The Eagles offense struggled mightily throughout much of Sunday’s 31–15 loss to Tom Brady and the Patriots. While Brady finished 29–37 for 271 passing yards and two touchdowns, his counterpart Jalen Hurts tallied a pair of interceptions and zero touchdowns until the fourth quarter. Fox analyst Troy Aikman wasn’t impressed with Hurts and Philadelphia's performance.
“Those throws, they should be pretty simple completions,“ Aikman said during Sunday’s broadcast after another errant pass attempt from Hurts. ”They just haven’t been.”
Aikman was also critical of Philadelphia’s game plan, especially regarding rookie receiver DeVonta Smith.
“DeVonta Smith has had a lot of 1-on-1 coverage. And he’s open” Aikman said. “If teams defended Michael Irvin like that, he’d have 10 catches in that first half. Instead it’s a lot of scheme for not many yards.”
Perhaps Aikman should have some sympathy for Hurts considering how the former Cowboys quarterback performed in his first career playoff appearance. Aikman tallied 11 completions for just 114 yards in a 38–6 loss to Detroit in January 1992, adding an interception.
The Eagles reached the postseason for the fourth time in five seasons in 2021. Hurts finished the regular season with 16 passing touchdowns and nine interceptions, adding 10 scores on the ground.
