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FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: DIVISIONAL ROUND: GIANTS

Posted by The BEAST on 2023/01/22
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Defense, Four Things, NFC Championship, NFC East, NFL, Offense, Players, playoffs, Reviews, Rivals, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment
RB Kenneth Gainwell rips off 35 yard touchdown run on a day where he was also a giant killer

TOLD you we wouldn’t lose.

EAGLES 38 – giants 7

EAGLES STATS:

Categories include an EXCLUSIVE weekly Offensive Line Report (Rushing TD’s (6 points) + 3rd downs converted by handoffs (1 point) + sacks allowed (-2 points) = score); as well as Drive Killer (Int – FR – 4th down Tackles – FF – TD).

New Category Ace is for Kick return TD’s, Returners run-down, kicks blocked, etc.

Passing :(S) QB Jalen Hurts (16/24 – 66.6% – 154 – 2 – 0)

Rushing : (B) RB Kenneth Gainwell (12 – 112 – 9.3 –1 – 0)

Receiving :(S) WR Devonta Smith (10 – 6 – 61 – 10.1 – 1)

Offensive Line Report/Enforcer : (3 (18) + 5 (5) – 1 (-2) = 21) RT Lane Johnson

Drive Killer : (S) CB James Bradberry (1 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0)

Sack Leader : (S) DE Josh Sweat (2 – 1.5 – 0 – 1)

Ace : N/A

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I hear you asking, “What about all the stuff that stats don’t reveal?” Well, that’s the reason for these Four Things articles. It’s to point out what we need to address BEFORE the game. Then AFTER the game, there’s a no-bullshit assessment of whether or not the Eagles did any of what they needed to do, to ensure the win.

So how much of what I mentioned in Four Things: GIANTS did the Eagles actually get around to doing? Well let’s see:

1) Feed Miles Sanders: Early on the Eagles made a point of feeding RB Miles Sanders (17 – 90 – 5.2 – 0 – 0), who led the team in carries. It wasn’t until the 4th drive that Philadelphia began using Sanders to impose our will on New York, but once we did, a tone was set, and then the volume was cranked way up.

We ran for 268 yards on those scrubs. Kenneth Gainwell led the team with 112 yards, but RB Boston Scott (6 – 32 – 5.3 – 1 – 0) also chipped in. Our run game allowed us to control the clock for 35:43 of the 60 minute contest. As a result our defense was well rested, and able to play fast and relentless. We used one side of the ball to enhance another. Excellent! (DONE)

2) Time for the Kerrigan Plan: Getting the ball to TE Dallas Goedert (5 – 5 – 58 – 11.6 – 1) worked like a charm! We were able to get it to him at will. Though we surely left some money on the table, the run game was too efficient to turn away from.

In the meantime, covering Goedert popped the giants defense open like a steamed clam. Since the run game kept chewing up real estate, there was no need to overdo things. That said, next week’s opponent won’t be getting much sleep this week. (DONE)

3) Set those edges HARD: We were a lot better about this in the middle of the game. We started slow and finished slow with this, but we did enough to make their run game unreliable, which was the entire point. (DONE)

4) You Shall Not Pass: Show everyone EXACTLY who QB Daniel Jones (15/27 – 55.5% – 135 – 0 – 1) really is. For weeks now, we’ve been hearing how awesome this awful QB is. The idea was to take away the run (CHECK!), put the game on his shoulders (CHECK!), and see just how great this overblown bust really is.

OLB Haason Reddick chops down QB Daniel Jones

We spent the game harassing him, and sacking him 5 times. He was not up to the pressure of the moment, and in no way resembled the QB who tore into a fraudulent Vikings team last week. See his numbers? See that final score? (DONE)

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This week we hit ALL FOUR THINGS, and how! Next week some other poor sucker has to make the trip to Philadelphia for the NFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME, just to be put on a plane, and sent home to clean out their lockers. No clue who they’ll be, but with any luck it’ll be San Francisco.

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On The Whole:

This game was worse than the 48 – 22 blowout from a few weeks ago. Not only was the point margin larger, but we dominated across the board. Anyone in the giants organization who doesn’t now see that the giants are years behind the Eagles, doesn’t have an opinion worth listening to.

FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: WK 17: SAINTS

Posted by The BEAST on 2023/01/02
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, NFL, Offense, Players, playoffs, Reviews, Special Teams, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

THIS one Hurts.

EAGLES 10 – Saints 20

EAGLES STATS:

Categories include an EXCLUSIVE weekly Offensive Line Report (Rushing TD’s (6 points) + 3rd downs converted by handoffs (1 point) + sacks allowed (-2 points) = score); as well as Drive Killer (Int – FR – 4th down Tackles – FF – TD).

New Category Ace is for Kick return TD’s, Returners run-down, kicks blocked, etc.

Passing :(S) QB Gardner Minshew (18/32 – 56.2% – 274 – 1 – 1)

Rushing :(S) RB Miles Sanders (12 – 61 – 5.0 – 0 – 0)

Receiving :(S) WR Devonta Smith (13 – 9 – 115 – 12.7 – 0)

Offensive Line Report/Enforcer : (0+ 0 – 6 (-12) = -12) LG Landon Dickerson

Drive Killer : (R ) NCB Josiah Scott (1 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0)

Sack Leader : (S) DE Brandon Graham (3 – 2.0 – 0 – 0)

Ace : NA

****

I hear you asking, “What about all the stuff that stats don’t reveal?” Well, that’s the reason for these Four Things articles. It’s to point out what we need to address BEFORE the game. Then AFTER the game, there’s a no-bullshit assessment of whether or not the Eagles did any of what they needed to do, to ensure the win.

So how much of what I mentioned in Four Things: SAINTS did the Eagles actually get around to doing? Well let’s see:

1) Run the damned ball: The Eagles had TWO hand-offs (back to back), in the first half for 9 nine yards. There were 12 (for 58 yards (4.8ypc) in the second half, but Offensive Coordinator Shane “Possibly Retarded” Steichen, wanted to show everyone how clever he is, while starting a back-up QB and a back-up RT. The result was 10 points. (NOT DONE)

2) Tight man on the Corners: Nope! Not at all. Once again we were playing our Corners 5 to 8 yards deep, making them late to Screens and outside run fits. There was no excuse for this. Defensive Coordinator Jonathan Gannon called a spineless game, in which got his Defense jerked around like kittens on a leash. This was embarrassing (NOT DONE)

3) Get Chunk Plays: Eagles seemed to want to do this, but an inability to protect Minshew (6 sacks allowed) short circuited any attempt to establish a rhythm offensively. This was made worse as no commitment to the run game, meant that the Saints didn’t buy our play-action. (NOT DONE)

4) Blow up the “A” Gaps: Early in the game, they had us on our heels with this. It was made worse by the Offense giving the Defense no time to rest, with three and out after three and out. Later in the game we got to a point where we were holding our own at the point of attack, but that’s not the same as winning. (NOT DONE)

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This week we didn’t do any of the Four Things and we got… Have you ever gotten your butt crack waxed?

That’s sort of what happened to us out there. Because of this, next weeks game vs the giants is a MUST WIN. A win next week means that no playoff opponent will have home-field advantage over us. So we need this. NEED. Think of it as our first playoff game of the year.

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On The Whole:

Get off of Gardner Minshew’s back! He’s a back-up QB who had to split reps this week, playing behind a damaged O-line, with a coaching staff that decided to rest the game squarely on his shoulders. Minshew has been fine over the last two weeks. Not great, but fine.

OFFENSE: We ran 15 plays in the first half. Just 2 were hand-offs. This was versus the #23 rushing defense in the league. I said in Four Things this is free yardage, and what happened? Miles Sanders averaged 5.0 yards per tote on his 12 carries. He had just 12 carries despite making solid gains when he did see the ball.

SPECIAL TEAMS: Poor play-calling is always a problem, but it’s an even worse problem with perpetually shitty field position. It is well past time to cut PR Britain Covey. He’s an out right liability at this point. When he isn’t fair catching everything, he’s getting blown up in ways that energize our opponents. We’re getting no energy, momentum, and no contribution from our not so Special Teams.

DEFENSE: Anybody care to explain why we were in deep zones again, allowing the QB to complete passes like it was a 7 on 7 drill? Because I sure as hell can’t! Nothing we did made sense today. It’s like the coaching staff was TRYING to throw the game. This cost us a clinch and a higher draft pick.

Calling this game an embarrassment, is like saying the Washington Commanders organization has a couple of things to correct. Adding injury to insult, DE Josh Sweat was carted off the field, and taken to a nearby hospital (probably Methodist since they’re part of Jefferson now), and scheduled to be released Sunday night.

FOUR THINGS: WK 17: EAGLES – SAINTS

Posted by The BEAST on 2022/12/30
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Defense, Four Things, Front Office (F.O.), NFC East, NFL, Offense, Players, playoffs, Preview. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

LET’S not try to spin last week’s loss to the Cowboys as a “good” thing. That said, let’s not ignore how many great lessons we learned from it. We put up 34 points, despite 4 turnovers, and playing with a back-up QB. The next time we face them, QB Jalen Hurts should be back, and we won’t be giving the ball away four times.

Now the league means to entertain the world, by ushering Saints into the Colosseum that is Lincoln Financial, to be devoured by the BEAST of the East.

Winning will make us 14 – 2, give us the NFC East crown, install us as the Number One Seed in the Conference, and position us to pick in the top ten of the upcoming Draft. Whether we win by one or one thousand, the results will be the same for us.

A loss here would drop us to 13 – 3, leaving the door open for the Cowboys to win the East, the Vikings to win the NFC, and leaving the Saints alive for a possible playoff berth, which would drop our potential top ten pick, all the way down to twenty-first. At best.

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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: Saints

1) Run the damned ball: By run the ball, I don’t mean run the QB, I mean hand it off to RB Miles Sanders. The Saints come into this game giving up 4.5 yards per tote, and have a smallish front 7 seven vs our huge Offensive Line. This is free yardage! For the love of Pete, just take it!

Also, hand-offs set up play-action. Why not make life easy on our QB, (regardless of which plays), if we can?

2) Tight man on the Corners: The Saints don’t have a WR that we need to be overly concerned about. The real reason for our CB’s playing tight to the Line Of Scrimmage, is to already be in position to create a funnel, when they throw any Screen passes. The idea is to funnel the receiver back into a million hands clawing at the ball and vicious collisions.

3) Get Chunk Plays: Instead of Hurts attempting forty-five 9yard passes, how about we whittle it down to fifteen 20yard passes. Let’s put up 20 first half points, and let Gardner Minshew take over. There is no sense in sacrificing a deep playoff win, just to get the top seed. Preserve Hurts shoulder. No playing with our food this week. Go for the killshots, early.

4) Blow up the “A” Gaps: Seriously folks, QB Andy Dalton is a statue. His rushing stats are 71 – 244 – 3.4 – 0. Since 2020! Get after him. Make him change his launch angle by making him move his feet. This should impact their passing game as well as the inside run game, and make it hard for them to move the ball in any regard.

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

No need to talk a bunch here. Last week we didn’t handle business, and here we are with everything we worked this season, on the verge of being stolen at the last moment.

No more chit-chat. Go win.

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Prediction: EAGLES 24 – Saints 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 REVIEWED: WK 11: Saints

Posted by The BEAST on 2021/11/22
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, NFL, Offense, Players, Reviews, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

RUNNING down a dream.

EAGLES 40 – Saints 29

EAGLES STATS:

New categories include an EXCLUSIVE weekly Offensive Line Report (Rushing TD’s + 3rd and 4th downs converted:missed of 2 yards or less – sacks allowed); as well as Drive Killer (Int – FR – 4th down Tackles – FF – TD).

Passing: (S) QB Jalen Hurts (13/24 – 54.1% – 147 – 0 – 0)

Rushing: (S) RB Miles Sanders (16 – 94 – 5.8 – 0 – 1)

Receiving: (S) TE Dallas Goedert (8 – 5 – 62 – 12.4 – 0

Offensive Line Report: (3 + 5:1 – 3)

Drive Killer: (S) MLB T.J. Edwards (1 – 1 – 0 – 0 – 0)

Sack Leader: NO QUALIFIER

****

I hear you asking, “What about all the stuff that stats don’t reveal?” Well, that’s the reason for these Four Things articles. It’s to point out what we need to address BEFORE the game. Then AFTER the game, there’s a no-bullshit assessment of whether or not the Eagles did any of what they needed to do, to ensure the win.

So how much of what I mentioned in  Four Things: Saints did the Eagles actually get around to doing? Well let’s see:

1) Play Man Press: We started out playing this, and played a fair amount of it. We also played a lot of off coverage which allowed the Saints back-up QB to throw for 200 yards and three scores.

It also contributed to why the Eagles didn’t have a single sack, against a team missing both of it’s starting OT’s. This was one of several things which probably went overlooked, due to the score. We did this, but not nearly as consistently as we should have. (DONE)

2) Force Malcolm Out Of the Middle:

We did a GREAT job of this! We kept S Malcolm Jenkins (4 – 0 – 0 – 0) out of the box, and so we kept him from impacting the game, in any meaningful way. Jenkins had all of FOUR tackles, in this game, despite us handing it off 32 times. He was kept safely away from the action, and our RB’s ran for 173 yards, on 32 totes (5.4 ypc), largely due to an uncongested middle of the field. (DONE)

3) Just Make the Tackle: Great job here as well. We didn’t see a bunch of piles moving, as our defenders clawed pointlessly at the ball. The one forced fumble we got from DT Fletcher Cox (2 – 0 – 1 – 1), was him reaching out to make a tackle, and grabbing the bicep of the opposing RB. BOOM. Ball popped out like Janet Jackson’s nipple.

Nothing extra needed. No holding the ball-carrier up. No clawing for the pig, and letting him churn out extra yards. Just went for the tackle and was rewarded by the football gods. (DONE)

4) Use Play-Action: There was some play-action, but not nearly enough to qualify it here. More to the point, it was deployed poorly. Understand, the game started with a designed QB run, which the Eagles kept repeating. On the day, Hurts threw the ball 24 times, and ran it 18.

There was never a point when the defense got to be more focused on some other player, than they were on Hurts. As a result, the defense keyed on him, never truly buying his fake hand-offs, pressuring him into some ugly scrambles, sacking him 3 times, and keeping the question of his accuracy a viable subject. None of those are the result of play-action used effectively. (NOT DONE)

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That brings this week’s tally to 3 of Four Things. Next week we take a 90 minute drive to the cesspool that is Rutherford, New Jersey. Then we’ll do what we need to, and walk out of there as a .500 football team. At which point we’ll have seriously positioned ourselves to be in the playoff discussion.

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On The Whole:

There are several things about this victory that bug me. They were bugging me even during the game. However, this is the first time we’ve had consecutive wins since November 1st of last season. So I’m going to let the fans enjoy this Four Things Reviewed.

Enjoy your turkey. We’ll talk soon. (Unless you decide to reach out to me sooner.)

FOUR THINGS: WK 11: EAGLES – SAINTS

Posted by The BEAST on 2021/11/20
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Defense, Four Things, NFL, Offense, Players, Preview. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

JUST a few weeks ago, I predicted that the Saints head coach, would out-coach Eagles Head Coach Nick Sirianni, and win this game. Today, I don’t feel like the Saints have a legitimate shot at winning this game. I could be wrong, but you and I know that I’m not.

The Eagles have found an internal source of power to tap into. Meanwhile, the Saints are starting to fall apart due to the aforementioned injuries, and a lack of offensive leadership. For the Saints, this is a bad time to have this fight.

A win would move us to 5 – 6, and one game away from being .500. This team hasn’t seen .500 or above since the end of the 2019 season. There’s possible playoff implications to be discussed, but let’s get to .500, before we start talking too much about playoffs.

A loss would drop us to 4 – 7 and shine more light on the three first round picks we have in the 2022 NFL Draft. As long as there’s a mathematical chance for us to make the playoffs, we should try everything to do so. That said, the second we’re out of possible consideration, we should tank, because it improves our draft position in EVERY round, not just the first.

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The point of Four Things isn’t to predict a winner, it’s to discuss which tactics will practically guarantee our Eagles this win. CAUTION: 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 FT as a gambling tool, you are trying to lose your money, and will deserve it when you do.

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

1) Play Man Press: First and most importantly, we’re 4 – 0 when we do. Secondly, The Saints are starting back-up QB Trevor Siemian, and he likes to share the football with his opponents. So we should be there for him. In fairness, he hasn’t thrown a single pick this season. WHICH MEANS HE’S DUE!

Take away the quick and easy stuff. If the “back-up’s body forced to be a starter” Steve Trevor

can beat us with deep passing, then we deserve to lose. Man Press will take away the quick stuff, help our pass rush, and help to keep the run contained.

2) Force Malcolm Out Of the Middle: One of the reasons that the Saints rank so high in run defense is former Eagles SS Malcolm Jenkins. He plays in the box like an extra LB. So we need to get him out of the box. The primary reason we moved on from Malcolm, was his apparent trouble with deep speed. Even when lined up deep, Malcolm has trouble versus true speed. So that’s the bone we should hack at.

The fact that he likes to walk into the box, makes that weakness all the more glaring. We should start in 11 Personnel (1RB, 1 TE). The TE doesn’t always have to be an actual TE. Using RB Miles Sanders, or RB Kenny Gainwell would do just fine on some downs. Split the TE wide, to pull Malcolm laterally out of the box. After a couple of deep routes, he’ll also start lining up deeper.

That’s when you pound the rock with RB Jordan Howard, vs a vacated middle.

3) Just Make the Tackle: Saints RB Mark Ingram is a leg churner and tackle breaker. He’s not a hard RB to box-in or catch, but teams clawing at the ball instead of getting him on the ground, literally give him extra yardage.

Once we get to him, drop him. Plain and simple. Clawing for the ball may help us if we’re down two scores in the 4th quarter, but doing it in the 1st quarter is a great way to end up down two scores. Just get these guys on the ground.

4) Use Play-Action: With the way the Eagles have run these last few weeks, selling a fake hand-off will be as easy as selling toilet paper.

QB Jalen Hurts would have clean pocket after clean pocket, as long as he doesn’t hold the ball too long.

Not only that, but if play-action is used well enough, both real and fake hand-offs will freeze their defense, as they take a beat to make sure of their read, instead of just reacting.

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If we do these Four Things,

If we hit all four of these, this game would break wide open, and put the NFL on notice. Sirianni would go from “the guy the media mocked over flowers” to “rookie head coach has turned his team around”.

While I would LOVE all four, I expect that #1 and #3 are the ones that will likely get done. If so that should be enough for a 28 – 17 win.

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PREDICTION: EAGLES 28 – Saints 17

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

FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: WK 13: Saints

Posted by The BEAST on 2020/12/14
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Draft, Fans, Four Things, Front Office (F.O.), NFL, Offense, Players, playoffs, Reviews, Roster. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Time-out on all the handjobs and high fives.

Eagles 24 – Saints 21 

EAGLES LEADERS:

(S) QB Jalen Hurts: (17/30 – 56.6% – 167 – 1 – 0)

(S) RB Miles Sanders: (14 – 115 – 8.2 – 2 – 0)

(S) TE Dallas Goedert: (6 – 4 – 43 – 10.7 – 0)

(R ) DE Josh Sweat: (3 – 2.0 – 0 – 1)

I hear you asking, “What about all the stuff that stats don’t reveal?” Well, that’s the reason for the Four Things articles. It’s to point out what we need to address BEFORE the game. Then AFTER the game, there’s a no-bullshit assessment of whether or not the Eagles did any of what they needed to do, to ensure the win.

So how much of what I mentioned in Four Things: Saints did the Eagles get around to doing? Well let’s see:

1) Lose the game: Didn’t happen. Now the Eagles exist in a third place limbo that neither helps their playoff chances, nor Draft position. Needing SERIOUS salary cap relief, this team will need a massive infusion of young contributors, if we’re not trying to make a habit of sitting behind New York and Washington. Both of which are respectively 2 and 1 year ahead of our rebuild effort. The win may have felt good to the fans, but a look at Owner Jeff Lurie’s face, as he sat in the press box with his team ahead in the fourth quarter, will plainly tell you this win was NOT in the plans. (NOT DONE)

2) Don’t bench Hurts: This was only for if he looked shaky out there, and he didn’t. Total freebie. (DONE)

3) Give up 35 points: Nope. The Defense played very well, thanks in part to the Saints starting a QB made of tofu. They insisted on playing into the strength of the Eagles Defense, even after 75% of our starting Secondary was hurt on one play! Our Secondary is trash on a good day, and their RB/TE/KR/FB/H-Back/QB was too dumb all day long, to audible into anything that could have hurt us. Any Eagles fan who sees this team part ways with DT Fletcher Cox, or DE Brandon Graham, will see it as a step back. Especially without the Draft capital to replace such players. (Now are you starting to see how all this fits together?) (NOT DONE)

4) Doug has to look clueless: Don’t look now, but Pederson has just out-coached Sean Payton, with a rookie QB. Calling a plethora of plays that we haven’t seen for 12 games (that 40 yard Slot Drag to WR Jalen Reagor was a poorly executed thing of beauty!), the Saints had no answers, as everything they studied this week had to do with a pocket-based offense. Next week the Cardinals will be trying to keep Hurts from immediately bootlegging right, but this week it took the Saints an entire half to even try to start a containment. (NOT DONE)

Put plainly, the team won the game, but it was a MASSIVE step back for the Front Office. We’ll see what shakes out next week at Arizona. And please don’t get too caught up in the “who starts at QB” thing. We’re 4 – 8 – 1. At this point, that’s window dressing. Look ahead to the BIG picture.

On The Whole:

Allow me to bring up a few points.

Fewer than 200 passing yards, less than a 60% completion rate, one touchdown and one turnover. But the fans are happy?

We didn’t give up a sack, largely because the QB was running from the pocket. Even before pressure. On practically every down. But the fans are happy?

Before you make the Michael Vick comparisons, remember what his hand looks like. Lamar Jackson? Kyler Murray? Cam Newton? Robert Griffin III? Randall Cunningham? All terrifying runners. Not one ring between sixty fingers.

Guys like Russell Wilson, Steve Young (HOF), John Elway (HOF), and Aaron Rodgers all use/used their mobility to buy time to make a throw. Not to outright sprint for sidelines. As a result…they have rings.

Jalen Hurts can run, but we have yet to see him play QB. This game featured him running to a side, and then operating on that side. So before you become enamored with that style of play, scroll back up and take a long look at the two lists I put up. The fans were happy with the win on Sunday. But by the time you read this, it will be Monday.

FOUR THINGS: NEW ORLEANS SAINTS

Posted by The BEAST on 2020/12/11
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Draft, Four Things, Front Office (F.O.), NFL, Offense, Players. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

“If you get to that spot where you don’t start him or you bench him, I think you’re sending the wrong message to your football team that this season is over, and that’s a bad message,”

EAGLES Head Coach Doug Pederson said that when asked about benching QB Carson Wentz on Sunday November 22nd. Just 14 days later, he was benching Wentz for rookie QB Jalen Hurts.

If we’re taking Pederson at the words that he said, then the Eagles 2020 season is over. This deprioritizes winning, and makes it seem as if we’re tanking without outright saying that we are. Save Carson some wear and tear, put out the rookie, and dunt, dunt, dunt, dunt.

The problem is, Four Things is all about how to best go about pursuing the win. So how do we win when it no longer is the real mission?

Are we chasing a draft spot? Is the goal for Doug to prove that Wentz was holding him back? Is the goal make the fans so disgusted, that they’re okay with General Manager Howie Roseman, gutting the team?

Personally, I think it’s the last one. It totally would explain the Eagles drafting Hurts, instead of getting a CB (since the team had little confidence in CB Sidney Jones), or a DE (with DE Brandon Graham being old and pricey). What’s more, it explains why we’d Drafted WR Jalen Reagor and not Justin Jefferson, Brandon Aiyuk or LB Kenneth Murray. It also explains why Hurts over S Jeremy Chinn.

If Doug was already starting out 2020 on a warm seat, then Roseman would be hella reluctant to draft a bunch of scheme specific studs, for a coaching staff which might be on its way out.

Reagor played all the WR spots in college. Hurts wasn’t going to be a starter in 2020. Neither man would be married to an identity, if the whole team needed to change. Perhap Aiyuk also had that flexibility, but all the other guys on the prior list, would have had to be untaught everything he knew about being an NFL player, before starting to reconstruct him. Reagor and Hurts are still lumps of clay.

SO! With “winning” this week being defined as disappointing YOU the fan, here are the Four Things that Howie needs this week:

1) Lose the game: A win keeps us in the hunt for the East, whereas a loss (coupled with a win by No Frills, or the giants) basically equates to a mercy killing for our season.

2) Don’t bench Hurts: No matter how bad he looks, benching Hurts would be DISASTROUS for this franchise. It would serve to de-legitimize the position from top to bottom. Right now, this can still be written off as a slump that Wentz needs a break from. Swapping QB’s in and out makes it look like there is no deep confidence in anybody. It would only be worse if Wentz comes in and saves the day.

3) Give up 35 points: Something needs to happen to justify getting rid of DE Brandon Graham, and DT’s Malik Jackson and Fletcher Cox this offseason.

4) Doug has to look clueless: Remember the day that Doug outcoached Bill Belichik? Well Howie needs you to forget that he can do that. Forcing him to start a rookie vs a Sean Payton coached team, is the equivalent to blindfolding Doug, putting him in the ring with Mike Tyson, and then demanding a win.

Remember:

Beating Sean Payton with a rookie, would suggest that Doug is a beast, and Wentz is the dead weight.

Roseman needs a loss. The worse the loss we suffer, the easier it will be for him to tear the team down to the studs.

The worst thing that could happen for everyone, is a concussion or anything else that means Hurts can’t finish the game. Wentz leading a comeback victory would be the absolute nightmare scenario for both Pederson and Roseman.

I can’t wait to see how it all shakes out.

#8 QB HOLDING

Posted by The BEAST on 2019/04/09
Posted in: Coaching, NFL, Players, Rants, Special Teams, The 12, Uncategorized, X's and O's. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 2 Comments

8-QB HOLDING

I’VE said this before and I’ll keep saying it every year, until we do it. If you want to increase the accuracy of the Kicker, use a QB as his Holder on Field Goal attempts.

card.jake.elliott.jpg

K Jake Elliott has a career accuracy rating of 83.9%. He was 26/31 in his first year. He was 26/31 in his second year. He’s had none of his kicks blocked (knock wood), thus far. That’s not for a lack of teams trying though.

That of course has to factor into him working to get his kicks away sooner. However, if given a second or second and a half longer, to dial in… Hey, that can only help him out. But what does that have to do with a QB playing Holder?

If a QB is the Holder, it means that any FG attempt could be a fake. It means every FG attempt could be a fake. (Especially with Doug as the coach.) If the kicking team packs the line, then the defense has to crowd them and gets to attempt a block. However, if it’s 4th and 4, and the wing players line up outside, then the defense has to pull potential blockers away from the kick, to cover what could otherwise become a completely uncovered receiver.

This tells the Kicker that he has a little more time and breathing room for his kick. And it would all stem from using a QB as the Holder, as the Saints did here with QB Luke McCown

This play might not have happened had the defense identified and respected the personnel that was on the field.

We need to adapt and adopt tactics which make teams uneasy about how they approach US. At the same time, these seemingly small wrinkles can supply our own players with a greater sense of calm and confidence.

FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: DIVISIONAL ROUND : SAINTS

Posted by The BEAST on 2019/01/14
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, Offense, Players, playoffs, Reviews, stats, Super Bowl. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

IF nothing else, the ballooning debate over which QB we should ride with, has had most of the air let out of it. That’s the only silver lining here. The rest is muck and drivel.
I spent the latter half of the fourth quarter saying that I lay last nights loss at the feet of Defensive Coordinator Jim Schwartz. This is due to his repeated unwillingness to make adjustments, even when it’s clear that our opponents have. Former Eagles OLB Seth Joyner later echoed my assessment, and also fingered Schwartz for calling too passive of a game.

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Eagles 14 – Saints 20

QB Nick Foles (18/31 – 58.0% – 201 – 1 – 2) didn’t have his “A” game yesterday, an with the Eagles having no kind of run game, it was all on him to conjure up a win. It might have been possible had the Offense had more opportunities with the ball. Instead, DC Jim Schwartz seemed determined to make sure that the Saints had all the time and space that they needed, to operate their offense.

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) Spread the Ball: Three receivers with 50 yards or better was what we ordered. Two receivers with 50 or better is what we got. NOT DONE

2) Sack Attack: We got a couples of sacks, but we did not keep hands up in the QB’s face. As a result he had clear lines of sight to convert key third down after key third down. NOT DONE

3) Win Rushing yards: We started Wendell Smallwood. You can’t win rushing yards without a RB. NOT POSSIBLE

4) Take away the short pass: With all the off-coverage, and vanilla zones, we didn’t take away the short pass, the long pass, the hall pass…. NOT DONE

That makes this week’s Four Things score 0 out of 4. That also brings the 2018 – 2019 to a close.

While it would have been great to have this year end like last year, we all know that no team can win it all, every year. So we are are going to see more playoff runs that end like this, than like last year. Which will still make for exciting seasons.

That being said, this season was a fun ride while it lasted.

On The Whole:

After jumping out to a 14 – 0 lead, we had no business losing this game the way that we did. Personally I see this as worse than the 48 – 7 regular season loss, because it feels like it was almost an inside job. The only thing that keeps me from thinking Schwartz got an envelope, is the fact that he’s been doing this shit since he got here. Here’s what I said in Four Things Reviewed after the Super Bowl:
“ 4) South Paw Switch: To be fair, I didn’t really expect this to get done, since it isn’t actually DC Jim Schwartz’s M.O. to make wholesale changes at the half. It would have however, kept the Patriot from outscoring us 21 -19 in the second half. (NOT DONE) ”

This is who Schwartz is, and this is what we have to live with. For as long as he’s here. Given that this was the last year of his contract though….

FOUR THINGS: DIVISIONAL ROUND: EAGLES-SAINTS

Posted by The BEAST on 2019/01/10
Posted in: Coaching, Defense, Four Things, NFL, Offense, Players, playoffs, Preview, X's and O's. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 5 Comments

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REVENGE. Pay back. Bounties. Eagles players like LT Jason Peters have actually used those words. Earlier this year the Saints pasted us, 7 – 48. Did the Eagles players sulk? Did they feel sorry for themselves and mail the rest of the season in? They did neither of these things.

What the Eagles players did was meet as MEN. They talked about being embarrassed. They spoke of pride. They used it to resurrect a season that others had written off and were already throwing dirt on. And now, through teamwork and sheer will, the Eagles find themselves facing the same Saints team.

But they will do it, as a different Eagles team. Revenge.

I’m sure by now, most of you have heard about the cute stunt pulled by elderly Frankie Muniz.

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If you haven’t, let me nutshell it for you: He grabbed the Saints Super Bowl trophy and 225K in cash (representing an NFL player’s SB bonus), wheeled both into their locker room, and told the players if they want these, they have to win “three fucking games”.

I guess that no one told them that QB Nick Foles, has been making extra cake for killing motherfuckers since the Rams game! Bonuses of 250K for each regular season victim. Then a cool 1M, for that ice-in-his-veins, game-winning touchdown drive last week against the Bears in a playoff game.

FYI Saints: Eagles Owner Jeff Lurie, ripped that Wanted poster off the Bears carcass and nailed it to your team’s forehead for THIS week. Because this week we’re playing for revenge, and revenge is a dish best served, with a big ol’ bottle of ice cold Spite.

SPITE bottle

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

1) Spread the Ball: In 3 losses (TB1, DAL, CAR2) the Saints opponent had 3 receivers with 50 yards or better. In 5 close wins/near losses (CLE, ATL, BAL, PIT, CAR1) the opponent had just 2 receivers with 50 yards or better. Spreading the ball loosens up this defense.

2) Sack Attack: Since 2015, the Saints are undefeated when their opponent doesn’t record a sack. In our loss to them this year, we couldn’t get within a 50$ cab ride of the QB, and he dissected us on national television. Our mission couldn’t be clearer here. Get those hands UP to obstruct his line of sight, to make him hold the ball and give the pass rush time to hunt.

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3) Win Rushing yards: In all three losses, the Saints opponent led in rushing yards. So run it 25 times, not 11 like last time.

4) Take away the short pass: Don’t allow the RB easy releases into pass routes. Again, the idea is to make the QB hold the ball. As the rush gets closer, it gets harder for him to see over. Especially if those hands are up. It forces the ball more up than out, giving defenders a split second more to get to under the ball.

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:

Like Chicago, Eagles fans will NOT take over this venue. We will indeed be playing in a raucous and hostile environment, where it seems the very building is against us. With Chicago it was the field, in New Orleans it will be noise.

We’ll work to settle the nerves of our young Secondary, and get them to trust the communication. Once that happens, we can work on quieting that crowd.

New Orleans is going to try and come at us with a run game that they were able to lean on last time. But this time we’ll be ready for that. If their QB attempts to go by the film of how we played them the last time, this could end up as THE biggest debacle in his career.

PREDICTION: EAGLES 26 – Saints 19

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