49ers vs. Eagles: 5 Things We Learned from Philadelphia in a 24-23 Loss

The Philadelphia Eagles have officially hit rock bottom, we hope. The Eagles collapsed in the fourth quarter for the third straight week. They have now been outscored 36-0 in the last three fourth quarters, and the coaching staff has gotten badly burned.

The Eagles are now 1-3 and clearly don't look like a playoff team. They look more like a contestant in the Andrew Luck sweepstakes. The record isn't what stands out for the Eagles, it's the lack of fundamentals. They missed several tackles on Sunday and Jeremy Maclin fumbled the ball late in the fourth quarter to seal their fate.

Changes could be coming soon in Philadelphia for a team that came into to the season with very high expectations.

The Eagles' Red-Zone Offense Looks Hopeless

The Eagles' red-zone offense reached a new low against the 49ers. In seven red-zone trips, the Eagles managed just two touchdowns and turned the ball over on the 1-yard line on a Ronnie Brown fumble.

On the play that Ronnie Brown fumbled the ball at the 1-yard line, he attempted to pass the ball as he was going down. Brown said after the game that the play was a designed passing play. That questionable play call makes Eagles fans question both the play-calling in the red zone and Andy Reid's confidence in the running game.

It was decisions like this that have plagued the Eagles for the last 12 seasons. The red zone has been a major issue for the Eagles' offense under Andy Reid, and it doesn't seem like he has learned anything.

The Eagles' Offensive Play-Calling Is Offensive

The Eagles have plenty of depth at running back. LeSean McCoy has become one of the best running backs in the league, Ronnie Brown is a solid backup and third-stringer Dion Lewis has a great deal of potential. You wouldn't have known that after Sunday's failure against the 49ers.

LeSean McCoy had a measly nine carries, Brown had three and Lewis had zero touches on offense. Michael Vick dropped back 54 times as opposed to just 12 running plays. If a balanced offense is a key to winning in this league, Andy Reid didn't get that memo.

The Eagles' offense may be explosive at times, but the lack of consistency through all four quarters is keeping teams in games and allowing defenses to get their shots on Vick.

The Pass Rush Is Truly Elite

On a more positive note, the Eagles' pass rush has been great, mainly with the front four. The defense has 15 sacks through the first four games, including seven by Jason Babin, who is on pace for 28 sacks in 2011.

The problem with the defensive line is that they either blow up the backfield or are completely out of the play. The Eagles have given up 558 rushing yards through the first four games. They havn't even gone up against a truly elite running back outside of Michael Turner, and two of their opponents gave the majority of the handoffs to a backup.

We knew that the Eagles' run defense would be an issue early in the season, but they have shown zero signs of improvement. The defense may rack up 50 or 60 sacks this season, but will that be enough to win even half of their games this season?

DeSean Jackson Is Still Great

DeSean Jackson took a lot of heat last week after three mediocre performances and four dropped passes to start the season. It's safe to say that Jackson isn't putting his health before his team after hauling in six passes for 171 yards. Jackson wasn't the problem in Week 4.

Jackson is on the final year of his contract and voiced his opinions on his contract situation during training camp but has not missed any time since the first week of training camp.

He may not make the highlight jump-ball receptions like a Calvin Johnson or Larry Fitzgerald does, but his speed makes him one of the most dynamic players in this league.

Jackson certainly made a case for a new contract this week; unfortunately for him, his team has much bigger problems.

Andy Reid Is Actually on the Hot Seat

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. Right now, Andy Reid's picture in under word "insanity" in the dictionary.

Any time you bring in the type of talent that the Eagles went out and got and combine it with the type of playmakers that they already had, expectations will be off the charts. So far, the Eagles have moved backwards ever since their season-opening win in St. Louis.

The talent has gotten better, but the play-calling and red-zone efficiency on both sides have actually gotten worse. There is no balance in the offense, and the run defense is a fantasy football fan's dream.

The gadget plays around the goal line have all backfired, and Nnamdi Asomugha looks like a shell of his former self. The defense is being put in a position to fail right now. Undersized linebackers are taking on offensive linemen and no one is making tackles.

The fundamentals of the Eagles are atrocious right now. Changes will have to be made in order to turn things around. Reid will still have his job on Monday, but if the Eagles continue at this rate, he may not survive the bye weeks. It's not the final score that stands out—it's how the Eagles are losing that has put Reid in such a bad spot.