FOUR THINGS: WK 4: EAGLES – COMMANDERS

Posted by The BEAST on 2023/09/29
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, NFC East, Offense, Players, Rivals. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

ALONE atop the NFC East! Feels good to be home, again. Last week we “struggled” to a double-digit win, over a team that was 2-0 and leading their division. This week we get to play host to a Commanders team that has allowed 19 sacks in three games, with a QB who has never played in Philadelphia before. That sound you hear? Those are knives sharpening.

A win here pushes us to 4 – 0, and eliminates the potential tie-breaker that Dallas holds, as the only team currently in the division, that has a division win. It’s early, but it’s good to take care of positioning as soon as you can.

A loss would hold us at 3 wins, and put us behind the Commanders with identical records and them winning the head-to-head. Worse, if Dallas also wins, we’d be behind both teams in third place. So a win here will solve everything.

Who’s Out, As Of – 9/29/23

Washington: OUT – / DNP – RB Chris Rodriguez (Illness)

Philadelphia: OUT – / DNP – S Justin Evans (Neck), S Sydney Brown (Hamstring), WR Devonta Smith (Illness)

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

1) Unleash Reddick: In three games we have just 6 sacks. That’s 2 per week. The Commanders have allowed 19 sacks in three games (6.3 per game), so we should feast. That however, is dependent on whether or not we can OLB Haason Reddick going. In three games, he has 1 (as in uno) tackle.

Not being able to get him going against the Commanders, can’t happen. The Eagles have him lining up at DE and taking on RT’s with a taped thumb. We’re getting pressure but just 6 sacks and we’ve cause just 2 interceptions. Get Reddick outside the offensive tackle, and let him hunt.

2) Finish in the Red Zone: Coming away with a Field Goal beats coming away empty handed, but touchdowns are the mission. This Commander defense has allowed 30+ points in back to back games (Broncos, Bills). This is a defense to get healthy against, folks. The red zone will loosen up, when we don’t reference our QB’s legs, on every play.

This week, the red zone seems like an excellent place to rediscover TE Dallas Goedert off of play-action. Or RB D’Andre Swift on a Middle Screen. A little less running from QB Jalen Hurts, would go a long way towards keeping him healthy and us unpredictable.

3) Get ‘Em Down: Part of why we lost to this opponent last year, we our inability to execute basic tackling technique. We just couldn’t get their RB’s on the ground, and they just kept churning out 3 yard run, after 3 yard run, after 3 yard run. It hurt to watch.

This game needs to feature solid tackling, and none of that stuff.

4) Make Penny Make Sense: If RB Rashaad Penny is on the active list for this game, feed him 5 or more carries in the second half. The Commanders have a really good defensive line. Especially the interior, which they built the right way (from the inside out). The thing is, they’re big guys who go all out, playing a lot of downs.

After a half of chasing Swift, and RB Kenneth Gainwell, then cooling off during half-time, give the Commanders interior a banger to contend with. Kind of like working the body, to tire out the legs. So soften up that interior, so that Hurts has a pocket to stand in, when he needs to.

****

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

The Commanders aren’t our real opponent this week. The Eagles are. How much rust have we not worked off? How lightly are we taking this opponent? Those are the things we have to worry about. If we have good answers to those questions, then this week is in the bag.

Yes, yes. Any given Sunday and blah blah blah. Look, this is a division game, at home, and we’re the better team, top to bottom. Unless something goes horribly wrong, this is a “W”. False modesty is as dishonest as bragging about something you don’t have. I will not draw a false equivalence between these two teams/organizations.

****

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 3: Buccaneers

Posted by The BEAST on 2023/09/26
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, free agents, NFL, Offense, Players, Reviews, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment
RB D’Andre Swift hurdles a defender for a few extra yards

STILL a work in progress.

EAGLES 25 – Buccaneers 11

EAGLES STATS:

Passing: QB Jalen Hurts (23/37 – 62.1 – 277 – 1 – 2)

Rushing: RB D’Andre Swift (16 – 130 – 8.1 – 0 – 0)

Receiving: WR A.J. Brown (14 – 9 – 131 – 14.5 – 0)

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

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

Sack Leader: DT Marlon Tuipulotu (Sacks: 1.0/ FF: 0/ Tackles: 2)

Special Teams Ace: WR Britain Covey 3PR – 81 – 27.0 – 0 / 1KR – 30 – 30.0 – 0

****

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

1) Run to Set-up the Pass: We were late to the party on this one. We got around to it, but not until the second half. As a result, Jalen Hurts looked shaky and threw two interceptions on the night.

Head Coach Nick Sirianni, said this would be a RB by committee team, and that the Eagles would “ride the hot hand” at RB. Well hands don’t get much hotter than D’Andre Swift starting of with 4 runs for 36 yards (9.0ypc). So why the sudden shift to a less effective RB Kenneth Gainwell (14 – 43 – 3.0 – 0 – 0)? We are over-thinking this. (NOT DONE)

2) Rush Five: Nope! This game was started with us in an honest to goodness 4-3 alignment, with OLB Hasson Reddick (No stats) used as part of 4 man rushes. The result was our third straight week of just two sacks.

LB Nick Morrow and DT Jalen Carter, combine to force a fumble

This isn’t to say that we never rushed five. It was just damned infrequent, and on some of those occasions, a late blitzer was the fifth rusher. While there was plenty of pressure provided, the QB who committed the most turnovers, was ours. I’m pretty sure there’s a lesson in here somewhere… (NOT DONE)

3) More Man Coverage: NOPE! Our Secondary play is eerily reminiscent, of the Jim Schwartz era. Big cushions, resulting in quick and easy completions, and a neutered pass-rush. Regardless of our record, you cannot look at this Defense and say that it doesn’t fell like we’ve regressed. (NOT DONE)

4) Unleash the Pass: The middle of the field was open for business, with A.J. Brown making a couple of big snags of over 20, going over the middle. New Eagles WR Olamide Zaccheaus (3 – 2 – 58 – 29.0 – 1) hauled in a beautiful 34 yard TD strike from Hurts, giving the Birds a lead that they would never relinquish. (I told you that OZ would see an opportunity.) (DONE)

This week’s Four Things score is 1 of 4. That being said, the stats, the box score, none of it tells the story of of this game, quite accurately. No time to whine about it though. Because next Sunday, we get a 1:00 game against division rival, Washington.

****

Game Hero: RB D’Andre Swift – His running (specifically HIS running), forced the Buccaneers to load the box, Which opened up opportunities for the receivers over the middle.

Game goat: DC Sean Desai – Still has no idea of how to use OLB Hasson Reddick properly.

On The Whole: We are 3 – 0, but are still, a work in progress. While this one wasn’t a blowout, it is the first win of the season, that’s by a double digit margin. Imagine what we may look like, once we’re firing on all cylinders.

There are a lot of hidden details in this one. For instance, Tampa Bay came into this game, having trouble running the ball. However, instead of playing down to them, the Eagles Defense put shackles on the Tampa’s run game (17 – 41 – 2.4 – 0 – 1). It forced the Bucs to be one dimensional, and allowed the Eagles to walk away 3 – 0.

FOUR THINGS: WK 3: EAGLES – BUCCANEERS

Posted by The BEAST on 2023/09/23
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Fans, Four Things, NFC East, Offense, Players, Rants, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

GROUND and pound! We rushed for 259 yards in a game that we never trailed in. In fact the Eagles have yet to trail in a game this season. Our opponent this week, has been down to both the Vikings (whom we just defeated) and the Bears. The Bears! A team on a 12 game skid (going back to last season). Using Minnesota as point of common comparison, it doesn’t look good for the Bucs this week.

A win here puts us at 3 – 0, and gives us our first win over a winning team this season. (Both Minny and New England are 0 – 2.) The early look NFC East, seems like another dogfight. Just like last year was. So we can hardly afford an early stumble.

Who’s Out As of 9/23/22:

Tampa: OUT: NA/ DNP: DL-Calijah Kancey (Calf)/ Limited: CB-Carlton Davis (Toe), G-Cody Mauch (Back), NT-Vita Vea (Pectoral), LB-Devin White (Groin)

Philadelphia: OUT: NA/ DNP: WR-Quez Watkins (Hamstring), SS-Terrell Edmunds (Illness)/ Limited: LB-Zach Cunningham (Ribs), DT-Jordan Davis (Ankle), RB-Boston Scott (Concussion), TE-Jack Stoll (Ankle), DE-Josh Sweat (Toe)

****

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.

Fuck that “hot hand” trash. Feed RB D’Andre Swift the ball, Nick.

1) Run to Set-up the Pass: Going pass-happy early in the game, creates no mismatches for us later. Everyone knows that we’re a running team. Let’s not get cute or over-think it. Come out doing what we’re great at.

When the Buccaneers make the adjustment to stop our run game, we can look at who they pulled from what area. Then we can exploit the weakness that they just handed us. Usually by going deep to WR A.J. Brown. Or WR Devonta Smith. Although I have a feeling that the Slot may be huge for us this week.

2) Rush Five: We are starting four defensive linemen and OLB Haason Reddick. So why, in two games do we have just 4 sacks? It’s because we are going with a primarily four man rush. It’s giving teams time to get the ball out, is stranding our Secondary, and has us giving up 326 passing yards per game. That’s 31st in the NFL. We are the second worst passing defense in the league. This has to stop.

DT Jordan Davis rushing to greet his favorite Cousins

If we have five rushers out, we need to bring five rushers. Period. The squandering of talent that produced 70 sacks last year, is an indictment of Defensive Coordinator Sean Desai. If we don’t get 4 sacks in this game, we fans need to batter the airwaves about his removal. Because we’ll never see the Super Bowl bleeding yardage like this.

3) More Man Coverage: QB’s see zone coverage before the snap. They identify the quick gimme, then after the snap, they check to see if the route is indeed clear. Once they see the way is clear, they let it rip. Zone coverage has it’s place, but it has no place on third and more than five. It has no place on second and more than ten.

Man coverage forces the QB to read where the defenders are, in relation to his receivers. When the QB has to do that for each receiver, it takes time. That time allows the pass rush to get home. That’s why CB’s who can play man-to-man, are so highly prized and paid.

The Eagles are paying 80 million dollars (over three years) for CB Darius Slay and CB James Bradberry. Routinely playing them in zones, like practice squad fill-ins, should be enough to cost someone their job. It’s waste of resources. Worse than that, it’s over cautious and can rob a defense of it’s aggression. We need to play more man coverage.

4) Unleash the Pass: Over the last couple weeks we’ve shown that we can get deep down the sidelines, but we haven’t established the deep middle. The attention that the run and the outsides command should create openings for TE Dallas Goedert and WR Olamide Zaccheaus in the Slot.

We need to see more of this from TE Dallas Goedert

We need a couple of attempts (but completions would be better), with the ball in the air for 20 yards or more. The threat of us exploiting that area of the field, doesn’t allow the opposing defense to get comfortable with whatever they do to take away our run game.

If we can keep them uncomfortable, we can force them into mistakes.

****

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

This games features two 2 – 0 teams that haven’t beaten anybody good yet. This week C Jason Kelce described the Eagles as a team on edge, “…we’re 2-0 and we know we could very easily be 1-1 and we have not played football the way we wanted to play football yet. So the temperature of the team is a little bit on edge. And I think everybody feels that we need to play better and if we want to live up to the expectations that we think that we are capable of playing like, we need to make improvements and we need to perform better. I think that’s the temperature that I feel and, honestly, I think that’s a good temperature. That’s where you want to be in this league. 

So the team is worrying about expectations, to the point where they are looking past their accomplishment, to the disaster that might have been, but isn’t. That honestly has me a little worried for my guys.

Stated plainly, the Eagles are a desperate 2 – 0 team. Most football teams are at their best, when the players enjoy the ride, but Eagles don’t seem to be doing that. They may frankly, be asking too much of themselves. That pressure is either going to crack us in this game, or it’s going to hit the Buccaneers like an avalanche.

In any case, someone on this team has to find a way to hit the pressure release valve. And soon. It shouldn’t be this intense going into Week Three. (I type that while listening to a Morrissey song, followed by a Radiohead song. Talk about irony!)

****

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.

I don’t usually caption this one, but our guys need to get right this week. In their heads, record be damned.

FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: WK 2: Vikings

Posted by The BEAST on 2023/09/15
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, NFL, Offense, Players, Reviews, Special Teams, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment
Philadelphia native RB D’Andre Swift scores as RT Jordan Mailata and WR Devonta Smith celebrate

SWIFT ran the show.

EAGLES 34 – Vikings 28

EAGLES STATS:

Passing: QB Jalen Hurts (18/23 – 78.2 – 193 – 1 – 1)

Rushing: RB D’Andre Swift (28 – 175 – 6.2 – 1 – 0)

Receiving: WR Devonta Smith (5 – 4 – 131 – 32.7 – 1)

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

Drive Killer: FS Justin Evans (TD: 0 /Int: 0/ FR: 1/ 4th down stops: 0/ FF: 1)

Sack Leader: DE Josh Sweat (Sacks: 1.0 / FF: 1/ Tackles: 1)

Special Teams Ace: LB Nicholas Morrow: 3 Tackles, 1 FR

****

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

1) Run Swiftly: Boy, did we ever! I suggested 12 – 15 carries. Instead, the Eagles gave him 28, and he went off for 175 yards. Collectively, the Eagles ran 48 times, for 259 yards (5.3ypc). Take that, cherry necks! (Matt, that was for you.)

Most of our run game’s success tonight, was set up by the Vikings inability or unwillingness to adjust. If you get a chance to watch the replay of this game, look at how often the Vikings went with a three Safety look in the middle. With two cornerbacks on the outsides, that’s five in the secondary, leaving just six up around the line scrimmage.

Our five Linemen, plus the Running Back, plus a Quarterback who has to be accounted for in the ground game, means either we should have been calling run plays, or audibling into them. And we DID! (DONE)

2) Rush Five: The Vikings offensive line was down two starters and they lost a third during the game. They couldn’t run the ball, and their QB isn’t very mobile. Yet all we got, were two sacks in this game. Our Secondary just isn’t covering long enough, for a four man pass rush to get home. (NOT DONE)

3) Slay Jefferson: Going by the stats, Vikings WR Justin Jefferson (11 – 159 – 14.4 – 0) looks to have gotten the better of CB Darius Slay in this one. What actually watching the game will show, is that it took Jefferson about 400 yards of running, to earn the 159 that he posted.

For most of the night, the Vikings coaching staff had Jefferson in pre-snap motion to change his match-up; or they had him running crossing routes running away from Slay’s side of the field. Slay less took Jefferson away, and more escorted him to his own little play-area, where he couldn’t damage us, and others had to step up.

SS Terrell Edmunds was JUSTIN time to help WR Jefferson turn the ball over to us.

The result was 159 of the emptiest calories ever consumed on prime time television. You probably can’t recall the last time you saw a player with nearly 160 yards, have so little impact on a game. That is, aside from his fumble, which prevented mini-sota from a touchdown and instead resulted in a field goal for us. (DONE)

4) Oh My Goedert: The idea was to get TE Dallas Geodert (7 – 6 – 22 – 3.6 – 0) involved to open up the run game, by loosening the box. However, instead of running him down the field, the coaching staff had him horizontally stretch the box. While it was gross to watch Goedert catching balls in the backfield, it helped allow us to run for 259 yards. So we can’t bitch about it, too loud. (DONE)

****

Not bad! We did 3 of the Four Things, and improved to 2 – 0. Now we get ten days off, before we travel down to Tampa Bay, to lock horns with Ryan Lea- Johnny Manz- Sorry, Baker Mayfield, in our quest for 3 – 0.

****

Game Hero: RB D’Andre Swift (Stats above) – Hometown boy makes good! I can walk out my front door over to the 15 bus stop, and take it to Saint Joe’s Prep, where Swift played. He’s not a “local product” like Joe Flacco, or Matt Ryan, or Corey Clement. Swift is Philly. Honest to god, Philly.

A great deal of the credit goes to our Offensive Line, for being smart enough to exploit the weakness (6 man box) that the Vikings wouldn’t stop presenting. However, all of Swift’s traits which I extolled in Four Things, were on display in this game. I’m telling you, if they try to start RB Kenneth Gainwell in Week Three, there will be a fan uprising.

Me looking at Sean Desai continue to not reach with four

Game goat: Defensive Coordinator Sean Desai – It was another toothlessly called game, and the result was QB Kirk Cousins (31/44 – 70.4 – 364 – 4 – 0) being sacked only twice. The turnovers that we generated weren’t coming from our scheme forcing mistakes, but from our player’s hustle. At this point Desai is passenger, not a driver.

On The Whole:

We are 2 – 0, having played two games where the game was in question, in the last five minutes of the game. Both wins were what we’re calling ugly.

Not so fast.

Do you realize that in two weeks we’ve scored 59 points? While 7 were the result of a defensive return (and extra point), the other 52 have resulted from driving the ball. That’s an average of 27 points per game, with an offense that we would describe as “sputtering”, “inconsistent”, and “rusty”. Can you imagine what this team is going to look like when they start to put it together?

Mama, there goes that man again! WR Devonta Smith on a blazing 63 yard catch and run touchdown

Defensively, we’re dealing with more injury issues than it seemed we had all last year. We had guys out there in this game, who had been elevated from the Practice Squad, who had previously been cut altogether. Nick Morrow was one of them, and he got us a turnover. WR Britain Covey is another, who… Let’s not talk about him.

I don’t want to sweep our troubles under the rug, but I think it’s important to point out, that the Kings of the NFC may be wounded, but we are far from dead.

FOUR THINGS: WK 2: EAGLES – VIKINGS

Posted by The BEAST on 2023/09/13
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, NFL, Offense, Players. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

WE opened the season with a road win, over Bill Belichik. Now our Eagles get to come home, and play in front of 69,000 of their nearest and dearest. This week’s animal sacrifice managed to lose to the Buccaneers, last week.

Injuries to the their offensive line, probably won’t bode well for a rushing attack that gave away RB Dalvin Cook in the offseason, then ran for 41 yards on 16 carries (2.5ypc) last week. This basically means that, to move the ball, the Vikings have to throw it. Which could play right into our hands.

A win makes us 2 – 0. A loss drops us to 1 – 1. Either way, it would be far too early to party or panic.

Who’s Out:

PHI – MLB Nakobe Dean (foot) is OUT/ CB James Bradberry (concussion protocol), S Reed Blankenship (ribs), RB Kenneth Gainswell (ribs), all likely to play Thursday.

MIN – LB Marcus Davenport (ankle) likely OUT/ OT Christian Darrisaw (Ankle), C Garrett Bradbury (lower back) are day-to-day.

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

1) Run Swiftly: I’m already on record as saying that Gainwell is a utility player. He’s nifty, but he’s not gifted enough, or hard-nosed enough, to be a bell-cow or to head a rotation.

On the other hand, RB D’Andre Swift is quicker, faster, has better balance, and is a more creative runner when setting up his blocks in space. I understand that the Eagles have an investment in Gainwell as a draft pick, but the object is to win games, not justify picks. Let’s get 12 – 15 carries in Swift’s hands this week.

2) Rush five: Last year’s 70 sacks were the result of a lot of five man pass rushes. This past Sunday, our new DC spent the day mostly rushing four, and we didn’t sack the QB until the 4th quarter. Last year’s DC? He’s out in Arizona, with a team that collected 6 sacks, which was #2 in the NFL. Coincidence? Not at all.

Someone actually said this. In print. And then posted it. With their NAME on it.

This week, we get to tee-off on a statue, standing behind a beat-up offensive line, supported by a piss-poor run game. We need to turn the heat up, and hit their QB to force him to speed up his internal clock, and maybe make a couple of stupid mistakes.

3) Slay Jefferson: Last year CB Darius Slay, put Vikings WR Justin Jefferson, on a milk carton. Rookie WR Jordan Addision has potential, but without RB Dalvin Cook, Jefferson is the Vikings only proven, big-time playmaker. Taking him away again, should effectively rip the undercarriage out the Viking’s offense

4) Oh My Goedert: Part of why the Offense struggled last week, was the lack of involvement from TE Dallas Goedert. TE is a force-multiplier position. A TE active in the middle of the field, both loosens the box, and keeps the Safeties from squeezing deep routes on the edges.

To get QB Jalen Hurts looking like he did last year, Goedert needs at least 3 catches. That will re-set the Offense and get us clicking again.

****

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

There is still going to be some rust this week. Even at the end of last week’s win, it didn’t look like, or feel like the Offense had figured something out. Defense didn’t look as rusty as the Offense. What it looked, was far less aggressive. That at least, has a quick fix that can be applied on Thursday night.

We could use another one of these.

The difference in this Vikings game, will probably be Philadelphians. Last week the Eagles had to fight off a football team and a hostile crowd, because it was ‘Tom (wank wank) Brady Day’. This game will be Opening Day at the Linc, and you expect our fans to be even more amped than our players.

****

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 1: Patriots

Posted by The BEAST on 2023/09/11
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, Offense, Players, Reviews, Special Teams, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment
CB Darius Slay with a pick six

PRESEASON games matter.

EAGLES 25 – Patriots 20

EAGLES STATS:

Passing: QB Jalen Hurts (22/33 – 66.6% – 170 – 1 – 0)

Rushing: RB Kenneth Gainwell (14 – 54 – 3.8 – 0 – 0)

Receiving: WR A.J. Brown (10 – 7 – 79 – 11.2 – 0)

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

Drive Killer: CB Darius Slay (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: K Jake Elliott (4/4 FG’s)

****

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

1) Establish the Run: We looked like we were going to with our first drive of the game, with 8 designed runs (7 handoffs) for 39 yards (4.8ypc). Then we bailed on it, with just 9 total handoffs for the remainder of the game.

The misdirection and RPO aspect of our run game from last year, was nowhere to be seen. The Eagles did employ some play-action, and it was somewhat effective at buying Hurts time to throw, but it didn’t help him when he tried to run. He looked to be pressing into the hole before it opened, doing half the job for Patriot defenders.

As a result, we never forced the Patriots to load the box. That took away simple answers for Hurts when passing. Instead, the Patriots forced him to read and think. At times his rookie crutch (bootleg wide right, stare down a receiver, force a ball down the sideline) was on glaring display. (NOT DONE)

2) Load the Box: The idea was to take away the Patriots run game (22 – 76 – 3.4 – 0 – 0); and put the game in the hands of Patriots QB Mac Jones (35/54 – 64.8% – 316 – 3 – 1). Those parts got done. We just didn’t have to load the box to do it. (NOT DONE)

3) Set the Dogs on Them: On third downs, use a five man rush. Go to Cover Two or a Tampa Two. Get those hands up, and challenge every ball in the air. NOPE!

Rookie DT Jalen Carter gets his first career sack.

We hardly saw a five man rush out of the Defense in this one. Sadly many of Jones passes were completed to receivers that were too wide open to be believed. From a defensive standpoint, it looked like Defensive Coordinator Sean Desai was still calling a vanilla preseason game, and trying not to show too much.

Their offensive line was missing three starters, and playing two rookies, and still we didn’t get a sack until the 4th quarter. Desai is on his way to making me miss former DC Jonathan Gannon. (NOT DONE)

4) Pull the Trigger: Once the run game took over, deep shots down the field would be there for the taking. Except the run game never took over, and TE Dallas Goedert (no stats) is apparently invisible to Hurts. We took two legit deep shots all game long, both to A.J. Brown. One was overthrown, the other catch was overturned by replay.

Otherwise, our passing game consisted mostly of Screens and checkdowns to RB’s. New Offensive Coordinator Brian Johnson, called a terrible game today. (NOT DONE)

This week’s Four Things score, is an ignominious 0 of 4 to start the season. We’d better get things in order quickly though, because we play again THIS THURSDAY. The 0 – 1 Vikings are coming to Philadelphia for a heaping helping of knuckle sandwich, with a side order of “Now stay the fuck down!” But we won’t be serving that, if we play like we did this Sunday.

****

Game Hero: DT Jordan Davis (0.5 – 1 – 5)

DT Jordan Davis force a fumble from RB Ezekiel Elliott, with LB Zach Cunningham recovering.

Some will say it was Jake Elliott, but to me it was Davis. He forced an early fumble that led to a touchdown, helped stop the Patriot run game all day, and got half a sack, on a late drive, that became a turnover on downs.

Game goat: The coaching staff. I’m irritated with Sean Desai for rarely rushing five linemen. I’m irritated with Brian Johnson for bailing on the run game, and calling an ass-ton of Screens. I’m irritated with Head Coach Nick Sirianni for not playing the starters in the preseason, and contributing to all the rust we saw in this one.

On The Whole:

This was an ugly win, but it was a win. It was also a win against a team that has an all-time great coach, in terms of scheming and adjusting; yet we won both halves of the game. Scoring 16 – 14 in the first; and 9 – 6 in the second. If we weren’t so rusty, we’d have beaten the brakes off that team.

When the game ended, I was going to pen a spittle-flecked diatribe, over putting the team in this position due to rust. However, in his post-game press conference, Sirianni said that if he had it to do over, he’d have played the starters some in the preseason. Hey, if he’s learned, there’s no reason for me to harp on it. So let’s move on.

In fact, let’s celebrate with a song!

FOUR THINGS: WK 1: EAGLES – PATRIOTS

Posted by The BEAST on 2023/09/08
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Defense, Four Things, NFC East, Offense, Players. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 2 Comments

FINALLY! I can’t remember when an offseason felt longer. To Hell with all the talk! We are just two days away from the wins and losses counting, and the deck looks stacked in our favor, to grab a “W” this week.

One of the best defenses from last year (the Eagles) is going against one of the worst offenses from last year. While we reloaded a defensive front that notched 70 sacks last year, the Patriots limp into the season with an offensive line that is already banged up.

Expect to see us eat in this one.

We need that “W” this week. The giants and Cowboys play each other Sunday night, so one of them (Cowboys) is likely to end up being 1-0. We can’t allow for there to be just one winning team in the division. Even for a week.

Who’s Out?

PHI: No one. But CB Josh Jobe was listed with an illness as of 9/6. He’ll likely play on Sunday.

NE: RT Riley Reiff is on non-season ending IR, with a non-specific “lower leg injury”. The Boston Herald said that WR DeVante Parker was “visibly limited on 9/6 by his knee injury. LG Cole Strange is also battling a knee injury, RG Mike Onwenu is still working back from off-season ankle surgery, and LT Trent Brown is listed with an illness. All but Reiff should play, but their o-line will be far from it’s best.

****

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 Patriots.

1) Establish the run: Head Coach Nick Sirianni was a fan of heavy misdirection and zone blocking, when former Offensive Coordinator Shane Steichen was here. Whether that will still be the case under Brian Johnson, remains to be seen. According to Sirianni, we were very vanilla in the preseason. So there is currently no indication of what we should look like.

New England (like us), is essentially a 5-2 defensive front. Their Achilles heel is that there isn’t a player in their front seven under 250 pounds. It’s a big front that doesn’t play in space, or change direction very well. Misdirection will take advantage of that.

If we can rush for chunks of yardage, then they will have to load the box, which will open up the deep passing game. This was the blueprint for last season and we did pretty good with it.

2) Load the box: I just said that we should force our opponent to load the box, in order to open up our passing game. So why am I saying the we should load the box? Won’t that open up New England’s passing game?

Not really. Our CB’s are better than their WR’s; their o-line already has one leg in a bear trap; and their QB is game manager, not a miracle worker. They will need to run the ball just to keep it out of our hands, to limit our scoring opportunities.

Don’t let them run. Putting the game in their QB’s hands, immediately takes their head coach out of his comfort zone. At that point, apply pressure, get sacks, and maybe generate turnover or two.

3) Set the Dogs on Them: On third downs, use a five man rush. Go to Cover Two or a Tampa Two. Get those hands up, and challenge every ball in the air. We want to artificially speed up parts of their offense, to cause a miscue. This is the fertile ground where turnovers are grown.

4) Pull the Trigger: Once our run game takes over, the deep shots will be there for the taking. Two things New England doesn’t have in their secondary are size and speed. While I still have a soft spot for CB Jalen Mills, he can be exploited deep. When WR’s A.J. Brown or Devonta Smith are matched-up with Mills, QB Jalen Hurts needs to let loose down the field.

****

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

The idea here isn’t to be big and splashy. Well coached teams have a way of coming back, against big splashy teams. What we want here, is to slowly drown the Patriots. Get a lead, then milk the time of possession. Take the occasional “BACK THE FUCK UP!!” deep shot, but mostly just run it, and bleed the clock.

****

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: PS3 : COLTS

Posted by The BEAST on 2023/08/25
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Defense, Four Things, NFL, Offense, Players, Reviews, Roster, Special Teams, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment
WR Devon Allen on his 73 yard opening kick return

NOT a bad showing.

EAGLES 13 – Colts 27

Passing: QB Tanner McKee (19/34 – 55.8) – 158 – 0 – 0)

Rushing: RB Trey Sermon (16 – 30 – 1.8 – 1 – 0)

Receiving: WR Deon Cain (6 – 62 – 10.3 – 0)

Defensive Leader: LB Tyree Maddox-Williams (7 – 0.0 – 1 – 0)

****

The broad strokes are usually covered by lots of other publications and podcasts. You can go a hundred places and read the same four or five bullet points, mentioned in ninety-seven of those places. Stats aside, what about the Four Things you came here to review, right? Let’s see if we scored a HIT or a MISS on the areas I discussed.

1) Do The Starters Play?: Nope. Not a single solitary down. In fact, a number of Eagles didn’t even dress for this one. AGAIN! Third string RB Rashaan Penny, WR Olamide Zaccheaus (I actually spelled that right, on my first attempt), are examples of new players who didn’t dress.

And hey, for those who are still out there debating about who starts alongside FS Reed Blankenship: It’s SS Terrelle Edmunds. He didn’t even dress, but rookie Sydney Brown played; and K’Von Wallace was still out there in the fourth quarter. Glad I could settle that for you. MISS

2) Tanner vs Their Twos: The Colts went one better for us, and left their starters out there for the entire first half. While McKee’s accuracy stayed right around 50% again, the game didn’t look too big for him. So mentally there’s something to work with there.

As far as his actual play, he had trouble connecting on intermediate and long throws. The ball often seems to leave the palm and heel of his hand, instead of his fingertips. The result is, instead of a spiral, it seems to travel more like a shot put. Better secondaries will feast on that, if we don’t fix that. HIT

3) Play Ian Book: QB Ian Book went 11/15 – 73.3% – 80 – 0 – 0, with the ball coming out quickly and sharply. He looked nothing like the gun-shy player from the Browns game. Like McKee, Book wasn’t successful throwing the ball downfield. Still, the player we saw tonight, looked like he’d be worth a Practice Squad/developmental spot. HIT

4) Something Special: On the opening kick of the game, WR Devon Allen bobbled the ball, then recovered it and tore off a 73 yard return to set-up the game’s opening touchdown. He also had a big tackle for no gain on a punt. HIT

****

Who Looked Good:

LB Tyreek Maddox-Williams – (See above) We just signed this guy yesterday, but like VISA, the Philadelphia native, was everywhere you wanted to be. Once he got in the game in the second half, he seemed to constantly be flashing. We need to find spot for him. LB Ben VanSumeren (17 – 0.0 – 0 – 0) had many more tackles than TMW, but he didn’t flash as much potential, or generate a takeaway.

QB Ian Book – He seemed to find his poise and his pocket presence. Whether diving for the needed yardage on a scramble, or spiking the ball on first down to stop the clock, his command of the moment was beyond reproach.

TE Tyree Jackson – Showed a MUCH better awareness of presenting as a target for his QB. His stats (3 – 31 – 10.3 – 0) were modest, but they also indicate that he could be a very QB friendly target this season.

Who Looked Bad:

RB Kennedy Brooks – His day (2 – 16 – 8.0 – 0 – 0) was punctuated by being wide open, and dropping what would have been a walk-in touchdown. At no point this preseason, did he demonstrate a reason for another team to want him.

The Offensive Line – They allowed 3 sacks in this game, three tackles for a loss, and showed no ability open holes consistently.

WR Joseph Ngata – While he did do some good things out there (2 – 32 – 16.0 – 0), his fumble killed a promising drive.

****

On The Whole:

Given that we had a bunch of twos and threes, going against the Colts starters for a half, it’s hard not to give the Eagles a ton of credit. That’s not an attempt at finding a moral victory. It’s a preseason game. Nobody cares about the “W” or the “L”. What counts here is how hard our guys competed. It contributes to the ongoing culture.

FOUR THINGS: WK PS3: EAGLES – COLTS

Posted by The BEAST on 2023/08/23
Posted in: Coaching, Defense, Draft, Fans, Four Things, NFL, Offense, Players, Rants, Special Teams, Training Camp. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

TWO weeks a go we lost 19 – 20. Last week was an 18 – 18 tie. So if the pattern holds up, we should be due for a 17 – 16 win. Who wants to get The Wave going?… Me either.

I’m hearing that rookie S Sydney Brown may start this game, so that may be something to get excited over. But is this a week where the only focus is to escape without any key injuries? Or are the Eagles interested in getting a better look at the players, before sending them away to become stars on another team. We’ve had a few of those.

My favorite story is LB Lee Woodall, who played at West Chester, and was a driver for Eagles players in Training Camp for a year or two, back when TC was held there. He was never on our roster, but he was right under our noses, before he was on anyone else’s radar.

Then in 1994 we drafted LB Ryan McCoy (a 237 pound LB, with 5.09 40-speed), in the 6th round. The 9ers grabbed Woodall eight spots later, and he went to a couple of Pro Bowls while playing for them. Finished 6th in defensive rookie of the year votes. Did I mention the two Pro Bowls? Back when those still meant something. McCoy played one year. In the World League. With London.

So yeah, let’s make sure we get a good, long look at our roster this week.

****

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. Except in the preseason. At which point the wins are usually less valuable than the losses.

1) Do the Starters Play?: Even if it’s just a series. The notion of them not logging a single down in the preseason, seriously has me thinking of organizing a boycott of next year’s preseason games. Fans have been paying real money, for tickets and parking, to go watch players who have no shot of making even the Practice Squad. But the NFL doesn’t care, because television revenue is where the action is.

I figure if we drive the television rating into the tank for a year, the NFL would get the message that fans actually have standards. As it is, they’re feeding us a preseason with no players; a flag football Pro Bowl; a Thursday night slate that features unrested teams, resulting in some shitty shitty games; and Super Bowl half-time shows aimed at a demographic that they KNOW they don’t attract. I’m sick of it.

2) Tanner vs Their Twos: If the Starters don’t play, then QB Marcus Mariota shouldn’t either. If the idea is to protect everyone with a carved out role, then he should make the list of those who don’t even dress. Who should start is QB Tanner McKee.

Lots of fans are clamoring for McKee to be the back-up over Mariota, and it’s a dumb idea. There is too much he doesn’t know about the NFL, (in terms of defenses, how to prepare, the pressures of dealing with money, etc.) for him to be one hit away from having to lead a franchise that EXPECTS to return to the Super Bowl, AND win it this year.

That’s not to say that he hasn’t intrigued, but he’s looked good (not great) against third stringers and lower, so far. So give him the pressure of a start, and let him play against second stringers, to see if he can elevate his game. He likely can’t just yet, but it’ll give the coaches a much more focused light on where he needs development. Focus on maybe making him the 2024 back-up, but develop him first.

3) Play Ian Book: This pun MUST be made! (Ahem) Before we close the book on Ian, we have to see more than FOUR pass attempts from him. That’s all he had in the first preseason game, and he didn’t play in the second one. Bailing on a guy after just FOUR preseason pass attempts, is the polar opposite of doing due diligence. Play Ian Book. It costs us nothing if he sucks again. 

4) Something Special: It would be great to see someone do something special, on Special Teams. It used to be the x-factor of our team, but in recent years it seems as if the team can’t spot coaching talent for a full third of the team.

****

During the offseason, my articles don’t really have hard deadlines. However, once the season starts, I need to have my rhythm and routine re-established. So preseason for the teams, is also preseason for me. True story, if it weren’t for that fact, I wouldn’t even watch this next game. I wouldn’t have finished the last one.

****

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, you are 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 PS2: BROWNS

Posted by The BEAST on 2023/08/20
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Defense, Four Things, Offense, Players, Reviews, Roster, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

WHAT the hell was that?!

EAGLES 18 – Browns 18

Passing: QB Tanner McKee (10/18 – 55.5% – 147 – 1 – 0)

Rushing: RB Trey Sermon (5 – 54 – 10.8 – 1 – 1)

Receiving: TE Tyree Jackson (2 – 41 – 20.5 – 0)

Defensive Leader: MLB Nakobe Dean (3 –0.0 – 0 – 1)

****

The broad strokes are usually covered by lots of other publications and podcasts. You can go a hundred places and read the same four or five bullet points, mentioned in ninety-seven of those places. Stats aside, what about the Four Things you came here to review, right? Let’s see if we scored a HIT or a MISS on the areas I discussed.

1) Play the Starters: On Defense, only three of our presumed starters, Dean, DT Jordan Davis (no stats), SS 1A Terrelle Edmunds (4 tackles) opened the game. Dean forced a fumble inside the five yard line, which was recovered by SS 1B K’Von Wallace (7 tackles), stopping Cleveland’s first offensive drive.

No starters appeared on Offense, unless you happen to be in the camp that thinks RB Kenneth Gainwell (2 – 6 – 3.0 – 0 – 0) should start over RB D’Andre Swift. Swift didn’t even dress. (Throat clear) Not hard to read those tea leaves is it? MISS

2) Be the Aggressors: That’s a big ol’ nope-a-rooni on that one, good buddy. We sent no messages in this one. Tooth-rattling hits and savage blocks were nowhere to be seen, on a night where we surrendered 6 sacks, and saw Gainwell tackled in our end zone for a safety. The Defensive Line tried to bring heat, but they were too often hung out to dry, by loose and toothless coverage. MISS

FYI: This is NOT good protection.

3) Better QB Play: QB Marcus Mariota (9/17 – 52.9% – 86 – 0 – 1) looked awful. Trying to force himself to be a pocket passer (he only ran once, for 5 yards), he was totally out of his element. He lacks the accuracy, timing, mechanics, familiarity with the system, and read-skills needed, to be 1-2-3 dropback guy.

Tanner McKee got the ball out with more urgency than Mariota. He put the ball in some tight windows, hitting receivers in the hands. This week, he also did a much better job of not being a statue behind his Offensive Line. Those are ALL improvements on last week, and that’s all you want out of a rookie third stringer.

That said, while he looked fine as a rookie going against third stringers, anyone suggesting that he be elevated over Mariota, needs to have their blood sugar checked. There is too much McKee doesn’t know about the NFL, to put him one injury away from having to guide this franchise. Unforced error: Not playing QB Ian Book. HIT

4) More Defense: Tighter pass coverage and more contested balls, were the hopes. While this week’s completion percentage allowed (51%) was better than last week’s (61.2%), it still felt like opposing receivers gashed us for first downs, at will. Statistically the improvement looks great on paper, but anyone who actually witnessed that travesty, will tell you otherwise. MISS

****

Who Looked Good:

QB Tanner McKee: (See above) – There are gives and takes to judging his situation, so instead of guesstimating, let’s just look at what was produced. Several of his passes that found hands, were dropped. So he should have been 13/18 (72.2%) or 14/18 (77.7%).

TE Brady Russell: (1 – 22 – 22.0 – 1) – Whether catching a TD, making a block, or making a tackle on Special Teams, Russell was pumped to be out there. Even doing the dirty work. The numbers don’t favor him sticking, but guys like him are necessary.

LB Zach Cunningham: (7 – 0.0 – 0 – 0) – Yet again he was where he needed to be, in order to make stops. He’s a seasoned pro, and teams are running vanilla packages right now. So for him, this is shooting fish on dry land.

Who Looked Bad:

QB Marcus Mariota: (See above) – He looks like the product of years of bad coaching, because that’s exactly what he is. Then again so was Micheal Vick when he first got here. Remember when people thought Jeff Garcia was washed up, after his stints in Detroit and Cleveland? Then he came here, got better coaching, and people put him on t-shirts. So relax. Mariota has NEVER been in better hands. Pro OR college.

RB Kenneth Gainwell: (See above) – It wasn’t THAT, he was tackled in the end zone for a safety. It was HOW, he was tackled in the end zone for a safety. He looked small. Helpless. Unable to defend himself. He was dead on contact. Kenneth will gain well if you block a nice hole for him, but he cannot force an issue on his own.

DC Sean Desai – Poor tackling. Coverage didn’t help the pass rush. We spent the night re-acting, instead of dictating the action. The Defense never gave the impression of evolving or learning. The knock on Jonathan Gannon, whom Desai replaced, was that he wouldn’t make adjustments. With the Desai, the question is: Can he make them?

On The Whole:

This game has me worried about the season. Not because of what happened on the field, but because of what didn’t. Remember being the underdog? Remember the “rent being due every day”? Remember when our players were hungry dogs? Take an honest look fellow fans. These Eagles don’t look hungry. They look very, VERY comfortable.

I’m sure the arguers against playing starters will point to the loss of CB Zech MacPhearson, DT Moro Ojomo, and WR Tyrie Cleveland as the reason starters don’t even suit up. Which would make sense if injuries were based on use; as in X number of snaps, automatically equals an injury. However, that’s not how it works.

Football players have said for decades, there is no way to get in football shape, besides playing football. I can tell you firsthand, that is an ironclad fact. The only way to shake off the rust of not playing, is to play. Period. There is no substitute for football. It’s why you see football players accomplish feats that other athletes don’t even attempt. Not preparing right, feels like we’re setting ourselves up for failure.

This preseason has the feel of Rocky III, where Rock was training in the hotel, pausing to pose for pictures, and turning his prep into a mockery.

And he was subsequently dismissed in humiliating fashion, by Clubber Lang.

QB Jalen Hurts celebrates catching a football on the sideline. He would immediately throw his only pass of the night, to a fan in the stands.

See anything familiar?