It finally happened.

The Eagles’ offense again sputtered, punting on its final four drives, and blew a 14-point lead in the fourth quarter, allowing the Denver Broncos to pull off a 21-17 comeback victory Sunday.

The Eagles (4-1) had not lost in 287 days, but with the inconsistency of the offense, this was bound to happen.

The defense had bailed the Eagles out the last few weeks, but there is only so much Vic Fangio and his unit can do. Do I blame the defense for this loss? Not really.

Sure, Denver had two fourth-quarter touchdowns and a field goal. Denver moved the ball more efficiently and seemed unstoppable . However, I do not blame the defense at all.

The Broncos had netted just 168 yards and three points on their first eight drives. The Eagles seemed to be in control, but again they failed to maintain momentum.

The Eagles had a 17-3 lead in the third quarter after a 47-yard touchdown pass to Saquon Barkley.

The Eagles’ defense forced a punt, but their offense punted after five plays. The defense then forced another Denver punt, but the offense went three-and-out (a drive that netted -16 yards). The Eagles could have added to their lead, but came up short.

Denver then put together a 10-play, 64-yard scoring drive to cut its deficit to 17-10.

The Eagles again went three-and-out.

The Broncos then took an 18-17 lead.

The Eagles again went three-and-out.

Denver then got into field-goal range to extend its lead and cap the scoring.

With not much time left, the Eagles tried to score a game-winning TD, but failed. Sure, the officials missed a clear pass interference call on Dallas Goedert, which could have give the Eagles the ball deep in Denver territory with 9 seconds left, but it should not have come down to that.

The Eagles’ offense blew it.

Not the defense.

The offense had opportunities to score again and put the game away. The defense has come up clutch in almost every game when needed so far this season. Fangio’s unit only allowed 21 points Sunday to a talented Denver team, so let’s not fully point to the defense for this loss.

I know the defense could have, and maybe should have, stopped Denver on at least one drive down the stretch. But this loss is solely on the offense, and there is no debate.

Listen, I know the defense could not stop Bo Nix, Courtland Sutton or J.K. Dobbins in the fourth quarter. Fangio just seemed out-coached, which you do not normally see. The Eagles’ defense committed costly penalties, and I get that was a reason for the late-game collapse.

But what about the offense responding and helping the defense, like the defense has done this season, especially last week when the offense has just 19 yards in the second half against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The defense bailed the out then, so why didn’t Kevin Patullo and the offense reciprocate Sunday?

The defense was (again) forced to play too much. The unit was (again) forced to bail out a struggling offense, but this time it did not happen.

But blame the defense? After an offense that could not sustain any drives late and fell apart (again) after a strong start? For an offense that only gave Saquon Barkley, one of its top weapons, just six carries, including just ine in the final 35 minutes? For an offensive line that gave up six sacks?

I am sorry, but I cannot blame the defense for the loss.

Jalen Hurts was spreading the ball around. DeVonta Smith had eight catches for 114 yards. A.J. Brown had five receptions for 43 yards. Goedert and Barkley each had three catches .

The offense looked decent… until the end. The Eagles just could not sustain drives, unlike earlier in the game. Almost similar to the Buccaneers game.

So, what happened last week and Sunday?

That’s what the Eagles need to figure out.

Maybe a balanced offense would help. The Eagles finished with only 11 carries. Hurts threw the ball 38 times. I don’t want to sound like a whiney fan, but why not balance things out? I love that Hurts threw more. He threw for 280 yards with two touchdowns. I loved that, but I also want to see them run more. You cannot let Barkley have just six carries.

The Eagles need balance.

This is too talented of an offense to not produce.

We have yet to see balance this season, and that is troubling.

The offense has got to be better.

Being up 31-13 last week and just hanging on to beat Tampa Bay and then having a 17-3 fourth-quarter lead Sunday and blowing it is just not good enough.

Where is putting teams away?

The Eagles have had that killer mentality under Nick Sirianni, but that’s not the case so far this season. The Eagles just cannot seem to finish, and that’s mainly on the offense.

The Eagles need to learn to play 60 minutes, and so far they haven’t.

Until they do, this is going to be a long season.

The Eagles have the New York Giants on Thursday. On paper, the Eagles should beat the Giants. This will be a game to maybe make some corrections and win dominantly.

Last season, the Eagles were 2-2 after the first four weeks. They had their problems and corrected them. Maybe they will do the same now?

The Eagles just have too much talent to let this happen, and whatever problem is going on needs to be addressed very fast. The Eagles should not lose a 17-3 lead in the fourth quarter.

Figure it out, and figure it out soon.

This team has the talent, especially on offense. So what happened Sunday was inexcusable.