Eagles receivers Smith and Brown complain about vanishing pass offense during winning streak

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Let’s get the good news in Philadelphia out of the way first. The Eagles are riding a nine-game winning streak, Saquon Barkley is making a serious run at the NFL season rushing record and a playoff berth was clinched for the fourth straight year under coach Nick Sirianni.

Now, about all that grumbling ... .

Yes, Philly sports fans, media and social media doomsayers are usually the ones with a complaint even in the best of times for the pro teams.

Perhaps it’s a bit unsettling around Philadelphia, then, that the grousing after a win over Carolina this weekend came from inside the locker room. Wide receivers DeVonta Smith and A.J. Brown, and even Jalen Hurts, made public their complaints about the state of the (diminishing) passing game, putting the coaching staff on notice that enough was enough and it was time to rev up the engine on a pair of 1,000-yard receivers and get the offense humming headed into the postseason.

Even Sirianni conceded that yes, it was fair to raise questions about an offense that allowed Smith and Brown to combine for only eight catches and 80 yards.

The problem this week?

“Being on the same page,” Smith said.

Smith is coming off consecutive 1,000-yard receiving seasons and has yet to break 100 in a game this season. Brown has four 100-yard games, well off last season's run when he topped 100 yards in six straight games and seven times overall.

Hurts threw for just 108 yards with two TDs passing and one rushing score.

Should an offense getting on the same page develop into this much of a concern for the Eagles (11-2) after 13 games?

“No. I just say no," Hurts said.

There are reasons the numbers are down.

The easy one, of course, is that the traditionally pass-happy Eagles have leaned on Barkley and his team-record 1,623 yards to steer the offense in his first season. Hurts also shoulders his share of the blame given his propensity for holding on to the ball. He was sacked four times and missed Smith and Brown the few times he did chuck the ball deep to open receivers on long routes. Hurts didn’t throw Brown the ball a couple of times when he was open, including on a TD pass to Smith.

“Have to find a way to come together and come and sync as a unit and play complementary ball,” Hurts said.

Hurts has topped 300 yards passing only once this season and his last three games are at 179-118-108. He does have only five interceptions and has thrown just one during the winning streak.

What needs help

The offensive woes start at the beginning. The Eagles have yet to score a touchdown on their opening possession through the first 13 games and average only 10.7 points in the first half.

They had only 46 total yards in the first quarter. The slow starts are one reason why teams with losing records such as Carolina, Jacksonville and Cleveland are able to keep games close at the Linc and make last-gasp drives at an upset victory.

What's working

The running game.

That really only means one name: Barkley.

Barkley rushed for 124 yards to break the Eagles' season record, and Eric Dickerson's NFL mark is in his sights.

Barkley needed just 13 games to pass McCoy, who rushed for 1,607 yards in 2013. Barkley also maintained his pace to break Dickerson’s NFL single-season rushing record of 2,105 yards, set in 1984 with the Los Angeles Rams.

Barkley is averaging 124.8 yards per game. At that pace and with one more game to play than Dickerson, he would become the top single-season rusher in NFL history. He needs 483 yards over the final four games to top Dickerson’s 40-year-old record. Barkley is one pace for 2,122 yards, just 17 yards beyond Dickerson’s 2,105 total.

Stock up

Linebackers Zack Baun and Nakobe Dean. Dean led the Eagles with 12 tackles while Baun had 11 tackles and a sack. They both had strong games in shutting down Carolina's — albeit banged-up — running game.

Stock down

Jake Elliott. Elliott was wide right on a 52-yard attempt in the third quarter and has missed all five attempts of 50-plus yards this season.

Injuries

Safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson was evaluated for a concussion and treated for an additional injury in the fourth quarter but had a game-changing interception.

Key number

9 — The Eagles won nine straight games only three other times, in the 2017, 2003 and 1960 seasons.

Next steps

The Eagles host cross-state rival Pittsburgh in a potential all-Pennsylvania Super Bowl preview.

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Dan Gelston, The Associated Press