𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

PHILADELPHIA — Three of the Philadelphia Eagles’ most influential offensive players met together on Monday, the day after the defending Super Bowl champions’ first loss of the season. Jalen Hurts and Saquon Barkley confirmed a report by Philly Voice that they, along with A.J. Brown, had a discussion that lasted a couple of hours, but both players kept the details of their conversation private.

“I feel like that conversation is meant to stay between us,” said Barkley, who expressed he wished their meeting hadn’t become public. “The focus was all about the team, and I think it was a good thing.”

Barkley corrected a reporter’s intimation that it was like a players’ meeting.

“When you hear ‘players’ meeting,’ that’s like all hell’s breaking loose,” Barkley said. “It wasn’t that at all. But also that we’re teammates. We’re all friends. Like, we’re just having a conversation.”

Hurts said the meeting involved “really just teammates being teammates.” The sixth-year quarterback and reigning Super Bowl MVP said they were “talking about the collective, talking about taking ownership for what we can, talking about how we move forward as a team so we can continue to find ways to win games.”

Pressed further about their meeting, Hurts steered toward the team’s Thursday night game against the New York Giants by saying, “I don’t want to make this about that.”

“We’ve got a short week,” Hurts said. “We’ve got a division opponent coming in here. I enjoyed every second of it. And I’m enjoying every second of every opportunity we have to improve. That’s what I’ve always made it about. That’s what I continue to make it about.

“It’s truly about the collective and what we do and the opportunities we have in front of us. Everybody in this building just wants to take advantage of that.”

The inconsistency the offense has experienced in its slow start under first-time offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo is well–documented. Their run game is inefficient, and they have, at times, shelved it. Their pass-oriented approach is sometimes explosive and other times stagnant. Hurts and Brown are at times not on the same page. The Eagles are penalized and undisciplined in critical moments. They are 4-1.

However, Brown has said the Eagles’ “defense and special teams have been low-key carrying us.” They know from the 2023 collapse that they cannot allow their offensive problems to persist.

“I know it hasn’t shown in a consistent way throughout the first five games,” Barkley said. “But there’s been sparks. There’s been halves where we look untouchable. There’s been halves where we look really bad. I know I’ve said it before, but we just have to continue to have more halves of us playing at a high level.

“So, I don’t think just our conversation. I think it’s just the way that the mindset of this team and of this offense and how we work and who we believe we can be.”

Asked about his trio of players meeting, Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said Wednesday, “Love the fact that we all get together and are looking for solutions to continue to get better.”

“That’s just not a coaching thing,” Sirianni added. “That’s just not leaders on the football team. That’s this team. That’s the mindset of this team: How do we keep getting better and play our best football by the end of the year? You love that. You love that for all the guys.”

Sirianni is a detail-oriented coach who embraced a CEO-style role before the 2024 season. In that capacity, keeping his finger on the pulse of the locker room and maintaining its relationships are among his chief responsibilities.

Sirianni related Hurts, Barkley, and Brown’s meeting to the Week 5 bye in 2024, when Hurts and Sirianni spoke frequently. The offensive line also consulted with the offensive coordinator at the time, Kellen Moore, and they shifted toward a run-oriented approach that led to the franchise’s second Super Bowl title.

“This isn’t all that different than last year, going through these things as well,” Sirianni said. “You buckle down. You find solutions. You find answers to the problems and you work yourself to get better from that. That’s what it’s about. That’s how you grow. That’s a mental toughness thing. Obviously, we’re all going through that in trying to get better.”