It was right there for the Eagles in a hard-fought Monday night game against the Atlanta Falcons at Lincoln Financial Field, and then it wasn't. In a furious final 5 minutes, 42 seconds, a series of huge plays defined a game the Eagles ultimately lost, 22-21, to drop the team to 1-1 for the season.

What happened in that final 5:42? Four plays that left the Eagles on the losing end of a September game for the first time after an NFL-best seven consecutive victories.

Play 1 – 5:42 remaining, Bijan Robinson stopped on fourth-and-1

Atlanta trailed 21-18 and faced a fourth-and-1 play at its 39-yard line. Quarterback Kirk Cousins handed off to running back Bijan Robinson and Eagles safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson timed the play perfectly, meeting Robinson in the hole and delivering a crushing hit that stopped the powerful Robinson short of the first down. Eagles ball, with the understanding that Atlanta had just two timeouts remaining with time winding down.

"It's do or die, him versus me," Gardner-Johnson said. "Unfortunately, that wasn't the ultimate lead to win the game, but there's other things in this game that we're going to look at and fix as a team."

Play 2 – 1:46 remaining, Eagles unable to convert third-and-3

The Philadelphia offense gained two first downs and forced Atlanta to call its two remaining timeouts and things were looking very positive for the Eagles to win this football game. But on third-and-3 from the Atlanta 10-yard line, the rarest of rare happened: Running back Saquon Barkley made a mistake. Running the same play that produced a big play that led to the go-ahead touchdown earlier, when Barkley went in motion from left to right and ran a flat route toward the sideline to create some space, quarterback Jalen Hurts delivered a perfect throw that hit Barkley's fingertips … and fell to the ground. Incomplete pass. A completion there would have been good for a first down and, with 1:46 to go in the game, a chance for the Eagles to run out the clock. Instead, Jake Elliott came on to kick a 28-yard field goal, and with 1:39 to go, Atlanta got the ball back at its 30-yard line, trailing 21-15.

"I dropped the ball, let my team down today. Shouldn't have put the defense in that position, make that catch, and the game's over," Barkley said.

"I could sit here and complain and be upset about it or I could be a professional athlete and go back to the drawing boards and take the lick and move on and get better from it. I've made that play multiple times. I've missed that play before too, meaning the situation. It happens. It's part of the game. I've just got to be better. I let my team down, I gotta man up to it. I got to own, which I'm doing. Gotta promise those guys in this locker room that I'll be better for them."

Play 3 – 32 seconds remaining, Falcons score game-winning TD

It was really a bunch of plays, but the final one was a Cousins touchdown pass in the right corner of the end zone to wide receiver Drake London on a third-and-5 play from the Philadelphia 7-yard line to tie the game, and then Younghoe Koo booted an extra point from 48 yards out – Atlanta was penalized 15 yards after the touchdown – and the Falcons had the lead.

"Very disappointed, definitely, with myself at the end of that game," said cornerback Darius Slkay, who was in coverage on London on the touchdown. "I'm hurt with that one, man. That's my guy. That play, for sure, is my fault. Eyes in the backfield, just trying to do more than I should have been doing."

The Eagles' defense didn't get anything going in that final drive after an otherwise bend-but-don't-break kind of night. To that point, the Falcons had just 315 total yards of offense and while the Atlanta running game gained 154 yards and averaged more than 5 1/2 yards per carry, Cousins didn't find much downfield success in the passing game.

That all changed in the final drive.

Cousins completed five of six passes for gains of 11, 21, and 26 yards to move into the red zone, and then a 5-yard completion put the ball at the 7-yard line. The Eagles didn't generate pressure on Cousins throughout the game – just one sack, from tackle Milton Williams – and on that final drive Cousins had a pocket and room to throw to receivers who were able to work themselves into open areas.

Play 4 – 27 seconds remaining, Eagles' final effort comes up short

Philadelphia had one final chance, getting the ball back at its 30-yard line with two timeouts in its pocket. Hurts completed a 13-yard pass to tight end Dallas Goedert on first down and the Eagles called one of their timeouts. On the next play, Hurts was pressured as he threw, looking for a double-covered DeVonta Smith on the left sideline. Safety Jessie Bates had over-the-top coverage on Smith and intercepted the pass that was too wide and the game was over.

"Just trying to make a play down the field," Hurts said. "Trying to make a play down the field. He made a good play. I threw it a little too long. Just got to continue to prepare in those situations and put ourselves in those positions, so we can take advantage of it at the end. I felt very prepared going into those moments. In that moment, it just wasn't our time that it went for us."

When you hear players and coaches talk about a team winning or losing based on "a few plays," this game is a prime example. At 1-1, the Eagles now go on the road to play the red-hot and 2-0 New Orleans Saints followed by a trip to Tampa Bay to play the Buccaneers, another team that is off to a 2-0 start.

"We shouldn't have been in that position," defensive end Brandon Graham said. "But as a team, that's the learning lesson from this game that I think it's going to help us later, to know we can be beat especially if we don't take advantage of our opportunities."

Here are some other observations from a very, very tough loss at Lincoln Financial Field on Monday night …

1. Wide receiver A.J. Brown was sidelined with a hamstring injury and his absence hampered the offense. Smith was targeted 10 times and had 7 receptions for 76 yards and a touchdown, with a long of 19 yards. Goedert caught 3 passes for 38 yards and Britain Covey had a career-high 6 receptions for 23 yards. Newly acquired wide receiver Jahan Dotson caught one pass for 6 yards. The Eagles didn't get the big-play passing game untracked the entire night.

2. The tough part of Barkley's drop is that he had an outstanding game – 22 carries, 95 yards, and 4 receptions for 21 yards – and excelled between the tackles. He is a great, great football player and he stood tall after the game and accepted the responsibility for the dropped pass. Mistakes happen. Dropping a pass was a mistake, that's all.

3. Hurts was 23-of-30 for 183 yards, one touchdown and the interception and he made some huge plays with his legs, gaining 85 yards on 13 carries as the Eagles picked up 192 yards on the ground.

4. Penalties hurt the Eagles – Philadelphia was whistled for 9 penalties, resulting in 53 lost yards. Three times the Eagles were penalized for an ineligible man downfield and that is something they need to clean up.

5. Key statistic: The Eagles were only 2-of-5 in the red zone and that cost them on Monday night. Nick Sirianni decided to go for a fourth-and-4 from the Atlanta 9-yard line on the Eagles' second offensive possession and a pass from Hurts to Goedert was incomplete, and, as the team will look back on throughout the short week ahead, the offense left points on the field in a tough, tough loss in Week 2.