Missed Opportunities Contribute To Eagles 17-11 Loss To San Francisco 49ers
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- It wasn't the home opener Philadelphia hoped for. The Birds couldn't get the job done in front of a sellout crowd for the first time since January 2020. The Birds lost 17-11 to the San Francisco 49ers.
Missed opportunities and "self-inflicted" wounds were part of the problem.
"We had a lot of opportunities we didn't capitalize on, I think that's plain and simple right there. We have to be consistent in our execution, I have to be consistent in my execution and my operation as a field general. Something to learn from today, a lot to learn from," Hurts said. "They were things we could control, so that's what hurts the most. We give credit to a good team and a good defense out there. Those wounds out there were self-inflicted."
Hurts completed just 12 of 23 passes for 190 yards. He ran for 82 yards, including a 1-yard TD in the fourth quarter.
"He made some big plays with his feet," head coach Nick Sirianni said. "It's always this fine line of, hey, throwing it on rhythm but also extending plays if something's not there. I thought he did a really good job. There were a couple times they did a good job covering it or they got a guy through the line, and he escaped."
The crowd was electric at the start of the game but had little to cheer for after the defense held the 49ers to three straight three-and-out possessions to start the game.
San Francisco's offense finally got going after its own strong defensive stand. Garoppolo drove the 49ers 97 yards on 12 plays, capping it with an 11-yard TD pass to Jauan Jennings — his first career catch — for a 7-3 lead in the final minute of the first half.
The drive began after Philadelphia missed a huge opportunity to go up 10-0. Hurts connected with Quez Watkins for a 91-yard gain to the Niners 6, the Eagles had a first down at the 1 following a pass interference penalty on Josh Norman. But, on fourth down from the 3, wide receiver Greg Ward took a flip on a reverse and threw an incomplete pass to Hurts in the back of the end zone. Ward was a quarterback in college.
"I think that that sneak is a little bit more from a little closer to be honest with you," Sirianni said. "But, as it was in the end of the game when we snuck it when we were on the half-inch line or whatever it was. I don't think I called good plays in that area. There are going to be times where you're going to look at it and be like, 'I want those calls back.' When they work, it was a good play. They didn't. So, it was my fault. I didn't call good enough plays right there. I didn't put the players in good enough positions, but we're all in this together, coaches and players."
The 49ers went ahead 14-3 in the fourth on Garoppolo's sneak from the 1. Robbie Gould's 46-yard field goal made it 17-3.
After Hurts scored, Miles Sanders ran in for the 2-point conversion bringing the Birds within 6, but they didn't get the ball back.
Garoppolo finished 22 of 30 for 189 yards. Nick Bosa had two sacks and San Francisco's stingy defense shut down Jalen Hurts a week after Philadelphia dominated Atlanta in a 32-6 win.
Hurts threw a 38-yard TD pass to Jalen Reagor that was overturned because the 2020 first-round pick stepped out of bounds before he made the catch down the right sideline. 49ers' Javon Kinlaw then blocked Jake Elliott's 47-yard attempt.
The Eagles lost defensive end Brandon Graham and guard Brandon Brooks on Sunday.
Graham left the game late in the second quarter with an ankle injury. Sources tell Derrick Gunn he suffered an Achilles injury and is done for the year.
Graham confirmed his season is over on social media.
"We still about to shock the world! I will just be leading from the sidelines this year working to be great for 2022," Graham tweeted. "Appreciate all the love and now it is time for guys to step it up. U have to find the treasure in every situation!"
Sirianni didn't confirm the severity of Graham's injured, but in his post-game press conference he said he was "concerned."
There wasn't much information surrounding the severity of Brooks' injury.
Gunn reports Brooks suffered a pectoralis injury.
The Birds head to Dallas next week to play the Cowboys in a Monday Night Football showdown.
The Associated Press and CBS3's Alyssa Adams contributed to this report.
