Chris Long

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EAGLES TRADE FOR DeMARCUS LAWRENCE?

Posted by The BEAST on 2022/10/22
Posted in: Conspiracy Corner, Conversations, Crazy Talk, Defense, Front Office (F.O.), NFC East, NFL, playoffs, Rivals, Roster, Super Bowl, trade, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

ARMING for a Super Bowl run. That’s the whole point in making a mid-season trade. It’s getting that last piece, which should put your team over the hump. It’s shoring up a glaring weakness, or giving an obvious strength the Barry Bonds treatment. It’s saying “Damn the consequences. I’m all in!”

Defensive line and pass rush, are already deep and dominant areas for this Eagles team. There isn’t an NFC team that can beat us now. Adding Dallas Cowboys DE DeMarcus Lawrence to this team, would almost act as a reservation to play in the upcoming Super Bowl.

Understand, this move is highly unlikely at the moment. The current NFL playoff structure includes seven teams, three of which are Wild Cards. If the playoffs started today, Dallas would be in as the sixth seed. With playoff hopes still alive, no team is parting ways with a player like Lawrence.

That said, the November 1st trade deadline is two Cowboys games away from now, and currently there are six, 3 – 3 teams in the NFC. The math will turn suddenly and sharply for at least one of these teams. If the the 4 – 2 Cowboys split these next two weeks, they’d be 5 – 3. If they drop both, they’re 4 – 4 with a very murky franchise picture going forward.

Get this: Lawrence is 30 years old, and set to count 35M$ against the 2023 salary cap. He last had a 10 sack season in 2018. Since then, he’s put up 5.0, 6.5, 3.0, and currently sits at 3.0 through six games. This year, that’s half a sack per game. Over seventeen games that projects as just 8.5 sacks, and he’s under contract until 2025, when he’ll be 33.

Hell, with DE’s Chauncey Gholston and Sam Williams waiting in the wings, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones might welcome a chance to dump Lawrence’s contract. Especially if he can get us to cough up a second rounder and fourth rounder in 2023; or a 2023 second, and a 2024 third.

For the Eagles it would also work out well. Part of Lawrence’s production issues have to do with him never having an interior presence like DT Fletcher Cox. With OLB Hasaan Reddick on his left arm, and Cox on his right, there may not be enough players left to block him! Lawrence isn’t a long term building block, but he can be this year’s Chris Long or Michael Bennett, and really help further a playoff run.

As far as figuring out the money, The Eagles are already projected to have a loose estimate of 11M in cap space for 2023; they should have about 10M in rollover; and no one knows exactly what the cap ceiling will be. Also General Manager Howie Roseman can take a bad contract, and turn that water into wine. So if you think of the money as an impediment, DON’T.

I’m writing this on my personal laptop, with my work laptop open to my lock screen. The picture on that screen, is of the Eagles 2018 parade. Super Bowl MVP Nick Foles is holding the trophy in the air, as the bus travels (the wrong way) on 15th Street. Crazy thing is, I’m in this picture. (Don’t look for me. Even I can’t make me out in this shot, and I know exactly where I’m standing in it.)

Super Bowl MVP Nick Foles holds up the Lombardi trophy, in front of the Municipal Services Building. Kevin Bacon’s father Edmund, designed it. FYI: When this was taken, I was standing across the street from it, with no clue that I’d ever work there. I work there now. Life can be funny.

This trade would put us in a real position to see another one of these, at seasons end. Again, this move is highly unlikely at the moment. So share the shit out this article! Spread the rumor! Speak it into existence. We have two weeks to get it to the right set of ears, and maybe make it happen. Be that 12th man, and I’ll see you on in February on 15th Street.

NECESSARY LUXURY CONNOR BARWIN

Posted by The BEAST on 2019/06/30
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, free agents, Front Office (F.O.), NFL, Offense, Players, Rants, Roster, Special Teams. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

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Defensive Coordinator Jim Schwartz

AGAIN, LB/DE Connor Barwin has made his wish to comeback to Philadelphia, publicly known. It was a good idea when I wrote about it last March, and it’s still a good idea now. The only question is: Are the Eagles smart enough to pull the trigger? By the way, we should also grab RB Darren Sproles while we’re at it.

No. I’m not interested in an Eagles reunion tour.

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What? No! Wrong Eagles! Ooooohh in it’s entirety? No. Never mind that.

Look, I’ve been a fan of bringing back Barwin for years now. On Sproles, I’ve had a recent change of heart, following a recent change of heart. However, as it stands now, both players would be a Necessary Luxury. Yes, the statement is oxymoronic. Allow me to explain.

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Barwin is more of a 3-4 OLB than a typical 4-3 DE. However, in a Wide 9 front, the DE position operates more like an OLB with space around it. This puts emphasis on containment and then penetration, as opposed to block stacking and then penetration. Both are examples of setting an edge, but the tactic is different. Last time I checked, Defensive Coordinator Jim Schwartz still employ a Wide 9 front.

With the recent retirement of DE Chris Long, there is a hole here. Second year DE’s Josh Sweat and Joe Ostman, along with rookie DE Shareef Miller, would all like a shot at the 4th spot behind DE’s Brandon Graham, Derek Barnett and Vinny Curry. In fact, it makes sense to elevate a youngin. The trouble is the lack of versatility, which the Eagles covet. Every guy on this list is a defensive lineman. They aren’t meant for playing in space.

Barwin can play with his hand in the dirt, and can can also offer some value as zone coverage LB. He’s played both ILB and OLB, so the Eagles can move him around either situationally, or in the case of an injury. True or false: LB depth has been an issue for the Eagles for a while now? See? Necessary luxury. Barwin is a great locker room influence and also truly embraces the city of Philadelphia itself. In the absence of Long, you really can’t ask for better.

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Sproles, is a quietly intriguing case. When I talk to people about him, they always go right to discussing how we don’t need him, because we have RB Miles Sanders. While there may be some truth to that, there is no such thing as too much depth at RB. (Just compare 2018 to 2017.) Besides, if Sproles doesn’t come here, he’s going to New Orleans. Do we need that? Do we?

Also, what most people fail to realize is that right now, as you read this on June 30th 2019, the two most accomplished return men on the Eagles team are WR DeSean Jackson, and RB Corey Clement. Using DJax as a regular returner AND starting WR is stupid. Especially at his age and with his hamstring history. As I said in a prior article  Clement has a grand total of 6 (I say again, just 6) career punt returns and just 15 kick returns.

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Seems like maybe an on-field mentor would be good to have around. Teach the young guys? See? Necessary luxury. In addition to that, RB Coach Duce Staley has indicated that there might be a budding coach in Sproles. If we can transition him here, it’d be a ton of current wisdom to have in our stockpile.

ATHLETES LOVE PHILADELPHIA

Posted by The BEAST on 2019/06/11
Posted in: Conversations, Fans, Players, Rivals, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

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FORMER New York giant Safety Landon Collins recently said “I don’t feel like I bleed blue anymore. I feel like [the Redskins] know my value and how they’ll use me in their defense. I don’t feel like I was used correctly within the [giants] defense that I was playing in.“

You know, when Donovan McNabb was traded to the Redskins, when DeSean Jackson was released, when LeSean McCoy was traded to the Bills, when Connor Barwin was with the Rams, when LeGarrette Blount signed with Detroit, when Dawk went to Denver, none of these guys threw the team under the bus.

And they ALL spoke highly of the city. We got into their bones. Recently retired DE Chris Long referred to Philly as his favorite city. The aforementioned Barwin used to go to work riding the Broad Street Line. (For non-Philadelphians: That’s one of our “two” (really one) subway systems.) A multi-millionaire really has to dig the city to be willing to ride SEPTA.

Men who have traveled the country, have traveled the globe, and could afford to live anywhere in the world, come back HERE, to this place and regard it thus,

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LeSean McCoy’s first return to the Linc.

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Allen Iverson’s return as a Sixer

So you’ll understand my puzzlement, at the notion of people like Collins and Odell Beckham, taking shots at a storied franchise like the giants, and making no mention of missing a world-class city like New York.

We saw the same thing with new Eagle MLB Zach Brown in his unabashed dissing of the Redskins team, locker room and culture.

You never hear of players missing other places, but everyone misses being here. Well maybe not everyone. (Hall of Fame WR Chris Carter literally credits ^Buddy Ryan^ trading him from the Eagles, as what possibly saved his life.)

No. I didn’t go player by player for the last 10 years, and ask each man personally what he thinks, but you get the idea. Publicly, players put it right out there when they leave, that they don’t just miss the team they played for, they miss US. You and me. That connection.

There is something to be said for the capability to even BE unique. While a flower may be beautiful, they are generally sold in bunches where no single one stands out. However, that single, striking bulb set against the backdrop of all the sameness… There is a subtle bluntness to such beauty.

Logan Square was once used for public executions. Gallows stood in the square until 1823.

And that is apparently what Philly is. Athletes who’ve been the world over, still somehow manage to miss being here. My god. Let that sink in for a moment.

 

CHRIS LONG IS A NO-BRAINER

Posted by The BEAST on 2019/01/27
Posted in: Conspiracy Corner, Defense, Front Office (F.O.), NFC East, Players, Rivals, Roster, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 2 Comments

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NEXT year DE Chris Long is due 3.5M$ in the final year of his contract. That’s a pittance for what we’re getting in exchange. Aside from being a reliable, productive player, Long is an extremely high-quality person off the field. On the field, he plays starter level minutes, but he never bitches that he doesn’t get to start, and doesn’t make starter level money. (Note: Over the last two seasons, Long has more sacks (11.5) than any giant besides starter Olivier Vernon (13.5).

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Every time the giants overpay a former Dolphin, an Eagle gets his wings.

Chris is rare. Our odds of finding another player like him, are staggeringly low. When he leaves, regardless of how he leaves, we will miss him. Even if we find another player like him, we’ll have a situation where we could have had two like him. There is no getting around the fact that we are better with him. And Jerome forbid, Long should go to a division rival, like the aforementioned giants! 

So keeping Long should be a no-brainer.

He said that he’s mulling retirement. However he also said “I’m literally just kind of sitting back and seeing what the Eagles do, and who they bring in, or don’t bring in, and how deep that room gets.” And he also said “Listen, I know I’m an older guy. But, you know, I don’t think I’ve missed a practice over the last two years. I feel like I’ve been durable and ready when called upon.” In addition to that, and most importantly, he said “I’d like to play football in 2019”.

Let me run that by you one mo’ ‘gin: “I’d like to play football in 2019”.

What you just read were multiple examples of a guy quietly making his case. He’s saying to the Front Office that he’s still viable. That he still has good football in him. He’s waiting for the Eagles to say “Chris, we’d like you back. Will you come back?” That’s it. That’s what the man is waiting for. He has a contract, he just wants to know if Executive Vice President of Football Operations (EVPF– Fuck it), GM Howie Roseman wants him to stay.

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Last year (March 2018) when he was mulling retirement, I said we’d be fine at DE, even with the loss of he and Vinny Curry. However at that time, Brandon Graham, Derek Barnett and Steven Means were all under contract, and we’d even added Micheal Bennett.

As I said in RE-ARMING FOR WAR, the loss of Graham and Long, (Steven Means now plays in Atlanta), would leave us with Bennett, Barnett (returning from injury), and second year DE Josh Sweat. Sweat is also returning from injury, and he didn’t really flash before he got hurt.

So we need Long. We need him for character, depth, production and even tactically. Yeah, tactically. He understands the nuances of what his spot demands situationally, for this scheme. So if on a given down, he needs to freelance, he can do it without downgrading the integrity of the unit. You can’t get that from a new player. Even if that player is a ten year vet.

This is a phone call. This is that phone call that Reggie White and Brian Dawkins didn’t get from the Front Office. Not to put Long on that level, but the ease of resolving this situation is similar. We’re shooting ourselves in the foot if we don’t. This is easy. We need to get this done.

It’s a no-brainer.

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Don’t worry. Howie is smarter than this… Right?

 

 

FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: WK16 : TEXANS

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/12/24
Posted in: Coaching, Defense, Offense, Players, playoffs, Reviews, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

ANY team (or fan base) that says they aren’t scared of the Eagles right now, is lying. Right now the Eagles are playing scrappy, ballsy, no holds barred, football. We’re playing with the swagger of a radioactive man, walking among his enemies, with nothing to lose. At this point in the year, when teams see the Eagles on their schedule, they swallow hard and just hope that we make it quick.

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EAGLES 32 – Texans 30

QB Nick Foles (35/49 – 71.4% – 471 – 4 – 1) set the team record for having the most 400 yard passing games of any QB in an Eagles jersey. TE Zach Ertz (12 – 110 – 9.1 – 2) set the ALL-TIME RECORD for passes caught by a TE in a season. On the way to those records, we took a minute to hand Houston a shiny new “L” for their Christmas tree.

The stats do no justice to the day that was had by RB Darren Sproles (9 – 32 – 3.5 – 0 – 0/ 3 – 76 – 25.3 – 1). Since returning from injury four weeks ago, Sproles has been playing like a man possessed. On just 35 touches, he has 3 scores, often fighting off multiple defenders, while he refuses to stop until he hits paydirt.

DE Chris Long (2 – 2.0 – 0 – 0) brought his sack total up to 6.5, which is his best year since 2013, when he had 8.5. The difference is, in 2013 he had 16 starts. This year he has zero. DT Treyvon Hester  (2 – 1.0 – 0 – 0)  25 games into his career, finally broke his NFL cherry and git himself a sack. CB/FS Rasul Douglas (8 – 0 – 0 – 0) despite being beaten by an amazing throw for a score, played a hell of a game, yet again. The pairing of he and CB Avonte Maddox (2 – 0.5 – 0 – 0) is giving the Eagles a real presence both against the run and the pass.

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

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

1) Run the ball: I said we needed 25 handoffs and we got 21. The run/pass play selection was 21 to 51. We can’t live that way. We got away with it this week though. NOT DONE

2) Take away the catalyst: The Eagles spent a lot of time in Cover Two, and kept the catalyst out of the endzone. We allowed completions, then we closed, made the tackle and didn’t let him become a problem. DONE

3) DE’s set the edges: The Defense was AMAZING at this! The Texans run game was served right up to our tacklers, who wrapped up and finished the down. DONE

4) Screen Time!: We didn’t do much in the way of Screens. NOT DONE

This brings this week’s Four Things score to 2 of 4 and the seasons total to 26 out of 58. Next week we get a shot at sweeping the Redskins in a game we need (along with outside help) to make the playoffs.

On The Whole:

Nick Foles picked up another cool quarter million, plus a record, plus a win, plus more validation for the shrine to him, created by Chris Long. On February 6th I said:  “If Foles wants to stay, we need to find a way to let him. If he doesn’t, we need to find a way to convince him.”

This game was a great win to watch, but there may be a very serious decision to be made at the QB spot for this team. This game ruined any chance of there being a cut and dried decision on it.

Have fun celebrating, but recognize that there is a headache and some extreme discomfort coming up. And the further we go, the worse it will get.

OKAY ERIC, LET’S TALK SELL-OUTS

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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We just discussed what Philadelphia Eagles players are doing.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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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HELPING THE EAGLES WIN

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/01/25
Posted in: Crazy Talk, playoffs, Super Bowl, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , , . 2 Comments

AFTER vanquishing the Vikings on Sunday night, DE Chris Long was interviewed by Hall of Famer Terry Bradshaw. Bradshaw mentioned that Chris’s father, Hall of Famer Howie Long was nearby. At that point Chris said that the Eagles always seem to play well when Howie is present.

At that moment I began hatching a plan.

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As a fan I want to give the Eagles every advantage I can, and if Howie Long’s presence is good for the Eagles, then we fans need to make sure that he gets to the Super Bowl. Somehow, someway, we need to raise money to send a rich man, to an event that none of us are well connected enough to get tickets to, even if we could afford them.

(Now pressing play on Sarah McLachlan’s “In the Arms of an Angel”)

So won’t you give? Give, so that Howie can travel in first class, to an event that he probably was already comp’d for and paid to attend. Give, so that he can watch his son play, from seats that we bought, that he won’t use, because his seats will be so much better.

For less than the price of a cup of coffee, you probably can’t help us much, so give like 50 bucks instead. Come on! Don’t be cheap! We’re trying to win a Super Bowl over here! I know, I know. You just came off of Christmas, so buying things for other people so soon, fills you with a creeping rage. Let alone buying things for a millionaire. I understand. But this is a Super Bowl!

I’m sure that Chris would do it if he could, but as you know, he gave away all of his money and all of his socks and all of his undies are now loaners. So he can’t do it. This is where we get to SHOW our loyalty, and go that extra mile. Speaking of extra miles if you have them, donate them. Make that sacrifice. I won’t be donating MY miles because I want to keep them. I haven’t booked a flight yet, but no, you can’t have my miles.

Keep in mind, what is at stake here, people. We You all have to make sacrifices. My sacrifice?? Jeez, you’re nosey! But if you must know, I’ll send some of the money that you send to me, to fund this whole thing. What will I do with the rest of it?? I don’t know. Maybe I’ll meet up with WR Nelson Agholor and he can give me some advice.

Aaaaand I’m out of rum.

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FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: WK 14: RAMS

Posted by The BEAST on 2017/12/11
Posted in: Coaching, Defense, Four Things, NFL, Offense, Players, playoffs, Reviews, Special Teams, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

PLAYOFFS here we come! The only thing to work out now is how long our playoff ride will last. During the course of this game, the Injury Bug paid our team yet another unwelcome visit, and claimed our Quarterback. For how long, has yet to be confirmed.

NFL PLAYOFFS

EAGLES 43 – Rams 35

On the play before leaving the the game, QB Carson Wentz (23/41 – 56.0% – 291 – 4 – 1) hit WR Alshon Jeffrey (5 – 52 – 10.4 – 1) with a 2 yard scoring strike, which put us ahead of the Rams 31 – 28. WR Torrey Smith (6 – 100 – 16.7 – 0) only the second Eagles receiver this season to have a 100 yard day, had his best game as an Eagle so far. TE Trey Burton (5 – 71 -14.2 – 2) took up the slack for TE Zach Ertz who was inactive with a concussion from last week.

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Courtesy CBS Sports

OLB Nigel Bradham (6 – 0 – 0 – 1) may have failed to snag either of his two chances at an interception, but he did manage to cause one of our two turnovers with a forced fumble. The biggest forced fumble of the game however, belongs to DE Chris Long (2 – 1 – 0 – 1). His key strip/sack in the 4th quarter gave the Eagles good field position to notch the go-ahead field goal by K Jake Elliott (4/4x, 3/3f – 41L), who was perfect on the day. DE Brandon Graham (0 – 0 – 0 – 1) put the nail in the coffin with the interception of a lateral (recorded as a fumble recovery), which he returned for a 16 yard touchdown as regulation expired.

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

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

1) RUN. THE. BALL: Our play selection was 51 passes to 32 runs. Keep in mind that 4 of those runs were by a QB. The first half featured 23 passes and 13 runs, in a half that we spent most of the time leading. It is no wonder that Wentz was injured. If this is how we’re going to play now, we need to keepQB Nate Sudfeld warm. (NOT DONE)

2) Man Coverage underneath: It looked as if we spent more time in loose zone coverage to take away most of the easy, quick decisions as options. While it did help slow down the Rams passing somewhat, it led to us being gashed repeatedly by the run. If we see this team in the playoffs, we cannot approach them that way again. (NOT DONE)

3) Get some help: TE Brent Celek (1 – 5 – 5.0 – 1) did spend sometime lined-up alongside LT Halapoulivaati Vaitai, and he did provide some chipping upon his releases. That was nice to finally see out there. In all truth, LG seemed to be more of a problem than LT did in this game. (DONE)

4) Use brute force: One of my favorite moments of this game was seeing DT Fletcher Cox (4 – 0 – 0 – 0) explode through the “A” gap and hit the Rams QB hard enough to knock his helmet off. Also, when the team went back to doing this in the 4th quarter, we were able to get the Rams off the field and rob their RB of a 100 yard day, by taking yardage away from him. Attacking the Rams “A” gaps is the real reason we were able to hang on and win this game. (DONE)

This week’s Four Things score is 2 out of 4, and 39 of 52 (75%) on the season. A score of 2 of 4 explains why we had a teeter-totter of a game. 50/50 going in, is 50/50 coming out. If we play like this next week, the giants may very well embarrass us.

On The Whole:

This is a conceptually sound Offense. It has clearly defined things that it asks a player to do, in a given role. That’s why no matter who goes down, someone else is able to step in and perform adequately. This is the epitome of Next Man Up. Rest assured, the Eagles are not a team in the sense that, our starting players are reliable. The Eagles are a team in the sense that, everybody on the roster is a starter waiting to relied on.

card-nick.foles

On Offense, we moved the ball pretty well all day. We scored a touchdown in each of the first three quarters. Wentz even managed to throw a score with a bad knee, after having been injured while diving into the end zone, on a score called back due to penalty.

Regardless, even after Wentz went out and QB Nick Foles (6/10 – 60.0% – 42 – 0 – 0) came in, we still moved the ball and got a key first down when needed, on a 9 yard dart from Foles to WR Nelson Agholor (8 – 64 – 8.0 – 0). Eagles RB’s provided 114 yards on 28 carries for a solid 4.0 average. So Offense was hardly an issue.

 

Defense, on the other hand… For about ¾ of this game it seemed like the Eagles had completely forgotten how to tackle, stack blockers, or set an edge. To be totally honest, at some points, it looked like some our DB’s were making “business decisions” out there vs the run. (Don’t worry Ronald Darby, and Patrick Robinson, I won’t name any names.)

Seeing Wentz go down, seemed to snap the Defense out of the funk it’s been in for the last two weeks. Foles came in, the stakes were made clear, and our guys turned it on and went hunting.