Jordan Mailata and the Philadelphia Eagles left London with more than a last-second loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars to process. In the span of one turbulent week, the offensive line said goodbye to Lane Johnson following the veteran tackle’s retirement, saw center Cam Jurgens dealt to the Baltimore Ravens, and then lost another starter during a game that ended on a Jaguars field goal.
The Eagles’ 22 rushing yards against Jacksonville marked their lowest total on the ground since Week 7 of the 2015 season. It also ended Philadelphia’s 124-game run with at least 40 rushing yards, which had been the NFL’s longest active streak entering Week 5.
Mailata did not view the difficult circumstances as an excuse after Philadelphia’s defeat. The left tackle said his focus was on identifying his own mistakes rather than treating the effort as a positive under the circumstances.
“I don’t really know what a moral victory means right now,” Mailata said. “My head is hurting. This has been a week from hell for me. I’m trying to look at myself and find how I contributed to the loss so I can fix it. We weren’t good enough, and we understand that.”
Philadelphia entered the season facing change up front after the club moved on from longtime offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland. Injuries compounded the issue early, with Landon Dickerson going on injured reserve, and the reshuffled group was stretched even further when Tyler Steen exited Sunday’s game with a shoulder injury.
For a stretch against Jacksonville, Mailata was the only Week 1 offensive-line starter still available. Willie Lampkin and Jake Majors each made the first start of their NFL careers, Markel Bell started for only the second time, and reserve tackle Fred Johnson was forced into a different position.
The Eagles’ ground-game troubles were not solely an offensive-line matter, as injuries at running back, including one involving Saquon Barkley, have affected the offense. Still, Philadelphia will need more consistency from its blocking unit after struggling to establish the run in the London loss.
Mailata nevertheless praised the inexperienced linemen who were pushed into major roles during an unusually difficult week. He said the group’s message had been to handle every shift in momentum and continue playing.
“The theme all week was to keep riding the wave,” Mailata said. “There are good waves, bad waves, perfect waves and waves of adversity. You keep surfing, which means playing the next snap. I thought those guys did a great job with that.”
Philadelphia now must regroup after the Jaguars loss, with the offensive line’s health, its new personnel and the search for a steadier rushing attack all becoming immediate priorities.
