FOUR THINGS: WK10 : EAGLES-COWBOYS

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/11/08
Posted in: Coaching, Defense, Draft, Four Things, NFC East, NFL, Offense, Players, Preview, Rivals, Roster, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

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TO many Eagles fans, this game is the most important one of the season. For some fans, beating Dallas in Philly, is as big as it gets. If we were to ever go 1 – 15, that one win has to be here, against the Cowboys. (Personally, my favorite regular season win of the year, is beating the ‘skins IN Washington.) However, to some fans, the only wins that could trum- (Need another word there.) The only wins that could be bigger than this week, are playoff wins. When it comes to “the star”, for Eagles fans, the hate runneth deep.

The Cowboys are next on the schedule, but they aren’t what’s important to the Eagles this week. That doesn’t mean the Eagles are looking past the Cowboys. In fact, it means that beating them, has our undivided.

Our opponent comes to town, fresh off of a beat-down, which they took in front of a national audience.

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Questions are swirling about the future of their leadership on the field, on the sideline, and in their front office. At 3 – 5, they are one more loss away from buying Oakland something really nice, in the 2019 Draft.

Speaking of something really nice, WR Golden Tate will make his Eagles debut this Sunday night. Between his route running and QB Carson Wentz’s accuracy, there could be a catalytic impact on the entire Offense, as soon as the second half of this game.

Lot going on, Eagles fans. Our fans want to beat the Cowboys. Our team wants to catch the Redskins. Our rivals are all becoming the giants.

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So let’s talk about the Four Things we need to focus on this week versus the Cowboys :

1) Come out aggressive: This is a opponent whose confidence is on the ropes. An early score puts them in “Here we go again.” mode. We need to take their heads, and their hearts out early. Don’t let them hang around. From the opening whistle, this whole game should be an exercise in closing a game out.

2) Be the Eagles: There is no need to do anything drastic to cope with the Cowboys “Top 10 defense”. Of their three wins, they beat the giants (27th in scoring), the Lions (20th in scoring) and the Jaguars (30th in scoring). New York, Detroit and Jacksonville also rank (respectively) 20th, 21st, and 22nd in yardage. Everyone else has given the Cowboys problems, and thus has also given them losses. We rank 22nd in scoring, but have been trending up since Wentz returned. So we just need to do what we do.

3) Wrap it up: Poor tackling on our part, is the only thing that can give the Cowboys any chance of winning this game. So none of that holding the ball-carrier up and clawing at his arms for the ball. Just drop ‘em like a sack of shit, and move onto the next down.

4) RAC ‘em up!: Run After Catch. Also known as YAC (Yards). The Cowboys LB’s don’t figure much into pass defense, nor do they make a ton of tackles. So spread them out, use short passes off of play-action, throw in some Screens, and Bob’s your uncle. We should be able to control the ball, control the clock, and control the game.

If we do all these things, we’re just about guaranteed to win. Now that we’ve covered what should happen, let’s get into what likely will happen:

Everyone has figured out that to beat the Cowboys you have to take away the run, because their QB can’t beat decent to good teams. In order to scare people out of loading the box, the Cowboys mortgaged their future on trading for a decoy that doubles as a weapon. That ploy has a track record of 0 – 1 so far.

The Eagles are going to take away the run early, and force the Cowboys to substitute short passes for runs. MLB Jordan “Cowboy Killer” Hicks missed both games against them last year, but he’ll be back in the saddle for this one.

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The run game will see room inside, when the opposing LB’s try to stem the bleeding from all the quick passes they give up. To this point the Cowboys LB’s are liabilities vs the pass. It’s doubtful that they’ll discover the Fountain of Competence by Sunday. Let me make a correction. All their LB’s except for Sean Lee, are liabilities against the pass. When he’s in, they- He’ll what? Why this time? Again? Jeez! Well there’s the excuse we’ll hear on Monday. If he was a horse, they’d shoot him.

Well at least they can’t say that Zeke was out.

PREDICTION: EAGLES 24 – Cowboys 17

yeah-bitch

2018 SEASON REVIEW: QUARTER TWO

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/11/05
Posted in: Coaching, Defense, Front Office (F.O.), NFC East, NFL, Offense, Players, Reviews, Roster, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

SEASON Reviews are usually done at the end of the season. (Duh.) A few are done at the halfway mark, and/or at the end. Starting in 2017, Eaglemaniacal.com began treating the season like a game, and breaking it into four quarters. Since football is a hard sport, we’ll take a hard look, at where our team stands at the moment (in relation to where it started), and where it needs to go.

STATUS:

4 – 4 overall, 1 – 0 division, 2 – 3 conference, 2nd place in the NFC East

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OPPONENTS:

L: Minnesota (4 – 3 – 1)

W: New York Giants (1 – 7)

L: Carolina (5 – 2 )

W: Jacksonville (3 – 5 )

OVERVIEW:

Injuries are part of any football team’s season, but the bug seems to LOVE us. For the second year in a row, all you can do is shake your head at the number and severity of our losses. We have a LT who was battling his way through a torn bicep, when the RT sprained a knee ligament, and will now miss a month. The right side of our 2018 projected starting Defensive Line is now on Injured Reserve. Starting RB, gone for the year. Deep threat starting WR, gone. Starting FS is on IR. Our reserve FS is out. Nickel Corner, out.

Yet here we sit. At 4 – 4. Still in the hunt.

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The stated mission last quarter was to tighten up the pass defense to improve our pressure up front. There was marginal statistical improvement across the board, except for takeaways. In the first 4 games, the Defense surrendered 1,161 yards on 103/159 passing (64.7%) allowing 7 touchdowns and grabbing 3 interceptions. In these last 4 games, the Defense surrendered 1,137 yards on 103/160 passing (64.3%) allowing 4 touchdowns and grabbing only 1 interception. We collected 11 sacks in both quarters so far.

Given the nasty injuries we’re dealing with in the Secondary, which have us starting a rookie (out of position) at FS, it’s hard to poo-poo these seemingly meager improvements.

We still have some things to sort out on Offense, however. For one, we need a proper run game. I won’t write a book here for it, but if you read my last one, then you know how we can do that up nice.

GRADES:

 

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QB: (A) Carson Wentz has been nothing short of AMAZING over these last 4 games. He’s posted a 10:1 touchdown to interception ratio, a 73.1 completion percentage, 1,185 yards, and an average yards per attempt of 8.5. He’s been killing it. He’s also been sacked 12 times. Some on him and some not.

RB: (D) This was an “A” last quarter (read why HERE). It would be an “F” this quarter if injuries to the Offensive Line, and scheme issues didn’t also play a contributing role in the fall-off in quality. But that’s all the curve I can give this group. The fact is, to a man, none of them has shown themselves to be an individual difference maker. Wendell Smallwood has gotten the bulk of the work, and has shown no ability to be explosive, elusive, or physical as a ball carrier. He’s the anti-Zeke. Starve him. Corey Clement has 52 yards on 23 carries in the last three games. He is however, still dealing with a lingering quad injury that already cost him two games, so the Eagles have limited his role as he works his way back. Rookie Josh Adams had the best day of any Eagles back since starter Jay Ajayi went out on IR during Week 5. Adams isn’t terribly physical as a runner, but he does provide more POP than the other two backs on the roster.

TE: (A) L’embarras du choix. Which is pronounced…

Pardon my French. That phrase means “Embarrassment of riches”. Right now in Zach Ertz leads all NFL TE’s with 61 catches so far. He’s tied with WR Odell Beckham for most catches in the NFL, and behind only WR Adam Thielen. In the last 4 games he has two 100 yard games and a touchdown in all but one week. Rookie Dallas Goedert looks like a seasoned pro out there, grabbing a touchdown in both of our last two games. Josh Perkins hasn’t caught a ball in the last 6 weeks, but we haven’t needed him to.

WR: (D) Yes we added Golden Tate. However, this report is about how Eagles players did during this last quarter. Tate wasn’t an Eagle, so this is about the guys who were.

Alshon Jeffery leads the team with 4 scoring grabs, 3 of which came in the last 4 games. Jordan Matthews doesn’t see a lot of targets, but he’s made the most of them when he does. His hands have been reliable, and he’s averaging 17.5 per catch over these last 4 outings. Nelson Agholor simply isn’t doing enough in the slot, and he may be the reason why we traded for Tate. Without a deep threat to open space underneath, Agholor has been rendered harmless. In the last 4 games, no one at this position has had a 100 yard day, only Jeffery has scored, and only once have two players had 50 or more yards in the same game.

OT: (D) Injuries be damned, LT Jason Peters is plowing through the season like a Mack truck going downhill, with no brakes. He is leaving everything, every ounce out on the field, in what looks like an unannounced swan song. Both he and RT Lane Johnson have had an issue of letting rushers leak underneath, after elongating the pocket. They need to start dictating a stop point. That is, when Johnson gets back from the month he’s about to miss with an MCL sprain. This should manageable though, since Halapoulivaati Vaitai is better suited to the Right. Rookie Jordan Mailata, was promoted to the active roster for Week 7, so his debut could be very very near.

OG: (D) For the first 4 games we had Stefen Wisniewski starting a LG, for the last 4 we’ve had Isaac Seumalo. Pressure up the gut has become a real problem. So has being unable to generate a new line of scrimmage on run plays. Some of that is scheme, but some of it is stepping down in terms of talent. Wiz is a battler, while Seumalo is kind of soft.

C: (D) I’ve WATCHED a couple plays in this quarter where Jason Kelce went to double a guy and had a man smoke right past him. Someone is doing a poor job of identifying secondary rushers, as well as stunt keys. That job is usually reserved for this position.

DE: (C ) Losing Derek Barnett was a big blow. He was playing very solid vs both the pass and the run. Brandon Graham isn’t producing the sacks that he was a year ago, but his run defense has been as good as it ever was. Chris Long is doing a good job of applying heat to QB’s, but he’s proving susceptible to off-Tackle runs, since this scheme frequently plays a LB inside the DE-DT gap, instead of outside of the DE, to set the edge. Michael Bennett is logging time at DE and DT, and is also second on the team with 3.5 sacks. Rookie Josh Sweat needs to show the coaches something if he wants to earn more meaningful playing time. This is a group that is playing very good team defense, but they aren’t delivering big plays, in big moments.

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DT: (C ) Fletcher Cox has come in playing like a man on a mission. He leads the team with 4 sacks, and is a MAN about defending his area vs the run. Haloti Ngata has been nicked up recently, probably due to playing more minutes than were anticipated when he signed. Treyvon Hester has started a game, but all indications are that he’s just a guy. Destiny Vaeao was waived and Timmy Jernigan has yet to return from the Non-Injured/Reserve list. This has taken a massive toll on last year’s stellar rotation strategy, but sprinkling in some Michael Bennett is keeping this unit from being a one man show. Word from on high, has it that Jernigan may make his return right after the Eagles Bye week.

OLB: (C ) This group still has yet to stand out, but they haven’t been a liability either. Nigel Bradham and Kamu Grugier-Hill have the athleticism to do all kinds of things, but they aren’t being utilized with any creativity.

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MLB: (A) Jordan “Cowboy Killer” Hicks had 31 tackles in the 1st quarter, and he topped that with 40 in the second quarter. He also added 1.5 sacks to bring his 2018 total to 3 so far. Coming into this season he had 2 total for his career. Hicks is stepping his game all the way up, but you never hear his name outside of Philly.

S: (D) Malcolm Jenkins is the emotional and mental heart and soul of the Secondary, but we need him to force more turnovers. With Rodney McLeod done for the year, Jenkins needs to lead by example more than by words. Corey Graham was tasked with filling in for McLeod and was promptly injured. Filling in for Graham, is rookie CB turned FS Avonte Maddox. Maddox just looks thrilled to be playing, even if it’s not his true position. He’s throwing his body around, playing with reckless abandon, and has even made a couple of plays. CB/S tweener, Rasul Douglas is being groomed to play this spot. Like the DE position, S is playing solid team concept ball, but fails to deliver in tight spots and big moments. Injuries here have impacted us severely.

CB: (D) We allow too many QB’s to leave the game with high completion percentages.

LS: (C ) He snaps the ball. Whoop-dee-do.

P: (B) Cameron Johnston punted 15 times this quarter, for 9 returned, and 3 fair caught. Same as last quarter on 5 fewer punts. He hasn’t been hitting them as hard and as a result, none of his boots have ended as touchbacks. In fact, 5 of them were downed inside the 20, with one out of bounds. Johnston isn’t great with his placement yet, but he’s working on it.

K: (C )Making 6 of 8 field goals (75% same as last quarter) Jake Elliott is reliable, but he has yet to show off the big leg that catapulted him into Eagles lore, last year.

PR/KR: (C ) On 10 punt returns DeAndre Carter is averaging 10.3 per attempt, with a long of 42. On kickoff returns he’s posting 20.4, with a long of 30. serviceable, but not scary. We need scary.

KC: (D) Last quarter we gave up 16.0 yards per kickoff return. This quarter we’re giving up 26.0. That number will only encourage returners to not take the fair catch. Punt returns went up too. 5.6 per return in Q1, then 8.1 in Q2.

SINCE LAST QUARTER:

We continue to be inconsistent. Despite increasingly amazing play from Wentz, the Offense seems stuck in neutral. The lack of a credible run game prevents us from being able to close out games, and rest our Defense.

Special Teams has forgotten about the importance of winning the hidden yardage battle. Or to wait until a game is over before you celebrate.

MISSION FOR THIS QUARTER:

Find a run game! Three of our next four games are division rivals, and we can’t beat them if we can’t run.

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FIXING EAGLES GAMES

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/10/31
Posted in: Coaching, Offense, Players, Rants, Uncategorized, X's and O's. Tagged: , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

 

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THERE are things that this team needs to fix. With that in mind, the Eagles needed this Bye Week now, and not a week later. Injuries at Wide Receiver, Offensive Tackle, the Defensive Line, and in the Secondary, have left the coaching staff scrambling every week, to put out solid units. As a result, almost no aspect of this team is running at capacity.

In the spirit of fixing things, popular fan refrains have been “Trade for X” or “Fire Y”. However, the plain truth is that we need to tweak (not wholesale change, just tweak) a few things, to start getting the most out of our players.

While we generally have had the depth-on-hand to plug a player in here and there, there is a difference between a back-up being ready to play this game, and a back-up being ready to play his game. Our Bye allows the coaching staff to step back, and re-imagine what the rest of 2018 needs to look like, for us to make it back to the post-season.

One of the first things killing us, is not running the ball effectively. Some fans and media types people put it on our RB’s. Folks like me have been blaming the Offensive Line. Turns out both of those camps are wrong. It’s the coaches. It’s our alignments. Those are the reasons why we can’t run the ball.

Look at these game shots:

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The disclaimer on this is, I had to cull these shots from highlight videos. (I chose the Panthers game.) Since our running game sucks, the rushing highlights were, well… Yeah these are all passing plays, but they’re still our typical alignments. 

You may recognize that these alignments with the WR’s tight to the O-line, are typical of our Offense this year. We did some of this last year, but this year it seems to be our Default Setting. Go back and look at each picture, and you’ll see 8 and 9 man boxes. A couple of them “loose” boxes. Again those pictures are all from pass plays, but we run the ball out of these same alignments.

This has been great for play-action, but it means zero room inside, on actual hand-offs. That was fine when we had bruising inside runners, to mask the Offenses true intent, but without a physical runner to help, all our smoke and mirrors are easy to see through. While our Offense puts up 22 points per game (21st in the league, 11th worst), the inability to run, has kept us from being explosive.

The simple fix is to spread our formation during the early part of the game when we want to establish the run, then later on when we need to sit on our lead, and close the game out. Rotate the slot receiver and put him in motion to move that 8th man out of the box. When room opens up inside for the ball carrier to find a crack, hit it, and step on the gas.

At that point we could get around to doing #7 from The 12. The Defense could rest during games, and we could seriously talk about running the table for the remainder of the year. Oh yeah. I said run the table. And YES, I’m aware that the Rams and Saints are two of our dance partners.

FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: WK8 : JAGUARS

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/10/29
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, Offense, Players, Reviews, stats, trade. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

TOLD you we were going to win. That anger. That prep that I said the Eagles were doing… While our opponents were out partying and getting arrested, after practice, we had a curfew. It was a business trip. And we took care of business.

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EAGLES 24 – Jaguars 18

QB Carson Wentz (21/30 – 70.0% – 286 – 3 – 1) was out there slinging it, running it (8 – 24 – 3.0 – 0 – 1) and catching it (1 – 4 – 4.0 – 0). He was making a tackle, making copies, making coffee, making it HAPPEN hallelujah! He said after the Panthers loss, that we needed to show what we were made of. This week he showed up, and showed two continents what Philly royalty looks like. Grace and ferocity on full display.

Rookie RB Josh Adams (9 – 61 – 6.7 – 0 – 0) got the most extensive play of his young career, and the Bucks County native led the team in both carries and rushing yards. WR Jordan Matthews (4 – 93 – 23.2 – 0) had his biggest game since his return, leading the team in receiving yards, and being in a three-way (tee-hee) tie for the lead in receptions.

MLB Jordan Hicks (8 – 1.5 – 0 – 0) led the team in tackles, but it would have been great to see him play more shallow underneath coverage, to take away those Crossing routes, and limit QB scrambles. DE Chris Long (2 – 2.0 – 0 – 0) grabbed a pair of sacks to bring his season total to 3 so far. If he finishes the year with an even 6.0, I’ll laugh myself stupid. (I won’t say why. You’ll just have to google his career, and look for yourself.) Rookie CB Avonte Maddox (4 – 0 – 0 – 0) filling in at FS, went full-blown kamikaze on a Jaguar WR, forcing a fumble and our only turnover of the game.

I hear you asking, “What about all the stuff that stats don’t reveal?” Well, Billy that’s the reason for these “Four Things” articles. We introduce an idea of what needs addressing BEFORE the game, so that fans have to honestly answer questions about those things, AFTER the game. This helps to get us, and keep us, all on the same page.

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So, of the Four Things we were looking for in this last game, what exactly did we see?

1) Run the damned ball: This is about raw numbers. We ran the ball 28 times, but 6 of those were Wentz, so of course not all of those were planned. Aside from Wentz, there were 22 called runs in the game. Wentz attempted 30 passes and was sacked 4 times, so that’s 34 called pass plays. That ratio is 34:22 pass vs run. In those 56 plays, we only ran it 39.2% of the time. Again, that’s if you take out those 6 Wentz rushes. They may not count as pure, called plays, but opponents regard these sorts of plays as if they are. (Remember when the Jags QB was running? It was real wasn’t it? Same thing here.) Adding in those 6 rushes, you get a ratio of 34:28, on 62 plays. That has us running it on 45.1% of our plays. A 60/40 split, which is what I’ve been preaching for weeks now. DONE

2) Activate the Machine: We didn’t force a single turnover from QB Blake Bortles and Jaymes (24/41 – 58.5% – 286 – 1 – 0). That’s an alarming statement, and as an Eagles fan, it’s the first thing that has truly scared me all season long. I’ve been concerned about other things, but not being able to get the ball from Bortles indicates that upcoming games are going to brutal. NOT DONE

3) Pick your poison: We worked the edges with our running game. It resulted in Josh Adams breaking a 21 yard gallop, and getting our TE’s open for two touchdown grabs, and of course RB Wendell Smallwood (8 – 24 – 3.0 – 0 – 0/ 2 – 42 – 21.0 – 1) on a virtually untouched 36 yard Backside Screen. These were literally the very plays I mentioned in this section, this week. DONE (Like a motherfucker.)

4) Send FIVE sometimes: This didn’t happen often, but we got two of our four sacks on blitzes. I can’t say this any plainer. It speaks for itself. Do this more, Jim! DONE

This week our Eagles planted our flag in 3 out of 4 goals, bringing the season tally to 14 of 32. It’s not a great percentage, but it is us lifting ourselves up, out of the muck. It’ll be a slow climb, but at least our Week 8 Bye will be the sweeter for the victory we get to savor. After that, for Week 9 we get our first match-up with the Dallas Cowboys.

On The Whole:

A struggling Eagles team were without either of our starting Offensive Tackles a one point in this game. Head Coach Doug Pederson shifted and shuffled personnel along the O-line, to find some stability and productivity. RT Lane Johnson was lost for a month with an MCL sprain, but LT Jason Peters return to action gave us the needed boost to finish and close-out this victory.

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That being said, a solution needs to be found for depth at OT. While everyone seems to be hoping that the Eagles land Pittsburgh RB LeVeon Bell, trading for an OT might make more sense in the immediate and long-term. (Besides, if we’re going to trade for a RB, it should be LeGarrette Blount. Cheaper to trade for, cheaper to pay, and he knows the system already.)

Something has to be done about our Defense not being able to get off the field, at the end of games. Watching team after team convert 3rd and longs, and 4th and more than one, is getting embarrassing. Especially combined with how few turnovers we generate anymore. We gotta get to work fixing this Defense.

 

 

FOUR THINGS: WK 8: EAGLES-JAGUARS

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/10/25
Posted in: Coaching, Defense, Four Things, NFL, Offense, Players, Preview, X's and O's. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , . 2 Comments

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WE’RE going to win this week. Not just because the Jaguars are in a tailspin. The first reason we’re going to win, is because our PLAYERS embarrassed themselves last week, and they’re actually angry about it. Been awhile around these parts, since that emotion was part of a week’s prep. The second reason, is the silence. The silence is to be feared.tally marks2.jpg

The Eagles nest was quiet like this, last year before the Rams game. WIN. The Eagles nest was quiet like this, last year before the Vikings game. WIN. People sometimes forget that beyond being a winning team, the Eagles are actually a good team. When we dot I’s and cross T’s, NOBODY, Rams, Vikings, Patriots, NOBODY wants to be lined up across from us. Even when we’re wounded badly.

So expect a win. Count on it. Bet on it. Book it.

This week our 3 – 4 Eagles face off against a 3 – 4 Jaguars team. Head Coach Doug Pederson is the most important person in this match-up. It’s only Week 8 and his Eagles team has once again taken key injuries at a host of positions (RDT, RDE, FS, FS2, RB, RB2, NCB), and are banged up at both OT spots. That being said, there is enough talent to still beat this opponent. Coach just has to focus it through the right lens.

Given our defensive problems, the focus needs to be on out-gunning the Jags. If it turns into a boring field goal-fest, as long as we win, I don’t care. However the trick to beating Jacksonville is turning the game into a shootout, knowing damned well that they don’t have the firepower to keep up with us.

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While WR Alshon Jeffery and TE Zach Ertz have been money in 2018, it would be great to see QB Carson Wentz launch a couple to WR Shelton Gibson, who was drafted to be a big play threat. It seems like a lid was slammed shut over the Offense when WR Mike Wallace went on IR, and we need to do something about blowing that lid off, so we can scare teams again.

So let’s talk about the Four Things we need to focus on this week versus the Jaguars :

1) Run the damned ball: This shouldn’t have to be said so much. BUT!! It seems that Philly is cursed to have head coaches (Andy Reid, Chip Kelly, now Doug) who don’t believe running is necessary. In any case, let me recite the mantra again for those who are new to this site: Running brings a Safety into the box, opening up the deep ball. Running slows pass rushers by making them read. The QB doesn’t get hit on run plays. Running eats clock and gives the Defense time to rest. Running beats up defensive linemen, and makes them less explosive pass rushers later in the game. Run the BALL! Oh yeah. As a side note (pure sarcasm right there), Jacksonville is 25th in the NFL against the run. They are the SEVENTH WORST RUN DEFENSE! Again, just a side note.

2) Activate the Machine: Jaguars QB Blake Bortles is a turnover machine, but he’s still an NFL starting QB. That means to get mistakes from him, we have to force him to make them. Luckily the Jags give us an easy route to that. Their interior O-line is banged up and weren’t very good when they were healthy. If our D-line can get pressure up the middle and force Bortles to his LEFT, our chances of getting him to give us the ball, go through the roof. Remember we need him to go back, and to the left. Back, and to the left. Back. And to the left.

3) Pick your poison: (Building on the RUN THE DAMNED BALL theme.) The Jaguars have tons of speed on the edges, but they lack the size needed to hold up to being shoved around by NFL O-linemen. We need to attack their edges with off-Tackle runs, so that they over-commit, and open up Zack Ertz in the intermediate passing game, as well as play-action backside Screens.

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4) Send FIVE sometimes: Everyone knows that Defensive Coordinator Jim Schwartz doesn’t like to blitz. He feels that our four man rush gets enough heat on the QB. While we may be getting heat on QB’s, we aren’t cooking them at the rate we need to. Schwartz needs to stop being so damned predictable. We need him to stop showing off the same inability to learn and make adjustments, which got him fired in Detroit. Yes, we won a Super Bowl with him as DC, but we allowed 33 points in that game, and his unit had one sack all day long.

If we do all these things, we’re just about guaranteed to win. Now that we’ve covered what should happen, let’s get into what likely will happen:

Understand, the worst thing that a team or an athlete can be, is comfortable. Books. Interviews. We went from “No one likes us” to “Everybody loves us”. Hungry dogs run faster, remember? But us. The players, coaches… We got civilized.

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But then! Last week! We embarrassed ourselves. And we realized that it was US that did it to ourselves! Now the Eagles now seem uncomfortable. Making matters worse for Jacksonville is, by virtue of playing in London for each of the last 6 years, they’ve become the adopted home team. The Eagles are heading into amateur hostile territory, with a chip on their shoulders now.

While the Jaguars will be desperate for a win to get back in contention for their division, they lack the tools to fend off a focused Eagles team. The Bottom Line is that we have have Carson Wentz, while all they have is Blake Bortles. God forbid something happens to Wentz, we have QB Nick Foles, and they still have Blake Bortles. Let’s pray that we don’t knock Bortles out of the game.

PREDICTION: EAGLES 27 – Jaguars 14

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OKAY ERIC, LET’S TALK SELL-OUTS

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/10/23
Posted in: Conversations, Players, Rants, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

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LET’S set the record straight. Malcolm Jenkins didn’t “sell out” the movement started by Colin Kaepernick. This is what he’s been accused of on more than one occasion, by reinstated NFL player (more on that later) Eric Reid. What Malcolm Jenkins and Torrey Smith did, was give legs and legitimacy to that very movement.

This has had my blood boiling for days now. So I needed to speak on it.

As a protest of police brutality, initially with its emphasis on Black victims, Kaepernick (then a 49ers QB) began a gesture of kneeling during our National Anthem. It was a not a protest of the anthem itself, but one meant to put a visual representation on the disenfranchisement of Blacks from the proper working of the justice system. It worked like a charm and his decision changed the course of American history.

Whatever your feelings on it at the time (these were mine), the gesture grabbed international attention. The eyes of the entire free world (over 200 countries, not just here), were upon the United States. Other football players, then athletes in other sports, then regular joes started to participate in the gesture. One of those players was Eric Reid, also with the 49ers at that time.

While many did, not every player or even team participated in the kneeling gesture. Absent an NFL policy regarding it, there was plenty of rancor over who could, should, would, and how to participate. One team that experienced no such rancor, was the Eagles. At no point during the 2017 season did the Eagles team kneel, sit, lay down or descend into controversy over the issue. In fact, what happened was two players, Jenkins and Smith, began a dialogue with law enforcement entities and politicians, even going to Capitol Hill on occasion.

Malcolm Jenkins and Torrey Smith turned what was mostly a distraction, into actual forward progress. Defensive End Chris Long joined in, and being a White player, helped stem the notion of this as just a Black problem, thus adding to the coalition. (Long also donated his 2017 base salary to charity, in the wake of the Charlottesville tragedy.)

I mean, movement is the essence of a movement, right? You have to do more than kneel in place, right? Colin Kaepernick, since being black-balled from the NFL (let’s not pretend it’s anything else), uses his time to still be out-front and vocal about the issue.

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We just discussed what Philadelphia Eagles players are doing.

Eric Reid on the other hand has done what exactly? The answer is, entirely nothing. (Aside from being willing to kneel, and wear “I’m With Kap” t-shirts. Way to go, Ace!)

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Reid was also black-balled for a time. Did he go forth on his free time and spread the message? Did he promote the movement? No. He spent that time begging for a job, from the very league that he claims exploits its athletes. So Jenkins (since MARCH) had lobbied the NFL to stop black-balling Reid, (story here) . The Carolina Panthers finally gave Reid a contract in October, ending his exile. How did Reid repay Jenkins going to bat for him? By calling Jenkins a sell-out.

Here’s what’s funny. Torrey Smith who worked hand-in-glove with Jenkins, is now a Panther. He was already a Panther when Reid was signed. Does Reid call Smith a sell-out too? Did he call any of his other teammates sell-outs for not kneeling when he did, during his first week back? (He was the ONLY player to kneel on either sideline.)

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The answer is “No”. He lacks the conviction to be that straight-up. If Reid came into that locker room with any static, he’d have been back on his couch before the ass-print faded. He simply doesn’t believe in his cause enough, to risk his opportunity to “be exploited”.

This is just a case of an ingrate, hothead, who wants to take shots at someone for being the sort of man that it never occurred to him to be. Eric Reid looks in the mirror and sees a guy who, when compared to Malcolm Jenkins, comes up short, both on AND off the field. It’s jealousy. It’s envy. It’s a small individual lashing out, because he knows deep down, the servitude that he decries, he actually craves. As evinced by his caterwauling to be let back into the NFL.

Now I ask you dear reader. Who is the REAL sell-out, in this situation?

FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: WK 7: PANTHERS

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/10/22
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, Offense, Players, Reviews, Special Teams, trade. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

THIS was a well deserved loss. We earned that shit. Yay, us. Whether you want to point to the Special Teams celebrating before a kick-off, the Offense throwing shallow routes to players that then headed out of bounds in the 4th quarter, or the Defense being yet again incapable of generating a turnover, there is plenty of blame and SHAME to go around this week.

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Eagles 17 – Panthers 21

Don’t get cute. That’s what cost the Eagles this game. Just like the Titans game. Not being able to finish at the end, can be pointed to as a cause of this team now being sub .500. Let me say that again. The Eagles are SUB .500.

QB Carson Wentz (30/37 – 81.0 – 310 – 2 – 0) was completely on his game, save for that one errant throw that left his hand weird, on the last drive. WR Alshon Jeffery (7 – 88 – 12.5 – 1) and TE Zach Ertz (9 -138 – 15.3 – 0) were out there looking like the Dynamic Duo. They seemed to ZAP! POW! ZLORP! any coverage they faced all day. After watching RB Wendell Smallwood (9 – 32 – 3.6 – 0 – 0) demonstrate that he’s NEVER a threat to break one, and RB Corey Clement (8 – 6 – 0.7 – 0 – 1) nearly ruin a scoring drive, GM Howie Roseman is probably pantless and bent over a desk with Pittsburgh as you read this.

Defensively? Our defenders should be paid 75 cents on the dollar for this week. It would only be fair.

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I hear you asking, “What about all the stuff that stats don’t reveal?” Well, that’s the reason for these “Four Things” articles. We introduce an idea of what needs addressing BEFORE the game, so that fans have to honestly answer questions about those things, AFTER the game. This helps to get us, and keep us, all on the same page.

So, of the Four Things we were looking for in this last game, what exactly did we see?

1) Make their RB beat us: That was going well until the Defense shrugged their shoulders and left to get an early dinner or whatever. RB Christian McCaffery (7 – 29 – 4.1 – 0 – 0 / 6 – 51 – 8.5 – 0) was held in check even as the intermediate and deep passing game was taken away from the Panthers. It makes this part hard to grade, because for three quarters we were pitching a shutout with this approach. It wasn’t until we… You know what. When we did it, it worked, and we did it for over half the game. I’m going to grade it on a technicality and on that alone. DONE

2) Get a second WR involved: WR Nelson Agholor (6 – 20 – 3.3 – 0) didn’t even average 5 yards (just half a first down) per catch, so it’s hard to put him down as “involved”. As a result, the run game yielded 58 yards on 24 carries for a grand average of 2.4 yards. No serious offense can live that way. NOT DONE

3) Surprise me!: Given our thin cupboard at DT, the Eagles said this week that they had a plan. The “plan” turned out to be starting DT Treyvon Hester (1 – 0 – 0 – 0) and rotating in, DT Bruce Hector (0 – 0.5 – 0 – 0). I chose to be kind here and wonder if both players couldn’t get penetration, because they just ran out of gas late in the game. Especially given that Hester doesn’t generally see much playing time, and Hector was basically called off his couch a few days ago. Hector’s re-signing was hardly a surprise given that he was here during preseason. NOT DONE

4) Maintain balance: “Not 35, 37, or 38.9999999. We need at least 40 percent.” Those are my exact words from Four Things. In this game of  the 61 plays we ran, 37 were passes, 24 were runs. The run selection percentage? 39.3. Leading 17 – 14 with 7 minutes and change left in the game, is what your run game is for. That is not the time to throw short passes to the flat, near the sideline. This is is where getting cute HURTS. This is where you need to be able to FINISH. Instead, we let incompletions and poor choices allow time for the opponent to come back and cut our throats. NOT DONE

So this week’s score is a dismal 1 out of 4, bringing the yearly to 11 of 28. It’s an appalling score, but one befitting a 3 – 4 team that likes to give games away. Next week we travel across the pond to see if we can survive a reeling Jaguars team and claw back to .500.

On The Whole:

The more I write about this, the more stunned I become. You’d think the loss of the lead would have been the stunner, but nope. It’s all the ignored fundamentals that seem like they’re just dangling at the tips of our fingers. It’s almost like Head Coach Doug Pederson is waiting for the moment to turn it on.

For instance, why are we starting Wendell Smallwood? He has no big play ability and there isn’t a player, a coach, or a ball-boy who doesn’t know it. It’s a handicap that we’ve given ourselves.

Why are we bunching the WR’s up on the ends of the line, instead of spreading out the formation? This is hurting the run game, as it keeps more defenders around to clog up lanes. (And no, this can’t be used to exonerate Smallwood, since even when he does pop free, he’s easy to run down.)

Why are we leaving the outside arm of the DE’s uncovered so much? It makes it hard to set the edge on Sweeps, Jet-Sweeps, Tosses, and Pitches. It also means the QB doesn’t have to take a second look, before throwing a Screen.

Why doesn’t Doug TELL Defensive Coordinator Jim Schwartz, to blitz a little more often? We’ve gotten to a point where we get pressure, but it doesn’t cause turnovers. If anything it makes opposing QB’s look like old-school heroes. Week in and week out they seem content to stand in the pocket and trade a small hit for a big completion.

We’re 3 – 4 on a season where we should be 5 – 2. (The losses to Tampa and Minny were legit losses.) The more I think about this loss, the more stunned I become. By next Sunday, I may be catatonic. Pray for me.

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FOUR THINGS: WK 7: EAGLES-PANTHERS

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/10/18
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, Offense, Players, Preview. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

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THE Eagles need to string two wins together. Period. Last week we did what we should have, and thoroughly handled a bad giants team. This week offers a somewhat tougher opponent, whom we need to find a way to beat. This isn’t a “must win” game. It’s not a “test our mettle” game. We don’t need to “make a statement” this week. This is about hosting a team, beating their asses, and sending them home. This is TCB. Plain and simple.

QB Carson Wentz is looking better with every game. Right now we’re RB by committee, but RB Corey Clement is clearly the most effective RB on the roster. If I had any say, he would start. As of today, Fletcher Cox and Treyvon Hester (pffft, beats me) are our only fully healthy DT’s heading into Sunday, but the coaching staff claims to have a plan. (Uhhhh…yay?)

This week the Eagles get to decide if last week’s win was us getting our mojo back, or just the giants being worse than we were that night. Aside from this being a conference match-up, there isn’t much to hype about it. This is largely the Panthers team we beat last year. It’s us who’s undergone more significant change since then. For that reason, don’t try to match or compare last year’s game with this one. Don’t think that last year’s formula will yield last year’s results. Don’t expect the Panthers to fold quite as easily as they did last time we played. (Emphasis on the word ‘quite’.)

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So let’s talk about the Four Things we need to focus on this week versus Carolina :

1) Make their RB beat us: Take away the deep ball, to take away the big play. Panther QB Cam Newton is a guy who plays well only when things go well. He turns into a petulant CHILD when they don’t.

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Seriously. What kind of woman fucks a guy like this?

Take him emotionally out of the game, put the offense squarely on the shoulders of their RB, and turn it into a boring, grind out style ballgame.

2) Get a second WR involved: WR Alshon Jeffery has been a beast. His being doubled and bracketed is getting TE Zach Ertz all kinds of open. That said, the Eagles need a second WR (Jordan Matthews, Nelson Agholor, Clifford Franklin…)

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to step up, and stretch opposing defenses horizontally, to open up big plays for runs up the middle.

3) Surprise me!: We’re heading into this game with just three DT’s, one of which (Haloti Ngata) should probably be on a pitch count. We have a few DE’s who log snaps at DT, but no one who should play on running downs. Defensive Coordinator Jim Schwartz had better have one hell of a wrinkle up his sleeve, because right now, this sort of looks terrifying.

4) Maintain balance: It would be disingenuous of me to tell the Eagles to “run the damned ball”, again. Disingenuous and beating a dead horse. It seems like they may have gotten my message. They also seem to like it when Wentz doesn’t get beat to shit, during a game. That said, we DO need to maintain a run-play selection of at least 40 percent. Not 35, 37, or 38.9999999. We need at least 40 percent.

If we do all these things, we’re just about guaranteed to win. Now that we’ve covered what should happen, let’s get into what likely will happen:

The Eagles will split carries between RB’S Wendell Smallwood and Corey Clement, in order for GM Howie Roseman to determine if he needs to make a move by the October 30th trade deadline. Out of 32 teams, the Panthers are 15th against the run. Sso while they aren’t a huge challenge, they are a legitimate proving ground on which Roseman can base his assessment.

While the Eagles rank in the lower echelon of the NFL in offensive rankings, it needs to be stated that we’ve worked past many of the difficulties and injuries that hampered us earlier this season. We also seem to be understanding who we need to be, in order to win.

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The same cannot be said of a Carolina team that is still missing both offensive tackles, who started every game for them in 2017 (Ouch!). Despite a good QB passer rating, they are a 26th ranked passing team, whose run game is mostly smoke and mirrors. Their RB had 184 of his 349 rushing yards, come in one game. He otherwise averages 41 per game. Newton chipping in (45 – 208 – 4.6 – 3) on the ground this year, inflates the appearance of the Panthers rushing attack, on paper.

The Panthers live on their defense getting pressure and forcing turnovers. If an opponent doesn’t feed these paper tigers, they usually fold by about a touchdown. We don’t commit a ton of turnovers, so as long as we stick to that, we should win a close one that comes down to the last possession or so.

PREDICTION: EAGLES 28 – Panthers 21

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FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: WK 6 :GIANTS

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/10/12
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, NFC East, Offense, Players, Reviews, Rivals, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

DIDN’T I tell you to relax? Last night, the Eagles did enough to let everyone know that WE, PHILADELPHIA, are still the class of the NFC East. To be the man, you have to beat the man. The giants issued a challenge and we said, “Fuck it. You can pick where.” The fight went down in their house, and we used their asses to break every stick of furniture in the joint. Then we lit a cigarette, dropped it on the carpet, and strolled out.

And their fans paid to sit in the rain, and watch that shit! BAHAHAHAHA! Yeah, I’m clownin’. What of it?

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EAGLES 34 – giants 13

Where do I start? Oh I know! How about 31 rushing attempts to 36 passes? You know what that’s called? Balance! You know what it means? It means that the giants bought our play-action, because they actually had to respect our run game. It means that QB Carson Wentz (26/36 – 72.2% – 278 – 3 – 0), was sacked just once all night. There were times when he had time to stand upright, with his feet FLAT in the pocket, and read the defense. Three touchdowns and no interceptions. That’s what balance means.

RB Wendell Smallwood (18 – 51 – 2.8 – 0 – 1) got the nod and the bulk of the carries, but he was clearly outperformed by RB Corey Clement (11 – 43 – 3.9 – 1 – 0). Not only that but Clement told GM Howie Roseman before the game that the Eagles don’t need to trade for a RB, to which Howie responded with “Make me believe.” We need this guy starting next week. As fans we need to pound the table (tweets, call-in shows, website comments) for him.

WR Alshon Jeffrey (8 – 74 – 9.2 – 2) and TE Zach Ertz (7 – 43 – 6.1 – 1) gave Wentz that inside/outside, pick your poison,scoring combo that made us the best team in the league last regular season. WR Nelson Agholor (3 – 91 – 30.3 – 0) made a heads up play when he practically intercepted a tipped ball, and turned it into a 58 yard catch that set up Ertz’s 10 yard TD.

Today WR Odell Beckham (6 – 44 – 7.3 – 0) is on milk cartons all across the country. So that’s what a 90 million dollar WR looks like? Pffft! Thank goodness we only pay Alshon 52! Hats off to our Secondary for playing solid team concept coverage. They gave the Defensive Front time, to get to QB Eli Manning (24/43 – 55.8% – 281 – 0 – 1). I told you that the D-Line would visit him at least three times, and three linemen (Vaeao, Bennett, and Cox) got to eat last night. OLB L Nigel Bradham (6 – 1 – 0 – 0) also managed to snag himself a sack as well.

I hear you asking, “What about all the stuff that stats don’t reveal?” Well Billy, that’s the reason for these “Four Things” articles. We introduce an idea of what needs addressing BEFORE the game, so that fans have to honestly answer questions about those things, AFTER the game. This helps to get us, and keep us, all on the same page.

So, of the Four Things we were looking for in this last game, what exactly did we see?

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1) Dammit, run the fucking ball: We ran the ball 31 times, which established balance and allowed the Offense to flow, instead of fighting against itself. Hopefully this becomes a trend, Doug! DONE

2) Box that boy: The Eagles Secondary did a great job of not allowing Beckham room to roam, and having someone in the area whenever he did get the ball. It forced the giants into a small-ball format, which put handcuffs on their offensive potential, and slowly suffocated them. DONE

3) Play some press: While the Secondary did things to affect the timing and location of receivers, it can’t really be said that we played any true man-press. NOT DONE

4) Air Jordan: In Weeks 4 and 5, WR Jordan Matthews (2 – 26 – 13. 0 – 0) was targeted once. In this game (Week 6) against the giants, he saw 3 targets, for a season-high 2 catches. So he did in fact, see more passes come his way. DONE

This week’s score is a hearty 3 out of 4, bringing the year’s tally to 10 of 24. Next week we get the Panthers. Last year we headed into Carolina with a 4-1 record, yet everyone was looking past us, at the Rams. This year Carolina comes here. We’re 3 – 3 and everyone is looking past us at the Rams. We’re taking on a lot of key injuries again as well.

On The Whole:

Now do you see it? This game was needed less for positioning in the division, and more for our guys to reset and get back to what made them great last year.

No one forgot how to block, or tackle, or cover, or catch or throw. What the team seemed to forget was the ability to enjoy playing. Last night when they got that feeling going, they in no way resembled the team they’ve been for the last three weeks. (They get a pass for the two weeks under QB Nick Foles.)

In this giants game, they looked like Carson’s team. The team that did the Electric Slide last year. eaglectric slide.gif

The team that beat the Panthers and the Rams. That dismantled the 49ers, Broncos and Bears. That swept the giants and Redskins, going 5 – 1 in the division by a score of 162 – 109. This is still that team. And we are still the class of the NFC East.

COOLSPIN

FOUR THINGS: WK 6: EAGLES-GIANTS

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/10/10
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, NFC East, NFL, Offense, Players, playoffs, Preview, Rivals. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

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PUMP the brakes. This isn’t a must win game. The media sells it that way, because it generates ratings, clicks, and comments, but step back and look at the standings with your own eyes. Really look at the NFC East for what it actually is right now.

Win or lose, it’s still too early in the season for there to be a make or break week yet. The regular season is ALL about making the playoffs. It’s not about getting a first round Bye. It’s not about repeating. (Because you can’t do that during the regular season.) Right now is just about making the playoffs. There is a LOT of track to still lay down, before we can say that we’ve made it or that we didn’t. So relax. Breathe. This game is important. As a division game, it’s huge. But it’s FAR from “must win” status.

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QB Carson Wentz is still playing at the MVP level he was at this time last year. (Look it up.) The difference is in how teams play us, because we aren’t running the ball as much as a competent offense should. Losing RB Jay Ajayi for the year with a torn/damaged ACL, doesn’t inspire confidence that Head Coach Doug Pederson will try to lean on the run more. However, in order to get the next man up (hopefully RB Corey Clement) situated, leaning on the run is exactly what we need to be about.

The Secondary continues to not cover, to rack up penalties, and to miss tackles. If Defensive Coordinator Jim Schwartz feels that any of this is a problem, he certainly needs to demonstrate it by benching a guy (CB Jalen Mills) or two (CB Sidney Jones). Scheme-wise, last week the cushions were smaller, but we still played no man-press.

If we’re going to beat the giants, we have to slow down their receiving corps and generate turnovers. Depending on how we approach this game, it will either be impossible to lose, or impossible to win.

So let’s talk about the Four Things we need to focus on this week, versus the giants :

1) Dammit, run the fucking ball: Play-action is set up by running the ball effectively. Dear Doug, faking a handoff is not the same as running the ball. Teams are ignoring our play-action, because we fake it more than we actually run it. Also every time Wentz hands the ball off, it’s a play where he won’t get hit. He could use a couple of low-abuse games. Regardless of who the RB is, run the damned ball, Doug!

2) Box that boy: Don’t let WR Odell Beckham have the sideline.

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Don’t double him outright, but keep him bracketed where the FS can reach him with a hit. Beckham will see a fair amount of targets, even if he’s well covered. Forcing QB Eli Manning to throw the ball into a tighter window, could result in one (or more) of those delicious turnovers he likes to feed defenses.

3) Play some press: (This likely won’t get done, but I’d be remiss not to mention it.) Man-press would throw a receivers timing off and let the rush reach the QB. It also would also create a traffic jam and set the edge, when the giants ran a Screen play.

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4) Air Jordan: WR Jordan Matthews needs to see more passes thrown his way. Last week we did a great job of getting the ball down and across the middle to TE’s, but if we want to open up the run game, we need to spread the defense out horizontally.

If we do all these things, we’re just about guaranteed to win. Now that we’ve covered what should happen, let’s get into what likely will happen:

We need to establish our ground game, and the giants are 27th in the NFL at defending the run! We are 0 – 2 when we run for under 100 yards this year. We are 2 – 1 when going for 113 or better. (The one loss was in overtime. We had 117 yards.) All of this points toward a concerted effort to run the ball on Thursday.

In five games, the giants defense has just 6 sacks to their credit. Their pass rush is anemic at best. This should be a game where our Offensive Line can start to figure some stuff out, and have it carry forth through the season.

Manning is going to complete a lot of passes if we play loose coverage yet again. He’ll carve us up the way he did the last time we faced him. (We won that game though.) He’ll do his best to get the ball out quickly, but our Defensive Line is going to pay him 3 or more visits on Thursday night.

Yet again, I’m picking the Eagles this week. It’s because I’m a homer, right? Wrong. Just look at the teams we’ve faced so far. Of course I was picking the Eagles. Now we get a 1 – 4 team with no pass rush, and who can’t stop the run. Really, who am I supposed to pick here?

PREDICTION: EAGLES 21 – giants 13

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