So how much of what I mentioned in PreseasonFour Things: BENGALS did the Eagles actually get around to doing? Well let’s see:
1) Second Unit Run Game: I wanted to see if we had another runner who could be a serious threat on the ground and I was pleasantly surprised by RB Dameon Pierce (4 – 44 – 11 – 0 – 0). Until he got hurt. (DONE)
2) Sitting This One Out:I wanted to see LB Jeremiah Trotter Jr.and QB Tanner McKee (12/22 – 54.5% – 55 – 0 – 1), sit this game out. Obviously it happened for Trotter, but McKee got stuck playing nearly an entire half.
The idea that the Eagles coaching staff still feels the need to evaluate between McKee and QB Andy Dalton (12/19 – 63.1% – 104 – 1 – 0), is concerning. Dalton is 38, has played 16 years and never won anything of any significance. He owns an 84 – 83 – 2 record as a starter. We’ve seen his ceiling. Every practice rep that McKee loses to this guy, just further stunts McKee’s development by this staff. This is irresponsible. (NOT DONE)
3) Payton’s Place: Give QB Cole Payton(0/2 – 0.0% – 0 – 0 – 0) the second half and see what he can do with it, to help his development. Didn’t happen. (NOT DONE)
4) Any Reason For Hope: Hoping for something to hang hope onto regarding our kick return game, we got nothing. (NOT DONE)
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This week’s Four Thingsscore was 1 of 4. Mercifully the preseason is over, so when we next see the Eagles, we’ll be watching our starters. But that’s two weeks away.
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Game Hero: S Andre Sam(3 – 0.0 – 0 – 2) forced a fumble and recovered two, before hurting his leg and having to be driven off the field on a cart. Like RB Pierce, if a player started strong this week, they were leaving the game early.
Game goat: Offensive Coordinator Sean Mannion – Again, I understand the strategy of vanilla playcalling in the preseason. That said, the over-reliance on routes under five yards and RB dump-offs, isn’t on the players. That’s on whomever is calling the plays. That lack of aggression, isn’t how you develop killer instinct, or a sense of urgency in young players.
On The Whole: If I didn’t have to write about it, I wouldn’t have finished watching the game.
TONIGHT, for the first time since January 11th, football will finally be played in Philadelphia again. Expect many people showing up to work wearing green. The words “Go Birds” outnumbering air molecules. The feel of an approaching September…
While the wins and losses won’t be counted in the record, the stakes for some players, will be monumental. Some careers will be ended before they even get started, and some guys may flash and rescue their career in final quarter of the final game. Just like 7th round S Kurt Coleman did in 2010, turning a near pink slip into a ten year career, with a Pro Bowl nod in 2015. So eyes open, Eagles fans. You never know what you might see.
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The point of Four Things isn’t to predict a winner. It’s to discuss which tactics will give our Eagles the best chance to defeat this week’s opponent. Except in preseason. Winning would be nice, but these games aren’t for that. They’re for helping us establish depth, and to perhaps uncover a gem or two.
So here’s what I’ll be keeping an eye on, in this match-up:
RB Will Shipley
1) Second Unit Run Game: While RB’s Will Shipleyand Carson Steele appear to be gamers vs reserves; we’ve seen Shipley run out of gas in a playoff game, and Steele is more of a small FB than a starting RB. If either has to start due to injury, our ground game isn’t scaring anybody.
I want to see competition for that fourth string/Practice Squad RB spot. So far all we’ve seen is Steele. I don’t recall a single carry from RB Dameon Pierce, and Jordan Mimswas just signed on Monday. It would be nice to see that we have a third guy who can break a game open.
2) Sitting This One Out:I don’t want to see LB Jeremiah Trotter Jr., or Ty Robinson in pads for this one. Those roster spots are secure. There is no need to expose them to an injury risk. Same for QB Tanner McKee.
Ideally, QB Andy Daltonwould get the first half. That way he can put out some tape, and maybe he can catch-on with another team. Because we should be about the business of cutting him.
3) Payton’s Place:Give QB Cole Payton the entire second half, to start grooming him as our third stringer, (and possibly future second stringer). As a fifth round pick, his next contract will be very controllable. Especially if QB Jalen Hurts doesn’t miss much time over the next few years, so Payton can’t put much on tape. Steep him in the system and develop him as a long-term back-up, as a way to stash cost-controlled depth.
4) Any Reason For Hope:Since mostly third stringers will play this game, it’s bound to be a little sloppy here and there. So big runs, big catches, and kick returns may be exaggerated from what we’d see in the regular season. Meaning any that we see, have be taken with a grain of salt.
Still, even if it’s false hope, PLEASE give me something to look forward to, with our kick return game! Do you realize that WR Britain Covey has never returned a kickoff for more than 30 yards? Can we get something going? A 50 yard kickoff return? A 35 yard punt return? Something? Anything?? PLEASE!?
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WARNING: I don’t have the faintest clue as to what a point spread is, and I know even less about how it works. I know FOOTBALL and that’s it. If you use Four Things as a gambling tool, then you are a fool trying to lose your money, and will deserve it when you do.
Check back in a couple of days for Four Things Reviewed, and we’ll discuss how this game went.
THE opener didn’t go quite as well as we were hoping. We wanted to see the Offense differentiate itself from the Kevin Patullo era, and unless you are a student of the game, you didn’t really see that.
If you are a student of the game, seeing the QB not in Shotgun all the time was awesome. The motion that caused the opposing defense to shift around, almost felt like watching some other team. I can’t wait to see the starters using this.
That said, I expect that some of these back-ups are going to distance themselves from others this week.
****
The point of Four Things isn’t to predict a winner. It’s to discuss which tactics will give our Eagles the best chance to defeat this week’s opponent. Except in preseason. Winning would be nice, but these games aren’t for that. They’re for helping us establish depth, and to perhaps uncover a gem or two.
So here’s what I’ll be keeping an eye on, in this match-up:
1) Better Routes:I get that we were running “vanilla” packages, but some of our route concepts made it difficult to push the ball downfield, without pushing it into crowded areas. (This is an inherent problem with bunching receivers.)
If Offensive Coordinator Sean Mannion is insistent on WR bunches or clusters, he’s got to figure out a way to get them quickly out of each other’s area. Clumps of receivers attract clumps of defenders, and we saw how that worked out last week.
2) Ty Up the End:I said when he was drafted that DT Ty Robinson would likely be more effective at DE. Last year at DT he struggled with moving the line of scrimmage. At 288 pounds, his DT strength isn’t as impressive in the NFL as it was in college.
At DE however, he shows monster potential. His strength on the edge, combined with his movement in space, would make him into a nasty, strong-side run defender. Last week he played mostly RDE, but we really need to see him get more snaps at LDE.
3) Make Special Teams Special:We haven’t had a dangerous return man, since before Darren Sproles tore his MCL. While it’s true that WR Britain Covey has averaged good numbers per return, let’s not pretend that he’s a threat to break one.
No one is afraid of Covey. In fact, with some of the hits he takes, I spend more time being afraid for him. I’d like to see somebody step up and play returner like it’s their only way onto an NFL roster.
4) Big Plays and Big Mistakes: Some of the guys playing tonight won’t be in football in about three weeks. I want to see guys gambling and taking chances on themselves. Just playing with abandon, as opposed to playing tight. I want to come out of this game cheering for a long-shot.
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As I said last week, it’s been a while since I just sort of sat back, and watched a game as a fan. I’m going to mostly focus on that during the preseason. I’ll be ready to go in time for the season, but for right now, especially with no starters to watch, I’m going to keep the pressure on myself, low, and not sweat deadlines too much.
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WARNING: I don’t have the faintest clue as to what a point spread is, and I know even less about how it works. I know FOOTBALL and that’s it. If you use Four Things as a gambling tool, then you are a fool trying to lose your money, and will deserve it when you do.
Check back in a couple of days for Four Things Reviewed, and we’ll discuss how this game went.
Special Teams Ace: P Braden Mann (4 – 208 – 52.0 – 1TB)
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I hear you asking, “What about all the stuff that stats don’t reveal?” Well, that’s the reason for these Four Things articles. It’s to point out what we need to address BEFORE the game. Then AFTER the game, there’s a no-bullshit assessment of whether or not the Eagles did any of what they needed to do, to ensure the win.
So how much of what I mentioned in Four Things: 49ers did the Eagles actually get around to doing? Well let’s see:
1) Run At Their DE’s: We actually did more of this than I was hoping for! So much so that that our first score was a 1 yard run by TE Dallas Goedert(receiving: 7 – 4 – 33 – 8.2 – 1). Even DeVonta got a Sweep, but both of those were in the first quarter. All the creativity was gone in the second half. Still, we did work the ends. (DONE)
2) Get Their QB’s Feet Moving:We only got one measly sack, but that doesn’t tell the story of how often we made their QB launch off-platform passes. On his two longest passes of the day, he was able to stand in the pocket and throw with confidence, but for most of the game we kept him moving. (DONE)
3) Unleash A.J. Brown: How did it go for WRA.J. Brown(7 – 3 – 25 – 8.3 – 0)? One actual deep shot. Three drops. No attempts to him in the second and third quarters, and for most of the fourth. (NOT DONE)
4) Muddy Coverage Underneath: We didn’t do this nearly as often as we should have, considering that the guy we needed to stop was a RB who specializes in catching short passes and turning them into more yardage. (NOT DONE)
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This week’s Four Things score was 2 of 4. Close, but no cigar. Which is why our season came to a much deserved close.
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Game Hero: CB Quinyon Mitchell – Notching two interceptions and forcing a fumble to end the 49ers scoring threat at the end of the firsts half, Q personally ended three drives to help us get ahead and stay ahead of San Fran. Sadly, that meant turning the ball over to our Offense.
Game goat: Offensive Coaching Staff – For half the game, I was listening to announcer Tom Brady, say that the Eagles weren’t operating with a sense of urgency, and they didn’t seem to be on the same page. He was 100 percent correct. The lack of proper preparation has been a season-long, and now season-ending problem. Changes need to be made, and that is the last I will write about that, until after the Super Bowl.
On The Whole: What we saw in this game, was the same thing we’ve been seeing since the season opened with our players having not played in the preseason. A roster that should have gone 15 – 1, instead settled for 11 – 6 and a seed that was not the #1. For all of our work today, we got an early playoff exit, and a shitty draft position.
This won’t mean a lot to the players. It probably will only mean slightly more to the coaching staff.
Who it WILL mean a lot to, is OwnerJeff Lurie, who is apparently paying nearly 60 million dollars to two WR’s to drop passes.
Paying 50 million to a QB who no longer does the running that made him special, since he can’t throw touchdowns at the rate that truly elite QB’s can. I think once Lurie communicates how much this means to him, it will start to mean much more to the players and coaches.
HEAD Coach Nick Sirianni, wisely manufactured a Bye week for our starters last week. Sadly, our back-ups fell just a little short of securing the #2 seed. Guess we’ll just have to settle for the #3 seed, and host at least one playoff game at home. This week’s opponent, the 49ers, chased seeding and played their starters last week. They not only lost the game, they got two of their starting LB’s injured, where they may miss this game.
So Nick was right.
With a 1,000 yard rusher in RB Saquon Barkley; two 1,000 yard receivers in WRA.J. Brown and WR DeVonta Smith; and TE Dallas Goedertwho caught 11 touchdown passes this season, the Eagles can put all kinds of different stress on defenses. Our opponent, really has the one guy, in RB Christian McCaffrey.
Can Defensive Coordinator Vic Fangio, scheme up a way to minimize McCaffery’s impact on the game? Can LBZack Baun, CBCooper DeJean, and our man-eating Defensive Line execute that scheme? The smart money is on ‘YES!’.
With a win, we move onto the Divisional round. There, we’ll most likely travel to Chicago, to face the Bears. (Unless something really weird happens.)
With a loss, our season ends, but our players at least wouldn’t have to get on a plane, to come home and clean out their lockers.
****
The point of Four Things isn’t to predict a winner, it’s to discuss which tactics would give our Eagles the best chance to win this game. Often I list fundamentals, as some of the four things. BUT NO MORE! Unless something specific is needed, fundamentals likeRunning the ball; playing lots of Man Press; and Tackling instead of going for the strip, will be automatically included. (Like the five consonants and a vowel that Wheel Of Fortune automatically spots you.) So here are the Four Things that we need to focus on this week versus: the Forty-Niners.
1) Run At Their DE’s:The 49ers are small, don’t have much depth, and are banged up, up front. Making matters worse, are their injuries at LB. Particularly at MLB, where their current starter was at home, unemployed three weeks ago. Shouldn’t take much for us to cause confusion and miscommunication in their second level.
What’s more, their pass rush has been anemic. Catching their DE’s playing the pass on 2nd and 8, or 3rd and 4, would be a nice way to gash big holes for Barkley. As a team, we need to put up 150 rushing yards. This should be like beating a fish in a race, because it doesn’t have legs and can’t breathe air. Their disadvantages are our advantages. Use them!
2) Get Their QB’s Feet Moving:He already doesn’t have a rocket launcher for an arm. So forcing deeper throws, while getting him to throw off-platform, could turn this game into a blowout in our favor. No need to blitz him, just rush him with a plan, and don’t let him get his feet set!
3) Unleash A.J. Brown:That man should see at least 8 targets, and at least two of them should be Go routes. The 49ers have nothing remotely in the form of an answer for Brown. So, we should take full advantage and put on a vulgar display of power. This week’s game should leave our next opponent shaken to their core.
4) Muddy Coverage Underneath:Corners in Man Coverage, Safeties slight delays on dropbacks, Linebackers in shallow zones. The idea is to keep the passing windows tight, and delay quick releases by the QB. Causing the QB to hold the ball longer activates our pass rush, and works hand-in-glove with making their QB move his feet.
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If the Eagles do these Four Things, then we’ll be virtually impossible to beat. That being said…
The 49ers let it slip last week, that the Eagles were not the opponent they wanted to face in the playoffs. Goes to show, they may talk a lot of shit, but they know exactly what the fuck is up. Every indication says that this game is essentially feeding rabbits to lions, and the San Francisco rabbits, KNOW IT.
This is provided that the Eagles can successfully muzzle our Offensive Coordinator. If we could somehow, get him into a large wooden crate marked “Fragile”, we could ship him somewhere, and the team would be safe! Alas, we may be stuck with him making actual decisions.
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WARNING: I don’t have the faintest clue as to what a point spread is, and I know even less about how it works. I know FOOTBALL and that’s it. If you use Four Things as a gambling tool, then you are a fool trying to lose your money, and will deserve it when you do.
Check back in a couple of days for Four Things Reviewed, and we’ll discuss how this game went.
Special Teams Ace: P Braden Mann 7 – 388 – 55.4 (65)
****
I hear you asking, “What about all the stuff that stats don’t reveal?” Well, that’s the reason for these Four Things articles. It’s to point out what we need to address BEFORE the game. Then AFTER the game, there’s a no-bullshit assessment of whether or not the Eagles did any of what they needed to do, to ensure the win.
So how much of what I mentioned in Four Things: BILLS did the Eagles actually get around to doing? Well let’s see:
1) Run Off-Guard: I was looking for 10 hand-offs in those gaps. Especially to the right. Instead, what we got was a lot of Center/Guard action and Pitch-Outs. We also went back to running from the Shotgun, for some reason. (NOT DONE)
TE Dallas Goedert catching the Eagles only TD of the game.
2) Exploit Our TE Mismatch:I said it would be a crime if TE Dallas Goedert(6 – 3 – 8 – 2.7 – 1) saw fewer than 6 targets and that’s exactly how many he saw. He also caught our only touchdown of the game. (DONE)
3) Mush the Rush: The Eagles held the number one rushing team in football (170 rushing yards per game) to 120 yards, on a slick and rainy field. The plan was never to “shut down”the Bills run game, just contain it, and we did an excellent job of that. (DONE)
4) Move Their QB’s Platform Left:We didn’t do a whole lot of this, but we did it when it mattered most: During their two point attempt, after their second touchdown.(DONE)
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This week’s Four Things score was 3 of 4. Next week we wrap-up at home, hopefully with our back-ups playing that one out.
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DT Jalen Carter barrels in for a sack of Josh Allen.
Game Hero: DT Jalen Carter – (1 – 1.0 – 0 – 0) He was disruptive, recorded a sack, and even blocked an extra point, that probably won us the game. Seriously. If the Bills make that early extra point, then when they scored their second touchdown, it would have been a 13 – 13 game, and they’d have just kicked the extra point for the win.
However, because of Carter’s block, the Bills had to go for the two point conversion for the win. The throw was wide left, and the Eagles had a “W”.
Game goat: Offensive Coordinator, Kevin Patullo – We had a solid first half, then the reigns were solely handed over to Offensive Coordinator Kevin Patullo. We immediately went back to predictable nonsense that wasn’t particularly well blocked.
On The Whole:
This was a measuring stick game, and the Eagles won it. Yes, Hurts didn’t complete a pass in the entire second half, but we won the game. We found a way to win on the road. Against a playoff team. In monsoon conditions.
Rookie LB Jihaad Campbell celebrates his fumble recovery.
WINNERS of the NFC East for a second year in a row! The division’s first back -to-back winner, since we last did it in 2004. With the clinching of our division comes the clinching of a playoff spot, and at least one playoff home game. However, all that good stuff is for later. There are still two more regular season games on our dance card.
After victories over two losing teams (Raiders and Commanders), we could really use a sparring match against an actual heavy hitter. Lucky for us, we face the 11 – 4 Bills this week. Even better, they have a difference making QB. That makes this exactly the kind of measuring stick game, that the Eagles need right now.
For the last couple games, it looks like our Offense (especially our run game), has gotten back on track. We need to demonstrate that against a playoff team. The Bills have been known this year for their generosity vs the run. Regardless of how generous they feel on Sunday, we need to show that if we want the yards, we can take them.
With a win, the Eagles would be 11 – 5, with the conference’s number two seed still up for grabs.
With a loss, we stall out at 10 – 6, and will likely stay locked in as the 3rd seed.
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The point of Four Things isn’t to predict a winner, it’s to discuss which tactics would give our Eagles the best chance to win this game. Often I list fundamentals, as some of the four things. BUT NO MORE! Unless something specific is needed, fundamentals like Running the ball; playing lots of Man Press; andTackling instead of going for the strip, will be automatically included. (Like the five consonants and a vowel that Wheel Of Fortune automatically spots you.) So here are the Four Things that we need to focus on this week versus: the Bills.
RB Saquon Barkley gets loose for another explosive run.
1) Run Off-Guard:The Bills top two DT’s are either going to either be out, or far from 100 percent. Also, after the brawl with Washington last week, it would be nice to see our Guards get more opportunity to unleash some violence, work up to the second level, and throw the Bills undersized LB’s, out of the club.
More than looking for rushing yards from this, I’m just looking for 10 or more hand-offs that hit the gap between the Guard and the Tackle. That’s the easiest path to get RB Saquon Barkley some explosive runs, so we need to be practicing it, to master it for when we call on it during the playoffs.
2) Exploit Our TE Mismatch: The Bills OLB’s haven’t made many plays vs the pass this season, and vs TE Dallas Goedert, I wouldn’t expect them to suddenly improve in that area. There’s just too much of a physical mismatch. It will be a crime if Goedert sees fewer than 6 targets in this game.
TE Dallas Goedert scoring a touchdown last week.
3) Mush the Rush:We need our DE’s to play the outside edges of the Tackles they’re facing. Their RB is no bulldozer. If we can keep the gaps narrow and trap him behind his blockers, it’ll make it hard for them to run off-Guard. For any plays that involve pitching or sweeping, those DE’s on the edge can now give chase, or spill plays wide.
Their QB has already run for 500 yard this season, usually because defenses vacate the middle of the field, and it allows him to run for drive sustaining first downs. Using LB Jihaad Campbell in a spy/shallow zone coverage, would give us the speed needed to quickly run their QB down, and take away easy passes over the middle.
4) Move Their QB’s Platform Left:Again, regarding their QB’s mobility, he can also throw on the move. Like most QB’s, he’s a righty, so the objective is to move him to his left. Take some velocity off of his throws, and alter his typical release angle, and he may just share one or two passes with us.
DE Brandon Graham sacks QB Josh Allen in 2023
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If the Eagles do these Four Things, then we’ll be virtually impossible to beat. That being said…
While this game could help us improve our seeding, it’s real value (beyond the seeding thing), is that it practically doesn’t count at this point. That allows us to use it almost as a practice game, and lets us give quick hooks to key starters. We can also give our deep back-ups some game experience in case we need to call on them.
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WARNING: I don’t have the faintest clue as to what a point spread is, and I know even less about how it works. I know FOOTBALL and that’s it. If you use Four Things as a gambling tool, then you are a fool trying to lose your money, and will deserve it when you do.
Check back in a couple of days for Four Things Reviewed, and we’ll discuss how this game went.
TOTAL domination! It was a blowout/shutout, where we allowed just 75 yards all game long, while scoring 31 points. We adjusted to the weather, and instead of throwing it a ton, we ran for 183 yards, controlling the clock for 39 minutes. We responded well to what was happening around us, and stayed in control of what we could control. For example, not playing down to the opponent.
This week’s opponent, the 4 – 10 Commanders, didn’t build enough foundation in the off-season. Now injury, age, and a lack of depth, have them already eliminated from playoff contention. Usually teams like that want to play spoiler. However, with nine other teams with records of 4 – 10 or worse, the Commanders coaching staff may tank to keep or improve their top ten spot in the upcoming Draft.
A win moves us to 10 – 5, clinching both the 2025 NFC East title and a playoff berth.
A loss holds us to 9 – 6. While we would still be in the lead to win the division, we would make things much more complicated for ourselves.
****
The point of Four Things isn’t to predict a winner, it’s to discuss which tactics would give our Eagles the best chance to win this game. Often I list fundamentals, as some of the four things. BUT NO MORE! Unless something specific is needed, fundamentals like Running the ball; playing lots of Man Press; and Tackling instead of going for the strip, will be automatically included. (Like the five consonants and a vowel that Wheel Of Fortune automatically spots you.) So here are the Four Things that we need to focus on this week versus: the COMMANDERS.
RB Saquon Barkley rips off a 60 yard TD run.
1) Exploit Age On the Perimeter:Between the Commanders starting DE’s and OLB’s, the respective ages are 33, 30, 29 and 36. Let’s get a couple of toss/pitch runs to RB Saquon Barkley, and maybe a Jet Sweep to WR Jahan Dotson. Let’s challenge any steps those defenders may have lost to age, as well as stress their joints with change of direction.
That’s not to say that we shouldn’t test the middle. We need to. Especially between C Cam Jurgens and RG Tyler Steen. We haven’t had much success running there this season. If opponents see us avoid trying to, it makes us easier to scheme against. There are no yardage goals here, but let’s get for at least four runs in that hole, to assess later.
2) Exploit the Loaded Box: The leading pass rusher for the Commanders is OLB Von Miller with 7 sacks. They like to play him over the RT. He has no real coverage responsibilities and doesn’t make plays in that phase of the game. Quick completions outside to TE Dallas Goedertshould be easy.
In the event that the Commanders rock and roll their Safeties, that should put their one player in Single-high coverage and leave their RCB in one-on-one. If we see that early, we need to test that early. Otherwise, lean on the run, throw to Goedert when he’s open, and let the clock keep ticking.
3) Stay Fresh Up Front: You may not know it, but the #4 rushing attack in the league belongs to the Commanders. They don’t have one scary player, instead it’s a group effort. Mobile QB, fresh RB’s cycling in and out. (None of whom are great receivers.)
We need to counter that with staying fresh up front. Keep a close eye and when they sub, we sub. Their RB’s aren’t more talented than our defenders. So it makes no sense to allow them clutch plays, just because we got tired. Rotate our stock out there.
4) Force Longer Passes:If we play Cover Two and take away most of the quick underneath stuff, early in the game, it will also aid us in limiting yards off of QB scrambles. This places a lot of emphasis on making tackles at the catch point.
OLB Zack Baun punches the ball out for a turnover.
It also invites the possibility of the Commanders hitting on big plays, in front of their home crowd. So it comes with a little risk. That said, QB Marcus Mariota isn’t exactly known for accuracy, and even if their LT plays, his oblique injury will keep him from being anywhere close to 100%.
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If the Eagles do these Four Things, then we’ll be virtually impossible to beat. That being said…
Players play for pride, and many Commanders players are at this point, auditioning for jobs next year. So winning matters to them. Commanders coaches on the other hand, may be itching to move as far up as possible in next years Draft, to start being able to build around QB Jayden Daniels.
While I don’t expect the Commanders to just roll over for us, we may not get their best effort, top to bottom. I don’t care. I just want to clinch this playoff berth. We’d do them a favor by winning, and they’d do us a favor by losing. So, let’s go pick up this “W”, and start officially working on our bid to get RT Lane Johnson and DE Brandon Graham, their third Super Bowl wins.
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WARNING: I don’t have the faintest clue as to what a point spread is, and I know even less about how it works. I know FOOTBALL and that’s it. If you use Four Things as a gambling tool, then you are a fool trying to lose your money, and will deserve it when you do.
Check back in a couple of days for Four Things Reviewed, and we’ll discuss how this game went.
ON Monday night we saw a resurgence of our run game, and our Defense collected seven sacks and two turnovers. There were some (ahem) other difficulties, but those are not characteristic of who we are; so it doesn’t bear worrying about at this point. This is a game for us to build on our strengths, and on the fixes we’ve made.
Our next opponent, the Raiders, are pretty damned awful at everything, on both sides of the ball. All the problems Eagles fans are imagining that we have, the Raiders actually do have. They are already officially, mathematically eliminated from playoff contention, and their players are now auditioning for jobs in 2026.
With a win we move to 9 – 5 and stop a three game skid. Our hold on the top spot in the division would also remain at 1.5 games over the team in second place.
A loss drops us down to 8 – 6. We’d still be on top of the division for the moment.
****
The point of Four Thingsisn’t to predict a winner, it’s to discuss which tactics would give our Eagles the best chance to win this game. Often I list fundamentals, as some of the four things. BUT NO MORE! Unless something specific is needed, fundamentals like Running the ball; playing lots ofMan Press; and Tackling instead of going for the strip, will be automatically included. (Like the five consonants and a vowel that Wheel Of Fortune automatically spots you.) So here are the Four Things that we need to focus on this week versus: the RAIDERS.
DT Jordan Davis is tied for the lead on the Eagles with 4.5 sacks
1) Try to Pick It: Fingers crossed that OLBJalyx Hunt or DT Jordan Davisget their mitts on our former back-up, QB Kenny Pickett. This is our old pal’s first start of the year, vs an Eagles team he grew up rooting for and threw passes for, in the last Super Bowl. Butterflies are inevitable. His proud dad Ken, will almost certainly be in attendance.
Kill Kenny. Kill ‘im dead. Set the dogs on him. Get him flustered and running. He doesn’t have a guaranteed gig beyond this year, and if he doesn’t play well, it could be years before he sees meaningful snaps again. Put the pressure on him. Crack him. Break him. Also he’s been fairly easy to knock out of games. Beat on him.
2) Win On Third Down:With a back-up QB out there, and offensive line that sucks as badly as any in the sport, the Raiders aren’t likely to go for many 4th downs. So take care of business on third downs.
3) Fewer Comeback Routes: On every interception that QB Jalen Hurtsthrew on Monday night, the receiver was working back to the QB, and there was a defender sitting on the route. If that doesn’t demonstrate a high level of predictability, I don’t know how else to communicate it.
These routes (Curls, Hitches, Comebacks, et al), are part of of every team’s system, so we aren’t going to eliminate them from the playbook completely. However, if we could just go ahead and call fewer of them, and never have them run side by side, that’d be great. M’kay? Yeeeeah.
4) Second Half Run Game: We have to stop abandoning the run in the second half. That’s when it’s more dangerous, because it stacks fatigue in defenders, and eats up clock. It also keeps teams from teeing off on the QB. If we can get 12 hand-offs in the second half, we should be able to end our skid.
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If the Eagles do these Four Things, then we’ll be virtually impossible to beat. That being said…
Last game we went 4 for 4 and lost, because FIVE turnovers is too much for almost anyone to overcome. (I’m sure it’s been done in the history of the NFL, but it’s far from the norm.) That said, if we’re us, and we nail this list, we should be golden.
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WARNING: I don’t have the faintest clue as to what a point spread is, and I know even less about how it works. I know FOOTBALL and that’s it. If you use Four Things as a gambling tool, then you are a fool trying to lose your money, and will deserve it when you do.
Check back in a couple of days for Four Things Reviewed, and we’ll discuss how this game went.
TAKING a loss to the Bears has no dishonor in it. However, the way we lost, requires redemption. Our front seven is better than being pushed around like that, and we need an opportunity to prove it.
Lo and behold the Chargers appear! They are a team that believes in running the ball and running it violently. This is perfect! This is the fight that we need, or the fight we need to learn from before the playoffs begin. Understand, Chicago did us a favor by exposing a weakness. The Chargers now get to help us fix it.
With a win we’re 9 – 4, extending our lead over the NFC East, and still in the conversation for winning the #1 Seed in the conference.
A loss drops us to 8 – 5, but still in the lead for the division, though still catchable.
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The point of Four Thingsisn’t to predict a winner, it’s to discuss which tactics would give our Eagles the best chance to win this game. Often I list fundamentals, as some of the four things. BUT NO MORE! Unless something specific is needed, fundamentals like Running the ball; playing lots of Man Press; and Tackling instead of going for the strip, will be automatically included. (Like the five consonants and a vowel that Wheel Of Fortune automatically spots you.) So here are the Four Things that we need to focus on this week versus: the Chargers.
1) Get Saquon 90 Rushing Yards:We have to get RB Saquon Barkleyback on track. Not the team. Saquon. This team’s identity is as a running team. It’s time to get back to making the main thing the main thing, by doing what we do the main way.
2) Beat On Their QB:They have a QB with a broken (non-passing) hand and they’re starting him anyway. If they were concerned about how much we might hit him, they wouldn’t be doing that. A message about us, is being sent to us, and the rest of the NFL. At the end of the day, they will either be correct to have sent it, or they will have to admit it was a massive mistake.
3) Overwhelm Their Offensive Line:Every team’s offense starts with their offensive line, and the Chargers don’t have a good one. Make a point of showing that. They’re a big group, but not a particularly nimble footed one. Get them on E/T stunts, and diagonal surges.
4) Throw the Uppercut: If they load the box against our run, to keep us from jabbing the body; then we should throw the uppercut and hit them down the seams with TE Dallas Goedertand WR Jahan Dotson. That will keep their Safeties in the middle of the field and set up our Hooks, when we go deep to WR’s A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith.
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If the Eagles do these Four Things, then we’ll be virtually impossible to beat. That being said…
The Eagles have hit some pretty rough sailing this season, and people are wondering if we’re about to be sunk. That has everyone looking at next week against the Raiders as our “get right” game. That said, I think beating a bottom-feeder should hardly count as getting right. We need to beat a winning team in order to say that we’re righting the ship. So going cross-country to chalk the Chargers in their home, sounds like exactly what we need.
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WARNING: I don’t have the faintest clue as to what a point spread is, and I know even less about how it works. I know FOOTBALL and that’s it. If you use Four Things as a gambling tool, then you are a fool trying to lose your money, and will deserve it when you do.
Check back in a couple of days forFour Things Reviewed, and we’ll discuss how this game went.
