Who's to blame for Eagles shocking collapse? Five places to point fingers

Oct 29, 2026 at 2:05 pm ET • 6 min read

Less than two years ago, the Philadelphia Eagles hoisted the Vince Lombardi Trophy after dethroning the two-time defending champion Kansas City Chiefs in dominating fashion. Philadelphia's 40-22 victory capped off a memorable season that led many to believe that more championships would soon follow. 

All of that promise has failed to materialize. The Eagles endured a tumultuous 2025 season that ended with a punchless loss in the NFC wild-card round. Philadelphia is in a total free fall this season; they're 2-5 and -- barring a miracle -- will suffer its first losing season during the Nick Sirianni era. 

Who's to blame for the Eagles' collapse? Here's a rundown of the culprits. 

1. Howie Roseman 

Don't get it twisted; Roseman is a future Hall of Fame general manager. He's the architect of two world championship rosters and three NFC championship rosters. He's hired two Super Bowl-winning coaches and built rosters that defeated Tom Brady's Patriots with a backup quarterback and Patrick Mahomes' Chiefs with arguably the best roster since 2000. 

Roseman deserves a heap of credit when the Eagles win, so it's only right that he's held accountable when they lose, even when circumstances happen that are out of his control. 

The job of a general manager is to field teams that are capable of overcoming injuries and adversity. This Eagles team hasn't been able to do that, which is an indictment of the GM who built the roster. 

Roseman's biggest whiffs have been on offensive personnel moves. They needed a better succession plan for Lane Johnson. They needed to lessen Saquon Barkley's workload while pairing him with another capable running back. They needed to hire a proven and experienced offensive coordinator. 

One of the biggest misses, at least so far, was the handling of the receiver position. Roseman knew AJ Brown's history when he traded for him back in 2022, and while the result was a Super Bowl win, it ended with a nasty divorce, which was predictable given how Brown's time in Nashville ended. 

Instead of replacing Brown with another star receiver, Roseman tried the Moneyball approach by trying to replace his production with several players, including first-round pick Makai Lemon. So far, that plan hasn't worked. 

One of the few positives from this season is that it gives Roseman another opportunity to work his magic as a rebuilder. 

2. Nick Sirianni 

Like Roseman, Sirianni has had to deal with issues outside of his control. He deserves credit for handling the storm and not losing the locker room. The Eagles aren't winning, but they are still competing and trying to win. That is significant. 

Sirianni hasn't helped the Eagles' current situation with some of his decisions, however. His biggest whiffs have been his attempts to replace Kellen Moore, who departed to become the Saints' coach after helping the Eagles win the Super Bowl. 

Moore's first successor, Kevin Patullo, had never been an offensive coordinator prior to getting the keys to the Eagles' offense last season. The Eagles' offense quickly regressed under Patullo, who remained the team's play caller throughout the season despite the unit's early struggles. 

Instead of learning from that experience and hiring a more seasoned coordinator, Sirianni hired Sean Mannion, who, like Patullo, had never been an NFL offensive coordinator prior to this season. The Eagles' offense is better this season than they were under Patullo, but that really isn't saying much. 

Honestly, Sirianni's decision to hire another first-year offensive coordinator following last year's disaster is inexcusable, and it's one of the reasons why Philadelphia's 2026 season was set up for failure even before the injuries started to mount. 

3. Injuries 

I'm always hesitant to use injuries as an excuse for NFL teams. Football is a violent sport, and injuries are unfortunately part of the game. Every team has to deal with it. 

Even with that understanding, the Eagles have dealt with an outrageous number of injuries that proved insurmountable. They were also hit with Johnson's unexpected retirement. 

Hurts' health situation is obviously the most notable of Philadelphia's injuries. It's hard to win in the NFL; it's almost impossible to do so without your starting quarterback unless you have the next Tom Brady or Brock Purdy in the bullpen. 

The Eagles have been under the microscope for their initial handling of Hurts' medical situation, but they will not face punishment from the NFL. Football aside, Hurts' long-term well-being is now taking precedence, as it should. 

Hurts is one of several key Eagles players who have been sidelined this season. Barkley has missed time with a hamstring injury. He played during Monday night's loss to the Cowboys and had success early before he was basically put on the shelf in the second half. 

It's easy to say this in hindsight, but the Eagles should have seen this coming with Barkley, who had his share of injuries with the Giants. Barkley started to show signs of slowing down last season, a year after his record-setting, 2,000-yard season. 

Most backs who have run for 2,000 yards never come close to reaching that level of success again. Just about all of them, sans Derrick Henry and Adrian Peterson, experience a much shorter prime due to the wear and tear of that season and other previous seasons. 

Barkley's role didn't change, however, and while injuries are often freak accidents, it's safe to wonder whether his latest injury is at least a byproduct of overuse. 

4. Victim of past success 

The NFL is a parity-driven league. Teams that have success often struggle to sustain it because of how the league works (the bad teams get better draft picks, etc.). That has been the case for the Eagles, especially in the case of free agency. 

Shortly after their Super Bowl win, the Eagles lost several key players, including pass rusher Josh Sweat and defensive lineman Milton Williams. They really took a hit on the offensive line, a unit that paved the way for Barkley's historic season and Hurts' MVP performance against the Chiefs. 

Philadelphia was able to retain some of their stars, including DeVonta Smith and Zack Baun. But that has contributed to the Eagles not being bigger players in free agency. 

5. AJ Brown

Seldom does one player make such an impact -- both good and bad -- on a team, but that's exactly what transpired between Brown and the Eagles. Brown played a huge role in Philadelphia's success from 2022-24. The Eagles don't win a Super Bowl without him. But he is also a big reason for the team's current demise. 

Imagine Lynn Swann leaving Pittsburgh or Michael Irvin leaving Dallas during their dynasties. That's what actually happened in Philadelphia when Brown was traded to New England. 

His cryptic actions last year undoubtedly contributed to the Eagles' unsuccessful title defense. His subsequent trade continues to haunt the team in 2026. 

Brown's absence left a massive void in the Eagles' offense that has yet to be filled. Even in the season's first two weeks, when Hurts was healthy and the Eagles were 2-0, it was clear that the offense was still underperforming. 

The Eagles' new receivers haven't been able to make up for his absence, and while Lemon is starting to flash more signs of his first-round potential, it won't make up for Brown's departure, at least not in 2026.