Stephen A. Smith Offers Harsh Truth After Eagles' Early Playoff Exit

Problems plaguing Philadelphia were never solved.

Stephen A. Smith reacted to Eagles' loss on Monday's First Take. / First Take

The Philadelphia Eagles' Super Bowl defense ended abruptly on Sunday night after allowing the San Francisco 49ers to walk into town and put together a 23-19 victory. It was one of the stranger attempts to repeat considering all of the drama that rode on this team's back throughout season. Now comes a long offseason with plenty of questions that need to be answered and some problems to address. It would have been preferable for Nick Sirianni's team to address these issues before being eliminated but that was not the case.

Stephen A. Smith had little to offer despondent Eagles fans on Monday's First Take. Instead, he basically had a simple "told you so" message.

"I would say the biggest thing is what we've been talking about all season long with the Philadelphia Eagles," Smith said. "The inconsistency. Just how transparent and predictable their offense is. I'm going to make a prediction right now on First Take to start the show. There will be a new offensive coordinator named in Philadelphia next season. It's the worst-kept secret in the National Football League."

"The Philadelphia Eagles deserved to lose this game. They deserve to be home because they never made amends for the errors that they were suffering from all season long." ✍️@stephenasmith on the Eagles after their Wild Card loss to the 49ers 🏈 pic.twitter.com/PneFEwIjVA

— First Take (@FirstTake) January 12, 2026

"The Philadelphia Eagles deserved to lose this game," Smith said. "They deserve to be home because they never made amends for the errors that they were suffering from all season long."

Like a strict teacher, Smith is being tough but fair. The criticism of Jalen Hurts has gotten a bit out of hand but tape of Sunday's loss will not do him any favors. A year after Saquon Barkley put together one of the greatest running back seasons of all time, he was nowhere to be found. A.J. Brown dropped a pass at the most crucial of times. And, yes, the offensive coordinating left plenty to desire.

One did not need to be Nostradamus to foresee problems coming for Philadelphia. They just simply ... did not fix the issues before they became fatal.

That's a tough pill to swallow.

On the bright side it may spark a little more urgency next year.

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