Andy Reid hopes to find better plays in the red zone.

The Eagles continue to create the happiest locker rooms in the NFL. Unfortunately for them and their fans, it is their opponent’s locker room that is filled with joy after games.

The Eagles let another lead disappear as the home team dropped a 24-23 verdict to the upstart San Francisco 49ers at Lincoln Financial Field.

This time the Birds owned a 23-3 lead in the third quarter before the 49ers scored 21 unanswered points to raise their record to 3-1.

Andy Reid’s store-bought team fell to 1-3.

It was another Eagles game filled with sloppy play and even more questions on whether coordinator Juan Castillo is the right man to lead the defense of a team with the ultimate in NFL expectations.

It is hard to tell if the Eagles over valued their offseason acquisitions, have not jelled yet or Castillo just can’t get his players in position to be successful.

Again the Eagles had no answer across the middle, against the run or in the air anywhere.

“It’s unacceptable to give up a lead that size in the second half,” defensive tackle Cullen Jenkins said. “If we don’t win, we’re just a bunch of talented people who haven’t done anything. And there’s a lot of teams like that.”

More questions remained about the Eagles futility in the red zone.

Again the Birds looked good matriculating down the field and when they get close to the goal line, look clueless.

The Eagles first touchdown in the first quarter came on a broken play. On a pass play from the 49ers 16-yard line, Vick did a Houdini to escape from the grasp of two 49ers defenders and found Clay Harbor in the corner of the end zone.

In the second quarter, the Eagles drove to the one only to fumble the ball away on the same fruitless ram-the-ball-through-the middle-of-the-line play used last week against the New York Football Giants.

Mike Vick and his unit did punch the ball in from the five on a pitch to LeSean McCoy in the second quarter, but that would be the Eagles last trip into the end zone for the day.

Rookie kicker Alex Henery hit three field goals but missed two NFL-easy shots that could have changed the outcome.

Statistically Vick was amazing. The star-crossed quarterback was 30 for 46 for 416 yards (65.2 percentage) and rushed for a team high 75 yards on eight carries. Vick threw two touchdown passes and an interception. He was sacked twice.

San Francisco quarterback Alex Smith rallied from a dismal first half to end up 21 of 33 for 291 yards and two scores. He was sacked three times.

Frank Gore – who had struggled so far this season – played with the legs of a rookie rushing for 127 yards on 15 carries and what turned out to be the winning touchdown with three minutes left in the fourth quarter.

DeSean Jackson was brilliant with six catches for 171 yards but did not get into the end zone.

Vick said his team needs a gut check to get back in the race for the Division title.

“We’ve got to dig deep,” Vick said. “It’s right there for everybody to see what is taking place, how it’s been done, what hasn’t been done and what needs to be done.”

The Eagles still had a chance after Gore’s TD. Vick was leading the team up the field with about two minutes left and two timeouts.

From the San Francisco 49-yard line, Vick hit Jeremy Maclin for a 17-yard gain and a chance of redemption for Henerey and his teammates.

Only a 6-foot-4, 290-pound defensive lineman had other plans. Smith somehow caught the speedy Maclin from behind and stripped him of the ball and Smith’s teammate Dashon Goldson recovered.

Game over.

Smith said getting the ball was the only goal.

“In that situation you’re not looking to secure a tackle,” Justin Smith said. “You’re looking to get the ball out or game over. But it was a total defense, eleven guys swarming to the ball effort and sometimes the ball is on the ground and you don’t recover. We did.”

Smith said he and his teammates were aware of how hard it is to win in the NFL when you are the team that had to travel coast to coast.

“We’ll take it,” Justin Smith said. “We’ll take a win on the East coast and take it back home.”

Smith was asked if he thought the talented Eagles would have lost three of their first four games.

The big lineman’s eyes got real wide, he smiled and exclaimed to the laughter of his teammates within the sounds of his voice…”I’ don’t care!”