Philadelphia Eagles fans have the reputation as being one of the most difficult on their team in the league. It’s only the preseason, but the Eagles faithful already have something to complain about in the 2026 season.
That’s what Fansided’s Inside the Iggles’ Anthony Miller argued Sunday when he analyzed the team’s offensive performance in Week 1 of the preseason versus the Baltimore Ravens.
“Before the final offensive drive of the game, the Eagles’ offense had six offensive drives that ended in a three-and-out. They only had a net gain of 45 yards,” wrote Miller.
“Thankfully, the Eagles went on a 59-yard scoring drive that ended in a Cole Payton touchdown. Except Payton ran the drive, using his legs on plays designed for passes, not QB runs.
“In total, the Eagles had 159 yards of offense, only had six first downs, and never converted any of their nine third downs. That has to be some kind of sign of concern, right?”
It was an ugly performance, to say the least. The struggles were particularly rough through the air. Quarterbacks Andy Dalton, Tanner McKee and Cole Payton combined for 3.7 yards per pass. Together, they didn’t reach 100 passing yards.
Rather than blame all of the quarterbacks, though, Miller placed blame on the team’s new offensive coordinator — Sean Mannion.
Sean Mannion’s Eagles Offense Struggles in Preseason Opener
GettyPhiladelphia Eagles new offensive coordinator Sean Mannion is facing criticism after a subpar preseason debut.
Preseason football leads to overreactions every single August. Some teams look better than they eventually will play in the regular season. Others experience the opposite.
In a lot of cases, starters aren’t playing, and coaches don’t scheme entirely for the opponents. That leads to misunderstood results.
But those excuses weren’t enough for Miller when analyzing the Eagles first game on offense under Mannion.
“Yes, it’s only the preseason, and most starters were not playing. It could (and hopefully should) look different when Hurts and company are in the lineup,” wrote Miller.
“Still, fans are going to be okay with veteran quarterbacks Andy Dalton and Tanner McKee combining for 55 yards passing in three quarters? That is alarming.”
Ultimately, Miller offered Mannion “a pass.” But clearly, the Eagles analyst already has some anxiety around the offense.
“What is concerning, though, is the lack of firepower the offense showed and the creativity that fans were promised,” Miller added. “It’s understandable that the Eagles will probably limit their playbook and not show their best plays, but everyone else in the NFL is doing the same thing and has had much better success than the Eagles.”
Mannion Faces Potentially Crucial Week 2 in Preseason
GettyThe Philadelphia Eagles scored only seven points in Sean Mannion’s preseason debut as offensive coordinator.
It’s tough to describe anything about the preseason as “crucial.” That’s probably an overreaction.
But it might not be a stretch to say Mannion needs his offense to flow better in the next exhibition game just to settle everyone down. It doesn’t have to be perfect; just not as bad as Saturday when the team had more penalty yardage than passing yards.
The Eagles finished 19th in points and 24th in yards last season. They were also 18th in rushing and 23rd in passing yards coming off their Super Bowl season.
Philadelphia fans blamed offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo for the 2025 struggles. Head coach Nick Sirianni parted ways with Patullo over the offseason.
After calling for Sirianni to add an experienced offensive coordinator last January, he hired Mannion. The former journeyman quarterback has two years of coaching experience and hasn’t previously been an OC.
Proving he deserves the job and will be much better than Patullo is crucial for Mannion. He can do that with a strong start to the 2026 campaign.
That should begin in earnest at the beginning of the regular season, but it could start this weekend versus the New England Patriots.
The Eagles will visit the Patriots on Saturday, August 22 at 7 pm ET.
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