Eagles’ Jalen Hurts Faces Criticism Amid Offensive Struggles

In 2025, the Eagles’ offense wasn’t exactly thriving, and much of the blame points to Jalen Hurts.

As the Super Bowl champion quarterback, Hurts finds himself under scrutiny for the team’s offensive decline and overall struggles this past season, according to sources.

After their Super Bowl triumph, Philadelphia faced an early playoff exit, averaging the fewest points during Hurts’ five years as a starter. This led to the departure of offensive coordinator Kevin Pattullo and speculation about a trade for the frustrated veteran receiver AJ Brown.

Reportedly, he’s resisted changes aimed at diversifying the offensive strategy, such as playing more under center. He’s shown hesitance to break down plays against zone coverage, often deviating from the game plan, which some coaches find excessive. Sources suggest that while his strong preferences and the coaches’ focus on his strengths—like deep passing—have limited offensive growth, it’s unclear if that will change.

After a season that seemed promising, there’s now considerable uncertainty surrounding the organization—more than at any other time during Hurts’ tenure.

Once viewed as an offensive juggernaut, Philadelphia struggled to establish a solid passing game, with opposing defenses finding ways to stymie their plays.

Quarterbacks tend to receive the most scrutiny in scenarios like this, but it’s as if Hurts has become an easier target, possibly due to his running style.

Even when he led the team to a Super Bowl victory, questions lingered about his passing skills, and he didn’t do much to clear those doubts last season.

It’s not like these issues suddenly arose; before, winning often masked them.

There were indications that Hurts wasn’t completely on board with the strategies proposed by former offensive coordinator Kellen Moore, which included fewer motions and shifts.

Some insiders described the relationship with the coaching staff as strained. While a source indicated Hurts might abandon plays if he wasn’t seeing immediate results, someone close to him argued that he wasn’t fundamentally against motion or shift tactics.

Though Hurts and Moore enjoyed success together, Pattullo managed an offense hampered by a less effective offensive line.

Players reportedly began to lose faith in Pattullo throughout the season as the offense continued to flounder.

One source mentioned that Hurts needs a coach who will actively check in with him, but the current coaching staff is perceived to have too many “yes people.” Pattullo was not singled out here, however.

Eagles Points Per Game During Hurts’ Start

In 2025, teams successfully contained the Eagles’ rushing attack, leading Hurts to post his lowest rushing stats in five seasons as the starter—only 105 attempts for 421 yards.

Although he performed well against zone coverage, completing 56.2% of his dropbacks, he hasn’t been able to make big plays against it, which affected Brown’s productivity significantly.

Brown, for instance, had less than 50 receiving yards in seven out of 16 games, including the playoffs, and notably had a mere three catches for 25 yards during a home defeat against the 49ers.

Pattullo intended to implement more under-center plays to adapt to defensive tendencies, but he faced pushback from Hurts, who prefers reading the play in front of him rather than turning his back on the defense.

The Eagles largely resort to shotgun formations.

While Hurts seems eager to make changes, the outcomes haven’t always been favorable. There was even an incident where he mishandled a call on a crucial fourth down, almost costing the Eagles a game against the Packers.

“You never know what kind of play is going to come out of the huddle,” a team official remarked.

His serious demeanor has also led to speculation about its impact on his teammates. Some team members indicated that his body language isn’t always conducive to team dynamics.

One official noted that Hurts has reached a point of confidence, declaring, “I’m the guy,” something he hadn’t exhibited since his freshman year at Alabama, and he still grapples with balancing that pressure.

His relationship with Brown seemed to grow strained, with Brown expressing dissatisfaction with the offensive direction throughout the year.

For now, Hurts remains with the Eagles, but rumors swirl about a potential trade during the upcoming NFL Draft. The current atmosphere between Hurts and Brown is described as “not good,” with reports indicating they spent little time together.

Various insiders suggest that Hurts played a role in this year’s setbacks and must gear up for a pivotal 2026 season. “He’s had a lot of success and will keep it going,” an anonymous teammate shared. “But learning something new each year can be exhausting. He’s fighting through it.”