THERE is plenty to be excited about if you’re an Eagles fan!
Surely, most of us were expecting something a little different from Free Agency. Many of us were expecting a big defensive signing. We wanted a statement to be made.
What we got instead was a Safety in Malcolm Jenkins who possesses the type of coverage skill that we’ve lacked for a half a decade at the position. This is an improvement.
Then there’s the Darren Sproles trade. His presence is going to do things specifically for this Spread Offense, that may change how teams draft and formulate their depth charts.
Allow me to show you a magic trick:
That guy right there is Sproles. Notice how he’s lined up behind Brent Celek? Not an accident that he’s there. You might have also noticed that DeSean Jackson is not on the field. I did that to point out that the Sproles Effect is not contingent on Jackson still being here. It’s deadlier if he is, but if he isn’t we’re still golden.
Now we pick our bitch. I like Player “A” (the OLB) for this. Player A’s primary duty is to set the edge and not let the TE establish underneath.
We’ll put Sproles on a simple Shoot route to the flat. Player A now has to release the TE immediately to Player B (the SS) and cover Sproles himself. Otherwise there’ll be a quick completion to Sproles, in space and with a blocker out in front.
The counter to this of course is to walk the SS down to cover Sproles at the snap. One problem with that. Look all the way to the right. That’s Jeremy Maclin in one-on-one out there. With no help deep.
I promised you a magic trick right? It’s a draw to LeSean McCoy. Behind Jason Peters and Evan Mathis with no backside pursuit, because it’s all running the other way. Wait it was a fake! Nick Foles is out the backdoor! Or Foles could sit and throw the ball, since it’s all one-on-one anyway. Oh you didn’t notice that? In the heat of the moment neither did the defense.
And that’s just ONE play.
So while Free Agency didn’t quite turn out the way we’d have liked, let’s not forget to be thankful for what we DO have here. Because fellow fans, it could be better than the “crazy” that Sproles suggested.
It could be downright magic.





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