagles vs. Chargers: Predictions, odds, playoff standings, injuries, and what everyone is talking about

    Eagles vs. Chargers: Predictions, odds, playoff standings, injuries, and what everyone is talking about

    The Eagles will be back in prime time as they try to stop a two-game skid from turning into three against the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium on Monday Night Football.

    Here’s everything you need to know about the team’s Week 14 matchup …

    How to watch Eagles vs. Chargers

    The Eagles kick off against the Chargers at 8:15 p.m. on ABC and ESPN, with Joe Buck and Troy Aikman on the call and Lisa Salters and Laura Rutledge on the sidelines. For fans looking for a more monstrous viewing experience, ESPN will be producing an animated Funday Football alternative cast on ESPN2, DisneyXD and Disney+ set in the Monsters, Inc. universe.

    If you prefer Merrill Reese and Mike Quick on the call, the radio broadcast can be found on 94.1 WIP-FM. And if you want to watch the game with fellow Birds fans, here are a few spots to check out.

    Eagles will play Chargers in a stadium full of ‘Monsters.’ That’s not the only difference on ESPN’s alt broadcast.
    Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter underwent a procedure on his shoulders and will miss Monday night’s game against the Chargers.

    Final injury report

    The Eagles will be without one Pro Bowl lineman on each side of the ball on Monday night. Lane Johnson remains out with the Lisfranc injury he suffered in the team’s win over the Lions. Fred Johnson will fill in at right tackle for a third game. Jalen Carter will also miss Monday’s game, as the defensive tackle underwent a procedure on both of his shoulders and is currently considered week to week.

    Jalen Carter’s absence could put rookie Ty Robinson in the spotlight

    For the Chargers, quarterback Justin Herbert is questionable after undergoing surgery to repair a fracture in his left (non-throwing) hand earlier in the week. Here’s a look at the final injury report for both sides.

    Eagles

    Out

    • DT Jalen Carter, shoulders
    • T Lane Johnson, foot

    Questionable

    • S Marcus Epps, shoulder
    • T Myles Hinton, back

    Chargers

    Out

    • TE Tucker Fisk, ankle

    Questionable

    • RB Omarion Hampton, ankle
    • QB Justin Herbert, left hand
    • DT Otito Ogbonnia, elbow

    Eagles vs. Chargers odds

    As of Saturday afternoon, the Eagles were 2.5-point favorites at FanDuel and DraftKings. Both sportsbooks have set the projected point total at 41.5.

    Marcus Epps is ready to do ‘whatever the team needs’ as Eagles could have a new starting safety
    With their win over the Eagles on Black Friday, the Bears moved ahead of the Birds in the NFC standings.

    Playoff picture

    With five games remaining in the regular season, the 8-4 Eagles hold a two-game lead over the NFC East and hold the third seed in the NFC. At 2-11, the Giants are mathematically eliminated from the playoffs, and the 3-9 Commanders can be eliminated from the divisional race with a loss or an Eagles win this week. The Cowboys, at 6-6-1, stand the best chance of taking the division lead from the Eagles, though Dallas’ loss to the Lions on Thursday night gave the Birds a bit of extra cushion.

    NFC East standings

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    NFL playoff picture: Eagles in surprisingly good shape, several teams could be eliminated

    The Bears and the Rams, both at 9-3, sit ahead of the Eagles in the NFC’s playoff seeding. The Birds have a tiebreak advantage over the Rams thanks to their 33-26 win over Los Angeles in Week 3, but the Bears hold the head-to-head advantage over the Eagles after last week’s loss.

    NFC Standings

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    Police confirmed earlier this week that offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo’s Moorestown home was vandalized after the Eagles’ loss to the Bears on Black Friday.

    Storylines to watch

    The Eagles’ struggles on the offensive side of the ball continued in back-to-back losses to the Cowboys and Bears, and fans expressed their anger in various ways, with some going too far and egging offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo’s home.

    An alternate history of 2023, and why the Eagles are preaching the right message | Marcus Hayes

    But the Birds’ defense also struggled in the team’s 24-15 loss to Chicago at Lincoln Financial Field last Friday, giving up 281 rushing yards. After holding opponents to fewer than 400 yards of offense in each of its first 10 games, Vic Fangio’s defense allowed both the Cowboys and the Bears to eclipse 400 yards of total offense in back-to-back games. Can the defense recover from back-to-back poor performances and contain the Chargers without Carter?

    Injuries will also play a part in Monday night’s game for the Chargers. Jim Harbaugh’s team is preparing for Herbert to be their starting quarterback against the Eagles after he had surgery on his fractured left hand on Monday, though his status was listed as questionable on Saturday’s injury report. Herbert’s right throwing hand is healthy, but will a recovering left hand impact Herbert’s abilities on the field? Or will the Eagles see backup Trey Lance on Monday night?

    Here are a few more storylines to follow…

    If you haven’t been paying attention to the Eagles’ troubles, let’s get you up to speed | Mike Sielski

    One number to know

    75.9% – The rate of trips to the red zone that have resulted in touchdowns for the Eagles this season.

    While the Eagles’ offensive struggles have been well documented, the Birds are leading the league in efficiency when they get inside the opponents’ 20-yard line. They have converted 22 of their 29 red-zone trips into touchdowns this season.

    Numbers and trends that could impact Monday’s Eagles-Chargers game in Los Angeles
    The Eagles and chargers last met in Nov. 2021.

    Inquirer Eagles-Chargers predictions

    Our writers are split on their predictions for Monday night. Here’s a snippet of each of what they’re thinking — but you can click their names for a more in-depth breakdown …

    Jeff McLane: I’m sure fans hate whenever I pick the Eagles. I get the joke. But I like their chances against a limited quarterback, and definitely if Lance starts. I don’t think the offense will rise from the near-dead, but I anticipate noticeable changes off the mini-bye that will aid their chances. I also like Hurts indoors. | Prediction: Eagles 25, Chargers 19

    Jeff McLane’s keys to Eagles vs. Chargers in Week 14: What you need to know and a prediction

    Jeff Neiburg: Justin Herbert is wearing a cast on his left hand, and the Chargers have a passing attack that should play into the Eagles’ hands, as long as they’re able to stop the run and get Herbert into third-and-longs. That may seem like a big ask without Carter, and it is, but the Eagles have had a solid enough run defense for most of the season to think Vic Fangio and Co. will make sure the last performance was just a one-game blip. | Prediction: Eagles 23, Chargers 20

    Olivia Reiner: On one hand, I find it hard to believe that this Eagles team, with all of its talent, will lose three straight games for the first time since 2023. On the other, these matchups aren’t exactly favorable for the Eagles, even with an injured Herbert factored into the equation. | Prediction: Chargers 27, Eagles 24

    Matt Breen: Omarion Hampton is trending to play Monday night, giving the Chargers a two-headed rushing attack against the Eagles. Does that remind you of anything? … This seems like a tough spot. | Prediction: Chargers 27, Eagles 17

    Eagles vs. Chargers predictions: Our writers pick a winner for Week 14

    National media picks

    Here’s how the national media is leaning for Monday …

    • ESPN: Eagles
    • NFL.com: Eagles
    • CBS Sports: Eagles
    • Sports Illustrated: Eagles
    • USA Today: Eagles
    • Sporting News: Chargers
    • Bleacher Report: Eagles
    Jalen Hurts and the Eagles have lost four of their last eight games.

    What we’re saying about the Eagles

    Here’s what our columnists are saying about the Eagles this week, starting with Marcus Hayes, who argues that Jalen Carter’s injury will intensify the pressure on Jalen Hurts …

    Marcus Hayes: “The Eagles can win three of their remaining games, four if they win Monday night. That would give them 12 wins and a chance at the No. 1 seed in the NFC, since they’ve beaten the Rams and Lions, and since the Bears have a much more challenging schedule left to play. But no longer can the Eagles expect their defense to win games for them, as Hurts squeezes the football and stares, mystified, into opposing secondaries.” Read more.

    David Murphy: “The reality of the NFL is that good teams struggle. It is a counterpunchers league, led by a bunch of maniac coaches who won’t rest until they figure out what you are doing and how to beat it. Andy Reid did not suddenly become a worse offensive coach over the last three seasons. Patrick Mahomes is still the same Patrick Mahomes who threw for 5,250 yards in 2022. Nobody in Kansas City or elsewhere is seriously questioning whether one of them is the problem. The Eagles made it look easy last year. But last year was an anomaly. The competitive environment this season is much closer to the norm.” Read more.

    Mike Sielski: “That narrative — that [A.J.] Brown is only about Brown and his selfishness damages the Eagles — has never held up under much scrutiny. Should he stay off social media more? Of course he should. But they have a 53-18 record (regular-season and postseason), have won a Super Bowl, and reached another since acquiring him. At least 29 other teams in the NFL would sign up for that level of damage. Read more.

    Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert broke a bone in his non-throwing hand last week against the Raiders.

    What the Chargers are saying

    At 8-4, the Chargers are in the current playoff picture in the AFC as the top wild-card team and trail the 10-2 Broncos for the lead in the AFC West. According to NFL.com’s playoff probabilities, a win against the Eagles would give the Chargers a 76% chance of making the playoffs, while a loss drops their postseason odds to 50%.

    Herbert’s status under center is still in question, but the Chargers have prepared this week as if he will be the starting quarterback. Herbert had high praise for Vic Fangio’s defense as he prepared to face the Birds this week.

    “He’s had a ton of success in this league,” Herbert said. “Back at his time with the Broncos, we saw him twice a year and we had a lot of respect for him then … The guys that they have on that side of the ball are game-wreckers and you have to be aware of those guys, and at the same time they are really well-coached, and it makes for a dangerous combination for a defense.”

    The Chargers are ready for Vic Fangio’s defense — and aren’t worried about Justin Herbert’s hand injury

    Here’s what else the Chargers had to say…

    Offensive coordinator Greg Roman on Fangio’s coverage schemes: “I was born at night, but not last night. Vic’s going to have different ways to leverage coverage to where it’s not one-on-one at all times … But as far as the matchup, I like Ladd [McConkey] against anybody.”

    Wide receiver Quentin Johnston on Herbert’s injury: “I forgot he was dealing with something the way he’s playing. But that’s just the type of guy he is. Very, very tough guy. He was still at practice, throwing very accurate, so he honestly looked like he hasn’t lost his touch. So right now, just getting him through practice and getting him through the week and prepared for Sunday.”

    Defensive end Khalil Mack on the Eagles’ offensive line without Lane Johnson: “Nameless, faceless objects. You understand who they are and what they’ve been able to accomplish and the level of football they play at, so it’s going to be a hell of a challenge.”

    Guard Tyler Steen, center Cam Jurgens, and guard Landon Dickerson make up 60% of the Eagles starting offensive line.

    What the national media is saying

    Back-to-back losses from the Birds has placed them under the microscope of national network analysts and pundits, who are trying to diagnose what’s wrong with the reigning Super Bowl champs. On his New Heights podcast, former Eagles center Jason Kelce said the team will be in better shape once his former teammate Johnson returns from injury to his spot at right tackle.

    “Lane Johnson coming back will be huge,” Jason said. “Even though [backup Fred Johnson] has done well, especially in pass [protection]. I think the run game is close, I know it hasn’t manifested yet. It’s frustrating watching because you know it can be so much better. I think with the health that is starting to come, it will only improve.”

    Here’s what else the national media had to say about the Birds…

    Travis Kelce on how pre-snap motions might help the Eagles offense: “You watch the Chiefs play, you see me moving around all the time. I move from one side of the line to the other side of the line, and what that does for the defense is it changes passing strength, it changes rules on how they’re going to pass off routes, it changes how they have to fill gaps.”

    Dan Orlovsky on the Eagles’ first-down struggles: “If you struggle as an offense on first down, it makes second down much harder, and then therefore third down much harder. Until they play better as an offensive line and play better offensively on first down, that’s not going to get fixed.”

    Dan Orlovsky hasn’t been shy about the Eagles’ struggles. But he still believes they can be contenders.

    What else we’re reading and watching

  • Jalen Hurts takes the blame, Nick Sirianni is ‘thankful for adversities,’ and more from the ‘Hard Knocks’ premiere

    Jalen Hurts takes the blame, Nick Sirianni is ‘thankful for adversities,’ and more from the ‘Hard Knocks’ premiere

    Hard Knocks has come to Philadelphia … in more ways than one.

    The famed HBO documentary series premiered the first episode of its in-season special Tuesday, bringing NFL fans a behind-the-scenes look at each team in the NFC East.

    The episode is the first of eight, with subsequent releases planned each Tuesday night until Jan. 20.

    The premiere gave viewers a look into Nick Sirianni’s leadership, the Eagles’ loss to the Dallas Cowboys, and explanations for crucial missed plays against the Chicago Bears.

    Here’s what you may have missed from the first episode of Hard Knocks: In Season With the NFC East …

    The Eagles have lost two in a row — and four of their last eight games — as Nick Sirianni continues to look for answers.

    ‘Thankful for adversities’

    Before any flashy credits or highlights came across the screen, Hard Knocks provided coverage on the reigning champion Eagles, just not in the way Philly fans like.

    An alternate history of 2023, and why the Eagles are preaching the right message

    The show opens with a conversation between Sirianni and Brandon Graham inside the Eagles’ practice facility. Discussing the Eagles’ upset loss to the Cowboys, Sirianni celebrates having to overcome adversity while commenting that players need to focus more on improving instead of complaining.

    “Little setback,” Sirianni said. “No one wants to go through adversity until they go through it and be like, ‘Man, I needed that [expletive].’ Like last year, we had to go through that. Unfortunately, we had to go through ’23 to get to where we got last year.

    “Same [expletive] here. Sometimes we get like, ‘Man, I don’t like what I am going through right now.’ Then fix it.”

    Replied Graham: “It’s good, because it’s shaping up to see who you are, too.”

    Following a quick introduction to the docuseries by narrator Liev Schreiber, which included tongue-in-cheek remarks about the Tush Push while the Impressions’ “Keep on Pushing” played in the background, the episode’s focus transitioned back to the Birds’ 21-point blown lead at AT&T Stadium.

    Listening to the Cowboys’ sideline, lowlight after lowlight is shown of the Eagles’ poor second-half performance — rubbing salt in a still-fresh wound for Philly fans.

    The show checked in with the Cowboys, Giants, and Commanders — who all seemed to show more positivity than the Eagles throughout the episode, despite having a worse record, a head coach fired, and an injured starting quarterback, respectively — before cycling back to left tackle Jordan Mailata addressing media criticism on 94 WIP.

    What we know (and don’t) about the Eagles entering Week 14 vs. the Chargers

    The former seventh-round pick claimed that criticism toward Jalen Hurts, A.J. Brown, the offensive line, and Saquon Barkley has brought the team closer together — echoing Sirianni’s previous comments regarding adversity.

    “It’s bringing us closer,” Mailata said. “It’s bringing us closer, man. We know what we have, and we’ve just got to keep going to work. When crap hits the fan, what I know how to do best is just go back to work and put your head down, and you go out there, and you have another chance on Friday — just play your heart out.”

    Sirianni brought the point home in a continuation of his talk with Graham when he doubled down on his positive outlook on the Eagles’ struggles.

    “I’m always thankful for adversities because I see every adversity as a way to come together as a football team,” Sirianni told Graham. “It’s not that you’re enjoying it or it’s pleasant going through it, but I am sure thankful for the adversities I went through to be where I am today.”

    Eagles offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo has received much of the blame from fans, but quarterback Jalen Hurts took responsibility for the team’s loss to the Bears.

    Hurts takes the blame

    Hard Knocks also brought fans directly into the Birds’ preparation leading up to the team’s 24-15 loss to Chicago on Black Friday. The episode showed a focused Sirianni projecting the Bears logo on the screen at a team meeting, and Hurts delivering his signature “keep the main thing the main thing” line.

    There were also small glimpses into Jeff Stoutland’s offensive line meetings, Scot Loeffler’s quarterback room, and Kevin Patullo’s presentation to the offense — providing insight into the team’s sense of urgency in fixing that side of the ball.

    “When we look back, we don’t want to say, ‘Oh woulda, coulda, shoulda,’” Patullo said. “[Expletive] that. We’ve got to fix it now.”

    Yes, Jalen Hurts is the ‘problem’ for the Eagles, not Kevin Patullo: So what? | Marcus Hayes

    When the show reaches the moment when the Eagles have their chance to fix it — last week’s matchup with the Bears — viewers get a glimpse into what actually went wrong for the Birds against Chicago.

    First on the docket was Hurts’ uncharacteristically errant pass to DeVonta Smith in the second quarter — one that turned a would-be touchdown into a field-goal attempt — which we now know was caused by a missed hand signal Hurts sent Smith before the snap.

    “When I pointed like this — that’s my fault, I thought you was going to settle down,” Hurts said to Smith after the play. “… [Expletive], that’s a play I’ve got to make.”

    “Y’all keep doing what y’all doing,” Hurts said while addressing his wide receiver group and offensive line. “Here we go, we’re going to finish the next one, that’s a play I make.”

    On the verge of scoring once again, another mistake prevented a score — a fumble during a Tush Push play in the third quarter, for which Hurts once again took the blame.

    “That’s me,” Hurts said after the play. “[Expletive] I did. Trying to secure the ball and he came straight in there and gutted it out. That’s on me, I’ve got to protect the [expletive] ball.

    Despite all the negative attention toward Patullo, including the recent vandalism of his home, it seems Hurts is the first to step up to take the blame for the Eagles’ poor performance.

    NFL Week 14 power rankings roundup: Faith in the Eagles is dwindling after another ugly loss
    Wide receiver A.J. Brown had his best game of the season against the Bears, but the Eagles still lost.

    Keep an eye on these two

    Hard Knocks, known for its drama and fireworks, surprisingly did not feature anything from A.J. Brown after his recent comments regarding the Eagles’ struggle on offense.

    But after Brown scored coming out of halftime against the Bears, the star wide receiver did share a brief interaction with Patullo — an interaction that may interest those who want to learn more about the pair’s relationship.

    “I told you,” Patullo said after Brown’s touchdown. “You told me, I told you.”

    As the series and the Eagles’ offensive woes continue, interactions between Brown and Patullo will continue to be scrutinized. And all Eagles fans can do is hope that Patullo and Brown keep telling each other whatever it takes to put more points on the board.

  • Spotify Wrapped season’s here once again. Here’s where to find your 2025 results.

    Spotify Wrapped season’s here once again. Here’s where to find your 2025 results.

    It’s OK if you don’t want to admit how many times you listened to “Golden” from KPop Demon Hunters — Spotify will tell us, anyway.

    Spotify Wrapped — the music platform’s annual, aesthetically pleasing deep dive into users’ listening habits — is back again with the feature dropping Wednesday morning.

    The 11-year-old feature is both beloved and feared by users for its unflinchingly honest view into users’ favorite music over the last year-ish. So much so, last year, U.S. Rep. Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey admitted that he manipulated his Wrapped results to be Bruce Springsteen-forward.

    Features include users’ most-listened-to songs, artists, and albums, as well as the duration of time spent listening to music. There are also some bragging rights involved — in the past, users within an artist’s top 1% of listeners could access a special video message and sometimes purchase exclusive merch.

    Across social media, users share parodies of their Spotify summary, saying things like “You spent 25,684 minutes this year complaining about Nick Sirianni.” Know Your Meme says the meme format dates back to about 2017.

    Wrapped is considered one of Spotify’s signature calling cards and a major driver for user engagement and customer retention. This year, it dropped at the same time some users are boycotting Spotify entirely citing ads heard on the platform and its CEO’s investments.

    Here’s more on that and Wrapped 2025:

    When did Spotify Wrapped results drop?

    Spotify Wrapped was released on Wednesday morning.

    Historically, the feature usually drops the week after Thanksgiving, around the first week of December.

    How do I see and share my Spotify Wrapped results?

    Once Spotify Wrapped is live, here’s how you can see your results. Use the service’s mobile or web browser versions. It is not available on the desktop app.

    Here are the steps:

    • Open Spotify on your phone. A prompt to see your 2025 Wrapped should be visible from the homepage of the app. If it isn’t, or you’re using a web browser, visit www.spotify.com/us/wrapped.
    • Find the “Wrapped” section in the top navigation bar, a featured playlist, or by typing “Wrapped” in Spotify’s search bar.
    • This year’s Wrapped results include a “report” and assign listeners to a club based on their listening habits, like the Serotonin Club or the Grit Club. It also has a visual component that shows artists racing for the top of your streams month by month. With bold black and white designs and colorful fonts, it walks you through your listening journey, featuring your total minutes spent listening to music, top songs, artists, genres, and podcasts. One new feature includes users’ “listening age” based on how trendy their picks are among generations.
    • Each slide of the Wrapped Story has a “share” button at the bottom. Click that button to save each individual slide to your camera roll or post on social media. At the end of your Wrapped Story, there will be a second opportunity to save your Top Artists summary.

    What’s the time frame for Spotify Wrapped data?

    It’s fuzzy. While Spotify spokespeople previously said data was analyzed between January and October, the streaming platform said in 2023 that Wrapped was still counting past Halloween.

    The announcement sparked light controversy among audiophiles — the last week of October was once treated like the ultimate good-music-curating season to ensure impressive results.

    Spotify users would also treat November and December like open season, free to blast holiday music on repeat without fear of it reflecting on their “cultural report card.”

    But with an indefinite cutoff date, users remain left in the dark when it comes to how their listening habits will be reflected when Wrapped drops. Last year, the company again promised that data collection would happen past Halloween, but hasn’t disclosed a firm deadline.

    We don’t know exactly when listening data stopped being collected this year. But we can guess it was sometime in mid- to late November.

    Can I modify my results? What does ‘excluding from my taste profile’ really mean?

    Where’s the fun in that?

    There’s no way to modify your Wrapped results (unless you’re the aforementioned U.S. rep and opt to photoshop them). You get what you get, guilty pleasure songs and all — unless you plan ahead.

    Spotify has a feature you can opt out of, including some elements from your listening data.

    While using Spotify, users can click the ellipses next to a playlist and select “exclude from your taste profile.” For example, you can exclude your nightly “10 hours of ocean waves” playlist or your kid’s Disney playlist to keep those tracks from influencing your weekly Discover playlists and annual Wrapped data, Spotify says.

    The caveat here is this only works for playlists, not individual songs, artists, or albums. A loophole could be curating a playlist of every sleep song, white noise track, guilty pleasure bop, or kids’ music that isn’t yours and excluding that entire playlist from your taste profile. But you’d have to do this ahead of time.

    You can’t make edits to your Wrapped results after the fact.

    What can I do with my Spotify Wrapped data?

    You can post it on social media to brag about your incredible taste, obviously.

    Beyond that, there are several third-party sites you can link your Spotify account to that will analyze your Wrapped data and roast you even more.

    How Bad is Your Spotify is an AI bot that will judge your music taste. And be warned, it’s kind of harsh. Some results include: “Your spotify was tay-tay-fangirl-cling-clang-pots-and-pans-music-ponytail-pop bad,” “Your spotify was bon-iver’s-impact-escape-room cabincore bad,” and “Your spotify was folklore-evermore-dumbledore-witch-pop-escape-room-has-a-1975-lyric-tattoo bad.” You get the idea.

    Receiptify reports your top songs in the form of a shareable shopping receipt graphic, while Instafest conceptualizes a music festival lineup based on your top artists.

    What’s up with the Spotify boycott?

    In recent months, Spotify’s received backlash over reports that its CEO, Daniel Ek, invested $693.6 million in the European defense technology start-up Helsing. The tech has been criticized for its role in driving the military-industrial complex and ethical concerns over surveillance technology.

    Around the same time, reports came out that Spotify — and other streaming services — were running ICE recruitment ads. A spokesperson for the company said the ads were part of a wider ad campaign by the U.S. government running across multiple platforms.

    Rolling Stone reported that the Spotify users hearing the ads were using the streaming platform’s free ad-supported tier and that other streaming platforms running the same ad campaign included Amazon Music, Hulu, Max, YouTube, and Pandora as early as April. Apple Music did not run the ads, but it’s a paid-only service with no free ad-supported tier.

    At the end of the day, some users are stepping away from Spotify — and it’s simple to do and take your playlists with you. But, experts caution, no mainstream music platform is morally perfect.

    Is there a version of Spotify Wrapped for Apple or Amazon Music?

    Yes and no. For the first time last year, Amazon Music launched 2024 Delivered, its clapback to the Spotify Wrapped experience. The feature gives a graphic breakdown of users’ listening habits. Amazon Music users can access it by opening the Amazon Music app and tapping a banner that says “2025 Delivered” in their Library.

    Apple Music has a feature called Replay, which is available all year and allows users to see a detailed view of their listening habits. Similar to Wrapped, Replay has a “year-end experience.” The Replay year-end experience debuted in 2023. Critics said at the time that Apple’s version lacked in the shareable experiences and themes that Spotify does so well.

    YouTube Music also offers a “year in review” recap with breakdowns of users’ top songs, albums, artists, and total listening time over the year.

    But none of them feel quite like Wrapped, which is praised for its extra pizazz.

  • NFL Week 14 power rankings roundup: Faith in the Eagles is dwindling after another ugly loss

    NFL Week 14 power rankings roundup: Faith in the Eagles is dwindling after another ugly loss

    The Eagles gave up 281 rushing yards to the Bears on Friday, the ninth-highest total they’ve allowed in team history. The defense also allowed Chicago to make history of its own: DeAndre Swift and Kyle Monangai became the first pair of Bears running backs to each rush for 100 yards in a game since 1985.

    The Eagles’ ground offense didn’t enjoy nearly as much success. Saquon Barkley gained a modest 56 yards on 13 carries and extended his touchdown drought to four games. No other Eagles running back received carries.

    The Birds (8-4) have a chance to rebound on Monday night against the Los Angeles Chargers, although their consecutive losses have resulted in a significant drop across power rankings. Here’s where the Eagles stand heading into Week 14 …

    The Ringer: Fifth

    Despite giving the Eagles the highest ranking of any list, Diante Lee, who dropped Philly one spot, believes that the team’s conservative philosophy has hindered its ability to win games and develop young players.

    “Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni seems to have convinced himself that he’s solved the game of football. He’s got a formula for his team: Avoid turnovers, keep the game simple on offense, and let the defense carry the team home in the second half,” Lee wrote.

    “But that formula has caused the entire franchise to stagnate. Outside of young star cornerback Quinyon Mitchell, is there a single player who looks better now than he did a year ago? Outside of a drive or two per game, have we seen anything that looks cohesive from this offense? And most concerning, is there any reason to trust that this team will even have an extra gear come playoff time?”

    Eagles slim favorites over Chargers in Week 14, but Super Bowl odds slip again

    ESPN: Sixth

    The loss to the Bears dropped the Eagles four spots in ESPN’s rankings. Tim McManus’ primary concern was the effectiveness of their rushing attack.

    “The reigning Offensive Player of the Year has had a difficult time getting going in 2025. He is on pace for 1,048 rushing yards, just about half of his production from his record-breaking 2024 season (2,005),” McManus wrote. “He has faced more stacked boxes and is running behind an offensive line that hasn’t been as buttoned up as last season’s group. The ground game is vital to Philadelphia’s operation. The Eagles need to figure out how to unlock Barkley if they have designs on making another run.”

    Barkley is averaging just 3.7 yards per carry this season, a dramatic decline from the 5.8 yards the Penn State alum averaged last season.

    Jeff Stoutland’s offensive line has been hit with several injuries this season.

    CBS Sports: Seventh

    CBS Sports dropped the Eagles just two spots, but pointed out the decline of the team’s offensive and defensive lines.

    “They won a Super Bowl being dominant on both lines. This year, it isn’t close to being that good,” Pete Prisco wrote. “What happened to the defense against the Bears?”

    The Eagles finished behind the No. 4 Seattle Seahawks, No. 5 Green Bay Packers, and No. 6 Bears, who all won their Week 13 matchups.

    Nick Sirianni reiterates Eagles are ‘evaluating everything,’ but Kevin Patullo will still call plays

    Yahoo! Sports: Seventh

    The outlet criticized Sirianni and offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo’s utilization of their offensive skill position players and expressed doubt that the situation could improve.

    “It’s hard to remember a team getting less out of its offensive talent than the 2025 Eagles. They returned four Pro Bowlers, the Super Bowl MVP, and one of the NFL’s best receiver duos in A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith from last year’s offense,” Frank Schwab wrote. “That group is 19th in points scored, 24th in yards gained and 22nd in success rate. Just about every player is performing well below their career standards. And three months into the season, it’s unlikely to fix itself and it’s getting harder to trust the Eagles going deep in the playoffs.”

    From ‘Fire Kevin Patullo’ website and matching street sign to dating troubles, Eagles fans have had enough

    The Athletic: Ninth

    In Thanksgiving fashion, Chad Graff and Josh Kendall shared the most positive takeaway from every team’s game this past week. But they struggled to find one for the Eagles, and the Birds tumbled six spots from No. 3.

    “The Bears defense is just OK, yet the Eagles managed only 317 yards of offense and 15 points at home on Black Friday,” Graff and Kendall wrote. “But we’re looking for positives today, and if this offense can get sorted out — which admittedly feels like a big ask 13 weeks into the season — Philadelphia should be fine.”

    Jalen Hurts and the Eagles have already lost four games this season, more than they lost all of last year.

    Sports Illustrated: 10th

    The biggest drop of the week took place at Sports Illustrated, where Conor Orr moved the Eagles from third to 10th, although it seems like at least some of the blame lies with Birds fans. There wasn’t any analysis about the team, just a mention of the “uniquely pathetic” vandals who egged Patullo’s house.

    Eagles offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo’s house was vandalized after Bears loss, police confirm

    NFL.com: 10th

    Eric Edholm mentioned a litany of issues concerning the Eagles’ play and suggested that the NFC East title was back in play.

    “Even the tush push doesn’t feel like a team strength now. There are multiple issues with this offense, but the bottom line is that Jalen Hurts must play better. The presumption is that the Eagles have the defense to make a deep playoff run, but the way they defended the run vs. Chicago suggested this unit isn’t nearly as impregnable as its reputation suggests,” Edholm wrote.

    “We haven’t seen a repeat divisional champ in the NFC East since the Eagles won their fourth straight crown in 2004, and this year’s Philly team is doing everything it can to extend the drama as long as possible.”

    As a result, the Eagles dropped four spots in NFL.com’s rankings and were leapfrogged by the Packers, Bears, Indianapolis Colts, San Francisco 49ers, and Buffalo Bills.

    Can the Eagles still get the No. 1 seed in the NFC? Yes, but it will be difficult.

    USA Today: 11th

    USA Today’s ranking represented the Eagles’ lowest placement across the board. The outlet dropped the Birds five spots and pointed out the negative correlation between A.J. Brown’s success and the team’s success.

    “WR A.J. Brown is averaging 7.3 catches and 91.3 receiving yards (with three TDs) in Philly’s four losses,” Nate Davis wrote. “In his seven other games, all wins, he’s averaging 47.7 yards and 3.9 receptions (with three TDs). So, tell us again how important it is that you get the ball, A.J.?”

    On Friday, the Mississippi native had his best game of the season, achieving season highs in receptions (10) and yards (132). Brown also caught both Eagles touchdowns in the loss.

    Yes, Jalen Hurts is the ‘problem’ for the Eagles, not Kevin Patullo: So what? | Marcus Hayes
  • From ‘Fire Kevin Patullo’ website and matching street sign to dating troubles, Eagles fans have had enough

    From ‘Fire Kevin Patullo’ website and matching street sign to dating troubles, Eagles fans have had enough

    One disgruntled Eagles fan with access to the traffic signs near Lincoln Financial Field chose to display just one message on Monday morning: “Fire Kevin Patullo.”

    The broadcast of Friday’s loss to the Bears, the Birds’ second in a row and fourth of the season, caught fans streaming toward the exits after the Bears’ touchdown late in the fourth quarter. But don’t take those early departures for lack of passion.

    A lot of that passion has been directed at the team’s first-year offensive coordinator, with some taking things too far, vandalizing Patullo’s South Jersey home over the weekend.

    One fan made a Fire Kevin Patullo website, recounting the Eagles offense’s many struggles so far in 2025.

    “We don’t need to pass for 250+ yards a game … but we could,” the site’s intro reads. “We don’t need to rush for 100+ yards a game … but we could. We shouldn’t go 0-8 passing in ANY half … but we did. We should run when we’re up 14 pts in the 2nd half … but we didn’t. We should NEVER run just 1 time in a half … but we did. We shouldn’t run the ball when it’s 3rd and long … but we do.”

    Can the Eagles still get the No. 1 seed in the NFC? Yes, but it will be difficult.

    Some fans even started a “Life Before Kevin Patullo” trend on TikTok.

    @wpmark23 Ts hurt man 💔🤦🏾‍♂️ #eagles #fyp #philly #kevinpatullo #sad ♬ Jacob and the Stone SLOWED – ssxmusic

    Another fan apparently told his new girlfriend that they needed to stop talking until the end of the season, since the Birds have been playing badly ever since they got together.

    “I like you a lot so don’t take that as a dismissal, just need to turn our luck around for the Birds and I think you’d understand that too,” he wrote to her on Snapchat.

    Like any good Eagles fan, she was fine with it since it was “for the Birds,” she replied. After posting it on Reddit, a few r/Eagles users offered to pay for their next date after the season if the Birds turned their luck around.

    Yes, Jalen Hurts is the ‘problem’ for the Eagles, not Kevin Patullo: So what? | Marcus Hayes

    Meanwhile, NFL Network analyst Rich Eisen took to YouTube to implore Eagles fans to stay calm, considering the Birds are still 8-4 and extremely likely to make the playoffs.

    “I understand, one year, 10-1, making the playoffs and then they got one-and-doned, and you’re afraid that’s going to happen again, because of what I said, of too many mistakes, but everything I just said is fixable,” Eisen said.

    With five games left in the regular season, the Eagles are running out of time to fix it.

    The Washington Post snubbed Philly on list of America’s best sports cities. Here are nine reasons they’re wrong.
  • Kevin Patullo could benefit from move from sidelines to box, according to Nick Foles

    Kevin Patullo could benefit from move from sidelines to box, according to Nick Foles

    It really was a Black Friday in Philadelphia after the Eagles suffered another disappointing loss, this one to the Chicago Bears, 24-15.

    A few days later, everyone from former Birds to your extended family has spent the holiday weekend talking about where the Eagles offense has gone wrong this year. Here’s what some of the national media are saying …

    Nick Sirianni calling plays?

    Should Nick Sirianni step in to call plays on offense for the rest of the season? Sirianni hasn’t called plays since the early days as the Birds’ head coach, before Shane Steichen ultimately took over the reins and didn’t look back.

    On NFL Countdown on Sunday, Rex Ryan said that Sirianni should consider it. Alex Smith appeared to agree.

    Jalen Hurts is at the root of the Eagles’ offensive problems, but that doesn’t excuse ‘Siritullo’

    “They don’t outcoach anybody on the offensive side of the ball,” Alex Smith said. “A.J. Brown took a lot of flak a few weeks ago, he was the lone bright spot. He doesn’t look that wrong now. There’s clearly something wrong there on offense.”

    “They were in a similar situation last year, when all of a sudden they stopped and said, who the hell are we?” Ryan said. “Get back to running the dang football, whatever it takes. You’ve got to get Jalen Hurts involved. You can scheme, too! Ben Johnson schemed the hell out of them, and you’ve got better players than Ben Johnson does.”

    Kevin Patullo has been with the Eagles since 2021 but is in his first season as the team’s offensive coordinator.

    Nick Foles weighs in

    Nick Foles sees everyone’s frustrations with the Eagles offense, but he’s not ready to pull the plug on offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo just for the sake of making a change.

    Foles doesn’t believe Sirianni wants to call plays himself, and the solution to the Birds’ offensive woes in the long term might be outside the building.

    So, in the short term, Foles pitched a few potential solutions, including moving Patullo up from the sideline into the booth.

    Nick Sirianni defended Kevin Patullo, but it might not matter if Jeffrey Lurie decides he must act to save the Eagles’ season

    “Being a pass game coordinator, [Patullo’s] role was to be in the box, to be in the booth, to oversee what is happening on the field from an up-above perspective, not being on the sidelines with the players and feeling the emotions from the sideline,” Foles said. “He was in a controlled environment to see coverages, to see plays, and to make recommendations for the passing game.”

    Foles is incorrect in saying that Patullo worked from the box as passing game coordinator. He actually worked from the sideline, but the point remains.

    Being on the sideline surrounded by the players provides a different perspective than being up in the box, which is also where Vic Fangio calls plays from. It’s a less distracting environment, and it can be easier to make adjustments as the drive develops instead of waiting to watch tape on delay.

    “Get out of the sideline, get away from the emotions, because that could be clouding your vision,” Foles said. “You have a different perspective from the sideline. You can’t see the coverages as they’re forming. You can’t see the defensive alignments very well.”

    Chris Long agreed with Foles that it’s hard to bring in a new coordinator or replace the coordinator at this point in the season.

    Brian Daboll was fired as Giants head coach on Nov. 10.

    The Eagles could explore bringing in an outside consultant to help improve Hurts and the offense’s performance, but Long is not sure who stands out as a potential candidate aside from fired Giants coach Brian Daboll.

    “You look at a lot of these Eagles coordinators that have had success, they’re not homegrown,” Long said. “The ones that are homegrown, they’re just not working out. You’ve got problems everywhere.”

    After Super Bowl LIX, Long said many, including himself due to his connection to the Birds, got a bit too “fanboy-ish” about the Eagles and about Hurts’ skill set, and their shortcomings are in full focus now.

    “We get so hyperbolic about everything in pro sports,” Long said. “If we’d all just said, the quarterback’s not a perfect quarterback, you have to build around him … It’s not just the roster, because the roster was in pretty good shape when we rolled it out this year. It’s got to be the scheme, too.”

  • Friday’s loss to the Bears was the most concerning one of the Nick Sirianni era. Is it 2023 all over again?

    Friday’s loss to the Bears was the most concerning one of the Nick Sirianni era. Is it 2023 all over again?

    Over in the visitors’ locker room, the head coach had his shirt off. He was flexing and jumping and shouting and looking like a man who might soon be taken away by some folks in white gowns. Ben Johnson had every right to act a fool. He earned it. His team earned it. All anybody else could do was shrug.

    “We’ve got great people in this team that I have a lot of faith and belief in,” Eagles tight end Dallas Goedert said after a disconcertingly definitive 24-15 loss to the Chicago Bears. “I think we still have everything we want ahead of us.”

    It is getting harder for those of us outside the locker room to share in that belief. The Bears didn’t just beat the Eagles on Friday evening. They shook them to their core. They walked into Lincoln Financial Field on the day after Thanksgiving as a seven-point underdog with a rookie head coach and a second-year quarterback who might not be good and they walked out with a win that lifted them to the second-best record in the NFC and dealt a serious blow to the Eagles’ hopes of landing the conference’s top playoff seed.

    Sielski: Nick Sirianni defended Kevin Patullo, but it might not matter if Jeffrey Lurie decides he must act to save the Eagles’ season

    The Bears will frame it as a statement victory. It felt more like a statement loss by the Eagles. They lost an important game in tough conditions against an opponent that entered the day having earned none of the benefit of the doubt. In short, the Eagles did exactly the opposite of what they had done, almost without exception, over their previous 32 games. They made it very clear that they were not the better team.

    That’s a remarkable thing to write, considering the circumstances. The Bears entered the day with an 8-3 record that couldn’t be taken seriously. They’d played the second-easiest schedule in the NFL, the easiest in the NFC by far, with six of their eight wins coming against teams that ranked among the 12 worst in point differential. The other two victories came against winning teams who barely qualified as such: the 6-5-1 Dallas Cowboys and the 6-5 Pittsburgh Steelers. In fact, until Friday, the Bears had been outscored on the season.

    “The sky is falling outside the locker room, we understand that, but I have nothing but confidence in the men in this locker room, players and coaches included,” said running back Saquon Barkley, who finished with 56 yards on 13 carries and has now gained 60 or fewer yards in nine of 12 games on the season. “It’s going to take all of us to come together, block out the noise.”

    Until Friday, we could err on the side of nodding along to such sentiments. All season, as the Eagles have struggled to replicate last year’s dominance, they’ve insisted that their Super Bowl blowout of the Kansas City Chiefs was an exorcism of the demons of 2023. They swore they were a different team. They’d learned their lessons. Plus, they had an actual defense.

    Neither of those things was evident against the Bears.

    They allowed 281 rushing yards, their most since 2015 and the third-most in the last 50 years. They lost the turnover battle, in a fashion meek and mild, a fumble on a Tush Push and an ugly interception, both at the hands of the quarterback. Neither could be written off as the unfortunate byproducts of a warrior mindset.

    Eagles offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo and quarterback Jalen Hurts have failed to inspire confidence for much of the season.

    Every quarterback has bad days. Where they differ is in their energy. Some quarterbacks are maddening, some erratic, some just plain dumb. Hurts at his worst looks listless. A nonfactor. Completely uncompetitive.

    His coaches look that way, too. For most of the last month, Nick Sirianni and Kevin Patullo have looked like video game players who suddenly move the difficulty slider from All-Pro to All-Madden. Again, the computer won handily. The issue isn’t a lack of improvement. It’s that things are getting worse.

    “It was both units, offense, defense, hats off to them,” Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said. “They played a good game; they coached a good game. They outcoached us; they outplayed us. That’s obviously something that I need to go through and watch, look through it, but to say I don’t want to — again, they ran for however many yards. We didn’t run for many yards. We lost the turnover battle. We lost the explosive play battle. All those things are going to dictate the win and loss.”

    They didn’t just lose. They are at a loss. No answers. No ideas, even. This was the most concerning game of the Sirianni era, and it isn’t particularly close. Sure, 2023 was ugly. But at least it hadn’t happened before. The three scariest words in the world are “here we go again.”

    Eagles defense searching for answers after being run over by the Bears: ‘That’s not our standard’

    If this Eagles season ends up where it is currently heading, the faces of the Bears will be the last thing they see on their final swirl around the toilet bowl. This was the kind of loss that can break a team through what it reveals. Until now, they’ve maintained an air of invincibility, a belief in the virtue of winning ugly. While the latter may be true, the Eagles looked entirely vincible on Black Friday.

    They could write off their loss to the Denver Broncos as a game they should have won. Their loss to the New York Giants was a Thursday night fluke. After their loss to the Cowboys last week, they could cling to their one great quarter.

    Their loss to the Bears? It felt like a culmination to all of that. The end of their suspension of disbelief. They are back in the same place they were when it all went up in flames. Talk has sufficed until now. Adversity is easy in its hypothetical form. Now, the Eagles must actually show us what they are made of.

  • Nick Sirianni defends decision to go for two down nine vs. Bears: ‘I always want to know early what I need’

    Nick Sirianni defends decision to go for two down nine vs. Bears: ‘I always want to know early what I need’

    Nick Sirianni’s decision to go for two points following the Eagles’ late touchdown came under the microscope in the aftermath of their 24-15 loss to the Chicago Bears.

    Trailing 24-9, A.J. Brown caught a 4-yard touchdown pass from Jalen Hurts on a slant, cutting the Eagles’ deficit to nine points with three minutes, 10 seconds remaining in regulation. The Eagles could have kicked an extra point to make it a one-score game and waited to go for two on their next possession if Vic Fangio’s defense made a stop.

    At the time, the Eagles had all three timeouts, plus they scored the touchdown before the two-minute warning.

    Eagles grades: Jalen Hurts has two turnovers; run defense porous vs. Bears

    However, Sirianni opted to go for two immediately. The decision didn’t work out in the Eagles’ favor. Facing pressure, Hurts scrambled from the pocket and fired an incomplete pass for Saquon Barkley in the back of the end zone. Bears wide receiver Rome Odunze recovered the ensuing onside kick, marking the beginning of a nearly two-minute drive for the Bears’ offense.

    The Eagles used all three of their timeouts to stop the clock on the Bears’ drive. By the time the Eagles got the ball back at their own 30-yard line, they had just 1:12 remaining in regulation. Hurts had to spike the ball twice on the drive to stop the clock, with the Eagles making it as far as the Bears’ 34 before settling for Jake Elliott’s missed 52-yard field goal attempt.

    After the game, Sirianni defended his decision to go for two in that scenario.

    “Obviously, we had to get one at one point,” Sirianni said. “We had to get a two-point conversion at one point. I’ve done a lot of studies on that in my notes down nine. I’m always going to go for a two in that scenario, so I followed the plan that … again, I don’t try to wing anything in situational football.

    “Now, the thought behind it is you want to know exactly what you need right there. If you go down seven, then obviously it’s a one-score game. If you go down eight, I know it’s a one-score game as well. That’s what we do in that scenario.”

    Sirianni added: “I’ll always go back and look and reconsider things. Had three timeouts there to be able to potentially kick it deep there if we did get it. Obviously, we didn’t in that particular case, but at some point, you’re going to need it and I always want to know early what I need going forward.”

    Hayes: Nick Sirianni, Kevin Patullo struggle as Eagles lose again due to poor focus, fundamentals

    Fox Sports color commentator and former Pro Bowl tight end Greg Olsen defended Sirianni’s decision in a post on X. He pointed to the analytics fueling that decision, asserting that a team that trails by 15 points will need three scores to make up that difference more than half of the time. The probability of scoring eight points on one possession is not high, he argued.

    Olsen echoed what Sirianni said in his postgame remarks — the earlier a team knows how many possessions they need to erase the deficit, the better.

    J.J. Watt, the CBS analyst and former All-Pro defensive end, responded to Olsen’s post and played devil’s advocate. While he agreed with the analytical rationale, he also asserted that the team’s mindset might be impacted knowing they are down one score instead of two.

    Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts is pressured by Chicago’s Austin Booker during the two-point conversion attempt in the fourth quarter.

    Two-minute warning

    Sirianni’s decision to go for two wasn’t the only eyebrow-raising situational decision he made.

    The Eagles began their fourth possession of the game on their own 35-yard line with a 1-yard play-action pass to Brown on an out-breaking route. The 28-year-old receiver was marked down inbounds, though, with roughly 40 seconds remaining until the two-minute warning in the first half.

    Instead of trying to get another play in before the clock hit two minutes, Sirianni decided to let the play clock wind down. Again, he defended his decision and took umbrage with the assertion that he wasn’t pushing to score.

    “We had three timeouts, ball at the [36-yard-line],” Sirianni said. “We had plenty of time to go and score a touchdown and be the last ones with the football, so we got the one yard on the completion with 2:37. Then took it to the two-minute warning and we were going on the ball after that.”

  • Nick Sirianni defended Kevin Patullo, but it might not matter if Jeffrey Lurie decides he must act to save the Eagles’ season

    Nick Sirianni defended Kevin Patullo, but it might not matter if Jeffrey Lurie decides he must act to save the Eagles’ season

    It was easy to catch the chants rising out of the Lincoln Financial Field stands Friday, a call for change that feels closer and closer to happening, no matter what Nick Sirianni might say, no matter how much the Eagles head coach might stand behind his friend and offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo. Those “FIRE-KEVIN” singsongs were clear to everyone inside the stadium and to a nationwide streaming audience on Prime Video.

    Just like the Eagles’ 24-15 loss to the Chicago Bears and another ragged offensive performance, those chants and that atmosphere of frustration and disgruntlement were a sign that this season is reaching a tipping point. And for all the loyalty to Patullo and defiance to reality that Sirianni flashed after the game, his words might not end up meaning much.

    “No, we’re not changing the play-caller,” Sirianni said, “but we will evaluate everything.”

    The most important word in that sentence from Sirianni, though, was we, because we could end up including team chairman Jeffrey Lurie and vice president Howie Roseman, and those members of we have filmed this movie before — and not that long ago. Sirianni was equally steadfast in 2023 about taking up for then-defensive coordinator Sean Desai, but, sure enough, Sirianni’s defense of him was about as strong and effective as the Eagles’ defense under Desai and his replacement, Matt Patricia. That is, not very.

    Now Patullo has become the latest poster child for the Peter Principle. He’s gregarious and friendly and has spent a lot of time in the NFL coaching quarterbacks but had spent no time calling plays until Sirianni turned the offense over to him. Now a unit that boasts some of the most talented and accomplished and highly paid skill-position players and offensive linemen in the league is among the worst offenses in the league. Twelve games this season, and the Eagles have scored 24 points or fewer in eight — two-thirds — of them, including the last four.

    Nick Sirianni, Kevin Patullo struggle as Eagles lose again due to poor focus, fundamentals

    Lurie and the Eagles aren’t about to bench Jalen Hurts or A.J. Brown or Saquon Barkley or anyone else. And even if Patullo is hamstrung as a play-caller by Hurts’ height, by his reluctance or inability to throw the ball into tight windows of space, by the injuries and spotty play of the offensive line, he also hasn’t shown that he’s creative and imaginative enough to overcome those flaws and shortcomings in the offense.

    Sirianni’s mantra, since his arrival, has been that players make plays, that a wide receiver or a lineman or a tight end, if he’s coached well enough in the fundamentals, ought to prevail in his one-on-one matchup against a cornerback or a defensive end or a linebacker. The problem for the Eagles is that they’re winning fewer of those micro-contests, those games within the game, than they did a year ago, and Patullo isn’t helping them win more of them.

    A simple question was put to tight end Dallas Goedert after Sunday’s game: How often do you guys feel like you have a strategic advantage on a defense, where you’re going to fool them or you’re going to run something that they don’t see coming?

    Goedert paused for five seconds, then answered.

    “Tough question. I don’t know if I really have an answer for that one. We’ve got to make plays. We’ve got to execute better. And all 11 have to be on the same page.”

    Something is missing offensively for the Eagles, and it might be Kevin Patullo who will have to answer for it.

    Barkley refused to chalk up the Eagles’ struggles to their strategy or system. “I don’t really look into plays like that,” he said. “The times that we have successful plays, it’s not just because we have a strategic edge. We’ve got guys making plays. We’ve got coaches making great calls.

    “I don’t want to put words in your mouth, but I know what everyone is probably saying. When you go back and watch the film, we’ve got some great calls, and we just didn’t make the plays, or we’ll have a penalty. We keep seeing the same stuff. I get up here and say the same thing, and it’s not like I’m just feeding you guys these answers to, I don’t know, be a pro. But it’s the truth, and I guarantee Jordan [Mailata’s] saying the same thing. Zack [Baun’s] saying the same thing. Lane [Johnson’s] saying the same thing. The reality is, we’ve got to go do it.”

    There is a chicken-or-egg element to the Patullo question. No one, other than Patullo himself, can say for certain whether he’s orchestrating this offense to account for Hurts’ weaknesses, whether he’s calling what Hurts is comfortable with and capable of carrying out, whether Hurts’ limitations are limiting Patullo’s options. There’s no getting around the reality that the Eagles have made Hurts and the passing game the locus of their offense before — early in 2021, early in 2024 — and each time, they shifted their play selection toward running the ball, toward taking it out of Hurts’ hands.

    Last season, they won a championship with that approach because Barkley and the offensive line were that good, that dominant. The Eagles could afford to be predictable then; their opponents knew what was coming and still were powerless to stop it.

    Now the Eagles’ opponents know what’s coming, know how to stop it, and do stop it. Lurie has always placed a premium on having a team that could score lots of points and do so relatively easily, and he can’t be happy with this two-game losing streak, this season-long slog, and the offense’s contributions to those developments. What had been a slump is now a slide and could yet be another collapse, and Lurie isn’t likely to let his head coach’s assertions and assurances stand in the way of a change that he deems necessary to save a shot at another Super Bowl.

  • Eagles grades: Jalen Hurts has two turnovers; run defense porous vs. Bears

    Eagles grades: Jalen Hurts has two turnovers; run defense porous vs. Bears

    Instant grades on the Eagles’ performance in their 24-15 loss to the Chicago Bears:

    Quarterback: D

    Jalen Hurts had two costly turnovers. He tossed his second interception of the season in the third quarter when he failed to account for safety Kevin Byard in the post. And he fumbled on a third-quarter Tush Push when Bears cornerback Nahshon Wright stripped the ball after Hurts ran into a wall.

    Eagles’ issues extend to defense in wire-to-wire Black Friday loss to Bears

    The windy conditions at Lincoln Financial Field made it difficult on the quarterbacks. But Hurts missed too many layups and made bad decisions. He threw behind an open DeVonta Smith on a key early third down.

    There were some positives. Hurts bounced back after the pick and hooked up with A.J. Brown for a 33-yard touchdown. As a runner, he had some success with the return of the run-pass option game. He also picked up 23 yards off a draw in the third quarter.

    But Hurts was at the center of the Eagles offense’s terrible showing, and has been for most of the season.

    Running back: C-

    Saquon Barkley had a little more success on the ground, rushing 13 times for 56 yards (4.3 average). But there was an opportunity to do more against one of the NFL’s worst run defenses and a unit that was down three off-ball linebackers. Barkley’s longest gain was for 15 yards off the left side in the third quarter.

    The Eagles tried a two-back play with Tank Bigsby, but Barkley didn’t look back for the pass off an option. Even if he caught it, a defender was ready to pounce. Barkley also had a late drop.

    Receiver / Tight end: C-

    Wide receiver A.J. Brown led the Eagles, catching 10 of 12 targets for 132 yards and two touchdowns. But a lot of his production felt empty. He came back for a jump ball on a 33-yard touchdown.

    Brown had two more penalties for a team-high eight. The first — a false start — was legit. The second — a pass interference — was questionable. Brown pushed off, but it was relatively soft. The flag negated a third-down conversion.

    DeVonta Smith caught a 30-yard pass on a nicely drawn-up RPO early in the second quarter, but he went long stretches without getting involved. Dallas Goedert caught just one pass for 5 yards until the last drive — despite the Bears’ issues covering tight ends coming in.

    Offensive line: D+

    No unit gets a pass on the offensive side of the ball. The O-line just hasn’t been itself and whenever the Eagles have struggled historically, it’s been because they can’t block consistently.

    Left guard Landon Dickerson just doesn’t look close to healthy. On Hurts’ interception, he allowed pressure that forced the quarterback out of the pocket. Dickerson had a false start early on. Right guard Tyler Steen was up and down, as usual. Left tackle Jordan Mailata kept Hurts’ blind side mostly clean, but he hasn’t been the same run blocker this season.

    Like several of his fellow offensive linemen, Jordan Mailata (right) hasn’t had the same type of season as he did a year ago.

    Fred Johnson started a second straight game for the injured Lane Johnson (foot). Barkley was dropped at the line after Johnson was beaten by a slanting lineman in the third quarter. He led the way on Barkley’s 15-yard tote a drive later, though. Center Cam Jurgens keeps playing through injury, but it’s hurting the offense. Jurgens and Steen combined for a lead block on a Barkley 9-yard run in the first quarter.

    Defensive line: D+

    Stopping the run is an 11-man deal, but the front was continuously beaten at the point of attack. The Bears offense often went heavy to keep the Eagles in base personnel and they ran it down their throats. Running backs D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai each went over 100 yards as Chicago gained 281 yards on the ground.

    Defensive tackle Jalen Carter made some undisciplined guesses as a run defender. He was blocked way out of his gap on Monangai’s 17-yard run off the right in the first quarter. And Carter took a bad angle on Swift’s 3-yard touchdown run at the end of that drive.

    Carter did pick up a sack in the second quarter after Nolan Smith hit Bears quarterback Caleb Williams. Moro Ojomo blew up a third-down screen try in the third quarter, but was bullied at times vs. the run. Jordan Davis had a run stop for no yards after fellow defensive tackle Byron Young held up his block in the second quarter. Young was first to the ball on the fourth-down run stop on the Bears’ opening drive. He failed to bring down Swift on a later long run.

    The D-line had some moments in the pass rush. Jalyx Hunt snatched his second interception of the season when he diagnosed a screen in the third quarter. The outside linebacker leaped and deflected the ball to himself. Outside linebacker Jaelan Phillips batted a third-down pass to the ground in the second quarter. Phillips also drew a holding penalty just before the half. Brandon Graham hurried Williams into forfeiting himself after dropping to pass in the third quarter.

    Linebacker: D+

    Nakobe Dean and Zack Baun just weren’t good enough in helping to stop the run at the second level. They got bullied and erased on runs up the middle.

    Nick Sirianni and coaches struggle again as Eagles lose second straight with poor focus and fundamentals

    Dean was blocked to the ground on Swift’s 23-yard bolt up the middle on a split zone run in the first quarter. He also gave up the edge on Monangai’s 4-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter. Baun got tossed on a Swift 17-yard rush in the second quarter.

    Dean, who finished with 12 tackles, was also called for holding on a short third-quarter pass off play-action.

    Rookie Jihaad Campbell hardly played, if at all.

    Cornerback: C

    Like Hurts, Williams had issues through the air. Some of it was self-inflicted, some of it was due to the Eagles’ pass defense. The quarterback completed just 17 of 36 passes for 154 yards. He had some key throws on third and fourth down, though.

    Adoree’ Jackson and Quinyon Mitchell weren’t challenged much on the outside, but they didn’t surrender many catches. They had more to do in the run game and didn’t do well in the open field. Jackson couldn’t bring Swift down on a second-quarter run.

    Cooper DeJean did a little more in run support. He also broke up an early pass to Rome Odunze.

    Safety: D

    Sydney Brown got his first full-time start of the season with Drew Mukuba (fractured ankle) on injured reserve. He struggled at times. Brown took a bad angle from the post on Swift’s 23-yard run. He didn’t bite on a play-action boot and held a short pass to minimal gain in the second quarter. It could have been worse had Williams been more accurate on two early throws after Brown was beaten in the end zone.

    Eagles safety Reed Blankenship had a game to forget against the Bears.

    Reed Blankenship might have been worse. He got toasted by Bears tight end Cole Kmet on the game-clinching 28-yard touchdown. Earlier, Blankenship was late to Bears receiver Olamide Zaccheaus on a third-and-7 conversion. And he slipped and lost tight end Colston Loveland when the Bears converted fourth-and-5 late in the third quarter.

    Blankenship led the Eagles with 14 tackles, many of them after runs into the secondary.

    Special teams: C-

    A steady wind wreaked havoc on the kicking game. Jake Elliott split the uprights on a 44-yard try. But he hooked an extra point wide left in the third quarter kicking again into the south end of the stadium. Elliott also missed a 52-yarder with a few seconds to play.

    Punter Braden Mann did well considering the conditions. He averaged 42.6 net yards on five punts.

    Britain Covey played in his first game in nearly a year and returned punts in place of the injured Xavier Gipson. Covey scooped up a roller and went 9 yards the other way in the second quarter. Covey was also back on kicks, and had one return for 22 yards. Will Shipley averaged 23.5 yards on two returns.

    Coaching: D-

    Nick Sirianni’s Eagles lost two games in a row for the second time this season as they fell to 8-4 — a game behind the 9-3 Bears in conference playoff seeding. Potentially more damaging is allowing the 6-5-1 Dallas Cowboys back in the division race.

    Sirianni’s undisciplined team had seven more penalties — three of them of the pre-snap variety. He again showed little faith in his offense when he let the clock tick down to the two-minute warning before the half. His high-priced offense just shouldn’t be this bad and that’s on the coaching.

    The execution has been bad, but offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo just hasn’t had the answers. He went with more RPOs and zone reads because of the cold and windy weather, but just wasn’t sharp enough. Sirianni may have to switch up play-calling, although there isn’t an obvious replacement on staff.

    Eagles play-caller Kevin Patullo failed to find the answers once again against Chicago.

    The Eagles entered last in the NFL in three-and-out percentage (33.3), and will likely remain there after Week 13 having gone three-and-out on 4 of 11 possessions. The Eagles were booed as they headed to the tunnel for the half and it seemed justified after they scored just three points.

    Defensive coordinator Vic Fangio’s unit got manhandled on the ground and allowed its most rushing yards in his two years in Philly. The defense tightened the hatches after allowing 204 yards and 10 points to the Bears on their first three possessions. But it again surrendered under the weight of the offense’s ineffectiveness.