THE starting slot receiver is WR Makai Lemon. He’s not really a burner, and I get the impression that the idea is, to get him short, quick passes in space, so that he can make (YAC) yards after the catch. There will be downs when he subs out for a breather though, and a faster receiver can be subbed in.
Getting WR Hollywood Brown running routes deep in the middle of the field, early in the game, will definitely keep opposing Safeties from loading up the box, whenever he’s on the field. That means more room inside to run and throw quick passes, and get the ball out of QB Jalen Hurts hand.
I’m thinking back to a game vs the Bears in 2013. They were so afraid of WR DeSean Jackson’s speed, that they were practically lining up FS Chris Conte in the parking lot. The result was RB LeSean McCoy running for 133 yards and 2 TD’s on 18 carries, as his back-up RB Bryce Brown ran for 115 and a score on just 9 totes. They combined for 9.1 yard per rush.
The Eagles won that game 54 – 11.
Fast forward to 2017, and we used WR2 Torrey Smithto do just that, in every game of the season. Smith played all 16 games, starting 14, but catching just 36 balls for 2 TD’s. However, the danger that he posed when taking the top off the defense, allowed others behind him to operate with ease and consistency. It won us our first Super Bowl.
THERE is no need to ask WR DeVonta Smith to be anything other, than what he’s always been. Losing WR A.J. Brown, means that we lost a physical, tackle-breaking, 50-50 ball winner. The smart move would be to develop a replacement from what we already have on the roster. For my money, that means WR Darius Cooper.
Suddenly throwing Smith a ton of 50-50 balls, and expecting him to break tackles over the middle would be stupid. We didn’t ask him to do that before, because it’s not his game, so let’s not try to press him into a role that still wouldn’t suit him.
So how much of what I mentioned in PreseasonFour Things: BENGALS did the Eagles actually get around to doing? Well let’s see:
1) Second Unit Run Game: I wanted to see if we had another runner who could be a serious threat on the ground and I was pleasantly surprised by RB Dameon Pierce (4 – 44 – 11 – 0 – 0). Until he got hurt. (DONE)
2) Sitting This One Out:I wanted to see LB Jeremiah Trotter Jr.and QB Tanner McKee (12/22 – 54.5% – 55 – 0 – 1), sit this game out. Obviously it happened for Trotter, but McKee got stuck playing nearly an entire half.
The idea that the Eagles coaching staff still feels the need to evaluate between McKee and QB Andy Dalton (12/19 – 63.1% – 104 – 1 – 0), is concerning. Dalton is 38, has played 16 years and never won anything of any significance. He owns an 84 – 83 – 2 record as a starter. We’ve seen his ceiling. Every practice rep that McKee loses to this guy, just further stunts McKee’s development by this staff. This is irresponsible. (NOT DONE)
3) Payton’s Place: Give QB Cole Payton(0/2 – 0.0% – 0 – 0 – 0) the second half and see what he can do with it, to help his development. Didn’t happen. (NOT DONE)
4) Any Reason For Hope: Hoping for something to hang hope onto regarding our kick return game, we got nothing. (NOT DONE)
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This week’s Four Thingsscore was 1 of 4. Mercifully the preseason is over, so when we next see the Eagles, we’ll be watching our starters. But that’s two weeks away.
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Game Hero: S Andre Sam(3 – 0.0 – 0 – 2) forced a fumble and recovered two, before hurting his leg and having to be driven off the field on a cart. Like RB Pierce, if a player started strong this week, they were leaving the game early.
Game goat: Offensive Coordinator Sean Mannion – Again, I understand the strategy of vanilla playcalling in the preseason. That said, the over-reliance on routes under five yards and RB dump-offs, isn’t on the players. That’s on whomever is calling the plays. That lack of aggression, isn’t how you develop killer instinct, or a sense of urgency in young players.
On The Whole: If I didn’t have to write about it, I wouldn’t have finished watching the game.
TONIGHT, for the first time since January 11th, football will finally be played in Philadelphia again. Expect many people showing up to work wearing green. The words “Go Birds” outnumbering air molecules. The feel of an approaching September…
While the wins and losses won’t be counted in the record, the stakes for some players, will be monumental. Some careers will be ended before they even get started, and some guys may flash and rescue their career in final quarter of the final game. Just like 7th round S Kurt Coleman did in 2010, turning a near pink slip into a ten year career, with a Pro Bowl nod in 2015. So eyes open, Eagles fans. You never know what you might see.
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The point of Four Things isn’t to predict a winner. It’s to discuss which tactics will give our Eagles the best chance to defeat this week’s opponent. Except in preseason. Winning would be nice, but these games aren’t for that. They’re for helping us establish depth, and to perhaps uncover a gem or two.
So here’s what I’ll be keeping an eye on, in this match-up:
RB Will Shipley
1) Second Unit Run Game: While RB’s Will Shipleyand Carson Steele appear to be gamers vs reserves; we’ve seen Shipley run out of gas in a playoff game, and Steele is more of a small FB than a starting RB. If either has to start due to injury, our ground game isn’t scaring anybody.
I want to see competition for that fourth string/Practice Squad RB spot. So far all we’ve seen is Steele. I don’t recall a single carry from RB Dameon Pierce, and Jordan Mimswas just signed on Monday. It would be nice to see that we have a third guy who can break a game open.
2) Sitting This One Out:I don’t want to see LB Jeremiah Trotter Jr., or Ty Robinson in pads for this one. Those roster spots are secure. There is no need to expose them to an injury risk. Same for QB Tanner McKee.
Ideally, QB Andy Daltonwould get the first half. That way he can put out some tape, and maybe he can catch-on with another team. Because we should be about the business of cutting him.
3) Payton’s Place:Give QB Cole Payton the entire second half, to start grooming him as our third stringer, (and possibly future second stringer). As a fifth round pick, his next contract will be very controllable. Especially if QB Jalen Hurts doesn’t miss much time over the next few years, so Payton can’t put much on tape. Steep him in the system and develop him as a long-term back-up, as a way to stash cost-controlled depth.
4) Any Reason For Hope:Since mostly third stringers will play this game, it’s bound to be a little sloppy here and there. So big runs, big catches, and kick returns may be exaggerated from what we’d see in the regular season. Meaning any that we see, have be taken with a grain of salt.
Still, even if it’s false hope, PLEASE give me something to look forward to, with our kick return game! Do you realize that WR Britain Covey has never returned a kickoff for more than 30 yards? Can we get something going? A 50 yard kickoff return? A 35 yard punt return? Something? Anything?? PLEASE!?
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WARNING: I don’t have the faintest clue as to what a point spread is, and I know even less about how it works. I know FOOTBALL and that’s it. If you use Four Things as a gambling tool, then you are a fool trying to lose your money, and will deserve it when you do.
Check back in a couple of days for Four Things Reviewed, and we’ll discuss how this game went.
THE opener didn’t go quite as well as we were hoping. We wanted to see the Offense differentiate itself from the Kevin Patullo era, and unless you are a student of the game, you didn’t really see that.
If you are a student of the game, seeing the QB not in Shotgun all the time was awesome. The motion that caused the opposing defense to shift around, almost felt like watching some other team. I can’t wait to see the starters using this.
That said, I expect that some of these back-ups are going to distance themselves from others this week.
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The point of Four Things isn’t to predict a winner. It’s to discuss which tactics will give our Eagles the best chance to defeat this week’s opponent. Except in preseason. Winning would be nice, but these games aren’t for that. They’re for helping us establish depth, and to perhaps uncover a gem or two.
So here’s what I’ll be keeping an eye on, in this match-up:
1) Better Routes:I get that we were running “vanilla” packages, but some of our route concepts made it difficult to push the ball downfield, without pushing it into crowded areas. (This is an inherent problem with bunching receivers.)
If Offensive Coordinator Sean Mannion is insistent on WR bunches or clusters, he’s got to figure out a way to get them quickly out of each other’s area. Clumps of receivers attract clumps of defenders, and we saw how that worked out last week.
2) Ty Up the End:I said when he was drafted that DT Ty Robinson would likely be more effective at DE. Last year at DT he struggled with moving the line of scrimmage. At 288 pounds, his DT strength isn’t as impressive in the NFL as it was in college.
At DE however, he shows monster potential. His strength on the edge, combined with his movement in space, would make him into a nasty, strong-side run defender. Last week he played mostly RDE, but we really need to see him get more snaps at LDE.
3) Make Special Teams Special:We haven’t had a dangerous return man, since before Darren Sproles tore his MCL. While it’s true that WR Britain Covey has averaged good numbers per return, let’s not pretend that he’s a threat to break one.
No one is afraid of Covey. In fact, with some of the hits he takes, I spend more time being afraid for him. I’d like to see somebody step up and play returner like it’s their only way onto an NFL roster.
4) Big Plays and Big Mistakes: Some of the guys playing tonight won’t be in football in about three weeks. I want to see guys gambling and taking chances on themselves. Just playing with abandon, as opposed to playing tight. I want to come out of this game cheering for a long-shot.
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As I said last week, it’s been a while since I just sort of sat back, and watched a game as a fan. I’m going to mostly focus on that during the preseason. I’ll be ready to go in time for the season, but for right now, especially with no starters to watch, I’m going to keep the pressure on myself, low, and not sweat deadlines too much.
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WARNING: I don’t have the faintest clue as to what a point spread is, and I know even less about how it works. I know FOOTBALL and that’s it. If you use Four Things as a gambling tool, then you are a fool trying to lose your money, and will deserve it when you do.
Check back in a couple of days for Four Things Reviewed, and we’ll discuss how this game went.
SHUT the fuck up, until you have something worth saying, to say. I didn’t want to participate in the ridiculous past-time of defending QB Jalen Hurts, vs people who clearly don’t know football. I didn’t want to keep re-hashing the trade rumors surrounding WR A.J. Brown. I didn’t want to keep speculating on whether Cleveland would trade DE Myles Garrett. Would we get him? Would Dallas get him??
I had nothing to say worthy of your attention. So, instead of wasting your time, I kept my trap shut. At 51, I’m older. Wiser. More seasoned. I like it when I get to brandish my wisdom, and show the boys who always have to be “loud and first”, that surgical insight is more respectable than scatter-shot rumor mongering. After all, September is still months away. Why rush?
Now that Brown and Garrett have been traded, I get to give my two cents on this season’s schedule. Yes, the schedule. Lots of people (me included), made predictions already, but trades this big could have serious impact on those predictions. So I waited for them to be completed.
GM Howie Roseman
The latest on the rumor mill, is whether or not Eagles General Manager Howie Roseman will make a play for Raider DE Maxx Crosby, or if he’ll end up in San Francisco. With Crosby still rehabbing his knee, there just isn’t enough substance for me to wait on that. So I’m just going to plunge ahead, and give my overview of the 2026 season.
Regarding the schedule, there are things that I like about it. I’m a fan of hosting division rival Washington, for Week One. Foaming at the mouth, right out of the gate? I have to love that! The Week 10 Bye is nice. Having six straight weeks (weeks 6 through 11) which don’t require us to get on a plane, is also a dandy. I dig the three game home-stand in Weeks 14 through 16; and even the season finale has us playing in our own backyard (N.Y.)
What I don’t like, is the London game. The Birds having to play overseas, and me not getting to sleep-in on a Sunday? Frowny face. Then there’s facing four opponents who will be coming off of their Bye week. Two of which are divisional (Washington and New York). We have two games on short weeks, but those opponents will also be in that boat. So it’s a gripe, but a minor one.
On personal note, I’m also not a fan of having FIVE prime time games. That means taking the following day off work, so I can stay up late to write Four Things Reviewed. While the Christmas Eve game lets me off the hook, I still have to burn four vacation days. (They’re already on my department’s calendar.)
I still like us for 12 – 5, as I wrote in the Eagles Pre-Draft Preview, but that Week 4 Rams game, will tell us a lot.
I’m not yet getting into the players we added, or what kind of season I expect for WR DeVonta Smith. As I said earlier, there’s no rush. We’ll pick through the roster as we work our way through Training Camp. In the meantime, enjoy me. The Holy One has finally returned.
FOR what seems like five years now, that’s all anyone has been saying around here. There’s been a ton of speculation that we’re trading WR A.J. Brownto the Patriots. But why? Or a better question might be, for what exactly?
The early speculation is that Brown would be moved for basically a first round pick. Except the Patriots are a team clearly on the rise, that played in the Super Bowl just a few months ago. If they go as far, or even win it all next year, a first round pick from them, is practically a second rounder to us.
Do you think Eagles GM Howie Rosemanwouldn’t realize that? Does Howie strike you as less calculating than that? So why not trade with a team that has an actual first rounder? Perhaps even, a team that makes a habit of picking in the top ten! I’m thinking Jets or Browns.
Listen, I don’t like the idea of trading Brown. I think it’s a seriously stupid idea. But, if we’re doing it anyway, why fuck it up? Get real value in return for him. That way in the future, it helps to cushion the blow that’s likely coming. Which blow?
First, WR DeVonta Smith is great. Let me start by saying that. Having said that, it’s no question that Brown has been the more dominant player, and the one that QB Jalen Hurts has leaned on more. If Brown leaves and Jalen doesn’t look as good, oh my…
You think Hurts gets disrespected NOW? This trade will blow-up entirely in his face. Not Howie’s. Not Offensive Coordinator Sean Mannion. Just Jalen’s. He’ll be the guy who “forced out A.J.” and in doing so, slammed the Eagles window shut. If this trade doesn’t go right, it will be the dismantling of a team that won a Super Bowl just year ago, in blowout fashion. And Hurts will get the blame for it.
I’VE been sitting this one out, because I find the subject matter silly. However, too many things are going unsaid, in order to help perpetuate a story with no story to it. So I’m weighing in, because an adult perspective is needed.
Since last season, there’s been a non-stop conveyor belt of rumors, regarding the Eagles trading WR A.J. Brown. Much of that has been fueled by Brown’s social media posts, sideline behavior, and post-game interview coyness. So for Brown’s part, he himself has helped feed the rumor mill.
For the Eagles part, (namely General Manager Howie Roseman), the team’s assertion is that Brown is a great player, and you don’t give away great players. Local media and many fans, are saying the Eagles must be tired of Brown’s antics, so surely they want to trade him. (To me that sounds like folks projecting their own frustrations.)
Understand, if a good enough deal comes down the pike, I think Howie jumps on it. We ask for a king’s ransom, and wait to see if the other court has a fool willing to part with it. It’s just smart business. That being said, for my part, I don’t think the Eagles have much real interest in trading Brown, and there are a few reasons for that.
First, I’m pretty sure they want Brown this year. In fact, I’m pretty sure they need him this year. Not just a really good wide receiver. Him. A.J. Brown specifically.
The Eagles have a brand new Offensive Coordinator, in Sean Mannion, whose system has yet to be demonstrated. So opposing defenses have no reason to fear, or even respect it yet. What they do have to respect, are the players we have operating that system.
Due to QB Jalen Hurts past success with Brown, they will generate different coverages than say, second year WR Darius Cooper can. That aspect cannot be replicated quickly or easily. So, Brown’s mere presence will dictate coverages, that help get other receivers open, and loosen the box for both the RB and QB run games.
Starting Mannion off without Brown, is to handicap both Mannion and Hurts. God forbid our Offense stinks, the first thing fans and the media (local and national), will say is “Well maybe if they didn’t get rid of A.J…” Mannion deserves at least one season with Brown.
Second, (and any of you with a background in Sales can vouch for this), the Eagles aren’t pricing Brown to move. When you really want to sell an item, you make the price attractive to as many potential buyers as possible. The Eagles are doing the opposite of that. They’ve made him almost prohibitively expensive, to all but the most niche of purchasers.
Third, the consensus is that the Eagles are waiting until after June 1st, to avoid a 40M$ dead money hit. If that was really their big concern, and Brown were truly so eager to leave, they could simply re-work his deal, like they just did for K Jake Elliottand G Landon Dickerson. They could even sweeten it by adding non-void years for the next team. But they didn’t.
Fourth and finally, if the plan was to play without Brown this year, then we’d want to make sure we brought in a new weapon for Hurts. The sooner the better. The cheaper the better. That means a draft pick. Why wait until after the draft, to get a player that we’ll likely need this season? Does that sound like Howie to you? Not by a damned sight!
If the Eagles are offered an absolute haul, I think they leap at it. That being said, my money is on Brown scoring double digit touchdowns as an Eagle this season.
(Add-on: If we do move on from Brown, I like Draft prospect WR Josh Cameron, as a 4th round pick, or even as a 3rd round reach.)
LINEBACKER Nakobe Dean(55 – 4.0 – 0 – 0) is as good as gone, if we don’t trade OLB Nolan Smith (31 – 3.0 – 0 – 0).
Dean will be a Free Agent when the league year starts in March. Not only will he want a nice contract, he’s also going to want a chance to start. He can get both if he goes to Dallas, and joins defensive coordinator Christian Parker, who served as our DB coach this past season
Since nobody here is interested in Dean playing against us twice a year, the smart move is to find a way to keep that star off his helmet. With more cap space than Dallas, I like our chances in a bidding contest. Especially with his injury history, which every team will try to use as leverage. I think playing time offered will factor more heavily than money, because no one is breaking the bank to sign him. He’ll probably see a deal around 8M per, over 2 or 3 years, laden with incentives, regardless of where he goes.
The reason that I say trade Smith, is because this past season when he missed Weeks 4 through 8, rookie LB Jihaad Campbell(80 – 0.0 – 1 – 1) started in his place. Campbell racked up 27 of his 80 tackles in that span, as well as his first career interception. When he was drafted, Defensive Coordinator Vic Fangio(on more than one occasion), implied an eventual move to the edge for Campbell.
On top of all this, Smith has often been used as a DE. However, the trade for Jalean Phillips(28 – 2.0 – 0 – 1) has made Smith superfluous in that situation. Phillips is also a FA as of March, and probably about to get a deal in the area of 19M$ over 3 years. In a very real sense, Smith is standing in the way of three players. All of whom are more productive than he is. Besides, a LB corps of Dean/MLB Zack Baun/Campbell is more instinctive, talented and dynamic than a corps of Campbell/Baun/Smith.
Such a trade wouldn’t be happening in a vacuum. Word around the campfire says, the Eagles are already quietly trying to make cap space to pay DT Jalen Carter (FA after 2027) and DTJordan Davis (FA after 2026).
The Eagles could activate Carter’s fifth year option, but all signs point to them trying to get a long term extension (done early), with both.
Having to shell out for Phillips, Carter, and Davis means that not everyone gets to stay, unless they give the Eagles a hometown discount. For players like S Reed Blankenship, that would be a terrible move. He’s already not the fastest Safety. When he loses a step due to age, he won’t get the kind offer that he can demand today. So he’s almost certainly out of here.
Smith is also a FA after 2027. If he loses his starting spot to Campbell in the next year or two, the Eagles will already not be looking to not extend him. The more time left on Smith’s rookie contract, the more valuable he will be in a trade. Moving him now ensures that we get maximum value for him.
Dean, Baun, and Campbell, playing behind Phillips, Carter, Davis, and DE Jalyx Hunt. We have about 9.8 M in cap space, and can painlessly make another 22.4 in cuts, getting us to 32.2M. Most of that is going to Phillips. The real wizardry, will be about what we can do with all the dead money we have floating around. In the meantime, let’s make this trade happen.
Special Teams Ace: P Braden Mann 7 – 388 – 55.4 (65)
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I hear you asking, “What about all the stuff that stats don’t reveal?” Well, that’s the reason for these Four Things articles. It’s to point out what we need to address BEFORE the game. Then AFTER the game, there’s a no-bullshit assessment of whether or not the Eagles did any of what they needed to do, to ensure the win.
So how much of what I mentioned in Four Things: BILLS did the Eagles actually get around to doing? Well let’s see:
1) Run Off-Guard: I was looking for 10 hand-offs in those gaps. Especially to the right. Instead, what we got was a lot of Center/Guard action and Pitch-Outs. We also went back to running from the Shotgun, for some reason. (NOT DONE)
TE Dallas Goedert catching the Eagles only TD of the game.
2) Exploit Our TE Mismatch:I said it would be a crime if TE Dallas Goedert(6 – 3 – 8 – 2.7 – 1) saw fewer than 6 targets and that’s exactly how many he saw. He also caught our only touchdown of the game. (DONE)
3) Mush the Rush: The Eagles held the number one rushing team in football (170 rushing yards per game) to 120 yards, on a slick and rainy field. The plan was never to “shut down”the Bills run game, just contain it, and we did an excellent job of that. (DONE)
4) Move Their QB’s Platform Left:We didn’t do a whole lot of this, but we did it when it mattered most: During their two point attempt, after their second touchdown.(DONE)
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This week’s Four Things score was 3 of 4. Next week we wrap-up at home, hopefully with our back-ups playing that one out.
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DT Jalen Carter barrels in for a sack of Josh Allen.
Game Hero: DT Jalen Carter – (1 – 1.0 – 0 – 0) He was disruptive, recorded a sack, and even blocked an extra point, that probably won us the game. Seriously. If the Bills make that early extra point, then when they scored their second touchdown, it would have been a 13 – 13 game, and they’d have just kicked the extra point for the win.
However, because of Carter’s block, the Bills had to go for the two point conversion for the win. The throw was wide left, and the Eagles had a “W”.
Game goat: Offensive Coordinator, Kevin Patullo – We had a solid first half, then the reigns were solely handed over to Offensive Coordinator Kevin Patullo. We immediately went back to predictable nonsense that wasn’t particularly well blocked.
On The Whole:
This was a measuring stick game, and the Eagles won it. Yes, Hurts didn’t complete a pass in the entire second half, but we won the game. We found a way to win on the road. Against a playoff team. In monsoon conditions.
Rookie LB Jihaad Campbell celebrates his fumble recovery.
