Let’s be real. If you’re a Birds fan, talking about the 2023-2024 season feels a bit like picking at a scab that just won't heal. It started with so much promise. 10-1. We were the kings of the mountain, eyeing another Super Bowl run, and then the wheels didn’t just come off—they disintegrated. If you're looking for the specifics on who did the eagles lose to 2024, you have to look at two distinct phases: the regular season slide that cost them the division and that miserable, cold night in Tampa that ended the whole thing.
Football is a game of momentum. For the Philadelphia Eagles, that momentum turned into a concrete block tied to their ankles. It wasn't just that they lost; it was how they lost. They looked slow. They looked confused. By the time the calendar flipped to January 2024, the team we saw on the field was a shell of the roster that had beaten the Chiefs and Bills just weeks prior.
The Regular Season Freefall: Who Beat the Birds?
The 2023 season technically ended in the 2024 calendar year for its final two regular-season games and the playoffs. This is where the heart of the frustration lies. When people ask who did the eagles lose to 2024, they usually mean the stretch where the NFC East title slipped through their fingers like sand.
On New Year’s Eve—okay, technically 2023, but the vibes carried straight into the New Year—the Eagles lost a heartbreaker to the Arizona Cardinals. This was supposed to be a "get right" game. Jonathan Gannon, the former defensive coordinator everyone loved to hate, came back to Lincoln Financial Field with a 3-12 Cardinals team and basically embarrassed Nick Sirianni’s squad. Kyler Murray threw three touchdowns. James Conner ran through tackles like they weren't there. That 35-31 loss was the moment the city realized the "tush push" couldn't save a defense that couldn't stop a nosebleed.
Then came January 7, 2024. The regular season finale. The Eagles traveled to MetLife Stadium to play the New York Giants. It was a disaster. Jalen Hurts suffered a nasty dislocation on his middle finger. A.J. Brown went down with a knee injury that would eventually sideline him for the playoffs. The Eagles got smacked 27-10. Losing to the Giants at that point was a massive red flag. It meant Philadelphia finished the regular season losing five of their last six games.
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The Wild Card Disaster in Tampa
The answer to who did the eagles lose to 2024 in the most definitive, season-ending sense is the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
January 15, 2024. Raymond James Stadium.
The Eagles entered as favorites, which, looking back, feels like a sick joke. Without A.J. Brown, the offense looked stagnant. DeVonta Smith tried to carry the load with 148 yards, but there was no rhythm. Baker Mayfield, on the other hand, carved the Eagles' secondary to pieces. David Moore scored on a 44-yard play where it looked like three different Eagles defenders forgot how to tackle. Trey Palmer did the same on a 56-yard touchdown.
The final score was 32-9. It wasn't even as close as the score suggested. The Eagles couldn't tackle. They couldn't pressure Mayfield. They couldn't run the ball. Jason Kelce was seen on the sidelines with tears in his eyes, realizing his legendary career was likely ending in a blowout loss to a 9-8 Bucs team. It was a humiliating exit for a team that had been the Super Bowl favorite in November.
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Why the 2024 Losses Felt Different
Honestly, losing is part of the NFL. But the way the Eagles fell apart in early 2024 was historic. According to data from Elias Sports Bureau, they became one of the few teams in history to start 10-1 and fail to win 12 games.
- The Defensive Scheme Change: Late in the season, Nick Sirianni made the controversial move to strip defensive coordinator Sean Desai of play-calling duties, handing them to Matt Patricia. It backfired. Spectactularly. The defense actually got worse, allowing 30+ points to teams like the Cardinals and Bucs.
- The Finger Injury: Jalen Hurts wasn't himself. That finger injury against the Giants made it hard for him to grip the ball, and you could see it in the playoff game. His throws lacked that usual zip.
- Situational Coaching: Third downs became a nightmare. The Eagles couldn't get off the field on defense and couldn't stay on it on offense.
Examining the Full List of 2023-2024 Losses
To give you the full picture of the decline, here is the list of every team that beat the Eagles during that specific 2023-2024 campaign. While the "2024" part of the question focuses on the end, the seeds were sown in December.
The New York Jets actually gave them their first loss in October, which should have been a warning sign. Then the San Francisco 49ers came to Philly and blew the doors off the Linc, 42-19. That loss seemed to break the team's spirit. A week later, the Dallas Cowboys handled them 33-13. Then came the "Monday Night Football" collapse against the Seattle Seahawks, where Drew Lock—yes, Drew Lock—led a game-winning drive.
Then, as we discussed, the 2024 calendar year losses were:
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- Arizona Cardinals (35-31)
- New York Giants (27-10)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (32-9 - Playoffs)
The collapse was total. It led to the firing of both offensive coordinator Brian Johnson and defensive coordinator Sean Desai (and effectively Matt Patricia). It led to the retirement of franchise icons Jason Kelce and Fletcher Cox.
Lessons from the 2024 Collapse
If there's any silver lining, it's that the 2024 losses forced a hard reset. Howie Roseman didn't sit on his hands. He went out and got Saquon Barkley. He brought back Vic Fangio to fix the scheme. He hired Kellen Moore to modernize an offense that had become predictable and stale.
Watching who did the eagles lose to 2024 provides a roadmap of what not to do. You can't ignore the middle of the field on defense. You can't rely solely on "hero ball" from your quarterback. And you definitely can't change your defensive play-caller in Week 15 and expect a Super Bowl ring.
For fans, those losses are a reminder of how fast the window can close in the NFL. One minute you're the best team in the world; the next, you're getting blown out in the Wild Card round by Baker Mayfield.
What You Should Do Next
If you’re still dissecting that season or preparing for the next one, the best thing to do is look at the advanced metrics from those final games. Check out the "Success Rate" per dropback during the Buccaneers game compared to the first half of the season. It highlights exactly how the passing game evaporated. Additionally, keep an eye on the defensive snap counts for the young cornerbacks. The struggles against Arizona and Tampa Bay showed exactly why the Eagles went so heavy on secondary talent in the subsequent NFL Draft, selecting Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean. Understanding the failures of 2024 is the only way to appreciate the roster construction of the current squad.