Kellen Moore making tweaks to Eagles offense in first season as offensive coordinator: 'There will be changes'

Kellen Moore making tweaks to Eagles offense in first season as offensive coordinator: ‘There will be changes’

The Philadelphia Eagles defense took the fall for the team’s collapse last season. The offense was just as much to blame.

A unit with Jalen Hurts, A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith and Dallas Goedert at the skill positions averaged just 18.2 points over the final six games, ranking 23rd in the NFL in that span as the Eagles lost five of six to close the regular season. Those numbers were more than convincing enough for the Eagles to make a change at offensive coordinator this offseason — from Brian Johnson to Kellen Moore — sparking a change in offensive philosophy.

How is Moore going to change things? Fortunately, he has all the chefs in the kitchen in order to make a good meal.

“I think everyone’s got their different flavor from a systematic approach,” More said Thursday in his first time speaking to the media. “Our real focus here, as we’ve gone through this process, is we’ve got a lot of good going on. We can’t lose the good in the reps that Jalen [Hurts] and A.J. [Brown] have developed and Dallas [Goedert] has developed and this offensive line has developed. How can we build off of those things and really connect the whole thing?

“That’s been a really fun process. There will be tweaks. There will be changes. Everything is constantly evolving. That’s part of this whole offseason program. We got to the first week of actually being on the field with these guys. Once you get on the field, things just start evolving.”

The Eagles were a mess on offense toward the end of the season. Over the final six weeks, Philadelphia finished 18th in red zone offense (52.9%) despite being fifth in third-down conversion rate (49.4%). The Eagles were eighth in yards per carry (4.5) and 11th in rushing yards per game (120.7), while being 21st in net yards per pass attempt (6.5) and 17th in pass yards per game (217.5).

Hurts wasn’t efficient during that stretch, completing 61.1% of his passes for 1,161 yards with five touchdowns to five interceptions for a 77.6 passer rating (27th in the NFL). Hurts was pressured 42.3% of the time in that stretch, fourth-most amongst quarterbacks with 100-plus pass attempts.

Moore’s job is to get Hurts back to an MVP level of play. There’s no reason Hurts can’t get to that level with Brown, Smith, Goedert and now Saquon Barkley in the fold.

“Plays are plays. Words are words. I think it’s a combination of things we can build off of,” Moore said. “If everyone understands a play and it makes sense, let’s keep things in place. It’s not that complicated.

“That’s really where we’re at. We’re at a really beginning level of this thing. We’re really excited to go through this process. With Phase 3 get a little more field work. When you get to training camp is when you can hammer the run game and the play action game and how that stuff connects.”

Jalen Hurts PHI • QB • #1 CMP%65.4YDs3858TD23INT15YD/Att7.17 View Profile

The new Eagles offense is still evolving, and will continue to progress through the summer. There will be changes, but everything has to be on the same page.

“I think it really just comes down to making sure the language is consistent. I think that’s the biggest process,” Moore said. “When maybe you make an adjustment with the language, as funny as this may sound, making sure it doesn’t fall into an issue down the line and something else. Whether you make an adjustment to a pass play. Maybe the words now associated with a screen and vice versa.

“There’s just some language stuff that we’re continuing to make sure we keep it really clean for these players so they can play fast and know exactly what we want to accomplish each and every play, so they can just go for it.”