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THE RIVALS 2018 (PT 3 of 3)

Posted by The BEAST on 2019/01/01
Posted in: Conversations, NFC East, NFL, Reviews, Rivals, stats, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

article regular-nfc east

IT’S THAT TIME AGAIN KIDDIES!!!

GENERALLY when I talk football, it’s about my Eagles. I tend to keep mum about our rivals, unless we have a game coming up against one of them. Otherwise, I’ve reserved most talk about them for my Pre-Draft Preview, which drops each April. (Look for it).

In 2017 however, I decided to try something new, and give our fan base a running commentary of what the division is doing around us. This ensures that Eagles fans ARE actually the best informed, and most knowledgeable fans, in the NFL. (Provided you visit this site often.) These updates will come out three times during the season: After Weeks 3, 9, and 15.

NOTE: Given that there were playoff seeding implications for 3 of the 4 teams, I delayed this article until everything shook out. From now on, I’ll think I’ll stick with this format (Weeks 3, 9 and 17), instead of the 3, 9, 15. It’s just smarter.

This is where we left off PART 2

This is where things are today:

New York giants: 5 – 10, 4th in the NFC East

Last season they finished 3 – 13 and fourth in the division. On defense they allowed 24.2 points per game in 2017. In 2018 that number swelled to 25.8. Yet, all the talk is about either replacing QB Eli Manning, or shoring up his god-awful offensive line.

With a RB (Saquon Barkley) who amassed 2,000 yards from scrimmage this season (1,307 rushing, 721 receiving), a WR (Odell Beckham) who caught for 1,052 yards in just 12 games, and a QB who threw for 4,299 yards, this should be a scary team. The problem is their inability to stop opponents.

DE Olivier Vernon led the team with 7 sacks, which is what he averages as a giant. He also missed 5 games this year. In fact, his games played and production has dropped each year since he joined the team. What’s worse, is that their GM seems bent on not getting the man any legitimate help. Put in perspective, Eagles DE Chris Long started no games, yet had 6.5 sacks.

Given pressure from fans, and a voracious New York media, odds are strong that the giants will either be goaded into drafting yet another shiny offensive toy, or over-drafting a RT to pair with the LT they over-paid for, from Free Agency this last offseason.

Washington Redskins: 7 – 9, 3rd in the NFC East

Same exact finish as 2017. Well sort of. In 2017 the ‘skins finished 16th in scoring (21.4ppg). In 2018 they finished 29th (17.6 ppg). They improved on defense, but not enough to carry their flaccid offense.

It might be legitimate for the ‘skins to point to injuries (24 players on Injured Reserve), as the reason that their team stalled out. They were leading the NFC East at 6 – 4, when their starting QB Alex Smith, had his leg broken grotesquely by the Texans.

Over the course of their final six games, they were forced to start 3 QB’s for a combined record of 1 – 5. The scoring dropped from 19.7 points per game over the first 10 games, to just 14.0 points per game over the final 6 games. So even before they lost their starter, they were already worse off than they were a year ago.

Given the fact that their starting QB won’t be ready for next season (if he doesn’t retire), they may have to turn to their back-up QB, (who had his leg broken by the Eagles). That’s if they don’t draft a QB, or chase Eagles back-up QB Nick Foles, in hopes that he can be their savior.

Dallas Cowboys: 10 – 6, 1st place in the NFC East

Having won the division it’s easy to say that Dallas is better now than they were a year ago. The defense took a major step forward for most of the season. On the year they’re only allowing 20.2 points per game. However, over the last 4 weeks, they’ve been surrendering an average of 25.2. Despite going 3 – 1 over those weeks, it indicates that perhaps teams have found a chink in the armor.

No matter. A football team has both a defense AND an offense. Lucky for this team that their offense can now take off, since QB Dak Prescott has found a #1 WR in Amari Cooper, who- Wait. Did they find a true #1?

After being traded from Oakland after Week 6, Cooper found an amazing run during Weeks 12, 13 and 14. Putting up 26 catches, 473 yards, and 5 TD’s, while averaging 18.1 per grab during that span. However, his Week 14 performance (10 catches, 217 yards, 3 TD’s and 21.7 per grab) was against a Philadelphia Secondary which included 3 starters who began the year as back-ups (some third stringers), or not even on the active roster. Cooper followed up that performance (closing out the season) with three games where he totaled 13 catches for 83 yards, no scores and a 6.3 yard per catch average. In none of those games did he exceed 32 yards or catch a pass longer than 11 yards.

Prescott threw his customary 22 touchdowns again, despite starting and finishing all 16 games. (Unlike QB Carson Wentz who threw 21, yet only played in 11 games. With no real run game.) Based on this season, the Cowboys are about to sink a huge amount of money into a handful of players, (two of whom I just mentioned). It led to a playoff berth this year, but it does raise the question of whether or not this season’s success is at the expense of their future.

So that’s the state of our division rivals as your Eagles head into the Wild Card round of the NFL playoffs.

FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: WK14 :COWBOYS

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/12/11
Posted in: Conversations, Defense, Four Things, NFC East, Offense, Players, Reviews, Rivals, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

WARNING! If you want to whine about calls, and call our own players garbage, stop reading this now! I’m an actual Philadelphian, so I don’t believe in pity-parties. And you can take that how you need to take it.

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Eagles 23 – Cowboys 29 OT

We got knocked out. We didn’t lay down. We got knocked out. That game came down to the last play of overtime. It was a lucky mid-air grab, of a well-played and deflected ball. I can’t be ashamed of that effort. I can’t be mad at that outcome. Disappointed? Hell yeah. Fuck yeah. But it’s football. Ties are rare, so in almost every case there is a team that wins and a team that loses. We lost. Well, we lost the game.

Despite the score, I saw somethings I really liked out there. A couple of our guys looked like they have bright futures here. CB Rasul Douglas (9 – 0 – 1 – 0) caught my eye for the second week in a row. Run support, open field stops on screens, peeling off his assignment to intercept a ball…He looked like a starter, and not a 3rd string CB/FS. OLB Kamu Grugier-Hill (3 – 0 – 0 – 0) is making the mental transition from Special Teamer to LB. While we gave up 10 catches, 217, yards and 3 TD’s to one receiver, nearly all of that damage was restricted to CB’s not named Douglas.

Commentator and HOF QB Troy Aikman, mentioned that the Eagles have started an unheard of, 13 different DB’s over the 13 games we’ve played. The term he used, was “unheard of”. And still that game came down to a lucky grab of a well diagnosed, then tipped ball.

If you’re mad about losing under those circumstances, you clearly are incapable of understanding the big picture.

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) Control the clock: We lost time of possession 45:33 to 22:32. Our play selection was 34 pass plays (32 attempts, 2 sacks) to 10 handoffs, in a game that was never out of reach. NOT DONE.

2) Tackle: On paper it looks like we did a good job. However, given the number of extra effort first down we gave up, while going for strips…Clearly the spirit of what we needed to do was lost. NOT DONE.

3) Jeffrey, Jeffery, Jeffrey: WR Alshon Jeffrey (6 – 50 – 8.3 – 1) was the Eagles leading receiver in that game, but he was, and is being so poorly utilized. While he lacks blazing speed, his ability to win 50/50 balls should inspire us to use him that way. But we didn’t really try to. NOT DONE.

4) Sit on it: Once Dallas discovered our weaknesses at CB (Sidney Jones, DeVante Bausby) they commenced to picking on them with deep balls. That means there wasn’t much to jump short. FS Corey Graham however, did come up with a pick by sitting down in his area, and having a tipped ball (which he nearly dropped) float towards him. DONE

This weeks Four Things score is 1 of 4, but it’s really more like 1 plus .5 plus .5 out of 4. Not 2 out of 4, but 1 plus .5 plus .5 out of 4. That brings our yearly tally to 22 of 52 (.423).

Next week we get the Rams, fresh off a loss to the Bears. So they’ll be looking to prove a point, whereas we don’t really seem to have a direction in 2018. Next week you may find yourself watching the game through your fingers.

On The Whole:

We had a slugfest and we lost it. There is no shame in that. Despite all the adversity, this team has not laid down. It has not quit. While I am not impressed with our record, I am impressed with our strong nucleus.

While my team may have lost that game, my team has not lost it’s heart. And because of this, it has not lost me.

FOUR THINGS: WK 14: EAGLES-COWBOYS

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/12/06
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, NFC East, Offense, Players, playoffs, Preview, Rivals, X's and O's. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

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THIS game is for first place. Period. That said, a win doesn’t automatically get us into the playoffs, and a loss doesn’t automatically keep us out.

Beyond this game, we have the Los Angeles Rams. The team that QB Carson Wentz was injured against. Next week is the hugest game of the regular season. It is our biggest test, both in terms of how far we’ve come since Week One, and if there is any psychological block for Carson to work past. However, before we get to that game, we have some mongrels to put down.

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Last time we met this team, we were 4 – 4, they were 3 -5 and pundits were talking about how both teams needed to win that game, or the losing team’s season would be over. We lost. Yet our season is NOT over. In fact, this very game is for first place in the division. Just goes to show you what the pundits know.

Since that win over us, those same pundits are talking like the 7 – 5 Cowboys are invincible. Unbeatable! Destined to hold aloft the Lombardi when alllllll the smoke clears! Their defense IS after all, the same unit that held the Saints to 10 points, right? It is?

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Well then allow me to retort! If we’re dragging history out, let’s mention that this is the same Dallas defense that the Eagles hung 20 on. And the same Dallas defense that Washington hung 23 on. Just two games ago! Make no mistake, that defense can be, and will be, scored upon. Trust and believe.

Oh yeah, and that 20 points we scored last time? That, was when we were one-dimensional and unbalanced. Now we have a run game, and our play-action that has to be respected. We also have RB Darren Sproles back.

That was also before our own Defense simplified things, and when the Secondary was bleeding non-stop. We’ve tightened up a few things since then. Hell, this unit gave Adrian Peterson a 90 yard run and STILL held his ass under 100 yards rushing for the game. And then there’s SS Malcolm Jenkins...

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These are all facts that the pundits choose to ignore. That team is one game above .500, facing a team they barely escaped. No one is gonna say that though, because the Cowboys are big economy for the Niffle. But we ain’t layin’ down for nobody. Who want some, come get some!

So get your popcorn. Because this time around, it’s going to be a very, VERY different game.

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

1) Control the clock: It’s hard to have many points scored on you, or to allow many yards, if the other team doesn’t have the ball. So grind out the game. The Cowboys don’t have the QB for scoring points in a hurry. Even if they did, they lack enough firepower to stress a defense, once their run game can’t be a factor.

2) Tackle: We were in position to make plays vs the run last time, and we just didn’t. Dallas doesn’t run a clever system. They don’t out-think anybody. They let opponents out-think themselves. Hit the run fits, and wrap up RB Ezekiel Elliott. That’s it.

3) Jeffrey, Jeffery, Jeffrey: Go deep to WR Alshon Jeffrey, not to WR Nelson Agholor. Not sure why the deep ball has vanished from this Offense, but Carson has to let his big man know that he still trusts him to win those 50/50 balls.

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4) Sit on it: To complement the run, Dallas likes to throw short, quick passes. Jump some of those routes. At best it’s a a pick six. At worst, we’ve t least got QB Dak Prescott not trusting his eyes and therefore holding the ball a little longer.

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:

(NOTE: The return of MLB Jordan “Cowboy Killer” Hicks has not been ruled out.)

Expect to start slow. It’s a road game, against a rested team, and they are still riding an emotional high. They will not fold quickly. Don’t get bummed over an early three and out. This game will be a war of attrition.

Dropfoot and Lederhosen Van Exxon (or whatever his name is) will look awfully funny trying to chase around Sproles in space. Good luck practically doubling over (at full speed) to make tackles on #43. As always, TE Zach Ertz will get his. RB Josh Adams seems brittle, so the Eagles may want to cede some work elsewhere so that another RB is in rhythm if Adams checks out early. So RB Corey Clement may see 8 or so carries this week.

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We notched 4 sacks against this team the last time we saw them and there’s no reason that number should fall with DT Tim Jernigan “in the mix” (as HC Doug Pederson said). Our last meeting also saw CB Rasul Douglas hold WR Amari Cooper to 75 yards. No reason to think it can’t happen again.

This time around the emphasis will be on finishing plays, not just diagnosing them. We played poorly last time and were STILL in position to win it late in the game. This time the Cowboys won’t be so lucky.

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(And yes, I know this clip is Reservoir Dogs.) 

PREDICTION: EAGLES 22 – Cowboys 20

yeah-bitch

THE RIVALS 2018 (PT 2 of 3)

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/11/14
Posted in: Conversations, NFC East, Reviews, Rivals, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

article regular-nfc east

IT’S THAT TIME AGAIN KIDDIES!!!

GENERALLY when I talk football, it’s about my Eagles. I tend to keep mum about our rivals, unless we have a game coming up against one of them. Otherwise, I’ve reserved most talk about them for my Pre-Draft Preview, which drops each April. (Look for it).

In 2017 however, I decided to try something new, and give our fan base a running commentary of what the division is doing around us. This ensures that Eagles fans ARE actually the best informed, and most knowledgeable fans, in the NFL. (Provided you visit this site often.) These updates will come out three times during the season: After Weeks 3, 9, and 15.

This is where we left off  PART 1.

This is where things are today:

New York Giants: 2 – 7, 4th in the NFC East

The good news: It’s not over yet. They could win out and uh…. No. No. Just no.

The bad news: It’s not over yet.

It took 9 weeks for the giants to reach their 2nd win. That makes sense given that winning is done by controlling an opponent. At this point the giants don’t even seem to have control of their own roster.

Weekly now, there are questions about whether QB Eli Manning should be benched, in favor of a back-up that no one is excited over. They jettisoned two starting defensive players DT Damon “Snacks” Harrison, and CB Eli Apple, via trade. They have yet to give their 233 pound, first round drafted RB, 20 carries in any game. But he’s had 4 games where he’s caught 9 or more passes. (Without getting to 100 receiving yards in any of those. What’s up with that?)

All indications are that this team has no idea who it is, or what it’s doing this year. The giants are putting on a clinic on how to create a 4th place team, with top-shelf talent.

Dallas Cowboys: 4 – 5, 2nd place in the NFC East

Despite an identical 4 – 5 record with Philadelphia, the Cowboys are in 2nd place by virtue of the tie-breaker, due to just having beaten us on Sunday night. But don’t be fooled by the flashy 4 – 5 record that their fans are so proud of/relieved to have. This is not a good team.

First the good news: They made a trade for Amari Cooper to upgrade their WR group. It seems to be working so far. The Top 10 defense they had in Week 3, is still a Top 10 defense. While folks could question the stats, the underlying reason for the stats, or the quality/condition of their opponents, the fact is, Dallas is still statistically a top unit. They also own the NFL’s 5th ranked run game.

Bad news time: They don’t score much (24th), move the ball well (27th), or throw it worth a damn (28th). Their QB is still a liability, and the owner has publicly committed to extending his contract. Oh yeah, and there’s the owner who won’t fire the coach, because well… you know:

Washington Redskins: 6 – 3, 1st in the NFC East

Washington was listed as the #2 team in the division after Week 3. However, through the magic of winning ball games (hey Eagles, are you writing this down?), the ‘skins have moved into sole possession of the top spot.

With 176 points for and 175 against, we aren’t really talking about a juggernaut here. They can’t score (27th), move the ball (26th), or throw the ball (25th). What they can do is run the ball (10th), stop teams from scoring (5th), and not shoot themselves in the foot. (Seriously? Are you writing this down?)

The good news: Washington quietly boasts a defensive front that can be a handful. They do a good job of creating confusion and helping generate turnovers.

The bad news: Washington is coming into the tougher part of their schedule just as age and injury seems to be catching up with them. It’ll be interesting to see where the next 6 weeks takes them.

So that’s the state of our division rivals, as our Eagles head into Week 10.

FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: WK10 :COWBOYS

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/11/12
Posted in: Coaching, Defense, Four Things, NFC East, playoffs, Rants, Reviews, Rivals, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , . 3 Comments

THIS loss upset me. However, what upsets me more, is that I’m not more upset. But how can I be? The 72% completion rate we allowed, isn’t new around here. The poor tackling technique, isn’t new around here. The inability to generate turnovers, isn’t new around here. Allowing opponents to come within an arm stretch of converting a 3rd and extra-long, isn’t new around here. I expected a comfy win. Vegas odds-makers did as well. Yet when we didn’t, I somehow wasn’t shocked at all.

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EAGLES 20 – Cowboys 27

The record will show that the Cowboys kicked our asses last night, but they were entirely beside the point. Karma kicked our asses last night.

Head Coach Doug Pederson was force fed his own arrogance last night, and thank god for it! Maybe the humiliation will teach him. Hard to produce wins when your offensive balance looks like 44 pass attempts (with 2 sacks and 2 QB runs), to 14 hand-offs. Out of 62 plays, 48 (77.4%) were pass plays. We did that last night. As a team, the Eagles ran 14 times for 54 yards. AS A TEAM. We did that as a team. In a game that was NEVER out of contention, as a team we had all of 14 hand-offs.

Defensive Coordinator Jim Schwartz watched another football game yesterday. I say watched, because coaching requires making adjustments. I doubt he adjusted anything besides his headset. He hasn’t made any real in-game adjustments in weeks. Remember those toy cars that you’d pull back and let go, then the little motor inside would make it go forward in a straight line? That’s Jim Schwartz’s Wide Nine. No adjustments, no twists or turns. Just run forward until you run out of juice.

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) Come out aggressive: Didn’t happen. The Eagles started the game with a three and out and mostly looked listless and uneven throughout the night. NOT DONE

2) Be the Eagles: We generally hover around 61% pass play selection, which is why we were 4 – 4. Last night that pass play percentage ramped up to 77%. Clearly somebody who’s name rhymes withugg.jpeg

decided to get cute, and it cost us. Now we’re 4 – 5. Good times. NOT DONE

3) Wrap it up: Just tackle well. He had 151 rushing yards. That’s all this part required. Just 151. Just wrap the man up. Rushing yards. Wrap and hold on. Hurdles a Safety. My favorite part was when CB Ronald Darby (3 – 0 – 0 – 0) tried to lay a hit on WR Amari Cooper (6 – 75 – 12.5 – 0), bounced off of him, and let him pick up the first down. I couldn’t even scream on that one. Just vibrated in my seat, and cried a little blood. Good times. Good times. NOT DONE

4) RAC ‘em up!: Yards after the catch. Screens and shit to our RB’s, and the 30 year old we just traded for. Makes sense right? FUCK THAT! Hey Zach, wanna play catch? Let’s stare down my TE and throw an interception to take the crowd out of the game, give up an easy score, and add momentum to feed our opponent’s shaky confidence. NOT DONE

That’s 0 of 4 this week, and 14 of 36 on the year. Even that 0 for 4 mark still had us with 7 points, so imagine if we’d done ANY of these things. So much for common sense. Well, after losing to the juggernaut that is the Cowboys, we get off easy next week. We go down to the Big Easy to face an 8 – 1 Saints team, that now has to face the REIGNING WORLD CHA- ahhhhh fuck it.

On The Whole:

We allowed 151 rushing yards and 7.9 yards per carry, to one RB last night. We allowed an embattled QB to complete 72% of his passes. We allowed a team that was all-but done in 2018, to re-enter a crowded division race. If the Eagles miss the playoffs in 2018, this game, THIS one, will be the point that defined the entire season.

FOUR THINGS: WK10 : EAGLES-COWBOYS

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

PREDICTION: EAGLES 24 – Cowboys 17

yeah-bitch

THE RIVALS 2018 (PT 1 of 3)

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/09/29
Posted in: Conversations, Defense, NFC East, Offense, Reviews, Rivals, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 3 Comments

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IT’S THAT TIME AGAIN KIDDIES!!!

GENERALLY when I talk football, it’s about my Eagles. I tend to keep mum about our rivals, unless we have a game coming up against one of them. Otherwise, I’ve reserved most talk about them for my Pre-Draft Preview, which drops each April. (Look for it).

In 2017 however, I decided to try something new, and give our fan base a running commentary of what the division is doing around us. This ensures that Eagles fans ARE actually the best informed, and most knowledgeable fans in the NFL. (Provided that you visit this site often.) These updates will come out three times during the season: After Weeks 3, 9, and 15.

New York Giants: 1 – 2 , 4th place in the NFC East

The giants left 2017 with a 3 – 13 record, and in 4th place in the division. They were ranked 31st in scoring, and had trouble with a leaky offensive line. Ripped out the coach, GM, acquired a big time free agent for their offensive line, had a great Draft and presto change-o! The giants open 2018 at 1 – 2, and 4th place in the division. They’re ranked 27th in scoring (18.1ppg) and only four teams have allowed more sacks.

I don’t know what else to say. I’m just… It seems like they…
On defense, they have yet to allow an opponent to reach 30 points, and are a pretty middle of the pack unit (scoring 13th (20.7ppg), yards 15th (343ypg)). They aren’t particularly good vs the pass or run and don’t have any standout stars. SS Landon Collins tried to be that guy, when he called out Cowboys QB Dak Prescott. However, the Cowboys went on to beat the giants, mostly by leaning on Prescott.

After inking WR Odell Beckham to a long-term deal and drafting RB Saquon Barkley, all indications were that the giants would have more than enough firepower to make a run at the division crown. Although it is still early, it would appear that all their firepower, is in the hands of unskilled marksmen.

Dallas Cowboys: 1 – 2, 3rd place in the NFC East

Top 10 defense right here. Points allowed per game 7th (17.7). Yards allowed per game 3rd (281). Passing yards allowed per game 4th (182). Rushing yards allowed per game 11th (98). Those are killer numbers, folks.

The Cowboys have more killer numbers for you. Points scored per game 31st (13.7). Yards per game 30th (277). Passing yards per game 31st (145). While the Cowboys are 7th in rushing yards per game, it’s meaningless if the QB can’t find a guy to make plays in the passing game.

Honestly, the Cowboys offense is miserable. Through three games they have just ONE completion longer than 20 yards. Their QB has been sacked 11 times. Their best reciever right now is Cole Beasley (12 – 132 – 11.0 – 0). Their second best receiver is RB Ezekiel Elliott (11 – 37 – 3.4 – 0). If 3.4 yards per catch seems small, let me bring that into sharper focus: Elliott averages 5.7 yards per rush. Some will say that the culprit is owner Jerry Jones not replacing retired TE Jason Witten, or released WR Dez Bryant, but the Cowboys were having problems passing even last year. (Which I stated and outlined in the last edition of this report, which you can read HERE.)

On defense, OLB Jaylon Smith is rewarding the Cowboys for their faith in his ability to recover from a torn ACL and LCL, which also included serious damage to a nerve in his leg. Through three games he leads the team with 22 tackles and is second with 2 sacks. Rival or not, you can’t help but feel good for the guy.

Washington Redskins: 2 – 1, second place in the NFC East

Note: I’m not sure how the ‘skins are second in the division, when neither of us has played a division opponent, but they have a 2-0 record in the conference, while we’re 1 – 1. However, that is how the NFL has it stacked as of this moment (9.29.18 5:50pm), so we’ll go off of that.

Another Top 10 defense. Across the board Top 10, defense! Points 2nd (14.7), Yards 2nd (278), Passing 5th (187), Rushing 8th (90). Killer numbers. Then again if you and a couple of your friends got to play the Cardinals, Colts and then Green Bay (with a damaged Aaron Rodgers), you could probably put off a similar feat. After an early Bye during Week 4, they get Drew Brees and then Cam Newton. So let’s not get too crazy until we see how those games shake out.

Washington is solidly upper-middle class on offense (Points 17th (21.3), Yards 10th (383), Passing 15th (245), Rushing 4th (137)). In fact, QB Alex Smith and RB Adrian Peterson are making the Redskins GM look like a genius right now, right? Right? Hold up. Pump the brakes.

Smith has gotten off to faster starts than this. In fact, take a look at where he was after Week 3 last year. This isn’t the AFC West. You can’t run out of steam near the end, and have it work out for your team.As for Peterson, a Week 4 Bye is of no help to a 33 year old RB, who is so far on pace for 288 carries. That’s a workload that he hasn’t seen since 2015. All with no WR help to speak of.It would be different if the ‘skins were developing some young guns, but right now they seem content to let the old guys carry the team.

So that’s the state of our division rivals as our Eagles head into Week 4.