FOUR THINGS: PS4 EAGLES-JETS

Posted by The BEAST on 2017/08/30
Posted in: Coaching, Defense, Four Things, NFL, Offense, Players, Preview, Roster. Tagged: , , , , , , . 2 Comments

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GIVEN how spotty the Offensive starters have been, it’s hard to get a real grasp of just who we do or don’t need further down the roster. Our coaching staff is however, more concerned with potential injury, than they are with players getting their shit straight. So instead of starters playing a couple series, they’ll sit. This is hilarious given the fact that we were one of the earliest teams to begin hitting in camp.

Normally this would be the game where coaches looked at the deep end of the roster, to see if guys “on the bubble” made the most of their last opportunity, but this is an unusual year. Nothing (big picture) seems to be at stake here, on either roster. Both teams are just playing out the string. That means the Eagles can get to trying to win the NFC East, and the Jets can get on with tanking in 2017.

So let’s talk about the Four Things we need to focus on for this week versus New York Jr. :

1) Does Warmack earn a chance: I was big on G Chance Warmack before he was drafted, and I still hold out some hope for him to make this roster. That said, I want to see him look like a starter against the Jets back-ups.

2) Coming up big: RB Donnel Pumphrey has so far made the stereotype for smaller RB’s look 100% true. Rushing, receiving, punt returning…so far he’s looked like a boy amongst men doing all of it. He needs to show that he belongs.

3) Cherry picking a LB: We’re thin at LB. Not in number (8), but in terms of playmakers. The fact that Najee Goode is still here, proves that. Last week however, Don Cherry (out of Villanova) gave me reason to hope, with his 42 yard return (no score) of an interception. A strong showing this week could cement a spot for him on the active roster.

4) Groom a great Dane: If you look at QB Dane Evans numbers (0TD, 2INT, 36.2 rating) you think “Yech, yikes and yuck”. Watching him play on the other hand, tells a much different story. We’ve gotten an extensive look at the decidedly underwhelming Matt McGloin. In fact, he leads the NFL this preseason in attempts, completions, and is tied for the lead in interceptions, despite only throwing 1 TD in 3 games. We need to see at least a half from Evans.

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’ll get to see some guys make the team, and others blow their opportunity.

PREDICTION: EAGLES 25 – Jets 13

yeah bitch

INSIDE THE HELMET: OFFENSIVE LINE

Posted by The BEAST on 2017/08/28
Posted in: Coaching, Fans, Inside The Helmet, Offense, Players. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

 

WHY can’t the Offensive Line generate push in the run game? Why is the Offensive Line allowing so much pressure on QB Carson Wentz? Everywhere you turn, you hear fans asking one of, or both of these questions. They can’t figure out why a unit with a new starter on it, isn’t performing at a high level. The answer is simple: They haven’t played together enough during “live” fire.

People who don’t know ass about football, will say that our O-line has been going against our D-line for months now. They’ll say that counts as experience. If these people were six years old, that assessment would be cute. However, coming from full grown humans, claiming to be Eagles fans, that shit is nothing short of embarrassing.

Look, let me take you Inside The Helmet:

InsideTheHelmet

The D-lineman who lines up across from you in practice, is a guy you rapidly get to know. Who’s quicker off the snap, you or him? Does he favor his right or his left, with his first step? Does he like to bull rush, rip, or swim? When you lock on, does he club your inner elbow, or does he forklift your wrists to generate a hands to face penalty?

These are just a few things you quickly learn about the man who practices across from you, five days a week. Once he knows what he can’t beat you with, he’ll lean on the things that give him a chance, or an advantage. After all, he also needs to look good, either to hold onto his starting spot, or to make the team period.

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When it comes to practices, players see the same things day in and day out, from the guy across from them. O-linemen are blocking against the same guys, who are executing the same defensive concepts, day in and day out. That means the linemen aren’t exposed to new wrinkles. The only way to see new wrinkles, is to face other teams that run different systems, or the same system with an emphasis on a few different concepts.

This O-Line hasn’t seen enough live fire this preseason. That impacts their ability to act as one cohesive unit, because they don’t get to communicate adjustments to seeing something new, in real-time. Just in the film room. Imagine a chorus line not kicking in unison. This is where our O-line is.

Since the starters are almost guaranteed to sit out this last preseason game, this is where the O-line will still be on opening day. Hopefully that won’t end up with Wentz being carted off the field this year. Given how much abuse he was allowed to take in just one quarter of play vs the Dolphins, any sensible fan would have to be concerned.

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TOUCHDOWNS AND INJURIES

Posted by The BEAST on 2017/08/26
Posted in: Coaching, Offense, Players, Roster, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

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REMEMBER the days where players played the whole first half of the third preseason game? Remember the days when coaches were more interested in a starter actually being effective, and less interested in the name being available? I do. Hey, do you know what the height of irony would be? Never mind. Never mind.

I ask those questions because at the rate we’re going, our offensive line is going to get our QB seriously injured this year. In one quarter of play, versus a team they’d been staring at for a week, our line gave up a sack, a tipped pass, and what looked to be 3 more hits or grabs of QB Carson Wentz.

Those all count as contacts, and that was in just 11 dropbacks! That’s 5 contacts per 11 dropbacks, for a rate of 45.4%. Last year Wentz had 640 dropbacks (607 attempts, 33 sacks). Using last years dropbacks as a model, with a 45% contact rate, Wentz would be contacted 288 times this year, which is 18.0 times per game. Put another way, at that rate Nick Foles will be the starting QB by Week Nine.

Considering that the third game is typically a dress rehearsal, it’s clear that the line isn’t ready to protect the franchise QB yet. They need more time, and more experience in a “live” game situation. The starters need to see action in game four. Especially given that LG Isaac Seumalo is being folded in as a brand new starter. Sadly, they won’t get that time, because despite our O-line’s depth, Head Coach Doug Pederson is shelving his starters to protect them from injury.

The height of irony would be the O-Line getting the franchise QB injured, because we were afraid that they would get injured, while practicing to be effective at keeping the franchise QB from injury. And to think, we may be treated to that exact sight very, very soon.

FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: DOLPHINS (PS)

Posted by The BEAST on 2017/08/25
Posted in: Coaching, Defense, Four Things, NFL, Offense, Players, Reviews. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

THE expectation was that this game would largely be boring, since both teams spent a week facing each other in scrimmages. Logic says that each team would know what to protect against, and how. Instead, due to some sloppiness on our part, the Dolphins were able to hang around in the game. Still, it was a pretty ho-hum event to say that 69 total points were scored in it.

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Eagles 38 – Dolphins 31

The good news is that the passing game seems like it could be a force this year. That however, is largely dependent on whether or not QB Carson Wentz (10 – 6 – 60% – 129 – 2 – 1) takes as much punishment every week, as he took in just one quarter (that’s all the starters played) tonight. RB Corey Clement (9 – 42 – 4.6 – 1 – 0) looked very good leading the ground attack. OLB Mychal Kendricks (0 – 0 – 1 – 0) grabbed his third interception in as many games, bringing it back 31 yards to pay dirt.

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? (Keep in mind, I talk about the starters in the Four Things section. I’ll address the back-ups, later. If at all.)

1) Impact from WR Alshon Jeffery: While I did notice one play with a Safety in the box, most of the time the Safety played deep. Jeffery did his part by catching 2 passes, one of which was a TD off of an inside release into the Safety’s area. That preseason play will have teams not wanting to get beat like that and, so open up room to run inside. This part, I loved. (DONE)

2) Man up: While I came into this game worrying about the Offensive Line’s ability to move men in the run game, I saw a line that also couldn’t keep players from hitting Wentz. (The batted ball that became an interception, had no business being caught. I could do an entire article on that play alone.) (NOT DONE)

3) Establish the Danger Zone: If you had told me that QB Jay Cutler would pick on CB Ronald Darby, I’d have laughed until I ruptured something. But he did, and it worked. Because the Dolphins decided to pick on Darby, there wasn’t nearly as much throwing over the middle as I anticipated. So while this wasn’t done, there really wasn’t much of a chance to do it. Sometimes I have to mark things “done” on a technicality. This time it goes the other way. (NOT DONE)

4) Back to basics: Our O-line didn’t drive men off the line, but they did block well enough for our RB’s to find holes. Tackling was effective enough, but we really weren’t great at getting off of blocks vs the run this week. (DONE)

The weekly score is 2 of 4, bringing our preseason total to 5 of 12. Next week we travel to the giants house, to take on their mentally challenged roommates, the New York Jets.

On The Whole:

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The Eagles had 16 penalties for 147 yards. That’s a football field and a half worth of penalties. They had trouble with their run block synchronization early on. They also failed to keep pass rushers from touching Wentz, even at times when they saw and picked up the blitz. The starters looked undisciplined and rusty. It’s the sort of thing that happens when you don’t get enough “live” action during the preseason. With all the starters sitting next week, we run the risk of going into a VERY winnable Week One game against the Redskins and being too raggedy to beat a bad team.

FOUR THINGS: EAGLES-DOLPHINS

Posted by The BEAST on 2017/08/23
Posted in: Coaching, Defense, Four Things, NFL, Offense, Players, Preview. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . 2 Comments

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THERE are a number of things the Eagles need to tighten up in the next two weeks, but it won’t happen. Let’s just get that said, right now. The Eagles are a team that needs real games to get their edge as sharp as it needs to be. We’re close to turning the corner and these young players need real battle, (real victory and defeat), not more practice.

Since starters will play most or all of the first half, the temptation would be to “win” that half. That would be pointless. This is still a preseason game, so for this team, at this point in our development, the game’s best application is as a learning tool. Since the Dolphins will be playing their starters in the first half too, that’s a great time to sprinkle in guys like RB Corey Clement, S Tre Sullivan, TE Billy Brown and particularly LB’s Joe Walker and Don Cherry, (given LB Nigel Bradham’s possible suspension).

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

1) Impact from WR Alshon Jeffery: Less important than yards and catches, are how he causes the defense to treat his side of the field. I’ll be looking to see where the Safety lines up, and how often he even fakes walking into the box. If Jeffery can “keep his yard clear of trash”, running the ball to that side should be a lot easier.

2) Man up: Our interior Offensive Line needs to show that they can move men off of the line of scrimmage. This has gone beyond the issue of scheme or coaching. At this point you have to question the manhood and professional viability of the starting interior. Must they be the bitch of every man that lines up across from them? Can they win a down? The Eagles need to see if there is at least one real man in that group.

3) Establish the Danger Zone: The Safeties have been very quiet this preseason and that has to change in this game. Sadly, part of our coverage concept includes deep cushions and quick inside releases. If that’s going to be part of the package, something has to “encourage” receivers to take their eye of the ball. The best way to do that is with jarring hits that make men fear for their own well-being. I didn’t say we should injure anyone, but they should certainly be afraid that we may.

4) Back to basics: Football is blocking, tackling and doing your job. This would be a great week to preach fundamentals to the starters, in front of our young depth. This is also a great week to yank a guy for a series or two over a bonehead mistake, if one or more of those happens.

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 put up a decent number of rushing yards against a so-so Dolphin’s run defense, which features a guy who used to be Ndamukong Suh. We will harass and demoralize Jay Cutler and make him question whether or not he really has 2017 in him. We will look like a better team than we actually are just yet. That said, we should handle Dolphins in what should be a fairly boring game.

PREDICTION: EAGLES 24 – Dolphins 9

yeah-bitch

 

REDSKINS PRESEASON AUTOPSY

Posted by The BEAST on 2017/08/21
Posted in: NFL, poll, Reviews, Rivals, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

no chill

SINCE 2013, our Eagles are 3-5 vs the Redskins, losing the last five games in a row. So we’ve been swept by them in each of the last two seasons. Like it or not, they’ve had our number lately. However, the tables are about to turn, sharply.

What proof do I have that things are about to change? We recently made some moves that forced me to another top-to-bottom comparison of the Eagles against our division rivals. We made improvements to the depth and talent of our Offensive Line. We also improved a Secondary that didn’t seem to be able to stick to their shadows last year.

While the Eagles improvements are all well and good, the more important side of this equation, is that the Redskins have gotten worse. Significantly worse. In fact, it usually takes a team a few years to decline this fast. In a sick sort of way, it’s almost an accomplishment that they were able to self-destruct so thoroughly in such a sort period of time. I’m… impressed(?)… sort of??

On defense, they let lineman Chris Baker just boogie on down to Tampa Bay. While they could have had a dominant 3-4 line, featuring rookie Jonathan Allen and led by Baker, they now are down to being anchored up front by that rookie, and “just some guys”.

Think the Eagles were bad against the pass last year? With as bad as we looked, we were still ranked 13th in the NFL. The Redskins were ranked 25th. That’s twelve spots worse than what we found unacceptable. Twelve. So how did they shore up their secondary? Aside from the CB they selected in the third round, they didn’t touch a thing. No really, go look. I’ll wait.

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CB Bashaud Breeland, playing with some kids.

On offense, the ‘skins haven’t been able to reliably run the ball in two years. So of course they ran out and added some help to their offensive line, to open holes for their star RB, right? Wrong. They left everything just as it was. They saw mediocrity, and planted a flag in that sumbitch like they were claiming Iwo Jima.

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Wait, did I say “star” RB? Two years ago that was Alfred Morris who gave way to Matt Jones. But then last year Matt Jones gave way to Rob Kelley. So far this preseason, it looks like Rob Kelley is giving way to 4th round pick Samaje Perine (PEE-ryn?). So yeah, it looks like they don’t really have a star RB. So I misspoke. My bad.

But that’s okay! It just means they have to lean on their passing game, right? So of course (for whatever reason), they tossed not one, but two, thousand yard receivers off the team. They then decided to base their passing attack on a Kick Returner, a TE who gets concussions from nodding ‘yes’, and WR who is most famous for being Cleveland’s best receiving option in 2016, despite having either having played QB, or being completely out of football every year since 2011.

To top it all off, they left their locker room an unsettled mess, by making it impossible to rally around their QB. They did that by leasing him for yet another season, instead of giving him a multi-year deal. The upshot is that now their QB (their leader), is disgruntled because he feels unappreciated as he literally depreciates with time and potential injury.

I didn’t make any of this up, and aside from the concussion joke, I didn’t even exaggerate any of it. I didn’t have to. This is Dan Snyder’s version of “the best he can do”. It’s crazy that this shit is actually happening to Redskins fans, and they have to pay good money for the privilege. It’s almost terrorism!

Last year the ‘skins went 8-7-1 and were a far better team than they are today. That’s taking into account talent, experience, and overall morale. Oh yeah, and losing these first two preseason games won’t help to keep down the internal finger-pointing.

So yeah. Barring something truly bizarre, the Eagles should have no problem with this team in 2017. The only good thing about the Redskins upcoming season, is that after 16 games, they get to go home and stay there. That team is a dumpster fire.

dumpster fire

 

skins fans

SHOW A SPECIAL PLAYER SOME LOVE

Posted by The BEAST on 2017/08/18
Posted in: Coaching, Front Office (F.O.), NFL, Offense, Players, Rants, Roster, Special Teams. Tagged: , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

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CLEARLY the Eagles Special Team Kick Coverage unit has lost something since last season. In my opinion what they lost was OLB Bryan Braman. In fact, it already looks similar to the falloff we experienced when we foolishly let LB Ike Reese go to Atlanta, after the 2004 Super Bowl.

For the last three years, Braman was a ST demon for this team under ST Coordinator Dave Fipp. Funny thing is, while we’re experiencing a slide in our kick coverage, Braman is sitting at home. Unsigned. Last I heard, he was visiting with the Saints earlier this month, but apparently that didn’t work out.

Typically football fans undervalue the importance of great Special Teams kick coverage. They don’t realize how it sets the table for a defense. Forcing poor field position, followed by a three and out (or a turnover), sets up an offense with a short field and an ability to score quickly.

Frequently the only yards fans and pundits discuss, are what an offense produces or what a defense allows. The “hidden yardage” of Special Teams generally gets ignored. Not investing in a kick coverage unit, can cost a team that hidden yardage battle, many times over the course of a season. Losing that battle can easily contribute to losing the game. With that in mind, it seems like someone in our Front Office needs to make a phone call, and get Fipp a guy he can work with.

FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: BILLS (PS)

Posted by The BEAST on 2017/08/18
Posted in: Defense, Four Things, NFL, Offense, Players, Reviews. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

YAY we won! Then again there was never any doubt in my mind that we would. Aside from RB LeSean McCoy, the Bills don’t exactly have a ton of offensive weapons with which to scare anyone. For god’s sake, they were forced to start slow-footed WR Anquan Boldin on the outside tonight. That said, at least we didn’t lose to a lesser opponent. That’s an important building block in a successful season.

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The 20 – 16 win gave us a chance to look at some new starters. Given that the passing game didn’t click with the same rhythm it did a week ago, you have to wonder if it was adversely affected by the trade that brought us a key player in the Secondary.

But what about the stuff that the stats don’t reveal? That’s the reason for these “Four Things” articles. To have an idea of what needs addressing BEFORE the game, so that we’re forced to honestly answer questions AFTER the game.

So, of the Four Things we were looking for in this last game, what exactly did we see? (Keep in mind, I talk about the starters in the Four Things section. I’ll address the back-ups, later. If at all.)

1) Being in sync: QB Carson Wentz and WR Alshon Jeffery didn’t seem to be on the same page mentally tonight. That however was exactly what I expected would be the case. Live action is different from practice, and with Jeffery already taking it easy do to a shoulder strain, even working in practice was going to be turned down in intensity. It’s going to be a process. That said, BOTH of these guys need to play at least a half next week. (NOT DONE)

2) Push must come to shove: At no point did the Eagles attempt to establish an inside attack with RB LeGarrette Blount. They just kept running him outside. He did have a nice 8 yard gain on one carry, but other than that, the Eagles punked out at fighting in between the Tackles. (NOT DONE)

3) Slow the inside release: Many will tell you their favorite play was the pick by CB Ronald Darby. For me it was the interception he didn’t get, that I liked most. He closed a shallow cushion, forced his man outside, then closed on the ball like he was shot out of a cannon.  It was perfect technique. Totally without flaw. 9 times out of 10 that would be six points. On the pick however, Darby’s technique initially took him out of position. But when QB Tyrod Taylor underthrew Boldin, it gave Darby time to adjust. Not to take anything away from Darby, but he won’t see an assignment that easy in the NFC East. True, he’s a work in progress, but he truly has done really well for just getting here. (DONE)

4) Control the middle: The defensive interior was sort of up and down vs the run tonight. That was kind of to be expected by a team that runs the ball as well as the Bills do. (They were the number one rushing team in the NFL last year.) While we didn’t control the middle in an overall sense, we did manage the situations well. Situational ball, wins games. Winning games, wins divisions. Admittedly we didn’t control the middle, but with the big picture in mind, I’ll take it. (NOT DONE)

That puts this weeks score at 1 out of 4 things done. Our cumulative score after two weeks, is a less than stellar 3 out of 8.

On The Whole:

It was a penalty laden mess rehearsal, but there were some good things to take away from it. OLB Mychal Kendricks continued to prove his doubters wrong with his second interception in as many games, adding a sack to boot. QB Dane Evans has me wanting to see him get a look with the second unit next week. The guy plays his heart out and we should get a look at him against stiffer competition, to see if we have something in him. (Even if it just means we have a QB we can trade.)

ICYMI: RB Corey Clement got some early reps this week. Meanwhile RB Wendell Smallwood watched in street clothes.

yeah-bitch

FOUR THINGS: EAGLES/BILLS (PS)

Posted by The BEAST on 2017/08/16
Posted in: Coaching, Defense, Four Things, NFL, Offense, Players, Preview. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

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SO much is new coming into this game. In all honesty, some of it probably shouldn’t be new, but that’s spilled milk at this point. Generally in preseason game 2, you want to build on your strong points from preseason game 1. That however is hard to do when new starters get added suddenly, or others got the first week off.

Barring a surprise, new Eagles WR Alshon Jeffery and CB Ronald Darby will make their Philly debuts in this game. We’ll also get to see how WR Nelson Agholor looks as a regular in the slot. So it’ll be almost like we’re playing in our first preseason game.

Again.

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

1) Being in sync: QB Carson Wentz has to demonstrate solid chemistry with WR Alshon Jeffery. The window for getting them on the same page is rapidly shrinking, and the trading of WR Jordan Matthews removes a security blanket for Wentz, that would have allowed for a certain margin of error. Nothing less than precision is acceptable here.

2) Push must come to shove: Last week, it looked as if the interior Offensive Line was incapable of generating a new line of scrimmage in the run game. That has to get fixed this week or a hard look has to be taken at whether starting LG Isaac Seumalo is really the right move.

3) Slow the inside release: It’ll be interesting to see how much success CB Ronald Darby has when he allows an unsupported inside release, vs when he plays an outside technique. Even if the receiver’s route is an inside route, Darby needs to at least make him fight to get inside. Five yard cushions and quick inside releases will make Darby the equivalent of every CB we already had on the roster before he got here. Keep your eyes peeled. Tape don’t lie.

4) Control the middle: Last week the Defensive Line did a great job of stymieing the Packers ground game, but the Bills are far better at running the rock than they are. This week if we see our line give RB LeSean McCoy a hard time between the Tackles, we’ll know our front is legit, and didn’t just beat up on a mediocre running team.

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:

Jeffery is no rookie. He knows his craft. He can read a defense, get open and make grabs. The issue here is timing. Practice speed and game speed are very different things. So hooking up with Wentz may not look as smooth as some people are expecting. Unlike last week, you can look for shots to be taken down the field. If the Eagles are going to open up the run game and work the bugs out of the passing game, they’re going to have to air the ball out on Thursday.

For years, I’ve called C Jason Kelce a soft player who benefited from the play of savvy, scrappy LG’s (Evan Mathis, Allen Barbre, Stefen Wisniewski) beside him. (This is why Kelce’s play can seem solid one week and soft the next.) Suemalo isn’t scrappy and he isn’t very experienced. The result is that now Kelce has to carry a guy, instead of being carried. In any case I wouldn’t expect a big night on runs inside vs the Bills interior of (DT’s) Marcell Darius, Kyle Williams and (MLB) Preston Brown.

The D-Line will get pressure but will get sold-out by spotty coverage. People will want to blame the athletes, but the real problem is the technique we play. But be patient. It’ll get addressed soon enough. Just not this week.

PREDICTION: EAGLES 17 – Bills 10

yeah-bitch

WHY ‘ZEKE REALLY GOT SIX GAMES.

Posted by The BEAST on 2017/08/12
Posted in: Conspiracy Corner, Fans, NFL, Players, Rivals, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment
getty

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

EZEKIEL Elliott’s six game suspension is bullshit. Let’s get that part out of the way first and foremost. There have been NFL players and coaches (Tom Brady, Bill Belichik) who’ve done worse to the sport itself, and gotten little to no time for their transgressions. There have been players (Greg Hardy) given stiff sentences (10 games), that were reduced to less time (4 games) for admitting far worse than Elliott is accused of. So then, why the stiff sentence for ‘zeke? Why would the NFL want to make an example of Elliott?

The answer dear friends, is marketing. Yes. Marketing.

While advertising is the act of trying to sell a product, marketing is the act of trying to sell an image, or an idea. It’s an attempt to influence, or control thoughts and/or perceptions. Right now the NFL is trying to sell the idea that they are putting their foot down. But to whom is the NFL marketing this idea?

In the last decade, the NFL has made pointed overtures at female customers in the form of products for women, Breast Cancer Awareness, Team Camps for female fans, trying out female referees, and dozens of other small gestures to boot. Given that the U.S. has a larger female population than male, it only makes economic sense to play to the larger crowd.

That said, over the decades the NFL has repeatedly dropped the ball on issues regarding violence against women, and it’s treatment of the perpetrators. Generally those issues were greeted with shrugs from many players, coaches and even owners. Realizing that they’ve been slighting such a large market segment, the NFL is now at least trying to look as if it gives a damn. It is because of that, that Elliott got shutdown for almost half the year.

Despite the Cowboys boast of being “America’s Team” the reality is, there are 31 other fan bases out there, and all of them have female fans. The NFL was willing to piss off female Cowboys fans, in order to score points with female fans of the other 31 teams. Makes perfect mathematical sense.

Also it mattered who the NFL hit with this. Greg Hardy was a mid-level NFL star, already years into his career, who embraced, even cultivated his “bad-boy” image. A suspension to him just added to his “cred”. Elliott however, is a young, top level star. He’s young enough to have this and any other suspension, affect his next contract, and so he’ll have to stay on the straight and narrow. So this suspension now, will in a few years, look like the NFL hit him with some “act right”.

Again, this is marketing the idea to female fans, that the NFL can and now will, force even a star player to behave himself. Due to wanting to not hurt his next deal, Elliott has to walk a careful line, and so is now a built-in success story for Commissioner Roger Goodell’s idea of discipline.

There is a nagging question in the back of my mind however. Would this sentence have been for as many games were it against a non-Cowboys player? Given the Cowboys past (let’s call it) reluctance, to discipline their players, perhaps the NFL was sending the message that if it gets to the Big Desk, it will generate a bigger penalty. This seems like Goodell’s way of telling owner Jerry Jones, to mind his shop better.

How the Cowboys handle the next infraction will determine whether Goodell has made his point to Elliott, the Cowboys, and female fans across the NFL.