One Run Forward, One Step Back

INGLEWOOD, Calif. – Execution fuels emotion.

Listen to most any Eagles offensive player speak in front of a microphone frequently enough, and you’re likely to hear them reference that same Jeff Stoutland adage.

For the most recent example of the manifestation of that sentiment, merely rewind the tape to the opening play of the final frame in the Eagles’ gut-wrenching 22-19 loss Monday night in Southern California.

Trailing 13-9 from their own 48-yard line, the team was faced with a pivotal 3rd-and-1 and aligned for their patented push play. Unlike a season ago, the play has hardly yielded an automatic conversion, as teams have concentrated their efforts to thwart its success rate.

Desperately in need of a spark to jumpstart what had been an offense prone to self-inflicted wounds for most of the evening, the Eagles enacted a wrinkle that would capture momentum, seemingly prying the game away from the jaws of defeat.

After the snap, Jalen Hurts pitched the ball left to running back Saquon Barkley, who was guided by a convoy of blockers. Left tackle Jordan Mailata erased outside linebacker Khalil Mack. Tight end Dallas Goedert displaced cornerback Benjamin St-Juste. Wide receiver Darius Cooper provided the final block to spring Barkley en route to a 52-yard touchdown scamper to put the Eagles in front.

GETTY IMAGES: Eagles RB Saquon Barkley had his best rushing performance since Week 8 but even the run game breakthrough couldn’t deliver a win.

It accounted for a sizeable chunk of Barkley’s 122-yard outburst, but it also suggested the Eagles, potentially, were unlocking another facet of an oft-scrutinized offense.

Sure, the lead was short-lived, as Hurts tossed his third interception of the night to cornerback Cam Hart on the ensuing drive, enabling the Chargers to even the score with a 31-yard Cameron Dicker field goal seven plays later, but for that moment, the long Barkley jaunt infused the Eagles with the emotion that been lacking.

And with points at a premium, the perfectly executed play temporarily depicted the shot in the arm the team needed in search of its ninth win of the season. It took a unit working in unison to pull off the explosive play, a silver lining to a grim loss, even if the Eagles were in short supply of those from an offensive standpoint.

“I think they had that [play] before, because I remember Miles [Sanders] ran it against us when I was in New York,” Barkley began. “It was a great call, the timing of it, the blocking was great – the wide receivers did a great job up there – and like that, we were able to have plays and create momentum.

“But the Chargers did a really good job of responding. And we just need more of that. We all gotta take accountability of making more plays. And that’s just the truth. I’m a big believer of pointing the thumb and not the finger, and I’m always gonna start with myself and look in the mirror and go back and watch film and see where I could have been better, because there’s always things you could have done better.”

To be clear, the Eagles offense hasn’t generated enough of those kinds of plays through 13 games, for a variety of reasons, but establishing splash plays in the run game had been a season-long sticking point, with few exceptions.

For perspective, Barkley entered the game having recorded just one 100-yard outing – the Week 8 destruction of the New York Giants. But that was before the bye week, against a porous run defense. Barkley last season rolled up 10 100-yard games, accruing a robust 5.8 yards per carry. To say it’s been tough sledding this season via the ground game would be an understatement, as there have been seven games that Barkley was held to under three yards per carry.

Complicating matters is that the offense is designed to support a lethal ground attack behind a star-studded offensive line, creating optionality in the pass game and alleviating the burden of the resting squarely on Hurts’ shoulders.

If Monday night was any indication, the running game is making strides, perhaps setting the stage for a strong finish offensively – so long as they can stay out of their own way with unforced errors.

But while Barkley, always self-aware and accountable, acknowledged the strides made in the ground game, he also knows it’s fruitless if the Eagles don’t win.

A calming presence who exudes leadership, he routinely conveys that his confidence in the team coming together and getting back on course never wavers. Any loss, especially in this fashion, Barkley said, stings. But in processing the loss, he recited another adage from one of his favorite coaches: So what, now what?

Standing in front of his locker inside a crammed visitor’s locker room inside SoFi Stadium, Barkley noted the impact of his 52-yard touchdown in the moment, harkening back to the familiar quote emphasized by the team’s legendary offensive line coach.

“I think I said it this week, execution fuels emotion,” he said. “It’s a Stout quote, I don’t know if he actually made that quote up, but I didn’t hear that until I got here. And yeah, you could feel it.

“I know the type of ability I have and the energy I could bring, I just gotta keep my foot on the gas and keep going and hopefully be able to make more plays like that. I know it’s gonna start breaking up for us because I trust one in my work ethic and my preparation, I trust in the coaches, and most importantly, I trust in the guys up front. And we’re gonna keep grinding and keep working. We made some strides, but it doesn’t matter. We didn’t win the football game. So, we wash it, move on and get better.”

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