3 Takeaways from Eagles' Week 15 Loss

The Philadelphia Eagles' Week 15 loss to the Arizona Cardinals had a different feel to it than the previous eight defeats suffered this season. 

For the second straight week, Jalen Hurts provided an offensive spark that was not visible during Carson Wentz's time as starting quarterback. 

Hurts gave the Eagles more belief on offense and almost pulled out the victory against the NFC West side. 

Defensively, Philadelphia was hurt by its growing injury list in the secondary. DeAndre Hopkins and Larry Fitzgerald both took advantage of the practice squad players starting at cornerback and safety. 

Although the secondary was outclassed by Arizona's top wide outs, the front seven played well and Alex Singleton continued his surprisingly good season at linebacker. 

Jalen Hurts Reaffirmed the Decision to Start Him

Rick Scuteri/Associated Press

Hurts followed up his Week 14 victory over the New Orleans Saints with a more impressive offensive outing against the Cardinals. 

The second-round pick threw for 338 yards and three touchdowns and ran for another score. Most importantly, he did not turn the ball over for the second straight week. 

Hurts showed poise in the pocket on every drop back and continued to show that he is not fazed by the stage of being a starting quarterback in the NFL. 

The perfect example of Hurts not being rattled by anything was the fourth-quarter pass that he completed after he was stripped in the pocket. 

Philadelphia's offense is still far from perfect, but with Hurts on the field, it has a better chance to win games due to his escapability in the pocket and accuracy. 

Hurts should improve move in Week 16 against a poor Dallas Cowboys defense, and if the Carolina Panthers beat the Washington Football Team, he could give the Eagles a chance to win the NFC East in Week 17. 

Depleted Secondary Gashed by DeAndre Hopkins

Rick Scuteri/Associated Press

At some point, the Eagles' depleted secondary was going to be hurt by one of the best wide receivers in the NFL.

Hopkins finished with nine receptions for 169 yards and a touchdown. Fitzgerald and Chase Edmonds also caught touchdowns from Kyler Murray. 

Philadelphia's defensive backs had some nice moments, including Marcus Epps' interception and Michael Jacquet's forced fumble, but the talent gap showed on some of Hopkins' long gains. 

Prior to Sunday, the Eagles had a single concession of 300 passing yards. That came against the San Francisco 49ers in Week 4. Arizona recorded 423 yards through the air. 

Epps, Jacquet and others deserve credit for giving Murray fits on a few key plays, but eventually Arizona benefited from the superior talent in its wide receiver corps. 

If the pieced-together secondary puts up better numbers against Amari Cooper, CeeDee Lamb and others in Week 16, the Eagles could cut their point concession under 25 and give Hurts a better opportunity to win. 

Alex Singleton Continued Strong Season

Ross D. Franklin/Associated Press

Singleton has been a bright spot at a position that was ripped apart with criticism at the start of the 2020 season. 

Philadelphia failed to cover opposing tight ends with any conviction and Nathan Gerry was widely criticized for his play in the middle of defense. 

The Eagles have improved at linebacker in the second half of the season with Singleton patrolling that part of the field. 

On Sunday, Singleton posted his fifth double-digit tackle total in six games. He has 11 tackles in each of the last three contests. 

One of Singleton's best plays was a third-down stop of Chase Edmonds at the start of the fourth quarter. He kept the Arizona running back from earning first-down yardage and the Cardinals turned the ball over on downs on the next play. 

If the Eagles do not win out and make the playoffs, they can at least head into the offseason knowing they have players, like Singleton, that can be contributors at a position of need moving forward.

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.

Statistics obtained from Pro Football Reference.