For an encore, Philly youth not so special

Whether it happens this season, next season, the season after that or never, they are destined to define the Eagles’ Nick Sirianni era.

There is quarterback Jalen Hurts, a mobile, second-round draft pick. There is Miles Sanders, a second-round pick with speed and power. There is receiver Jalen Reagor, a first-round pick with quickness and hands. There is DeVonta Smith, widely characterized as the steal of the most recent first-round, a oncein-a-decade pass catcher. And there is Dallas Goedert, a second-round choice charged with replacing a franchise legend at tight end.

Because it is football, there shall be defensive responsibilities and special-teams heroes, low-round draft finds and mid-round mistakes, injuries and schedule challenges and weather and line play. But the short version of what must happen for Sirianni over the next three years is that the recent draft investment in skill players cannot have been a disaster. It’s not a complicated proposition. And that’s why what happened Sunday at the Linc in the Eagles’ 17-11 loss to the San Francisco 49ers spread concern.

There was Reagor, still trying to shed the image that he was a 2019 first-round mistake, catching two passes for five

yards. Even if he might have had a third had he not stepped out of bounds while seeming to catch a 38-yard touchdown pass, five yards was his official contribution.

There was Smith, a week after sparking optimism with a touchdown catch in a victory in Atlanta, being targeted seven times yet making two receptions for a combined 16 yards.

There was Sanders, battling but settling for 55 yards rushing. There was Goedert, in the second game of his fourth season, chipping in with two receptions. And there was Hurts offering 190 passing yards, including 91 on one play.

Is that a skill-position nucleus for the future? For the present? For long enough for Sirianni to prove he can win in the NFL despite his lack of experience?

Even if Sirianni showed his real feelings by not knighting him as the No. 1 quarterback until hours before the season opener, Hurts must be better than he was Sunday, when he was unable to complete more than one touchdown drive. It’s not enough for a quarterback, even a young one, to have a stunningly good game one week and be so ordinary the next, not if a team has the reasonable dream to win an ordinary division, not on a day when the defense holds a good opponent to 17 points.

“He made some big plays with his feet,” Sirianni said. “There is always the fine line of throwing it in rhythm and extending plays if something is not there. I thought he did a really good job. There were a couple times they did a good job covering it or they got a guy through the line, and he escaped.”

Hurts was evasive, being sacked just once. Even if his statistics didn’t sparkle, he has been an upgrade over the previous Eagles quarterback, who’d become an injury-prone chronic mistake maker. But if, as Sirianni rightly mentioned, Hurts was keeping plays alive with his mobility, why weren’t his receivers open in the first place?

“I don’t think anybody finished,” Sanders allowed. “I think everybody can look themselves in the mirror and think about all the stuff that we could have done better. I know I can. Everybody did not play well or was perfect. But that’s definitely what film is for.

“We have 17 weeks for this, man. We just have to go back and get right and come back stronger next week.”

One game will not define the Eagles. Two games will not define Smith. Hurts will need more than six career starts to prove he is better than he showed in a game where a couple of beaks could have made a difference. Sanders has All-Star skills and did average 4.2 yards per carry. And most of Hurts’ 82 rushing yards helped.

A week earlier, Hurts was remarkable in Atlanta, so he’s about where a young quarterback should be, good at times, special at times, but still growing. The Eagles had a field goal blocked Sunday, sagged on defense late in the game and were victimized by some questionable Sirianni play calls. In particular, they faced fourthand-goal at the Niners’ 3 with 4:28 left in the first half, Sirianni ordering a “Philly Special.” Greg Ward, though, was unable to connect with Hurts for a touchdown.

Hold off, then, on commissioning another statue.

“I just should have called a better play,” Sirianni said, “and put our guys in a better position to score.”

That wail has reverberated around the Linc for years. It just sounded less scratchy when there wasn’t as much mystery about the playmakers.