FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: Game 2: Titans

Posted by The BEAST on 2026/09/21
Posted in: breakdown, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, Offense, Players, Reviews, Special Teams, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

HURTS pockets another win.

EAGLES 24 – Titans 20 

 

EAGLES STATS:  

Passing: QB Jalen Hurts (26/37 – 70.0% – 264 – 2 – 2)

Rushing: RB Tank Bigsby (13 – 33 – 2.5 – 1 – 0)

Receiving: WR DeVonta Smith (13 – 10 – 117 – 11.7 – 1)

Drive Killer: N/A

Sack Leader: OLB Nolan Smith (1.0 – 0 – 3 )

Special Teams Ace: K Jake Elliott (1/1 FG 3/3XP) 58yard FG

****

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

1) Our Power vs Their Size: I think we got a little cute this week and we paid for it. Instead of just having backup LG Drew Kendall fill in for injured LG Landon Dickerson; the coaching staff decided to start Kendall at C, and move C Cam Jurgens to LG. The result was RB Saquon Barkley (4 – 9 – 2.2 – 0 – 0) being hit in the backfield and getting a stinger on the first play.

Barkley returned to the game for a few downs, but will need further evaluation. The rest of the day was spent trying to cobble together a run game, between Bigsby and RB Will Shipley (7 – 24 – 3.4 – 0 – 0). While Bigsby can be an “all gas and no brakes” runner as a back-up, in the lead role, behind this line he was mostly pedestrian. (NOT DONE)

2) Unleash DeVonta: It was time to demonstrate to the world that DeVonta Smith is indeed our WR1. Friends, the Eagles went and planted the fuck out of that flag. The goal was 100 yard receiving or two scores. Well, he had over 100 yards and a 22 yard score.

WR DeVonta Smith scores from 22

Yet his best catch of the day, was a 19 yard snag down the sideline, between two defenders, that set-up the game winning touchdown. Today, DeVonta was clutch like a handbag! Proving once again, that One plus Six equals seven. (DONE)

3) Our DE’s Must Contain Better: Our pass rush in this game, was much more disciplined than last week’s. So we didn’t have to spend the day watching their QB break contain and extend plays. In fact, he ran for just 7 yards on only 4 carries. Two of those runs were scores, but they were both from inside the five yard line. (DONE)

4) Let’s Have Sacks: As a result of improved pass rush discipline, our Defensive Line was able to post both of our sacks.

DT Jalen Carter notches a sack

OLB Nolan Smith gets a sack

Despite playing with a cast on his hand, DT Jalen Carter (1.0 – 1 – 0 – 0) was able to notch one of them. Not much more than that needs to be said. (DONE)

++++

This week’s Four Things score was 3 of 4. Normally that would indicate a larger margin of victory, but the Offensive Line was still shaky today. Next week, we visit the 1 – 1 Chicago Bears, in prime time! (I’m hoping for the all black uniforms.)

****

Game Hero: QB Jalen Hurts – He hit nine different receivers in this game, including WR Darius Cooper (3 – 2 – 26 – 13.0 – 1) for the game winning score, with justs nine seconds left in the contest. He ran sparingly (5 – 16 – 3.2 – 0 – 0), and instead carved up the Titans defense, mostly from the pocket.

WR Darius Cooper’s first NFL touchdown, is a game winner

On a day when he was playing behind a shuffled O-Line, lost Saquon on the first snap, and TE Dallas Goedert (2 – 1 – 4 – 2.0 – 0) during the game; Hurts kept a cool head, and guided the Offense past every obstacle. All at once, the Offense’s struggle were evident, but Hurts put on a clinic in how to shoulder past adversity. Proving once again, that when the going gets tough, the tough hands you a fucking loss. Eat a dick, Jeffery Simmons.

Game goat: The Coaching Staff – I’m not sure who’s idea shuffling the line was, but it was bush league. It reeked of amateur hour, and showed just how far Offensive Line Coach Chris Kuper is from Jeff Stoutland. We can bury the narrative that Philadelphia has one of the best O-Lines in the NFL. Our interior is an absolute mess right now.

On The Whole: I said in Four Things that all season long, the Offense was going to be a work in progress. For at least the first eight games, you have to expect some messiness. That said, the Eagles put up three touchdown drives of nine plays or more. Even the two drives where we turned the ball over, were eleven plays or longer. So there’s a stability looking to assert itself, once the players start to master the system.

Defensively, we didn’t generate any turnovers. Again. It’s hard to complain about that too loud, when this same Defense helped us win this game, despite losing the turnover ratio 0:2. However, if the Eagles could win a turnover battle, these final scores might not be so close, so often.

FOUR THINGS: WK 2: EAGLES – TITANS

Posted by The BEAST on 2026/09/18
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, Offense, Players. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

LAST week was a fist-fight that came down to DT Moro Ojomo, denying Washington a two point conversion. That conversion would have tied the game, and likely forced overtime. Being a division game, you expect that sort of thing though.
This week’s victim, doesn’t play in our division. Our players don’t see each other twice a year, so our rosters don’t really know each other. I expect a more pure representation of how our new offensive scheme really looks, and what it should like when we’ve mastered it.

With a win, we move to 2 – 0 and would be alone atop the NFC East, unless the giants can find a way to travel to Los Angeles and beat the Rams. In which case, both they and us, would still share the top of the division, with them holding a conference tie-breaker. (But it’s way too early to start with tie-breaker talk.)

A loss would drop us to 1 – 1. Since both Washington and Dallas (who face each other Sunday) are both 0 – 1, the best one of them can do is 1 – 1, the other will own the basement. A giants win would put them alone atop the division, but a loss will still see us tied for a three-way lead. So we have to win this game.

****

The point of Four Things isn’t to predict a winner, it’s to discuss which tactics would give our Eagles the best chance to win this game. Often I list fundamentals, as some of the four things. BUT NO MORE! Unless something specific is needed, fundamentals like Running the ball; playing lots of Man Press; and Tackling instead of going for the strip, will be automatically included. (Like the five consonants and a vowel that Wheel Of Fortune automatically spots you.) So here are the Four Things that we need to focus on this week versus: The TITANS

1) Our Power vs Their Size: Get our run game going. This should be a big week for RB Saquon Barkley, as last week the Titans, while at home, surrendered 152 rushing yards to the Jets. It might have something to do with having a smallish defensive line, as their starting four average just 276 pounds. The Eagles Offensive Line isn’t huge, but even with LG Drew Kendall starting for LG Landon Dickerson, it still averages 324 per man.

Just getting downhill and putting hats on defenders, should be enough to give our RB’s the holes they need to punch through for big gains. So don’t get cute! Get mean! Be bullies! Don’t get mad. Take pleasure in pushing these little fuckers around. Let’s put more rushing yards on them, than the Jets did.

2) Unleash DeVonta: Let’s make it emphatically clear to the world, that WR DeVonta Smith, is our WR1. Let’s get him 100 yards or two scores, in this one.

Between how dramatically we established TE Dallas Goedert last week, and the Titans trying to take away our run game, the middle of the field should often be crowded. That means we should see a good amount of isolation on the corners. When that happens, we need to capitalize on it.

3) Our DE’s Must Contain Better: All last week, the opposing QB kept getting outside the pocket to either pick-up rushing yards, or extend plays until he could find an open receiver.

Most of that was due to our DE’s running themselves out of plays, and not keeping the QB corralled. Often the only pursuit was a trailing DT, with no chance to close the distance. This week our DE’s need much better edge discipline, and they have to keep the QB from bootlegging out of the pocket, so there are multiple angles to hit him from.

4) Let’s Have Sacks: Mistakes come from trying to avoid and make up for sacks, so we have to go get some. We need plays that result in lost yardage, and take their offense off-schedule. Not a tackle just behind the line of scrimmage. A real, honest to God, “Somebody get him some milk!” kind of sack.

DT Jordan Davis running over a Carr (Derek)

To hell with all these empty hurries. If it still results in a completion, or doesn’t result in an interception, then we didn’t force their QB into a mistake. If we didn’t cause him to make a mistake and we didn’t bring him down for lost yardage, then their offense wins that down. Fuck that! We need to get their QB on the ground this week.

****

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

This Offensive system will be a work in progress until the season ends. At no point in this season, will we be able to say that it has been mastered. Our players are just getting to run it, in real game situations. Sunday was the first time they got their feet wet against a real opponent, while not being vanilla in trying not to reveal anything.

Share this with your friends. Maybe it’ll help keep their blood pressure down.

****

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: Commanders

Posted by The BEAST on 2026/09/14
Posted in: breakdown, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, NFC East, Offense, Players, Reviews, Rivals, Special Teams, stats, The 12. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

TE Dallas Goedert scores on a 43 yard catch and run, His second score in the game.

WE got some work to do.

EAGLES 24 – Commanders 22  



EAGLES STATS:


Passing: QB Jalen Hurts (14/25 – 56.0% – 203 – 3 – 0) 


Rushing: RB Saquon Barkley (15 – 83 – 5.5 – 0 – 0)


Receiving: TE Dallas Goedert (5 – 4 – 77 – 19.2 – 2)


Drive Killer: N/A


Sack Leader: LB Jihaad Campbell (1.0 – 0 – 9)


Special Teams Ace: P Braden Mann (7 – 361 – 51.5 – 0 – 4 – 64)


****


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


1) Use the Kerrigan Plan: The Eagles barely tried to work the Flats, or throw Outs to the TE. Instead, everything seemed to be “hold ball for 20 seconds and throw deep”. We escaped with the win, but we also had seven punts. Being that inconsistent, is not how to build a championship Offense. (NOT DONE)


2) Force Passes Deep: We did a really good job of keeping them in 3rd and long, and forcing QB Jayden Daniels (18/34 – 52.9% – 164 – 2 – 0) to hold the ball too long, and then just throw passes away. We hardly gave him anywhere easy to go with the ball, and as a result he spent much of the game under 50% passing. (DONE)


3) Blow Up the Middle: We spent much of the game flushing Daniels from the pocket and into bootlegs. Our DE’s however were never able to capitalize on that, mostly due to overrunning their rush and losing outside contain, over and over and over. We got outflanked a lot in this game. That has to get fixed. 


While the Commanders did run for 132 yards, it was never in a consistent or reliable sense. Aside from a handful of QB scrambles, their ground game produced just 101 yards on 27 carries (3.7 ypc), with the longest run being 11 yards. Had our Offense not allowed the game to stay so close, the Commanders would have long abandoned the run game. (DONE)


4) Exploit Loaded Boxes: Can’t say that we did this. Then again, I can’t say that they ever loaded the box. With the Eagles lining up WR’s in bunches near the ends of the Offensive Line, it naturally draws defenders closer, in order to cover the receivers.


The result is the defense isn’t spread out, and it makes it that much harder to find room to run. Did you notice how hard it was to generate rushing yards today? (NOT DONE)


++++


This week’s Four Things score was 2 of 4. Next week we travel to Tennessee to take on a Titan’s team that just got corn-holed, at home, by the Jets. The Jets! We have no business struggling against the Titans in any fashion. 


****


Game Hero: Jalen Hurts – He protected the ball, and made plays with his legs (7 – 46 – 6.5 – 0 – 0) when he was needed to. I said in THE 12: #10 that we would need this from him, and right out of the gate, I was shown to be right.


A.J. who? WR Dontayvion Wicks catches his first touchdown as an Eagle.


Game goat: The Offensive Line – Penalties and an inability to keep defenders from hitting Barkley in the backfield, handicapped our attack all afternoon. I don’t know yet if this something to blame on the players; or new Offensive Line Coach Chris Kuper; or just the growing pains of switching systems, without the starters playing a single snap in the preseason. (So then, wouldn’t I have to blame Head Coach Nick Sirianni?) Whatever. It’s Week One. Let’s be patient. 


At least for now. 


On The Whole: We didn’t win this game, so much as we survived it. We spent entirely too much time in Shotgun, when we were told that we’d operate primarily under Center now. Seeing a drawn-up WR Screen, thrown behind the line of scrimmage, was enough to elicit from me, a diatribe of colorful metaphors, questioning the genealogy of our Offensive Coordinator Sean Mannion. 


At one point on Facebook, I asked if Sean Mannion was Kevin Patullo’s new legal name. I can’t speak for you, but to me, at times it was hard to see a difference between what we did today, and the shit we rolled out last year. 


But! At the end of the day we sit at 1 – 0. Tied for first place in the NFC East; with the 1-0 giants who beat a Cowboys team, that many said would win this division. So yeah… We got work to do. 

	


	

							



	

					
FOUR THINGS: WK 1: EAGLES – COMMANDERS
				

			Posted by The BEAST on 2026/09/12
					


		

						Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, NFC East, Offense, Players, Rivals, The 12.			
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PHILADELPHIA begins our season with the sacrificing of a division rival. Eagles Head Coach Nick Sirianni, and Defensive Coordinator Vic Fangio return with the goal of another Super Bowl parade, here in Philly. Joining them is rookie Offensive Coordinator Sean Mannion, as he rolls out a vastly different scheme than the Birds have run in the past.


Rookie WR Makai Lemon, joins Super Bowl LIX MVP QB Jalen Hurts, 2024 Offensive Player of the Year RB Saquon Barkley, and future Hall Of Famer RT Lane Johnson, as they revive what became an anemic offense last year.


Despite the offensive woes, the Eagles repeated as NFC East winners, due to the strength of a top Defense. Spearheading that unit are DT Jordan Davis and DT Jalen Carter, LB Zack Baun, and CB Quinyon Mitchell. 


Playing the part of the sacrifice are the Washington Commanders. Already nursing some bumps and bruises along both their offensive and defensive lines, a match-up against the Eagles is the last thing the doctor would order. This game could get out of hand very quickly. 


With a win, we move to 1 – 0 and tied with the winner of the Cowboys/giants game for first place in the NFC East. 


A loss would drop us to 0 – 1 and scratching our heads. The truth is, this is a divisional game, so it will likely be hard fought. That said, we just have to go out and take care of business. 


****


The point of Four Things isn’t to predict a winner, it’s to discuss which tactics would give our Eagles the best chance to win this game. Often I list fundamentals, as some of the four things. 


BUT NO MORE! Unless something specific is needed, fundamentals like Running the ball; playing lots of Man Press; and Tackling instead of going for the strip, will be automatically included. (Like the five consonants and a vowel that Wheel Of Fortune automatically spots you.) So here are the Four Things that we need to focus on this week versus: The Commanders


TE Dallas Goedert hits paydirt


1) Use the Kerrigan Plan: Yet again this season, the Commanders primary pass rush comes from two OLB’s, who don’t cover. Why do they keep making this so easy, year in and year out!? Passes to the Flats, and Outs into the areas vacated by the rushers, has generally served us well against this rival. No reason to change up until they do.


I’ll be watching when we play 11-personnel, to see if they remove one of those OLB’s or a defensive lineman. I’ll be keeping an eye on that, because it would signal an evolutionary step. They have a new defensive coordinator, and I’m not very familiar with his work. So it’ll be interesting to see how fast he learns.


2) Force Passes Deep: Use a Two Deep Zone with LB’s playing Man Coverage underneath. This may result in a few big plays and penalties, but the idea is to take away quick, easy completions, and make it hard for their offense to be consistent.


3) Blow Up the Middle: We need to blow up the middle of their offensive line. The starters aren’t very talented, and they have injury issues there already. If we cave in their offensive line, it stymies their run game and gets their QB running and throwing from a moving platform. I discussed that plan, in detail, in THE 12. 


DT Jordan Davis stops a run before it starts.


Despite their QB having good mobility, we want to get him running. He comes with a lengthy injury history already. In fact, we didn’t play against him last year, because he was injured for both games. We want to get their fragile QB out where he knows danger surrounds him.


4) Exploit Loaded Boxes: The Eagles want their identity to be running the ball, and we have Saquon Barkley, one of the most dangerous, and explosive RB’s in the league. So expect to see some eight man boxes, especially early in the game.




What we need is for Jalen Hurts to identify where that eighth man is being walked up from, and audible to a play that specifically targets the area where the eighth man should have stayed or covered. This sends an immediate message to the opposing defensive coach, and should get them back into seven man fronts again. 


****


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


We’re going to be without offseason acquisition DE Jonathan Greenard for at least this week. That makes this a perfect opportunity to get DT Ty Robinson, a few reps at DE, as I mentioned in THE 12. 


As far as the Offense goes, expect some growing pains, because everyone is new to running this system. Particularly under game conditions, because Sirianni doesn’t play his starters in the preseason. So expect some missed timing, missed routes, maybe an uncharacteristic turnover. 


Again, this is a division rival, so this game could go all the way to the wire. More likely, the Eagles jump all over the Commanders, and it’s ugly from the get-go. 


****


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.



	


	

							



	

					
#12: WITH JORDAN DAVIS AS MOSES
				

			Posted by The BEAST on 2026/09/10
					


		

						Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Players, The 12, X's and O's.			
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IF teams are going to commit to double teaming DT Jalen Carter #98 (usually with a G and their C) then DT Jordan Davis #90 should spend a lot of time in one-on-one. More to the point, when the C leans into his right ‘A gap’ to help on Carter, he will naturally widen that ‘A gap’ to his left.




Davis needs to fill that extra space. To rush in, right into opposing QB faces, to force them out of the pocket. After a few downs of that, opposing coaches will have a choice to make. Do they keep doubling Carter, and allow Davis to keep parting their o-line like the Red Sea? Or do they try to double both DT’s, and make life easier for our DE’s?


Honestly, it won’t matter. Once they start juggling those thoughts, we’ve already won.

	


	

							



	

					
#11: TEST ROBINSON AT DE
				

			Posted by The BEAST on 2026/09/10
					


		

						Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, preseason, The 12.			
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DURING this preseason 288 pound DT Ty Robinson was able to dominate the interior (mostly) by using his strength, combined with his above average movement skills. To keep it 100 though, that was mostly against second string players. Facing starters, he may find that at 288, his strength is nothing special on the inside.


So here’s how we maximize him. Most OT’s these days are used to facing 250, 255, and 260 pound DE’s, reliant on speed and quickness to get to the QB. Used on the edge however, Robinson has the power and movement skill to set a hard edge vs the run, and fight his way through when passrushing. Think of him bigger, stronger Brandon Graham.


To be able to rotate Robinson with DE’s Jalyx Hunt and Jonathan Greenard, would give us years of security on the ends.

	


	

							



	

					
#10: RUNNING JALEN HURTS ‘EM
				

			Posted by The BEAST on 2026/09/10
					


		

						Posted in: Coaching, Offense, Players, The 12.			
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IN the year when RB Saquon Barkley rushed for 2,000 yards, his QB Jalen Hurts averaged 10 rushing attempts per game. It forced opponents to slow down, to make sure that they read the play correctly. So that they weren’t chasing the wrong runner. The result: our leading rusher went for 2,005 yards and our QB tacked on 630 of his own.


So, this is me doubling down on that. I want to see more rushing yardage out of Hurts. Now that he’s operating more from under C, his play-action bootleg should be absolutely deadly. Especially if defenders guess wrong.

	


	

							



	

					
#9: UNBOXING OUR OFFENSE
				

			Posted by The BEAST on 2026/09/10
					


		

						Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Offense, Players, Reviews, The 12, Uncategorized.			
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THE starting slot receiver is WR Makai Lemon. He’s not really a burner, and I get the impression that the idea is, to get him short, quick passes in space, so that he can make (YAC) yards after the catch. There will be downs when he subs out for a breather though, and a faster receiver can be subbed in.


Getting WR Hollywood Brown running routes deep in the middle of the field, early in the game, will definitely keep opposing Safeties from loading up the box, whenever he’s on the field. That means more room inside to run and throw quick passes, and get the ball out of QB Jalen Hurts hand.


I’m thinking back to a game vs the Bears in 2013. They were so afraid of WR DeSean Jackson’s speed, that they were practically lining up FS Chris Conte in the parking lot. The result was RB LeSean McCoy running for 133 yards and 2 TD’s on 18 carries, as his back-up RB Bryce Brown ran for 115 and a score on just 9 totes. They combined for 9.1 yard per rush.




The Eagles won that game 54 – 11.


Fast forward to 2017, and we used WR2 Torrey Smith to do just that, in every game of the season. Smith played all 16 games, starting 14, but catching just 36 balls for 2 TD’s. However, the danger that he posed when taking the top off the defense, allowed others behind him to operate with ease and consistency. It won us our first Super Bowl.

	


	

							



	

					
#8: SAME ‘OL SMITTY
				

			Posted by The BEAST on 2026/09/10
					


		

						Posted in: Coaching, Offense, Players, The 12, Uncategorized.			
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THERE is no need to ask WR DeVonta Smith to be anything other, than what he’s always been. Losing WR A.J. Brown, means that we lost a physical, tackle-breaking, 50-50 ball winner. The smart move would be to develop a replacement from what we already have on the roster. For my money, that means WR Darius Cooper.


Suddenly throwing Smith a ton of 50-50 balls, and expecting him to break tackles over the middle would be stupid. We didn’t ask him to do that before, because it’s not his game, so let’s not try to press him into a role that still wouldn’t suit him.



	


	

							



	

					
#7: MAKE SURE TROTTER PLAYS
				

			Posted by The BEAST on 2026/09/10
					


		

						Posted in: breakdown, Conversations, Defense, Front Office (F.O.), Players, Roster, Special Teams, The 12.			
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I’M just going to say it: Between LB Jihaad Campbell and LB Jeremiah Trotter Jr., I’m not sure that we’re starting the right guy. Don’t get me wrong, Campbell is very talented, and at this early stage in his career, you can’t say much bad about him. He makes his presence felt against rival players.


Trotter on the other hand is out there keeping pace with offensive coaches. He’s not playing the guys on the field, he’s playing (plotting), against their scheme. He’s meeting the ball at it’s destination, beating blitz pick-ups to their gap. He’s just always in the right place at the right time.


Look, before we let him go like we did with LB Nakobe Dean, we need to be damned certain that that move isn’t going to blow-up in our faces twice a year. Get a good look at him and make the proper decision. (Which might involve letting LB Nolan Smith walk, and sliding Campbell over to that spot.)