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2018 SEASON REVIEW: QUARTER FOUR

Posted by The BEAST on 2019/01/05
Posted in: Conversations, Defense, NFL, Offense, Players, playoffs, Reviews, Roster, Special Teams, stats, Super Bowl. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

SEASON Reviews are usually done at the end of the season. (Duh, right?) A few are done at the halfway mark, and/or at the end. Starting in 2017, Eaglemaniacal.com began treating the season like a game, and breaking it into four quarters. Since football is a hard sport, we’ll take a hard look at where our team stands at the moment (in relation to where it started), and where it needs to go next.

STATUS: 9 – 7 overall, 4 – 2 division, 6 – 6 conference, 2nd in the NFC East

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OPPONENTS:

L: Dallas (10 – 6)

W: Los Angeles Rams (13 – 3)

W: Houston (11 – 5)

W: Washington (7 – 9)

 

OVERVIEW:

Put it all together and finish strong. We’re 6 – 6 today. We don’t see the playoffs with a record of less than 9 – 7. Running the table would be awesome, but (barring a miracle of mathematics) we have to have three of these four.

Nailed it!! That was the mission for this last quarter and the Eagles responded in excellent fashion, despite losing(?) QB Carson Wentz for the final three games of the regular season and perhaps the entire playoffs.

Not only did the Eagles manage to string consecutive wins together, the team did it against playoff caliber teams, while playing (in essence) weekly win-or-go-home games, since our last loss of the season, against Dallas.

Though injuries ravaged the regular season, a few players are beginning go find their way off the trainers table, and onto the playing field again. Coupling those guys with young players who were forced to grow up fast, will give the Eagles playoff push, the shot in the arm needed to give us a real chance.

GRADES:

Lane Johnson protects Nick Foles.jpg

QB: (B) Nick Foles has played so well, that I doubt many fans realize that he’s thrown 6 touchdowns and 3 picks over that span. Add in a lost fumble, and you have 4 turnovers in three weeks. That weighs even heavier upon realizing that he didn’t throw a single scoring pass against the Rams. The fact is, he’s played excellent situational football. Though his production may not be consistent, he’s been big in big moments.

RB: (C ) This position has been good in spots. Josh Adams has been pure trash. He’s gotten plenty of carries, but he hasn’t been able to convert them into yards, because he doesn’t run through contact, doesn’t even employ a forward lean. He’s soft. Darren Sproles on the other hand, since coming back from injury, has been playing out of his mind whenever they let him touch the ball. Even Wendell Smallwood has become a more efficient runner. 

sproles scores

TE: (B) NFL Record Holder Zach Ertz and rookie Dallas Goedert have combined for 35 catches and 3 scores over the last four games. Goedert has made three catches of 24 yards or longer as he’s become a consistent weekly contributor, averaging 3 catches per game over the span.

WR: (B) Alshon Jeffrey and Nelson Agholor have become dangerous again. Combining for 5 scores in these last four games as opposed to 5 in the first twelve, they’ve also been employed more as deep targets. Golden Tate however, still seems to be figuring things out, and the playoffs is no place for that. Last quarter I suggested that Agholor be switched out of the Slot for Jordan Matthews. I still think this is the way to go, but Agholor needs to move outside, while Tate is moved to the bench.

Jeffery rises above.jpg

OT: (C ) In the last couple weeks, LT Jason Peters has been showing flashes of why he is still considered one of the best in the game. RT Lane Johnson allowed a shot on QB Nick Foles last week that forced Foles from the game. As a lineman, you just can’t allow shots like that.

OG: (B) We are 5 – 2 When Stefen Wisniewski starts at LG. That includes 3 – 0 since he regained the spot. Under Isaac Seumalo we were 4 – 5. RG Brandon Brooks has been as quiet, consistent and solid as your banister.

C: (C ) Jason Kelce continues to have issues with shotgun snaps, repeatedly hitting QB Nick Foles in the crotch area or lower.

DE: (B) Brandon Graham, Michael Bennett and Chris Long have to be the best three man DE trio in the NFL. They’ve been excellent against the run, and have supplied very consistent pressure vs the pass. My big knock on this position, is that no one player seems to be able to get two games in a row with a sack. It would be nice to have a threat like that.

DT: (B) Over the last four games Fletcher Cox has 5.5 sacks, a forced fumble and has generally been a problem for anyone lining up across from him. Haloti Ngata is finally able to give us the boost he was brought her to give us. In the absence of Tim Jernigan, Ngata was asked to play more snaps per game, than anyone had anticipated. It ran him down and he suffered a leg injury. With Jernigan being back now, and Ngata now healthy, he can focus on giving us a few dominating snaps per game. Treyvon Hester seems to be finding a niche in that rotation.

OLB: (C ) We simply don’t get enough impact plays from this position. Kamu Grugier-Hill did notch a forced fumble and his first career sack, and Nigel Bradham broke up two passes, but that’s all the splash plays that we’ve gotten from them in this quarter.

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MLB: (C ) Nate Gerry filled in for Jordan Hicks for the first two games of this quarter. Gerry didn’t start, but played quite a bit as the de facto MIKE. Neither player has been a standout, but they’ve been doing their part to make the system work.

S: (B) Malcolm Jenkins and Corey Graham haven’t really produced many impact plays this quarter, but they’ve been better at communicating with the Corners, which has allowed that position to pick up it’s play recently.

jenkins and maddox.jpeg

CB: (B) From an “F” last quarter to a “B” in this one, despite the fact that so far Sidney Jones is still a disappointment. Rasul Douglas and Avonte Maddox have been playing out of their minds. Between them in four games they have 3 picks, 5 passes defensed and half a sack. Douglas has not only played well in coverage, he’s been a beast in run support and at blowing up screens. Former Bear Cre’Van LeBlanc has also contributed a couple big stops in the last few weeks.

LS: (B) Reliable

P: (C ) There may be some leg fatigue setting in for Cam Johnston. Of his 14 punts, 7 were returned for a 5.7 yard average, but over the last two games his net yards per punt is down to about 34 yards.

K: (C ) Jake Elliott has stumbled a bit recently. He’s 7 of 8 on field goal attempts, and 10 of 12 on extra point kicks. What’s more, 12 of his 24 kickoffs have been returned this quarter, as opposed to 3 of 17 last quarter.

PR/KR: (C ) RB Darren Sproles has averaged 9.0 yards per punt return over this quarter. The only issue is, he’s only returned one punt in each game. Recent signee RB Boston Scott is a fringe player playing like he knows that he’s a fringe player. On his 4 kick returns, it’s been clear that he’s thinking home-run, every time.

KC: (A) Last quarter we gave up 5.7 yards per punt return, and 19.5 per kickoff return. At no point did we allow a Special Teams score.

SINCE LAST QUARTER:

The playoffs came early for the Eagles. It has been win or pack in the season, since Week 15. Despite losing QB Carson Wentz for a second year in a row, just weeks before the playoffs, the team did what they needed to, in order to claim their spot in the post-season. All the while putting the NFL on notice, that we are BACK, and NO ONE is safe.

Sean-McVay-Shocked-Face-Rams-Memes.jpg

MISSION FOR THIS QUARTER:

The regular season is over. We are now in the post-season. There is one more quarter-season to go. Four more games to reach the highest pinnacle in all of sports:

That of NFL Champion.

Though it will not be easy, there is a very simple mission that lies ahead for this team:

Win one game. Then win a second. Then win a third. Then win a fourth.

defense

GO GET ‘EM CHAMPS!

FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: WK 17: REDSKINS

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/12/31
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Four Things, Offense, Players, playoffs, Reviews, Roster, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

wc01 - NFL PLAYOFFS.jpg

IT was a must-win game and we won it. We needed help to punch our ticket to the tournament, but that help would have been meaningless, if we didn’t do our part, and take care of business.

To that end: We came. We saw. We conquered.

Put into modern parlance: Our fans and team rolled up to the stadium. We told them that they have a “nice place”,

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Then we proceeded to ruin that shit.

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EAGLES 24 – Redskins 0    (Motherfucking ZEE-RO!)

We pitched a shutout! Yes, yes, yes. The media narrative is all about the Quarterbacks, but the story, the REAL story here, is our Defense holding the Redskins to 89 total yards, 68 passing yards, 0 for 9 on 3rd down, and 16 minutes 41 seconds in time of possession. The only thing we didn’t do was put a leash on their players and make them beg for treats.

CB Rasul Douglas (4 – 0 – 1 – 0) came out and snagged a pick on the first play from scrimmage. At that point you KNEW what time it was. DT Fletcher Cox (3 – 3.0 – 0 – 1) grabbed 3 sacks, en route to his first 10 sack (10.5 actually), season of his career. DE Micheal Bennett (3 – 1.0 – 0 – 0) continued to make the case for being re-signed, by delivering his 9th sack of the season.

Eagle DLine.png

QB Nick Foles (28/33 – 84.8% – 221 – 2 – 1) put on a clinic on how to dissect a defense, before leaving the game with “bruised ribs”. There were 30 handoffs and two QB sneaks, to bring our rushes total to 32, vs a pass total (34 attempts, 3 sacks) of 37. That’s 54% pass to 46% run, on our play-calling.

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

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

1) Run the ball: Our play selection was 32 runs to 37 passes. That’s not only meets the 25 handoff threshold, but it provides possibly the best balanced attack we’ve used all season long. DONE.

2) Make him run: Our front four did a great job of forcing their QB to move around and not allowing him to set his feet. Pressure right up the gut, forced their QB out of the pocket and into erratic throws. That was the idea here. DONE. 

3) Work the edge: We did a lot of work on the perimeter this game, but not the way I suggested here. The job the Eagles did was actually much better, since it incorporated many players, instead of focusing on just one. NOT DONE.

4) Tackle, tackle, tackle: RB Adrian Peterson (4 – 0 – 0.0 – 0 – 0) was bottled up all day. The game was placed in the QB’s hands, and the ‘skins collapsed. DONE.

This week’s Four Things sees a score of 3 of 4, bringing the total for the regular season to 29 of 64. While the regular season is over, we have a playoff game next week, vs the Chicago Bears, who ironically helped us get in.

On The Whole:
This game was domination from start to finish. It was almost cruel. I loved it. Seriously, CB/FS Rasul Douglas and CB/FS Avonte Maddox (3 – 0 – 0 – 0) have been catching my eye for weeks now. I honestly can say, they have me not missing Jalen Mills in the least.

FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: WK16 : TEXANS

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

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

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EAGLES 32 – Texans 30

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

On The Whole:

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

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

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

FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: WK15 : RAMS

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/12/17
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Four Things, NFL, Offense, Players, Reviews, Special Teams, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

UNDERDOGS. This is what being an underdog looks like. This is what being an underdog feels like. Winning in spite of conventional wisdom and expectation. Clawing and fighting your way out of a hole.

Three straight wins, and we’ll have done all we can to get ourselves back to the postseason. We’re gonna need some help, but this was one hell of a start on our part. We showed the world that the Rams are mortal.

Sean-McVay-Shocked-Face-Rams-Memes.jpg

These are the faces of men who were just mushroom stamped.

EAGLES 30 – Rams 23

Last night WR Alshon Jeffery ( 8 – 160 – 20.0 – 0) caught every pass that QB Nick Foles (24/34 – 77.4% – 270 – 0 – 1) threw in his direction.

Jeffery rises above.jpg

Impressively, Foles wasn’t sacked once in the entire game. Most impressive however, was how Head Coach Doug Pederson stuck with the run game, despite it not yielding a bunch of huge plays.

Looking at the one sack we got all night (from DT Fletcher Cox (2 – 1.0 – 0 – 0)), doesn’t tell the story of the kind of pressure the Rams QB was under all night long. A better indication might be the 2 interceptions he threw us.

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?

Nick Foles like a BOSS.jpg

1) Roof It: Throw that monkey DEEP! Did we? Did you see that Alshon Jeffrey stat line? We used play-action the way God intended, and it helped us get that coveted “W”. It also helped us put the world on notice, that the Eagles ain’t laying down for nobody. DONE.

2) 25 Handoffs: Play-action is meaningless without actually running the ball. So we had 28 handoffs, and 2 QB runs. The result was clean and healthy Nick Foles at the end of the game. DONE.

3) Tween Scheme: Due to the Nickel package being used as much as it was, LB Nate Gerry (2 – 0 – 0 – 0) wasn’t on the field as much as anticipated. That said, the Eagles did shutdown the Rams run game, and despite 55 pass attempts, kept the passing offense from scoring. NOT DONE.

4) Something Special: Our Special Teams didn’t try anything tricky or gimmicky. We didn’t need it. NOT DONE.

So, this weeks Four Things score is a solid 2 out of 4. This is fine given that we’d didn’t need one, and only technically didn’t do the other. That brings the season tally to 24 of 56. Next week we host the 10 – 4 Houston Texans, who are currently leading the AFC South.

On The Whole:

Any game that leaves a division leader asking:

jizz

is a great game. I’m thrilled with the outcome of the game. Still, there were a couple of things that bugged me about it.

First, we need a more physical RB. Our current RB’s tackle way too easily. We left entirely too many extra yards on that field last night. Second, reserve FS Corey Graham (1 – 0 – 1 – 0) makes too many business decisions in run support. I’m thankful for the 2 turnovers he’s collected recently, but this diving at ankles without bringing his arms, has got to stop.

 

 

FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: WK14 :COWBOYS

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

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

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Eagles 23 – Cowboys 29 OT

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

On The Whole:

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

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

2018 SEASON REVIEW: QUARTER THREE

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/12/08
Posted in: Conversations, Defense, Front Office (F.O.), NFC East, NFL, Offense, Players, playoffs, Reviews, Roster, Special Teams, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

SEASON Reviews are usually done at the end of the season. (Duh, right?) A few are done at the halfway mark, and/or at the end. Starting in 2017, Eaglemaniacal.com began treating the season like a game, and breaking it into four quarters. Since football is a hard sport, we’ll take a hard look, at where our team stands at the moment (in relation to where it started), and where it needs to go.

STATUS: 6 – 6 overall, 3 – 1 division, 4 – 5 conference, 2nd in the NFC East

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OPPONENTS:

L: Dallas (7 – 5)

L: New Orleans (10 – 2)

W: New York Giants (4 – 8)

W: Washington Redskins (6 – 6)

OVERVIEW:

Find a run game! Three of our next 4 games are division rivals, and we can’t beat them if we can’t run.

That was the stated mission for this quarter, and we’ve done that over the last couple of weeks. The result was two straight wins for the first time this season. Offensively the Eagles seem to have found a balance, and therefore a rhythm, which has eluded our team for most of the season.

Injuries have been a huge problem for the second year in a row, but the team looks as if it’s coping now. Players (particularly on Defense), asked the coaches to simplify things within the schemes, and it’s been paying off. Especially in the Secondary. It remains to be seen if we can apply these lessons to teams who are above .500. for example, though Washington was 6 – 5 when we encountered them, they were a team in free-fall, that had lost 3 of it’s previous 4 games. We need to beat a team in good standing. Lucky for us, we get 3 in a row starting Sunday.

GRADES:

QB: (C) Aside from an abysmal game at New Orleans, Carson Wentz has been solid this quarter. Not great, but solid. That being said, forcing the ball to a new WR, leaning on the TE, rarely throwing the deep ball, and not using his legs to pick up cheap yardage, has marred this quarter for him. He’s been competent, but if we’re going to get to and win playoff games, then we need to see him be spectacular.

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RB: (B) Elevating rookie Josh Adams and ending the Wendell Smallwood experiment, may have saved the season. The Eagles now have a legitimate rushing attack, and are now balanced because of it. Darren Sproles has just made his way off the injured list, and into the end zone, and Corey Clement looks to be fully healed from his quad injury. (Tidbit: We are 5 – 0 in games where Clement has double digit carries.) This unit isn’t as dangerous as it was a year ago, but it’s a damned sight better than it was a month ago.

TE: (A) We have Zach Ertz. Like legs in a brothel, he’s always open. With 93 grabs already, he’s the second leading receiver in the NFL. As if that wasn’t enough, we have rookie Dallas Goedert, who is already better than some starters in this league.

WR: (D) Alshon Jeffrey hasn’t reached 49 yards in any of the last 5 games. The deep ball has disappeared from our arsenal. Attempts to force-feed the ball to Golden Tate have (until this last game) been a dismal failure. Nelson Agholor needs to be switched out for Jordan Matthews in the slot.

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OT: (C) Jason Peters is giving everything he has. It seems unfair that he should have to go through this, but I don’t want to be the guy who attempts to drag him off the field. He’ll play until he can’t. Lane Johnson has had better seasons. Still waiting to see him assert his will on that right side. Halapoulivaati Vaitai is better suited to the right.

OG: (D) Not a great year in terms of communication of assignments, and free-runners into the backfield. Running the ball should help at least slow rushers, as they’ll actually have to read the play, depending on down and distance. Given Brandon Brooks history of being quietly solid, the knee-jerk reaction is to blame the less than stalwart, Isaac Seumalo. However, it really does seems to be an issue of communication.

C: (D) Communication on the interior isn’t sharp, and there have been too many false start/simulating the snap type penalties this year on Jason Kelce.

DE: (C) During this quarter, this position is playing extremely sound, team-concept football. They are where they need to be to allow the rest of the front to flow around them. Delivering big plays in key moments however, is a weakness for this unit. Michael Bennett and Brandon Graham have combined for 5.5 sacks in the last four games, but neither man has had back to back games with a sack, nor are they scaring QB’s into throwing interceptions.

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DT: (D) If Fletcher Cox was the only player at this position, the grade would be an “A”. Since he isn’t, the grade is much lower. Timmy Jernigan is just two weeks in, working his way back from back surgery, so judgment on him will be held in abeyance. Haloti Ngata and Treyvon Hester on the other hand… neither is an every down player. However, injury has forced them to be. This allows teams to focus more on Cox than they otherwise would be able to.

OLB: (C) One pass deflection. That is the only non-tackle stat that Nigel Bradham or Kamu Grugier-Hill has produced in four weeks. One pass deflection. KGH has all of 29 tackles to this point in the year. We simply don’t attack with them enough.

MLB: (C) Soooo, Jordan Hicks is hurt. Again. Are you surprised? Prior to that, he’d been steady (not spectacular) this quarter. Filling in for him these last two games, is OLB/S tweener Nate Gerry. Gerry has had some issues with his run fits, and needs to play more downhill, to get in an O-lineman’s face before that lineman gets any momentum going. His diving interception against the Redskins was nice though.

S: (B) Malcolm Jenkins played lights out this quarter, making visible, tangible impacts on the outcomes of the Eagles last two victories. Getting back Corey Graham from injury has been big for the communication in the Secondary, and now deep balls down the middle are no longer a gimme. Injured CB/S Avonte Maddox filled in gamely until Graham got back, but being a rook, there were things he just hadn’t seen and could be exposed by.

jenkins and maddox.jpeg

CB: (F) Rasul Douglas, Sidney Jones, Cre’Von LeBlanc, DeVante Bausby, Chandon Sullivan. All five have started at least one game in the last four weeks and in that ENTIRE group, there isn’t so much as a single pass break-up. Not one. No sacks. No picks. Nothing. Some guys flash traits here or there, but by and large, the Eagles either have to re-evaluate the defensive system, or the way that Cornerback talent is scouted.

LS: (B) Reliable.

P: (B) Cam Johnston was good this quarter, but not quite a weapon. Of his 10 punts, 6 were returned for 39 yards (6.5ypr). He is also still struggling not to out-kick his coverage, as only 5 of his 47 punts this season, have been downed near the goal line. No NFL Punter has fewer.

K: (A) Jake Elliott is 7 for 7 over the last four games, with no extra point misses. Only 3 of his 17 kickoffs in that span have been returned.

Jake Elliott 9.24.2017

PR/KR: (D) The picture here changes too often for it to be anything but a liability.

KC: (B) No scores allowed yet. However, teams have threatened on a few occasions.
SINCE LAST QUARTER:

The mission for this quarter was “Find a run game”, and we did that. That has set the table for less abuse on our QB, and it has given our Defense chances to catch a breather, as they review what the opposing offense is trying to do.

Since finding this formula, we haven’t had to play anybody of consequence, but that has given us a real opportunity to test out what we’ve learned, and lean on it. Aside from an utter shit-canning from the Saints, every game in this quarter was either a win or contested to the very end.

MISSION FOR THIS QUARTER:

Put it all together and finish strong. We’re 6 – 6 today. We don’t see the playoffs with a record of less than 9 – 7. Running the table would be awesome, but (barring a miracle of mathematics) we have to have three of these four. Seeing more mobility from Wentz would go a long way towards getting that done.

FOUR THINGS REVIEWED: WK13 :REDSKINS

Posted by The BEAST on 2018/12/04
Posted in: Coaching, Defense, Four Things, NFC East, Offense, Players, Reviews, Rivals, stats. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

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TWO in a row! Shouldn’t be a big accomplishment, and shouldn’t be happening for the first time for this season, this late in the season. That said, we dug ourselves a hole and now we’re pulling ourselves out. We’re fighting. We’re either going to beat whomever is in front of us, or they’re going to have to beat us. ‘cuz we ain’t layin’ down for nobody.

EAGLES 28 – Redskins 13

Much will be made of how the Redskins were missing their starting QB, lost their back-up QB, were missing both starting Guards, and have lost a host of skill positions players. Boo-hoo. None of those guys play defense.

Going into last nights game, I had heard that Washington was tough to run against. We hung 130 rushing yards on them. That includes RB Josh Adams (20 – 85 – 4.2 – 0 – 0) on a less than healthy hip. RB Darren Sproles (4 – 22 – 5.5 – 1 – 0) made a triumphant return to the field, bullying his way past two ‘skins defenders on a tasty tasty touchdown run. RB Corey Clement (5 – 27 – 5.4 – 0 – 0/ 3 – 47 – 15.6 – 0) looked as good as he has in a while.

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I’d also heard the Redskins were hard to score on. We hung 28 around their necks, while allowing zero sacks, and converting 53% of our third downs. WR Golden Tate (7 – 85 – 12.1 – 1) led the team in receiving yards, catching all seven balls thrown his way, and a two point conversion.

I don’t know if anybody noticed, but CB Rasul Douglas (6 – 0 – 0 – 0) is playing like there should be a conversation about whether or not to keep starting him. His stat line doesn’t show how aggressive he was in run support, wrecking screens and understanding his role in the defense last night.

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Just because I couldn’t think of any place to fit it naturally in this article, I’m going to place a mention here, of LB Nate Gerry (2 – 0 – 1 – 0) with the diving interception last night. Gerry hasn’t always looked great filling in at MLB, but he’s had a couple of moments. I’ve gone from giving Gerry’s drafting an F grade, to saying that he (and other young LB’s) need to get some defensive snaps this season, to NOW saying that the guy is doing better than any fill-in MLB we had last year. He’s still a tweener OLB/S though.

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) Neuter their defense: The idea was to have TE Zach Ertz (9 – 83 – 9.2 – 0) work the edges and pull an OLB with him, to diffuse the Redskins pass rush. While Ertz did work the middle and saw quite a bit of Safety attention, he also caught a few balls on the perimeter and at times had OLB Ryan Kerrigan (2 – 0 – 0 – 0) on him. That softened the defense and allowed us to run the ball effectively. DONE

2) Jump on their offense: The play where QB Colt McCoy (4/4 – 100% – 50 – 0 – 0) was injured, saw him scramble out of a near sack, only to look up and see SS Malcolm Jenkins (2 – 1 – 0 – 0) bringing the harm at 80mph. McCoy did what everyone tells QB’s to do, and he quickly went to the ground. However, when you play to not get hurt, is usually when you get hurt the worst. So yeah, that guy broke his ankle, and now his season is over. Enter the San-chize! When you scare a teams QB into hurting himself, and force them to bring in Mark Sanchez (13/21 – 61.9% – 100 – 0 – 1), I’m sure that counts as “jumping on an offense”. In fact, aside from that 90 yard touchdown run by Adrian Peterson (9 – 98 – 10.9 – 1 – 0), we more or less put the entire Redskins offense in a shoe box, then stabbed some air holes in that box with a pencil. Hopefully we only stabbed the box. I don’t really wanna lift the lid to look. DONE

3) Keep our balance: The idea was a formula like 31 passes to 27 runs (53% pass). Like last week. This week it was 43 called passes (4 scrambles) to 29 handoffs . That means 59% pass to 41% run. All season long, I’ve been calling for a 60/40 split at least. This hits that benchmark and, yet again, produces the “W”. DONE

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4) KISS on Defense: With the exception of that one touchdown run, our guys stayed at home, trusted their eyes, trusted their teammates, and executed solid assignment football. In particular I can think of two plays, one by Rasul Douglas and one by CB Cre’Von LeBlanc (3 – 0 – 0 – 0) that involved both players staying in their zones and making the open-field tackle. Football is blocking, tackling, and doing your job. It’s very simple if you keep it simple. Stupid. DONE

This week we smashed ass with a 4 of 4 Four Things score. I’m telling you, when they read these articles, we don’t lose! Just sayin… That brings this years tally to 21 of 48, so far. Next week vs Dallas, we get the Clubber Lang vs Rocky re-match. Watch Rocky III and you’ll see that it fits this very situation to a (Mr.) T.

On The Whole:

The swagger isn’t back yet, and that’s fine. Second place is no place for swagger. The work ethic never left. The love never left. Because of that, the resilience is back. That resilience showed when we got punched in the mouth in front of the nation.

That 90 yard run was a punch in the mouth. We took it, and we shook it off. Then we proceeded to bury our opponent. Nothing about that 28 – 13 score indicates that we we ever trailed 7 – 10.

Last year we took this division outright. This year we have to scrap, and scrape, and claw if we’re to get it back. Step one was maneuvering into position. Step two is actually getting to the top.

Once we’re there. We’ll start talking about how to defend our throne from teams like the Rams. This isn’t about any one game. It’s about taking the long view. It’s about not losing focus on the REAL mission.

But one step at a time.

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