A house divided against itself cannot stand, especially in South Philly. Donovan McNabb knows that truth all too well from his own battles. That’s why the Eagles legend laid it bare, pinpointing who truly shoulders the blame for this disappointing season.

“I think (the fault) it’s more collectively with Nick [Sirianni], Kevin [Patullo], the running backs, coach,” McNabb said on the Caps Off podcast on January 15. “I think it’s everybody trying to please everyone. Jalen [Hurts’] probably into that, too, of him deciding what he wants to do. Whatever it may be. But it’s so vanilla. You don’t see shifts, motions, under center, shotgun, pistol. You don’t see a collection of different things now, especially where the game is now.” 

McNabb’s comments hit right at the heart of the Eagles’ offensive woes all season, and the “vanilla” predictability from Hurts that McNabb called out. Defenses read Philadelphia’s attacks like a bedtime story, which choked off their once-dominant rushing game that powered last year’s Super Bowl run. The offense, which racked up 3,048 rushing yards (second in the league) during the 2024 season, plummeted to 1,988 yards (18th) this year.

McNabb’s earlier comments now feel more telling, as his suggestion that A.J. Brown’s frustration hinted at deeper offensive issues suddenly aligns with how the situation has unfolded.

Jalen Hurts, the dual-threat quarterback who’s supposed to keep defenses guessing, has looked limited. He scraped together only 421 rushing yards this season, his lowest since his rookie year. It doesn’t get more “vanilla” than his Wild Card playoff performance against the 49ers, where commentators expected him to enter playoff mode and produce exceptional numbers. Unfortunately, he struggled for yards and mustered just one touchdown (compared to the three he had in last year’s Super Bowl). 

McNabb essentially pointed out that the noise around A.J. Brown’s frustrations worked as a distraction and that the offense had grown soft and predictable. That puts Brown’s personal struggles in context as just one symptom of deeper issues now bubbling up around Hurts himself.

The frustration became harder to ignore as the season wore on, not just because of Brown’s sideline reactions, but also because of moments where he avoided postgame media, particularly after the playoff loss. Even without direct accusations, the silence fed a narrative that something was unresolved.

The Eagles have a long history of locker room friction derailing their biggest dreams, often culminating in Super Bowl heartbreak. It happened to McNabb in 2004 after the Eagles lost Super Bowl XXXIX, a classic Super Bowl hangover that soured the vibe inside the building. 

The arrival of Terrell Owens sparked a nasty feud between the quarterback and his top target, a rift that lingers in Eagles lore. McNabb even said in 2020 that Owens’ 2005 holdout “broke us up.”

Yet McNabb believes Brown crossed a line by not keeping it in-house. The veteran quarterback feels the wideout should have avoided airing dirty laundry in public. Brown vented his frustrations over fewer targets from Hurts through social media posts and media sessions (an issue brewing since last season), as passes spread to others like running back Saquon Barkley.

At the same time, Brown has consistently downplayed the idea of any personal rift, describing heated sideline exchanges as emotional, competitive moments, not evidence of a “beef.” Teammates have echoed that sentiment privately, likening the Hurts–Brown dynamic to brothers who challenge each other rather than fracture under pressure.

But things boiled over crystal clear in their Wild Card loss to the 49ers, when Brown dropped a crucial fourth-quarter pass. The head coach, Nick Sirianni, charged at the wide receiver in a heated sideline moment until teammates stepped in to cool things down. Later, Sirianni assigned blame to the offense for the game.

McNabb also addressed how he had called out the situation between Hurts and Brown before it reached here.

“Now the whole conversation is…A.J. Brown needs to just be quiet,” McNabb added.”But I’m like it’s funny how all of a sudden the table turned. When I was trying to tell everybody what was going on, it was like Donovan needs to just sit back.”

Amid McNabb’s take on the Eagles’ deeper offensive issues, Kevin Patullo ultimately bore the brunt of the blame. The offensive coordinator got fired right after the playoff loss, but reports say he’s insisting it’s “not his fault” and that outsiders “don’t understand the inner workings.”

Former Eagles running back LeSean McCoy later added fuel to that argument, claiming people inside the organization believe Hurts prefers a simplified offense, a limitation, McCoy suggested, that makes it harder to build creative packages or consistently feature Brown the way other elite receivers are used around the league.

Sirianni and Hurts have faced their own heat, with rumors swirling about the quarterback getting benched or phased out like former QB Carson Wentz. Still, the head coach stands firmly behind his signal-caller.

Nick Sirianni stands firm behind Jalen Hurts despite the chaos

With the Eagles’ season ending in that playoff defeat, Sirianni faced the media and made his stance clear.

“I love Jalen Hurts. I love everything that he brings to the table,” Sirianni said.”Every time you step on the field, you feel very confident that you can win any game that you’re going to play when you have him as your quarterback. He has shown that to this organization, to myself, to Howie, to the city, that he’s a winner.” 

But whispers persist that Sirianni, general manager Howie Roseman, and owner Jeffrey Lurie have been “reluctant to criticize Hurts,” according to Michael Silver of The Athletic.

Top Stories

Caleb Williams Puts Locker Room on Notice After Rams Publicly Announce Bears QB’s Weakness

Andy Reid Gets Unfortunate Update on Chiefs’ Veteran Coach’s Retirement After Announcing Double Firing

“Giving People Cancer”: Ex-49ers Star Speaks Up Against Training Facility Controversy as Kyle Shanahan’s Future Plans Threatened

Russell Wilson Announces New Citizenship Plans Away From America as Giants QB Makes Career Decision

Browns Make Double Announcement on Kevin Stefanski Replacement as Shedeur Sanders Plays Deciding Factor

Hurts ranks among the best quarterbacks the Eagles have ever drafted. Over his five seasons in Philly, he’s dragged the team to the postseason in four of his five seasons. That said, he’s also fueled some internal drama along the way.

For now, Hurts and Brown insist they’re in a “good, great place,” and nothing concrete suggests an outright fracture. Yet the questions linger.

In the end, all these fractures, from the vanilla offense and locker room cold war to the finger-pointing, doomed the Super Bowl champions this season. As Philly heads into the offseason, fixing these rifts and rediscovering their edge will be key to mounting another title run.