The Philadelphia Eagles were favored to win by double digits in Week 17 against one of the worst teams in the NFL, the Arizona Cardinals. Instead, the Eagles blew a 15-point lead after the half and ultimately lost 35-31. It was easily the Birds’ worst loss of the season.
Afterward, Hurts didn’t have much to say and credited the Cardinals, who didn’t punt once all day. “Just thinking about ways we could have been better,” Hurts said post-game. “Thinking about ways we could have been better, been more efficient. Just really taking advantage of our opportunities, you know, that’s the goal. That’s what we strive for. Strive to take advantage of everyone. You know, credit to them and the way they played and hung in there. Great credit to them.”
Hurts wasn’t the reason the Eagles lost this one. He completed 18 of 23 passes for 167 yards and three touchdowns with one interception. He also added 25 yards on eight attempts on the ground. The Eagles’ playcalling was extremely questionable, especially during the fourth quarter when they blew a 1st-and-20 situation where they chose to run the ball twice and throw a short screen pass that only got them five yards and they were forced to punt.
Rather than pointing fingers, Hurts blamed himself for not executing the sequence well enough. “Yeah, I don’t think we executed it well enough, the situation as is,” he said. “So I have to watch the film and kind of assess it after doing that.” Should the Eagles have been more aggressive on that drive?
With as many receiving weapons as the Eagles have, it’s easy to say yes. However, Hurts believes otherwise. “I would like to do whatever works,” Hurts said. “I think again it is result based. We live and die on whatever we go out there and do. That particular opportunity, it didn’t get us where we want it in the end, but it’s tough to be in that situation. You get the holding call.
I don’t remember the sequence, but you get the holding call and you kind of go backwards and they get enough yardage in those first two downs to put ourselves in a good situation. So you know, they give us the ball inside of the 50 and we just have to handle and execute and manage that situation a lot better.”
Where the Eagles go from here remains to be seen, but for now, Hurts and Co. will try to finish the regular season strong when they take on the New York Giants next Sunday afternoon. “Focusing on the things you can control, focusing on the things you can control,” Hurrts said. “Purely that. Putting the focus on you doing your job, challenging yourself, committing yourself to bring the best out of yourself. And leaving it at that, you know, trusting in that process.”
