In the wake of Sunday evening's offensive showing in New England, the Eagles might take a different approach to their 2024 season.
Nick Sirianni elected not to play Jalen Hurts and many Philadelphia offensive starters at all across his team's three-game August slate. So, when the Eagles began their Week 1 battle with the Patriots, it marked many important Philly players' first real game action since Super Bowl LVII last February.
The results weren't pretty. The Birds' offense was lousy for most of the night in Foxboro, Mass., and quite frankly, the visitors were fortunate the Patriots didn't capitalize on their late-game opportunities. The close call made Sirianni look back at his summer prep.
"I'll definitely re-evaluate some of the preseason stuff next year," Sirianni told reporters, per ESPN. "Maybe I should have played (Hurts) a series or two this preseason, and I already wrote that in my notes.
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"You know, second thought, if I had to do it over again right now, I would say, yeah, I would have played starters one or two drives in the preseason."
No preseason action probably wasn't a prevailing factor for Philly's sluggish offense. After all, the reigning NFC champions were playing in suboptimal weather conditions and the Patriots appear to have a great defense. That said, it probably wouldn't have hurt to get Hurts and company's feet wet before the real games began.
With a full 60 minutes of real football under their belt, the Eagles are primed to look sharper Thursday when they host the Minnesota Vikings.
Featured image via Bill Streicher/USA TODAY Sports Images