The Philadelphia Eagles fell at home, 35-31, to the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday, a brutal outing that saw Philly lose control of the NFC East, dropping behind Dallas with a game left.
Coach Nick Sirianni knows if they want to return to the Super Bowl, the Eagles must figure out their issues quickly.
"Path might be harder, but shoot, our goals are ahead of us. We have to get things fixed, and we have to get them fixed fast," he said, via the team transcript. "We are not where we want to be right yet as far as how we are playing right now and how we are coaching right now but we've got time to get it fixed and we'll get back to work tonight and tomorrow."
The issues have been the same all season: an uneven offensive performance and a defense that can't get big stops.
Sirianni has tried to stem the tide, even turning defensive play-calling over to Matt Patricia, but nothing has worked. The Eagles have lost four of their past five games after starting the season 10-1. Sunday's loss means the Cowboys need only a Week 18 win over Washington to clinch the NFC East crown.
"Stick together. Stick together. Everyone's got to stick together," Sirianni said. "I think there's going to be a lot of people trying to point the finger at different things and everybody's got to stick together, right. We win as a team. We lose as a team. And together is the most important thing that we can be right now."
The 2023 Eagles are defined by never truly putting together a complete game. Even during their early-season run, they'd get through by the skin of their teeth. If it wasn't one thing, it was another. Defensive breakdowns. Offensive turnovers. Questionable play-calling. Early in the season, Philly did just enough to overcome the miscues. In the crucible of December, however, the issues came back to bite them.
In the last five weeks, the Eagles generated a -42 point differential, -170 total yards margin and allowed 31.0 points per game. Their only win since Thanksgiving weekend came against the New York Giants. They'll need to beat Big Blue again and get some help from Washington to avoid entering the postseason as a wild-card team.
The sky feels like it's falling in Philly right now. Teams want to be playing their best ball entering the postseason. It's the opposite for Sirianni's squad right now. Time is running out, but the clock hasn't hit triple zeros just yet.
"Worry and concern don't get any problems fixed," Sirianni said. "It doesn't fix anything. Getting in there, grinding, figuring out what the answers are, that's what gets things fixed. Worry and concern does not."