Eagles coach Nick Sirianni is about to face the toughest challenge of his career over the next 12 weeks — and he might not survive it.
It’s going to be tougher than the first half of the 2021 season, when people wanted him fired in his first year as head coach and tougher than the situation in 2023, when the team considered firing him after the Eagles collapsed down the stretch.
It’s certainly going to be tougher than the first four games of the 2024 season, when he landed on the hot seat after his team started slowly.
Sirianni has been through tough times as the Eagles head coach, but what’s happened over the last month beats anything from the past.
On Monday, NFL insiders revealed that Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts is expected to miss the remainder of the 2026 season because of a blood clot.
Two weeks ago, Hall of Fame-caliber right tackle Lane Johnson retired, and the Eagles traded left guard Cam Jurgens to the Ravens.
Now, the Eagles have one of the NFL’s worst offensive lines blocking for Tanner McKee, who is a below-average starting quarterback.
Running back Saquon Barkley has missed the last two weeks with a hamstring injury, and other key playmakers have also missed time due to injuries. Philadelphia’s defense is also struggling to stay healthy.
The Eagles lost their fourth consecutive game Sunday, falling to 2-4.
Sirianni entered the year on the hot seat radar after a disappointing 2025 season and he needed to turn things around this season to ease the pressure. Now, given the circumstances, Sirianni faces an uphill battle to remain the Eagles’ head coach after the 2026 season.
“Obviously, we are in a rut right now,” Sirianni told reporters on Monday about the offensive struggles. “I don’t think there’s any question [about] that. We’re in a rut. This is why you work in the offseason to come together, because every team is going to go through ups and downs here and it’s important to have that relationship and build those relationships so when you go through down times, it doesn’t tear you apart.”
Here are three reasons why Sirianni could struggle to stay off the hot seat:
McKee is bad, and Joe Milton is even worse
Simply put, the Eagles have a nightmare situation at quarterback.
Coming off a bad summer, McKee struggled in his first start of the season against the Panthers,. He completed 25 of 46 passes for 215 yards and a touchdown. He struggled to throw a tight spiral outside the numbers, and too many of his passes fluttered. He didn’t move well in the pocket and was easy to sack.
McKee is the Eagles’ best option at quarterback. On Friday, the Eagles signed former Cowboys quarterback Joe Milton from Dallas’ practice squad. He’s not a viable starter. Milton has a strong arm, but his inconsistent accuracy and other issues have prevented him from becoming a reliable backup or starter in the NFL.
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Fifth-round rookie quarterback Cole Payton is not ready to play.
The Eagles’ offense was bad with Hurts, who is a competent NFL starter, during the first five weeks of the season. The offensive problems extend beyond the quarterback, but now that the quarterback play is below average, things will become even worse.
New offensive coordinator Sean Mannion is struggling, and the offense ranks terribly
Mannion’s offense has been a disaster through the first six weeks, ranking 28th among 32 teams in EPA per play (-0.111) and 31st in offensive success rate (36.6%), according to the advanced-metrics website RBSDM Stats.
Mannion wanted to build his scheme around the under-center play-action game, but it has failed.
The Eagles had five under-center dropbacks against the Panthers, and all five were play-action passes. On those attempts, the Eagles finished with zero completions and two sacks for a loss of 17 yards, according to SumerSports.
The Eagles rank 26th in passing, 29th in rushing and 30th in yards per game. Philadelphia’s offense is unlikely to get much better this season because it has serious talent issues and a poor scheme.
Sirianni took a massive gamble by hiring Mannion, a first-time play caller with only three years of NFL coaching experience, over more experienced offensive coordinator candidates. Through six weeks, it does not look like a good hire.
Sirianni doesn’t call his own plays, and he has struggled to build good offensive schemes. He has had great success as a CEO-style head coach, but his limitations as an offensive coach make him a liability.
“Have a high confidence level in everybody in this building,” Sirianni said on Monday. “Sean, that’s why I hired him, the position coaches, the players. Right now, we’re in a rough spot as we know. It is about controlling the things that you can control in this moment and figuring out what the next steps are. I think we’ve got to find out what the things are that we have to get better at and what we have to do well or what we do well. That’s what these next two days are for, and we get an extra day here on this end, but my confidence level in our guys is high.”
Philadelphia’s offensive line has major issues
Philadelphia’s new starting five up front is young and inexperienced. Right tackle Markel Bell, left guard Willie Lampkin and center Drew Kendall could make improvements throughout the season and develop into long-term starters beyond this year.
However, as with any young group, there will be growing pains.
For the first time in many years, the Eagles have a weak offensive line. Landon Dickerson’s return could help raise the floor of the unit, but it won’t fix everything.
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