Eagles' ugly third-down blanking looms large in collapse vs. Rams - USA Today
With rainy conditions and a severely shorthanded roster, the Philadelphia Eagles knew it would be tough sledding offensively against the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday.
Yet a historically poor performance in crucial spots cost the team the early advantage they were afforded.
Despite holding a lead from the opening drive until the final minute-plus of the fourth quarter, the Eagles fell to the Los Angeles Rams 24-20 on Sunday, with its 0-for-12 third-down conversion rate looming large in the loss.
That ranked as the most third-down attempts by any team without a single conversion since 2020 and the most for the franchise since at least 1991, according to NFL Network research.
"Everybody contributed to that," Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said in a postgame news conference when asked about the third-down struggles. "There's execution errors. There's coaching errors. Everybody contributed to that."
Philadelphia parlayed two Matthew Stafford interceptions into 10 points and continually capitalized on short fields, with none of its scoring drives spanning more than 35 yards. Nevertheless, the team was outgained 415-172 and had 14 fewer first downs (26 to 12).
The Eagles entered the day without star wide receiver DeVonta Smith (hamstring), tight end Dallas Goedert (knee) and perennial All-Pro right tackle Lane Johnson, who was inactive due to personal reasons. The offense's outlook took another considerable hit in the first quarter, when running back Saquon Barkley suffered a hamstring injury that kept him out for the remainder of the contest.
With all those personnel losses, Philadelphia couldn't ignite a spark in soggy conditions. Backup wide receiver Darius Cooper hauled in two touchdown passes, but Jalen Hurts completed just 12 of 27 passes for 93 yards. Before also leaving the game in the fourth quarter, backup running back Tank Bigsby had 14 carries for 55 yards.
"I'm never gonna use anything as an excuse," Sirianni said. "We have to look ourselves in the mirror. We have to pick ourselves back up. ... All of have things to get better from - I don't care who's on the field."
The Eagles had repeated chances to stave off the Rams' fourth-quarter comeback bid. On its longest drive of the day – a 62-yard march – Philadelphia came up empty after Hurts' fourth-and-goal pass to Cooper from the 2-yard line fell short.
From there, a previously listless Los Angeles offense found new life. The Rams went 98 yards on 10 plays to make it a one-score game.
The Eagles subsequently went 1 yard on a three-and-out, and the Rams responded by going 79 yards on 10 plays, taking the lead on a 7-yard run by running back Kyren Williams.
Now, Philadelphia and first-year offensive coordinator Sean Mannion face the imposing task of finding their footing in their Week 5 London matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
