January 11, 2026
Well, what now?
This wasn't how it was supposed to end for the Eagles, not in the first round, surely not at home, not against a 49ers team missing oh-so-many of its best players, and certainly not one year after winning the Super Bowl with many of those same players who exited Lincoln Financial Field on Sunday evening after a stunning 23-19 NFC Wild Card loss.
The Eagles were flawed from the start. Anyone could see that. But despite their warts, they were as talented and experienced as any team in the postseason field.
There's an adage that champions don't fall hard, but this Eagles team came crashing down. They were outschemed by Niners offensive mastermind Kyle Shanahan, who was essentially coaching with one hand tied behind his back after All-Pro tight end George Kittle exited on a cart – joining the Niners' long list of walking wounded – and they were punished by a defensive coordinator in Robert Saleh, who had even less superstar talent to work with thanks to injuries.
It shouldn't have happened this way.
Despite their season-long struggles on third down and with mind-numbing penalties, despite an offensive line that wasn't nearly as healthy or elite as it typically is, and despite a defense that thrived while hiding an average cornerback and average safety, the Eagles still won 11 of the 16 games they cared about against a brutal schedule.
If you squinted hard enough, you could envision their path back to the Super Bowl, or at very least to the NFC Championship. Not getting out of the first round, losing to a 49ers squad down to street free-agent linebackers, to an offense that had its fullback catch his most passes of the season?
Sorry, that's just unacceptable.
This unexpected defeat opens the door to questions about the future of the franchise, including the job security of offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo, the reliability of right tackle and franchise legend Lane Johnson, and the team's overall offensive philosophy.
And make no mistake, Nick Sirianni is now officially on the hot seat entering 2026.
Not all of the Eagles' downfall can be traced to inept coaching; offensive line decimation is nobody's fault. But under Sirianni's supervision, not only did the Eagles take a major step back situationally on offense, but they're also one of the NFL's most undisciplined teams with 117 accepted penalties in the regular season – an absurdly high number for a team with as many veterans and Super Bowl incumbents as the Eagles have.
Against the Niners, they committed seven more penalties for 48 yards – including two false starts in their own building – while an undermanned 49ers team that needed to play perfectly just to overcome the talent differential somehow invaded a hostile stadium and was flagged just once.
That the Niners could come into Philly and hold the NFL's most expensive offense to just three points in the final 36 minutes is almost baffling, but only if you hadn't watched the Eagles all season.
The only positive from this pitiful loss is that owner Jeffrey Lurie and personnel czar Howie Roseman, the team's longtime executive vice president of football operations, aren't likely to pass this off as happenstance. They've never been afraid to either make changes or "strongly recommend" the head coach to make changes, or else, even when the Eagles have made the postseason.
The next few days will be some unsteady ones for many who work at the NovaCare Complex, because Eagles brass might have seen this season falling short of the Super Bowl, but likely not on Sunday, at home, in the first round, against a decimated opponent, in a manner like that.
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