#6 RED ZONE RASUL

Posted by The BEAST on 2020/02/15
Posted in: Coaching, Defense, Players, Rants, Roster, The 12, X's and O's. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

THE 12 2020.6

THE Eagles aren’t getting as much out of CB Rasul Douglas as we should be. Part of the reason is that Defensive Coordinator Jim Schwartz has repeatedly tried to use Douglas as an every down, man-to-man Corner. That’s not who Douglas is, though. And if the team is going to get his best football, they have to put him in better positions.

Some sportswriters in Philly don’t think Douglas can play FS. However, when FS Rod McLeod needs a breather, I’d like to see Douglas get time back there. Actually, that’s where I’d want to see him for about 80% of the field. Once we hit the red zone, then I’d like to see him slide over to CB.

When Douglas first got to Philly, sometimes he was used as a CB, and other times as a FS. Even early on, he showed good instincts and an understanding of what opposing offenses were trying to do. At 6’2” 209 he more than has the size to be dominant at either position, but he’ll always lack an important CB trait.

When he first got here in 2017, his tackling was

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That made him risky to play at FS. However, in 2018 DT Fletcher Cox called him out over it. Douglas took it to heart, and worked to vastly improve his technique. Today (for a CB) he is an excellent tackler. He also aggressively sniffs out Screens, and routinely blows them up in the backfield.

The issue with him at CB, is that he doesn’t have the wheels to cover top-end speed. Which is a shame because he has excellent ball skills. He can be a problem when he can turn a catch into a contested one. In fact, if he isn’t in “chase” position, throwing the ball in his area comes with a ton of risk. No mater who you think you are.

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While an absolute burner may get a step on him on long routes, no one is going to run away from him inside the red zone. That becomes an area where he can be used on the edge. Long arms, height, and ball-skills give him the tools to generally make opponents pay, without exposing him to poor odds. You’d need an excellent throw to beat him.

Douglas starting at CB in Cover-2, Tampa-2, or Cover-4? You might squeeze a Pro Bowl or two out of him. Given deep help, he’d make life hell underneath. However, in a Cover-1, or Cover-3 system, he’s just not a down-in/down-out guy. I really like him. I’ve rooted for him from the jump, but he just isn’t a starting CB in our current system.

However, in even in our Cover -1/Cover-3, he’d make a receiver’s life difficult, as a red zone CB.

#5 KEEP THE RUSH ACTIVE

Posted by The BEAST on 2020/02/14
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, NFL, Players, Roster, The 12. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

THE 12 2020.5

DEFENSIVE Tackle Anthony Rush is a name that likely escapes most Eagles fans, but it shouldn’t. When I bring him up in conversation, people’s eyebrows knit together and you can see them mentally searching for the name. That’s sort of a travesty in a city THIS knowledgeable about football.

In 2019, The Eagles got a ton of press about our Practice Squad players stepping up and contributing towards us winning the NFC East. The names that always came up however, were WR Greg Ward, RB Boston Scott, and to a lesser extent TE Josh Perkins. DT Anthony Rush? That name always seemed to be written in invisible ink.

Once we lost DT Malik Jackson and DT Hassan Ridgeway, we started shuttling in bodies like DT’s Albert Huggins and Akeem Spence. Spence didn’t hold the point of attack worth a damn, and soon found himself off the team. Huggins came later, played a few games and then went back to the Practice Squad.

Anthony Rush stacks it

Rush was signed to our Practice Squad on October 21st. He was on the active roster and in a game on October 27th. Rush’s 9 tackles in 9 games didn’t tear up the stat page, but he was about as statistically productive as DT Timmy Jernigan, while possibly being better at stacking blockers vs the run.

Most importantly, Rush gave the Eagles a legit rotational player, which allowed DT Fletcher Cox to focus on his own area, and maximize his own effectiveness. Until that point Fletch had been over-extending himself, trying to help out guys like Ridgeway, Spence and Huggins. You could actually see him starting to wear down.

Rush however, doesn’t need a babysitter. He proved to be able to stack blockers, play on the other side of the line of scrimmage, and make solo tackles even when engaged. Rush allows Cox to be the guy we saw in the Seattle playoff game, because even when Jernigan steps out, there is a level of consistent play at the other DT spot.

Said plainly: Rush helps us maximize Fletcher Cox. ALL. THE. TIME.

Fletcher Cox and Anthony Rush

Will we have that from Malik Jackson when he gets back? Can’t say for sure, but we have Rush already. Will Ridgeway be better at holding the point when he gets back? Dunno, but we already have Rush.

The combo of Cox, Jernigan, and Rush already works. If we can add to that, awesome! Just don’t dismantle it. Keep Rush on the active roster, and see if we can turn up the heat when get Jackson and Ridgeway back.

#4 FEWER CLEAN RELEASES

Posted by The BEAST on 2020/02/13
Posted in: Coaching, Defense, NFL, Players, Rants, stats, The 12, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

THE 12 2020.4

OUR pass rush took heat this year for having lost something, even though we had 38 sacks in 2017, 40 in 2018, and 43 in 2019. There’s some truth to us having lost something, and I do cover that later in this series. However, the issue isn’t sacks.

The issue is opposing QB’s being able to throw the ball off of a three step drop, because their receiver is unchallenged to the spot. Most NFL offenses are timing based and our Defense scarcely ever disrupts passing game’s timing.

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Most Eagles fans don’t know this, but during our Super Bowl year (2017), we were ranked 4th in points allowed per game (18.4). The following year (2018) we ranked 12th (21.8). This last year (2019) we ranked 15th (22.1). Raise your hand if you see a pattern. Stand in the corner and face the wall if you don’t.

And so despite an increasing number of sacks, we allow an increasing number of points. These are facts. They are absolutes. They cannot be argued. Let’s keep going.

We play a lot of soft man coverage. However, what we’ve seen over the last few seasons, is that unchallenged routes lead to easy completions, high completion percentages, and an increasing number of points surrendered.

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Last year’s 22.1 points allowed, also factors in two division games against two rookie starters, a game against QB Case Keenum, and a game against now retired QB Eli Manning. All of whom we made look very good. The passers in this division will only get better. We need to figure out a way to keep them in check.

The knee-jerk response is always: “More pass rush.” “We need to be more aggressive with our pass rush.” Give me a BREAK! We roll these platitudes out every year, generally to similar numbers from the year before. Really, HOW can we be more aggressive when we rarely blitz, and still routinely only rush four? So stop. Just stop.

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The problem is that we make the game too easy for opposing passers. We need to play more Bump and Run, to throw receivers off their routes, so that when the QB looks in that spot…his guy isn’t there yet. That makes the QB have to look elsewhere, which means (ABRACADABRA!), that he has to hold onto the ball a little longer.

Now pass rushers get a shot at him. Now passes get rushed. They aren’t pinpoint. They get tipped! They get juggled! They get intercepted! That’s how to generate turnovers, kill drives, and snuff out hope. But none of that happens if we keep allowing receivers free releases into their routes.

#3 KEEP DESEAN AND ALSHON

Posted by The BEAST on 2020/02/12
Posted in: Conversations, free agents, Front Office (F.O.), NFC East, Offense, Players, Roster, The 12. Tagged: , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

THE 12 2020.3

YES. The Eagles need to revamp the Wide Receiver position, but WR Greg Ward and WR J.J. Arcega-Whiteside, are not solid enough to rebuild off of. This is why we need to keep WR DeSean Jackson and WR Alshon Jeffery.

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Both are already under contract for the 2020 season, and already part of a structure that affords us (at least) 42M in salary cap space. Whether or not Jackson can still fly, remains to be seen. Even if he can’t however, he is still a credible NFL receiver. Jeffery on the other hand, even nicked up last year, showed that he can still produce strong games even as the focal point of a defensive secondary.

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Combining Jackson, Jeffery and Ward could be dangerous, whether or not the Eagles draft a stud WR in 2020. If we do draft a top-tier player, the rookie has Jackson and Jeffery learn from, as opposed to Ward and Arcega-Whiteside to learn from. 

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There are those who would say that we should go out and add Dallas free agent WR Amari Cooper, in Jeffery’s place. That would be stupid. Coop no doubt has all kinds of talent, but in Dallas just like in Oakland, he has games where he just…disappears.

As a guy who also roots for the Raiders, I cannot begin to tell you how maddening this trait was in him. Especially with a QB like Derek Carr. So to bring Cooper HERE? For TWICE Jeffrey’s base salary? No. No. NO! There’s no need, for such… Such madness. 

A talented, already affordable, veteran, who already knows our system? These are great aspects to have in a single WR. However, WE, have that in two. Each dangerous in his own fashion. So we should keep them. Both of them, and use them a starting point for the rebuild.

A rebuild which has to begin sooner, rather than later.

#2 PAY THE MAN!

Posted by The BEAST on 2020/02/11
Posted in: Conversations, Defense, Front Office (F.O.), NFL, Players, Rants, Roster, The 12. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

THE 12 2020.2

RENEGOTIATING SS Malcolm Jenkins is a bigger priority than picking up LB Nigel Bradham’s option. I put Bradham first, because picking up an option is a decision. Both players are still under contract, but Jenkins is a negotiation. I wanted to lead with something the Front Office could 100% do, and do quickly, if they wish.

I have no idea how much money Jenkins wants. What I do know, is that we don’t have anyone else like him on the field, in the locker room, or in the community. Jenkins not coming back in 2020, would rip the beating heart out of this team.

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More than what he means to the psyche of this team, is his actual on-field value. While once upon a time he was a CB/S tweener, he’s no longer very good against deep passes. It’s why so much of the scheme is designed to not (ahem) expose him, to certain situations. (We love you Malcolm, but it’s the world’s worst kept secret, that you can be had deep.)

On the other hand, underneath, intermediate, and in the box, he’s AMAZING. And even better than his play, he sees things early, and often helps teammates erase mental mistakes before the ball is even snapped. There is no stat for that. If you think this Defense can be a sieve with him out there, taking him away would be like cutting the bottom out of a bucket.

Oh yeah, and just who is his successor….

I hear crickets. Do you hear crickets? Because I hear crickets.

A couple of years ago it seemed like Tre Sullivan would be that guy, but NOPE! The Eagles never bothered to get a guy to stand behind Jenkins and learn So now if Jenkins walk, our defense is…

Soap drop

Seriously, behind Jenkins we have (drum roll)…Rudy Ford and Marcus Epps. Pardon if I can’t find my whelm. It’s under something. Between them there are 5 NFL seasons, 48 career games, 1 start, 20 total tackles, and not a single pass break-up. Ever. Not one. Between two players.

So Malcolm has the Eagles by the balls on this one. It’s just a matter of how soon the Front Office realizes that, and acts accordingly. Or they could do what they did with Brian Dawkins. Remember that one? That worked out splendidly for us, didn’t it?

Pay the man!

2019 Malcolm Jenkins pre-game

#1: PICK UP BRADHAM’S OPTION

Posted by The BEAST on 2020/02/10
Posted in: Defense, Front Office (F.O.), NFL, Players, Roster, The 12. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

THE 12 2020.1

LINEBACKER has long been a sore spot for this team. Our 20 year history of identifying and developing talent at this position “hasn’t been great” to put it kindly. It’s specifically for that reason that we need to pick up the option on LB Nigel Bradham’s contract.

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How much are we talking? In 2019 Bradham had a cap hit figure of 4.4M. In 2020 that would jump to 9.7M. That’s an additional 5.3M, or a raise of 120%. And yes, it sounds steep when you say it that way.

However, given the current LB market, our projected cap space (42M according to Spotrac), and that his cap hit freezes at 9.7 for two years, it means if he’s basically affordable until his deal expires in 2023.

Has Bradham been amazing? No, he hasn’t, but he has been pretty good, he’s been consistent, he does call our defensive plays, and he’s still the best LB we have. Replacing him through free agency would likely cost more, with no guarantee that they’d be as good as what we already have.

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OLB Nate Gerry is more like a S/LB tweener, both in build and play style. All indications are that OLB/DE Genard Avery will be used more like a stand-up DE, and less like a real OLB. So Counting Bradham, we have effectively 1.5 LB’s, and then a bunch of kick coverage guys.

The position undoubtedly needs a rebuild, and the Eagles will undoubtedly draft a LB, be it inside or outside. (Hopefully inside.) For now, Bradham and Gerry give us a decent base to build on. So why not start there, instead of scrapping everything, and hoping things work out for the best?

Re-sign Bradham, and build around him as a point of stability. This one is easy. Let’s hope the Front Office gets it right.

NO COORDINATOR ISN’T OFFENSIVE

Posted by The BEAST on 2020/02/07
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Front Office (F.O.), NFL, Offense, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

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I’M on record as saying that if Head Coach Doug Pederson hired anyone else to be the Offensive Coordinator besides Assistant Head Coach Duce Staley, that Staley should walk. Well, Doug didn’t hire anyone else. What he did was tweak and jiggle his staff a little, but he basically kept last year’s alignment.

Dismiss any talk of needing to replace Mike Groh. During the 2019 season Groh was the OC, but it was in title only. Offensive Line coach Jeff Stoutland served as the run game coordinator, which essentially made Groh just the passing game coordinator. Doug determined the system, and called the plays from the sideline, thus making him the de-facto OC.

In 2020 Doug will still call the plays. New Defensive Line coach Matt Burke will coordinate the run. (Yeah, I don’t get that either.) The new passing game coordinator is Press Taylor (last year’s QB coach). So as I said, it’s mostly a re-shuffling, and the way the Eagles function on game day, won’t change very much.

2.7 ONE LOOK

What WILL change is the mix of ideas in the room during meetings. While Doug will lay down a concept, the play designs will come out of new heads. Taylor (passing game), and Burke (run game) are unproven, but with so much technical and analytical support around them, I’m interested to see how their imaginations impact our approach to the 2020 season.

I’m most curious about Senior Assistant Rich Scangarello, who will probably take over G.J. Kinne’s duties in Offensive Special Projects. QB Carson Wentz will also have a new voice in his ear, in the form of Passing Analyst (QB coach) Andrew Breiner.

Scarangello was only Denver’s OC for about a year, to no particular distinction beyond having a hand in rookie QB Drew Lock’s 4 – 1 record. That said, he has worked continuously since 1998 (22 years) as an offensive coach or coordinator.

No Defense. No Special Teams. Nothing just to “have a job”somewhere. Scangarello has been dedicated to just one side of the football for half of his lifetime. (Sort of like former Eagles DC Bud Carson was.) That level of singular interest has me curious to see what little trinkets are rattling around in the guy’s head.

I’m not interested in the big stuff. Not the broad strokes. Everyone does those. I wanna see the wrinkles. The nuances. The small concepts. Those are the things which will show up as ripples throughout our play design. That’s where the difference between last year and this year will be.

Still, in the end, it’s Doug who lays out our system concept, and calls the plays in the heat of battle. Doug Pederson is your OC. He always has been, and as long as he’s the coach, he always will be.

2.7 New boss

DEAR SCHEDULING GODS…

Posted by The BEAST on 2020/02/05
Posted in: Conversations, NFL, Preview, Super Bowl, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

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EARLY Bye weeks kill Super Bowl chances. Thus, I am standing in the rain, bare-chested, appealing to the schedule gods to hear this mortal’s plea: O’ YE GODS OF SCHEDULING THINGS! Hear my plea, and give the 2020 Eagles a Bye Week during the Sweet Spot!

The Sweet Spot is that period between Week 8 and Week 12. Of the last 10 Super Bowl champions, 8 have had their Bye in week 8 or later. Even the two outliers had week 7 Byes, and each faced a SB opponent who also had an early Bye.

It’s that mid to late season breather around the holidays, which helps teams rest, and get a little healthier. The static week also allows the coaching staff to assess where the team is, and how to get the most out of it, specifically vs their remaining regular season opponents.

My wet dream is a Week 11 Bye. Ten games down with an 8 – 2 record. A guarantee of no worse than .500, but just enough losses to keep the team from dipping into arrogance, or complacency. Six games to go, chasing homefield advantage,

Then parade.

None of the Week 4 nonsense that we were served up in 2016. Bleh!

I’m hoping for another parade to come up Broad Street. History says that for that to happen, we need a Bye in the Sweet Spot. So I’m putting it out into The Universe. I’m asking for it. I’m steering it towards us. Thus, I am standing in the rain, bare-chested, appealing to the schedule gods.

MORONIC EAGLES FANS

Posted by The BEAST on 2020/01/22
Posted in: Conversations, Fans, Offense, Players, Rants, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Alshon City2

“TRADE, extend or restructure”. This was the subject of a Facebook post that I weighed in on Monday morning, regarding WR Alshon Jeffery. While all of those options are the wrong one, some are more wrong than others. What really bothered me though, were the moronic reasons behind some people’s answers. Before we go any further, let’s take a quick look at Jeffery’s current deal, according to Spotrac.

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We have Jeffery for 2 more years, at a fully guaranteed 26.75M  . That’s a 9.9M base in 2020, and a 12.7M base in 2021. Cutting him in 2020 leaves us with a dead cap figure of 26.1M. Cutting him in 2021 leaves us eating 10.6M. So anyone who mentions cutting him…just tune that idiot out. Don’t even argue.

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I won’t keep you in suspense. The actual thing we should do with Jeffery, is draft his replacement, and spend two years grooming the guy. Let Jeffery play out the last two years of his current deal, and then let him walk. Cleanly, as a free agent. Acknowledge the past, solidify the present, secure the future.

One more time: The Eagles already have Jeffery under contract. Even with him at 9.9M, we still have 42M in salary cap space. We can already afford him. Easily. There is no need to do something stupid. But let’s look at those other options, anyway.

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TRADE: Trading a player doesn’t necessarily remove them entirely from a teams books. The team we trade Jeffery to, would pay his base salary. However, the remaining 10.5M in bonus money (2.5M signing, 3.45M option, 500K roster, 4.1M restructure) would stay on the Eagles books for two years. That’s 5.25M per year that the Eagles would lift for some other team. All so that instead of building on a foundation, we can re-create a hole that we already suffered through in 2019. Like idiots.

2019 Alshon Jeffery scores

EXTEND: Why? Understand, Jeffery has good speed, runs decent routes, and has good hands. On 50/50 balls he’s more of an 85/15 guy. He’s at the low end of the top-tier WR’s. However, all indications are that he’s slowing down physically, with maybe two years left before his skills drop him from being an 85/15 guy to an actual 50/50 guy. He has never been a crisp route runner, and isn’t a blazing fast guy either. So what would we be paying for beyond two years? Play him. Pay him. Shake his hand. Part ways amicably.

Vikings Eagles Football

RESTRUCTURE: What? WHY? All a restructure does is take the current contract and stretch out the money over a longer period of time. In exchange for re-doing a contract, a team usually guarantees the years of the new deal. So we’d basically stretch 26.75M over three or more years, (instead of just these two), likely keeping Jeffery past his useful years, and stealing a spot from some other player. Or we could cut Jeffery, eat the remaining dead money, and get zero bang for those bucks. Stupid right?

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This is why I say, just let him play his deal out. For what the Eagles are paying, he’s not overly expensive, and will likely be well worth the money (or close to it), for the remainder of the deal.

Many of the people who want him removed, like to bring up those unverified rumors that he’s the guy who criticized QB Carson Wentz. Fans were saying that Jeffery is a “cancer”, isn’t “bought-in”, and was trying to “sabotage” Wentz this year.

2019 Alshon Jeffery scores miami

All of those statements are nonsense. The locker room didn’t come apart, and Jeffery led all Eagles WR’s in catches, receiving yards, and touchdowns. He even produced a 100 yard game while playing hurt. Hard to buy the “cancer and sabotage” nonsense, in light of those FACTS.

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As far as the unsubstantiated rumors… Hey, in my gut I believe it was Jeffery who said those things. I do. But even so, since when is a guy not allowed to speak his mind? I’m a native Philadelphian who was born at Episcopal hospital, in 19125 where I still live. I went to high school (Parkway Center City), six blocks from Independence Hall. I was a Communications major with a minor in Philadelphia History. I’m all about free speech, so I won’t knock Jeffery for using it. I just wish he stood behind it.

While we’re on the subject of him talking, lets take a look at the substance of what [he] said. Here’s a direct quote: ‘We need to make shit simpler. Sometimes we just need to handle what is manageable. Even Peyton Manning knew when to check it down.’

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Quick question. Didn’t Wentz start doing exactly these things after the Miami game? He threw a lot more checkdowns (Perkins/Sanders/Goedert), RB Screens (Scott), and he stopped holding the ball so long. The routes were simplified for incoming players. The result was a 4 – 0 record, 7 TD’s, no INT’s, only 7 sacks surrendered, and a 67.6 completion percentage. Prior to those four games, Wentz had a completion percentage of 62.4% on the season.

The evidence strongly suggests that we may have benefited from Wentz taking that advice sooner. (Still wouldn’t have changed the outcome of the playoff game though.)

While the Eagles may move on from Jeffery, let’s be clear about something. Every indicator says that it would be a stupid thing to do while we can afford him, while we don’t have better than him, and while he clearly knows what he’s talking about.

APTOPIX Vikings Eagles Football

WE NEED NEW COACHES

Posted by The BEAST on 2020/01/16
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Front Office (F.O.), Rants, Rivals, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

ASIDE from possibly getting a Wide Receivers coach who can actually coach Wide Receivers, this team won’t be much different from last season. In fact, it’s basically the same team it’s been since 2016. And that’s sort of a problem.

Atlanta Falcons v Philadelphia Eagles

Regardless of who is named our Offensive Coordinator, what we run on Offense will still be built on Head Coach Doug Pederson’s TE-based West Coast concept. What we run on Defense will still be Defensive Coordinator Jim Schwartz’s Wide 9/Single-High concept.

In failing to move on from Schwartz, we missed an opportunity to level the playing field, by wiping the board clean of all of our tendencies, keys and “tells”. We also missed an opportunity to stabilize the Defense. Honestly, even the most ardent Schwartz supporter, would have to admit that the week to week product of this unit is anything but consistent.

And it’s been that way for years.

While on one hand it’s great to have a solid identity, we’re in a division where every one of our rivals will be brand new in 2020. We are the only known quantity in the division, and the only team which has plenty of film on what we run, how we run it, and how we want to run it.

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Are we seeing the body language here? Someone is happy that he doesn’t have to compete for daddy’s love anymore.

Though it’s true that Dallas and Washington’s coaches have highly trackable histories, radically different personnel will change how thee coaches implement their favorite concepts. Those conditions put us at a MASSIVE disadvantage in terms of initial intelligence gathering.

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Nothing communicates power and dominance, like lower-case letters.

New York’s head coach comes with no trackable history whatsoever. However, if they sign Jason Garrett to be their offensive coordinator, there will be a definite power shift in the middle of the division, since he has a deep working knowledge of every roster in our division. New York goes from third place, to threatening for first.

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Garrett also has an intimate familiarity with every weakness and mental flaw possessed by each of the Cowboys key players, as well as knowledge of how Dallas likes to cover or hide those flaws. It would then be a matter of the rest of us watching NY vs Dallas, to learn how to take the Cowboys apart.

Understand, if New York can pull off signing Garrett, it will be seismic for the division, and the aftershocks will not be survivable for Dallas in particular.

Our saving grace may be the preseason. Since these new coaches need to make sure players understand the concepts and their own roles, smarter coaches will run some of their concepts. Thereby tipping their hand. and giving us a sneak peek. Idiot coaches will decide not use the practice games for practice, and likely get off to slow (sputtering) starts.

All this basically reduces the importance of our assistant search, to near nil. That is, unless the Eagles promote from within. (HEY DOUG! PROMOTE DUCE STALEY!! IS THIS TOO SUBTLE!!!? AM I DOING IT AGAIN!? BEING TOO SUBTLE, I MEAN?)

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There’s a ton of chatter about the Eagles needing a new voice in the room, but a new voice doesn’t necessarily mean a trusted voice during high pressure moments. Getting a person to listen against what their instincts tell them, is no easy sale. It’s harder when they don’t implicitly trust you.

While yes, Staley is part of this old regime, his elevation would allow him to put a more definitive stamp on Doug’s system. Play design, play install, package assignments, formations, and rotational patterns, are all things that would subtly impact a system that was only the same, on the surface. Regardless of who calls the plays.

As of today, the Eagles are behind the curve in terms of intel and element of surprise. Without any new wrinkles added, the story of 2020 will be of how the rest of the NFC East has caught up to/caught onto us.

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I am genuinely concerned about the Redskins.