Broncos Defeat Eagles, 21-17: 10 Takeaways From Philadelphia’s First Loss
“So that’s what y’all wanted to see, huh?” Jalen Hurts famously said after the Philadelphia Eagles defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 15 last season, powered by an aerial attack that finally showed some life. It seemed like Hurts and the Eagles were going to do the same thing against the Denver Broncos, until they didn’t.
After Philadelphia’s passing attack sputtered for weeks, they appeared to get rolling against Denver. Yet the Eagles were once again unable to consistently run the ball and Philadelphia’s defense couldn’t hold onto a late lead. It was a frustrating loss that the Eagles should certainly learn from.
Here are my 10 takeaways from Philadelphia’s first loss in Week 5.
Kevin Patullo Needs To Find an Identity
I’ve been one of the biggest defenders for Eagles offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo. While Patullo certainly wasn’t the only reason why the Eagles lost against the Broncos, he needs to establish an offensive identity this season.
It felt like Patullo flipped the script a bit too much in Week 5, as the Eagles attempted 38 passes and Saquon Barkley logged just six carries. Patullo needs to do a better job of creating a more cohesive game-plan with better play sequencing.
While Philadelphia’s passing attack showed life, the running game was non-existent. Last season, the Eagles were able to lean on their rushing attack and dominate the time of possession battle in the second half. Yet they were unable to do so against Denver and it ultimately cost Philadelphia a win.
MISSING: Have You Seen Philadelphia’s Rushing Offense?
After Barkley’s historic performance last season, many just assumed that Philadelphia’s rushing offense would return this season. Yet that couldn’t be further from the truth in 2025. Barkley is averaging just 3.2 yards per carry as the Eagles are struggling to run the ball.
While the Eagles were able to start 4-0 despite those issues, Philadelphia’s rushing woes came back to haunt them in Week 5. The Eagles were unable to run the ball early, which forced Patullo to abandon the running game late in the game.
Barkley had just two carries in the second half, one of which was called back due to a penalty. He did breakout for a 17-yard run early in the game, yet Barkley averaged just 2.6 yards per carry on his five other carries against Denver.
While many are upset with Patullo for failing to run the ball more in the second half, it’s hard to justify doing so. Philadelphia’s disappointing rushing offense has consistently put them behind the sticks in early downs.
The one improvement that Patullo should make is to utilize Hurts as a runner more often. Hurts has the ability to change the game with his legs and Philadelphia’s offense isn’t doing nearly enough to maximize that potential right now.
Philadelphia’s Offensive Line Is Human
The City of Brotherly Love has been spoiled by Philadelphia’s dominant offensive lineman recent years. Since Jeff Stoutland’s arrival as the team’s offensive line coach in 2013, the Eagles have consistently fielded one of the best units in the NFL.
Yet that isn’t the case this season, as Philadelphia’s offensive line has uncharacteristically struggled. While several member of the starting offensive line are dealing with injuries, they simply haven’t been good enough.
Hurts has been sacked 15 times through the first five games of the regular season, which is tied for the fifth-most in the NFL. The team that the Eagles are tied with? The Cincinnati Bengals.
It’s telling when Philadelphia’s offensive line is ranked the same as Cincinnati’s offensive line. Even the New York Giants have allowed less sacks than the Eagles have this season.
Philadelphia’s offensive line has also struggled to create holes in the running game. Barkley averaged 3.9 yards after contact per carry against the Broncos and had an expected yards per carry of just 3.2 in Week 5.
It’s quite simple: Philadelphia’s offensive line needs to play better for this offense to take the next step. Patullo and Philadelphia’s stars can only do so much if the offensive line continues to struggle like they have through the first five weeks of the regular season.
Jalen Hurts-DeVonta Smith Connection Is Back
Nobody was happy about Philadelphia’s passing offense through the first four weeks of the regular season. Yet the connection between Hurts and DeVonta Smith showed some much-needed life against the Broncos in Week 5.
Smith hauled in eight receptions for 114 yards on 10 targets. He also had a 30-yard reception on fourth down wiped away by a penalty. While the Eagles didn’t win, it was a good sign to see the Hurts-Smith connection firing on all cylinders.
A.J. Brown Is Mentally Checked Out
There’s an elephant in Philadelphia’s locker room and his name is A.J. Brown. The 28-year-old star wide receiver caused a stir last week with a not-so-subtle shot at the team with a social media post.
While Brown appeared to say all of the right things after addressing his post, actions spoke louder than words in Week 5. Brown appeared to slow down while running his routes on a deep shot late in the third quarter. The Eagles had a 17-3 lead and the touchdown would have likely given Philadelphia an insurmountable lead.
Brown claimed that he looked back twice for the ball during his postgame media scrum, the replay showed that he never looked back and simply slowed down. Brown already gives minimal effort as a blocker at times, so he needs to run his routes at full speed if he is going to act like Eeyore off the field.
Eagles Lost but Referees Didn’t Help
There’s no doubt about it, the Eagles lost this game on their own. Yet the referees certainly made a few questionable calls in game-changing moments that didn’t help Philadelphia:
Cooper DeJean’s strip sack that wasn’t
Picked up intentional grounding penalty
Non-call on Dallas Goedert pass interference
Zack Baun was also called for a questionable late hit, although I thought he needed to be smarter on that play. While I understand that it’s tough for Baun to make that decision in real time, I thought it was a penalty as soon as it happened.
Regardless of the inconsistent officiating, the Eagles need to clean things up. Philadelphia has made far too many uncharacteristic mistakes this season. The Eagles are usually a disciplined team under Nick Sirianni, yet that hasn’t been the case in 2025.
Jalen Carter Needs To Be Better
After being named an All-Pro last season, many expected Jalen Carter to take the next step this season. Yet Carter has failed to live up to the lofty expectations placed upon him in 2025.
Carter is playing well but he isn’t playing at the elite level that many anticipated that he would. He is doing to dirty work on several plays, such as the stunt that freed up Za’Darius Smith to sack Broncos quarterback Bo Nix in Week 5.
Carter played 63 snaps against the Broncos, which equated to 90% of Philadelphia’s defensive snaps. Yet it felt like Carter was missing for much of the game, as he logged just one quarterback pressure. If Carter wants to be paid like one of the best defensive players in the NFL, he needs to show up more consistently.
Hello, Azeez Ojulari
After the Eagles signed Azeez Ojulari to a one-year, $4 million contract in free agency, many expected that he would play a significant role in Philadelphia’s edge rusher rotation. Yet Ojulari was a healthy inactive in each of the team’s first four regular season games in 2025.
After Nolan Smith Jr. and Ogbo Okoronkwo were each placed on injured reserve, Ojulari was finally active in Week 5. Ojulari played 33 snaps against the Broncos, which was the second-most among Philadelphia’s edge rushers.
Ojulari recorded three tackles, two stops and one quarterback pressure against the Broncos. He also had an impressive tackle for loss against the run, which was an area of weakness for Ojulari during the preseason. We’ll see if he can build on this performance moving forward.
Howie Roseman Needs To Add a Pass Rusher
Philadelphia’s edge rusher rotation has shown signs of life, yet it hasn’t been nearly consistent enough. Eagles general manager Howie Roseman likely isn’t happy with the lack of pressure that Philadelphia’s pass rush has generated through the first five weeks of the regular season.
The Eagles have recorded just seven sacks in 2025, which is 25th in the NFL. Za’Darius Smith is the only edge rusher that has registered a sack for the Eagles this season. Philadelphia’s pass rush off the edge needs to improve and Roseman likely has to make a trade to fix the issue.
Kelee Ringo Was Good Enough, Once Again
After losing the battle for the starting job at CB2 during training camp, Kelee Ringo seemed to take back the job in Week 4. Despite Adoree’ Jackson being active against the Broncos, Ringo was once again the starter opposite of Quinyon Mitchell.
While Ringo allowed a few completions down the final stretch, he played well enough to keep the starting job moving forward. Ringo allowed four receptions for 49 yards on seven targets in 39 coverage snaps, according to NFL Next Gen Stats.
Meanwhile, Mitchell allowed six receptions for 81 yards on nine targets in 43 coverage snaps. Although Mitchell drew a much tougher matchup in Broncos wide receiver Courtland Sutton, he also allowed a few crucial completions down the final stretch.