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FOUR THINGS: WK 13: EAGLES – TITANS

Posted by The BEAST on 2022/12/03
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Defense, Four Things, NFL, Offense, Players, playoffs, Preview. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

LAST week DT Fletcher Cox, DE Brandon Graham, DE Josh Sweat and OLB Hasaan Reddick combined to knock QB Aaron Rodgers from the game, and setting up the end of his era in Green Bay. This week we turn our gaze to deposing the supposed “king”. Now is not a good time to be considered NFL royalty. Because we’re hunting for another crown.

DT Fletcher Cox on the hunt

A win makes us 11 – 1, and keeps us at the top of the NFL food chain. There are seven seats at the playoff table. That means we have to be better than NINE teams in the conference. Winning an 11th game would mean that we can’t lose more than 6 games this season. EIGHT teams already have 7 or more losses. We’d be two Washington or Seattle losses away, from clinching a playoff spot.

A loss would make us 10 – 2. However, both we and the number two team, are playing non-conference games this week. So no mater how this weekend works out, we’ll keep the top seed. For at least one more week, the NFC belongs to us, and no one can do a goddamn thing but genuflect, and kiss the motherfucking ring.

So let’s go get this win, and kill any hope that the peasants may be harboring.

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The point of Four Things isn’t to predict a winner, it’s to discuss which tactics would give our Eagles the best chance to win this game. So here are the Four Things that we need to focus on this week, versus the: Titans

1) Pick The Fight: The Titans style isn’t one of being particularly clever, but of being physical. The Titans, almost to a man, will be looking to punch us in the mouth. As a team, the Eagles have faced adversity vs weather, on the scoreboard, and with calls by officials. This time, as individual men, they will be tested physically.

As Philadelphians we pride ourselves on being ready to drop the gloves faster than anyone else. Sunday we get to see if our team is as tough as the fans. (It’s RARELY the case though. See: Gang Green Defense, Buddy Ryan) The Titans however, are about that life! Instead of accepting their invitation to a fight, we need to start it, and finish it.

Winning at the line of scrimmage. Tackles that put men on the ground. Hits that draw flags, and send their players to the blue tent. These are the things we need to see Sunday. No finessing our way through this one. We need our toes to tickle their tonsils the hard way.

2) Keep Him Clean: Keeping blockers off of MLB T.J. Edwards will allow him to flow to the Titans 247 pound RB, and meet him in the hole before he can gather any momentum. That means our Defensive Linemen can’t allow Titans offensive linemen to have quick, clean releases off the line of scrimmage.

With their RB being so large, he needs holes, not creases. If we can delay their linemen even half a second, it malforms the hole that the RB needs to run through. If the Defense can trap the RB between the linemen, it’ll be easier to slow their run game. Look, they’re going to run the ball a lot. So we don’t need to shut down their run game, just make it unreliable.

3) Rush for 100 yards: The Titans are 0 – 3 this season when they allow 100 yards rushing. They’re 1 – 4 when their opponent rushes for 75 or more. That said, this one is more about us, and less about them.

Running the ball successfully, is about being able to impose will on someone who is giving their all, not to let it happen. If we can do that against a team as physical as the Titans, we will have sent a POWERFUL message to the entire the NFL. If we cannot, it’s best to know it (and fix it), before we find ourselves in the playoffs.

4) Tight Man Coverage: When I say Titans WR, who’s the first person you think of? Nope, he plays for us now. Think of someone else… Can’t? Neither can anyone else, since their WR’s have COMBINED for just 3 of the Titans 11 receiving scores. No one is afraid of these guys.

Making things worse for them, is QB Ryan Tannehill, the Neapolitan ice cream of NFL QB’s. His 36 – 16 record as a Titan says reliable, but his limitations…

Imagine a slab of this, melting on a styrofoam plate, next to a square of sheet cake. Yum. Tannehill.

Watching Tannehill try to force passes to sub-par receivers, wearing CB’s Darius “Big Play” Slay and James Bradberry, like shadows, should buy enough time for our deep and talented Defensive Line, to shred their lackluster offensive line.

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If the Eagles do these Four Things, then we’ll be virtually impossible to beat. That being said…

This is the game on the schedule that scares me. For many it’s the Dallas re-match, but I’m neither here nor there with that one. That’s a division game. Division games (like footballs) can take funny bounces. See the difference between our Washington games? Yeah. So I’ll see how I feel about Dallas, when that game gets here.

The 7 – 4 Titans score an average of 19.0 points per game, vs allowing 18.6. They don’t have the firepower to reach 30 points, and haven’t all season so far. So this game like many of their other games, they’re going to try and turn into a low scoring brawl. Usually I don’t suggest playing down to an opponent, but we need a good fist fight.

Talent-wise, the Eagles are head and shoulders above the Titans, in most areas. If we bring the same level of physicality to this game as they do, we should win this game in a walk. However, this is a different type of opponent than we’ve faced all year, and we need to be ready to meet that type of challenge in the playoffs.

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Prediction: EAGLES 26 – Titans 17

WARNING: I don’t have the faintest clue as to what a point spread is, and I know even less about how it works. I know football and that’s IT. If you use Four Things as a gambling tool, you are trying to lose your money, and will deserve it when you do.

Check back in a couple of days for Four Things Reviewed, and we’ll discuss how this game went.

NO PROBLEMS UP FRONT

Posted by The BEAST on 2022/11/20
Posted in: Conspiracy Corner, Conversations, Defense, free agents, Front Office (F.O.), Players, Rants, report, Roster, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

TWO words: Marlon Tuipulotu.

He’s the DT that the Eagles have put on Injured Reserve. Remember when they carted him off the field on Monday ni-, oh right. They didn’t. The Eagles put him on I.R. on Wednesday the 16th. This is Sunday morning the 20th. Quick! What’s his injury? Anybody? Anybody? His injury is sucking ass, and being pushed aside for two better players, that’s what his injury is. Please! Go to the Eagles website and get the details on this “injury”. I’ll wait…..

Over the last 5 weeks, the Eagles have allowed 124 rushing yards or more, in every game. It got really bad after the Bye week, when we allowed 144, 168, and 152 respectively. Many things factor into that. Not bringing arms to tackle attempts, holding runners up to claw at the ball, tackling shoulders instead of thighs. All of which are quickly correctable.

The biggest reason we’re getting run through however, is because we’re getting beat on the line of scrimmage. The knee jerk from fans, has been to either blame DT Fletcher Cox for falling off, or to blame the injury to DT Jordan Davis. Both are correct, but only in a round about way.

Cox was being asked to play more snaps than usual, as the coaching staff hoped he could fill the hole left by Davis, both as a presence and rotationally. As a result, we’re running Cox into the ground. In fact, we’re using him the opposite of how we should be using a player his age. (More on that in the upcoming Quarterly Report. Yes, it’s late. I know. Bear with me.)

Linval Joseph working the “One Half” technique.
Ndamukong Suh gets a taste of Philly’s sports media.

So the Eagles added 34 year old DT Linval Joseph, and then DT Ndamukong Suh, who is 35. While Joseph is more of a space eater for the run game, Suh is a flat-out disruptor of blocking schemes. Even when he doesn’t make the play, he frequently causes havoc.

Understand, the worst of our run defense has coincided with the ramp up in snaps for Tuipulotu. Over the last three games, he’s averaged 33% of the defensive snaps. And that is not a good thing! I made it clear in last years Draft Report that I didn’t see selecting him as a good move. He stuck anyway.

I repeated my point about Tuipulotu in this year’s Pre-Draft Preview. My specific choice of words: “Marlon Tuipulotu played like trash, with a side order of ass last year,”. Yet he kept seeing the field this year. And the more he did, the more others like Cox were asked to compensate for everything that Tuipulotu can’t do. Which, you know, is pretty much everything.

Cox eats double teams and disrupts the pocket; DT Javon Hargrave is an ‘A’ gap penetrator who gets to QB’s; Davis is a space eating, pocket collapser. Those are our true DT’s. While DT Milton Williams can play that spot, he’s more of a DE/DT tweener. He’s coming along, but we still don’t really know who he is, just yet. Tuipulotu is just a 300 pound guy. Hell, I’M a 300 pound guy! There should be more qualifications than that, to get a roster spot.

When Davis went down, we were left with a bum (Tuipulotu), and two guys who specialize in slipping the point of attack, not holding it. That’s not saying that Cox and Hargrave can’t play the run! We all know that they can. But that’s not where their salary size comes from.

Do you realize that at worst, if Suh and Joseph don’t contribute much as players, those two, plus Cox and Hargrave, will be pouring wisdom into Davis. Meanwhile we have no timetable on Tuipulotu’s return date. Which is totally understandable without an actual injury to assess.

FOUR THINGS: WK 8: EAGLES – STEELERS

Posted by The BEAST on 2022/10/28
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Defense, Four Things, Front Office (F.O.), NFL, Offense, Players, Preview, Rivals, Roster, trade. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

WATCHING SS Chauncey Gardner-Johnson literally snatch the last game away from the Cowboys, made it known to the world exactly why the 6 – 0 Eagles, are the king of the fucking mountain. This week the NFL feeds sheep to lion (yet again), as they serve Philadelphia a shaky rookie QB.

Even worse, the game is here in Philadelphia. Philly is a tough, frenetic place to play even under normal circumstances, but now? NOW?? This city is in the grip of Championship Mania, as the Phillies begin a best of seven World Series push, this very night. Everyone and everything in this city, is thrumming with energy. You can get an electric shock from touching asphalt here. Throwing this rookie out there on Sunday… That poor kid has no chance. None. None at all.

A win of course, keeps the Eagles at the head of the table, as the NFL’s only undefeated team. Coupled with a loss from the giants, a win would open up our lead in the division. A loss coupled with a giants win, would put them in first place, due to one extra win, because they didn’t have a bye yet.

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The point of Four Things isn’t to predict a winner, it’s to discuss which tactics would give our Eagles the best chance to win this game. So here are the Four Things that we need to focus on this week, versus the: Steelers.

1) Divide and Conquer: This game needs to be the tale of two halves. The first half spent mostly rushing four, and giving the Steelers QB confusing coverage looks. Rush four to not over-commit our LB’s, so they can take away the run, and put the game on the QB’s shoulders. Give him different coverage looks, so that he doesn’t trust his eyes. Especially early in the down.

In the second half rush five, and play aggressive man coverage. Fake some looks that we gave him in the first half, so that he thinks he knows what he’s seeing, then make plays on the ball. Don’t just blitz his body. Blitzkrieg his mind. This week we chambered another round,

when we added DE Robert Quinn to the roster, via trade with Chicago. We’ll be looking to either pick off the QB himself, or his passes.

2) Suffocate the Run: Engage the Steelers at the line of scrimmage, and bottle up the run early. Their leading rusher averages just 3.3 yards per carry, and twenty percent of their offense runs through him. We don’t need to shut him down, just make him unreliable. Keep our LB’s clean, and their run game should taper off.

The Steelers haven’t invested much draft or development capital in their offensive line, and it shows up in their run game (3.3) and pass protection. Left to right, in terms of talent, they trot out a 4th rounder, 4th rounder, two free agents, and a 3rd rounder. Across from them: DE Brandon Graham 1st rounder, DT Fletcher Cox 1st rounder, DT Jordan Davis 1st rounder, DE Josh Sweat 3rd rounder.

3) Win the Phonebooth: The Steelers run a 3 – 4 that’s an actual 3 – 4. Their OLB’s are not DE’s playing a glorified 5 – 2. Their OLB’s can actually play in space, so there will be no gimme routes to TE’s or RB’s. It will probably not be easy for QB Jalen Hurts to bootleg into big plays. So we’ll have to come at this one a little bit differently.

Drop our 300 pound G’s, repeatedly in the laps of their 240 pound ILB’s. Make it a physical game. Make it a fistfight in a phonebooth. Run the ball straight ahead, and just beat the hell out of them. Maul them. Harass them. Wear them down. Wear them out. Put the dogs on them. Leave nothing left of them for the second half. Then once they’re tired and stiff from resting during half-time, do it again in the second half.

4) Give Minka Fits: Line up WR Quez Watkins in the Slot, and have him run directly wherever FS Minka Fitzpatrick is. Keep one of their most important players where he can’t influence the game. Blow the top off their defense, and create room to work underneath of it.

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If the Eagles do these Four Things, then we’ll be virtually impossible to beat. That being said…

This game shouldn’t be about big splashy plays. We’re facing a team with an old reputation of being hard-nosed, no nonsense, and blue-collar. Usually as a Pennsylvanian, I’m proud to share those traits with the former Steagles. However, this week is Cross-state Rivalry Week. Order must be maintained. 

Also, we need to send the NFL a wake-up call. We’re undefeated, and have won multiple ways. We aren’t part of the 2022 conversation. We ARE the 2022 conversation. The league needs to see us put on an execution. A slow, deliberate, methodical dismantling of an opponent. One where no one talks about a lucky bounce, or missed call, or some other fluke being the difference.

It’s high time we made it clear, that WE, are the king of this fucking mountain.

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Prediction: EAGLES 28 – Steelers 13

WARNING: I don’t have the faintest clue as to what a point spread is, and I know even less about how it works. I know football and that’s IT. If you use Four Things as a gambling tool, you are trying to lose your money, and will deserve it when you do.

Check back in a couple of days for Four Things Reviewed, and we’ll discuss how this game went.

FOUR THINGS: WK 6: EAGLES – COWBOYS

Posted by The BEAST on 2022/10/14
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Defense, Four Things, free agents, NFC East, NFL, Offense, Players, Preview, Rivals, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

UNDEFEATED. Still! We overcame adversity in the desert, snatching 139 rushing yards from a team that was only giving up 87 per game. This week we get a division rival that has given up 117 rushing yards per game, while only facing bottom feeder offenses.

They lean on their defense, which features a voracious pass rush, which was fortunate enough to face FOUR struggling offensive lines (and lost to one of them). Our Offensive Line, led by RT Lane Johnson, C Jason Kelce, and LT Jordan Mailata, is not struggling. Our Line is physical and dominant.

We’re told that styles make fights? Well, ding…ding.

A win raises us to 6 – 0, and keeps us at the head of the NFL table. With our opponent being 4 – 1, they are currently one game behind our 5 – 0. A win here opens up our lead in the East, putting distance between the two teams. A loss pulls us even record-wise, but would give them the lead in the East, by head-to-head tie-breaker.

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The point of Four Things isn’t to predict a winner, it’s to discuss which tactics would give our Eagles the best chance to win this game. So here are the Four Things that we need to focus on this week, versus the: Cowboys

1) Score points: There’s a stat that says the Cowboys defense hasn’t allowed any opponent three touchdowns in any game this season. That’s 100% true. However, a lot of context is left out of that. Every team they’ve faced, already has trouble scoring three touchdowns in ANY game.

I’m fond of saying that the Universe’s favorite flavor of justice, is irony. So since we’re talking about not being able to score three touchdowns, the Cowboys offense is also in that club this season. Our Eagles on the other hand, have done it EVERY WEEK, except last week. Three touchdowns should put this game out of the Cowboys reach.

2) Drop the Mic(ah): Getting TE Dallas Goedert some quick, short passes would make the day super easy for QB Jalen Hurts. The Cowboys almost exclusively use OLB Micah Parsons as a pass rusher off the edge. So when he rushes forward, there’s going to be a vacated area right behind where he was lined up. That vacated area is where Goedert needs to camp out. So either Goedert gets to feast, or Parsons has to cover.

Just some quick short passes, where Goedert can quickly turn upfield for an extra 4 yards or more. Eventually their secondary will load the box to stop the run, and those short passes. Whenever that happens, Goedert can chip Parsons, to give Hurts time to take advantage of one-on ones-on the outside, or WR Quez Watkins down the hash.

3) Stay At Home: Same as most weeks. Just get DE’s Brandon Graham and Josh Sweat to set hard edges against the run. With RB Ezekiel Elliott no longer being very explosive, and RB Tony Pollard needing a build-up to break tackles; the easiest way to contain the Cowboys run game, is to bottle it up behind their line. The idea is to take away the run early, and put the game on QB Cooper Rush’s shoulders.

4) Rush Rush: The left side of the Cowboys offensive line is a car wreck. C Tyler Biadasz is no Travis Frederick. G Connor McGovern is the guy they passed over, to sign and start what’s left of Jason Peters, who will apparently put on red pumps and work that corner, for anyone who offers league minimum. But with Peters injured (show of hands if you’re surprised), the Cowboys now have to start the guy they said “Naw” to. At LT is penalty king Tyler Smith.

The game here is simple. DT’s Jordan Davis and Javon Hargrave help collapse the left side of the line, and make Rush reset his feet. He’s smart, and knows where he’s going with the ball, due to his familiarity with the system. So don’t waste time trying to trick him or fool him. Instead, make it about the physical limitations that kept him from getting drafted. His lack of arm strength, foot speed, and needing plays to run on schedule.

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If the Eagles do these Four Things, then we’ll be virtually impossible to beat. That being said…

The Bengals scoring offense, ranked (17th) is the highest ranked scoring offense that the Cowboys have faced. The Eagles have faced Detroit (3rd), Minnesota (12th) and Jacksonville (15th). The Cowboys average 18.6 points per game. We average 27.0 and have yet to score fewer than 20. They’ve reached 24 points once this season. We put up 24 points in a quarter. Twice so far.

The Cowboys are an over-hyped defense, coupled with an over-hyped QB, that have both had tons of mediocrity somehow omitted from their stories. Let me contextualize this Cowboys defense, and their “amazing”pass rush. Four of the five teams they’ve faced, have deep offensive line problems:

* Tampa Bay lost two starters to I.R. during the preseason and one more during the first game vs the Cowboys.

*Washington’s C and one of their G’s (who is also their back-up C), are on I.R.

*The Bengals troubles go back to last season, and their offseason answers (one of which is former Cowboy La’el Collins) have blown up on the launch pad.

*The Rams have both of their G’s on I.R. and their C is gutting out a foot injury. It’s why they’ve given up 21 sacks and average just 62 rushing yards per game. (Perspective: We average 160.0)

The Cowboys offense has scored all of 7 touchdowns in five games. Sorry, that’s 7 touchdowns in four games. (Tampa Bay held them to a single field goal.) Despite those facts, everywhere you look, there’s more praise for their QB because he’s 4 – 0 this season.

We’ve seen adversity and they’ve been handed roll-over games. Yet the media wants to talk like this is a meeting of two evenly matched teams?! Naw. You gotta miss me with that trash.

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Prediction: EAGLES 28 – Cowboys 16

WARNING: I don’t have the faintest clue as to what a point spread is, and I know even less about how it works. I know football and that’s IT. If you use Four Things as a gambling tool, you are trying to lose your money, and will deserve it when you do.

Check back in a couple of days for Four Things Reviewed, and we’ll discuss how this game went.

FOUR THINGS: WK 5: EAGLES – CARDINALS

Posted by The BEAST on 2022/10/07
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Defense, Four Things, NFC East, NFL, Offense, Players, Preview, Special Teams. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

DRIVING rain, missing starters, down fourteen points. So what? This Eagles team is undefeated because we have no weaknesses. Conversely, this week’s opponent is comprised entirely of weaknesses. Sadly, there will be no mercy for them this week.

Adding OLB Hassan Reddick (3.5 sacks), has re-invigorated DT Fletcher Cox (3.0) and DE Brandon Graham (3.0). The left side of the Defense is downright predatory. All it does is hunt. On the flip-side, is an Offense that ranks 5th in rushing yards, and 8th in passing yards, with QB Jalen Hurts averaging 9.1 yards per attempt.

A win here makes us 5 – 0, still number one in the NFC East, the NFC, and the NFL. A loss, would leave us at 4 – 1 and still atop of the NFC East, unless Dallas beats the Rams. (Tie-breaker: Division games. Dallas (2-0), Philly (1-0)) That reason right there, is why I don’t think this is a trap game.

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The point of Four Things isn’t to predict a winner, it’s to discuss which tactics would give our Eagles the best chance to win this game. So here are the Four Things that we need to focus on this week, versus the: Cardinals

1) Fence Him In: Someone said that Cardinal’s QB kyler murray, when scrambling in the pocket, looks like a toddler who has your car keys. I watched him play last week, and now I can’t unsee it. So we need to set the edges of the pocket, and force him backwards.

Two weeks ago DT Jordan Davis started the Commanders demise, by batting a pass from 6’5” QB Carson Wentz. murray is listed at 5’10”, but he’s got to be the shortest 5’10” I’ve ever seen in my life. Our pass rushers need to get their hands up, when they can’t get their hands on murray. Just to get him to hold the ball an extra second or two.

2) Tackle Securely: The Cardinals running game is utterly pedestrian. The problem is they’re stuck between two schools of thought, and so, execute neither well. Worse than that, their offensive line consists of just a bunch of guys, led by C Rodney Hudson (who some think is better than C Jason Kelce).

While they have a poor scheme, that is also poorly blocked, RB James Conner is not to be overlooked. He’s not really a game changer, but at 233 he’s a load. He doesn’t “run angry” but he does use his size, and can tire out a defense. If we don’t get cute, he shouldn’t be a problem.

3) Throw the Ball: Through four games the Cardinals have just 4 sacks. Half of those belong to what’s left of DE J.J. Watt. They play a 3 – 4 that’s more like a 4 – 3, with OLB Markus Golden playing the role of “non-coverage OLB”. If LT Jordan Mailata is ready to go, pass pro won’t be an issue. If not, then OL Jack Driscoll may need a little help.

The Eagles receivers against this secondary, is an absolute mismatch. I’d expect WR’s A.J. Brown and Devonta Smith to have 80 yards each. Especially playing indoors on dry grass. With as lackluster as their starting CB’s are, they have no answer for WR Quez Watkins in the Slot.

4) Read-Option Early: We don’t need to get QB Jalen Hurts get injured, so let’s limit his carries. Eight or fewer (not counting kneel downs), sounds good. However, to open up the run game, we should use the Read-Option early. Right away. Either on the first or second carry. (Ideally the first.)

Having to defend that, should hold S Budda Baker in the box, and open up the deep shots, (hopefully off of play-action). Once we hit a ten yard run or a twenty yard pass, it’ll stress their defense enough to make calling the game easier.

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If the Eagles do these Four Things, then we’ll be virtually impossible to beat. That being said…

I don’t want to seem like I don’t take this opponent seriously, but it’s so hard to do so. They fuck up so many simple things. For instance:

WR Marquis Brown bolted from Baltimore, because he didn’t like how he was being utilized. So he leaves a running QB who doesn’t know how to utilize his blazing speed, for a running QB, who doesn’t know how to utilize his blazing speed. Baltimore head coach John Harbaugh was a Special Teams coach. What’s Kliff Kingsbury’s excuse?

The improper utilization of S Budda Baker and LB Isaiah Simmons, should be grounds for someone’s arrest. These are two players with game-changing talent. They should be play-makers, not tackle collectors.

Arizona has a long and storied history, of questionable decision making and squandered talent. They’re so far spending 2022 building on that tradition. Yikes,

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Prediction: EAGLES 29 – Cardinals 10

WARNING: I don’t have the faintest clue as to what a point spread is, and I know even less about how it works. I know football and that’s IT. If you use Four Things as a gambling tool, you are trying to lose your money, and will deserve it when you do.

Check back in a couple of days for Four Things Reviewed, and we’ll discuss how this game went.

EAGLES FREE AGENT ADDITIONS

Posted by The BEAST on 2022/02/19
Posted in: Conversations, Defense, free agents, Front Office (F.O.), NFL, Offense, Players, Rivals, Roster. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

WITH ten draft picks this year, the smart move is to use them to further the Eagles youth movement. There is no sense in signing bunch of, or trading early picks for, older and more expensive players this year. Judiciously signing a few however, can add immediate bounce throughout a roster. Here are the three that we should add.

DE: Emmanuel Ogbah from Miami would be the centerpiece of my free agency mission. Getting a bigger, and more physical LDE, will allow Josh Sweat to go back to using his speed at RDE, making our Defensive Line a lot more effective. Understand though, Miami comes into free agency with more cap space than anyone, and they’ll want to keep their proven pass rusher.

Of course, while Miami has tons of cash, they’re going to have a new head coach in 2022. Also, the NFL may be trying to take the team away from owner Stephen Ross, due to allegations that he attempted to pay his last head coach, to throw games.

Vegas (and I don’t mean the Raiders), won’t look too kindly on that, with legalized gambling being a cash cow. So if Ross “dies” in 2022, don’t be shocked. I mean the guy is 81, but if saaaay, he blows his own head off (wink), and afterwards cleans his fingerprints off the shotgun, we’ll all know what’s what.

The upcoming circus that’s about to surround a 9 – 8 Dolphins team which missed the playoffs, should be enough to encourage Ogbah to move to greener pastures. While many teams can offer him a boatload of cash, no other team can offer him a chance to play with two DT’s that demand as much double-team attention. That means a ton of one-on-one opportunities for Ogbah.

Imagine it: DE Emmanuel Ogbah , DT Fletcher Cox, DT Javon Hargrave, and DE Josh Sweat. A physically stronger left side, with Sweat bringing the explosiveness that Derek Barnett always lacked from the blindside. Improved play on the back-end would make this Defense monstrous.

TE: While Jack Stoll is a good blocker, he’s no threat as a receiver. That makes Richard Rogers our go-to, behind Dallas Goedert. Rodgers is credible, but we have to do better here. (Ironically, Zach Ertz is a free agent, but I’m pretty sure we won’t be seeing him back here.)

As of today, the Cowboys, (according to Over The Cap) find themselves (-21M$) in salary cap hell, for 2022. That means 25 year old Dalton Schultz could be an easy steal, which would help us, while at the same time, harming a rival. If we can’t get him to come here, at least we should be able to bid, and drive up the price that Dallas re-signs him to.

WR: HEAR ME OUT! I know this is gonna sound crazy at first, but it makes all the sense in the world. We should bring back DeSean Jackson. (I’ll give you a minute to shake your head, and call me nuts.)

Are you done? Alright, Fine. Take another minute.

Now the explanation. Devonta Smith thinks that he would benefit from having a veteran in the locker room. That being the case, if we add a seasoned veteran, we don’t want them to hinder the Eagles youth development, by playing too many downs. Quez Watkins won’t get better from not playing. (Same with the rookie WR we should draft.)

DJax has a ton of wisdom to impart to a WR room. Especially to Smith. DJax has been a #1 threat. He’s seen double coverage, bracket coverage, shaded coverage meant to contain him, and he’s produced anyway. He’s seen ups and downs off the field. He’s taken care of his body, well enough to still be a deep threat at 87 years old. This is even more important when you realize how slender DJax is. A trait that Smith shares.

Though DJax still has an ability to be dangerous (2021: 20rec, 454yards, 22.7*ypc, 2TD), his hamstrings won’t let him play a ton of downs. Which is GREAT! He shouldn’t be a starter. He should be a role player. Which also means he shouldn’t be too expensive.

(*Led NFL)

Wise, cheap, still lethal, and he won’t try to overshadow the young men we’re trying to develop. Go ahead. Find someone else who ticks all of those boxes, in this year’s free agency. I’ll wait… In fact, I’ll spot you the list so you don’t have to look for it.

Emmanuel Sanders?! Last year he was a starter in Buffalo. No way he gives up chasing a ring with QB Josh Allen, to play for a QB who can’t read defenses. NEXT! AJ. Green? He’s going back to Arizona. Next! Mohamed Sanu? He was never Batman. He wasn’t even Robin! He was Batgirl for most of his career. I don’t want Devonta learning how to be Batman, from Batgirl. Do you?

So there it is. Those are the primary three players I would target in this year’s first round of free agency. We’ll take a look at the post-Draft cuts, with an eye towards KR’s, and big RB’s. Then we’ll look for veteran defenders after the June 1st cuts.

CRASH THE “A” GAPS

Posted by The BEAST on 2021/03/10
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Defense, NFL, The 12, X's and O's. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

THIS is another one that I’ve mentioned in the past, and it’s hard not to. The Eagles are moving on from the Wide Nine, and we have no idea to what. That said, all early signs indicate that we’re sticking with the 4-3 alignment. If a team plays a 4-3 system, wrecking those “A” gaps (the spaces between the C and the G), is just smart football.

This is the first step in ruining an opponent’s passing game. Yes, making it harder for receivers to release into their routes, plays a huge part as well. (If you recall that from earlier articles, then you get a Gold Star! Wait. No star. Fuck stars. We hate stars. A gold…tooth?) Like I said, ruining the protection is the most important step.

Crashing the “A” gaps, inverts the pocket, and doesn’t let opposing QB’s step up into their throws. That costs velocity, and gives our Secondary more time to react to balls in the air. This means more tipped passes, and more chances at interceptions. Even if the coverage didn’t start out super tight.

The flip-side is, an inverted pocket might encourage a mobile QB to run. That however, would still mean that our Defense was forcing the offense off-schedule. While that would result in surrendering a big play here and there, most of the time the offense would be erratic and unsettled.

Today, at the moment, fingers crossed, (Howie don’t fuck us on this!), we still have DT Fletcher Cox. Cox has never put up huge sack numbers, but he’s about as disruptive as you will get at his position. Coming on late in 2020, was last year’s big free agent addition, DT Javon Hargrave. Regardless of scheme, these two will be a dominant interior.

So were set at starting DT’s. Momentarily we still have DT Malik Jackson, but rumor has it that he may be a cap casualty. There are a couple of solid role player types like T.Y. McGill, who have flashed, but you’d have to have an eye like mine, to have noticed them.

Regardless of who’s on the roster, we still need to crash the “A” gaps!

VINNY CURRY RETURNS! (AGAIN.)

Posted by The BEAST on 2020/08/08
Posted in: Conversations, Defense, free agents, Front Office (F.O.), NFL, Players, Roster. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Vinny Curry

CURRIED QB is on the menu again in 2020! The Eagles have re-signed DE Vinny Curry, bringing him back on a one year deal for 2020. I’m a huge fan of the move. I love his experience in the scheme. I love his productivity. I love his schematic versatility. I love the depth he adds. Indeed, the rich have gotten richer.

It’s the timing on the move that raises my eyebrow.

When Curry was allowed to walk at the end of the season, the Eagles already knew what they had. So why wait until a week into camp to bring him back into the fold? My first instinct was, maybe they aren’t seeing as much from the young guys as they were hoping.

Rhodie (JFK)

Then I had another thought. Maybe it’s Covid-19 proofing. Our Defense is predicated on getting pressure on opposing QB’s. DC Jim Schwartz tries to do that with his four down linemen. So keeping those linemen fresh, is as important to the scheme as the X’s and O’s are. That in mind, we might just be stockpiling pass rush talent.

That would also explain last month’s cutting and immediate re-signing, of DE Daeshon Hall. Hall “failed” his physical, cleared waivers, was quickly snatched up by the very team that cut him, and placed neatly on our PUP (Physically Unable to Perform) List, where he incidentally won’t count against the roster. So basically Hall was stashed away.

While Curry at 32 years of age is unlikely to be stashed, a younger player could be. I’m thinking of players like DE’s Shareef Miller, Joe Ostman, Matt Leo, and the aforementioned Hall. A couple of those guys may end up on the Practice Squad, or this year’s very flexible I.R. format.

GRAHAM AND CURRY

If I had to bet on which DE’s make the Week One roster, I’d go with Curry, Brandon Graham, Derek Barnett, Josh Sweat, and Genard Avery playing a LB/DE swing role. Curry gives us a Nickle/Dime DT presence as well. (Graham and Barnett will start of course.)

This signing is a great move. Not only for what it added to our roster, but for removing Curry from garnering interest from a division rival at some point. Everything about this move was forward thinking. I have to love it.

MANIACAL FACT: When Vinny Curry starts 16 games, his team ALWAYS wins a Super Bowl. 

card.vinny.curry

#10 SEND FIVE

Posted by The BEAST on 2020/02/19
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Players, Rants, The 12. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

THE 12 2020.10

 

WANNA see something stupid?

ccard.jim.schwartz

 

What is this happy horseshit where we usually rush four, rarely blitz, but when we do, we end up in crap like Cover Zero? We need to send five so that-  Hold on. I’m getting ahead of myself. Let me roll this back a bit.

Last year in almost every game the commentators would mention that our pass rush isn’t as potent as it’s been in the past. At first that sounded weird, because our sacks have gone up two years in a row. If sacks were the only metric used, it would just seem like the typical media down-talk directed at the Eagles. Which we fans are used to.

Then you think about our opponent completion percentages. And their QB ratings! Seriously. We even made Haskins look good… The eyeball test makes it clear that we don’t bring the heat like we used to.

Part of that is because the only player on our D-Line who requires a double-team is DT Fletcher Cox. Us rushing four vs an opponent’s five man o-line, plays directly into our opponent’s plan. We have a pair of complete DE’s in Brandon Graham and Vinny Curry, but we don’t have a guy who alters blocking schemes. (DE Derek Barnett too often bails early on his contain responsibility.)

We need to send five rushers more often, to get Cox more 1-on-1 match-ups. That way he can do to blocking schemes what he does to marriages. We don’t have to do it all the time, but it has to stop being rare.

 

COACHING IS THE PROBLEM

Posted by The BEAST on 2019/09/18
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, NFL, Offense, Rants, Uncategorized, X's and O's. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

doug pissed.jpg

DOUG Pederson is the Head Coach of this team, and so the buck stops with him. When a problem arises, it is his job to fix it or assign it to someone who can. So when a problem persists, it is only fair to question either his solution(s), or his faith in those he assigns to solve that problem.

In particular, this time I mean the Defense.

The Eagles Defensive Line is loaded both in terms of talent and depth. So why is it that through two weeks, facing 87 pass attempts, the Eagles D-Line has all of one sack. Last week we played a banged-up Falcons o-line, which lost another starter during the game, and still, it took a Safety blitz to get our lone sack of the game. If the Defensive Line is so dangerous, why aren’t we getting more heat on QB’s?

The answer is loose coverage. Playing off of receivers is allowing the QB to get the ball out quickly, to wide open receivers. Our linemen never have a chance to get close. Put bluntly, our shitty coverage is cutting the balls off of our pass rush. We are holding the barrel of the shotgun against our heads for our opponents.

Some people’s knee-jerk reaction is to blame the players. “This guy is bum!” “That guy is bum!” “Everyone is a bum!” You know what? Fuck it. Let’s explore that. Let’s split this issue to the white meat, and then put it in the ground forever.

race for the bottom

For the sake of argument, let’s play Devil’s Advocate and say that ALL of our Starters are bums. Who decides that week in and week out, that these same guys get to start? That would be the Defensive Coordinator Jim Schwartz. If a guy can’t play, you bench him. Right?

Let’s increase our advocacy of the Devil, and say that maybe these players are the best he has, and the guys behind them are even worse bums. Still then, if he knows these guys are deficient players, wouldn’t it make sense to put them in positions that maximize their talent, and doesn’t expose their flaws? Who’s job is that? Oh, yeah. Jim Schwartz.

Now we’re gonna go over to our Devil’s Advocate machine, crank it to 11, and yank off the knob: Maybe these guys are just the worst bums EVER, and there is no talent to maximize. Since no individual has the skill to erase a guy all day long, our default needs to be a team concept, which doesn’t put too much responsibility on any one player. You know, instead of playing Cover Zero and getting Cris Collinsworth fondling himself over our all-out blitzing, maybe a Cover Two shell would be a great call against the highest paid WR in the history of the sport of American Football? Maybe?

Who’s call is that to make?

ccard.jim.schwartz

Look at you, getting it right on the first try!

Even playing Devil’s Advocate and blaming the players, it’s still a coach’s job to manage both success and degrees of failure. The reality however, is that all of these players are not bums. Actually none of them are. What’s happening here is the squandering of a metric fuck-ton of talent. And it’s Schwartz that’s doing the squandering.

Think of all the best CB’s that you’ve ever seen. The Eric Allen, Darrelle Revis, Jalen Ramsey, Josh Nor- sorry, Charles Woodson type, are all aggressive, man to man guys, who benefited from Safety help over the top. Playing five yard cushions in Cover Zero, or in ‘Rock n Roll’ coverage, is the antithesis of that kind of coverage. And the results are speaking for themselves. 

Our D-Line is great. Our LB’s are improperly utilized. Our Secondary is a dumpster fire. Schwartz is killing us by coaching only a third of our Defense with any degree of competence. Recent evidence shows that the other two units are robbing that one of it’s effectiveness. Make no mistake, fellow fans, this is on the coaching.

mouthpunch.jpg

It’s time for Doug to take Old Yeller out back. He’s the Head Coach, and it’s time to put ol’ boy, down.