2023 QUARTERLY REPORT: QUARTER 4

Posted by The BEAST on 2024/01/15
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Conversations, Defense, NFC East, NFL, Offense, Players, playoffs, report, Roster, Special Teams, stats, Super Bowl. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

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 games 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: 11 – 6, 2nd in the NFC East, 5th seed in the playoffs

OPPONENTS:

L – Seattle

W – New York giants

L – Arizona

L – New York giants

OVERVIEW:

Two fourth quarter collapses vs the Seahawks and the Cardinals, ended any talk of the Eagles stealing the 1st seed back from San Francisco, and left the Birds needing Washington to beat Dallas, for the 2nd seed to tumble to us. We hardly seemed interested vs the giants in the season finale.

GRADES:

QB: Jalen Hurts (66/108 – 61.1% – 666 – 4 – 5) has been inconsistent in terms of production and decision making, as of recent. You almost wonder if, (beyond all the press conference speak), he truly understands what’s at stake. We’ve spent years hearing about his leadership, yet neither his sideline demeanor, nor his production, are indicative of someone worth following during tough times.

Marcus Mariota (15/23 – 65.2% – 164 – 1 – 1) showed enough understanding of the system, to warrant consideration as next year’s back-up. Even better, he showed enough mobility for the coaching staff to know that, in the even that he has to start any games, they don’t have to revamp the Offense for him. (Grade:D)

RB D’Andre Swift scores TD

RB: D’Andre Swift (51 – 227 – 4.4 – 1 – 0/ 4 – 3 – 6 – 2.0 – 0) has been effective as a runner, but a joke as a pass catcher. In fact, overall he hasn’t done a thing that RB Miles Sanders didn’t do better last year. Swift was supposed to be an upgrade at RB receiver. Instead, his production proved that the issue is the system, and not the player that we replaced.

Kenneth Gainwell (21 – 129 – 6.1 – 0 – 0/ 8 – 7 – 53 – 7.5 – 0) has great looking numbers for a back-up, but watching him play tells a different story. Repeatedly getting 4 yards, when the team needs 5, or getting 5 when we need 6, is still coming up short, even though a 4.5 per carry average, looks nice on paper. Boston Scott (4 – 8 – 2.0 – 0 – 0/ 1 – 0 – 0 – 0.0 – 0) likely won’t be back next year. (Grade: C)

TE: Dallas Goedert (27 – 17 – 152 – 8.9 – 1) is being wasted out there. Instead of making him a downfield threat, he’s used on TE Screens and as a release valve. Not a checkdown, a release valve. Jack Stoll (1 – 1 – 11 – 11.0 – 0) is almost exclusively a undersized offensive linemen. Grant Calcaterra (4 – 4 – 39 – 9.7 – 0) saw his first targets of the season, during this quarter, and he caught all four of them. This position is woefully thin.(Grade: D)

WR: A.J. Brown (27 – 16 – 198 – 12.3 – 0). Fewer than 200 yards in four weeks. Add the knee sprain suffered in the finale, anyone want to guess at why he’s been so frustrated? Devonta Smith (15 – 12 – 159 – 13.2 – 1) didn’t play in the finale due to an ankle injury.

Quez Watkins (12 – 8 – 93 – 11.6 – 1) entire season’s production was pretty much just the last game of the year. That said, he didn’t look bad. Julio Jones (11 – 6 – 58 – 9.6 – 2) is still a hard read. The Eagles don’t seem to have a dedicated role for him, but he answers the bell when called. Olamide Zaccheaus (5 – 2 – 20 – 10.0 – 0) is still vastly underutilized.

All told, as a position the Slot/#3 (28 – 16 – 171 – 10.6 – 3) was productive this quarter, contributing 42 yards per game. Splitting it up among three players, who don’t strictly line-up in the Slot, makes it harder to notice, than if we used one as our version of Wes Welker, Hunter Renfrow, etc. (Grade: D)

OT: LT Jordan Mailata completed the season, having played every snap of every game. Penalty-wise it was his worst quarter of the season. On Christmas he gifted the giants with 2 penalties for 15 yards, and then gave up another 1 for 10 to the Cardinals.

RT Lane Johnson comes back into the game

RT Lane Johnson gave up 1 penalty for 10 yards, on Christmas day. He started the season finale, but was pulled early, with other key veterans, in prep for the playoffs. Swingman Jack Driscoll closed the game out for Johnson, and completed the season committing ZEE-RO penalties on the entire season. (Grade: B)

OG: LG Landon Dickerson missed the giants game on Christmas, which was his only miss of the season. His false start penalty vs the Seattle was his only penalty of the quarter. He logged some reps at C in the season finale.

RG Cam Jurgens missed the Seahawks game, and as pulled early with other key starters in the season finale. He wrapped up his second season without being called for a single penalty in his career.

Swingman Sua Opeta started game 14 at RG and game 15 at LG, then was back in the line-up at LG for the season finale, when Dickerson slid over to C. Despite all the switching, he committed no penalties. Back-up G Fred Johnson played half the season finale, also committing zero penalties. (Grade: B)

C: Jason Kelce was pulled in the season finale with other key veterans, but otherwise played every snap. He was hit twice this quarter for false starts, giving him a total of 6 on the season, which is the only category of penalty called on him. (Grade:B)

DE: Josh Sweat (8 – 0.0 – 0 – 0) (1 Tackle For Loss) only git two hits on QB’s this quarter. Technically he’s doing everything right as a pass rusher, but the ball is coming far too quickly for it to matter. As a run defender, his edge containment leaves much to be desired and is frustrating to see on a player with his experience.

Brandon Graham (5 – 0.0 – 0 – 0) (1TFL) is just a part-timer at this position, and had zero QB hits for the quarter. Having just two legit players at this position is foolish and stupid, but it is what it is, until the offseason. (Grade: F)

Gotta be honest here…

DT: Jordan Davis (8 – 0.0 – 0 – 0) has far too many skills and physical tools to be as under-productive as he is. Stats don’t tell the whole story, (like how much time he spends being doubled), but having no stats, tells the story of someone who will have no leverage at the contract table.

Fletcher Cox (9 – 1.0 – 0 – 0) had 2TFL’s and 2 QB hits this quarter, despite sitting out the season finale. Milton Williams (13 – 0.0 – 0 – 1FF) notched a TFL, and a QB hit. Jalen Carter (6 – 2.0 – 0 – 0) added 2 TFL and 2 QB hits this quarter. Marlon Tuipulotu (3 – 1.0 – 0 – 0) 2 TFL and 1 QB hit all happened in the season finale.

In addition to not getting much pressure, the middle of the Defense has been soft vs the run, as teams are winning the numbers game in the box against us. This is a coaching error that is showing up as a player problem. (Grade: C)

OLB: Haason Reddick (6 – 0.0 – 0 – 0) 2TFL, 4 QB hits this quarter. Despite this being his position, he’s too often deployed at End on a 4 man line, in a four mn rush with the second level dropping into Zone. The pass rush stands no chance as the coaching is sabotaging it.

Zach Cunningham (5 – 0.0 – 0 – 0) only played in the finale, after missing the previous three games with injury. Nolan Smith (9 – 0.0 – 0 – 0) still isn’t being used with any sort of a discernible plan for his development. Patrick Johnson (4 – 0.0 – 0 – 0) is Special Teamer who is also used situationally at End. (Grade: F)

MLB: Nicholas Morrow (33 – 0.0 – 0 – 0) at 216 pounds is far too undersized to play this spot and it shows up in the run game. He should be used outside as a cover and chase guy.

Shaquille Leonard (21 – 1.0 – 0 – 0) 2TFL and 1 QB hit, just played in his 5th game as an Eagle, and is still acclimating probably more to his teammates than the system itself. Ben VanSumeren (11 – 0.0 – 0 – 0) got to start in the Christmas day win over the giants, and made 6 stops that day. (Grade: D)

S: Kevin Byard (28 – 0.0 – 0 – 0) never seems close enough to the ball to make a play of any sort. Reed Blankenship (29 – 0.0 – 1 – 0) picked off a pass in the season finale, but often seems to be too far away from receivers in coverage.

Sydney Brown (12 – 0.0 – 1 – 0) snagged an interception,and returned it 99 yards for a score, then tore his ACL the following week. Tristin McCollum (6 – 0.0 – 0 – 0) brings both of his arms to a tackle. Maybe he should teach it to the rest of the Secondary. (Grade: D)

CB: Darius Slay (no stats) missed the last 4 weeks with a knee issue. James Bradberry (13 – 0.0 – 0 – 0) also had a tipped pass in the finale that led to Blankenship’s pick. Otherwise he’s been getting abused out there. Some of it is definitely scheme, but at some point a man just has to handle his business, and demonstrate that it’s dangerous to try him.

CB Kelee Ringo celebrates win

Kelee Ringo (16 – 0.0 – 1 – 0) started all four games that Slay missed and had a game sealing interception in the endzone, during the Christmas day win over the giants. He’s acquitted himself well for a rookie. Bradley Roby (10 – 0.0 – 0 – 0) missed the Arizona game. Avonte Maddox (4 – 0.0 – 0 – 0) played in the last two games. Eli Ricks (7 – 0.0 – 0 – 0) and Josh Jobe (2 – 0.0 – 0 – 0) are deep reserves. (Grade: F)

LS: Rick Lovato, the Man, the Myth, THE LEGEND! Forced a fumble in the Christmas day win over the giants and recorded a tackle in each of the final three games. Like a fucking BOSS! (Grade:A)

P: Braden Mann (13 – 674 – 51.8) is doing a great job of kicking the ball, but still outkicking his coverage leading to (9 – 75 – 8.3) the opponent feeling bold about attempting returns and carving into that 51.8 yard average and lowering it to just 46 of changed field position. (Grade: B)

K: Jake Elliott (7/7 FG, 10/10 XP) continues to be perfect. (Grade: A)

PR/KR: WR Britain Covey (6 – 113 – 18.8 – 0) has had himself a great quarter, ending the season as the league leader in return yardage (417). (Grade: A)

WR Britain Covey 54 yard punt return

SINCE LAST QUARTER:

The Mission was to win the East and we didn’t do it. Arizona was the must-win game, and we lost it. The team lost three of the four games in the quarter. Many are not confident that we will survive the first round of the playoffs.

MISSION FOR THIS QUARTER:

Go win the damned Super Bowl.

FOUR THINGS: WILDCARD ROUND: EAGLES – BUCCANEERS

Posted by The BEAST on 2024/01/13
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Fans, Four Things, NFL, Offense, Players, playoffs, Rants, Super Bowl. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . 2 Comments

PLAYOFFS!!!! We have arrived! We are the 5th seed, and barring something weird happening, we’ll have to win four games on the road, to become Super Bowl Champions. Excellent. Now that we know what needs to be done, we can set about doing it. And I for one, can’t wait.

This week we start with a Buccaneers team that we’ve already beaten, in their home, earlier this year. Every major contributor to that win, will be available for this one.

Keep in mind, for that game QB Jalen Hurts wasn’t great (1 TD, 2 Int), WR A.J. Brown didn’t score, WR Devonta Smith had 28 total yards, OLB Haason Reddick didn’t log a single stat. Yet, we still won by double digits. So we can beat this team. Expect to beat this team.

A win will almost certainly make us the lowest surviving seed, which would mean facing the top seed, next week. The top seed of course, is the San Francisco 49ers. (Incidentally, it is that match-up, which I’ve been looking forward to. Since April.)

A loss would end our season.

****

The point of Four Things isn’t to predict a winner, it’s to discuss which tactics would give our Eagles the best chance to win this game. So here are the Four Things that we need to focus on this week versus: The Buccaneers.

Philly native, RB D’Andre Swift on his way to 130 yards rushing.

1) Run To Set-up the Pass: Last week Jalen hurts his passing hand by dislocating the middle finger. He tried to gut it out and play, but he was ultimately pulled. By all accounts he isn’t really throwing a ball this week, as he wisely is letting his hand heal as much as possible.

Earlier this year, we murdered the Bucs by running RB D’Andre Swift (18 – 130 – 8.1 – 0 – 0). They’ll be keen on not let that happen again. So expect them to load the box to take away our run game. We need to run the ball early, to convince them to get that box loaded ASAP. That should make life easier for Hurts to find passing windows.

2) Get the Ball Out Quickly: The ball needs a place to go quickly. Putting a ton of long passes on Hurts’ finger, is unwise. Letting him hold the ball until an opponent can hit his hand, to try and cause a fumble, is unwise. Setting him up for a sack fumble, is unwise.

Give him some short routes, especially over the middle, where he can take advantage of a blitzer. The Buccaneers like to blitz S Antoine Winfield Jr., and they need to be made to pay for that.

3) Challenge the Throws: If our Defense is going to keep letting receivers get into routes without even an attempt at a re-direct; then our Corners and Safeties have to mirror the routes and challenge the throws. Receivers cannot keep being allowed to catch balls, with five yards of space around them in every direction.

MLB Nick Morrow and DT Jalen Carter force and recover a fumble

4) Box the MLB: The Eagles like to drop our MLB (the role switches) into shallow zone, which opens up a gap for opposing RB’s, when our Defensive Line doesn’t make the tackle. It’s been getting us gouged vs the run for weeks, and it needs to stop, now. With our MLB dropping into coverage, it lets opponents double our DT’s much easier.

On any other team, the MLB is one of the key players in the box, and it forces teams to account for him in their blocking schemes. We’ve been letting team off the hook with this. It’s time to play our MLB in the box, to maximize our DT’s and get a handle on the run again.

****

If the Eagles do these Four Things, then we’ll be virtually impossible to beat. That being said…

Let me ask. You ever bury a loved one? Did you do it while they were alive? Probably not. As long as my Eagles are alive, I’m not going to bury them. I’m going to root for them. That doesn’t mean I won’t critique here and there, but as long as their season is alive, I’m not inviting doom and gloom. I’m one of the fans they can COUNT ON.

As a die-hard Eagles fan, I can’t wait for this game to be over. Mostly, because I’m expecting a win. However, no matter how the final score plays out, we’ll see the speculation about what’s wrong with this team, begin to fuck RIGHT OFF.

A win will cause the drama surrounding the team to be downplayed; and a loss will invite an autopsy, which will lead to answers, and then an excising of the issue. (Or issues.) Either way, come Tuesday morning, people will be talking much differently about this team. Come Tuesday morning the one question you won’t hear is: Can they be fixed?

And I for one, can’t wait.

****

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.

FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: WK 18: giants

Posted by The BEAST on 2024/01/09
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Defense, Four Things, NFC East, Offense, Players, playoffs, Reviews, Rivals, Special Teams, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

AND now for something completely different.

EAGLES 10 – giants 27

EAGLES STATS:

Passing: QB Marcus Mariota (13/20 – 65.0% – 148 – 1 – 1)

Rushing: RB Kenneth Gainwell (7 – 62 – 8.8 – 0 – 0)

Receiving: WR Quez Watkins (11 – 8 – 93 – 11.6 – 1)

Offensive Line Report: (TFL: 5/ Sacks: 5/ Scrums Won: 1/ Scrums Lost: 0)

Drive Killer: S Reid Blankenship (TD: 0/Int: 1/ FR: 0/ 4th down stops: 0/ FF: 0)

Sack Leader: DT Marlon Tuipulotu (Sacks: 1.0/ FF: 0/ Tackles: 3)

Special Teams Ace: LB Ben VanSumeren downed punt at the 3 yard line.

****

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: GIANTS did the Eagles actually get around to doing? Well let’s see:

1) Contain the Run: Watching giants RB Saquon Barkley (18 – 46 – 2.6 – 2) run for two easy scores, made things look far worse than they were. However, on 21 hand-offs, the Eagles allowed just 65 yards (3.0 ypc). The only longs run that were difficult to pin inside, were scrambles by their QB. (DONE)

2) Get To the QB: The ask was for three or four sacks in this one; but all we came away with were 2 first half sacks. With our Secondary playing like every opposing receiver is dripping with Covid-19, the ball came out quickly, to wide open targets. It retarded our pass rush, and let their back-up QB nearly throw for 300 yards. (NOT DONE)

3) Spread and Run: The Eagles opted mostly for clumping the receivers on the ends of the Offensive Line. This had a way of pulling defenders into the box, and making it much easier to blitz our QB’s. There were a few nice runs by Gainwell (including a beautiful 32 yarder). Otherwise, nope. (NOT DONE)

4) Go Deep Aggressively: We didn’t connect on any passes of 20 yards or longer, but we did launch a few, which helped loosen the box up for Eagles runners (16 – 83 – 5.1 – 0 – 0). Sadly, we had just 16 hand-offs, compared with 36 pass attempts. When your back-up QB is shouldering most of that workload, that’s usually not going to be a winning combination.

WR Quez Watkins snags a 16 yard TD. (Possibly his last catch as an Eagle.)

Still, I said that 3 or 4 deep shots in a game is respectable; but 5 or more is putting your next opponent on notice. The NFL defines a “deep pass” in its official play-by-play as any pass that travels more than 15 yards downfield in the air. The Eagles attempted 9 such passes. (DONE)

++++

This week we managed 2 of the Four Things, in a loss. That ties up the season at 11 – 6, with us in the 5th seed, traveling to back to Tampa Bay, for a prime time Wild Card game. This team owns two five game win streaks this year. Starting Monday, we only need a four game streak.

****

Game Hero: QB Marcus Mariota – He came in and completed 65% of his passes, made actual use of Quez Watkins, and showed enough mobility to keep an air of dynamism in the Offense. He dived more than he slid, and the interception he threw, was on a play concept that we fans have been calling stupid, since last year.

QB Marcus Mariota and a bunch of guys off the bench, put up 10 points, and avoid a shut-out.

While the Eagles may want to go younger at back-up next year, Mariota made a decent case for why he should get another year of Head Coach Nick Sirianni’s system under his belt.

Game goat: The Circumstances – Even if the Eagles won this game, we weren’t going to get that 2nd seed. As I said in Four Things, “Barring an inspired act of God, Dallas isn’t going to lose to Washington, which makes the outcome of our game practically meaningless”.

And I was right.

Which is why I said that, this game is a “total freebie”, and we should use it as a tune-up. To his credit, Sirianni tried to straddle the line, and (kind of) took a swipe at winning. (You know. Just in case Washington stumbled over that miracle.)

Once it became clear that Washington was toast, and we got a second starter sent to the blue medical tent, Sirianni said “Neeeee-ope!” and yanked all his key players, for the playoff run that we’re about to make.

Can’t complain at all about the way he handled any of that.

On The Whole:

Getting the sweep on the giants would have been nice, but given how we started the game without three key starters (WR Devonta Smith, RB D’Andre Swift, and DT Fletcher Cox); it’s hard to judge the sputtering Offense, too harshly. (But feel free to mock our Defense!)

Once WR A.J. Brown (1 – 1 – 9 – 9.0 – 0) fumbled during an apparent knee injury, and after QB Jalen Hurts (7/16 – 43.7% – 55 – 0 – 1) had his finger dislocated, and was less effective when he tried to play through it, ALL key players were pulled.

QB Jalen Hurts finger. (Just a dislocation, no fracturing.)

While we did look flat at the start, there was never any point, where we going to get emotionally interested in this game. While we saw little to imply that the Eagles were coming out of their funk, in fairness, we also didn’t see much from the starters at all.

FOUR THINGS: WK 18: EAGLES – GIANTS

Posted by The BEAST on 2024/01/06
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Fans, Four Things, NFC East, Offense, Players, playoffs, Preview, Rivals, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

WHAT loss?! Man, fuck that loss! We’re already in the playoffs, and since we won’t get the one seed,

IT DOESN’T MATTER, which seed we get!

Seeds two through seven, all need four wins to hoist the Lombardi. So us six teams, are all in the same boat. Meanwhile, seeds five through seven, basically have to do it entirely on the road. Which has been done a few times already.

In fact, it seems to happen every few years since 1997:

Oakland Raiders (1980), Denver Broncos (1997), Baltimore Ravens (2000), Pittsburgh Steelers (2005), New York Giants (2007), Green Bay Packers (2010), Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2020)

So don’t lose hope, or sight of the goal, Eagles Fans.

Let’s get something straight, right now. Barring an inspired act of God, Dallas isn’t going to lose to Washington, which makes the outcome of our game practically meaningless. So don’t go getting hung up on the final score. What matters, is if we look like our Defense is coming back to life; and if we can be dangerous on Offense again.

Think of this game as a tune-up. Two weeks ago, we beat the giants by eight points. This time, we want to beat them by more than eight, or hold them to 21 points or fewer. Either one is a major step in the right direction.

A win has us finish the season at 12 – 5, as the 5th seed in the NFC playoffs. That is, unless Washington somehow manages to beat Dallas, making us the 2nd seed.

A loss means we finish the year at 11 – 6, and as the 5th seed. So we’re bulletproof either way.

****

The point of Four Things isn’t to predict a winner, it’s to discuss which tactics would give our Eagles the best chance to win this game. So here are the Four Things that we need to focus on this week versus: the giants

DT Jordan Davis forces RB Ezekiel Elliott to fumble

1) Contain the Run: Right now DT Jordan Davis is lining up over players, instead of gaps. Then he’s doubled more than 50% of the time. Look, no RB runs through his o-line. They run through the gaps. Davis can’t clog up a player, but he can clog a gap. Dictate the action, by lining up in a gap, and taking that gap away.

With Davis taking away a gap, the MLB has to read and fill the open gap, before the runner gets momentum enough to break a tackle. We also need our DE’s to set edges, and force runs back inside the Tackles.

2) Get To the Quarterback: Two weeks ago, these two teams met, and we got one sack from a team that surrenders an average of five per week. It was a travesty. We need 3 or 4 sacks in this one, just to prove that our pass rush is at least getting back on track.

3) Spread and Run: Stretching the opponent’s defense laterally, will let our RB’s pop into the second level faster, with the inside run plays that we like to run. Run the ball. Eat up clock. Let a Defense that has seen too many snaps recently, get some rest.

RB D’Andre Swift looked good vs that defense a couple games ago.

4) Go Deep Aggressively: Opposing defenses are playing our Slant and Out routes, far more aggressively than they did during the beginning of season. The only way to combat that, is to throw the ball deep down the field.

Whether or not we hit on the play, our opponent has to honor the idea that we will attempt it again. That loosens the box and underneath coverage again. Two deep shots in a game isn’t respectable. Between two and four, is respectable. Five or better is putting your next opponent on notice. Let’s make them uncomfortable.

****

If the Eagles do these Four Things, then we’ll be virtually impossible to beat. That being said…

A win (at this point) is meaningless without help. A loss means we have hold as the 5th seed. So it would be no change. This game is a total freebie. We’re gambling with house money. So, more than chasing a “W”, we should use the game as a tune-up for the playoffs.

Be nice to get RB Boston Scott some redemption.

****

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.

FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: WK 17: Cardinals

Posted by The BEAST on 2024/01/02
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, Offense, Players, Reviews, Special Teams, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment
WR A.J. Brown’s body language clearly says, that his teammates are the problem.

THIS game was bad for both teams.

EAGLES 31 – Cardinals 35

EAGLES STATS:

Passing: QB Jalen Hurts (18/23 – 78.2 – 167 – 3 – 1)

Rushing: RB D’Andre Swift (13 – 61 – 4.6 – 0 – 0)

Receiving: WR A.J. Brown (5 – 4 – 53 – Avg – 0)

Offensive Line Report: (TFL: 3/ Sacks: 0/ Scrums Won: 1/ Scrums Lost: 1)

Drive Killer: S Sydney Brown (TD: 1/Int: 1/ FR: 0/ 4th down stops: 0/ FF: 0)

Sack Leader: DT Jalen Carter (Sacks: 1.0/ FF: 0/ Tackles: 1)

Special Teams Ace: CB Eli Ricks recovered Arizona’s surprise onside kick

****

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: CARDINALS did the Eagles actually get around to doing? Well let’s see:

1) Win In The Trenches: Not letting Arizona get their run game going was the key here. Instead, we allowed the Cardinals to run for 221 yards on 40 carries (5.5ypc). The hope was that DT Jordan Davis (1 tackle) would be a problem in this one. Instead, he was invisible. (NOT DONE)

2) Hands Up: “If he can’t see well, he may put the ball in dangerous places without realizing it.”

S Sydney Brown picks off a pass and returns it 99 yards for a score.

Making it difficult to see for the opposing QB, did result in an interception returned 99 yards for a touchdown by Sydney Brown. The pocket was pushed back and the QB hung a ball where he expected a receiver to be, instead of seeing that only Eagles were over there.

There were no hands up on that play, but his sight-line was comprised, and defenders did get their hands up more in this game, than they usually do. (DONE)

3) Run The Ball: Getting 16 or more carries for 72 yards, would have been enough for the win, I wrote. Instead, Swift got 13 carries for 61 yards. On the day, we had 15 hand-offs vs 24 pass attempts. So, Head Coach Nick Sirianni is steadfast about preferring to lose his way, than win someone else’s way.

Remember when Andy Reid was here, doing that shit? Wouldn’t get us a top-shelf WR. Wouldn’t pound the rock. Didn’t win shit. Goes to K.C., drafts WR Tyreek Hill, and pounds the rock with RB Isiah Pacheco. Wins two Super Bowls. (I dunno Nick, if you’re FAILING, maybe it behooves you to listen to someone besides your echo.) (NOT DONE)

4) Be Efficient: I thought Jalen Hurts was doing an excellent job of this, until the Eagles started letting a crackhead do the play-calling. Two QB runs, and a WR Screen on 3rd and 20??? The coaching staff (being cute as usual), hung Hurts out to dry after the half.

QB Jalen Hurts left on the ground.

Look, you can’t make great choices when presented with only bad options, and that keeps happening here. Coaches are supposed to put players in positions to make plays; not box them in, and squander their gifts. (NOT DONE)

++++

This week just 1 of the Four Things were done, and so of course it resulted in a loss. Next week, we travel two hours up 95, to that cesspool that’s actually in (Rutherford) New Jersey, to take on the “New York” giants. Fans would like to see a win, but Sirianni might have other plans. Maybe plant some flowers, or Rochambeau while shooting hoops for three hours.

****

Game Hero: WR Julio Jones (2 – 2 – 34 – 17.0 – 2) – Showed the world that the Eagles DO have some depth at WR. Good thing too! Because with WR Devonta Smith (5 – 3 – 30 – 10.0 – 0) leaving the locker room on crutches and wearing a walking boot, odds are strong that he doesn’t play in the giants game.

WR Julio Jones reminds everyone of just who he is.

Game goat: The Entire Defense – This means everyone, from coaches to players. Defensive Coordinator Matt Patricia, didn’t seem to have any answers to stopping the Cardinals run game, even though the answers were obvious: Stop playing 230 pound Haason Reddick (1 tackle) at DE, and tell DE Josh Sweat (6 tackles) to set the goddamned edge! Play the run on the way to the pass. This is standard NFL wisdom!

Our interior line neither made up their minds to penetrate and move the line of scrimmage, or occupy blocks and keep the LB’s clean to make stops. As for the LB’s and and Safeties, no one seemed to know where his run fit was. As a result, we were gashed repeatedly.

The Secondary was no better, allowing the ball to come out quickly, and get to receivers who a week ago, were essentially keeping benches warm. The interception by Brown was far more a product of QB error, than anybody making a play. The ball went directly to Brown, who incidentally was nowhere around a receiver on that play!

On The Whole:

This loss was disgusting. It was Seattle all over again. The team with more athletic talent, was out-coached and out-played by a bad team working with busted tools. The absolute worst part is, that the outcome was bad for both teams! It likely will cost us the second seed in the playoffs, and cost the Cardinals the second pick in the Draft.

This all comes back to the coaching. The silver lining on this is, thanks in particular to this game and Seattle, you can bet there WILL be a new Defensive Coordinator this off-season. Team Owner Jeffrey Lurie isn’t putting out all that money, just to watch one half of his team, utterly collapse on a weekly basis. Often nationally televised.

It’s hard to really talk about this one game, without getting into what the real problems with this team are. So I’m going to make that a separate article, if you’re at all interested. Every week, the players and coaches tell us that they need to fix stuff, but they NEVER say which stuff. If you want to know what that stuff is, and how fixable it really is, let me know.

FOUR THINGS: WK 17: EAGLES – CARDINALS

Posted by The BEAST on 2023/12/30
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Draft, Four Things, NFC East, Offense, Players, trade. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

WE returned to the win column, with a win over a division rival, while eliminating them from playoff contention. The home crowd bullied the coaching staff into running the football, and IT WORKED! We managed to win in the trenches on both sides of the ball, earning us another of the “ugly” wins, that we’re now famous for.

Dominating performances from QB Jalen Hurts and OLB Haason Reddick, would go a long way towards getting us one them thar purtty wins. (Especially if we don’t give away points this week.)

This is a must win game. With a win, we go to 12 – 4. We’ve already clinched a playoff spot, sit atop the NFC East over Dallas, and hold the #2 seed in the conference. A win here helps us to hold onto all of that.

Suffering a loss would mean a stumble to 11 – 5, and a return of all those annoying questions the media asked during that three game skid. Worse yet, if the Cowboys win, then we’d be behind them in the division AND the conference.

****

The point of Four Things isn’t to predict a winner, it’s to discuss which tactics would give our Eagles the best chance to win this game. So here are the Four Things that we need to focus on this week versus: the Cardinals.

NOPE.

1) Win In The Trenches: Defensive line play isn’t always about sacks. In this case it’s about not allowing the Cardinals to get their run game going. In recent weeks DT Jordan Davis had been failing to hold the line of scrimmage and keep blockers off the LB’s. He was better last week, but we need him to wreck interior blocking schemes this week.

2) Hands Up: Again, d-line play isn’t just about the sack. Our linemen need to get their hands up and make it hard to see, for the 5’10” opposing QB. If he can’t see well, he may put the ball in dangerous places without realizing it. Would I trade a sack for an interception? Fuck yeah! Would you? Sure you would. So let’s get those big ‘ol paws up. (This is where a legit 6’5” 270 pound LDE to bookend with RDE Josh Sweat, would be great.)

3) Run The Ball: The Cardinals are the NFL’s 32nd ranked team against the run. The Cardinals are the league’s worst team against the run. No one in this league is worse against the run, than the Cardinals. I’m guessing that you understand what all that means. Let’s hope the Eagles coaching staff does as well.

A few Swift trips to the end zone would be great.

We need another 16+ carry game from RB D’Andre Swift. In terms of yardage, I think if he gets over 72 rushing yards, we should win. Listen, if 50,000 people (not all 69,000 are Eagles fans) are all yelling one thing, there may be some wisdom in listening.

4) Be Efficient: Give us four quarters of Hurts taking what the opposing defense gives him, and using the clock as a weapon. No throwing into double coverage please! If one receiver is doubled, then someone must be wide open. When there is free yardage available, TAKE IT!

That doesn’t mean dinking and dunking exclusively. If the coverage gives us a look we can beat, by all means, take the shot! Even if it’s to back-up TE Jack Stoll, running loose. If the big play is there, pull that trigger. Just don’t try to create big plays where their potential doesn’t truly exist.

****

If the Eagles do these Four Things, then we’ll be virtually impossible to beat. That being said…

First off, YAYYY!!!! We got a 1:00 game, again! For the first time in months, I stand a chance of getting Four Things Reviewed out on-time, without having to fight sleep to write it, with work looming the next morning. Or just bailing on it, because I couldn’t stay awake, and having to put it out late. Oh, 1:00 games. You don’t know how much I’ve missed you!

And none of that stuff.

Normally I try to focus on tactics which exploit opponent weaknesses. Not so much this week. The Eagles need some shakedown time to adjust to new Defensive Coordinator Matt Patricia. Look, if you want to buy that garbage that Head Coach Nick Sirianni is selling about Sean Desai not being demoted, be my guest. He can’t bullshit me!

My gut says that the Cardinals coaching staff may not be all-in on this game.

Real talk: The 3 – 12 Cardinals hold the #2 overall pick in the Draft as of right now. Washington and New England are both 4 – 11, and right behind them. A loss keeps that pick in Arizona’s hands. A win, puts them at 4 – 12 and throws them into a (likely) three-way tie at 4 – 12.

Having already been eliminated from playoff contention, why also ruin that Draft spot? Especially since the world knows that Arizona wants to move on from their current QB. Given that he could be trade-bait for teams like Washington, Tennessee, Vegas, and Atlanta, why risk all that for a meaningless win?

A loss hurts us, and a win hurts them. Both teams would have to fuck up ROYALLY for the Eagles to not end up 12 – 4 by Sunday night.

****

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.

FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: WK 16: giants

Posted by The BEAST on 2023/12/27
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, NFC East, Offense, Players, Rivals, Special Teams, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment
WR Britain Covey opens up with a 54 yard punt return.

THE win beats losing.

EAGLES 33 – giants 25

.

EAGLES STATS:

Passing: QB Jalen Hurts (24/38– 63.1% – 301 – 1 – 1)

Rushing: RB D’Andre Swift (20 – 92 – 4.6 – 1 – 0)

Receiving: WR A.J. Brown (11 – 6 – 80 – 13.3 – 0)

Offensive Line Report: (TFL: 6/ Sacks:1 / Scrums Won: 3/ Scrums Lost: 0)

Drive Killer: CB Kelee Ringo (TD: 0/Int: 1/ FR: 0/ 4th down stops: 0/ FF: 0)

Sack Leader: LB Shaquille Leonard (Sacks: 1.0/ FF: 0/ Tackles: 7)

Special Teams Ace: PR Britain Covey (3 – 66 – 22.0 – 0) 54 yd return set up 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: GIANTS did the Eagles actually get around to doing? Well let’s see:

CB Kelee Ringo will wins some, will lose some.

1) Go Get Some Cutlets: The goal was five sacks on QB Tommy “Cutlets” DeVito (9 – 16 – 56.2% – 55 – 0 – 0), but he was pulled at the half, for poor performance. Still, we only collected 1 sack all game long, as our linemen no longer remember how to disengage from blockers. (NOT DONE)

2) Secure the Run: We were better here than we’ve been in weeks. Especially at setting the edges. The “A” gaps still require some work. RB Saquon Barkley (23 – 80 – 3.4 – 1 – 0) piled up 80 on the ground, but it took a lot of touches, and at no point did it ever look like he would break a long one. (DONE).

3) Spread and Run: In this game, I counted FIVE runs of 10 yards or more. One from Hurts, one from RB Kenneth Gainwell (6 – 41 – 6.8 – 0 – 0), and three from Swift. Opening up the formation helped greatly. Even more helpful, were the NINE targets to TE Dallas Goedert (9 – 7 – 71 – 10.1 – 0), which forced the giants defense to honor him as a receiving threat, not just as a blocker. (DONE)

4) Passes On the Rusher: Playing a 4 – 2 – 5 alignment, allowed the giants to move OLB Kayvon Thibodeaux (no stats) around. Assigning a receiver to settle into his rush wake, was the hope. That was rarely possible. Still, when given the opportunity, the Eagles did not shift to take advantage of this. (NOT DONE)

++++

So we did 2 of the Four Things, and as a result, we got the win. A close win. An ugly win. But a win, nonetheless. Next Sunday, the Arizona Cardinals, come to town. With a record of 3 – 12, they would currently draft #2 overall; and I don’t imagine their coaching staff is eager to jeopardize that position.

****

RB D’Andre Swift dart through the middle for a TD

Game Hero: D’Andre Swift – The guy ran with a purpose all day. Trying to wrestle his way into the endzone; reversing field and scoring (called back); making two guys miss him in a phonebooth while scoring. All with zero turnovers, or personal foul penalties, which led directly to eight points, Jalen.

Swift even showed some situational awareness. At the end of one run, Swift slid to stay in bounds, and keep the clock running out on the giants. As opposed to not running out of bounds at the end of the half, to stop the clock and give the Eagles an extra shot at a touchdown. Right, Jalen?

Game goat: S Reed Blankenship (6 – 0.0 – 0 – 0) – That 70 yard touchdown he gave up was just bad recognition and technique. Knowing that he’s the last line of defense, he had to read pre-snap, that he didn’t have the depth to challenge a Go, Post, or Fade route. So why he didn’t drop farther back or turn and run sooner, is beyond me.

On The Whole:

CB Kelee Ringo wins this one. His interception seals our victory.

It wasn’t a pretty win, but would you rather we lost? So stop complaining, folks. Take the “W”! All of the issues you want to complain about today, are the issues that you’ve been complaining about all season.

The issues, were turnovers. First, RB Boston Scott (1 – 3 – 3.0 – 0 – 0) fumbling a kickoff return, by running into his own man. Then Jalen Hurts throwing a pick six, and horse-collaring the player as he scored, thus making the two-point conversion almost automatic. These turnovers led directly to 15 of the giants 25 points. This game is potentially 47 – 10 otherwise.

Yes, we want the issues fixed, but Head Coach Nick Sirianni is a typical NFL head coach, in that, he’d rather lose his way, than win somebody else’s. As long as Sirianni doesn’t believe there’s a problem, there won’t be a serious attempt at fixing it. Unless team Owner Jeff Lurie tells him there’s a problem.

Defensively, I can’t complain about the way Matt Patricia is calling things. Aside from the 70 yard pass, our Defense kept a pretty tight lid on the giants offense. However, we might be keeping the pass rushing too vanilla, and making things too easy on opposing linemen.

CB Kelee Ringo celebrates as WE, win this one

FOUR THINGS: WK 16: EAGLES – GIANTS

Posted by The BEAST on 2023/12/24
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Defense, Fans, Four Things, Front Office (F.O.), NFC East, Offense, Players, playoffs, Rivals. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

IN last week’s loss, we handed the ball off 24 times for 95 yards (3.9ypc). Unless things get out of hand quickly, it’s going to take that sort of commitment to the running the ball, to win this game. While RB Boston Scott has been the boogeyman against the giants, most of the carries need to go to Philly native RB D’Andre Swift.

While this city is famous for its cheesesteaks, hoagies and roast pork sandwiches, we also love a good cutlet. So lets hope that DE Josh Sweat and OLB Haason Reddick bring their appetites, because the giants are known for allowing multiple servings. So mangia! Mangia, boys! Don’t leave anything left.

Grabbing the win would move us to 11 – 4, and end our three game losing streak. Which would make for a great Christmas present. It would also put us a step closer to winning the NFC East, for the second year in a row.

Losing means 10 – 5, and another week of fans acting like the season is over, for a team already guaranteed a playoff spot.

****

The point of Four Things isn’t to predict a winner, it’s to discuss which tactics would give our Eagles the best chance to win this game. So here are the Four Things that we need to focus on this week versus: the giants.

DE Brandon Graham gets a sack

1) Go Get Some Cutlets: Five sacks in this one should be our minimum goal. In seven games, giants QB Tommy “Cutlets” DeVito has been sacked 35 times. This would indicate that perhaps his offensive line isn’t very good.

We’ve gotten some impressive play as of late, from DT Jalen Carter and DT Fletcher Cox. The hope is that we can get our edge rushers going as well. Both Sweat and Reddick were quiet last week. Reddick has yet to force a fumble all season. Changing both would help the team immensely.

2) Secure the Run: Usually it’s either “set the edges” or “play the ‘A’ gaps”. This week it’s both. We have injuries to our LB’s, so there might be a lot of subbing going on. This is a great opportunity for miscues, because someone isn’t in their run fit. Our D-Line has to set the lanes and boundaries, so everything is easier for back-ups to read.

Bottling up the run on first and second, sets us up for third and long. When we see third and six or longer, we have got to make plays that get us off the field. Making tackles at the sticks won’t cut it. They’ll just play for the markers.

3) Spread and Run: It’s an overly simplistic strategy, but right now the Eagles offensively need a re-set back to fundamentals. Asking the Eagles to play from under Center is out of the question. It would fix a ton of what’s wrong with us, but it won’t happen. So the next best thing, would be to stretch the box laterally.

LT Jordan Mailata and RB Boston Scott

Every week, I chart how many runs we have of 10 yards or more, and at no point have we had more than four in a game. We had four vs the Vikings, Bucs, and Chiefs. Half of these were from our QB. If we can stretch the box laterally, and get Swift to the second level quickly, maybe he can break a couple of these run.

4) Passes On the Rusher: While giants OLB Kayvon Thibodeaux is listed as a LB, he’s basically a DE. If he’s not going to line-up outside of the Tackle and not drop into coverage, then we need to be about the business of attacking the Flat on his side. Why not take something they’re likely to give us, all game long?

****

If the Eagles do these Four Things, then we’ll be virtually impossible to beat. That being said…

This past week, Head Coach Nick Sirianni said this offense (meaning the system), is the same offense from the last two years, and it’s being run the same way. I don’t doubt that the playbook is the same. (Notice that opponents seem to have figured us out.) What is bullshit, is that it’s being run the same way.

It doesn’t matter who gets the blame for fucking up the offense. If Sirianni wants it, hey, I’m happy to give him shit for it. Whether it’s Sirianni or Offensive Coordinator Brian Johnson, the play-calling is atrocious to the point of almost being amateurish. Heavy Shotgun; no motion; called QB runs on first down; route concepts that look like they came off of Madden ‘96. All of those are bad things.

And don’t say that we were fine with it when were winning, because TONS of us weren’t. Sirianni and the players, this very season, repeatedly stood at the podium after games, saying the team had yet to play it’s best football, and then seemed confused when fans weren’t thrilled with “a win being a win”.

It was also an issue last year. Not starting fast. Or starting fast and then letting opponents creep back into games. So this year’s issues aren’t new. We want to see an Eagles team consistently give us four quarters of good football. And we want to see a head coach who can get that out of his players.

I think this run of games is more important to Nick Sirianni than many might expect. To go from the one seed, to not winning the division… I’m not sure how team Owner Jeff Lurie would stomach that. So I think this is a must win game for Sirianni.

I have no hard news to back that up. It’s just my gut feeling. That being said, my gut has an extremely good track record, in regards to this team.

****

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.

FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: WK 15: Seahawks

Posted by The BEAST on 2023/12/20
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, Offense, Players, Reviews, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

OUR ten point lead, just flu away.

EAGLES 17 – Seahawks 20

EAGLES STATS:

Passing: QB Jalen Hurts (17/31 – 54.8% – 143 – 0 – 2)

Rushing: QB Jalen Hurts (13 – 82 – 6.3 – 2 – 0)

Receiving: WR A.J. Brown(10 – 5 – 56 – 11.2 – 0)

Offensive Line Report: (TFL: 4/ Sacks: 0/ Scrums Won: 3/ Scrums Lost: 0)

Drive Killer: N/A (TD: /Int: / FR: / 4th down stops: / FF: )

Sack Leader: DT Jalen Carter/Fletcher Cox (Sacks: 1.0/ FF: 0/ Tackles: 1)

Special Teams Ace: N/A

****

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: SEAHAWKS did the Eagles actually get around to doing? Well let’s see:

1) Run the Ball: Tire out Seattle’s defensive front. Don’t be one dimensional. Get 75 rushing yards for RB D’Andre Swift (18 – 74 – 4.1 – 0 – 0). We did those things, and it helped to keep Hurts from being sacked. (DONE)

2) Deploy the Kerrigan Plan: Didn’t get within a 80$ cab ride of this. There were four RB Screens thrown, but because of the constant WR and TE Screens, no one was in the Flat. So Seattle’s defense just hung around looking for screens, like horny boys outside of a girl’s Catholic school. (High school was fun.)

Making things worse, it seems like Hurts either doesn’t see crossing routes, or just refuses to throw to them. It also seems like opponents have figured this out, because again this week, there were plenty of gimmies left on field. Both of the uncovered and loosely covered variety. (NOT DONE)

3) Peter Out Their Line: This couldn’t be done because OT Jason Peters didn’t play. As a result, the left side of the Eagles Defense was gashed by the run, and no sacks were generated from there. A few times the Eagles went to a five man line, and were effective when not rushing in straight lines.

The reality is that OLB Haason Reddick (2 – 0.0 – 0 – 0) is too small to keep lining up at DE. He’s at his best as a stand up rusher, playing outside of a true DE. When he lined up at DE in this one, he just got washed around vs the run and, was a non-factor rushing the pass (NOT DONE)

4) Just Make the Tackle: We were doing a great job of this in the first half. In the second half there was rare edge setting, guys weren’t in their run fits, and watching DT Jordan Davis (2 – 0.0 – 0 – 0) repeatedly driven off the line, was something I didn’t understand. (NOT DONE)

++++

So this week we did 1 of the Four Things and surprise surprise, we lost. Next week the giants come to Philly to gift us with a win on Christmas day.

****

Game Hero: RT Lane Johnson – Coming back into the game after twisting his ankle, was a big time move. Psychologically the Eagles don’t stay in this game, if Hurts is sick and Johnson is sidelined.

Game goat: QB Jalen Hurts – Running Back Jalen Hurts threw 2 interceptions, and was off all night, with his passing. Yet at no point was he selfless enough to admit that he wasn’t getting it done. While RB Hurts scored twice, QB Hurts turned the ball over twice. What’s that, two straight games without a passing touchdown?

On The Whole:

Hear me out.

The loss was stunning, but this game wasn’t nearly as bad as it seemed. While the replacing of Sean Desai with new Defensive Coordinator Matt Patricia, may have felt like “Meet the new boss, same as the old boss”, it really wasn’t.

There are only so many changes that can get made in eight days. Postgame, it was said that Patricia changed nothing. Supposedly, the only thing that changed were the people. This is smart, because Patricia needs to figure out if the problem was Desai, or the players. Players suddenly asked to do unfamiliar things, just means new mistakes.

For example, the go-ahead touchdown thrown on CB James Bradberry (5 tackles). He said that he was playing the sticks (the first down marker), and not expecting Safety help. Well then, he shouldn’t have let his man get behind him. Regardless of what the called defense was, Bradberry should have made that mental adjustment.

With Bradberry not making that simple adjustment, it says in this case the error is player not scheme. On the other hand, watching Reddick at DE, being repeatedly washed out against the run, says in that instance, the issue is scheme. Patricia now gets to evaluate and make his adjustments.

Offensively, having a sick QB run the ball 13 times, and absorb the beating that goes with it, was a sign that our coaching staff suffers from CTE. The extra fatigue from the beating he was eating, showed up in Hurts ball placement. Note how he didn’t put the ball where only his guys could get it.

There had to have been six Screens thrown in this game. None of them good. Unless it’s to a RB, we should knock that shit off. What creates room for a Screen, is moving players away from the line of scrimmage. Stacking receivers, who then cluster at the line like a doo-wop group, only attracts defensive players. Like it did in this game.