Eagles no longer NFC's most dominant team after defense dismantled by 49ers

PHILADELPHIA – In hindsight, much of this season has felt like borrowed time for the Philadelphia Eagles. 

A string of thrilling rallies and nail-biting victories had demonstrated resilience and confidence, yes, but it had also revealed the frailties that generate the need for rallies. The offense starts slow. The defense has holes, particularly in the defensive backfield. Deficits are built. Heroics are needed. Those comebacks built toughness, yes. The risk was that these things tend to even out and eventually the Eagles might face a team that they could not outduel, one that would not bend to the Eagles' considerable will.

On Sunday, they did, in the form of a familiar nemesis, the San Francisco 49ers, who dominated the Eagles, 42-19. The loss ended some incredible streaks for the Eagles -- they had won five straight games when trailing by at least 10 points and were 5-0 entering the game when trailing at halftime in 2023. But the Eagles defense, which had been suspect for parts of the season, and had been gashed last week by the Buffalo Bills, simply could not handle the 49ers' parade of name-brand weapons. Play after play went to George Kittle, Brandon Aiyuk, Deebo Samuel and Christian McCaffrey. Tackles were missed, defenders left behind to give chase.

After going three-and-out on their first two drives, the 49ers embarked on a stunning stretch: In six consecutive drives, they ran 47 plays, gained 450 yards for an average of 9.6 yards per play and scored 42 points on six straight touchdowns, a series of jet sweeps and motions causing miscommunication on the defense. Even a post-play scuffle that resulted in the ejection of Dre Greenlaw and the Eagles' iconic director of security Dom DiSandro, whose involvement angered