Eagles-Cardinals analysis: Reeling Birds collapse again as Jonathan Gannon comes back to haunt them

The Eagles’ lack of consistency caught up to them in a major way Sunday.

The anxiety rose at Lincoln Financial Field throughout the afternoon and eventually gave way to anger as the Eagles fell to the Arizona Cardinals, 35-31.

The Cardinals scored on each of their final four drives, with running back James Conner dealing the final knockout punch to the free-falling Eagles defense from 2 yards out in the closing minute. They were stunned by a previously three-win team and are reeling going into the season’s final week.

» READ MORE: Eagles grades: Coaching, defense fail the Eagles down in loss to Cardinals

The collapse moves the Eagles to 11-5, with a significantly more murky playoff outlook than they entered Sunday with. Given the recent results, playoff outlooks may not matter in the long-term much anyway. For now, the loss clinched the NFC’s No. 1 seed for the San Francisco 49ers and leaves the NFC East crown up for grabs next week with the Dallas Cowboys now controlling their own destiny.

“You always want to win the division and you always want to play at home,” Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said. “The 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. We’re not where we want to be right yet as far as how we’re playing right now and how we’re coaching right now, but we’ve got time to get it fixed.”

Back in his old haunts, Cardinals coach Jonathan Gannon employed a strategy he saw other teams employ against him during his two-year tenure as Eagles defensive coordinator.

The Cardinals sought to dominate the time of possession and did exactly that, reeling off four drives that lasted five minutes or more, including one series that lasted nearly 10 minutes and another that ate 7 minutes, 46 seconds of game time in the first quarter.

The Eagles offense went long stretches of the game without seeing the field, finishing with 20:21 of possession compared to the Cardinals’ 39:39. It was a strategy the Washington Commanders used against the Eagles last season in a 32-21 loss, something Sirianni said Gannon may have used as a blueprint for this weekend.

“I think he probably thought about the Washington game last year where Washington was able to control the clock and keep our offense off the field,” Sirianni said.

“They controlled the game by running the football. Obviously, we weren’t good enough there stopping the run and they were able to take a lot of chunks off the clock. I think they did a good job executing but we know we have to be better putting the guys in position to succeed and also executing.”

Arizona, which ranked 24th in yards per game going into Sunday, finished the day with a staggering 449 yards. Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray finished 25-for-31 for 232 yards with three touchdowns and one interception. Conner finished with 128 yards and the decisive score on 26 carries. Conner also hauled in a one-handed receiving touchdown in the third quarter.

“We weren’t able to get off the field,” Eagles edge rusher Haason Reddick said. “That’s the hardest part of it. They kept sustaining drives. It’s something we’ve got to look at and go from there.”

The concerning lack of effective pass rush from the Eagles defense reared its ugly head once again, giving the Cardinals a chance to mount their comeback at the start of the second half.

The Eagles started the third quarter leading 21-6 but finished it tied at 21 after two Arizona series that combined for 19 plays, 152 yards, two touchdowns, and one two-point conversion. The fourth quarter didn’t offer much respite, with Arizona reeling off another lengthy touchdown drive with minimal pass rush from the Eagles’ defensive front.

The Eagles didn’t register a sack on any of Murray’s nine passing attempts in the quarter, including a confounding missed tackle from Josh Sweat. The edge rusher had Murray in his grasp before the quarterback wriggled free and tossed a 5-yard touchdown pass to Conner. The following play, he found Michael Wilson in the back of the end zone for two points to tie things up.

The Eagles finished the game with just one sack from Jalen Carter, which came in the first half. They came into the week ranked 14th in sacks one season removed from a 70-sack campaign that led the league and went down as the third-highest total in NFL history.

The defensive regression, particularly on third downs, has persisted despite Sirianni’s decision to replace Sean Desai with Matt Patricia as the leader of the defense. The Cardinals went 5-for-10 on third downs Sunday.

When asked if it was frustrating for the defense not to find its footing after the coaching shakeup, Reddick said he had no comment.

“I’m just doing what I’m told at the end of the day,” Reddick said. “I’m going out there, trying to play great ball and doing what I’m asked to do.”

Sydney Brown’s first career interception will be hard to forget.

The Eagles rookie safety got underneath an errant throw by Murray midway through the second quarter and capped it off with an impressive 99-yard return for a touchdown, a return that struck a striking resemblance to his twin brother, Cincinnati Bengals running back Chase Brown.

The rookie was filling in for an injured Reed Blankenship on the play, but has seen an uptick in playing time in the last few games. He has played more than 70% of the team’s defensive snaps in each of the last three games and has been used in multiple spots since Patricia took over as de facto defensive coordinator.

Given an expanded opportunity, Julio Jones wound back the clock.

The 34-year-old receiver turned in the type of performance that made him one of the best receivers in the game for the better part of a decade, scoring two touchdowns on two catches for 34 yards.

Since joining the Eagles in October, Jones has had a relatively limited role in the passing attack. His first touchdown catch came against the Washington Commanders in Week 8, but he came into Sunday with just seven catches on 13 targets, four of which came against the New York Giants last week. Jones’ increased workload continued against the Cardinals, the veteran accounting for the Eagles’ two offensive touchdowns in the first half.

The first came on a deep crossing route. Jones got a step on Cardinals cornerback Starling Thomas V in man coverage and Jalen Hurts found him for a 12-yard score to cap off the team’s second offensive series.

Jones’ performance underscored a reasonably strong day for the offense, although the Cardinals’ ball-control philosophy rendered it a moot point.

The Eagles’ surprising loss comes with significant consequences in terms of playoff seeding.

The No. 1 seed and the first-round bye that comes with it are no longer in play after a 49ers win over the Washington Commanders. The Eagles no longer control their own destiny in the NFC East, either, currently tied with the Cowboys but losing the common-opponent tiebreaker because of the loss. The Eagles will need to beat the Giants and have the Cowboys lose to the Commanders at FedEx Field next weekend to clinch the division.

The Eagles sit at the No. 5 seed, which is their most likely scenario by a wide margin. If they stay there, they’ll face the winner of the NFC South on the road in the wild-card round of the playoffs.

“We’ve got to get tight for real,” Eagles defensive end Brandon Graham said. “We’ve got another week to make sure we’re building this thing and then it’s week-to-week. You’ve got to have a sense of urgency even more because everything is coming. It’s for us, it’s what we’re going to do with it. ... I didn’t get this far to quit or lay down. We ain’t done yet. We still have life.”