Kevin Patullo, who was promoted to offensive coordinator this season, has been with the Philadelphia Eagles since Nick Sirianni became head coach in 2021. His familiarity with the players and open communication have helped the team succeed in crucial moments. “The knowledge of the players, the ability to have conversations, and the connection he has with those guys. Communication is so key because you’re constantly trying to work to get better and he has great open communication with all positions on offense,” Sirianni said on Monday. “I think you see it in situational football, it might not be as obvious to you guys, but what we want to do in certain situations you’re way out in front of and so that continuity in that aspect, knowing what the players do well, trying to emphasize what the players do well, and finding a way to win. What we’ve been able to do the last few weeks, at times it hasn’t looked pretty altogether, but we found a way to win, and that’s the main goal.”
Za’Darius Smith joined the Eagles after their opening night win over Dallas and made an immediate impact in his debut by recording four tackles and sharing a sack with rookie Andrew Mukuba. Off the field, Smith brought energy and encouragement from the sidelines. “I love his energy. He loves playing football. You love that about him,” Sirianni said. “I think what you could really tell on the tape yesterday and you could tell on the field, was how much energy we had as a football team. I always think the energy you have as a football team is coming off the plays that you make, but also, you’re celebrating the success of your teammate and the team. … There was a lot of energy on that sideline because guys were genuinely happy for each other that they were making plays, all for the team’s success and the joy of their teammate which was cool.”
Quarterback Jalen Hurts faced heavy pressure from Kansas City’s defense during Sunday’s 20-17 victory; according to NFL Next Gen Stats, he was blitzed on 64 percent of his dropbacks—more than any game since Steve Spagnuolo became defensive coordinator for Kansas City in 2019. Hurts completed 15-of-22 passes for 101 yards but delivered when needed most: On third-and-10 early in the fourth quarter with only a three-point lead, Hurts connected with DeVonta Smith for a critical 28-yard gain.
“He came down on his back, but he came up in the clutch. What else could you ask for?” Hurts said. “Showing up when the moment requires someone to show up – a hell of a play by Smitty, the same play he made here two years ago, same part of the field, other one ended in a score. Overall, everyone stayed within themselves. Finding a way to win is something you have to take pride in. Take pride in winning, one, and take pride in what is required to win. As a team, defensively, they played lights out. Offensively, we showed up when we needed to. 26 (RB Saquon Barkley) showed up when we needed him to. We just want to continue to build.”
The Eagles continued using their short-yardage “Tush Push” play against Kansas City; they succeeded on four out of six attempts either scoring or gaining first downs—with another attempt resulting in an automatic first down due to an offsides penalty by Kansas City’s defense.
“It’s an exciting play. There’s been a lot of discussion about it and when you bring more attention to a play, it brings more attention to football,” Sirianni said. “I think it’s kind of a cool thing, obviously, how much people debate it, how much people discuss it. I’d be confident too in our other plays to run in that area on those situations, but this play has been working well so you keep going back to it… I think there’s a beauty to it in that everyone knows what you’re going to run and you can still get (the first down or touchdown).”
Defensive tackle Jalen Carter contributed two tackles—including one for loss—and generated three quarterback pressures while playing 80 percent of defensive snaps against Kansas City.
“We didn’t execute all the way. There’s a lot of things to get better at. We got the dub. We’re going watch film learn and get better from there,” Carter said.
He added: “We got the dub. It wasn’t best Our goal is keep teams under two touchdowns It’s always something get better at.”
Lane Johnson did not allow any pressures across his pass-blocking snaps against Kansas City; every other Eagles lineman allowed at least one pressure during Week 2.
After not blitzing Patrick Mahomes during Super Bowl LIX earlier this year—the Eagles changed tactics Sunday by blitzing Mahomes eleven times during their Week 2 victory.
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