2018 – COWBOYS

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/04/11
Posted in: Coaching, Defense, Draft, NFL, Offense, Players, playoffs, Preview, Reviews, Rivals, Roster, Special Teams. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

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LAST year… the Cowboys were 5 – 1 in the division and 9 – 7 overall, after finishing the prior year with an NFC best 13 – 3 record, followed immediately by a playoff loss. Total scoring for 2017 was 354 points for, and 322 points against. Which is about what you’d expect for a team just above .500. A case can be made that they had to deal with distractions, stemming from the looming suspension of a key starter, for six weeks.

That was last year. Keeping in mind that the Draft will change some of this, the following is a report on how the team looks today, prior to the NFL Draft….

OFFENSE

QB:

The 4 interceptions Dak Prescott threw in 2016, jumped to 13 in 2017. Throwing 13 picks in a season isn’t really cause for alarm. Especially since I warned last year that a regression was coming. I said the league was adjusting to him, faster than he was adjusting to the league, and he spent 2017 proving my point. His 2017 stats themselves are somewhat misleading (62.9%, 3300+ yards passing, 22/13, 86.6 rating). When you look at his performance game by game (or watching him play), it tells a very different story. It says that he’s basically just— You know, he’s still only going into his third year. One great year, and one not so great year. So this could be a bounce-back season for him, given the new toys he just got. Behind Prescott, sits preseason Hall Of Famer, Cooper Rush. Rush may get a chance to play in 2018 if Prescott can’t shake off 2017. Again, this may be a bounce back year for Prescott. So for now, let’s give the guy the benefit of the doubt. (+)

RB:

Having been suspended for six games, it’s only natural that Ezekiel Elliott would rush for fewer yards than in his rookie season. That’s to be expected under the circumstances. However, in the games he did play, he simply wasn’t as explosive as he was the season before. In 2016 he had (14) rushes of 20+ yards, and (3) of 40+. In 2017 he had just (5) rushes of 20+ yards, and (0) of 40+. Zero. His yards per carry went from 5.1 to 4.1. Some will say he was distracted. Others will point to his hard-charging style, and the 1,272 touches he’s logged (college and pro) since 2013. He may be young, but he’s still human, and so far it doesn’t seem as if any effort to preserve him is being made. Behind Elliott are Rod Smith and FB Jamize Olawale (Raiders). The Cowboys have fantasies of turning Smith into a threat as ball carrier, but he simply lacks the vision. Elliott makes this group passable, but if he gets hurt, this position goes off a cliff. (+)

WR:

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Dez Bryant vs Janoris Jenkins

As of the moment you read these words, Dez Bryant is still a Cowboy, but that could change by the time you finish reading this section. Like an aging beauty queen, Bryant is no longer able to get by on his physical talent alone. He’s hired a coach to help him refine all the parts of his craft, that he’s ignored for 8 years. However, until that bears fruit, he’s still an overpaid #2 receiver. Terrance Williams will probably find himself watching a lot of football with the addition of free agent Allen Hurns (Jaguars). Cole Beasley may also find himself on the outside looking in, with the addition of free agent Deonte Thompson (Bills). Both new players immediately upgrade Dallas’s ability to threaten vertically. As a group every one of them is either a fading star (Bryant), a chronic disappointment (Williams, Thompson), a flash in the pan (Hurns), or no one worth worrying about (Beasley, Ryan Switzer). This position has been in the toilet for a couple years now and until they prove better, there’s no way to grade them well. (-) 

TE:

Jason Witten is more of a blocker than a receiver now. He hasn’t averaged even 10 yards per catch in any of his last three seasons. He hasn’t had a reception of more than 35 yards since 2012. He’s a classy, high effort guy, but he’s no longer a threat. Spoken bluntly, he’s just in the way now. Back-ups Geoff Swaim and James Hanna are clearly unable to step up and earn the starting job. The hope is that Rico Gathers is done making the transformation from basketball player to football player. If so, he could be a match-up nightmare for years to come. (-)

OL:

Travis Frederick is doing a great job anchoring the pivot. After that, it gets a little bit… uneasy. This marks a second year in a row that the Cowboys have lost a LG. The solution being floated as a fix for that, is moving RT La’el Collins to LG, and placing free agent addition Cameron Fleming (Patriots) at RT. LT Tyron Smith played through injuries in 2016, and followed that up with struggling with his back in 2017. That doesn’t bode well for 2018, since injuries are cumulative and beyond Smith there is no depth. Yes, there are a couple of players, but they’re liabilities, as evinced by the 5 sacks Chaz Green was beaten for vs the Falcons. That’s not to say that the Cowboys are bad here, but they’ve clearly taken steps backwards. Passing: 28 sacks allowed in 2016, then 32 allowed in 2017. Rushing: 4.8 yards per rush in 2016, then 4.5 per rush in 2017. They aren’t huge steps backwards, but they are noticeable, and across the board. That being said, it’s still a pretty good line. (+)

In a nutshell:

Plenty of talent on this offense. However, it’s unevenly distributed, and there is no depth pretty much anywhere. It won’t take much to derail this unit, given the top-heavy way that it’s constructed. For the last two seasons, Dallas has avoided major injury to their skill players. If they can stay that healthy in 2018, things will be fine. (+)

 

DEFENSE

DE:

Demarcus Lawrence had big year in 2017, amassing 14.5 sacks after only having one in 2016. None of his prior three seasons resemble 2017’s performance, so it raises the question of whether this was a “contract year” thing. Tyrone Crawford is mostly a big body to eat space and occupy blockers, so other players can make stops. Vidauntae “Taco” Charleton was a first round pick last year, and yet another Draft Day gamble by owner Jerry Jones. Charleton has some athletic traits that the team hopes to harness. The only issue is, he may be more of an athlete than a football player. Randy Gregory (as of this moment) is still seeking to be reinstated, because he has more failed drug tests in his career, than career starts and sacks combined. (Just one sack in 2016.) Former Jet, Kony Ealy was added to the roster. Perhaps for depth? Aside from Lawrence’s 2017 season, this position is shrug inducing. However, since no one can prove that his 2017 season was a fluke, this position has to get the benefit of the doubt. (+)

DT/NT:

Maliek Collins is just a guy. If the Cowboys select at this position at any time in the Draft’s first three rounds, you’ll know who they want to replace. On the other hand, if David Irving could start 16 games, who knows what impact he would have on the Cowboys entire defense. The knock on him is his inability to stay on the field, (for a variety of reasons) over these last three seasons. Richard Ash is a big body, but he’s a career back-up. There’s enough talent here to make a few big splash plays during the year, but no one at this position is capable of doing it week in and week out. (-)

OLB:

Sean Lee offers no pass rush threat, and is an absolute liability in coverage on the outside. However, if he’s not on the field, the Cowboys defense loses the ability to function. Which is a shame, because he misses a lot of time. Damien Wilson started a career-high 9 games in 2017. (You go, boy!) He produced all of 35 tackles. Which sadly was also a career-high. The Cowboys have a few bodies here, but they’re all kick coverage types. (-)

M/ILB:

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Jaylon Smith started 6 games and grabbed 81 tackles. Not bad for a guy learning how to play with Drop Foot at the NFL level. Commendable effort. Great spirit. And an absolute liability in coverage. Not just that, but after a few weeks, teams learned what he does and doesn’t do well. After the Bye week he clearly hit a wall and never regained his early season form. The idea is to have him backed-up by former Packer, Joe Thomas. Given Smith’s visible ceiling, Thomas could surprise people and challenge for the starting spot. If that’s the case, then competition should sharpen the winner of this position. For that reason alone this position gets the benefit of the doubt. (+)

S:

Due to the play of Jeff Heath and Byron Jones, the Cowboys secondary wasn’t the easy target that everyone has become accustomed to in recent years. With a year of playing together under their belt, they can only be better in 2018. Xavier Woods adds depth and experience. It’s not flashy, and it can be easy to overlook, but this position is a sneaky strength for this unit. Totally legit. No benefit of the doubt needed. (+)

CB:

Chidobe Awuzie and Jourdan Lewis ended last year as starters, after beginning the year as reserves. They’re young, which can be both a blessing and a curse. Neither man is exactly a ball-hawk. Anthony Brown played so well last year, that he was demoted after 10 starts. This position is very much still a work in progress. (-)

In a nutshell:

This defense is extremely vulnerable on the edges, because the CB’s are green, and the OLB’s can’t cover. They could gamble on the Draft coming to their rescue, but that has no bearing on this report, which about how they look as today. If Lawrence’s 2017 was no fluke, the Cowboys a least have a building block heading into the Draft. If it was just him trying to cash in, this unit is screwed. (-)

 

SPECIAL TEAMS

P:

Chris Jones is out there killing it. 66 punts and just 75 punt return yards. All. Year. Long. Oh yeah, and for the second year in a row, he ran another punt fake for 20+ yards.

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His punt average dipped from 45.9 to 44.1, but his net went from 40.5 to 41.4, so the team ended up better off. Just killing it! (+)

K:

After a career year in 2015, Dan Bailey has declined in each of the the last two seasons. After missing four games with a groin injury, he struggled with his Field Goal accuracy, going 8 of 13 over the final five games of the season. Dallas brought in Brett Maher, but NFL teams have been making use of him as a camp leg since 2013. So he has virtually no shot at the job. Last year’s review gave Bailey the benefit of the doubt. This year, especially given his steep decline, that cannot be the case. (-)

RS:

In 2017, WR Ryan Switzer averaged 8.8 yards per punt return, and brought one back for an 83 yard TD. He also averaged 25 yards per kickoff return, while amassing 600 yards. He’s no Brian Mitchell, but he gets the job done. (+)

In a nutshell:

Newly promoted Special Teams coach Keith O’Quinn, has to figure out his kicking situation. Aside from that it’s a quietly effective unit, that should continue to be one. (+)

Bottom Line:

Same story as always. Bunch of talent, haphazardly organized. Dallas spends too much time looking at the big picture, and ignoring small details. (An example would be Dez Bryant waiting this long to concern himself with route precision.) This team isn’t interested in “Why”, so they never learn, and keep getting in their own way. No team does it more. Their ability to score will give the feel of them being in every game, and having a chance to win the division. Their inability to stop other teams from scoring, will be why they won’t win enough games to win the division.

2018 – REDSKINS

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/04/10
Posted in: Coaching, Defense, Draft, NFL, Offense, Players, Preview, Reviews, Rivals, Roster, Special Teams. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Redskins_logo_by_junkfunkio-d4po4ge

LAST year…the Redskins went 1 – 5 in the division, and 7 – 9 overall, after going 8 – 7 – 1 the year before. They posted a respectable 342 points (21.3) points per game. However, the 388 points they allowed, were tied for the most in conference, with New York. (Not the Jets, the giants). A second, consecutive offseason of self-sabotage, resulted in another uneven year for the burgundy and gold.

That was last year. Keeping in mind that the Draft will change some of this, the following is a report on how the team looks today, prior to the NFL Draft….

OFFENSE

QB:

The new starter is Alex Smith (Chiefs). 

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Alex “Likes that” too.

He’s a game manager who doesn’t make dumb mistakes with the ball, and has more mobility than his predecessor. The thing about managers, is that they generally are only as good as the staff around them. Given explosive weapons last year in K.C., Smith got out to a fast start, but soon cooled off. As teams figured out ways to corral his weapons, more responsibilities for making plays fell to Smith, and he did what has kept him in the NFL for 14 years: He didn’t make many big mistakes. (Or many big plays.) Behind him sits the competent Colt McCoy and Kevin Hogan (Browns) who they traded for, for some reason. (-)

RB:

Rob Kelley, Samaje Perine, and Chris Thompson. That’s it. That’s what everyone else is supposed to fear and game plan for. Perine is a high effort, straight- line runner, who runs with no flare or imagination. Kelley can be dynamic, but gets nicked up too easily. Thompson is best of the bunch and that isn’t saying much. Here are some quick numbers: 64. 39. 103. That’s 64 rushes, 39 catches, 103 total touches. In 10 games last year that’s what Thompson did. He doesn’t get a whole lot of work because of two more numbers: 5’8 and 191. He’s a change of pace/instant offense RB, who also returns kicks, so the coaching staff doesn’t want him getting too beat up. The problem with three distinct RB’s is that you always telegraph your intentions when one comes out. While the ‘skins may have 3 RB’s, they don’t really have one. (-)

WR:

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Jamison Crowder again caught nearly 70 balls, but without a deep threat in 2017, he wasn’t nearly as effective underneath. Especially in critical moments. However, since he’s their best option at this position (like Chris Thompson at RB), it’s only natural that they don’t start Crowder. This year, the ‘skins are trying something new, and not starting a QB at WR. (Like they did last year.) And you know, it just might be crazy enough to work! Last year, in a 31-34 (loss) shootout with the Saints, starter and former first round draft pick Josh Doctson, exploded for career highs of 4 catches and 81 yards. (Straight ballin’, right?!) To play Robin to Doctson’s Barbara Gordon, the ‘skins went out and signed Paul Richardson (Seahawks).

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Richardson is such a dangerous deep threat that Seattle let him sign elsewhere, for a salary they could have easily matched. (-)

TE:

Hamstring. Concussion. Cut himself shaving. Seems like even a change in the wind’s direction, will cause Jordan Reed to miss games. Luckily, the Redskins can fall back on Vernon Davis, due to his pact with Satan, that keeps him from aging. Last season, despite beginning the year as a back-up, Davis was third on the team in receiving yardage. Jeremy Sprinkle is more of a blocker than a receiving option, and for that reason, he’ll grab 1 to 3 garbage scores per year. (+)

OL:

It looks as if 4 of 5 starters from 2017, will be back for 2018. That sort of continuity and having players who already know the system, are always an advantage. There’s no questioning the individual talent of the players. The issue is keeping them upright and on the field. If the Redskins can manage that, then they’ll have an important building block. (+)

In a nutshell:

For the last few years, the ‘skins offense has produced, due to a having a QB with a gunslinger mentality, who was trying to prove his worth. Today their QB is a game manager who has no incentive to prove anything. As I said before, a manager (QB) is only as good as his staff (weapons). Like the QB, the weapons here are all better suited to being role-players than starters. Last year this unit scored 342 points. This year that number will likely be closer to 295 – 304. (-)

 

DEFENSE

DE:

The cornerstone of this defensive line is Jonathan Allen.

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Much was expected of him after he was picked 17th overall in last year’s Draft. So of course after 5 games, he went down with a season-ending Lisfranc injury. This is before he was able to really settle into the NFL game. The team ended up having to rely on a steady diet of Matt Ioannidis and Stacy McGee. They combined for 71 tackles and 4.5 sacks (4.5 of those belonging to Ioannidis). Even when Allen returns, he has the rest of his learning curve to iron out, and has yet to experience 16 games effect on his body. On a defense that was 32nd (dead last) in the league vs the run, having the additional problem of not being able to rush the passer…that means this position is a liability. (-)

DT/NT:

Acting as the NT for the ‘skins 3-4 system was Ziggy Hood. Hood was completely unremarkable as he contributed 0.5 sacks and 25 tackles to the NFL’s worst rushing defense. There are a few bodies at this position, but not even the starter is worth worrying about. (-)

OLB:

Ryan Kerrigan as usual, had a very good statistical year with 13 sacks and his fist pick six in four years. Preston Smith added 8 sacks and 2 thefts of his own. Sadly, the very aspect of the ‘skins system which feeds their players stats, also makes their defense predictable and vulnerable. This position is talented, no doubt. Ironically, it’s prowess is the unit’s greatest weakness. (+)

M/ILB:

Inside it was a tale of two Zachs. Zach Brown and Zach Vigil. The brown Zach started 13 games and made 127 stops last year. The other Zach had 6 starts and notched 56 tackles. He did this while filling in for Mason Foster, who went on IR after 5 weeks of trying to gut through a shoulder injury. When he’s been healthy for Washington, Foster has been more of a guy who makes tackles, not plays. And he’s the best of this group. Once again, this was the 32nd ranked run defense, and these are the same players likely to start in 2018. (-)

S:

FS D.J. Swearinger had a nice individual season in 2017 with 4 picks and 10 deflections, and should be decent in 2018. All 195 pounds of Deshazor Everett is the SS, which could be trouble vs the run. Which is sad, since he’s never proven great at defending the pass. The rest: Montae Nicholson, with 6 starts sprinkled across 8 games in 2017. After that is (Kenny Ladler) a former Bill who hasn’t played a down since 2014; (James Sample) a former Jaguar who hasn’t played a down since 2015; (Orion Stewart) a former Bronco who’s never played a down, and a back-up from last year named Fish Smithson. His real name is Anthony, but he goes by Fish. On purpose. (His brother played for Green Bay and went by Shaky. On purpose.) Expect a high draft pick here. (-)

CB:

Josh Norman may be growing wistful for the days of Carolina. Instead of being the missing piece for a team on the rise, he’s slowly becoming a less and less feared defender, on a team that has done a nose-dive off of a cliff. Last year’s other starter was allowed to walk, and will be replaced either by former Cowboy Orlando Scandrick, or Quinton Dunbar. The position isn’t flashy, but it is sneaky solid. It’s a veteran group, three players deep, and they know 2/3 of the offenses in the division. (+)

In a nutshell:

By Week 8 last year, this team had already lost Jonathan Allen and Mason Foster to injuries. They’ll get both players back in 2018, along with the hope that their front seven is tougher to run against, inside the tackle box. The secondary is undersized at SS, but should be cagey at CB. The OLB’s are talented, however they play in a scheme that yields easy yards on the perimeter, which in turn yields easy points. This unit will be broken until they change the scheme. (-)

 

SPECIAL TEAMS

P:

Tress Way is just not getting it done. For the third straight year, his Net Average was under 40 yards (39.0). His punts were returned an inexcusable 39 times for an appalling 435 yards (11.1 per return), and one score. Thus, the ‘skins have brought in Sam Irwin-Hill, to either challenge Way, or take his spot. The ‘skins may have found an answer, but until they prove it… (-)

K:

Dustin Hopkins missed half of last year with a partially torn hip muscle, but once he was healed, the guy babysitting the position was kicked off the team, eliminating any question of how the Redskins feel about Hopkins. While his Field Goal percentage was only 82%, his kickoff average was a career best 64.4 yards, looking strong before and after his injury. The return average from his KO’s, was an impressive 17.4 yards. Long-range kicking is a huge obstacle for him however, as he as 0/2 from 50 or greater. He’s only 5/13 (38.5%) for his career from that range. Not exactly clutch, but the ‘skins are comfy with it anyway. (-)

RS:

WR Jamison Crowder fell off of a cliff in 2017. His 2016 Punt Return average fell from 12.1 to 6.3. His longest return fell from 85 yards to just 29. His (4) returns of 20+ yards and (2) returns of 40+ yards in 2016, became just ONE return over 20 in 2017. All of that can be ascribed to him getting his wish and getting more downs at WR. I said last year, double-duty would grind him into dust and I nailed it. At Kick Returner, NINE players got a shot at the job, and the top guy (208 yards) is no longer on the team. (-)

In a nutshell:

There is far too much complacency in regards to this unit. Aside from KO coverage, they don’t seem to do anything well, and haven’t made any moves to address their deficiencies. It’s almost as if they’ve never heard of the hidden yardage battle. (-)

Bottom Line:

The Redskins have a defense that allows too many easy yards, and thus too many easy scores. They lack a special teams unit that can win the hidden yardage battle, or steal a close game. To win in recent years has required them to stage shootouts, which was no problem with a gunslinger at QB. That player however, was allowed to leave, and his replacement is not the sort of QB who can sustain a shootout, week in and week out. Expect the Redskins to spend a good portion of 2018 not even being in games. This is a team that could easily lose 12 games this year, but will more likely top out at 6-10.

2018 – GIANTS

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/04/09
Posted in: Coaching, Defense, Draft, Front Office (F.O.), NFL, Offense, Players, Preview, Reviews, Rivals, Roster, Special Teams, stats, trade. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

new-york-giants-champs-jeff-stein

LAST year… The giants went 1 – 5 in the division and 3 – 13 overall, after going 11 – 5 with a playoff appearance, the year before. The 246 points they scored were not just the lowest in the division, but the entire conference. The 388 points they surrendered were tied (with Washington) for the lowest in conference. This team was such a dumpster fire, that they fired their head coach and general manager during the season. During the playoffs the giants added new head coach Pat Shurmur, and new GM Dave Gettleman.

That was last year. Keeping in mind that the Draft will change some of this, the following is a report on how the team looks today, prior to the NFL Draft….

OFFENSE

QB:

The Streak is over. Eli Manning’s record of consecutive starts went back to the very day he got the nod on 11/21/04. That streak was ended as a result of spite-work, from a petty, petty, SMALL man who knew he was being firedsoon. The giants are a rival, but there are some things which transcend that. Eli’s benching was plain wrong.

That having been said… A glance at his numbers will tell you that Manning has lost a major step, and maybe needs to become a mentor for a young gun. What his numbers don’t tell you, is that he was without his top two WR’s, had no run game to speak of, and his o-line was a constant patch work. Despite that, his accuracy was two points above his career average, and his QBR was only 3.1 point lower than his career average. So don’t just go by the numbers. Until he clearly can’t, Eli can still play. Good thing too, because there’s nothing behind him. (+)

RB:

The giants have needed help at this position for a while now. So of course they punted and decided to wait until round 4 of last years Draft, to grab Wayne Gallman. Gallman (surprise, surprise) played like a 4th rounder. The giants added the aging Jonathan Stewart (Panthers), but that has to be stop-gap. If the giants don’t use their #2 overall pick on a RB this year, you can expect another sub .500 season from Big Blue. (-)

WR:

The big dog in this group is Odell Beckham who’s coming off of a broken ankle. When and if he decides to play. It remains to be seen how he comes back, given that before he was injured, he was averaging a career low 12.1 per catch, had been held under 100 in each game, and lost all 4 that he played in. Sterling Shepard gives the G-Men a solid slot receiver, but he’s just that. A slot receiver. They tried to get more out of him last year, and it didn’t work. Brandon Marshall is under contract for 2018, but rumblings have it that he won’t be back. Reports of his decline were apparently true, as last year he averaged just 8.6 per catch. The big addition to this group is supposed to be Cody Latimer (Broncos). 

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So far he’s a second round pick with just 3 starts and 35 receptions, in 45 career games. Everyone except me predicted big things for this position last year, while I said it would crash and burn. It crashed and burned. This year starts with more questions and concerns, than a year ago (-)

TE:

Everyone LOVES Evan Engram. He’s fast, catches well, runs good routes… He’s a heck of a WR. Too bad he lines up at TE. Aren’t TE’s supposed to block for the run? When you get one who can’t, that tends to hurt the run game, right? Hey. How’d the giants look running the ball last year. Oh yeah, that’s right, they sucked. At 240 pounds Engram is a “move TE”, who’s too talented a receiver to not start. They have Rhett Ellison as the blocker, but putting him on the field means either sitting Engram, or not coming out in the 3WR formation they favor. So the giants will likely operate at a disadvantage while running the ball, for quite some time. (-)

OL:

The giants only allowed 34 sacks and 70 hits on their QB’s all year long. Those numbers would suggest that the giants did a decent job of pass protection, but nothing could be further from the truth. The QB’s spent an ungodly percentage of last year rushing throws, throwing the ball away, and throwing the ball to the other team. Add to that the team-wide 3.9 yards per carry for the run game. While injuries were a factor, there was also a lot of bad play. Particularly from LT Ereck Flowers. In an effort to improve, the giants lured in LT Nate Solder (Patriots), by backing a dump-truck full of money up to his door.nyg Solder.jpg

They also brought in LG Patrick Omameh (Jaguars). Omameh is getting by on the reputation of the Jags run game, and the desperation of the giants. He will need to be carried by whomever plays next to him. That’s going to be hard to do with the loss of C Weston Richburg. The pivot will now be occupied by Brett Jones, who manned it for 12 games last season, after Richburg was lost to a season ending injury. Last years liability, Flowers, is being moved from LT to RT. Sixty percent of this offensive line (LG, C RT) is a question mark at best. (-)

In a nutshell:

As it stands today, this unit doesn’t have what it takes to help the team compete for the division crown. They have an experienced, and even hand as their field general, but their offense lacks parts that can help other parts. The end result is a just pile of parts, some of which are nice, and others which you couldn’t sell as scrap. (-)

DEFENSE

DE:

Two years ago Jason Pierr-Paul and Olivier Vernon combined for 15.5 sacks. Last year they notched 15 in a season that saw Vernon miss 4 games. The guys who filled in (mostly Kerry Wynn) were uh…less than spectacular. As long as the starters are out there, this is a solid position. However, it goes downhill fast if a back-up has to play serious minutes. Annnnd the giants traded JPP. Oh well. Maybe they’ll have a good Draft? (-)

DT/NT:

I said last year that Jay Bromley wouldn’t be able to fill Jonathan Hankins shoes, and apparently giants brass agreed, because they put Dalvin Tomlinson out there for 16 starts. Did I mention that this team was 27th against the run? Essentially this position is Damon Harrison and just some guys. Hankins is a free agent again, so maybe the giants will try to mend fences and get him back. (-)

OLB:

Due to injury and ineffectiveness, a few guys got to line up here in 2017. No one did enough in 2017 to even guarantee a roster spot in 2018. Out went guys like Johnathan Casillas and Devon Kennard, and in came guys like Thurston Armbrister (no seriously, that’s his name) and low-key move of 2018, Kareem Martin (Cardinals). Martin has the size (6’6, 272) to line up anywhere in the front seven, but will likely be limited to a DE/rush LB role due to unremarkable strength. The giants opting for a player like him however, indicates a shift in their defensive mindset. This is a position loaded with questions, and it seems incomplete right now. Expect a draft pick here. (-)

M/ILB:

Trading for ILB Alec Ogletree (Rams) was a nice move. He’s a fluid, instinctual and aggressive player. 

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It would be smarter to put him at OLB where the giants need more help, but it’s hard to fault them for playing him here. B.J. Goodson and Calvin Munson split this position in 2017, and it was hard to tell who wanted it less. (+)

S:

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SS Landon Collins was made to look almost ordinary last year. There were many extenuating circumstances that led to that. One of which was the play of FS Darian Thompson who seems to neither excel against the run or the pass. In fact, he looked very similar to 2016’s starting FS, Andrew Adams. Adams was demoted in favor of Thompson, to no discernible plus or minus. (-)

CB:

Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and Ross Cockrell were allowed to walk. Eli Apple gets the headlines, but for all the wrong reasons. Janoris Jenkins is has been solid since joining New York, but he ended last year on IR after ankle surgery. There are lots of players at this position, but no quality depth beyond the top two. For some reason, former Steeler William Gay was added, after starting 16, then 9, then 0 games, over the last three years. (-)

In a nutshell:

There are too many players on this unit who are “just guys”. Generally you don’t want more than 4 or 5 players like that on your entire roster. The giants are starting FIVE of them! (one at DT, two at LB, and one at S, and now a big ol’ question mark at DE.) This s’ugly. Just s’ugly. (-)

SPECIAL TEAMS

P:

Brad Wing was allowed to fly the coop. That leaves the g-men with just Austin Rehkow on the roster. Rehkow was undrafted by the Bills in 2017 but didn’t make the cut. To his credit, he has some experience as a Kicker in college. However, in his current position his only NFL experience is failing to make a roster. (-)

K:

Aldrick Rosas hit 18/25 field goals last season (72%) and 20/23 extra points (87%). This made the giants feel so confident that they ran out and signed Marshall Koehn to compete with him. Koehn’s entire career consists of one game, in which he recorded two kickoffs, kicked an extra point. Pretty safe to say that Rosas is on thin ice. (-)

RS:

WR Kalif Raymond was just plain awful in 2017. Raymond averaged 4.7 per PR, and 16.9 per KR. New addition WR Cody Latimer has KR experience, but no history of being dangerous at it, and no track record as a PR. There is nothing to fear here. (-)

In a nutshell:

As I said last year (verbatim): The giants clearly don’t think much of Special Teams and that will likely cost them not only the hidden yardage game, but some games outright next year.

Seems like some people never learn. (-)

Bottom Line:

The giants stink of decay. It’s a team loaded with average players, question marks, and head cases. Worse than that, it’s so predictable. The coaching staff was just replaced and still, it’ll be another year, of 3WR sets, RB by committee, nondescript LB’s, and no attention to Special Teams. This time without great DE play to anchor the defense. This is a 5-11 team, barring a miracle happening in the Draft.

THE BEST D-LINE IN THE NFL

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/04/02
Posted in: Conversations, Defense, Front Office (F.O.), NFL, Players, Reviews, Roster. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 3 Comments

 

Best line?

WHEN the Los Angeles Rams went out and signed free agent DT Ndamokung Suh, the cry heard ‘round the world was that the Rams now had the best defensive line in the NFL. Pairing Suh with DE Aaron Donald is talked about like it’s the end-all be-all in the NFL. People are talking like the Rams are now the favorite to win the Super Bowl in 2019.

Whoa now. Hold up. Pump the brakes.

The Rams will boast an extremely scary interior, that is just as disruptive against the run as the pass. But still it’s just two guys. One of which will be learning to switch from being a 4-3 DT to either a 3-4 DE or NT.

They play a 3-4, so you have to look at the front five, not four. Take a look up and down their ROSTER and you won’t see another player to fear. DE Michael Brockers? He has 19 sacks in 6 years, after being selected 14th overall in 2012. Everyone else is a career back-up who’ll now be counted on to make difference. (I guess.)

With the Minnesota Vikings (4-3) there are four legitimate headaches with Everson Griffen, Linval Joseph, Sheldon Richardson, and Danielle Hunter. Not two guys, four. The Jacksonville Jaguars have 3 game wreckers in Calais Campbell, Malik Jackson, and Yannick Ngakoue.

Then of course there’s the grand-daddy of them all, the Philadelphia Eagles.

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DE Brandon Graham

The Eagles boast Fletcher Cox, Timmy Jernigan and Haloti Ngata at DT. At DE There’s Brandon Graham, Chris Long, and Derek Barnett. We lost DE Vinny Curry and all we could find to replace him with was some guy named Michael Bennett. That’s SEVEN players. The Eagles are literally, TWO defensive lines deep.

We don’t just have starters better than the Rams starters, we have better back-ups than the Rams starters. (DE Steven Means and DT Destiny Vaeao don’t qualify for this list because of who’s in front of them, but if Bennett misses any time, you’ll see those two make a serious contribution in his absence.)

Even if we were to throw out things like sacks and hurries as a measure of an individual player’s effectiveness, there’s the fact that the Eagles as a team, allowed just 79.2 rushing yards per game, to the Rams 122.3. That’s number one vs fifth worst. Also our key players aren’t in their first year of the scheme.

So all this big talk about the Rams D-line is ridiculous. The Rams don’t have the best D-line in the NFL. Hell, they don’t even have the best D-line in the conference. Those distinctions BOTH belong to the Eagles.

As things stand, the Rams D-line may not even be as good at the Vikings. IJS.

NATE SUDFELD IS THE EAGLES BACK-UP

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/03/29
Posted in: Conspiracy Corner, Conversations, Offense, Players, Roster, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

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TODAY Nate Sudfeld is the only back-up QB on the Eagles roster. Don’t worry, QB Nick Foles wasn’t traded or released. Foles simply isn’t a back-up QB.

Back-up QB’s don’t have seasons with a touchdown to interception ratio of 27:2. Back-up QB’s don’t throw an NFL record 7 touchdowns in a single game, then send their uniform to Canton. Back-up QB’s don’t win Pro-Bowl MVP. Hell, back-up QB’s don’t even get Pro Bowl invites.

You know what else back-up QB’s don’t do? They don’t guide a team through the playoffs to the Super Bowl. They don’t dismantle the leagues top rated defense, in front of a national audience, while hanging 38 unanswered points on them. Back-up QB’s don’t win Super Bowl MVP, while out-dueling a QB that some (poorly informed) fans call the greatest to ever play the position.

Back-ups don’t do these things. Yet that’s Nick’s resume.

What we have in Foles is a second starter. Every time I hear him referred to as a back-up, I giggle a little. It’s like Head Coach Doug Pederson is Kaiser Sӧze, and the rest of the NFL is Special Agent Kujan. 

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We don’t have a starter and two back-ups. We have two starters and one back-up. Foles isn’t a doughnut. He’s a full-size spare, but teams look at his roster spot, and take it as a designation of his potential. They size him up wrong. (Like Kujan did.)

And that’s when we sneak up on them from the front. It’s like the Eagles are Ocean’s 12, and the rest of the NFL is the Night Fox. It couldn’t be more obvious, but we’re just too slick for the other 31 teams.

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There are full-time starters in this league who would have been overwhelmed by the Vikings defense. Especially on a stage that big. But Foles? The bigger the stage, the brighter he shined. It’s no wonder that he looked like a grease stain vs Oakland. There were no stakes!

I turn on NFL Network and over and over I hear, there were no real offers for Foles because teams don’t see him as a starter. Meanwhile Sam Bradford and Josh McCown are making 10 million each, this season. It’s hilarious!

Given our situation at QB, I’m hoping that we don’t rush our Franchise QB Carson Wentz, back too fast from his injury. We have the luxury of starting our Super Bowl MVP for a few games, while the Franchise takes his time to make sure he has no setbacks.

Heck. While Foles is out there playing, Wentz could be on the sidelines, coaching up our only back-up.

THIS CAN STILL WORK

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/03/26
Posted in: Conversations, Defense, Front Office (F.O.), NFL, Players, playoffs, Roster. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

 

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THE indictment of DE Michael Bennett is something the Eagles need to deal with. If he were still on his Seattle contract, then I’d say this is all on him. I’d say he was owed nothing, since he’s done nothing for the team, nor his new teammates, nor the fans in the community.

However, when he got here, he quickly re-did his deal to free up cap space for the Eagles. Where I come from (Philadelphia), when someone does you a solid, you do them one back. (Maybe even two.) So it’s on the Eagles organization to not distance themselves from this (fucking mess), once Bennett turns himself in.

If the NFL is going to suspend Bennett for violation of Personal Conduct Policy, then the NFL should say so as soon as possible. That way Bennett can start serving it as soon as possible. There is no upside to fighting a suspension here. Even if Bennett is found ‘Not Guilty’, the public will demand a pound of flesh from him. Get it over and done with, so that football can be the focus again.

While he’s out however, poses an interesting question about how his base salary and amortized bonus is paid out. (By the way, this is the only place you’re going to even see this subject brought up. If you hear someone talking about it next week, you’ll know where they got it from.)

With a base salary of 1.65M$, Bennett’s base game-check is 103K. His 5M$ roster bonus (if broken up and distributed through each game-check), is 312,500$. That’s a weekly payout of 415,500$. Over six games, that’s 2,493,000$. That much money can have significant bearing on the salary cap for 2018.

Look, the 5M$ roster bonus is guaranteed to Bennett. The only question is how and when it gets to him. That being said, there is no reason that this incident (which the Eagles and the NFL are trusting wasn’t hidden for a year by Seattle), should negatively impact the Eagles.

The only fair move here, is for the NFL to grant the Eagles 2.5M$ in cap space from Bennett’s 2018 contract, if they suspend him. Of course, we’d still be without his expertise for 6 weeks or so, but there may be a solution on the horizon for that DE spot.

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Last year, DE/OLB Connor Barwin played for the Rams for a base salary of 2M and a roster bonus of 1.5M, total hit 3.5M$. Barwin doesn’t fit as an every down 4-3 DE, but he can play that spot in a rotation. He also has some experience as a LB in coverage, so he offers a little (though very little) scheme versatility.

The question is, would Barwin come back to Philly for a shot at a ring, and to play in a scheme that doesn’t wear him down, but instead keeps him fresh? The answer is that according to a GQ article  from March 5th, the Barwins were leaving Malibu California, to wait out free agency in here in Philadelphia. The entire world to choose from, and they come here.

There’s your answer.

In true Philly style, the idea isn’t to avoid a mess, but to make the best of one. To see the opportunity in the middle of a crisis. Not to create a mess, but to expertly manage one. As we’ve been doing since the days of the Lenape and the Swedes. We can MAKE this work.

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IF CHRIS LONG RETIRES

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/03/22
Posted in: Conversations, Defense, Front Office (F.O.), Players, Roster. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

 

The Long Family

WORD on the street is that the Eagles want to extend DE Chris Long until the end of the 2019 season, but he has yet to give the okey-doke on it. Losing Long and DE Vinny Curry in the same offseason seems like it would be a blow, despite the signing of DE Michael Bennett. While Bennett is a very disruptive player, he still can’t play two DE spots at one time.

Then again, he doesn’t need to. Fact is, DE Derek Barnett was getting Curry’s starting RDE spot anyway. What we really are replacing in 2018 isn’t Curry, but Barnett on the second wave. That’s what Bennett is for. So the right side is buttoned up already. Even before the Draft.

If Long retires, it would give DE Steven Means the opportunity to be part of the second wave. I’m not saying that Means and Long are the same, but Means has shown serious flashes (preseason and regular) over the last two years. If we have to rely on him, I wouldn’t be the least bit worried about a lack of effort or intensity, when LDE Brandon Graham came off the field.

We’re in great hands.

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Of course if we lose both Long and Curry, some media pundits will tell you that the Eagles defensive line has taken a step back. They’d be dead wrong. Our dominance isn’t about star players. It’s about having players who are ideal for the scheme we run.

That’s why we can sign these declining stars. The media, lack-luster coaches, and mis-educated fans, will focus on the name. Meanwhile the Eagles can add scheme fit after scheme fit. God help the NFL if the Eagles actually added a bonafide star in their prime to this line.

No disrespect to Graham, but if the Eagles put someone like Ezekiel Ansah, or Joey Bosa, or Cameron Wake next to DT Fletcher Cox, it would be letting the NFL know that the Super Bowl ran through Philadelphia for the foreseeable future. (It would also be hella expensive!) However, if we find scheme fits, we can still be dominant without breaking the bank.

Even if Long retires, the Eagles are fine at DE. We already have Means, plus there’s a Draft coming, and there will even be a number of free agents released after that. So now… Let’s all wish Long well. Regardless of what he chooses. But I don’t want you to hang your eye. Not for a second. Chin up!

Take heart Eagles fans. No matter how this all shakes out, we will be fine.

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FREE AGENCY 2018: DAY 3 – 4

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/03/17
Posted in: Conversations, Front Office (F.O.), NFL, Offense, Players, Roster, Special Teams. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

 

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ASIDE from cutting DE Vinny Curry, we were pretty silent on Days 3 and 4. While I hate the loss of Curry setting a hard edge vs the run, it has to be said that there was no other logical move to be made, besides cutting him. He was going to be too expensive in both 2018 and 2019. So let’s talk about what comes next.

Stepping back and looking at the roster overall, I can see my Draft Wishlist starting to take shape. We have 66 players under contract, with no empty positions. We have depth everywhere, but not all of it is quality depth. There’s a few things we could use from free agency to help stabilize our roster, and set the tone for the arriving rookie class of Eagles.

SHOPPING LIST:

A blocking TE. Behind Zach Ertz we have three players who weren’t drafted, or even invited to a Combine. Only one has played a down of regular season NFL ball, and he’s a 223 pound receiver type. Did I mention that we’re trying to convert one TE from Rugby player to NFL player. Martellus Bennett would be a great fit here.

A back-up OT. When Jason Peters went down, we compensated by giving Halapoulivaati Vaitai help on some plays, and rolling the QB away from him on other plays. We did this up to and through the Super Bowl. In the event that we suffer another injury at OT, I don’t think we can rely on rolling QB Carson Wentz out on half the snaps. Former Patriot LaAdrian Waddle could be worth a looong look here. He’s a RT, but he allows us to flip Lane Johnson if Waddle can’t be taught/trusted to play on the left.

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A KR/PR. So far nothing about RB Donnel Pumphrey indicates that he should be in the NFL. (Again, that’s so far.) RB Wendell Smallwood has had some success as a KR, but none as PR. A player who could do both would help us conserve a roster spot, which will matter greatly in September. No such animal exists on the free agent market, but WR Michael Campanaro is close.

A short yardage RB. While our RB’s are strong enough to break arm tackles, we no longer have a human bulldozer. Having a 250 pound RB meet a 240 pound LB in the hole, was an advantage that Eagles fans weren’t used to, and will miss dearly. This would be a nice role-player spot, for a guy like 32 year old Mike Tolbert.

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None of these guys would be very pricey, and they’d all be veterans who added a dimension that we don’t possess at the moment.

Here’s hoping for a busier Day 5.

ON SECOND THOUGHT…

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/03/16
Posted in: Uncategorized, Front Office (F.O.), Conversations. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . 2 Comments

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SALARY cap woes for this year, are being worked out in ways that makes GM Howie Roseman look like a genius. We went from being 10M$ over the cap to currently being just 2M$ over, and still managing to extend OLB Nigel Bradham, as well as add DE Michael Bennett, and DT Haloti Ngata. At first glance, Howie is absolutely killing the salary cap issue. KILLING IT.

However…

In all truth, all he’s really doing is delaying the inevitable. At some point, we’ll still have to pay the piper, and it seems as if that point is only about 364 or so, days away.

A look ahead to the 2019 cap space for the NFC East:

Dallas:                 +53M

Washington:      +33M

New York:          +16M

Philadelphia:      -29M

(Source Spotrac.com) 

As things stand today, we will be nearly 30 million dollars over the projected 177M$ salary cap. Just to get back to even, it will take a number of brutally painful cuts to our roster. That in mind, it would behoove Eagles brass to inform the coaching staff about this, so that they can begin to groom 2019’s replacements, this season.

Look, this is a team with a young nucleus. The championship window should be open for at least another five to six years. We just need to make sure that we don’t let accounting errors, slam that window shut on us.

FREE AGENCY 2018: DAY 1

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/03/15
Posted in: Defense, Front Office (F.O.), NFL, Offense, Players, Roster, trade. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 2 Comments

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THE object of the game is to get better than we were. The question is: Did we?

With the expiration of some contracts, we lost players like RB’s Darren Sproles and LeGarrette Blount; DT Beau Allen; TE Trey Burton, LB Nigel Bradham and CB Patrick Robinson. An additional hole was created with the release of TE Brent Celek.

As for those holes, the Eagles replaced Allen with DT Haloti Ngata, in a move that could actually be seen as an upgrade. Bradham was brought back on a new deal. The loss of Robinson was offset by the trade of WR Torrey Smith for CB Daryl Worley. We also added DE Michael Bennett in case we have to cut DE Vinny Curry for cap space. We also added a back-up LB in Corey Nelson. 

Remaining holes going into Day 2 of Free Agency? TE and uh… well nothing. At least as far as players are concerned. However, we still need to make a ton of space to get under the salary cap. Technically we don’t actually have to be compliant until Week One, but the sooner we are, the easier everyone will sleep.

All and all though, it wasn’t a bad Day 1. It was pretty green actually. 

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