NEWS FLASH: The Philadelphia Eagles are no longer among the NFL

So much of the December NFL narrative is devoted to teams racing to make the playoffs, but the end of the regular season is also a fantastic opportunity for the dwindling number of Super Bowl contenders to sharpen their skills and distinguish themselves from the pack.

One of those contenders, the Philadelphia Eagles, had lost their previous two games but could have won easily against the Seahawks on Monday in Seattle. All they had to do was keep Seattle from driving 92 yards in less than two minutes while down by four points.

Drew Lock’s late heroics lift the Seahawks to a 20-17 victory over the fading Eagles.

Eagles fans, who can find holes in almost anything, would not have been too excited if Philadelphia had pulled off a heart-stopping triumph. After all, Seattle’s quarterback was backup Drew Lock, who was making his second start in two seasons.

Besides, the Eagles’ ailing defense, led for the first time Monday by Bill Belichick protegee and former Detroit Lions head coach Matt Patricia, looked a lot better (well, basically) than it had in lopsided defeats to San Francisco and Dallas.

So, guess what. Lock got Seattle 92 yards on 10 plays with 28 seconds to spare. He hit wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba for a 29-yard touchdown ball in the rain after squeezing past veteran Eagles cornerback James Bradberry in one-on-one coverage.

The TD gave Seattle a 20-17 lead. Philadelphia quarterback Jalen Hurts threw an interception after leading the Eagles to within around 20 yards of a game-tying field goal attempt with two timeouts remaining. Hurts winced as he removed his helmet.

“I didn’t do my job well enough,” Hurts said after the game. But that was the polite thing to say, and Hurts was far from alone in his bad performance.

As a result, the Seahawks (7-7) remain in playoff contention. Pete Carroll, their 72-year-old coach, can still boast that as a Seahawks coach, he has never lost to the Eagles. In any case, Philadelphia would have been in a bad mood.

Upsets occur during the playoffs, but December is when the great emerge, finding another gear. Last year, the Eagles lost two of their final three regular-season games, and a convincing victory against the 49ers in the NFC title game was marred by an asterisk because quarterback Brock Purdy was injured.

This, however, was a devastating defeat for the Eagles, who gave Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs a tremendous tussle in the last Super Bowl – and had huge hopes to return. The Eagles (10-4) should win their final three games, but nothing is certain right now.

Brian Johnson, the Eagles’ unpopular first-year offensive coordinator, will be hammered on sports talk shows for yet another dubious game plan, which included an option play in which Hurts lateraled the ball to his tight end, Dallas Goedert, who gained one yard.

But it was the Eagles’ defense that let them down when they needed them the most, despite the fact that head coach Nick Sirianni attempted to solve the issues with his defense by replacing Sean Desai, his first-year defensive coordinator, with Patricia on the sideline on Monday.

“Listen, it was a tough decision to be able to do this,” Sirianni said after the game of the change in coaching responsibilities, “but, again, as I said, I did what was best for our football team.” We’re continuously making changes, and that’s exactly what I did.”

Much of the pregame talk in Philadelphia this week was on how the Eagles, despite defeats to the 49ers (11-3) and Cowboys (10-4), could still win the NFC East and possibly a first-round bye if they swept their final four games.

The Cowboys were then blasted Sunday in Buffalo by the gasping Bills (8-6), who were seen as Super Bowl candidates at the start of the season. In a crucial Christmas Eve game, San Francisco must face Baltimore (11-3), which has won eight of nine games and is the AFC leader.

So the Eagles had a huge opportunity on Monday night. They didn’t get crushed like Dallas did on Sunday, but the extended Seattle drive by the backup quarterback that resulted in a last-second loss was torturous and deflating. Declare it now: the 49ers dominate the NFC West.

As the Eagles won ten of their first eleven games, losing only to the dreadful Jets, it became a popular sport in Philadelphia – for both fans and players – to point out that the squad had not put together a commanding performance. The 49ers and Cowboys both shown faults.

The defense was a major concern. After the Eagles’ 33-13 loss to Dallas, defensive end Josh Sweat told a Philadelphia Inquirer reporter, “I’m not used to our group not taking care of each other when it comes to pressure.” Darius Slay, the Eagles’ starting cornerback, underwent arthroscopic knee surgery on Saturday, forcing the team to start two rookies in the secondary.

DK Metcalf, the dangerous Seattle receiver, had one reception for eight yards through three quarters. The Eagles struggled to stop Seattle running back Kenneth Walker III, but the Seahawks only scored once in their first eight drives.

The ninth came next. Metcalf caught three catches for 58 yards, including an incredible six-yard catch in which he looked to grasp Lock’s pass with his left arm before it struck the turf. He also outran Bradberry and Sydney Brown for a crucial 34-yard reception.

The Eagles’ season will go on. Philadelphia still has a chance to win the NFC East with a sweep of the New York Giants (5-9) and the Arizona Cardinals (3-11). Even if the Eagles do not earn a home first-round playoff game, they might face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-7), the NFL’s poorest division leader.

However, a drastic defensive remedy suddenly appears to be a panic move. Hurts, who played despite being physically ill on Monday, now has 12 interceptions in 14 games this season, compared to 19 interceptions in his previous 45 games.

The Eagles are no longer elite ten months after winning the Super Bowl and wanting more. The skyscrapers of San Francisco soar over them.