Nick Sirianni

All posts tagged Nick Sirianni

FOUR THINGS: WILDCARD: EAGLES – 49ers

Posted by The BEAST on 2026/01/08
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, NFL, Offense, Players, playoffs. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

HEAD Coach Nick Sirianni, wisely manufactured a Bye week for our starters last week. Sadly, our back-ups fell just a little short of securing the #2 seed. Guess we’ll just have to settle for the #3 seed, and host at least one playoff game at home. This week’s opponent, the 49ers, chased seeding and played their starters last week. They not only lost the game, they got two of their starting LB’s injured, where they may miss this game.

So Nick was right.

With a 1,000 yard rusher in RB Saquon Barkley; two 1,000 yard receivers in WR A.J. Brown and WR DeVonta Smith; and TE Dallas Goedert who caught 11 touchdown passes this season, the Eagles can put all kinds of different stress on defenses. Our opponent, really has the one guy, in RB Christian McCaffrey.

Can Defensive Coordinator Vic Fangio, scheme up a way to minimize McCaffery’s impact on the game? Can LB Zack Baun, CB Cooper DeJean, and our man-eating Defensive Line execute that scheme? The smart money is on ‘YES!’.

With a win, we move onto the Divisional round. There, we’ll most likely travel to Chicago, to face the Bears. (Unless something really weird happens.)

With a loss, our season ends, but our players at least wouldn’t have to get on a plane, to come home and clean out their lockers.

****

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. Often I list fundamentals, as some of the four things. BUT NO MORE! Unless something specific is needed, fundamentals like Running the ball; playing lots of Man Press; and Tackling instead of going for the strip, will be automatically included. (Like the five consonants and a vowel that Wheel Of Fortune automatically spots you.) So here are the Four Things that we need to focus on this week versus: the Forty-Niners.

1) Run At Their DE’s: The 49ers are small, don’t have much depth, and are banged up, up front. Making matters worse, are their injuries at LB. Particularly at MLB, where their current starter was at home, unemployed three weeks ago. Shouldn’t take much for us to cause confusion and miscommunication in their second level.

What’s more, their pass rush has been anemic. Catching their DE’s playing the pass on 2nd and 8, or 3rd and 4, would be a nice way to gash big holes for Barkley. As a team, we need to put up 150 rushing yards. This should be like beating a fish in a race, because it doesn’t have legs and can’t breathe air. Their disadvantages are our advantages. Use them!

2) Get Their QB’s Feet Moving: He already doesn’t have a rocket launcher for an arm. So forcing deeper throws, while getting him to throw off-platform, could turn this game into a blowout in our favor. No need to blitz him, just rush him with a plan, and don’t let him get his feet set!

3) Unleash A.J. Brown: That man should see at least 8 targets, and at least two of them should be Go routes. The 49ers have nothing remotely in the form of an answer for Brown. So, we should take full advantage and put on a vulgar display of power. This week’s game should leave our next opponent shaken to their core.

4) Muddy Coverage Underneath: Corners in Man Coverage, Safeties slight delays on dropbacks, Linebackers in shallow zones. The idea is to keep the passing windows tight, and delay quick releases by the QB. Causing the QB to hold the ball longer activates our pass rush, and works hand-in-glove with making their QB move his feet.

****

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

The 49ers let it slip last week, that the Eagles were not the opponent they wanted to face in the playoffs. Goes to show, they may talk a lot of shit, but they know exactly what the fuck is up. Every indication says that this game is essentially feeding rabbits to lions, and the San Francisco rabbits, KNOW IT.

This is provided that the Eagles can successfully muzzle our Offensive Coordinator. If we could somehow, get him into a large wooden crate marked “Fragile”, we could ship him somewhere, and the team would be safe! Alas, we may be stuck with him making actual decisions.

****

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, then you are a fool 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 13: Bears

Posted by The BEAST on 2025/12/01
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, Front Office (F.O.), Offense, Players, Reviews, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

EAGLES played to lose.

EAGLES 15 – Bears 24

 

EAGLES STATS:

Passing: QB Jalen Hurts (19/34– 55.8% – 230 – 2 – 1)

Rushing: RB Saquon Barkley (13 – 56 – 4.3 – 0 – 0)

Receiving: WR A.J. Brown (12 – 10 – 132 – 13.2 – 2)

Drive Killer: OLB Jaylx Hunt (TD: 0/Int: 1/ FR:. / 4th down stops: 0/ FF: 0)

Sack Leader: DT Jalen Carter (Sacks: 1.0/ FF: 0/ Tackles: 4)

Special Teams 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: BEARS did the Eagles actually get around to doing? Well let’s see:

1) Ground and Pound: “This cannot be yet another game where our Offensive Coordinator shelves Barkley, early. We’ve had three such games and all three have been losses. Rushing yards are not the only thing that a hand-off can produce. Run plays tire out pass rushers.”

Despite the game being within one score, for three quarters, Eagles head coach Nick Siranni (all responsibility lies with him) simply abandoned the run. Handing off the ball just 13 times, despite averaging 4.3 per tote, is just mind-boggling. This wasn’t merely coaching malpractice. It was remedial in nature. It stunk of someone not being properly qualified before being hired.

Especially given all the time our Defense spent on the field. By which I mean the Eagles lost time of possession 20 minutes to 39. The Bears controlled the ball for nearly 2/3 of the game. They wore down a defensive line that is built more for rushing the passer. Particularly in cold and windy conditions. (NOT DONE)

DT Jalen Carter gets a sack after being called out in Four Things. I dare him to get THREE next week.

2) Put Their QB Down: We collected 2 sacks and hit their QB 6 times. We held him under 50%, and collected an interception to counter his single touchdown throw. We impacted him greatly. I mentioned Jaylx Hunt (3 – 0.0 – 1 – 0) and Jalen Carter (4 – 1.0 – 0 – 0), and both produced big plays this week. This, we can build on. (DONE)

3) Set Hard Edges: We came out firing. On the first possession, we had them go out on downs. Later in the game Hunt intercepted a Screen pass. These were not the only instances, but they were the most glowing examples. Over the course off the game, the weather and 42 hand-off got the better of our Defense that spent nearly 40 minutes on the field. We started strong, but couldn’t sustain. (NOT DONE)

4) Long, Slow Drives: Nope. Didn’t even try. I’ve never seen more amateurish coaching by this team. This wasn’t just a failure of play-calling. This was a failure to recognize environmental factors; to utilize environmental factors; to recognize basic tenets of the sport itself, which stretches almost a century back. (NOT DONE)

++++

This week’s Four Things score was 1 of 4. Next week we fly out to San Diego to take on a physical Chargers team. I somehow doubt they will fare as well as the Bears just did.

****

Game Hero: Nope. No one played up to that standard.

Game goat: Head Coach Nick Sirianni – The failure/inability to adjust, comes down to him. At this point, letting the team down has become a conscious decision. We know what is wrong. We know how to fix it. The decision to not, is exactly that: A decision.

Re-assigning play-calling duties is the cure here. While there are only three other people on the coaching staff who have play-calling experience, only one of them should be called on to guide the ship through this difficult period. That person is Sirianni himself.

Through rough water, the captain should take the helm. In this way, all decisions and fault will not be placed on others. It gives him an opportunity to show, rather than tell. To lead, rather than command. It would also allow us to see if there has been any growth in him, since he ran away from play-calling in mid 2021.

I have to wonder though. After going 10 – 0 to start 2023, Sirianni ushered us through a horrible collapse, and still managed to keep his job. That show of faith was rewarded with a Super Bowl win. Yet here were are again, looking at possibly another collapse. Honestly, how much embarrassment is Owner Jeffrey Lurie willing to endure?

Given the ages and contract situations of this roster, I wonder if Lurie would simply cut bait with Sirianni this time, and look for a head coach that wants to do their own play-calling. That way no one can poach our brain-trust, and our QB can finally enjoy some stability.

On The Whole: I was going to get into the sideline passivity of Jalen Hurts, since I really wish he was more into rallying his troops. Because to keep it a buck, I think it’s more what people don’t see from him, that keeps people from seeing him as elite. (But that’s a different article.) His attitude wasn’t great, but there were bigger issues.

What happened out there, is that the Bears heeded the weather, and wore us down with 42 hand-offs. It was Football 101, and you’d have to need remedial football classes to lose to it. Which is why we on the other hand, only handed it off 13 times, as we kept going three and out with 34 passing attempts. In gusty wind no less.

We were stupid and got the “L” that we earned.

FINALLY FIRING PATULLO

Posted by The BEAST on 2025/11/26
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Fans, Front Office (F.O.), Rants, Uncategorized, X's and O's. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment
Head Coach Nick Sirianni and Offensive Co-ordinator Kevin Patullo, trying to figure out which one of them is which

OFFENSIVE Co-ordinator Kevin Patullo will be the OC at least until the season ends. When they finally fire Patullo, there will be no more games on the schedule. There was never a scenario where he would be fired during the season. Earlier this season, when it seemed like Miami head coach Mike McDaniels was about to be fired, I suggested that we hire him as an advisor. I never suggested us jumping ship to a new OC, in the middle of a season.

Because it’s just not how the Eagles do business.

Remember in 2023, when Offensive Coordinator Brian Johnson and Defensive Coordinator Sean Desai helped us rise to 10 – 0; only to then help us fall to 11 – 6, with a first round playoff exit? We were sucking long before we got the first loss, but both men stayed employed in their roles until the season concluded.

In 2022 Jonathon Gannon was “allowed to remain behind in Arizona” after the Eagles Super Bowl loss out there. In 2019 Mike Groh was also canned as OC after a playoff loss. In fact, the last Eagles coach to get the ax during the season, was head coach Chip Kelly in 2015 with one game left to play. (In case it comes up as a trivia question, Pat Shurmur took over for that one game.)

This is how the Eagles do business.

However, fellow fan, there’s a second part to this! It has to do with the fact that, when Head Coach Nick Sirianni was hired, he had never called plays before. He took a swipe at it, and seven weeks later the Eagles were 2 – 5 and not showing much promise. So, it was suggested that Sirianni turn playcalling over to Shane Steichen, which he did. Sirianni gave a speech about flowers and from there the Eagles went on a 7 – 3 run, and even made the Wild Card round.

Flowers can’t be nightmare fuel??! Hold my beer.

Sirianni isn’t taking over the playcalling, because he knows that he sucks at it. He’s not an X’s and O’s guy. He’s a manager. A cheerleader. A camp counselor. So there is no “takeover” coming. As for re-assigning the duty… To whom? A QB coach who doesn’t know the strengths and weaknesses of players up and down the offensive depth chart? An outsider?? No. No. That’s not how the Eagles do business.

So get comfy with Patullo, because he ain’t going nowhere. His playcalling will almost definitely short-circuit our efforts to repeat as champions, but he ain’t going nowhere. The whole thing is a little bit sad. We have an identifiable issue, but we refuse to fix it out of habit. Sooo, because of how the Eagles do business, we probably ain’t going nowhere.

FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: WK 12: Cowboys

Posted by The BEAST on 2025/11/24
Posted in: Coaching, Conspiracy Corner, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, NFC East, Offense, Players, playoffs, Rants, Reviews, Rivals, Special Teams, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment
Head Coach Nick Sirianni, not assigning proper accountability

HEY look, another collapse!

EAGLES 21 – Cowboys 24

 

EAGLES STATS:

Passing: QB Jalen Hurts (27/39 – 69.2% – 289 – 1 – 0)

Rushing: QB Jalen Hurts (7 – 33 – 4.7 – 2 – 0)

Receiving: WR A.J. Brown (10 – 8 – 110 – 13.7 – 1)

Drive Killer: S Reed Blankenship (TD: 0/Int: 1/ FR: 0/ 4th down stops: 0/ FF: 0)

Sack Leader: LB Nakobe Dean (Sacks: 1.0/ FF: 0/ Tackles: 5)

Special Teams 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: COWBOYS did the Eagles actually get around to doing? Well let’s see:

1) QB Hits Are Hip: All game long we got just 6 hits and 1 sack on the Cowboys QB. SO we didn’t affect his delivery of the ball much at all (NOT DONE)

2) Feed Our Big Dawgs: WR A.J. Brown had 110 receiving yards, and WR DeVonta Smith (11 – 6 – 89 – 14.8 – 0) got close to the century mark as well. However, the offensive approach was passive, and the run game was essentially shelved for this game. RB Saquon Barkley (10 – 22 – 2.2 – 0 – 1 / 8 – 7 – 52 – 7.4 – 0) was targeted 8 times as a receiver, but the play-calling abandoned the run, while holding a 21 point lead. (DONE)

3) Make ‘em Run: Idea was to to get their defensive line to chase our run game laterally. However with us abandoning the run, there was never a real opportunity for this. (NOT DONE)

4) Take Away Quick Passes: We didn’t manage to do this either, as the Cowboys kept the chains moving with timely passes, which also deprived the Eagles pass rush. (NOT DONE)

++++

This week’s Four Things score was 1 of 4. We come back to the Linc on Friday for a pivotal match-up with the Chicago Bears.

****

Game Hero: Not Applicable

Game goat: Head Coach Nick Sirianni – I’m done blaming Offensive Coordinator Kevin Patullo for his ineptitude. I’m not even going to give a list of his failings for this game. By now, Sirianni should have done something about Patullo’s bungling, foolish, predictable, and flat-out unimaginative play-calling. But he hasn’t.

We are still at the head of the NFC East. We have however, fallen behind the Rams for the number one seed in the Conference. This means that this game, and the collapse vs Denver, may rob us of home-field advantage and more importantly, the first round Bye. This is despite beating the Rams, and Lions, and Packers, even with the handicap of Patullo’s… coaching.

On The Whole: We had the Cowboys down 21 – 0 at the half, and couldn’t mount any kind of a scoring drive for the second half of the game. This is after Dallas made their adjustments, of course. To which we apparently made none.

Our Defense battled valiantly, but our Offense kept going three-and-out, and giving the Cowboys opportunity, after opportunity, after opportunity. We had six possessions in the second half, and only managed to get into field goal position ONCE. Which we then missed and set Dallas up with a short field. Three plays later they scored a touchdown.

CB Cooper DeJean should not play on the boundary.

Once we started losing players in the Secondary (CB Adoree Jackson (three tackles); S Reed Blankenship (8 – 0.0 – 1 – 0); and S Andrew Makuba (3 tackles) we had to move NCB Cooper DeJean (7 tackles) to actual CB, and the Cowboys proceeded to roast him alive. If you’ve been wondering why DeJean is a Nickel and doesn’t start on the boundary, it’s because of what I told you in August. For anyone who disagreed with me then, what did you think of Coop tonight?

FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: WK 6: Giants

Posted by The BEAST on 2025/10/12
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, Offense, Players, Reviews, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment
…and here is Eagles CB Kelee Ringo, getting mossed by some guy named “LilJordan”.

A nationally televised ass-whipping?

EAGLES 17 – Giants 34 

     

EAGLES STATS:

Passing: QB Jalen Hurts (24/33 – 72.7% – 283 – 1 – 1)

Rushing: RB Saquon Barkley (12 – 58 – 4.8 – 0 – 0)

Receiving: TE Dallas Goedert (11 – 9 – 110 – 12.2 – 1)

Drive Killer: N/A (TD: /Int: / FR: / 4th down stops: / FF: )

Sack Leader: DT Jordan Davis (Sacks: 1.0/ FF: 0/ Tackles: 6)

Special Teams Ace: N/A

****

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) Don’t Overthink It: For the second week in a row, I mentioned establishing the run. In the first half we were doing exactly that. Saquon Barkley went into the half 8 – 56 – 7.0 – 0, with a long run of 18. He would finish the game with just 4 more carries for 2 more yards. There were many plays where he wasn’t even in the backfield.

This is NOT about execution. If the player isn’t even on the field, how can he execute? If the ball isn’t handed off, how can the run game fail in its execution? This is a play-calling problem, but until Head Coach Nick Sirianni holds Offensive Coordinator Kevin Patullo accountable, this problem will persist. (NOT DONE)

2) Strangle Their Pass Rush: A short, quick passing game, right behind the pass rush. It would have kept the QB clean, got the ball out fast, backed their linebackers up, kept the chains moving, and the ball out the hands of the opposing offense.

Instead, we were treated to yet another example of why people keep leaving Jalen Hurts off their top ten QB lists. Raise your hand, if you find yourself yelling “THROW THE BALL!!” at your television, at least 4 times per game. Raise your hand if you’re sick of seeing him count past “five Mississippi”. This should’ve been easy. (NOT DONE)

3) Push the Interior Pocket: The idea was to force their QB to run and step into hits by our LB’s. However, every time we got him out of the pocket, our LB’s were off getting a hotdog or something. As far as the run, not only did our linemen get no penetration, they were also getting blown off the line. (NOT DONE)

giants coach Brian Daboll hugging his concussed job security.

4) Take Away Anything Easy: We did take away the dink and dunk underneath stuff. So their QB went into hunting our CB’s, specifically CB Kelee Ringo (3 tackles). Still, their QB only had an okay night, passing the ball. The real issue was the 172 rushing yards that we surrendered. (DONE)

++++

This week’s Four Things score was 1 of 4, so you shouldn’t be surprised that we lost. Next week we travel to Minnesota, to right the ship against a well rested Vikings team.

****

Game Hero: What? Are you serious?

Game goat: HC Nick Sirianni – This team has issues on all sides of the ball, but Offense is what’s killing us. I realize that Patullo may be his friend, but now it’s definitely time for Sirianni to step in, and take over the play-calling. At the very least.

On The Whole: The Offense is going three and out so much, that it’s wearing down the Defense. Not just “in-game” wear, but the kind of wear that gets carried from week to week, is starting to show. Our Defense is in need of a game (or three) where we hold time of possession for 36 minutes or better.

There’s an over-emphasis under Patullo, of taking what opposing defenses are giving us. That allows our opponents to dictate the game to us. Our players hate it, and you can see it actively sapping their mojo. Saquon Barkley said “We have to get back to that attitude. To that mindset, where we don’t really give a fuck what people are trying to do.”

Standing at his locker, RT Lane Johnson called for the plays to be less predictable, and he mentioned ‘keys’ that give away what the Eagles are doing. (He also remembered to say they need to execute better.)

Both of these are pleas for a shift in mindset. The question is: Who are these pleas, to? Who exactly do the players hope to rescue them?

Last week’s loss could have been a constructive loss, had we learned from it. We did not. This giants loss renders the Broncos loss, just a failed opportunity. This giants loss could be a constructive loss, if we learn from it, and make meaningful changes. Otherwise, it’s just going to be a nationally televised ass-whipping.

FOUR THINGS: WK PS3: EAGLES – JETS

Posted by The BEAST on 2025/08/21
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, NFL, Offense, Players, playoffs, Preview. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

WHEW! We sure did shit the bed against Cleveland! At least rookie S Andrew Mukuba came to play. His two takeaways led to all 13 of our points in that game. Well, the Jets historically, love sharing the football. So maybe Mukuba, or even other Eagles defenders, will convince the Jets to share their football with us.

With this being the third and final preseason game, if we leave this game with no significant injuries, then it’s a win. And that’s regardless of whatever is on the scoreboard.

****

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. Often I list fundamentals, as some of the Four Things. BUT NO MORE! Unless something specific is needed, fundamentals like Running the ball; playing lots of Man Press; and Tackling instead of going for the strip, will be automatically included. (Like the five consonants and a vowel that Wheel Of Fortune automatically spots you.) So here are the Four Things that we need to focus on this week versus: the Jets.

1) Better Run Blocking: Last week our bacl-up Offensive Linemen could only muster enough running room to produce 33 yards on 19 carries. Don’t do the math, unless you want to cry. This week it would be nice to see OL Matt Pryor moved inside to G, where he’s better than he is at OT. Which I said last week, in the Eagles 2025 Preview.

I don’t expect to see starters playing, but I do expect to see back-ups trying to prove themselves worthy of a start. Benchmarks? If I’m pulling numbers out of thin air… Oh, 110 rushing yards as a team, with a 4.4 yard average, would be nice.

2) McCord Pushing the Ball Downfield: Against the Browns, our QB’s hardly attempted any passes downfield. Dink and dunk passing, keeps coverage close to the line of scrimmage. Close coverage also helps in shutting down the run. As a result, we couldn’t move the ball at all.

This week I’d like to see QB Kyle McCord start the first half, and attempt 4 to 6 passes that travel at least 20 yards in the air. I don’t want him to play the whole game, but I want to see him be aggressive while he’s out there.

3) Penetration and Protection from the DT’s: Penetration. For these first two games, our back-up DT’s have gotten pushed off the line, a lot more than I’m comfortable with. It would be great to see them getting past blockers and start causing more disruption.

Protection. Instead of getting pushed back into the lap of a LB trying to make a play, we need to see DT’s occupying blockers at or behind the line, and allowing clean LB’s to flow to the ballcarrier.

4) No Significant Injuries: It’s football. The football gods demand tribute, so injuries are a matter of when, not if. Just please, no key players.

****

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

Since Head Coach Nick Sirianni took over, we don’t really play our starters in the preseason, and we start slow every year as a result. Expect the same thing this year. We also make the playoffs every year, so…. I guess, expect the same thing this year.

****

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, then you are a fool 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 10: EAGLES – COWBOYS

Posted by The BEAST on 2024/11/08
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, free agents, NFC East, Offense, Players, Rivals, Special Teams, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

LAST week’s victory over the Jaguars, saw contributions from all three phases (Offense, Defense, and Special Teams). Our guys are motivated. They’re bringing energy and enthusiasm to the field, and it’s yielding results. They’re demonstrating faith in Head Coach Nick Sirianni, and in field general, QB Jalen Hurts.

This week’s opponent, the Cowboys, are well… somewhat less enthused. They started the season with head full of expectations, a chestful of hype, and a roster that was razor thin on depth. And now, a rash of injuries is exposing that.

A win over the Cowboys, would raise us to 7 – 2, and one of the four best records in the NFC. Coupled with a possible Washington loss to Pittsburgh, the Eagles would move into first place in the East.

A loss would freeze us at 6 – 3, but we’d still be in second place in the division, regardless of the outcome of any division game.

****

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. Often I list fundamentals, as some of the four things. BUT NO MORE! Unless something specific is needed, fundamentals like Running the ball; playing lots of Man Press; and Tackling instead of going for the strip, will be automatically included. (Like the five consonants and a vowel that Wheel Of Fortune automatically spots you.) So here are the Four Things that we need to focus on this week versus: the Cowboys

LB Zack Baun gets interception vs the Jaguars

1) Take Away Anything Simple: Back-up QB Cooper Rush doesn’t have a cannon for an arm. It’s part of what kept him undrafted. Also, in seven seasons, on 35 rushing attempts he has 11 yards. That is not a typo. That’s an average of 0.3 yards per carry, over his career. So he’s not going to beat us with his legs. Cooper can’t rush.

Where he does make his money, is on quick reads, from short to intermediate range. Last week we clouded the short area, with Man Coverage or delayed Zone drops. Time for a second helping of that. We need to take away anything easy, and force him to read. Make him risk the ball on deep throws, or eat sacks.

2) Play-action Should Be Deadly: With RB Saquon Barkley just 75 yards away from hitting 1,000 rushing yards in half a season; expect the Cowboys to place stopping him, high on their to-do list. Since their defensive line can be pushed around, it won’t take much to get their LB’s to overcommit to fakes hand-offs, opening up chunk passing plays behind them.

Instead of running our top two guys through a shark tank, this would be a great place to see our TE’s and third and fourth receivers get heavily involved. Still, regardless of who does it, there should be plenty of easy yardage between the numbers, if we employ play-action properly.

3) Blitz From the Defense’s Left: This is can be used for Rush, but it’s being dropped in here, just in-case the Cowboys trot out QB Trey Lance. The coverage key should be enough to help out vs the run, but another wrinkle will be needed to deal with Lance, because he can be a dangerous runner.

LB Nolan Smith ending the march of Danny Dimes.

Rush likes to bootleg, and Lance just likes to run. Both are right-handed, so we should bring OLB Nolan Smith right up the path that they’re running themselves into. Neither is an effective passer going to his left. So their natural tendency to go right, will make them help us, to put them in harm’s way.

4) Take the Points, Nick!: We’re going against a one-dimensional offense, being led by a low ceiling QB. Said another way, Jalen Hurts has more TD passes (10) this season, than Rush has in his entire seven year career (9). So Rush likely won’t light up the scoreboard.

That means every point we add, is extra weight on their already sputtering offense. This means points are at a premium, Nick. Points. So fourth and two, from the twenty-two, is not “Go for it”, Nick. Not this week. It’s a field goal. Say it with me, Nick: IT’S A FIELD GOAL.

That’s not to say that we shouldn’t be aggressive, but the Brotherly Shove hasn’t been nearly as effective with LT Lafoga Mialata on the shelf. I commend the job that LT Fred Johnson has done, but “Next Man Up!” doesn’t mean “next man equal”. Gamble accordingly.

****

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

RB Saquon Barkley houses another one.

You know what would be great this week? If Saquon gets 16 carries or less, and RB Kenneth Gainwell gets 10 and makes at least 40 yards off of them. Saquon is at 22 touches per game this year, putting him on pace for 374. Twice in his career he’s hit a ceiling of 352. Might be smart to ease up on his workload.

Going to Dallas and getting the win, while Saquon hits 1,000 rushing yards at the halfway mark…That would be like winning against the giants too. The only way it could be sweeter, is if Washington loses. Like it did on Tuesday. (Sorry, had to get a shot in there.)

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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, then you are a fool 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 – BROWNS

Posted by The BEAST on 2024/10/11
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, NFC East, Offense, Players, Preview. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

TWO weeks ago, we lost a game that we didn’t deserve to win. Instead of playing another game to get that taste out of our mouths, we got a Bye week. An extra week to stew on it, and look at what went wrong in that game, and frankly, what hasn’t been working all season so far.

We also got a chance to get healthy. While it’s true that some of our injured players could have suited up for that last game, it was much smarter that they didn’t. Instead they used the Bye week to get solid for the long haul. After all, a football season is a marathon, not a sprint.

So the coaches have had a chance to refine our attack. The players have had a chance to get rested and healthy. We stumbled out of the gate, and fell all the way to 2 – 2. So with refinement, we should expect to see improvement.

Our first post-Bye test, is hosting the 1 – 4 Browns. They Browns don’t do great job of scoring points or stopping points from being scored. So if we’re going to be trying out some new stuff, this is the week for it.

A win gets us to 3 – 2, and above the .500 mark. It shows that we can beat the teams that we’re supposed to beat. It’s not cause to celebrate, it’s just TCB. Thank you very much.

A loss drops us to 2 – 3, and if the giants beat Cincinnati (and they should), it gets us the basement of the division. Alone to ourselves. No bueno.

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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 Browns

1) Run Saquon Early: On our first Offensive play of the game, we should be handing the ball off to RB Saquon Barkley. None of that weak shit, where QB Jalen Hurts keeps it, and then immediately gets down in the fetal position, because the other team didn’t buy his fake, and they’re already swarming him.

We need to run Saquon early, as much to legitimize our play-action, as we do for balancing our attack. Getting him 5 to 7 carries in the first quarter, will help the Offense run smoother for the rest of the game.

2) Press and Challenge: During our last game, color analyst Tom Brady, you know, this guy,

repeatedly mentioned that the Eagles were playing too much off-coverage, and allowing the Bucs receivers too many unchallenged steps into their routes. As a result, we were carved up by QB Baker Mayfield. And by George, ol’ Tomfoolery was right.

We have entirely too much man-cover talent on this team, to be playing this soft on the edges. Defensive Coordinator Vic Fangio alluded to making changes to that in the second half of the last game, and he said that he had adjustments to make over the Bye. Hopefully this one of them.

I’ve been saying for years now that our poor coverage is the biggest culprit in retarding our pass rush. The ball is coming out so fast, that our linemen just don’t have time to reach QB’s. Worse than that, there is almost no chance at an interception if the receiver is wide open. So it keeps turnovers low.

3) Dallas Slotted At #3: Let’s shelve the quest for a #3 WR, and just make TE Dallas Goedert that guy for us. I don’t mean that we should line him up in the Slot. I just mean we should make Goedert our #3 option. It’s okay to platoon the Slot. In fact, platooning it will allow us to experiment and change match-up reads.

For example, placing WR Jahan Dotson in the Slot, means very different things than placing WR Johnny Wilson there. They have to be defended differently, both before and after the catch. That can allows us to create mismatches, and force defenders out of double teams, depending on who we plug in there.

4) Stops over Strips: I honest to god, hate it when our players hold an offensive player up, to claw at the ball. Just drop him where you meet him. If a fumble doesn’t result from the initial impact, then end the play and move onto the next down.

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

We’re probably the most talented roster in the league. However, there are too many times we let the fundamentals slide, and it bites us (See: Falcons game). Then, a week later, we show that we can absolutely buckle down (see Saints game), and it makes fans wonder why this doesn’t always happen.

Dismiss the thought that the Eagles aren’t one of the best teams in the league. This team can beat anyone, at any time, if we bring our ‘A’ game. We knocked out two of San Fran’s QB’s in less than a half, and gutted the team. Nick Sirianni went toe to toe, down to the wire, with Andy Reid in the Super Bowl. Our Super Bowl hangover included sleepwalking to 10 – 0 last year. Miami hung 70 on Denver and we boxed them up, looking excellent while doing it, in our Kelly Greens. This season, in week three, the media was ready to put New Orleans in the Super Bowl, and that team hasn’t been the same team since we paid their house a visit.

Your team is a bad ass. And it has been for YEARS now.

Yes, we’ve had some recent stumbles of course. For instance. last season’s loss to San Fran, where we forgot what tackling was. Which also happened in our last game. We just have to focus better on the little things. When we do that, we’ve proven to be world beaters.

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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, then you are a fool 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 4: EAGLES – BUCCANEERS

Posted by The BEAST on 2024/09/27
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, Front Office (F.O.), NFL, Offense, Players, Preview. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

 

LAST week the Saints were the most feared team in the NFL. Well, Head Coach Nick Sirianni didn’t get that memo. Our Eagles went down the Saint’s house, punched them in the mouth, and took a beer from their fridge on the way out. This is despite everyone thinking we’d get run through last week.

See how the NFL’s website did us?

Yeah. We keep receipts.

This week the NFL is feeding us yet another team with a winning record. Fact is, all we’ve beaten have been winners. Green Bay is 2 – 1, Saints are 2 – 1, now we get the 2 – 1 Buccaneers. No 1 – 2 Browns. No 1 – 2 giants. No 0 – 3 Bengals. Yep, winners.

A win gets us to 3 – 1. It gives us a positive to focus on, as we head into a Bye week that seemed too early when the schedule came out. However, now amid all these early, critical injuries, a week of rest may be literally, just what the doctor ordered.

A loss would put us at 2 – 2, with an extra week to sulk as we stressed over getting healthy again.

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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 Buccaneers.

1) Our Reserves Must Gainwell: We are almost definitely going into this game without WR’s A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith, as well as RT Lane Johnson. That means another week of leaning heavily on RB Saquon Barkley and TE Dallas Goedert. The Bucs know this, and will work to take those two away as options.

This means we need at least one of our back-ups, to step up in a big way. A 60 yard day from WR Jahan Dotson, would be great! Or RB Kenneth Gainwell lining up in the slot a few times, and making 40 yards or so catching the ball. WR Johnny Wilson as a red zone threat? These are just examples, but they’re the kind of things we need.

2) Get to Baker: Aside from their win over a Commanders team without a defense, the Bucs are giving up an average of 6 sacks per game. In that pressure-free game vs Washington, QB Baker Mayfield threw for four touchdowns and zero interceptions. In each of his next two games, he threw a touchdown and an interception.

Since he’s clearly a different QB under pressure, LET’S GIVE HIM SOME! The best part is, that most of the sacks on Mayfield have come from defensive linemen. So we shouldn’t need to send blitz after blitz to lay hands on him.

3) Run the Ball: Since we’re missing key weapons on Offense, we clearly need to lean on Saquon for production. That part is a no-brainer. So the Bucs will try to take him away. Which is great! We need them to think exactly that.

We need to get Saquon involved early, in order to sell our play-action. Focusing on him and being drawn out of position, opens up opportunities for our reserves. The more dangerous we make them, the more things loosen up for Saquon to run inside.

4) Own the GCG Box: Deform the pocket and don’t give Mayfield anywhere to step into his deliveries. That Guard-Center-Guard area, not the Tackles, should be our focus this week. Hit them where they’re weakest. If we control their offensive line, we control their offense. Ask the Saints about that one.

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

We’re down three very important players this week, and we’re on the road. Again. Possibly on another sloppy field. Versus a winning opponent. If most teams were facing this degree of difficulty, their coaches would already be planting the seeds of excuses.

Not here.

That says a lot of about the culture of this team. That says a lot about it’s leadership. The last time we faced the Bucs, they blew us out 32 – 9, in the playoffs. Yet, there’s been no talk of revenge or score settling. That says a lot about the focus of this team. Which again, says a lot about the leadership.

There are people out there calling for Sirianni’s firing, because they disagree with his aggressiveness on 4th downs. Ask the giants if they wish Brian Dabol had a little bit of that aggression in him, tonight against Dallas. I’d rather my coach go down swinging, believing in his team, than have him sit and accept a more popular form of losing.

So I’m standing behind my coach. Never stop fightin’ Nick.

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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, then you are a fool 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 3: SAINTS

Posted by The BEAST on 2024/09/23
Posted in: breakdown, Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, Offense, Players, Reviews, Special Teams, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

 

QB Jalen Hurts fumbles for his second turnover of the game.

EAGLES overcome Eagles, for a win over the Saints.

EAGLES 15 – Saints 12

 

EAGLES STATS:

Passing: QB Jalen Hurts (29/38 – 76.3% – 311 – 0 – 1)

Rushing: RB Saquon Barkley (17 – 147 – 8.6 – 2 – 0)

Receiving: TE Dallas Goedert (11 – 10 – 170 – 17.0 – 0)

Drive Killer: S Reed Blankenship (TD: 0/Int: 1/ FR: 0/ 4th down stops: 0/ FF: 0)

Sack Leader: DT Jordan Davis (Sacks: 1.0/ FF: 0/ Tackles: 4)

Special Teams 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: SAINTS did the Eagles actually get around to doing? Well let’s see:

1) Win the Line Of Scrimmage: Boy did we ever! DT Jordan Davis (4 tackles, 1TFL, 1sack, 1 batted ball) and DT Jalen Carter (4 tackles, 2TFL, 2 batted balls) made a day of playing in the Saints backfield. Saints RB Alvin Kamara (26 – 87 – 3.3 – 0 – 0) came into this game averaging 5.6 yards per run, but he found out that the Eagles aren’t the pushovers that the Panthers and the Cowboys are.

While the players did shift around and take advantage of the gaps up front, a huge nod has to be paid to Defensive Coordinator Vic Fangio, for coming out in an obvious 5-2 front, instead of trying to disguise it. It immediately signaled that there could be no consistent double-team help inside. (DONE)

2) Set the Edges: Again, big nod to the 5-2 front, as it let the Eagles to shift the line side to side, creating a natural boundary on many early downs. Another important move was the heavy use of DE Brandon Graham (2 – 0 – 0 – 0), and the deployment of “LB” Josh Sweat (2 – 0 – 0 – 0) as a DE, instead of as an OLB in a Wide Nine rush technique.

That natural boundary allowed our actual LB’s Zach Baun (11 – 0 – 0 – 0) and Nakobe Dean (8 – 0 – 0 – 0) to run cleanly to the play. Dean had a TFL, and Baun had a fourth down stop. The final result was the Eagles putting a muzzle on the Saints run game (29 – 89 – 3.0 – 0 – 0). (DONE)

3) Go To Goedert: The idea was to involve Goedert, and use him to slow down the Saints pass rush, and blitz frequency. The idea was to involve him to force them to cover him. Well we DID involve him. The Saints however, never adjusted to prioritize covering him.

The result was Goedert romping and frolicking through the Saints wilderness, to the tune of 170 receiving yards, the MOST EVER BY AN EAGLES TE IN A GAME! Yep. We involved him, and all he did was make history, while setting up the touchdown that would be the dagger in the Saints heart. (DONE)

4) Don’t Settle for Early Field Goals: I said in Four Things, if it’s in the first half, we’re inside their 30, and it’s 4th and 3 or less, don’t think, just go. Well, it was the end of the first half, we were at the Saints 21, and it was 4th and 1. We went for it and didn’t convert. Bummer, but it was still the right call.

Most readers will disagree with me on that, and that’s fine. I made my position known prior to this game, so I’m sticking by it now. You want to keep your Offense in an attacking mindset. Especially given all the demoralizing injuries that mounted as the game went on. We needed to hunt touchdowns instead of field goals (DONE)

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This weeks Four Things score was 4 of 4. Usually you’d expect that to be represented in the score as a blowout, but the Saints are a tough team, in an imposing stadium. Honestly, in the long run, it’s probably best for our team psychologically, that it was an uphill battle. Hopefully things are a little easier and we’re a little healthier, when we visit the 2 – 1 Buccaneers next week.

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Game Hero: Offensive Coordinator Kellen Moore – We started the game without WR A.J. Brown. During the game we lost RG Mekhi Becton and RT Lane Johnson. That’s the entire right side of our Offensive Line. We later lost WR DeVonta Smith (10 – 7 – 79 – 11.2 – 0), and still the ball kept moving.

It would be easy to say that Saquon Barkley’s 65 yard TD run was the spark we needed. Or that Dallas Goedert is the hero, with his 61 yard catch and run, that set up the go ahead score. They would both be deserving, but it was Moore who quietly orchestrated things, so the Saints couldn’t take away our remaining weapons. Involving the reserve players just enough, to make sure that the Saints defense stayed honest.

Game goat: Head Coach Nick Sirianni – It was a toss up for me, between Sirianni and Jalen Hurts, given the QB’s two turnovers and lack of scoring strikes. I however, went with Sirianni not because of his aggressiveness on 4th down, but because he doesn’t seem to understand the risk of repeated failure.

As I said, I’m on-board with us going for it, at the end of the first half. What was dumb, was not taking the field goal at the beginning of the second half. The Defense was out there getting results. Repeatedly watching the Offense not produce points, could become demoralizing for a Defense. We’ve seen it happen before. This is what Sirianni doesn’t seem to mind flirting with.

I won’t make a big deal about the failed 60 yard field goal attempt. It was indoors, with a guy who’s made from 60 before. Kicking from anywhere on the field seems to be in fashion with the NFL this year, so I don’t fault the attempt. Thing is, when you add his field goal logic, the blocked punt, and the poor return game, it seems the Special Teams component of his coaching, is deteriorating.

On The Whole:

Today our team fought against being shorthanded, and self-inflicted wounds. Oh yeah, there was also a 2 – 0 team, somewhere in there as well. Yet we overcame ALL of it. On the road. In one of the toughest places to get a win in.

This was a bounce back game, and the team came out and showed grit, and resolve, and purpose. Sirianni made the kind of calls he made, because in his mind, he wanted to keep his team aggressive. Which is exactly what we saw when Reed Blankenship zipped past a New Orleans receiver, to make a diving interception to seal the game.

If you want to be frustrated, go right ahead. Just remember, this is a team that due to new coordinators, is still learning how they’re different, from who they were last year. Every team we’ve faced has been a heavy hitter so far, and we get another one in seven days. On the road. Maybe we should cut our guys a little slack.

By the way, I keep receipts: