LAST week we went to Washington and chalked the Redskins in their home.
SEASON OVER!
That win clinched a playoff berth for us, but also renders this game against the Cowboys sort of anti-climactic. Add to that, the 12 players we put on the Covid list this week, and the volume really gets turned down on this one.
We currently occupy the 7th seed which means our likely first round opponent would be the Rams. If the 49ers lose, it could catapult us from the 7th seed, alllllllll the way up the 6th seed. In which case we’d likely draw Tampa Bay. Who cares? You? Me neither.
This week a win can’t help us and a loss can’t hurt us. Which has people of three minds:
1) Rest the starters, so that we don’t lose anyone before the playoffs.
2) Play to win, because it’s Dallas.
3) Play the starters just for a half, to practice some of our weaknesses.
I’m in camp number THREE. The stakes are no longer based on the climb to the playoffs. We’re there already. The next set of stakes are IN the playoffs. There are no stakes this week. None. So just use this week as an assessment tool/study hall.
There will be stakes again, soon enough.
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The point of Four Things isn’t to predict a winner, it’s to discuss which tactics will practically guarantee our Eagles this win. CAUTION: 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 FT as a gambling tool, you are trying to lose your money, and will deserve it when you do.
So let’s talk about the Four Things we need to focus on this week versus the Cowboys:
1) Understand the moment: QB Jalen Hurtsis 0 – 2 vs the Cowboys, having been blown-out both times. Getting him his first win against them, while at home? That would be big for him. Huge in fact. Because calling a QB who can’t beat Dallas, “our franchise”? Nope. Can’t do it. Hurts could use the win. That said, it shouldn’t be our focus.
Seeing the big picture, should be our focus. Use this week to practice things we suck at, and get some game experience for our deep bench. Playing the starters for the full game, or until one of them is injured, would show that Head Coach Nick Sirianni doesn’t understand the moment.
2) Dig DEEP: While a win would be nice, don’t get hung-up watching the scoreboard. Instead, here’s what you should look for: QB Reid Sinnettgetting some action; WRJ.J. Arcega-Whitesidecatching passes; CB Zech McPhearson covering WR Amari Cooper; OT Andre Dillard trying to show that he can run block; LB Patrick Johnsonand LB Shaun Bradley getting 10+ defensive snaps. And maybe a few runs from RB Kerryon Johnson!
Players you don’t know, making 2 to 4 nice plays after half-time. That’s the ideal situation.
3) Going Out In Style:If our starters beat-up on their back-ups, that’s a cheap win. It’s a chicken-shit way to win a game.
Ideally, when our starters leave this game, two things should be true: 1) Dallas’s starters are still out there, and 2) We have the lead. Regardless of how small it is.
That way it can (and WILL), be said that our starters could have won this game, had they played the whole thing.
Besides, Dallas has spent so much money on overpaying starters, that the depth on that team looks like high school JV squad. To stand any chance of winning, they’d have to leave their starters in. Their starters vs our back-ups? What a chicken-shit way to win.
4) Do some reckless shit: This is a game without consequences! Do some stuff that normally would get the coaching staff crucified for trying it. Stuff like:
Not punting all game long.
Giving LS Rick Lovatoa couple of defensive snaps at LB.
Letting WR Greg Ward play QB for a series. (He played it in college.)
Giving LT Jordan Mailata a carry in the redzone
Just something wild and crazy. Look, this is the last home game of the year for Birds fans. It’s a night game, and it’s going to be windy and about 25 degrees. Give those fans something to remember, before our team goes on the road for possibly the next 4 games.
….
If we do these Four Things,
It should build confidence and loosen the entire roster up. It could act to bring more joy to the hard work, of preparing to beat playoff teams. Winning this week would be great. However, this week isn’t about that. It’s about getting everyone focused on a much bigger prize.
That having been said, the last time we faced Dallas, our coaching staff called 39 passes and just 3 handoffs. THREE run plays, all day long. As a team we ran for 64 yards. Jalen Hurts ran 9 times for 35. We had 29 yards on 3 handoffs, and still we didn’t hand the ball off more. RB Jordan Howard wasn’t even on the active roster.
That is NOT the Eagles team that the Cowboys will face this Saturday Night.
This time around, vs a defensive line built to rush the passer, our O-Line needs to practice putting foot to ass. The tone of this game will be 180 degrees from the last one. Those fuckers won’t have any idea of what hit them.
****
PREDICTION: EAGLES 20 – Cowboys 9
Check back in a couple of days for Four Things Reviewed, and we’ll discuss how it went.
SEASON Reviews are usually done at the end of the season. A few are also done at the halfway mark. Starting in 2017, Eaglemaniacal.combegan treating the season like a game, and breaking it into four quarters.
In 2021, the NFL expanded the season to 17 games, which makes for an uneven split. So this year (at least), these Quarterly Reports will come after Weeks 5, 9, 13, and 17. (Ugh. I hate even looking at that format.)
Since football is a hard sport, we’ll take a hard look at where our team currently stands, in relation to where it started. Then we can discuss where it needs to go next.
STATUS: 6 – 7, 3rd place in the NFC East, (Points per game: +25.9/-22.4)
OPPONENTS:
( W ) Denver 6 – 6
( W ) New Orleans 5 – 7
( L ) New York giants 4 – 8
( W ) New York Jets 3 – 9
OVERVIEW:
On the one hand Head Coach Nick Sirianni deserves credit for staying the course to get us back into the playoff conversation. On the other hand he deserves the blame for sticking with a Defensive Coordinator who has cost us at least three games (49ers, Bucs, and Chargers.) The giants loss is on Sirianni, for trying to force-feed a draft bust. Picture us being 9 – 4 right now.
Having found a devastating ground game, the Eagles have managed to battle back to 6 – 7 after a 3 – 6 start, and have turned the season on it’s ear. The players have put themselves in a position to not only make the playoffs, but with some help, possibly even win the East.
Even now, during the Bye Week, today’s game between Washington (6 – 6) and Dallas (8 – 4) stands to help us out. A Dallas loss keeps them from pulling away definitively with the division. A Washington loss doesn’t allow them to cement the number two spot. So either the top spot or the second spot, should become far less secure before 5:00pm.
Here’s how we look with 4 games left to decide.
GRADES:
QB (C ) – In this last quarter of the season,Jalen Hurts has clearly regressed. His last three games have seen his passing yardage slide from 178 to 147 to 129. His accuracy has gone from 69.5% to 54.1 to 45.1. Touchdown to interception ratio? That has gone from 2:1, to 0:0, to 0:3. Over that same span, his pass attempts have gone from 23 to 24 to 31. So literally, the more he throws, the worse he’s been. Those are facts, and they are beyond dispute.
Gardner Minshew stepping in for an injured Hurts, and throwing for 242 yards, 2 touchdowns, and completing 80% of his passes, only throws more light on the Hurts issue. Granted, it was against the Jets, but it was also a QB in a new system, throwing to guys he hasn’t really worked with. It was our back-up vs their starters, and we scored on 7 of 8 drives, with three touchdown drives to open the game.
Let me say this plainly: Jalen Hurts is NOT progressing in his ability to play NFL QB. This coaching staff (and half the fan base) has been giving him a pass, because of his ability to run.
Minshew just gave fans a taste of a what an Eagles passing game could look like. From here on out, Hurts either has to be better, or the coaches will have to get better at making excuses for why a player advertised as being highly coachable, has not improved in over a season’s worth of play.
RB (A ) – Miles Sanders coughed the ball up a couple of weeks ago, but otherwise has been extremely effective, posting 308 yards and 5.6 yards per tote over this quarter. That has been regardless of whether we were running a Read Option or Traditional run concept. Boston Scotthas chipped in 161 yards at a clip of 4.8 per carry.
Until this week Kenneth Gainwell hadn’t been very effective as a runner this quarter. But I guess a game against the Jets will cure that. Jordan Howard was killing defenses with 146 yards on 22 carries (6.6 per tote!). Then he hurt his knee and has missed the last two games.
WR (D ) – A month ago, Devonta Smith had back to back big games, but since then he has been de-emphasized in the passing game, in favor of Jalen Reagor, and Smith has let his frustration be known to his coach. Reagor continues to be a flop in every aspect of the game of football, and the results of force-feeding him the ball (13 targets, 5 catches, 49 yards, 9.8 ypc) has only highlighted how foolish it was to spend a draft pick, or a dollar on him. Quez Watkins( 14 – 9 – 116 – 12.8 – 0) has played a lot of snaps, but he doesn’t see nearly as many targets as he should.
In the last four games, none of the 5 players at this position has posted 70 yards. No player at this position has seen 10 targets in a game since Week 4. It is doubtless that this position is underperforming, however it is difficult to produce without the football even coming your way.
For all the fanfare that the run game has garnered, those rushing yards would be even easier to come by if opponents had any fear or respect for our outside passing game.
TE (C ) – Dallas Goedertwas effective with Hurts (13 – 8 – 90 -11.2 – 0) throwing him the ball. However, with Minshew (6 – 6 – 105 – 17.5 – 2) Goedert could be terrifying over the long-haul. Jack Stoll has seen his snaps take a steep dive, as the coaching staff has been running more 11 than 12 Personnel. So his presence on the field literally is telegraphing R-U-N to defenses. We need to throw him some passes if only to legitimize him as an eligible receiver. Still waiting to glimpse Tyree Jackson’s potential.
OT (A ) – Neither RT Lane Johnson, nor LT Jordan Mailata has missed a single snap this quarter. Also during this stretch, Mailata has gone into the business of making sure his opponents eat some pancakes.
Such a nice young man.
Seriously though, these guys have been distributing Act Right to opponents, almost like a burning bush told them it was their only mission in Life. It’s one of the primary reasons that the Eagles are running for 212 yards per game over these last 4 games. In the last game we piled up 185. With no Jalen Hurts. This position has been amazing.
OG (C ) – Landon Dickerson is the future at LG. Even when Isaac Seumalo comes back from injury. Dickerson is a mauler in the run game. That allows us to run strong anywhere along the line, not just to the right. There are still nuances of pass pro that he has to get down, but that will come with time and facing different types of pass rushers.
Jack“Of All Trades” Driscoll was solid, until he was lost for the season. Replacing him is Nate “Too Big” Herbig. So we have one versatile guy filling in for another versatile guy, who was filling in for a Pro Bowl caliber player. The step down would be massive, if not for the men just to right and to the left of the RG spot. Herbig isn’t the most explosive player (which will hurt us on QB sneaks), but he’s a wide body who isn’t easy to push round.
C (B ) – Jason Kelce Is setting a great example with his attitude and mental toughness, through what has to be his last campaign. He has missed snaps in each of the last 4 games, and it’s becoming apparent that sheer grit and the possibility of a playoff spot, is what is getting him through.
The guy who’s filled in for him has been Nate Herbig. It’s long been rumored that Herbig is Kelce’s successor at the pivot. That would be awesome. While Herbig lacks true explosiveness when playing G, that deficiency is largely negated when snapping the ball.
DE (F ) – Through 4 games this position added 2.5 sacks and 5 hits on QB’s. Josh Sweat and Derek Barnett are playing both fewer snaps in number, and a lesser percentage of the total snaps. That says that the position is becoming more of a rotation. Maybe to light a fire under the starters, maybe to see if the bench was hiding a star. Still, it’s been a low production position. There are other factors at play here, but the bottom line is that through ¾ of a season, this position looks weak.
DT (C ) – Javon Hargrave added 1.5 sacks this quarter to bring him to a career-high 7.5. Fletcher Cox has 3 QB hits this quarter, but no sacks since Week 5. In fact, he has just 1 this season. Oddly enough, whenever he misses a few downs here or there, his absence is immediately felt. Milton Williams looks like a solid rotational pass rusher, but he cannot be confused with an every down difference maker. Hassan Ridgeway started this quarter with is snap share at just 22%, but has seen it tick up each week to 37%.
OLB (C ) – Davion Taylorwas making progress as a starter, when he suffered what the Eagles called a knee sprain, which later required surgery, and now has him on IR.
(The Eagles have yet to confirm exactly what the surgery is for, but my experience and my gut says meniscus tear. That’s by no means official, but when they say it in 2022, remember where you heard it first in 2021.)
Due to the injury, Alex Singleton has reclaimed his starting role. He went right back to work as a tackling machine, and had been more impactful than he was before being benched in favor of Taylor. Genard Avery is seeing fewer snaps these days as the Eagles are using more Big Nickel.
MLB (A ) – T.J. Edwards hardly ever leaves the field anymore. This indicates that the Eagles have finally stopped worrying about the rumored “athletic limitations” that stemmed from the 2019 Combine. When given the opportunity, Edwards has shown that he can flat-out play football. It only took two seasons, but being geniuses, the Eagles have swiftly caught on! (Was that too much sarcasm?)
Edwards has not only made tackles, but he’s snagged a pass and recovered fumble, giving him a pair of takeaways this quarter.
S (D ) – Rodney McLeodis no longer an impact player on the back end. He always seems a step (or two) slow, and his tackles lack any authority. I get the feeling that he won’t be back in 2022 and he knows it, which is why he’s playing so passively.
Anthony Harris is like a smaller Landon Collins. He’s more than willing to lay a hit, but he’s not much of a factor vs the pass, as he’s only gotten his hand on a pass ONCE this season.
Marcus Epps just snagged his first pick, and leads players at this position with 4 passes defensed despite playing just 49% of the defensive snaps this season. This position would benefit from making him a starter over McLeod or Harris.
CB (C ) – Darius Slay has posted a sack, an interception, a fumble recovery, and two touchdowns this quarter. He’s been targeted 17 times for 6 completions, and surrendered just 58 yards.Steve Nelson though! Teams seem to be picking on him these days, with 10 completions on 16 targets (62.5%), 109 yards, and two scores allowed. Avonte Maddox has allowed 17/22 (77.2%), for 181, and a score.
Two players giving up over 62% completion rates and over 10 yards per completion, is a recipe for not being able to get off the field. This has to be addressed! Rookie Zech McPhearson has played 70 snaps in the last 4 games, but is 5/2, for just 22 yards. Let me reiterate. In his last 70 snaps, our rookie has been thrown at just five times. FIVE! Keep an eye out for him.
LS (A ) – Last time I did one of these, I mentioned that Rick Lovato didn’t have an tackles yet. In the last 4 games he’s posted 2 solo. The man is a BEAST and an animal!
P (A ) – Arryn Sipos is still averaging 45 yards (45.2) per boot. Of the 12 punts he’s had this quarter, 7 were returned for 65 yards, which is 9.2 per return. Not great, but it’s down nearly 3 yards from the 12 yards per return last quarter. That suggests that his kicking is being timed better with his coverage unit. Improvement is always applauded.
K (A ) – Jake Elliott was 11/11 on extra points and 11/11 on field goals during the quarter. For points he’s been absolute money since Week 7. Absolute. As in no flaws. As in resplendent clarity. If he were a diamond, you could see next and last year in him. Flawless!
Kickoffs however, are increasingly a problem. Of his 26 kickoffs, 19 were touchbacks (70.3%). Could be better, but not alarming. The returns (7 – 221 – 31.5 – 0) are worse than the 22.2 we were giving up last quarter.
At this point, this can’t put on Elliott. At this point, Special Teams Coordinator Michael Clayowns the blame for this. Elliott is what he is. There is enough tape to know this by now. Kickoff duty should have been reassigned by now. Either that or the kickoff strategy should have been altered, to place the ball inside the numbers, to let the coverage unit cup that side of the field, from hash mark to side line.
PR/KR (F ) – WR Jalen Reagor hasn’t exactly set the world on fire with his punt returning (14 – 90 – 6.4 – 0). While he’s doing a ton more returning this quarter vs last report (just one return), he never is a threat to break one. His kick returning (7 – 116 – 16.5 – 0) is equally dreadful.
KC (F ) – This quarter’s 31.5 yard per kickoff return is again, alarming. It seems that we are not able to get this issue under control. On the plus side we’ve gone from allowing 9.5 yards per punt return to 9.4, so improvement must be celebrated.
SINCE LAST QUARTER:
I said that 2 – 2 would probably keep our playoff hopes alive, but that 3 – 1 would almost certainly do the trick. Well we went 3 – 1, and right now, are mathematically on the outside of the playoff picture. However, due to upcoming match-ups for all of the Wild Card candidates, we are still VERY much in the thick of the hunt.
In fact, we could still pull off winning the division.
Here’s how the Eagles win the East: We run the table, and Dallas gets swept by Washington. That’s it. That’s everything that has to happen. That would set it in stone.
MISSION FOR THIS QUARTER:
RUN THE FUCKING TABLE! It’s as simple as 10 wins and we’re in. Right now, I want to see us crack the playoffs and potentially get hot, right when everyone reallyneeds us not to. I want the Eagles to scare the boiled shit out of the NFL, and possibly bring Philly another parade.
So this quarter we have to find a second receiver, so we can keep our run game open. We need a WR besides Devonta to either average 50 yards per game, or score twice in the next two games. Either would work to spread defenses. Jalen Hurts running for touchdowns in the red zone (unless they’re on QB Sneaks) has to stop. We need to diversify our attack.
For those of you watching the Draft picks:
We already have three first round picks, and any team that makes the playoffs is going to be picking 18th and lower. Currently we’re 6 – 7, the Colts are 7 – 6, and the Dolphins are 6 – 7. All of us could make the playoffs this year, which would make those picks better as ammunition for a later Draft.
All of that however, is already in the bag! So while we’re winning, stop thinking about the picks. Picks are for next season. We’re still alive in this one. We need all your positive energy and focus, on a possible parade for this season.
That said, if we lose the next two and fall to 6 – 9, then we should tank, and try to get at least ONE pick in the top 10. But while we have a chance at the playoffs, tanking is OFF the table.
New categories include an EXCLUSIVE weekly Offensive Line Report (Rushing TD’s + 3rd and 4th downs converted:missed of 2 yards or less – sacks allowed); as well as Drive Killer (Int – FR – 4th down Tackles – FF – TD).
Receiving: (S) WR Devonta Smith (6 – 4 – 66 – 16.5 – 2)
Offensive Line Report: (0 + 3:0 – 1)
Drive Killer: (S) OLB Davion Taylor (0 – 0 – 0 – 2 – 0)
Sack Leader: (S) DE Derek Barnett(1 – 1.0 – 0 – 0)
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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 inFour Things: Broncosdid the Eagles actually get around to doing? Well let’s see:
1) Press Coverage: I won’t keep you in suspense. Out of all Four Things, this is the only one we did. And as always, it resulted in a “W”. Atlanta, Carolina, Detroit and now Denver. When we play Man Press, we control the game. And why shouldn’t we?! We have two of the NFL better man coverage CB’s.
(FYI: The 4th quarter pass interference call on CBSteve Nelson (1 – 0 – 0 – 0), started with him giving a large cushion. IJS)(DONE)
2)Play-action Inside: We used play-action today, but Hurts absolutely refuses to throw passes in the middle of the field. Nearly everything with him has to be from the numbers and out. (And YES, I’m aware that the second touchdown to Smith was over the middle.) (NOT DONE)
3)Taylor-made Headache: We didn’t send Davion Taylor on any blitzes that I noticed. Yet he still managed to be a headache. That however, isn’t something I can count towards what was written. (NOT DONE)
4)Get Howard In Space: Didn’t even try. The one time it seemed like Howard got loose on a route, Hurts took off running behind him. I have no idea why the coaching staff seems hellbent to under-utilize Howard. (NOT DONE)
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This week we only pulled off 1 of the Four Things, but man how ONE it was! Next week we host the New Orleans Saints, in an attempt to get our first home win of the season.
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On The Whole:
We kept the Broncos from sweeping our division, with this win. It also kept us from being swept by the AFC West. This was a game where Offense, Defense and Special Teams contributed. (That blocked field goal by S K’Von Wallacewas awesome!) It was our best win of the year so far.
Brace yourselves! We almost Surtainly have a star in Devonta Smith.
We got one sack today, but all day long we put QB Teddy Bridgewater (22/36 – 61.1% – 226 – 0 – 0) under pressure, and didn’t let him get comfortable, or use his big outside weapons much. Excellent work indeed, but there were a couple of issues in this one.
Issue One, was with defending the run. We gave up 96 yards on 18 carries, for 5.3 per tote and a score. DE Josh Sweat (1 – 0 – 0 – 0) does not set the edge vs the run. That’s probably because the strong-side, is too strong for him. He’s much better suited to being a speed rushing RDE, than an anchoring LDE.
Issue Two, was with us being in the Shotgun. It already doesn’t help sell play-action, but when we’re in the ‘gun, Hurts play-action mechanics absolutely fall apart. His half-hearted jabs of the football, does more to slow his read, than to slow defenders. Put him back under C.
SEASON Reviews are usually done at the end of the season. A few are also done at the halfway mark. Starting in 2017, Eaglemaniacal.combegan treating the season like a game, and breaking it into four quarters.
In 2021, the NFL expanded the season to 17 games, which makes for an uneven split. So this year (at least), these Quarterly Reports will come after Weeks 5, 9, 13, and 17. (Ugh. I hate even looking at that format.)
NOTE: Due to the short week between games 5 and 6, this report was pushed back a week. The Second Quarter will pick up on time, after Week 9.
Since football is a hard sport, we’ll take a hard look at where our team currently stands, in relation to where it started. Then we can discuss where it needs to go next.
STATUS: 3 – 6 , 2nd place in the NFC East, (Points per game: +25.2/-24.2)
OPPONENTS:
( L ) Las Vegas
( W ) Detroit
( L ) Los Angeles Chargers
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OVERVIEW:
Progress has been made on Offense. In all three of these games, Head Coach Nick Sirianni has made a solid commitment to running the ball. As a result, the Offense is more stable and sustains drives better. So the Defense actually gets time to rest now.
If only the Defense could get off the field without giving up touchdowns first.
****
GRADES:
QB: (D) Jalen Hurts hasn’t thrown an interception in three weeks, however he’s only been responsible for 3 scores (passing or running) during that same span. Part of that has been the establishment of our run game helping him out. He’s gone from attempting 34.6 passes per game in the first 6 games, to just 21.6 (65 total) over the last 3 games.
Unfortunately, his lower usage has only highlighted the flaws in his game. Being a one read QB, by default Hurts favors clear and easy passes. He takes as much as a route can pry from the defense. What he doesn’t do, is create with his eyes or his delivery. (If he ever learns to convincingly pump fake on a scramble, he’ll be a friggin Pro Bowler.)
Hurts is a very good triggerman, in terms of executing what’s laid out for him. If Chip Kelly were still the coach here, the Deshaun Watson trade rumors may not have gained any traction. However, most systems require a QB to think and decipher. Hurts is also easily punked and bullied out of attempting the sort of throws that separate franchise QB’s from Sam Bradford types.
Gardner Minshew came in and went 2/2 while playing hand-off machine, during mop-up time in Detroit.
RB: (B) Miles Sanders was hurt early in the game vs Vegas. Since then, the Eagles have been starting Boston Scott, and he has been productive as a runner. What he truly excels at however, is catching Screen passes and then getting lost in blockers. Unfortunately, he’s only been thrown 5 passes all season so far.
Promoted to the Active Roster is a guy who NEVER belonged on the Practice Squad in the first place, Mr. Jordan Howard. While it’s true that the Eagles have been good at running the ball in these last couple of weeks, the attitude of this run game is Howard. He’s not just running for yardage, he’s taking yardage when he’s out there. He enables the Eagles to impose their will.
While Kenneth Gainwell is playing about as much as he did when Sanders was healthy, but he’s not quite seeing the situations that he was. For example, he doesn’t get first quarter red zone action, and he hasn’t had a pass thrown his way in two games.
Overall though, the Eagles ground game has looked like a force to be reckoned with. Granted, these last three opponents weren’t the stiffest test, but for a team just finding the run, they can’t be ignored.
TE: ( C) Dallas Goedertput up 185 yards over these last 3 games (61.6), but it’s little more than window dressing. In those games, Goedert has played 161 downs, but drawn targets on just 18 of them (for 12 catches). Though his 18 targets represent nearly 1/3 of his QB’s 65 attempts over the same period, his 12 catches for no scores, indicates how little he’s been factoring into games.
Jack Stoll caught a 9 yard pass in the blowout over Detroit. He’s played quite a bit over these last two weeks, and with the resurgence of the run game, one has to wonder about how much of that success is due to his blocking. Converted QB Tyree Jacksonfinally got his feet wet vs the Chargers. He didn’t do much. Didn’t see a pass thrown his way. I think they just wanted him to get a look at game speed.
Despite giving the position credit for its contributions to the run game, More is expected from Goedert if he wants to show the world that he wasn’t just a well-protected back-up,
WR: (F) In these 3 games, Devonta Smith has seen 18 targets. The other four receivers have seen 14. Total.
OT: (B) The bookends of Lane Johnson and Jordan Mailataplayed three straight games for the first time this season. The result is a QB who doesn’t have to look at his line to know where people are, as he starts to pick his way through pressure. That has resulted in us surrendering an average of 1 sack per game, instead of 2. Which we did last quarter.
OG: (B) Lie and say that you miss Isaac Seumalo! Landon Dickerson despite being a rookie, seems like an improvement already. He doesn’t get ridden back into the QB on passing downs and, you don’t catch him standing around on run plays, since he’s always looking to hit someone.
Jack Driscoll has been plug-and-play all along the line, and has been decent to good (not great), when he plays. He doesn’t look like a long-term starter. What he looks like, is a guy who’ll hang with one team for 6 years, learn what’s needed in all of the roles, and deliver a reasonable facsimile of it, when called upon. Then he’ll sign a big free agent deal, full of guaranteed money to go elsewhere, where he’ll immediately look like a career back-up. Always amazes me when these guys leave their first team.
Nate “Too Big” Herbigfilled in for Driscoll vs Detroit and got to maul some Lions. Again, Nate is a solid (not great) interior force when called upon. He seems to have a little more upside than Driscoll, but it’s hard to feel they’re being judged accurately, when they’ve both been moved around so much, across two coaching staffs.
Given the losses taken at this position, it should be one of weakness, but it’s not. The best part, is, that it doesn’t have to be judged on a sliding scale, or a curve.
C: (B) Jason Kelcehas been holding the young guys together, and the errant snaps have been cut down due to the QB lining up under C more. It’s really a good look for the elder statesman, as he trots out what has to be his last race.
DE: (F) This position grabbed 4 sacks vs Detroit, and 0 in the other two games. There were 7 hits on the QB vs Detroit, and 0 in the other two games. Outside of the (then) 0 – 7 Lions, there have been no forced fumbles. There have been no fumble recoveries. This position practically doesn’t exist.
While a lot of the problem with our pass rush is tied to generously loose coverage, it’s impossible not to notice the lack of tackles for losses against the run, in any game NOT played vs the Lions. This means that these guys are just not being effective PERIOD.
Josh Sweatplayed better in past seasons on the right. So far this year, he’s been asked to play the left spot in the absence of Brandon Graham. I don’t think he has the strength for it. He doesn’t set the edge vs the run, and is too easy to re-route on his way to the passer.
DT: ( C) Opposing QB’s are getting rid of the ball too fast for this position to be effective pass rushers now. They are however, a big reason that over these three games, that we’ve allowed an average of 88.3 rushing yards per game. Particularly Fletcher Cox. They’ve also done a great job of keeping the MLB clean. It’s not worthy of a party, but it’s a building block.
OLB: (F) Genard Averyand Davion Taylor have been the starters during the last three games. Four really. Still, neither of them is making a noticeable impact out there. The coaching staff seems to want a long look at what Taylor has to offer, so he’s going to keep starting, regardless. Alex Singleton was benched after the win at Carolina, but with Taylor out there, Singleton would upgrade our tackle range and ball-skills.
MLB: (B) The Eagles outright cut Eric Wilson and elevated T.J. Edwards to the starting role. Edwards has been a key reason that rushing yards for our opponents have gone off a cliff, recently. He benefits from having two DT’s who command as much attention as they do, but to his credit, he does get off of blocks very well. As a result, he been a tackling machine.
S: (F) This position has produced 2 pass break-ups and some tackles in the last three games.
CB: (D) We are 3 – 0 this season when Darius Slay gets so much as a finger on the football. We are 0 – 5 when he doesn’t. Seems like the Defensive Coordinator should scheme him into positions where he can compete for the ball more.
Avonte Maddox was the only player at this position to show up in games without Detroit in them. Maddox snagged a pick vs Las Vegas, early in the game. Otherwise, over this span, we’re giving up a completion rate of 83 (88/106). Not factoring games named Detroit, the number is 87.5% (63/72).
LS: (B) Rick Lovato hasn’t blown any snaps, but he also has yet to make tackle on a coverage unit.
P: ( A) Arryn Siposs only had to punt 7 times in the last three games, with 2 fair caught and 3 returned for 36 yards. That’s 12 yards per return on punts averaging 45.7 yards in this period.
K: ( C) Jake Elliott has been 10/10 on extra points and 4/4 on field goals. The kickoff are alarming however. IN these three games, he’s kicked off 18 times, 8 were touchbacks, but 8 were returned for 222 yards (27.7). This has gotten worse since last quarter.
PR/KR: (F) WR Jalen Reagor has also disappeared on Special Teams. WR Quez Watkins averages 21 yards per kickoff return. Which again means, he should just take the touchbacks!
KC: (D) The kickoff coverage unit does a good job, but shouldn’t be put in a position to be tested so much. The 9.3 yard punt return average from last quarter needed to come down. And so it’s now up to 9.5 yards per return.
****
SINCE LAST QUARTER:
The Offensive coaching staff seems to be getting it! We’re running the ball, so drives are more stable, the Defense now gets to rest, and we only punt half as much anymore. The mission was to get the coaching staff to stop being our biggest obstacle and that’s halfway what happened.
Defensively, the timid woodland creature who coaches our Defense, still gets skittish when he sees his shadow. He’s going to have to be replaced. Don’t tell me how smart and hardworking he is, when he keeps repeating the same stupid, lazy patterns.
MISSION FOR THIS QUARTER:
Get to playing man-press. These weak zones have the Eagles allowing a completion percentage north of 75. If it continues, we will set the record for worst completion rate in NFL HISTORY.
Here’s a crazy truth: At 3 – 6, we’re still in the thick of the playoff race. While going 2 – 2 over the next 4 games would probably be good enough to keep those hopes alive, 3 – 1 would almost certainly do the trick
SEASON Reviews are usually done at the end of the season. A few are also done at the halfway mark. Starting in 2017, Eaglemaniacal.com began treating the season like a game, and breaking it into four quarters.
In 2021, the NFL expanded the season to 17 games, which makes for an uneven split. So this year (at least), these Quarterly Reports will come after Weeks 5, 9, 13, and 17. (Ugh. I hate even looking at that format.)
NOTE: Due to the short week between games 5 and 6, this report was pushed back a week. The Second Quarter will pick up on time, after Week 9.
Since football is a hard sport, we’ll take a hard look at where our team currently stands, in relation to where it started. Then we can discuss where it needs to go next.
STATUS: 2 – 4, 3rd place in the NFC East, (Points per game: +22.8 /-25.3)
OPPONENTS:
(W ) Atlanta (2 – 3)
(L) San Francisco (2 – 3)
(L) Dallas (4 – 1)
(L) Kansas City (2 – 3)
(W ) Carolina (3 – 2)
(L) Tampa Bay (5 – 1)
OVERVIEW:
The Eagles have a losing record because they have a coaching staff loaded with smug children, who are too arrogant to ask for help, or take guidance from conventional wisdom. The result is a 2 – 4 team that likely would have been 4 – 2 under the previous coach.
GRADES:
QB: ( C ) Head Coach Nick Sirianni nixed the idea that Jalen Hurts can be a Franchise QB, during his post-game presser, after the Buccaneers loss. Sirianni’s exact words?
This is video is 9:07 long. Listen to what he says from 4:18 to 5:01.
NOTE:They won’t let me post it here, but you can watch it on YouTube.
So expect the Eagles to Draft a QB in April.
Despite playing in a simple scheme designed to get the ball out of his hand, Hurts is repeatedly late on Screens; which keeps leading to ineligible man penalties. He relies on a receiver to BE open, as opposed to throwing them open. His Swing passes float and never lead the RB. His flaws are obvious.
Anyone who’s worn a helmet can tell you how little peripheral vision you have in one. Anyone who knows that (which includes every head coach and position coach in the NFL), knows that Hurts doesn’t turn his head enough to be routinely going through progressions. When that first read isn’t open (as Sirianni said in the video), he looks to run. In short: Hurts is a one-read QB.
Still, Hurts has been as effective as any one-read QB that I’ve ever seen, or heard about. He doesn’t put the ball in dangerous places, and even when his scheme is failing him, he continues to trust it. From a coaching standpoint, he makes it very easy to review film, and spot where the flaws in the game-plan were. It makes Hurts an ideal coach’s QB, but the polar opposite of a franchise QB, from whom transcendent play is expected.
RB: ( C ) Miles Sanders averages 4.7 yards per carry, and has caught 18 of 23 passes thrown to him (78.3%) for 6.7 yards per catch. Kenneth Gainwell averages 4.8 yards per carry, and has caught 15 of 23 passes thrown to him (65.2%) for 8.2 yards per catch.
That’s a nice 1 – 2 punch! Or it should be. Problem is, through 6 games they have a combined 78 rushing attempts. Sanders leads the Eagles with 57 carries. Right behind him with 53, is QB Jalen Hurts. Put into perspective, division rival Ezekiel Elliott has 102 carries through 6 games. Elliott’s back-up has 61 carries. That team is 5 – 1. This team is 2 – 4. Any questions?
Our backs have done as much as they can with occasional rushes here and there, and playing out the Shotgun almost exclusively. They aren’t being put in a position to succeed. In fact, it seems like the run game is deliberately being scapegoated. Unfortunately for Sirianni, Philly sports fans are more knowledgeable than San Diego and Indy fans, and see through that shit.
TE: ( D ) Due to the trade of Zach Ertz, there is no point in discussing his play, as we can no longer build on it. I hate this.
“Camera on the action, Jimmy.”
Dallas Goederthas caught 15 of his 19 targets (78.9%), for 216 yards, 14.4 per catch and 2 scores. Both in the red zone. He needs to see more volume, once he gets back from Covid quarantine. The only knock on him this season is the fumble vs KC. It wasn’t lost, but still.
Jack Stoll is the only active TE on the roster right now. In 6 games he’s played 47 snaps on Offense with not one pass thrown his way. He’s played 77 downs on Special Teams. So that’s where we are for depth. Hopefully when Goedert gets back, he’ll be well enough to contribute. Otherwise we’ll need a Tyree Jackson sized miracle here.
WR: ( C ) Devonta Smithleads the team with 44 targets, 27 of which he’s hauled in (61.4%). His 12.8 yards per catch, and 1 touchdown are decent for a rookie, but more is needed next quarter. Jalen Reagorhas caught 17 of 28 targets (60.7%), for 8.2 per catch and 1 score. He’s also coming off a game where he dropped all three balls that hit his hands. Quez Watkins needs to see more passes. Last year’s 5th string receiver, has started 5 games and caught 16 of 22 passes (72.7%), for 311 yards and 19.4 yards per strike. The leading scorer at this position is Greg Wardcatching 2 balls for 30 yards and 2 scores. Until at least a few passes get thrown to J.J. Arcega-Whiteside, officials are going to keep calling offensive pass interference, on the pick plays that he keeps running. Through 6 games he stands at zero targets.
This is not the most talented group in the NFL, but there is enough firepower to be dangerous on any given Sunday. The issue is that they lack a coach who knows how to maximize them as a combination.
OT: ( B ) LT Andre Dillard whom many Eagles fans had left for dead, has filled in admirably at starting LT, over these last 4 games. In 253 snaps, he’s allowed 0 sacks, and has had just 2 enforced penalties (out of 6). LTJordan Mailata slid over to RT, when RT Lane Johnson(who started the first three games), missed the last three games due to anxiety and depression. OLJack Driscoll started at RT during Week 4.
Fans need to understand that Johnson wasn’t “treated” for anxiety and depression. He is at the beginning of treatment. This will be an on-going process for him. Show him some love. Despite all the shuffling of faces, the Eagles are getting solid play from young bookends Dillard and Mailata. Could we be getting a glimpse of the future? If so, I think we’re in good hands.
OG: ( C ) Losing RG Brandon Brooks to I.R., and LG Isaac Seumalobeing lost for the year, were huge blows. Fortunately, the Eagles had already drafted highly touted, rookie RG Landon Dickerson. Though he still needs some polish regarding the nuances of pass protection, in 272 snaps, he’s only allowed 1 sack. Over the last two games, Jack Driscoll has started at LG with no sacks, and no penalties. Nate “Too Big” Herbig started at LG vs KC and played well.
Being that the Eagles rarely run the ball, it’s hard to assess just what impact the young guys are having on the run game. What can be said, is RB’s in the last two games have run for 117 yards, on 22 carries (5.3ypc). So we are still getting some movement up there.
C: ( B ) Veteran Jason Kelce had a bad snap go over Hurts’s head vs KC. He’s been penalized twice, and allowed 1 sack. Still, he’s holding the young guys together, and helping them become true pros. Can’t badmouth that.
DE: ( F ) In 6 games Josh Sweat has 1.5 sacks. Those are all the sacks at this position. Derek Barnett has three penalties and just two tackles for losses.Ryan Kerrigan has played 153 snaps so far and has just ONE tackle to show for it. It was for a loss. He also plays fewer snaps each week. He had 35 vs Atlanta, and was down to just 16 vs Tampa. Rookie Tarron Jackson is hardly worth the mention of his name here.
These guys aren’t setting the edges to trap the run game between the Tackles, and they aren’t getting to the QB. Part of that is the loose coverage which allows quick throws. The other part is how they stick to blockers like they’re covered in Stickum.
Oh the shenanigans of yesteryear!
I don’t know who’s teaching them their technique, but either he’s not teaching, or they’re not learning.
DT: ( A ) Javon Hargrave is putting up terrorist numbers with 6 sacks and 9 QB hits, so far. Fletcher Coxdoesn’t have the numbers, but him eating double-teams is helping to get Hargrave the one-on-ones that he keeps shredding. Rookie Milton Williams has 9 tackles, with none for losses in 162 snaps. Hassan Ridgeway has 1 sack, 3 QB hits, and a tackle for a loss, in 132 snaps.
I have no idea why Williams plays more than Ridgeway. It’s teaching him that he can get snaps in exchange for being unproductive. That’s a horrible culture to seed, from a coaching staff that came in Rock-Paper-Scissoring about how competitive they are. (LOL. I said ‘scissoring’.) Still, this position is the engine of our Defense and it’s a great place to build from.
OLB: ( D ) Genard Avery has started 4 of 6 games. In the 4 games he started we were 2 – 2, and allowed an average of 17.5 points. In the 2 games he didn’t start, we allowed an average of 41.5 points, and you know how both of those turned out. His impact doesn’t show up on a stat sheet, just a scoreboard.
Alex Singleton has 67 tackles, and most of them seem to be made 8, 9 and 12 yards downfield. Of his 67 tackles, not one is for a loss. He has no sacks. He has one pass deflection. He’s mostly deployed in zone coverage, which allows completions in front of him. It also has him moving backwards at the snap, which hurts our run defense. He needs to be turned loose to read and chase, like he was able to do last year.
Davion Taylor is seeing a big ramp up in snaps over the last 2 games. Sadly, it hasn’t changed the level of impact he’s had on a game. This position has been a mess in terms of lack of vision. The timid zones they keep being asked to drop into, keeps allowing offenses to dictate both the action and the flow. As a result, our Defense is getting trapped on the field for longer and longer.
MLB: ( D ) Eric Wilson is listed on the Eagles website as the starter here. This is despite not starting since Week 4 vs KC. He picked off a pass intended for TE Travis Kelce, and has been riding pine ever since. Don’t ask. I have no answers.
T.J. Edwards has started 4 of the 6 games including the last one, but he hasn’t played 50% of the defensive snaps in any game this year. In fact, vs Dallas, Edwards saw a season-high 31 snaps, and sacked QB Dak Prescott. His reward? Not even playing one-third of any game since then. Despite not starting, Edwards keyed our Week 5 victory with a punt block.
The message seems to be, if you make a big defensive play, you sit the next day. The worst part is, that both Wilson and Edwards played all 6 games. They were swapped out while healthy! This seems to be hurting the unit’s communication and grasp of the scheme. I don’t hold usage against the players, but I’m grading the position’s impact on games, so I have to tell it like it is.
S: ( F ) Anthony Harris’s Week 6 interception was just the second play on a ball by this position all season long. Harris has 6 starts 39 tackles and that pick. Not one of his tackles is for a loss. Back from injury, Rodney McLeod has started the last 3 games. The two may not be related, but since he’s been back, we’ve gotten 5 interceptions. We had none while he was out.
K’Von Wallace we keep being told, is the future beyond McLeod, but I don’t see it. He’s on I.R. now, and Marcus Epps is getting another opportunity, but not doing much with it. The Cover Two that they’re played in, would be more opportunistic and predatory, if they weren’t so often saddled with loose coverages in front of them.
CB: ( C ) We are 2 – 0 this season when Darius Slay gets a finger on a football. His two interception game against Carolina, essentially kept the Eagles in the game. Not only does he have 2 picks, he has 2 tackles for a loss. Steven Nelsonhas 3 deflections and a pick. Avonte Maddox hasn’t picked one off yet, but from the Nickel he’s got 3 pass break-ups, half a sack, and 3 tackles for a loss. He’s already on his way to the best year of his career.
Our starters have played 426 (Slay) and 428 (Nelson) snaps, out of a possible 431. They have missed a combined 8 snaps between them all season so far. When allowed to play aggressive man, these two can take over a game. However, they are mostly asked to play loose man or zone, because Defensive Coordinator Jonathan Gannon is a moron.
LS: ( B )Rick Lovatohasn’t blown any snaps, but he also has yet to make tackle on a coverage unit.
P: ( B ) Arryn Siposs! I had my doubts about him, but this guy is killer. On 25 boots, he’s averaging 45.8 yards, with just 10 returned for 93 yards (with 22 on 1 return). The numbers don’t sing out, but if you watch the games, Siposs does an very good job of using the sidelines to give the opponent shitty starting field position. I look forward to seeing him get better.
K: ( C ) Jake Elliott exits the first part of the year 12/12 (100%) on extra points, but just 7/9 (77%) on Field Goal attempts. Both misses were from 40-49 yards, and at home, where he should have a better handle on predicting wind swirl in the stadium.
His kickoffs are also an area of concern. Of his 28 KOs, 9 have been returned for 206 yards (22.8). While the return average isn’t a problem, returners feeling confident in returning a third of his KO’s, opens the door to momentum swinging plays. He needs to bury his kicks.
PR/KR: ( F ) Jalen Reagor averages a paltry 4.7 yards on 11 punt returns, and has 90 yards on 3 kickoff returns. Quez Watkins leads the team in Kickoff returns with 5, but his 14.8 return average suggests that he should down it in the end zone.
KC: ( B ) The kickoff coverage unit does a good job, but shouldn’t be put in a position to be tested so much. The 9.3 yard punt return average needs to come down somewhat. We have to take the edges away from returners and make them run through more traffic.
SINCE LAST QUARTER:
There’s a new coaching staff, and quite honestly it sucks. There’s a show called ‘BoJack Horseman’ where the lead character’s agent (Princess Caroline), is dating two kids in a trenchcoat, calling themselves “Vincent Adultman”. PC is so preoccupied with herself, that she doesn’t even notice that she’s carrying on an entire relationship with two kids in a trenchcoat.
This is what it feels like to watch this coaching staff, while hearing NOTHING from Owner Jeff Lurie. Is he too preoccupied to notice what’s happening to his team? His coaching staff is two kids in a trenchcoat! And the rest of us are going nuts trying to point it out!
MISSION FOR THIS QUARTER:
Usually, in this section I talk about what needs to be tightened up on the field. However, most of our problem is on the sideline. Before we can tackle player deficiencies, the coaching staff has to stop being the team’s biggest obstacle. I want to be wrong about this staff. I NEED to be! But right now it feels like Lurie really Jeffed this one up.
Nick Sirianni needs to take note that the NFL works a certain way for a reason. Teams run the ball for a reason. Linebackers attack, for a reason. Coming in as a rookie, and deciding to dismiss decades of hard learned lessons, is foolish. Especially when it keeps being demonstrated in humiliating fashion, that his way is wrong. Dead wrong. Oh so wrong.
This is going to be a short quarter (just 3 games), so the goal here will be modest. The Detroit Lions are the Detroit Lions. The Chargers could be a problem. The Raiders are in a state of upheaval after the raw deal that Head Coach Jon Gruden got. (C’mon. Just imagine what Buddy Ryan, Bill Parcells, and Mike Ditka’s e-mail accounts would have looked like. What would coachJimmy Johnson have thought about drafting Michael Sam? Exactly!) But I digress.
These next three games are winnable, but let’s be honest here, any two of them would feel nice to get our mitts on. Today were 2 – 4 . While 5 – 4 would be great, let’s set our sights on 4 – 5 for the next time we meet up here. Nick Sirianni, TAKE NOTE!
New categories include an EXCLUSIVE weekly Offensive Line Report (Rushing TD’s + 3rdand 4thdowns converted of 2 yards or less – sacks allowed); as well as Drive Killer(Int – FR – 4th down stop – FF – TD).
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: Falcons, did the Eagles actually get around to doing? Well let’s see:
1) Melt Matty Ice: Surprisingly, the Falcons coaching staff came out with scripted plays, to get QB Matt Ryan moving on bootlegs and such. We didn’t expect it and it showed. Especially on the first drive. No-huddle, Ryan being mobile, poor tackling. It’s a wonder that we held them to a 21 yard FG.
As the game settled, Ryan’s theatrics stopped. Our interior pass rush kept Ryan from stepping up, forcing him backwards throughout the second half. This is evidenced by our DT’s getting 4 sacks on him. (One of two by DT Hassan Ridgeway (1 – 1.0 – 0 – 0) were wiped out by an intentional grounding penalty, on Ryan. Why he wasn’t ruled “In the Grasp” and the play blown dead, is a mystery to me.) (DONE)
2) Be Smash Mouth All-Stars: Did our RB’s see 25 hand-offs? No, they got 24, but I’m going to have to adjust my thinking about hand-offs and the run game. There were a few runs for Hurts where he was used like a RB, running behind blockers. We ran it 31 times for 173 yards. This is going to be what Eagles Offense looks like under Hurts.
It’s just Week One, but between Sanders 74 yards and Hurts 62, we have two players on pace for 1,000 yards. As for the hand-offs to the right and up the gut: We posted 24 carries for 111 yards, with an 8 yard touchdown up the gut for rookie RB Kenny Gainwell (9 – 37 – 4.1 – 1 – 0) who was practically untouched. (DONE)
3) Get Mitts on Pitts: Let me nutshell this. Rookie TE Kyle Pitts (8 – 4 – 31 – 7.7 – 0) is a mismatch for 95% of the NFL as a TE. However, the Falcons split him out often, and tried to use him like a WR. That worked in college, but he’s not quick-twitch enough for NFL WR. As a result, we kept him under wraps with 5’9” Nickle CB Avonte Maddox (5 – 0 – 0 – 0).
We didn’t do this one, but it wasn’t a failing on our part. While I can’t say that “I called it”, I can say Falcons head coach Arthur Smith not understanding his TE’s limitations, is 33% of the reason the Eagles sit alone atop the NFC East today. Good thing they traded away WR Julio Jones. Had he stayed, this game would have gone differently. (NOT DONE)
4) Run From 21:We played a lot of 21 (2TE, 1RB) and it worked out for us masterfully. It gave Hurts easy completions that stretched the defense horizontally. Which in turn, created outside running lanes when OLB’s had to respect the TE in front of them.
TE Dallas Goedert (5 – 4 – 42 – 10.5 – 1) and TE Zach Ertz (2 – 2 – 34 – 17. 0 – 0), combined for 6 catches, 78 yards and a score, on 7 targets. As long as they produce like this, our inside run game can never be completely shutdown. This is the key to our entire Offense. This is where those 32 points were born.(DONE)
We start the season with 3 of 4 the Four Things done, in an absolute blowout of a trash ass team. Now we turn our attention the 1 – 0 San Francisco 49ers, who are coming to OUR HOUSE, next Sunday.
On The Whole: On Offense, we threw the ball 35 times and ran it 31. That’s 53% pass, to 47% run. That’s a well-balanced offense, folks. The closer to 50/50 the better, with 55/45 being the farthest deviation under well-balanced. That keeps a defense honest, and gives an offense real options. It also really helps keep a QB’s jersey clean.
On Defense, our LB’s have to stop sticking to blocks, and do a better job of making tackles. Stop holding up ball-carriers to get at the ball. We just end up allowing the pile to move. Let the the ball-carrier create the fumble while fighting for extra yards when stopped well short.
On Special Teams, the feet were excellent. P Arryn Siposs had four boots that had the Falcons starting at the 8, 14, 8 and 18 yard lines. Our returners sucked ass, in this one. There was entirely too much backwards running. That can’t happen at the outset of a return.
We started rough, rallied, and then locked it down. It’s a great start to a season, and a character building win. No need to take a moral victory from a loss, for this NFC East team.
New categories include an EXCLUSIVE weekly Offensive Line Report (Rushing TD’s + 3rdand 4thdowns converted of 2 yards or less – Sacks allowed); as well as Drive Killer(Int – FR – 4th down Tackles – FF – TD).
Passing: (S) QB Joe Flacco – (13/16 – 81.2 – 188 – 2 – 0)
I hear you asking, “What about all the stuff that stats don’t reveal?” Well, that’s the reason for these Four Thingsarticles. 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: Jets did the Eagles actually get around to doing? Well let’s see:
1) Coach for the Win: Instead of trying to guide his starters to a form of victory to get the taste of a win in their mouths, head coach Nick Sirianni decided to continue to evaluate his bench. Maybe that will pay off, if we get hammered with another injury bug. (Not Done)
2) Play the Starters for a Half: Nope! The starters didn’t even wear jerseys without pads. They were on the sidelines in black t-shirts, like Batman henchmen. (Not Done)
3) Death Row Just Watches: Plenty of guys who are going to be cut, stole reps from guys that we may need to contribute if injuries become an issue. This may be viewed as me over-reacting after a third preseason game, but you can’t fake the adrenalin of a real game. Families, friends, and old coaches don’t tune into joint practices. Sirianni had a chance to give that to high level back-ups, and he blew it. (Not Done)
4) Shuffle the Ends: We got the same thing served to us as the last two games. We saw a lot of DE’s Matt Leo and Tarron Jackson. We saw little outside pass rush, and nearly zero run contain. Asking to see OLB’s Genard Avery and Patrick Johnsonget reps at DE remained an ungranted wish. (Not Done)
Again, that’s 0 for 4. Two straight weeks of goose egg, and 2 of 12 this preseason. The result being zero wins. Two weeks from now, I wonder if the Starters will get to play Week One; or if Sirianni will elect to save them for the playoffs. Rock, paper, motherfu-
On The Whole:
Some will see our 31 – 31 tie, and mention this silver lining. We put our bench out against many of the Jets starters, and we didn’t lose. The problem with that is, we got up 24 – 10 and then fell apart 7 – 21, to finish the second half. Not rolling out our best stuff is one thing. Being out-hustled on Special Teams, run over on Defense, and uninspired on Offense, is quite another.
Practice? Sirianni talkin’ ’bout Dual PRACTICE.
At this stage I have no idea where any spirit of competition is supposed to come from. The Starters know that they’re sacred cows, because the back-ups hardly showed anything, across three straight weeks. In fact, the only player looking over his shoulder at this point, might be QBJalen Hurts. Is he the starter yet? I’m kidding! I’m KIDDING! It’s not like the Eagles are going to go out and trade for QB Gardner Minshew. (sigh)
KEEP in mind, when these predictions come out, no one knows who will be drafted by which team. So this is an assessment of the team as it is staffed by veteran players with track records.
Rookies may contribute heavily to their team, but they don’t usually shake up the NFC East as a division. That being said, there’s a pretty good chance that what you see here, will be how it shakes out for the year.
Now let’s look at 2021:
If you’ve read all of the articles leading up to this, you’ll understand my conclusion. Good job! If you didn’t, you’ll likely be annoyed because you did a bad job of preparing. The fact is, I gave NO team’s overall offense a passing grade, and I gave NO team’s defense one either.
Instead of rating units (offense, defense, special teams), this year everyone was so weak in key areas, that I was forced to award points for positions. So if this year’s report feels different than another year’s, rest assured, it is.
Strongest Offense: PHILADELPHIA
Yeah. I was surprised too. I gave no team points for QB, as everyone either has to prove themselves (Prescott, Hurts), or they’ve been trash historically (Fitzpatrick, Jones). Of all the teams here, Philly is the only one without an immediate need for offensive line help, as they are the only team in the division who doesn’t need help at OT, and even have competition there. They also have the best TE situation in the division by far, and a complete stable of RB’s. What they lack is WR firepower, but that’s more of a playoff problem, than a regular season issue.
Weakest Offense:NEW YORK
They have one OT and a C. Everything else is in a state of unnecessary upheaval. This team’s offense used to run through RB Saquon Barkley, but that can’t happen this year, as he’s just getting back from a torn ACL. QB Daniel Jones has to step up and prove that he can carry the… Sorry. I had a laughing fit. Jones is on his last leg as a starter, and it’s the worst kept secret in all of sports. Sadly too many of the pieces just don’t complement each other. It’s awkward. It boxes lefty. This offense was ruined in the front office, and it gets worse every year.
Strongest Defense:WASHINGTON
All four teams have issues in the secondary. That can’t even be debated. Of all the teams, Washington has the least issues and the best front seven. They can play their base 4-3, but they can easily flex to a 4-3 under, or to a 3-4, without changing personnel. NY wants to be multiple, and still can’t pull it off as well as Washington can.
Weakest Defense:DALLAS
They not only have everyone’s coverage problem, they also can’t rush the passer. They have a pair or good young LB’s in the heart of their unit, but that wasn’t enough last year, and won’t be enough this year.
Strongest Special Teams: DALLAS
They have a pair of reliable legs. Nothing fancy, but reliability is how you win field position battles. Which in turn is partly how you win games. Especially close ones.
Weakest Special Teams:PHILADELPHIA
A Kicker who seems to be rotting away on the inside, and a Punter who’s entirely an experiment from another part of the world.
Projected Winner: WASHINGTON
Having the most solid defense in the division cannot be ignored. Their offensive woes are partly due to focusing on adding defensive talent, and partly due to a scheme which relies too heavily on being cute, instead of being smart. Last year they went 5 – 1 (out of 7 wins), under game managing QB Alex Smith. This year their starting QB likes to gamble with house money. On it’s own, this team can’t win the division. But they could get by, with a little help from their friends.
Darkhorse Winner:PHILADELPHIA
New York is a team rotting on the vine, and Dallas doesn’t think they need a defense. Besides, whenever the Cowboys see something they don’t like in the mirror, they just cover it and add another WR. QB problems be damned, there is no way a team with so much talent on it, should have finished 6-10. I meant the Cowboys of course. There is no way I could have been talking about the giants.
After taking a looooooong look all four teams over this last month, I’ve noticed that Philadelphia is not nearly as far away as many people, (including me initially) might think. Currently, they have the most complete offense, and the second most complete defense in the division. If they end up putting things together at the QB position, the Eagles will have people treating them like a team that’s missed the playoffs for the last decade, instead of the team that has won the East, two of the last four times.
LAST year the Philadelphia Eagles basically drowned in a toilet. We went 4 – 11 – 1 overall, and 2 – 4 in the division. The toilet I speak of, was the NFC East. We won just 4 games and it still took all of 14 games to eliminate us from playoff contention. Which of course was followed by a form of Front Office seppuku, because hey… why not, right?
Head Coach Doug Pederson was fired and Nick Sirianni was hired to replace him. Right now it has all the ear marks of a horrible, just horrible mistake, but… Either he’ll win us over, or we’ll just keep drinking until paper beats scissors.
So here is what the Eagles look like now, exactly a week prior to the start of the 2021 NFL Draft.
OFFENSE
QB: Ignore all this nonsense about “guys competing for the starting job”. Jalen Hurtsis the guy. Whether or not he’s “The Man”, remains to be seen. However, unless we draft his replacement in 7 days, Hurts is the guy. He will not come into this season being a year wiser in the system. The new coach is bringing a new system, and no one has even seen it yet. So in a very real sense, Hurts will still be a rookie that everyone already has NFL tape on. While that tape shows a dynamic player, it also shows an arm that is questionable at times. Local productJoe Flacco,was signed to be just bad enough, to legitimize Hurts even to his detractors. REAL TALK: In a very real sense, Hurts has to start and play well,to save General Manager Howie Roseman’s job. If Hurts turns out to be a dud, then having traded away Carson Wentz, pretty much guarantees that Roseman will be escorted out of the building by security, before the New Year. In the meantime, while the Eagles have the most dynamic player at this position in the division, the coaching staff refuses to even name a starter. And I don’t give away free pluses. (-)
RB:
Miles Sanders
Miles Sanders has electrifying ability, but his durability and reliability have both been inconsistent. He went from a player who could be split out wide as rookie, to a player who couldn’t break a Swing pass in 2021. (Regardless of which QB played.) He missed 4 games in 2020, all of which were against division rivals. The Eagles were 2 – 2 without him vs the division, and went 0 – 2 with him vs the division. Boston Scott is at his best when catching passes (the game winner he caught from QB Carson Wentz to beat the giants, was a thing of beauty)
The Eagles however, seem to think he’s rotational back, despite him wearing down noticeably with increased use. The recent re-signing of Jordan Howardwas a stroke of pure genius! Provided the Eagles actually let the man play. He gives the team a legit lead back if Sanders were to get hurt, and also gives the team a tough between the tackles runner, who can make an opponent pay if he gets daylight. This is already very well-rounded group. Whomever they add as their fourth, will be a luxury. (+)
WR:
Greg Ward and Travis Fulgham
Travis Fulgham has good/not great speed, and good/not great size. He’s most dangerous on intermediate routes, and knows how to use his body to box-out defenders. He can however get downfield, and make huge plays when he sees favorable coverage. He’s a solid #2 that the Eagles tried to pass off as #1, unsuccessfully. Greg Ward in the Slot gets open quickly, so he led the team in catches in 2020. Unfortunately, many of his catches were for meager gains, so in 2021 he will likely take a back seat to a much more athletic Jalen Reagor. Reagor is said to be the team’s new Slot, presumably to take advantage of his ability to elude and break tackles. John Hightowerhas real speed to stretch a defense, and showed the ability to uncover quickly, but his 34.5% catch rate is a problem that may provide an opening forQuez Watkinsor J.J. Arcega-Whiteside. There’s a number two playing as a one, and a couple guys fighting over the Slot, but there’s no one in this group that scares anyone. With a legit #1, these five would be an interesting tool-kit. But without a hammer, you can’t say that you have legit toolbox. (-)
TE: The Eagles as an organization have decided that Dallas Goedert is the future at this position. In a 1-2 combination, Goedert is a great second option. As number one, he lacks elite traits, and may not be as necessary as many fans think. During the four games when he was on Injured Reserve in 2020, the Eagles scored 22 or more points in every game. In the eleven games when Goedert did play, the Eagles hit that mark just three times. It’s funny. Even from week one last year, everyone knew the Eagles Front Office was trying to sandbag Zach Ertz, and they did a great job of it. Now they want to trade him and SURPRISE! they aren’t finding any takers for a 30 year old, 12 million dollar player that they smeared, and essentially demoted. The irony is, he’s probably still better than 80 percent of NFL players at his position. Including Goedert. For the moment, it’s still a great 1-2 combo. (+)
OT: RT Lane Johnson had an awful 2020. He only saw seven games, and in those seven he was never himself, due to an ankle surgery that he didn’t let heal properly before coming back. When he’s healthy he’s one of the best in the game. Word is, he’s plenty healthy right now. LT Jordan Mailata made a bit of a name for himself last year, when he went from long-term project, to possible diamond in the rough.
Andre Dillard was drafted to inherit that LT spot, but he was lost for 2020 with a torn bicep. So expect ACTUAL competition on that left side in camp. Jack Driscollnotched four starts throughout his rookie year, before going on IR with an MCL injury. A perennial Pro Bowler on one side. Competition between experienced young players on the other side. Then a second year man, with a few starts under his belt already. It may not be what it used to be in 2017, but this group is the most solid group in the division. (+)
G: RGBrandon Brooks returns after missing 2020 with a torn Achilles tendon. When healthy, Brooks is a premier player at this position. Isaac Seumalo is the LG. He’s got above average movement skills, but lacks the aggression, power, or size that is generally coveted at this position. He also doesn’t always anchor well, and so he can be driven back into the QB more often than any coach should be comfortable with. Nate “Real Big” Herbig started twelve games and was serviceable. He could stand to turn some of his fluff into muscle, and to fire-out on his run blocks with more of a mean streak, but for a second year man, he’s great depth to have. Matt Pryormay make the 2021 roster due to his experience also playing OT, but he took a huge step backward in 2020. He had ten starts all over the line, but he seemed to struggle everywhere he lined up. Iosua Opeta notched two starts as a rookie. Without Brooks, this group is just slightly subpar. However, with him in the lineup, the Eagles interior has to be taken very seriously again. (+)
C: Not wanting to go out on a 4 – 11 – 1 record, Jason Kelce has decided to put retirement off for at least one more year. His presence will add solidity to a right side that could be dominant in 2021, and give the new coaching staff a platform to build on.Luke Juriga saw 14 snaps during the Cleveland game when Kelce had to go off with an injury. Kelce raised hell on the sideline and Juriga soon had his seat back. Nate Herbig can also play this position, as can G Ross Pierschbacher. While Pierschbacher is listed as a G, the Eagles depth there and his history of playing the pivot as a college senior, likely means he’s here to provide depth and versatility inside. While the Eagles won’t carry four during the season, they currently have an array of solid options to pick from for their back-up. (+)
IN A NUTSHELL: Kelce, Brooks and Johnson, will likely give the Eagles a dominant right side on the Offensive Line. It will be unlike anything Hurts had to work with, when he took over for final four games of the 2020 season. Better still, Jeff Stoutland is still the Offensive Line Coach/Run Game Coordinator. Miles Sanders, Jordan Howard and a running QB. If the Eagles can find a #1 WR, and if the new offensive system is any good, this team is going to turn heads hard enough to break necks. That said, while there is plenty of talent on this roster, the Eagles don’t have that #1 WR, and the new system hasn’t even seen a single practice yet. So again, passing grades aren’t free around here. (-)
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DE’s Brandon Graham and Derek Barnett
DEFENSE
DE:Brandon Graham started off hot last year. He notched 7 of his 8 sacks, 11 of his 16 QB hits, and 9 of his 13 tackle for losses, in the first eight games. Then he went cold as a dead man, posting 1 sack, 5 hits, and 4 TFLs, over the remaining eight games. In short, he disappeared when the playoff hunt began in earnest, making his first Pro Bowl nod feel hollow. After four seasons, Derek Barnett seems like a player who has maxed out his ceiling already. He produced 5.5 sacks while playing 49% of the defensive snaps in 2020. Yet he’s still making 10M$ in 2021. Josh Sweat on the other hand, seems to have a ton of upside. He had 6.0 sacks and 3 FF last year, despite playing just 38% of the snaps. Joe Ostman is a high-effort type, with a low athletic ceiling. In last year’s Wide Nine system, fresh players produced more results than individual talent. If this new system asks for a more classic approach, all indications are that the Eagles won’t fare well here. (-)
DT: Fletcher Coxmeans more than stats to this defense, but his numbers have spent the last two years trending in the wrong direction. Especially for a player making 24M$ in 2021. He had 10.5 sacks and 34 QB hits in 2018. He had 6.5 sacks and 9 QB hits in 2020. It’s not a three year slide, so he isn’t a has-been. Yet. However, this year those numbers need to tick up, or he’ll be on par with DeMarcus Lawrence.Javon Hargrave took a while to hit his stride as a new Eagle, but he settled in nicely near the end of the year. Perhaps the Eagles have found Cox the partner in crime that he’s needed for so long. Returning from a bicep injury that ended his 2020, is Hassan Ridgeway. Ridgeway was a solid, and highly disruptive rotational player who will likely see even more snaps with the departure of Malik Jackson. That is, if he can stay healthy. He’s missed nine games in each of his two years as an Eagle. Two good starters and a quality back-up. (+)
OLB:Alex Singleton, started last season as a Special Teamer. However due to Nate Gerry being injured, during Week four Singleton got an opportunity to play Defense. The result was that him being the difference in the Eagles first win of the season. Two weeks later he was a starter, and showing the NFL why he was the CFL Defensive Player of the Year (2017).
Now Singleton enters 2021 as a starter with a fresh new contract. America! Land of motherfuckin’ opportunity! Davion Taylor was drafted as a project, and so didn’t see much time as a rookie. That said, it’s hard to know if he fits in the new coaching staff’s plans, or if they’ll have the patience for a project. That’s especially true with the signing of free agentEric Wilson, formerly of the Vikings. Wilson put up 122 tackles, 3 sacks, and 3 picks last year. Which incidentally was his first as a starter. Did I mention that he’ll be just 27 this season? Suddenly the Eagles have two legitimate starters at this position for the first time since 2017. (+)
MLB:T.J. Edwards is said to have athletic limitations, because he’s a Tackle to Tackle player, and not a sideline to sideline player.
He’s a young, so he still has room to improve, but he already slips blocks well enough, wraps up, can get home on a blitz, and even pull down a pass. The biggest hole in his game, seems to be how often he’s subbed out for Nickel and Dime packages. Shaun Bradleyhas to learn how to get off blocks faster, and not let eye candy pull him out of position. He has a lot of energy and could be an emotional spark plug, but in his second year, he’ll have to be a more disciplined player. (+)
S:Rodney McLeodseemed a long-shot to make the 2021 roster, but at least for the moment, he’s still here. He has the eyes and mind of a seasoned veteran, but after suffering another season-ending leg injury (knee), it’s reasonable to question how much speed he’ll still have at age 31. Free Agent Anthony Harris comes over from the 38 – 7’s . Sorry, the Vikings. He has experience playing for new Defensive CoordinatorJonathan Gannon, when both were in Minnesota. With six years of NFL experience, Harris has only been a primary starter for the last three. Statistically, he looks like a ballhawk one year, and then an in-the-box player, the next year. Now with a new team (on a one year deal), he seems like a seventh year player who is still trying to find himself.
Marcus Epps and Alex Singleton
With three starts to close-out last season, Marcus Epps made a strong enough case for the Eagles to feel good about letting Jalen Mills leave via free agency. K’Von Wallace is the reason that Harris’s deal is one year. He’s expected to step up this year. Still, there are too many question marks back there, right now. (-)
CB:Currently the Eagles have ten players under contract at this position, but really only four or five of them matter. Darius Slayis coming off of his worst season as a pro. For over a decade now, I’ve been telling Eagles fans (first on Yardbarker, and then here onEaglemaniacal.com), that the Eagles Cover One/Cover Three look, has been making chumps of even the top CB’s. With Slay we saw it happen yet again,just last season. Doesn’t matter. New DC Gannon is said to be bringing a Cover Two look, that lets Corners play Corner. Slay still has his physical capabilities, so it stands to reason that in a scheme that isn’t working against him, he’s still at least better than average. Avonte Maddox was a feisty Nickel in his rookie year, but injuries and opponents taking advantage of his 5’9’’ frame, seems to have destroyed his confidence. He’s just out there going through the motions, and ending up being less than average. But hey, maybe a new system will enable him to recapture his swagger at Nickel. (I say ‘maybe’ because the Eagles will draft a Corner pretty early. Maddox won’t be the starter on the outside.) Grayland Arnold, Craig James, and Michael Jacquetall got a chance to play, and all them allowed completion percentages of 80 or higher. Again, there are ten players here and only one of them is worth starting. (-)
IN A NUTSHELL: Many of the players here, seem to have been picked for a defensive system that the Eagles are no longer going to run. The Wide Nine system is so specialized that it’s hard to see this unit being successful without a couple of high-impact changes at a couple of positions (DE, CB). (-)
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SPECIAL TEAMS
K: Jake Elliottlooked like trash last year. He connected on just 14/19 field goal tries (73.6%), yet again proving useless from 50 or more (2/5, 40%). His extra point kicking 24/26 (92.3%) was a career-low, as was his 61.8 yard kickoff average. Worst of all, the moldy fondant on the over-priced wedding cake… was his (1/3) field goal kicking from 20 to 29 yards. (-)
P: Arryn Siposs is a 29 year old, ex-Australian Football League player, who’s never played an NFL game. He had a cup of coffee with the Lions before they cut him last year. His AFL highlights make him intriguing, but he’ll be impossible to me to co-sign until we at least see him a preseason game. (-)
IN A NUTSHELL:
There are no clutch legs on the team. So close games and defensive battles where winning field position matters, looks like it will be a problem this year. (-)
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BOTTOM LINE: Right now, there is no aspect of the game(Offense, Defense, Special Teams) that the Eagles can be given a passing grade in. On the one hand, there so much change coming with a new coach who has never called plays in a game. Talent-wise, the roster isn’t awful at anything. It just isn’t great at anything. And you need to be great at something to win a division. If the newness of the Eagles gets traction, they could take the NFL by total surprise. That said, history is not on their side. Which you realize, makes the Eagles an underdog. And NOBODY on Earth loves an underdog, more than Philadelphia.
LAST year Dallas finished 6 – 10 overall, and 2 – 4 in the division. It can be said that they were derailed by a number of injuries, but that was par for the course for everyone in this division. So nope! No one gets a pass because of injuries in 2020. Hey, remember this?:
Dallas was just an expensive and over-hyped bad team. Period.
But that was last year! Here’s what Dallas looks like 8 days prior to the 2021 NFL Draft.
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OFFENSE
QB:Dak Prescott returns! But just how much of him is going to make it back? About a month the press got hold of some video of his rehab process. Take a look at it. Specifically his right ankle:
He’s all arm and no mechanics from the waist down. There is no dropback. No plant. No drive. No stepping into his passes. Worse than how he looks, is the fact that this is becoming muscle memory for him. For any of you who ever played a sport, you know how hard it is to unlearn a bad habit once you pick it up. As for picking up where he left off, he spent 2020 going 2-3 as a starter, with both wins being worthy of a shrug. His win over ATL was a product of the Falcons refusing to recover an onside kick. The win over the giants was a game he started, but didn’t finish. He could have easily gone 0 – 5. Behind him are Garrett Gilbert who battled PIT in Week 9 to lose by just 5; and Ben “Bring It On” DiNucci who in Week 8 was handed an ‘L’ by PHILADELPHIA. Preseason legend Cooper Rush has also found his way back onto the roster. Prescott will probably be present, but held out of anything on-field during OTA’s and mini-camp. His first real work might not come until training camp starts in July. That said, as of this moment, this moment right here, the Cowboy have as many question marks at this position as every one of their rivals. (-)
RB:Ezekiel Elliott (for the third straight year) saw his rushing attempts, rushing yardage, rushing yards per game, rushing average, AND receiving yardage, drop again. Only twice did he top 100 rushing yards, and he was held to fewer than 50, in six games. He had just 3 rushes of 20 or more yards, and his longest catch was for just 19. His last rush of 40 yards? That was back in 2018. In fact, that was his only one since 2016. This is why Dallas is making the slow pivot to a backfield tandem with Tony Pollard. Pollard was initially considered a change of pace runner. However, in an attempt to add some explosiveness to their run game, Dallas began increasing Pollard’s snap count after the midpoint of 2020. Pollard lacks many of Elliott’s tools (power, alpha mentality, expectation of greatness). However, if he gets a hole, he has the short-area explosiveness to exploit it, although he lacks the long speed to make himself an every down threat. Rico Dowdle and Sewo Olonilua are also on the roster. (+)
WR:Amari Cooperled the team in catches, and receiving yards while posting an impressive 70% catch rate, despite everyone in Texas getting to throw him a pass last year. Rookie Ceedee Lamb posted 935 yards, while coming in second on the team in targets and catches. Michael Gallup saw over 100 targets, but still was third fiddle with just 59 catches. All three caught 5 TD’s apiece. With Lamb’s presence, Gallup now becomes expendable. Though many will try to talk up a three amigos scenario, it’s more likely that Three’s A Crowd
Cedric Wilson and Noah Brown give the Cowboys two receivers who know their system, and thus represent at least schematic depth, if not depth of talent. This is currently the best group in the division. (+)
TE:Blake Jarwin tore his ACL in the first game of the season, and was lost for 2020. So in stepped Dalton Schultz. With 63 grabs and an average of 9.7 yards per grab, Schultz was a functional outlet, and someplace safe to dump the ball off. Which is exactly why he posted a 70% catch rate. He has plenty of value as a back-up, but as a starter… not being a threat as a receiver makes him a liability to the run game. Speaking of not being a receiving threat, I guess Dallas is playing Hollywood Squares because,
they added free agent, Jeremy Sprinkle for the block! Really, blocking is pretty much all he’s good for. This is a viable position, but it doesn’t scare anyone right now. “Right now” being the operative term. (+)
OT:Tyron Smith is back after having had season-ending neck surgery, to fix an issue that has cost him games over the years. While 31 isn’t ancient, paired with that neck surgery, it’s fair to wonder how much of Smith will be returning to the field. Filling in for Smith were Brandon Knight and Cameron Fleming (now in Carolina). On the right, La’el Collins missed nearly all of 2020 with what is vaguely reported as a hip injury. At 6’4” 320, and bending over to get into a three-point stance for a living, a hip injury is no minor thing. Especially when a hip injury is reported like it’s a “hip injury”, which indicates that it may be more than a hip injury. Filling in for Collins was Terence Steele. Knight and Steele played well enough for the Cowboys to run right out and sign free agent Ty Nsekhe, for more money than Knight and Steele are making in 2021. Combined. There is talent here, but it hasn’t been stable or reliable, and that has directly cost this team games and division crowns. Expect a day two draft pick to be spent here. (-)
G:Zach Martin finished 2020 on the bench, but that was after 5 weeks of being on IR with a calf injury. He comes back in 2021 as one of the premier players in the league at his position. On the other side is Connor Williams. While he can’t be mistaken for an All-Pro, he’s a three year starter in that spot, his line-mates know what to expect from him, and so they know how to play off of him. For those who know anything about offensive lines, please explain to your friends how valuable that is. Depth consists of Connor McGovern (not to be confused with Jets C Connor McGovern). McGovern is depth, provided the Cowboys don’t also move him to the pivot. For his part, he notched 8 starts last year on the left when Martin was injured, or was slid out to the edge due to injuries. Former giant Eric Smith enters his second year in a Cowboys jersey. That is, if a draft pick doesn’t beat him out for his roster spot. (+)
C: Second-year man, Tyler Biadasz started 4 games as a rookie, during which Dak Prescott was injured and 3 losses followed. Now he will be the man in the middle, unless something totally wild happens. Behind him is Adam Redmond. In 2018, Redmond saw 96 offensive snaps in 4 games, getting no starts, despite the Cowboys having deep injury concerns on their left side in 2018. Weird. When names like John Gesek, Mark Stepnoski, and Travis Frederick, can roll off of a rival fan’s tongue, you know Biadasz will not be getting the benefit of the doubt. He has lot to live up to, and is not off to a great start in doing so. (-)
IN A NUTSHELL:This team has weapons, but it needs a triggerman who can get the ball where it needs to be. Check that video again. That’s not the look of an NFL QB. That’s not even the look of a top college QB. Maybe Prescott will make massive leaps by training camp July, but that’s only 75 days away. Sounds like a lot. It isn’t. In any case, he’ll need to be kept upright, and right now 60% of his protection looks shaky, with no real depth behind it. This is why they had to have a potential Hall of Game G, slide out to play OT. Adding Nsekhe was a good first step, but alone he doesn’t fix this unit’s Achilles heel. With all the weapons they have, (all of whom they had last year), they still finished 17th out of 32 in scoring. (-)
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DEFENSE
DE: It’s official. It’s been three seasons in a row. DeMarcus “War Daddy” Lawrence is now a shadow of himself. Even with help on the opposite side, his sack and QB hits are consistently down, and he never seems to affect games anymore. Randy Gregory recorded no starts in 2020, but looked good on spot detail with 3.5 sacks in ten games. The Cowboys have their fingers crossed that he can play 16 games with his hand in the dirt. Tarell Basham comes over from the Jets to add some rotational pass rush. While he will definitely get pressure on a QB, he’s strictly a stand-up rusher. Being unable to play from a three point stance, means not being to consistently play against the run. This position is in trouble, and anyone in sports media will tell you, and has been telling you, the exact same thing. (-)
DT:Antuan Woods is the Cowboys best player at a position that produced 1.5 sacks TOTAL, in 2020. To his credit, Woods produced a sack. He specializes in neither rushing the passer, nor stuffing the run, but he’s still the tone setter for this position thus far. Starting nine games as a rookie was Neville Gallimore. That other half sack was his. Again, neither stuffing the run, nor getting to the passer seems like his calling card. The Cowboys may be hoping for a big rebound from Trysten Hill, who opened 2020 as a starter, before tearing his ACL in Week 5. No matter. His play to that point was unremarkable. That is, when he wasn’t drawing flags and fines for a helmet to helmet hit on QB Russell Wilson on one play, and twisting the knee of RB Chris Carson, injuring him after the yet another play had ended. Real talk? Hill’s ACL tear had all the earmarks of Karma. Hill also clashed with Cowboys coaching staff in his rookie year. It will be interesting to see what kind of player the Cowboys get back from his rehab. Justin Hamilton got two starts in 2020, (and FYI, the Cowboys won both games). No one is afraid of this group. (-)
OLB:Leighton Vander Esch gives an all-out effort, but his production continues to fall off, as he continues to miss games with big injuries. Last year a broken collarbone cost him four weeks early in the season, and he was inactive for the last two games of the year. (Sean Lee remains in talks with the team, but at this moment, is still unsigned.) Keanu Neal is leaving the secondary and switching to this position. This gives the Cowboys more flexibility with coverage underneath. But how ready can Neal be at 216 pounds, to spend most of a game taking on offensive linemen? He will no doubt be targeted heavily every week, by opposing run games. That said, the position is a lot more athletic than they were at year’s end. That’s an improvement. (+)
MLB:Jaylon Smith is the second best player in the division at his position. He’s reliable, doesn’t stick to blockers, and can play in coverage as well as fight the run. Luke Gifford played a single defensive down in 2020. So yeah. Jaylon is super-reliable. (+)
S: Understanding that this position needed gentrification, the Joneses went out and added Damontae Kazee to be specific. Donovan Wilson looks to be safe at SS. Kazee has a reputation for having sticky fingers, so he likely has the inside track over Darian Thompson on the other starting gig. At 6’4’’ 215 free agent addition Jayron Kearse is tall. Good for him! (-)
CB:Trevon Diggs turned a lot of heads as a rookie in 2020. He played with tremendous confidence, whether he was making a play, or getting juiced over a mistake. Nabbing 3 picks and getting his hands on a total of 14 balls, will make teams treat him different in 2021. Anthony Brown struggled with injuries, and only started eight of the ten games he played.In fact, in five seasons he’s never started more than ten. Due to the Cowboys starting a Nickel alignment, Jourdan Lewis picked up 13 starts. Mostly in the slot.
Jourdan Lewis
This is also why teams elected to run on them so much. And did such a good job of it. Opting out of 2020 due to Covid-19 was former Raven Maurice Canady. The Cowboys signed him last year, but never got to take him for a spin. So in their minds, he’s still an unapplied upgrade. (+)
IN A NUTSHELL: It’s always messy when a team decides to sign a guy to serious money, and then switch his position. Neal could be in for a pretty rough ride as an undersized LB in this division. Especially on a team that struggles to rush the passer. On most teams, Basham would be a sneaky good add, but the Cowboys already lack a DE who can stack the run. Adding one more as a back-up, seriously encourages opponents to run the ball on 3rd and short. This unit is so much faster than last year’s, but nothing about this side of the ball indicates that they can win in the trenches. (-)
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SPECIAL TEAMS
K:Greg Zuerlein was pretty reliable 34/41 (82.9%) with 6 of his misses (3/9) coming from 50 or greater (33.3%). Otherwise he was 31/32 (96.8%) He was 33/36 (91.6%) on extra points. (+)
P:Hunter Niswander was the punter for the final 8 games of 2020. He had just 26 punts, so it’s a small sample size, but the sample had his average punt at 47.2 yards with a net of 42.0. If we’re going to nit-pick, of his 26 punts, 9 were returned for 95 yards (10.5 ypr), indicating that he’s totally over-kicking his coverage team. Given a training camp, he should be able to shave 3 or 4 yards off of that return average. What say we meet back here in a year, and discuss how he did? Aaaand out of nowhere, the Cowboys added 32 year old Bryan Anger, because Jerry Jones wanted to blow his stimulus money on a Texan antique. (See what I did there?) Anger is likely a camp body just brought in to keep a fire lit under Niswander this preseason. (+)
IN A NUTSHELL: The legs on this unit are here to not lose the game. Just keep it close is all that’s asked of them. Should be an easy bar to reach. (+)
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BOTTOM LINE:The Cowboys need a big Draft. Offensively, the QB has weapons, but is coming back from injury. The RB has spent the last THREE YEARS, regressing every year. The once vaunted offensive line, is better known for injuries these days. Their defense couldn’t stop anybody last year (28th out of 32), and the only additions to the roster so far, are role players and experiments. There’s a new DC, but most of the Cowboys problem last year, was losing battles in the trenches, and they haven’t gotten better on either side of the ball. In fact, most of the returning starters, are the same guys who were taking those whippings. But hey!
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