5 Eagles other than Jalen Hurts who need to bounce back in Week 6 vs. Browns

The bye week has ended. The Philadelphia Eagles are back at work. Sydney Brown and Ainias Smith are practicing.

Many are worried about Jalen Hurts after his last performance. He didn't look too hot against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He has to be more careful with the football, and that has been discussed all season.

We have stated this team will go as far as Jalen Hurts can take them. Unfortunately, they can also perform as poorly as QB1 does too.

A stellar performance is needed, and that's obvious. Jalen hasn't been as awful as Deshaun Watson, but much rides on his performance and the performance of others. Here are a handful of Birds worth mentioning.

Nick Sirianni, head coach

At this point, any comment about Nick Sirianni feels like we're picking on him. There's only so many times we can discuss his role and in-game decision making. He's been bad, and in some cases, he's been awful.

He has also been very good coming out of bye weeks. Currently, he owns a 3-0 record.

Week 4's loss was disappointing. A better showing versus the Cleveland Browns would help a hurting city heel. He and his team had better be ready. We believe they will be.

Must read: Eagles are right to start Cooper DeJean in Week 6

AJ Brown (returning from injury)

AJ Brown didn't just miss Week 4's loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He also missed last January's Wild Card loss to these same Bucs... And, he missed weeks two and three versus the Atlanta Falcons and New Orleans Saints.

In other words, he has only played in one of the Eagles' five most recent games, Week 1's season opener in Brazil.

No one needs to be reminded of how great he is. It will be a joy to see him on the field again, and we're certain he'll enjoy being back in the lineup.

Darius Slay, cornerback

Darius Slay isn't necessarily 'public enemy number one' per se, but he's certainly been kicked out of the bedroom to sleep on the sofa. His loyalty, desire, and commitment to this team have been questioned. Others have gone so far to state he should be stripped of his captain's patch.

Our most recent memories of Slay include watching him give up a touchdown and his appearance on Micah Parsons' podcast. Some view the latter offense as unforgivable. You can certainly understand why, right?

He has since apologized, sort of. Well... He explained his side. Let's say that. That's more representative of the facts. Still, a decent performance in Philly's next game can certainly serve as a make-up date.

Bryce Huff, EDGE

We know what you are thinking. In order for Bryce Huff to have a 'bounce-back game', he first must have some success and then some adversity to battle back from. That hasn't been the case.

With four Eagles regular-season games and five weeks of the NFL season behind us, he ranks 96th in solo tackles (3), 122nd in stops (1), and 100th in total pressures (3). It's worth mentioning he agreed to sign a three-year, $51.1 million contract in March.

Saying Philly isn't getting a return on their investment is, shall we say, missing the mark slightly. So, rather than call this his 'bounce back', let's instead call this his 'breakout'. A good showing would certainly improve the fans' confidence in him and the confidence he has in himself.

Vic Fangio, defensive coordinator

I am, admittedly, less of a fan of Vic Fangio than everyone else is. I have been saying he's overrated for years. He had a nice idea. A copycat NFL followed suit. Jonathan Gannon ran a variation of his scheme in Philly during the 2022-23 season.

Offensive coaches have since caught up with him, maybe because they see variations of his scheme constantly, Vic needed to adjust at that point. He hasn't.

Remember when Philly hired Fangio as a special consultant to help Philly limit Patrick Mahomes in Super Bowl LVII. How did that work out?