Nick Sirianni had a choice that looked routine at the time and brutal in hindsight.
With the Eagles up 20-10 late in the fourth quarter Sunday, Philadelphia had a chance to push the lead to 13 and make the Rams climb even steeper. Instead, Sirianni kept the offense on the field at 4th & Goal from the 2, and Jalen Hurts’ pass fell incomplete. The Rams took the opening and ran with it, turning a game Philadelphia had controlled for three quarters into a comeback win.
The missed chance came at the 7:31 mark, when the Eagles were sitting on a 10-point cushion and Matthew Stafford had already spent most of the afternoon fighting through Vic Fangio’s defense. Sirianni reportedly tried to call timeout before the snap, according to Zach Berman, but the referee did not see him. Philadelphia still went for it, and the decision never recovered.
That sequence became the hinge point in a game that had looked headed the Eagles’ way despite a long injury list. Philadelphia was without Zack Baun and lost Quinyon Mitchell and Jonathan Greenard during the game.
It was also missing Devonta Smith, Dallas Goedert, Lane Johnson, Landon Dickerson and Saquon Barkley. Even so, Hurts had done enough to keep the Eagles in front through three quarters.
The defense set the tone early by making Stafford uncomfortable. He threw two interceptions in the first half, and Los Angeles had trouble generating any real rhythm while also stacking up more than 100 yards in penalties. Davante Adams and Puka Nacua never got into a steady flow, and the Rams spent most of the afternoon chasing the game.
Philadelphia built its lead on the strength of those takeaways and the field position they created. The Eagles were up 6-3 by the second quarter, then Hurts found Darius Cooper in the end zone as the half wound down to stretch the margin to 10.
Cooper’s touchdown was the kind of play that changes the feel of a game, and it came on one of the more dramatic grabs of the day. For his third scoring catch of the season, he ripped the ball away from a Rams defensive back and turned what looked like an interception into a touchdown.
Los Angeles answered after that with a rushing score from Nacua, but Philadelphia still carried the 10-point lead into the stretch run.
Then came the fourth quarter collapse.
After the failed 4th & Goal, the Rams put together a 10-play touchdown drive to cut the margin to three. A little later, they did it again, this time taking the lead.
Philadelphia never got its offense moving again. The Eagles went scoreless in the second half, finished 0-for-12 on third downs, and managed just 172 total yards - their lowest output in a game in the last 12 years, according to Sheil Kapadia.
By then, the damage was already done. The Eagles’ offense could not answer, the Rams kept pressing, and Stafford had the ball back with a chance to finish the job. Kyren Williams powered in on another 10-play touchdown march, and Los Angeles completed the turnaround.
What had looked like a statement win for Philadelphia turned into a 2-2 finish and a sharp reminder of how quickly a game can change when a team passes on three points and comes up empty.
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