PHILADELPHIA — The Eagles’ offense has been difficult to stop in recent years when using run-pass option (RPO) concepts.

During the Eagles’ Super Bowl run in 2022, they led the league in passing yards using the RPO (1,281), according to Pro Football Reference. Last season, the Eagles ran the play a league-high 171 times.

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Eagles offensive coordinator Kellen Moore implemented a new scheme this season, but did not take the RPO out of the playbook. They have used the RPO 28 times in the last two weeks, third most in the league. However, the play has not been the strength of their offense.

Quarterback Jalen Hurts managed only 18 yards on seven RPO pass attempts.

The Eagles were assessed three ineligible man-positioning penalties in their 22-21 loss to the Atlanta Falcons on Monday. Center Cam Jurgens was penalized twice and offensive tackle Lane Johnson once.

These five-yard penalties are the result of poor RPO execution. Before Hurts throws the ball, the Eagles offensive linemen can’t go down the field to make blocks. They can’t go down the field until the ball is thrown or until they know it’s a running play.

The Eagles have a solution to eliminate these penalties and make the RPO effective again.

“It’s just a matter of timing on our side,” Eagles offensive tackle Jordan Mailata told NJ Advance Media on Thursday. “It’s a very simple fix. We put a tag on the play so we know we need to hold onto the blocks a little longer. That’s basically it. It’s not that complex a problem. It’s not.”

“When you add that tag, it brings back the clarity of what needs to be read first and what you need to do as an offensive lineman. It’s not that profound. Everyone makes a big deal out of it, but it’s not a big deal how to fix it.”

NFL analysts Brian Baldinger and Dan Orlovsky are both concerned about the Eagles’ penalties.

“What is the CP on this RPO? How is the offensive line supposed to know if the ball is being pulled for a throw? Birds get penalized all the time on this issue,” Baldinger tweeted during Monday’s game.

“This has to be fixed in Philly,” Orlovsky said Tuesday of X.

Former Eagles center Jason Kelce responded to Baldinger’s question and explained the nuance of the game. Kelce said RPOs “save a lot of bad running chances,” but he hated the game because it made him block timidly.

The Eagles have carried the ball 21 times for 123 yards on RPOs, the second-best result in the league.

Hurts and running back Saquon Barkley are one of the most dangerous backfield duos in the league. The Eagles could finish with the most rushing yards on RPOs this season, but that won’t happen unless the pass offense can execute better.

“We had some really, really good discussions just because it’s been a really successful component for us,” Moore said. “So we don’t want to lose that element of our offense. It’s part technique, part strategy. It’s really a combination of those. … The timing of everything and when to make those decisions and when to call those plays are all critical moments. We had some really fun discussions about it that I think will help us move forward.”

Mailata said the Eagles’ offensive line is “trained to do our job and take care of our job first.” With RPOs, they don’t know if Hurts will choose to throw or run the ball.

Eagles guard Mekhi Becton said “communication” needs to be better. Becton also said the Eagles use a code word during RPO plays to make sure everyone knows what’s coming.

The Eagles’ offense needs to become more efficient in the next few weeks.

They need to score a lot of points to beat the New Orleans Saints on Sunday and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 4, so they can’t afford to make too many self-inflicted mistakes.

“The penalties were the reason we went down,” Mailata said of their performance against Atlanta. “You break the momentum. Then you have to fight and fight back to get another first down or get back to where you started. The momentum kind of gets broken. If you keep allowing penalties, eventually they’re going to (expletive) you. They (expletive) us.”