Open Arms

One of the more compelling storylines going into the 2024 season for the Eagles concerned an expectedly innovative offense presided over by newly appointed coordinator Kellen Moore. At the heart of the matter, specifically, was how the offense would look with Jalen Hurts, an MVP candidate in 2022, at the helm.

Hurts, after all, had alluded to the considerable newness of that iteration of the offense that spring.

The offense, as expected, took some time to find its groove. Moore, who joined the Eagles following a one-year stint as the Los Angeles Chargers’ offensive coordinator, had to familiarize himself with his personnel while implementing his system.

Moore, now head coach of the New Orleans Saints, of course brought with him fresh concepts. But the acclimation period, at least as it pertained to the overall cohesion of the passing game, required some patience.

As the start another NFL season looms, the coach overseeing the offense has changed. The storyline, however, remains the same.

In the wake of losing Moore to a head coaching opportunity, the Eagles promoted pass game coordinator/associate head coach Kevin Patullo to fill the vacancy. Patullo, a long-time colleague of head coach Nick Sirianni and trusted confidant, was part of Sirianni’s initial staff with the Eagles in 2021. He became Hurts’ sixth different play-caller in as many seasons.

Unlike Moore, though, the transition to Patullo shouldn’t require a similar adaptation process because of his rapport and familiarity with the personnel. Most notable is that Patullo is entering his fifth season of working with Hurts in some capacity. Instead of going through the introductory process and learning one another’s idiosyncrasies in limited time, the efforts spent on the practice field can be maximized.

Patullo’s promotion comes with a unique perspective, as the first-time play-caller is already well versed in the strengths of his star quarterback. Patullo has a foundation on which to build while also coming in with the knowledge of specific focus areas. He’ll now be tasked with presiding over an offense that propels the reigning Super Bowl MVP to new heights.

When Patullo spoke this spring, he touched on their relationship while also highlighting Hurts’ work ethic and sustained pursuit of knowledge.

“I mean, I’ve been here with him since day one and it’s been great,” Patullo said. “He works extremely hard, we all know that. He’s super-detailed in what he does and the biggest thing with him is he always wants to get better, and that’s awesome.

“He’s willing to listen to anybody about anything. If he feels like it’s going to get him better, he’s willing to take it and try it. Then the best part of it is the dialogue after.”

GETTY IMAGES: Eagles QB Jalen Hurts (left) and HC Nick Sirianni enter their fifth season together having already made two Super Bowls and winning one.

In that press conference, Patullo referred to a specific practice the day before and said, “He’s willing to try anything and then we can have dialogue after and kind of go from there. He’s a great player for a reason. His work ethic speaks for itself.”

It’s a minimal price to pay for being on top of the football world, sure, but the Eagles have become the hunted. They’ll get the best from every team on the schedule, heightening the importance to continually reinvent and remain ahead of the curve.

For the sustained success to manifest, the offense must evolve under Patullo. Evolve, of course, was a buzz word thrown around by Hurts himself this spring, supporting the team’s continual growth mindset while also suggesting new wrinkles could accompany the Patullo-led offense. And really, in a copycat league, it’s imperative.

When one hears the word “evolve” as it pertains to the Eagles’ offense, it’s safe to assume it isn’t in reference to its dynamic rushing attack but to a more balanced plan of attack, optimizing the Eagles’ high-powered trio of pass catchers in A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith and Dallas Goedert.

It’s expected that Eagles will focus their efforts on progressing the offense forward while welcoming different ideas and concepts. But while there will be new voices and fresh ideas involved in this creative process, don’t expect a drastic departure from what’s catapulted the Eagles to among the elite offensively.

“You gotta understand, too, there’s basic plays that we’ve done the entire time here,” Sirianni explained during a spring sit down with beat reporters. “It might be some different footwork for him or different things, but there is a base of the offense that we’ve run here for the past five years that is consistent for him. And now he’s going on Year 6 here – and Year 5 of us being together – and so there are basic things that are still part of this offense.”

Sirianni expressed an excitement about the potential of Patullo’s impact on the offense on Hurts, even though it’s another new play caller for Hurts, who’s had several in his Eagles career with Patullo becoming in his fourth in four years.

“We have great coaches, we lose those great coaches, now how do we get even better? Well, that’s part of your process of going through that,” he said. “And when you bring in new guys, you get new ideas and that’s what it’s about. It’s constant growth. And sometimes I think it’s looked at, again, as a negative that he’s had this turnover, but there’s a lot of positives to it as well.”

Even though Patullo and Sirianni have coached together going back to their days in Indianapolis, Sirianni is expecting Patullo to also bring ideas that are new to them and Hurts.

“Kevin obviously has been here with me eight years dating back to Indy. So there is a base too,” he said. “You’ve seen that we’ve run similar plays throughout our four years here. And there’s some new things. In that combination of the things that work for you as a team is what helps you continue to grow.

“Like, there were things that Kellen [Moore] brought in that that I probably was opposed to early on… When you have a growth mindset and not a fixed mindset, you think about that and then there’s a couple things that Kellen brought and I remember saying it multiple times during the year like, man, that really helped us become better.

“That little philosophy change on this particular route or this particular run or whatever it is, this particular protection. And I think that’s where you see growth.”

Sirianni compared those small, but significant, growths to the way he reached out to other championship coaches this offseason to ask about ways he can continue to be an outstanding coach even though he’s already made two Super Bowl trips and won one.

“If I just went in and said, ‘Alright we did this and we won. Great.’ But no, there’s a reason I’m reaching out to other coaches to pick their brain on different topics and this and that,” he explained. “The moment you stop trying to grow is the moment you shouldn’t be in this and the new voices and new experiences and new coaching points.

“Again, that’s where growth happens. It’s a partnership because [Hurts] is the one out there playing. So it’s like, hey, try this with your footwork. Ah, that really worked. I like that. Or, hey, it didn’t work. Well, he’s the one out there throwing the football and having to do that at live speed. And so that’s where you want to have a partnership with your players. And I think that’s what we’ve had with Jalen, and I see that going on here where it’s obviously happening right now.”

The offense runs through Hurts, a self-proclaimed triple threat – his mind manipulation over defenders being the third piece– and in many ways, the sixth-year quarterback elevated his game in 2024, undertaking greater responsibilities at the line of scrimmage, taking calculated risks with the football and growing into the Eagles’ quintessential leader.

Much of the team’s DNA is derived from Hurts’ unmatched commitment to his craft and will to win; singular, team-first mentality; and stoicism amid the noise and scrutiny.

Critics of Hurts often cite the team’s elite offensive line and level of talent around him for Hurts’ success, a point that Sirianni vehemently rejected.

“I think that’s bullshit,” Sirianni said. “I mean, he plays the most important position in all of sports. And it’s the most ultimate team game there is. And what I admire about him is his selflessness of doing anything we need to do to win…

“And anytime I hear that, I just… It’s like a nice debate thing that people like to have, and I get it. There’s a lot of hours that TV shows and radio stations have to fill to be able to fill that debate. I understand that, but we’re talking about the most ultimate team game there is, and he does whatever he needs to do to win each and every game.

“And so you name me a team that wins and wins consistently that doesn’t have good players around. You name me a, and speak on my end, like you name me a coach that doesn’t have good players around him that wins. You don’t win with bad players if you’re a quarterback either.  That always bothers me, to be honest with you, when it’s talked about that, because it’s football.”

Sirianni didn’t stop there.

“One of the reasons I love football so much is that it takes everybody to accomplish your goals,” he said. “You know, whether it’s [Tom] Brady with [Rob] Gronkowski or Brady’s defenses early on, [Patrick] Mahomes with [Travis] Kelce, Steve Young with Jerry Rice. The list goes on and on and on. I wouldn’t even say it’s good debate, but it’s debate that people are able to have. But yeah, I guess, my first initial thing was it’s bullshit.”

Hurts knows the coordinator carousel all-too-well. It’s presumably become second nature at this point. But what probably isn’t fully appreciated is the 26-year-old’s uncanny knack for adapting and executing whatever offense in which he’s immersed.

While no one truly knows yet what the latest edition of the Eagles’ new-look offense will look like, it’s reasonable to expect a smoother transformation this time around. For one, the built-in relationship between Hurts and Patullo should allow for a jumpstart. And Sirianni has promoted a healthy environment that invites input and feedback, promoting the culture and sustained success he often touts.

The recurring storyline, one in which Hurts must again grow and habituate, has become a tale as old as time. But the outlook this time around forecasts an intriguing collaboration that has the makings of an offense that could equip Hurts with the variance needed to accelerate his game to the next level.

– Andrew DiCecco (@AndrewDiCecco) is a Staff Reporter/Content Producer for InsideTheBirds.com.