The Philadelphia Eagles are becoming must-see TV for all the wrong reasons in the fourth quarter. They are the NFL’s ultimate cardiac kids. Jalen Hurts and co. are doing it like a skilled golfer birdying the front nine only to spend the back nine scrambling from the sand traps. The Birds are 4-0, but this perfect record is a wild, unpredictable ride.
This team keeps you guessing until the final second ticks away. Just ask any fan who spent Sunday afternoon gripping their recliner.
Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni issued a stark warning following a historic 31-25 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 4. He saw the glaring issues hidden within the victory. Hurts then provided the perfect response. Sirianni’s message to the team was clear and direct.
The coach's challenge was, "Don't let good get in the way of great." Hurts explained the quarterback's interpretation. “This has been his message all week. 'Don't let good get in the way of great,'” Hurts said. “And it's a challenge to not settle for good. It's a challenge to be critical of yourselves as players, as coaches, everybody, and say, 'How can we be greater than what we are?'” This mindset is now the team's guiding principle.
The Eagles' first half was an absolute masterpiece. Hurts was nearly perfect, completing 15 of 16 passes. They built a commanding 24-6 lead with creative play-calling. Special teams even opened the game with a blocked punt for a touchdown. They looked unstoppable. Then began the dreaded second half. It was quite the opposite of what we had seen in the Rams game last week.
The offense completely vanished. The Eagles managed a mere 33 total yards after halftime. Hurts went 0-for-8 passing. The comfortable lead began to evaporate quickly. This collapse nearly cost them the game. Meanwhile, the defense became the hero with clutch plays to seal the win.
Sirianni's Warning & the Way Forward
Sirianni’s critique points directly to the team's inconsistency. He refused to single out one unit, emphasizing the collective failure. “Running game, passing game, it was everything. It wasn’t just—you can't single out one,” Sirianni said. The stats support his frustration entirely. A simple comparison tells the whole story:
- First Half Yards: 201
- Second Half Yards: 33
This Jekyll and Hyde act in consecutive games is a ticking clock for a Super Bowl contender. And the Eagles need to find a way to win comprehensively. In a way that doesn't keep the fans on the edge of their seats throughout the 60 minutes of play.
The Birds have now won 20 of their last 21 games, finding a different hero each week. But Hurts knows the truth. “Talent wins you games, but a certain level of team—collective play, collective attacking, and intelligence in the game—that wins you championships,” he said. The Eagles have the talent. They’ve got the wins. Now they need the consistency. Because good teams win in September. Great ones win in January.
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As the plane lifted off from Tampa, the message was clear: enjoy the win, but don’t believe the hype. The standard isn’t 4-0. It’s 60 minutes of dominance. And until they play it, the warning stands.