Brian Dawkins

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BRINGING BACK MALCOLM JENKINS

Posted by The BEAST on 2020/06/11
Posted in: Conversations, Defense, Front Office (F.O.), NFL, Players, Rants, Roster, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . 3 Comments
Chris Long and Malcolm Jenkins

Jesus. How lucky were we in 2017?

SAFETY Malcolm Jenkins has stayed in the news during the 2020 offseason. He returned to the first team that he won a Super Bowl with (New Orleans). He worked out with new Eagles SS Will Parks, mentoring his replacement, despite not being teammates. He’s recently demonstrated peacefully, for the social cause that he has spent years advocating for.

He has said repeatedly and pointedly, that he considers Philadelphia his home.

I was sick and salty, moody, and disgusted when the Eagles let him get away. I knew we’d regret it. I knew we’d see it come back to rub our collective noses in it. I just didn’t think it would happen so fast, and so nationally. My current level of butthurt looks like this:

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Real talk. Can we just trade and get him back please? The sheer amount of egg on our faces, is already outweighed by whatever the Saints would ask for in return for him. Every time he pops up on the local news, or NFL Network, or CNN, I want to cram GM Howie Roseman’s head in a pencil sharpener.

Have you noticed how we Eagles fans are very excited about the Offense this year? But when the subject of our Defense comes up, suddenly it’s “Excuse me. I have something in the oven”, followed by us sprinting from the room. Which in hindsight, was a bad way to end the prostate exam. (I never went back for my clothes, because I was too scared to discuss our LB situation.)

The leadership vacuum created by Jenkins’s absence is massive, and anyone who tells you different, has no idea what they’re talking about. Most of football is mental. If football were all about measurables, JaMarcus Russell would be a Hall Of Famer and you wouldn’t even know who Joe Montana was. Taylor Mays would be a perennial All-Pro, and Brian Dawkins would have had a two year career.

Brian Dawkins HALL OF FAMER

The ability to lead and to inspire is a rare gift. On any roster of 53 men, you may have 39 solid alpha types, and still only 2 or 3 true leaders. During seasons of adversity and injury (including our 2017 Super Bowl win), Jenkins was the linchpin of the team. Mentally keeping players in the fight. Being accountable and holding people accountable. (Fuck Orlando Scandrick! Sorry, I had to stop that right there, before that even got started.)

The odds of the Eagles bringing back Jenkins are virtually non-existent. It’s just me throwing a coin in a fountain, with my eyes closed and my fingers crossed. It’s also me, trying to have a conversation that inspires people to participate in a discussion about football again. To welcome opinions on a subject that brings us joy, and healthy debate.

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While I’m not the leader that Malcolm Jenkins is, I can aspire to inspire. Like Jenkins, I choose to use the sport of football as a rally point. To utilize my small stage as a scribe, to bring people to a common table. One where we can laugh, debate, and bond over a love that is bigger than all of us, and even bigger than our rivalries

True leaders find ways to maximize their tools and bring their people together. I have no doubt that the Eagles will find new voices, and that new leadership will emerge. It’s a solid locker room with a solid culture, which promotes the building of leaders.  I just wish we had this particular leader back. 

2019 Malcolm Jenkins pre-game

WEAKENING THE EAGLES

Posted by The BEAST on 2020/03/24
Posted in: Coaching, Conspiracy Corner, Conversations, Front Office (F.O.), NFL, Players, Rants, Roster. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

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QUARTERBACK Carson Wentz’s leadership skills are not on trial here. I’m not questioning his ability to lead. So come on down off of that soap box. Don’t even get started. Deep breaths.

NBC’S John Clark wrote a story that I’m going to lift heavily from, because, well you’ll understand when you read it. In it he discusses why the Eagles really cut S Malcolm Jenkins. Check it out:

*****

But I think the biggest factor is changing the dynamic — turning this team over to their franchise quarterback Carson Wentz.

Jenkins was the leader. He was the voice of the team. He broke down the huddles. He was a very powerful voice in the locker room and a commanding and inspirational leader…

2019 Malcolm Jenkins pre-game

But you saw what Wentz was able to do this past season when the offense was ravaged by injuries at receiver down the stretch. “Carson and the kids.” He led them to the playoffs. He was free to be the leader with the younger receivers. They say he inspired them.

I believe the decision to let Jenkins walk is about changing the overall dynamic of this team so this is Wentz’s locker room.

I think it is similar to what the Seahawks did when they allowed Russell Wilson to take over the team and let go of powerful voices like Richard Sherman, Earl Thomas and Michael Bennett.

This is undoubtedly Wentz’s team now.

*****

We won’t get into how that worked out for the Seahawks. (Didn’t.) What we will discuss, is that at no point did it ever seem like Carson and Malcolm had the team chasing different goals. Both men were active in the community. Both promoted accountability, and didn’t throw teammates under the bus. So it’s seems more like the locker room lost a standard bearer, and a player who led by example.

2020BADTHING

What I’m questioning is, whether or not the Eagles are invalidating Carson’s leadership, with their artificial attempt to prop it up. Removing other leaders from the locker room, in order to magnify Carson’s voice, could very easily have the opposite effect, and make him look less like a leader, and more like the team’s mouthpiece.

Remember when other Eagles players called QB Donovan McNabb a “Company Man”? It wasn’t a compliment, was it? Being Managment’s guy, didn’t help him lead did it? In fact, it was sort of a barrier between he and his teammates, wasn’t it?

Now let’s take the situation with Carson and WR Alshon Jeffery. If the Eagles brass attempts to solve a rumored interpersonal rift between Carson and Alshon, by removing Alshon, it makes it seem as if Carson couldn’t “handle his own huddle”, and had to tell the teacher. Which makes Carson look like a weak leader. On top of costing Carson his most productive WR.

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The locker room damned sure doesn’t need a bunch of suits meddling in their chemistry. The Eagles need to leave Carson’s leadership to Carson. Let the man do his thing.

You know what!? I’ll do you one better! If it’s truly going to be Carson’s team, then let him pick his new WR this year at the NFL Draft! Let the locker room see him wield that kind of juice. (Let Alshon see that.)

In the meantime, we should be about the business of adding strong players, and voices to the team, not subtracting them. Not all players (especially defensive ones) will relate to a QB, and having him as the only voice, risks losing resonance with part(s) of the locker room.

Removing Jenkins like this was bad for Karma. Owner Jeffery Lurie refuses to learn this lesson. This is is Reggie White all over again (11-5 in 1992 to 8-8 in 1993). This is Brian Dawkins all over again (NFC Championship game in 2008 to Wild Card in 2009). This is Terrell Owens all over again (Super Bowl in 2004 to 6-10 in 2005). We always pay for this immediately.

Do you see how we did Jenkins and LT Jason Peters (also a powerful locker room voice)?

We will pay for this in 2020.

#2 PAY THE MAN!

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

THE 12 2020.2

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

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

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

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

Oh yeah, and just who is his successor….

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

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

Soap drop

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

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

Pay the man!

2019 Malcolm Jenkins pre-game

FOUR THINGS: SUPER BOWL 52: EAGLES-PATRIOTS

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/02/01
Posted in: Coaching, Defense, Four Things, NFL, Offense, Players, playoffs, Preview, Roster, Special Teams, stats, Super Bowl. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . 7 Comments

4 SB-PAT

YES. The Eagles can beat New England. I’m not saying that I think the Eagles can beat them. I’m saying that I know we can beat them.

In fact, we beat them the last time we faced them 35 -28. We went on the road as a 4 – 7 team, while they were 10 – 1. And we won. In their house. We started QB Sam Bradford, and they started the fella they’ll start Sunday We were playing in an ill-fitting 3-4 defensive scheme, vs the stifling 4-3 front that we play today. We were also being coached by an idiot.

Everything about us is better than it was when we faced them last time. So we can beat this team. That’s not a wishful opinion, that’s a matter of fact. Banish from your minds, ANY other notion. 

Just ask Dawk:

During the playoffs, our victories have been 15 – 10 and 38 – 7. Our margin of victory has grown, indicating that we are getting stronger as our opponents have gotten tougher. Conversely, New England’s victories have been 14 – 35 then 20 – 24. That trend indicates that things are getting tougher for them as they move forward.

The media wants to frame this as a battle of two QB’s, but it isn’t. This is a battle of two teams, and the Eagles are the better balanced, deeper, more talented, and hungrier team. Keep in mind, no amount of media sycophants, verbally polishing the knob of New England’s quarterback, will put a single point on the board on Sunday. New England will have to earn any point they score. And our Defense isn’t known for giving points away. (8.5 per game. IN the playoffs).

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

1) Work the middle: New England is solid at CB, but everything else about their pass defense isn’t very good at all. They’re going to want to take away anything quick and easy for QB Nick Foles, which has a way of opening up down-field passing, if we can protect long enough. If they want to put their Safeties against WR’s Alshon Jeffery and Torrey Smith, let’s make them regret it.

2) Destroy the pocket: New England’s interior offensive line is on the small side. Technique and raw brute power should be used by DT’s Fletcher Cox and Timmy Jernigan, to invert the pocket and ensure that we don’t have to pass rush with more than four players. Every ounce of effort must be left on the field at this position.

3) Blount. Force. Trauma: RB Jay Ajayi is the starter, but we need RB LeGarrette Blount running behind RG Brandon Brooks and RT Lane Johnson this week. New England likes to start 2 LB’s and 3 DB’s, because their LB’s can’t cover for shit. If they want to play small, then we should use 12 Personnel (2 TE’s) and run off-Guard at their smallish DE’s.

4) South Paw Switch: New England does a good job of making adjustments at the Half. So DC Jim Schwartz should throw out the first half gameplan and switch it up entirely in the second half. Fake a number of front-side blitzes in the first half; then bring them off the blind-side in the second. Single-high, with 8 man fronts in the first; Man-press Cover Two in the second. Start out Tyson, then switch to Ali. Let them out-think themselves. Turn their greatest strength into an insurmountable liability, before they can even realize what’s happening to them.

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:

Head Coach Doug Pederson is gonna hunt these fuckers. If you don’t think he’s going to come out swinging, then you haven’t been paying attention this season. Expect aggression. This game is unlikely to be decided by the foot of rookie K Jake Elliott.

New England will attempt to take away anything quick and easy for Foles. When they do, they’ll have to drop guys into coverage instead of sending extra rushers. If they can make Foles hold the ball, they’ll expose LT Halapoulivaati Vaitai, and push Foles to his right all night.

If I know this, then our coaching staff knows this. So look for that to be built into the game plan. We’ll find ways for Foles to deliver the ball down the field, and eat up chunks of field inside with WR Nelson Agholor and Zach Ertz, vs those LB’s that can’t cover. I’m also keeping my eye out for a backside Screen to RB Corey Clement, which could prove devastating to New England.

In order to tone down our pass rush, we’ll probably be tested with a couple of middle screens and delayed hand-offs early on. That’s fine. Even if we get gashed a couple times, it’s important to pick up on how they want to key those this week. If we see them early, we’ll know how to shut them down later.

Middle Screens be damned! We’ll need that penetration from our DT’s. I expect DE’s Brandon Graham and Vinny Curry to set hard edges, while playing the run first. That will keep the RB’s inside the box, where all the help is. While the opposing QB can scramble, he’s no match for the speed of OLB’s Nigel Bradham and Mychal Kendricks.

Facing pressure, New England’s QB is as human as anyone, and so can be be forced into making mistakes with the ball. That’s bad news when you’re facing a Safety like Malcolm Jenkins. Or a CB like Ronald Darby (4 picks). Or a CB like Patrick Robinson (3 picks). Or a Safety like Rod McLeod (3). Or a CB like Jalen Mills (3).

Don’t be fooled by the media hyping up a QB and TE. Step back and look at their WHOLE team. Not two guys, but all of them. Overall, they’re an average team that plays great against inept teams, and not nearly as good against decent-to-good ones. Only two teams in the league gave up more yardage this year. That’s not the mark of a champion. That’s the mark of an average team. Hell, maybe even a bad one.

Look, who told you IN 2014 that we needed to fire Bill Davis for a Super Bowl? This guy. 

Who told you IN APRIL that we were going to win the East this year? This guy. 

Who told you IN DECEMBER that there may be a QB controversy next Fall? This guy. 

Who told you IN THE FIRST ROUND not to worry about Nick Foles? This guy. 

Who’s telling you NOW that the Eagles will win the Super Bowl? That’s right. THIS GUY. 

PREDICTION:

EAGLES 28 – Patriots 17

yeah bitch

CARSON WENTZ DISRESPECTED

Posted by The BEAST on 2017/06/10
Posted in: Conversations, Fans, NFL, Offense, Players, Rants, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

CARSON Wentz was just “dissed” by the national media, yet again. The other day, the NFL released a story asking whether last year’s number one overall pick, Rams QB Jared Goff, could catch up to Cowboys QB Dak Prescott. Observe:

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Instead of complaining immediately, I gave it a day or so, first. Just to see if the league’s scribes would show Wentz some love in a separate or subsequent article. Two days went by, and the only mention of him is in relation to whether or not the Eagles have a playoff chance this year.

For his part, I’m sure that Wentz would say that he doesn’t pay attention to such things, that his focus is on getting better to help this team win, blah blah, and boilerplate. Personally I think that’s a load of horseshit, but Wentz is is trying to be a class act, publicly. So I’ve decided to be publicly pissed on his behalf. I’m hoping more Eagles fans will join me on this one.

I don’t want to downplay, minimize, or take away any credit for Dak Prescotts’s fluke rookie season. While being carried by a very good run game, he managed to do some nice things until the stage got too big for him. I can fully and freely acknowledge that. It’s only natural that the league would want to compare other young QB’s against him.

What has me steamed is that the guy held up as competition for Prescott, is Goff. Wentz started 16 games last year, to Goff’s 7. Wentz won 7 of his starts, while Goff won none of his, and even managed to get blown out in 4 of those games. Wentz looked like a guy becoming a franchise QB, while Goff looked like…

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However, the national media did what it’s used to doing, and skipped completely over the Eagles. In most cases it’s hard for me to get mad over it. Being honest here, since the days of Ray Rhodes, we rarely have had many players on the roster who fans outside of Philly felt like talking about.

Ricky Watters, Donovan McNabb, Terrell Owens, Jevon Kearse, LeSean McCoy, Brian Dawkins and Jeremiah Trotter. Those were Eagles that you could expect fans of other teams to not just know, but possibly bring up themselves. Not just sports reporters, but actual fans.

Guys like Brian Westbrook, Corey Simon, Sheldon Brown, Jon Runyan, Trent Cole, and Jason Peters, are all guys Eagles fans think highly of, but if you run these names by (for example) the average Jaguars fan, you’ll probably get a blank stare.

Wentz on the other hand, was picked number two overall last year so that already puts him on the national stage. He then played circles around the guy picked a spot ahead of him. Given that most think Wentz will become a legit franchise QB, there is no way he should be an afterthought in this discussion. As I said, I can generally understand it when Eagles players get overlooked, but this oversight was nothing short of egregious. This was practically a deliberate snub.

As I said before, Wentz is too classy point out, or seriously acknowledge this insult. A fist fight in mud isn’t how he conducts himself publicly. But I’m an Eagles fan. That’s just my game.

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So if you’re mad about our QB being slighted, join me in telling the NFL to go blow a cactus. Get your friends involved. Stepping over our QB for a half-wit like Goff? That shouldn’t go unanswered.

WHAT DREW PEARSON HERE?

Posted by The BEAST on 2017/05/05
Posted in: Conversations, Draft, Rants, Rivals, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , . 3 Comments

no 88.jpg

AS a member of few NFC East based Trash Talk groups (on Facebook), I’ve ended up in dozens of debates over the years with Cowboys fans. The funny thing is, regardless of what subject they bring up (five rings, the Triplets, America’s Team), the one thing I never hear from them, is the name Drew Pearson. He simply never comes up. It’s almost as if they’d forgotten he’d existed.

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When people love and want to remember athletes, they retire their numbers. A great example of that is Brian Dawkins. Dawk is loved by Eagles fans, so his number is NOT up for recycling on players who slap their mothers.  

Which is why Pearson went all-out to antagonize Eagles fans during the Draft. It was just a case of a forgotten relic, doing what he could to be relevant again for a week or so. It’s why a week later he continues to troll not the Eagles organization that he played against, but the Eagles fans themselves. He just wants to remind Cowboys fans that Dez Bryant, and Michael Irvin weren’t the only 88’s in team history.

My guess is that he still does appearances in Dallas, at bank openings and car dealerships. Mostly for those fans who haven’t quite reached senility yet, and so will still vaguely recall him, if they’re told who he is. Still, it apparently isn’t enough attention for the Wide Re-geezer. So to get his name out there, he hauled his shriveled keister onto an Econo/Coach flight (likely on his own dime, right Jerry?), and came to Philadelphia to be made emotionally whole, by the only fans on Earth who could do it.

You could see on his face that it felt good to him that anybody still felt anything at all for him. Even if all it was, was a distant and faded form of hatred. A watered down version of true hostility, delivered by an audience mostly too young to have ever seen him play. The hostility wasn’t really even for him, but for the Cowboys having been mentioned. How could it be for him, when no one knew who he was? In all truth, most Eagles fans would probably hold the door for him at Wawa, because we wouldn’t recognize him if our lives depended on it.

Still, it was nice of us to make an old man feel like he mattered, during what may be his last night under the bright lights. If only for a moment Eagles fans did what no Cowboys fans ever could. We made him feel like a Star again.

You’re welcomed Drew. Drive safe. 

REPLACING BILL DAVIS

Posted by The BEAST on 2015/12/02
Posted in: Coaching, Defense, Front Office (F.O.), Players, Rants, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , . Leave a comment

bdawk

WHILE Defensive Coordinator Bill Davis hasn’t been fired yet, it’s hard to imagine a scenario where he gets to return for the 2016 season. For that reason I’m as giddy as a kid on Christmas Eve. I’m generally the last person to advocate for anybody getting fired, but we can’t get any better as long as he’s hanging around here. Every year we’re a joke versus the pass, and many fans (as is common with sports) blame the players.

Last year I made it a point to say that our Cornerbacks weren’t the problem and that the real problem was our defensive scheme, which I mentioned last November, and even Brian Dawkins took issue with it a month later. I specifically pointed out our flawed cover coverage concept. I said our pass defense problems would persist until the defensive scheme was changed. Many disagreed and clamored for a new Secondary.

Lo and behold fans got what they wanted. If you were one of the fans screaming for a new Secondary, congratulations. How did that work out for you? What did I tell you would happen? The Eagles even went so far as to overspend on the top Free Agent on the market in CB Byron Maxwell. They were aggressive and didn’t cheap out. There were about a million and five things wrong with that signing. I even went so far as to point out some of what they were.

Side question: Who leases a shiny, new, 12 mil a year CB, and then uses a rookie back-up to cover WR Calvin Johnson with no Safety help? Answer: Someone who should be fired.

If Davis is fired we’ll need a replacement. QUICK! Of all of the assistants on this staff who would you like to see take over for him? (Cue the sound of crickets). And other ideas? Please don’t say Brian Dawkins. I love the guy but he hasn’t even been a position coach yet. Asking him to come off the street and put together a defensive scheme and game plans that worked, is to set him up for failure.

And please, no one say Rob Ryan. I’m so sick of hearing his name. He’s been awful everywhere he’s gone. If he wasn’t Buddy’s son and Rex’s brother, he’d be one more fat guy buying two buckets of KFC while saying “It’s not as good as it used to be when it was Kentucky Fried Chicken. Hey, you remember Gino’s?” So please don’t mention him.

If Chip Kelly were to be fired, I don’t really know who I’d want to replace him yet, but I already have a short list of people who I’d like to see replace Davis. You’ve likely never heard of any of them before and that’s part of the point. These are guys hungry to prove that they’re ready for the job. There’s also no book on their tendencies that would help opponents early on.

If say…Rob Ryan, came here, you already know it’s a 3-4 with a blindside rush LB, a NT that plays over the Center, and multiple ineffective coverage looks. The NFL would have to learn a new guy just as he’d have to learn the NFL. If you get a position coach already in the league, he has several legs up on any collegiate coach that we could bring in, and so the NFL is where I focused my search. Here’s my short list:

Kris Kocurek: Currently the Defensive Line coach for the Detroit Lions. He has a knack for getting production from young players, which hints at him being able to motivate people on their lown evels. It would be nice to have a coordinator who could also develop players we draft instead of wasting pick after pick like we’ve been doing.

Bryan Cox: Currently coaches the Defensive Line for the Atlanta Falcons. He also coached the front seven for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He’s a former player, who brought his lunch pail and intensity on Sundays. That doesn’t always make for a good coach, but Cox seems to have made the transition. The positions he coaches tend to be solid but not flashy. It would be interesting to see what a whole defense coached with that solid, intense, hard-nosed attitude would look like.

Adam Zimmer: Currently the Linebackers coach for the Minnesota Vikings, over his 9 year career he’s had success both working with and without his father (famed DC now Vikings HC Mike Zimmer). While he’s never held the reigns as a DC, he may be itching to be more than a position coach, and has a GREAT brain to pick for advice.

Andre Patterson: Currently the Defensive Line coach for the Minnesota Vikings, he has plenty of NFL coaching experience but none as a coordinator. He’s been collegiate DC, and twice he was a collegiate Assistant Head Coach. Having coached at the high school, college and NFL level, he’s yet another candidate that has shown that he knows how to get young players to produce early.

These guys also have one very important thing in common (as far as I’m concerned). They all come out of 4-3 systems. While the 3-4 is faster and more flexible, it’s also less stable and easier to exploit. There is no point in shipping out Davis for a less good version of the same thing. I’m no Kelly fan, but I think with a 4-3 defense this is a team that has a shot at winning playoff games. A 3-4 serves as a poor counterbalance for the offensive system we run.

Time to make a change.

EAGLES/REDSKINS PREVIEW

Posted by The BEAST on 2014/12/18
Posted in: Coaching, Defense, Offense, Preview. Tagged: , , , , , . 5 Comments

12.21.14-Wk16

SATURDAY 4:30 FedEx Field – Landover, Maryland

 

PUMP THE BRAKES

SEATTLE should have been competitive, but it should have been a win. Dallas should have been a breeze. I mean seriously, we even came back from being down 21-0. But in both games the Offense just stalled out, and the defense had a single problem that it couldn’t solve all game long (Russell Wilson’s running vs SEA; and covering Dez Bryant vs DAL.) At this point I have no idea who is showing up in our uniforms on game day.

 

EAGLES

Defense

Due to an under-comittment to defending the pass, we’re pretty solid at defending the run. And when we aren’t being ripped for easy completions, we get good pressure on QB’s. So there’s that.

Let me say this: While CB Bradley Fletcher did look bad out there, stranding him out there like that was total bullshit and horrible coaching. I was glad to see Brian Dawkins weigh in and say the same thing. Before I had this website, (some of you may recall) I wrote when we first signed him, that Fletcher was a kitted-up Safety. WHAT A SURPRISE, I WAS RIGHT AGAIN!

That said, our Secondary is an open fucking wound. Everyone knows that we can be had on shallow crossing routes and now they know that our Defensive Coordinator Bill Davis will strand our CB’s even when they are over-matched. This week I hope to see us play some Cover Two. The last time we played this team we didn’t and it was a shootout. Be nice to see if Davis is capable of learning.

Offense

Remember throwing the ball deep? Remember Jordan Matthews catching multiple Bubble-screens in game? Remember Jordan Matthews? Where the hell did all that go? Mark Sanchez was never really as in synch with Jeremy Maclin as Nick Foles was; but jeez, I’d rather see Sanchez forcing the ball to Maclin than to Riley Cooper.

I’m not even going to harp on our run game. It’s been up and down all year, and right now it’s down again. We all know why that is, but this week especially is not the time to get on that again.

Even without Foles there’s enough firepower here to shell our opponent. But it all depends on which EAGLES Offense decides to show up.

 

REDSKINS

Defense

What can you say about this unit? It has a talented pass rusher in OLB Ryan Kerrigan, and it doesn’t give up a ton of yardage. On the other hand, they have just 4 picks all year long and they allow more points than all but 6 teams. It’s a perfectly “meh” level unit. They should be an ideal “get our confidence back” type of opponent as we work some shit out. 

Offense

Hey look! RB Alfred Morris is about to rush for 1,000 yards again. In that plodding, one dimensional style of his. Despite the QB’s drawing straws every week to see who starts, WR DeSean Jackson has put up nearly 1,000 yards on just 50 grabs this year, and some of you may recall that he is one hell of deep threat. Maybe some Cover Two would be nice?

 

BOTTOM LINE

If we don’t win this game, we should start Matt Barkley next week. This is an absurdly winnable game for us and it pains me that even though I still think we’ll win, I don’t feel confident that we’ll show up looking to handle business.

PREDICTION

EAGLES 24 – 20

 

ME AND BRIAN DAWKINS ARE PISSED

Posted by The BEAST on 2014/12/16
Posted in: Coaching, Defense, Players, Rants. Tagged: , , , . 5 Comments

BDAWK

EAGLES future Hall Of Famer Brian Dawkins, took issue with the way Dez Bryant was covered during our 38-27 loss to Dallas this past Sunday. While he did point the finger at the Secondary for not communicating better, he was very upset by the coaching and game plan. He went as far as to say that the EAGLES “gave [Bryant] the opportunity to do what he did, in my opinion, by continuing to single that dude up left and right, by himself, over and over again with no help at no point”. 

Now granted, I’ve been bitching about Defensive Coordinator Bill Davis since the EAGLES first announced that they were even interviewing him. Where most EAGLES fans had no idea who the guy was, I was already familiar with his work and his concepts, (since my best friend is a 49ers fan). I also knew about his failure Arizona. I wrote that every defense he coaches is worse in the second year. It was true in San Fran. It was true in Arizona. It’s now true here in Philadelphia.

His 3-4 concept DOES NOT WORK AGAINST GOOD TEAMS. His underneath coverage is highly susceptible to Crossing routes. TE’s can expect clean releases off the line. And due to all the Single-high Coverage, opposing QB’s generally know where the one-on-one is as soon as the huddle breaks.

While it’s one thing for me to rant about this stuff, it’s quite another to have a guy like Dawkins voice the same concerns. And while yes, he’s only talking about this one game, what we saw out there is characteristic of what we see every week out of our Secondary. What Dawk and I are most incensed about isn’t that a guy will get beat, or that the game plan may have holes; it’s the total lack of being able to make adjustments.

Dawk played for Jim Johnson who was The Master of in-game adjustments. To see Davis be unable to even make basic ones is enough to make your nose bleed from stress. It’s the New Orleans playoff game all over again.

I saw this mistake (hiring Davis) coming before we made it. I’ve been pointing these faults out in detail for two years. But to now have some validation from a player of Dawk’s magnitude…I wonder if anyone else is as pissed as we are.