SILVER lining to last week was, despite how shitty we looked, we still only lost by 5. My point is, that we aren’t “in over our heads” talent-wise. What we are is, in our own way. This week features a shuffling of the Offensive Line, and a head coach who said he was looking at 2017 and 2018 film. This week is the wisest the Eagles have looked from top to bottom, since they figured out several ways to mask Halapoulivaati Vaitai at LT in 2017.
A win puts us back in first place in the NFC East. A loss would have us still within striking distance, but with no shot at any sort of Wild Card seeding.
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.
So let’s talk about the Four Things we need to focus on, this week versus Seattle:
Remember WR Travis Fulgham? I hope the Witness Protection Program is treating him well.
1) Attack, attack, attack:I saw our passing attack on a milk carton yesterday. Seattle is giving up 28 points per game, and can’t defend the pass. Win, lose, or tie, the Eagles need a game where we TOTALLY cut loose, and try to work on some things. With all the people calling for QB Carson Wentz’s benching, using this game as a lab is basically playing with house money. What’s to lose? It’s not like most Eagles fans could pretend to be disappointed. Many have already thrown in the towel! We need to be aggressive and either get the knockout, or go down swinging.
2)Run the damned ball:Usually I say “hand it off 20+ times”. We did that last week with 9 carries on the first drive, and just 12 carries for the REMAINDER OF THE GAME! That was 20+. Get it? That was Doug playing with my emotions.
So I’m going to breadcrumb this, this week: “Doug, hand that motherfucker off 12 to 16 times per half. Commit to running the ball to set up play-action. Make life easier for the O-Line and the QB. Save yourself some frustrating questions after the game.”
3)Go For Two: While it’s true that our Offense (cough cough, Carson) is giving the ball away entirely too often (20 in 10 games, Carson has 18 of them), it’s equally true that our Defense doesn’t generate many takeaways (just 11 in 10 games). All three of our wins are in games where we snagged two or more turnovers. All the games with 1 or less, have been losses or a tie. In every game this year where Seattle committed more than 1 turnover, they lost that game. This is an easy one to figure out.
4)Do better with hidden yardage: That means being penalized less for fewer yards. It also means returning more punts than we let roll dead. After allowing a punt to be downed at the 2, (which led to a safety last week), Special Teams Coordinator Dave Fipp needs to be on notice. His unit has gotten beyond sloppy, and worse than that, there doesn’t seem to be anyone willing to make a serious, or sustained effort. He needs to find a return man who wants the job, instead of using WR Greg Ward and RB Boston Scott who are merely going through the motions.
If we do these Four Things, the final score should look a lot like:
EAGLES 32 – Seahawks 24
Check back in a couple of days forFour Things Reviewed, and we’ll discuss how it went.
JUST THROW IT AWAY! Why does he keep holding the ball so long?! He’s trying to do too much!
These are the things we keep hearing this season, about QB Carson Wentz. Many people are saying that he’s regressing. If that’s the case then the entire Offense has regressed as well. And not because of Wentz.
When Wentz doesn’t throw the ball away after 4 seconds, that’s a decision. It is a decision when he sees a receiver not uncover, and then continue to hold the ball, and wait for a window. He is making decisions that lead to sacks and turnovers. Let’s acknowledge that right at the top. So we don’t need to debate about it later.
Let me ask a couple questions here. Who repeatedly draws up a bunch of long-ass routes with no check-downs? Was that Wentz? How about those plays where our receiver routes end up in bunches, which attracts defenders, creating no windows? Does Wentz design those? When you see him hold the ball forever, notice how you never yell, “There’s a guy right there!” Why is that?
Carson Wentz, ladies and gents, is largely being fucked over by play design. That’s coaching. Head Coach Doug Pederson is falling victim to the same trap thatAndy Reid and TIK, fell victim to. The need to prove how clever they are. Thus, all these offensive coaches that Doug keeps adding to the staff, for “new ideas” and “new perspectives”.
Look, the Eagles won a Super Bowl behind a bruising run game, which opened up a mind-numbingly efficient intermediate passing game, lightly accented by a multifaceted deep game, which involved raw speed on one side, and receiver who’s open even when well covered, on the other. There was nothing “clever” about it.
Not at all.
We just took you to the woodshed.
Since then, we’ve lost Offensive CoordinatorFrank Reich, with whom Doug had an almost psychic bond. Then we got away from simple and brutal. Seriously. Three years ago 220 pound RB Corey Clementwas our small RB (after RB Darren Sproleswas injured.) This year Clement is our big back. Over the last couple of seasons we’ve devolved into a finesse running team, with underachieving TE’s, and a spotty deep passing game.
Literally everything around Wentz has taken a step back. The Offensive Line isn’t as good. The TE position is in serious transition. The run game is soft. At WR we have Travis Fulgham and our fingers crossed. Even the coaching has slid. Yet people have somehow expected Wentz to return to the MVP form of 2017. That only makes sense if you’re incapable of discerning context.
During that 2017 season, he had a high functioning team around him. This year (in case you hadn’t noticed), he’s carrying this team on his back.
I keep waiting for Doug to help him out schematically. The Eagles (and everyone else) use WR motion to get teams to declare man or zone before the snap. But what about getting to dictate where a defender goes, even after the snap? Imagine if every time the opposing defense read it right, you could make them wrong anyway?
It wouldn’t require a new playbook, or totally new philosophy. Just the incorporation of basic concepts like this:
That’s not even a whole play. However, what it does, is show a simple way to manipulate the Safety (X), while quickly getting the ball out of Wentz’s hand. No turnovers plus easy yardage. And again, that’s just a fragment of a play which could be worked in, in numerous places. There are many similar concepts out there.
It’d be nice to see Wentz get a look at a few of them.
SEASON Reviews are usually done at the end of the season. A few are also done at the halfway mark. 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 currently stands, in relation to where it started. Then we can discuss where it needs to go next.
STATUS: 3 – 4 – 1 / 1st place in the NFC East/ 23.3 points scored per game vs. 25.6 points allowed.
Carson Wentz calls out the protections
OPPONENTS:
(L) Pittsburgh 7 – 0
(L) Baltimore 5 – 2
(W ) New York giants 1 – 6
(W ) Dallas 2 – 5
OVERVIEW:
Injuries to key positions continued to rob this team of any ability to build any stability. Especially along the Offensive Line. The team has shown remarkable resiliency, battling back from double digit deficits in three straight games (PIT, BAL, NYG), respectively threatening a, almost completing a, and then pulling off a, comeback victory. This Eagles team is making the point that they will never surrender, and never retreat.
POSITIONAL GRADES:
Carson Wentz blocking for Jalen Hurts on a gadget run.
QB: (C)Carson Wentzended the first quarter with a mark of 4TD – 7INT. This quarter he’s flipped it to 8TD – 5INT. Not sexy, but clear progress. Beyond that, he’s infected his team with an “I didn’t hear no bell!” mentality. This is in spite of all the protection and weapons that he’s been missing. Jalen Hurts has played 17 snaps this quarter, but all as a gadget guy. So far there’s been no way to get him more than that without starting a media frenzy.
RB: (C)Miles Sandersrecorded back to back weeks with a 74 yard run. While 1 was a TD, the other ended up as a fumble (recovered by a teammate). In a 2 week span, he put up 198 rushing yards on 20 carries (9.9ypc). When he plays, he’s a threat. Boston Scott filled in for Sanders, catching the game winning TD in Week 7, and picking up 70 rushing yards Week 8. Both were wins. While the Eagles want him to be the nextDarren Sproles, Scott isn’t nearly as elusive, and lacks a second gear to the edge. He picks up what the line provides, but is merely functional. Corey Clement chipped in 31 yards on 7 rushes (4.4). He’s also seen a sharp up-tick in snaps these last two weeks.
TE: (D)Zach Ertz played the first two games of this quarter, before being put on IR. In those two games, he caught just 5 o f 16 balls for 39 yards. During this same quarter, Richard Rodgers has come alive. Posting 10 catches and 107 yards on just 12 targets, Rodgers even led the team in receptions (8) and yards (85) in the Eagles victory over the giants. The blocking has suffered somewhat. Dallas Goedert just got back from being on IR. Jason Croom paid us too short a visit from the Practice Squad and caught a touchdown in the process.
Travis Fulgham catches the go-ahead touchdown against the Cowboys
WR: (C)Travis Fulgham is the story of this quarter, with 27 catches on 41 targets for 378 yards (14.0ypc) and 3TD. Greg Ward has 2 scores on 14 grabs for 97 yards (7.9ypc). He either has to get better at running past the sticks, or picking up yards after the catch. So far John Hightower has 4 catches on 15 targets this quarter. While he has the speed to be a deep threat, his ball tracking skills have to improve if he’s going to have an NFL career. Fulgham is stepping up. It will be interesting to see if another player at this position will or can, step up to help spread coverages.
C: (A)Jason Kelce Has been the glue holding the interior of the line together. The result of his mentoring has the run game looking better. (When we use it.)
Matt Pryor, Jason Kelce, and Nate Herbig
G: (D)Nate Herbig isn’t going to win a Mr. Universe contest, but he’s been consistent, and he teams well on combo blocks. He’s looked good enough recently, to bring up the question of Isaac Seumalo’s spot on the 2021 depth chart. Especially if Herbig keeps improving. The other spot has been manned over these last 4 games by a combination of Matt Pryor, Iosua Opeta, and Jamon Brown (back on PS). The result is, the Eagles look better running the ball than throwing it. (Except on 3rd and more than 2, or when trying to close out games.)
T: (C)Lane Johnson has tried to battle through an ankle injury, but it’s got him in and out of games, and looking like a shell of himself when he’s on the field. Jason Peters played in just one game this quarter, but it was our Week 8 win over Dallas. His issues facing speed, at times have him looking average. Not that average is a liability, but moving Peters inside would help the entire Offensive Line. Now that Jordan Mailatahas shown he can man the Left spot, we can afford to move Peters the instant that Johnson is good to go. Jack Driscoll is a rookie who largely looks like one. That’s not a knock. That’s flat reality.
Brandon Graham gets a sack fumble
DE: (B)Brandon Grahamis on pace to finish with double digit sacks for the first time in his career. More than that, he’s ramped up his play from last quarter to this. He’s always been solid vs the run, but recently he’s become an absolute liability to offensive game-plans. Derek Barnett and Josh Sweathave both cooled considerably during this quarter. Seems that Barnett plays better off the bench, and Sweat plays better when he starts. Genard Averysaw his effectiveness decrease as his snaps declined, and now is on IR. Vinny Curry played a big part in both of our last two wins, getting his hands on two killer fumble recoveries (one not recovered by him)
DT: (C)Fletcher Cox hasn’t put up many sacks numbers, but he’s still anchoring vs the run, despite seeing constant double teams. Malik Jacksonhad a strong first two games before being hurt Week 7, and trying to play through Week 8. More was expected from free agent additionJavon Hargrave. The idea was that he’d disrupt blocking scheme and occupy blockers. Put nicely, he could be doing more. Hassan Ridgeway was seeing decreasing downs before he was placed on IR.
OLB: (D) In a Week 7 win over the giants, Nate Gerrymade his first splash play of the year. Later in that game he would be injured. Aaand subsequently placed on IR. Duke Riley is simply incapable of imposing his will on an offense. The Eagles defense has been decidedly more feisty since Alex Singleton was named a starter in Week 6. His play has gotten increasingly more decisive, and he’s been willing to gamble on making the big play. Rookie Davion Taylor has played just 11 snaps this quarter. The knock on him is that he was still raw coming out of college. Not giving him more playing time, will ensure that he stays that way. If not for Singleton, this grade would be an F.
T.J. Edwards helps to cement the win.
MLB: (B)T.J. Edwards played in just one game, but his sack/fumble sealed a prime-time victory over the Cowboys. For the other three games the Eagles have been going with a 2 LB alignment, so this position didn’t have a real representative for three games. Rookie Shaun Bradleyhas seen some defensive snaps in three of the four games this quarter, but hasn’t shown much playmaking ability. He has a willingness to hit, but his eyes have to get better in terms of diagnosing, so that he gets to the point of attack before it can be well established by the offense.
S: (D) Over this quarter, Jalen Mills has started wherever he’s been needed in the Secondary. As he is more of a tweener, his best position seems to be NB. Unfortunately, he didn’t see much action there and his play reflects it. Rodney McLeod has all at once, been asked to do too much and not enough. Too much Single-high Coverage, isn’t allowing our corners to gamble on creating turnovers. We have to be more proactive about creating turnovers and less reliant on just hoping they happen. Will Parks came off of IR and stepped into 2 starts in three games. He’s been solid at making tackles, but so far unremarkable. Marcus Epps so far just looks like a guy. For the second year in a row.
CB: (C)Darius Slayhas allowed a 76% completion rate over the last 4 games, as opposed to 66% over the first 4. In both quarters he’s averaged just 45 yards surrendered per game. So effectively, opponents lose half the field when he’s out there. That counts a great deal! Sadly, he doesn’t get a lot of surrounding support. Nickell Robey-Coleman makes the Defense stronger when he watches from the sideline. He’s a liability vs the run, and doesn’t make plays on the ball. Like Mills, Cre’von LeBlanc seems to be a better NB than edge player. His hustle and eyes are undeniable, but too often he seems a tick slow. Avonte Maddox has been a mixed bag since coming back from injury. In one game he’s targeted once, in another he’s targeted 10 times. In neither does he get a paw on the ball.
TE Jason Croom up for a week from the Practice Squad, scores a touchdown
LS: (A)Rick Lovato hasn’t messed up a long snap, and has 4 tackles this quarter, vs just 1 in the last quarter. HE’S PLAYING LIKE A MAN POSSESSED!
P: (B)Cam Johnston is averaging 48.8 yards per boot, 10 of which have been returned for 78 yards. All of those numbers are down from last quarter, but all of those are still kick-ass numbers! It just puts in perspective how much ass Cam was stomping when the year began. Or it should. It should.
K: (D)Jake Elliottwas 5 for 5 on extra points, but 1 of 4 on FG, during this quarter. Right now the team is playing better in spite of him. In spite of.
SINCE LAST QUARTER:
We hit the realistic mark of 2 – 2. We separated ourselves from the bottom of the division. Unfortunately, continuous injury issues kept the Offensive Line and the Secondary from gelling.
MISSION FOR THIS QUARTER:
GET’ EM!!!!
Try to win four games. The giants, Browns, Seahawks and Packers are on the menu this quarter, and most people don’t give us a chance against three of those teams. It’s too early to break out the dog masks, and to start using phrases like “Must Win” and “Playoff Mentality”. It is time for this team to challenge itself and each other, to take their individual games to the next level.
The reality is, we haven’t been very good this year, but there is no law that states that we cannot or will not improve. We have a few players coming back from injury after the Bye. We also have the motivation that this, is the last run as Eagles for some of these players. Next season, some of these guys will be back-ups on new teams, with little impact in the outcome of games. This is the last chance some of them will ever have, to make their expectations, their hopes, into reality.
So damn the pundits. Bow down to no one, and try to win ALL FOUR of these games.
I hear you asking, “What about all the stuff that stats don’t reveal?” Well, that’s the reason for the Four Thingsarticles. 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 get around to doing? Well let’s see:
1) Bait the QB: We had a few chances at interceptions (S Rod McLeod, DB Jalen Mills and LB Alex Singleton, etc.), but Eagles players just couldn’t seal the deal. We sacked their QB 4 times, but we harassed him and forced him consistently into missing needed passes and settling for ineffectual ones. (DONE)
2) Run the ball: The mark was 25+ handoffs. We managed just 22. On those handoffs we produced 102 yards for an average of 4.6 per tote. The only reason we didn’t run the ball more, was because yet again, the coaching staff elected to get cute with the play-calling. On a night when the wind was taking no prisoners. This was the height of stupidity and stupid arrogance. (NOT DONE)
3) Shark Tank!: Early on, the ball wasn’t thrown much into the middle of the field. So the Eagles never got the chance to set this up. They didn’t get this done, but this is more on me, for setting up a marker that was dependent on what our opponent dictated. The mark was missed, but the error is mine. I will do better in the future. (NOT DONE)
A mis-STAKE!!!??
4) Put on a clinic:We didn’t follow the blueprint for beating this team. In fact, we looked most of the time, like a headhunting boxer, searching for a knockout blow, instead of doing the work to set one up. The result was sloppy and uneven. (NOT DONE)
So this weeks Four Things score is 1 out of 4. Here at the team’s Bye week, we stand at 11 of 32. (That one miss being my fault.) Next week we get a Bye to rest up, and for the coaching staff to assess how to get some discipline out of this group.
The week after that, we look to extend our win streak and complete a sweep of the giants.
On The Whole: We looked bad. Let’s get that out of the way, right off. Now that that has been acknowledged, we apparently did enough to win the damned game. So obviously everything we did, wasn’t wrong.
We made the Cowboys RB-based run game look downright pedestrian, with 103 yards on 26 carries. They had a couple of WR reverses and some QB scramble yards, but nothing that they could hang their hats on.
The mission was to put the offense squarely on the shoulders of their trash talking QB, and he was clearly not up to the task. His stat line (21/40 – 52.5% – 180 – 0 – 0) doesn’t look so good when you consider that our CB’s play on deep cushions, which gives away free short completions, by design.
Lost in all of this is that this was A) The first game this year where we didn’t give up 20 points,B) A game in which we held an opponent to a single digit score, C)A game in which we allowed zero touchdowns, and D) A game in which Wentz managed to move the ball despite only having one receiver with more than 16 yards on the night.
Also, (shades of the Redskins game), Carson again threw two picks while trying to hook up with rookie WR’s Jalen Reagor and John Hightower. With WR DeSean Jackson on IR, Hightower is our home-run hitter. That said, Wentz and Hightower need to spend this Bye week playing catch somewhere, so they can finally get on the same page.
THIS week’s opponent is garbage. They are 1 – 5 trash, and they play like 1 – 5 trash. The last two weeks saw us nearly snatch two games, from teams with legitimate Super Bowl aspirations. This year’s giants could never do that. So we need to got out there, and not play down to them. Injuries be damned.
With Dallas (2 – 4) losing to Arizona on Monday, a win over the giants on Thursday would put us at 2 – 4 – 1. Our winning percentage would be .357 to their .333. Pathetic? Sure. But it would still be the division lead? You bet! (Of course until Sunday, when Dallas shit cans Washington.)
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.
So let’s talk about the Four Things we need to focus on this week versus the giants :
1) Hand it off 20 times: The handoffs aren’t about making yards. The giants are stout inside, and we’ll be leaning in RB Boston Scott. So no one expects miracles. The handoffs are to set-up play-action, keep pass rushers off of QB Carson Wentz, and not have our Defense on the field all game long.
2) Be sack religious: Go get the QB! In recent weeks he hasn’t shared the ball as much with opponents, because he hasn’t seen serious pass rush. Pass rush is what our defense does best! So go get him!
3) Spread them out!: The giants run a base 3-4 defense. Being that we we’re down to 3rd and 4th string TE’s, we should run less 12 personnel, and more 11 and 10. Use a Slot WRs to force them out of their base, make them smaller and give ourselves the corners to run the ball. WR’s J.J. Arcega-Whitesideand Travis Fulgham, match-up well as blockers vs the giants Nickel and Dime DB’s.
4) No 50 yard field goal attempts: This is not an indictment on KJake Elliott’s ability to kick from distance. It’s to put the pressure on the Offense. This is Cortez burning the ships. Let’s be honest, the schedule only gets harder after the Bye. This game is an opportunity to work on and tighten things up. We should be able to win while doing so. If not… then the remainder of the season probably doesn’t matter.
If we do these Four Things, the final score should be:
PREDICTION: EAGLES 24 – giants 16
Check back in a couple of days for Four Things Reviewed, and we’ll discuss how it went.
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 inFour Things: Ravens did the Eagles get around to doing? Well let’s see:
TE Jason Croom. You can’t stop him. You can only hope to contain him.
1) Run the ball: Wentz ran 2 called runs in this game. The touchdown and the 4th down conversion he didn’t get. His other 3 runs were from drop backs. That makes the playcalling ratio, 43 passes to 15 called runs. On 58 plays run, we were passing 74% of the time. Not winning football strategy. It’s not a wonder the game got so out of hand. (NOT DONE)
2) Stay disciplined: Outside of their QB, the Ravens ran for 74 yards on 28 carries (2.6 ypc). The Eagles Defensive line did great job of setting the edges, and pursuing runners. While the Ravens did make a few plays (on 37 total carries) our defensive discipline was clearly there today. (DONE)
3) Challenge them vertically, early: That early drop by WR John Hightower did a lot to stem Wentz’s enthusiasm to throw to deep targets. Hightower let the ball hit his pads instead of plucking it with his hands. Thus, making it clear to everyone (including his mother), what the difference between 1st round and 5th round talent, looks like. (NOT DONE)
What you’re seeing here is a TE scoring a rare touchdown against LB Nate Gerry. And yes. That was sarcasm.
4) Set up the Mark: We covered their starting TE too well to bait their QB into attempting to get him the ball much. This would have been a great week to turn one of our weaknesses into a trap, but… They instead made use of the back-up TE. Well isn’t that special? Bless their little hearts. (NOT DONE)
That makes this weeks Four Things score a dismal 1 of 4, bringing the season total to 7 of 24. Hey gang! In addition to being banged up, starting a 3rd string RG, and not currently knowing the injury status of Miles Sanders knee, we get just 4 days to prepare for a divisional game against the giants on THURSDAY! Oh goodie! Oh joy! I’m so happy I could shit Legos.
On The Whole:
Yay. Something something, moral victory, silver lining, next man up, yadda blah. Whatever. We lost. Again.
Valiant comeback my ass! What was that, 4 passes that hit guys in the hands that they dropped?! Miles Sanders, dropping passes, fumbling and getting hurt? I will give a dollar to the first DB who jams a receiver and helps the D-Line get a sack.
For his part, Wentz (YET AGAIN), strapped this team to his back, and attempted to climb Mt. Everest. Wouldn’t it be neat to see a second offensive player show that much competitive fire? I don’t mean WR’s I mean a RB or a TE. I want to see toughness. Ruggedness. I want to see the opposing defense afraid of someone in an Eagles jersey.
RB Boston Scott tripping up Wentz on the 2-point conversion?! You know what? If GM Howie Roseman is going to be a buyer at the trade deadline, one the things I want him to buy, is RB Jordan Howard back from Miami. If they don’t think RB Corey Clement can back-up Sanders, then get me a guy who can. Because Scott ain’t it!
On Defense, everything behind our Front Four feels suspect. There was a play where no fewer than 3 Eagles had a shot at popped up pass, and nobody came down with it! It feels like the scheme is rubbing off on CB Darius Slay, and not the other way around.
Travis Fulgham continues his three game touchdown streak.
NOTE: It was nice to see Travis Fulgham get his first start, but we need to start seeing some combo routes run with TE Zach Ertz. Both to loosen the box and to get more roaming room for whomever is our deep receiver, on the other side.
OVER the last two games, most Eagles fans have fallen heels-over-head for WR Travis Fulgham. Some love that he’s scored in each of the last two games. Some love that he makes big splash catches.
I love that he’s nothing special.
Seriously, there is nothing about his game that is remotely remarkable. He’s not super-fast. He doesn’t jump super-high. He doesn’t kill defenders with his first step off the line. So if he doesn’t have any amazing traits, why is he so much better than all the other young receivers we’ve drafted since Jeremy Maclin?
The thing that separates Fulgham from Eagles draft picks, is that he has a solid set of fundamentals. He comes back to the ball. He boxes out. He high-points and catches with his hands. Again, nothing special. Just the fundamentals that any receiver should have. I said should.
During Week One, QB Carson Wentz threw two interceptions. One was while trying to connect with rookie WR Jalen Reagor, and the other was an attempt to rookie WR John Hightower. Both were jumping and fading away from the ball, allowing the defender to uncut them. Remember the one to WR J.J. Arcega-Whitesidevs the Rams? Look up those three picks. I’ll wait…
(Whistling. Filing nails. Painting a still-life.)
Oh, you’re back! Did you notice what I was talking about? It jumps right out at you, doesn’t it? From now on, you will NEVER fail to notice it, and wonder how others miss it.
Although WR Alshon Jeffery has crazy leaping skills, his speed isn’t lethal, he’s not the biggest receiver, and he doesn’t have legendary hands. In fact, how would you describe Alshon’s game? Comes back to the ball. Boxes out. High-points. Makes yards after the catch. None of those things are talent based. Those are all skills. They are fundamentals which only come from teaching.
The obvious thing that fans keep missing, is that young Eagles receivers aren’t taught those basics. Fulgham learned it before he got here. Alshon, same thing. Terrell Owens? Kevin Curtis? These guys looked great next to receivers drafted, but untaught by our coaching staffs.
Speaking of which, how DOES former Eagles WR Nelson Agholor, look in Las Vegas this year? He’s only caught 10 balls, but he’s only been thrown 11 passes. That’s a 90% catch rate. Through 5 years with the Eagles, Agholor NEVER had a 90% catch rate through 5 weeks. Not in 2015 (47%), not 2016 (66%), not 2017 (69%), not 2018 (70%), nor 2019 (59%). NEVER.
Crazy what a little coaching can fix.
Some readers may say that I’ve failed to mention Fulgham’s ability to create separation with stems, speed variations in his routes, head fakes, stacking the defender, etc. Those are all skills. Those are all taught things. Every blessed one of them. Just basic fundamentals.
I love that Fulgham’s game is based on fundamentals. It means that if the Eagles decide to sign him long-term, his ability to play won’t disappear with injury, or suddenly with age. When Alshon gets back I look forward to seeing packages that feature them both on the field.
Now if only we can utilize some of that speed we added this year…
LAST week we walked into the home of a 3 – 0 team, and almost strolled out with the win. Despite the loss, during the game QB Carson Wentz may found a long-term dance partner in WR Travis Fulgham. GOODY!! Because this week, we get to face a Baltimore secondary that comes into this game allowing a 66.7% completion rate.
We’ve fallen to #2 in the NFC East, and our remaining schedule isn’t an easy one. A win this week, would position us for another crack at the division lead. (Depending on what follows on Monday night.) A loss wouldn’t take us out of contention, but losing more ground this week, would make the remainder of the season, a very heavy lift.
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.
So let’s talk about the Four Things we need to focus on this week versus the Ravens:
1) Run the ball: Last week, RB Miles Sanders had a 74 yard TD run and finished the day with 11 carries and just 80 yards. That’s some bullshit. If Head Coach Doug Pederson was trying to lose the game, he absolutely figured out the way to do it. Throwing the ball all the time isn’t allowing our defense to rest. It’s Chess, not Checkers, Doug.
2) Stay disciplined: Set the edges and don’t chase eye-candy. This season we’ve made it apparent that if you get us running laterally, we can’t play defense. So keep the game North/South. Set a tone that not only helps us win this week, but sends the message to future opponents, that we’ve fixed a major weakness.
3) Challenge them vertically, early: They can score and we can’t stop anyone on defense. So we’ll need points to win. Get our players in an aggressive mindset early, and put our opponent on their heels. Attack. Attack. Attack. Attack.
4) Set up the Mark: TE Mark Andrews is the second most targeted option on their team, and the passes are usually short ones. Bait the QB into feeling secure about going to Andrews, and then step in front of the ball. That would of course be a turnover, but even if it isn’t, it’ll make the QB hesitant when delivering the ball.
If we do these Four Things, the final score should be:
PREDICTION: EAGLES 21 – Ravens 17
Check back in a couple of days for Four Things Reviewed, and we’ll discuss how it went.
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 inFour Things: Pittsburghdid the Eagles get around to doing? Well let’s see:
1) Jump short routes:Aside from one miss by CB Cre’Von LeBlanc, nobody really tried to do this. Three times, on 3rd down, the Steeler’s QB was able to complete a quick short pass inside and to his right, while Eagles defenders just watched the play happen. He should have never been able to do that twice, let alone three times. Especially without getting his receiver blown up. (NOT DONE)
2) Trim their edges: We didn’t run any RB Screens, but we did make the Out routes come alive today! Fulgham created space, boxed out, and high-pointed the ball, giving Wentz an easy target to go to all day long. WR Greg Ward ran a similar route for his easy 8 yard TD reception. TE Zach Ertz continues to dog it out there. I gave him the benefit of the doubt for 4 weeks, but after watching him let that TE Screen fall incomplete, I have to call him on it. With what he’s putting on tape, no one is giving him George Kittle money. (DONE)
3) Set the edge vs the run:I said that Pittsburgh doesn’t do a lot of WR rushing and coming into this game they hadn’t. Today they took 5 whacks at it, and made us look silly in the process. However, that’s a hard thing to charge to the Defensive Linemen. It’s really something that has to be adjusted for with an alignment that doesn’t pack all the LB’s inside of the DE’s. We took away the interior run game, but our scheme and lack of adjusting it, allowed them options they usually ignore. (NOT DONE)
4) Fight for catches: Right before the Half, J.J. Arcega-Whiteside made a nice 37 yard grab. Other than that, Fulgham didn’t really have to win any contested balls, he found ways to create separation, and give Wentz a clean target. Maybe he can teach his team mates? (NOT DONE)
That gives us a score of 1 of 4 this week (6 of 20 on the year.) Thank goodness we get to face Baltimore next week. NO! You know what? We’ll re-group, get a couple guys back next week, and look at this with fresh eyes.
On The Whole:
We went in shorthanded vs a 3 – 0 team, and made a real game out of it. Silver lining, it looks like Carson Wentz has found a young WR that he trusts. That can only pay dividends going forward. This week Whiteside and WR John Hightower got the start. Next week, if WR’s Alshon Jeffrey and DeSean Jacksonare still shelved, then expect Fulgham and Hightower to get the nod.
There were several things that annoyed me: The play selection was ass, again. There were just 12 handoffs in this game, 2 called QB runs, and 38 passes called (2 resulted in QB scrambles). That’s 73% pass to 27%run. Why is it okay that our Defensive Coordinator isn’t capable of making adjustments? How is it that we had no answer for a rookie playing in just his 4th pro game?
We got embarrassed by a rookie. And we got out-coached. The Steelers were flat-out smarter than us. Especially our Defense. We ate Jet Sweeps from a team that hardly runs them! We’ve been so bad at defending those, that opponents include them, just to run them against us. And if it wasn’t bad enough that in-game adjustments aren’t being made, week-to-week adjustments aren’t being made either. I feel like the game was never as close as the score.
