The Eagles’ Season Hangs in the Balance as Jalen Hurts’ Struggles Expose Deeper Team Problems.QQ
The issue isn’t whether the Eagles want to fix their problems, but how they can fix them. It starts with improved play from their mercurial quarterback.
It was late Thursday night, and the Eagles had lost to the Giants, 34-17, and someone in the visiting locker room at MetLife Stadium asked A.J. Brown if perhaps the Eagles — who had lost two games in five days, who have been ragged on offense all season, who had been lousy on defense over their previous five quarters of play — were tired.
The question was nothing more than a sympathetic softball. We’re all in this together, and we all feel bad for you guys. So here’s an easy one, A.J. Say what you will about Brown’s social-media habits, but he could see clearly that someone was condescending to him. Most professional athletes do. They know when they and/or their teams aren’t playing well, and they expect to be asked directly and honestly about it, and Brown wasn’t buying the implication that the Eagles’ early-season schedule was a reason for their struggles.
As far as guys [being] tired, this is what we do,” he said. “That’s no excuse. I don’t think guys are tired. I think guys are trying to figure this thing out and get this thing rolling. I don’t think we’re looking for a break. Guys are eager to fix this.”
The issue isn’t whether the Eagles want to fix their problems, but how they can fix them. If curing what ails them were simply a matter of getting more rest and having some key players — Jalen Carter, Quinyon Mitchell, Landon Dickerson, Nolan Smith, Grant Calcaterra — recover from injury, there wouldn’t be much cause for concern.
