Bunker Mentality & Some Changes
Posted: September 28th, 2011 | Author: Tommy Lawlor | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 89 Comments »The Eagles host the Niners on Sunday. It isn’t a “must win” game, but it’s pretty darn important. The Eagles need to get back to .500 and they need to build some confidence.
Fans are looking for all kinds of answers. I’ve seen some people calling for Juan Castillo to be fired. Trading for Aaron Curry was a hot topic yesterday. People continue to ask about Lofa Tatupu. Reuben Frank called for the Eagles to give Greg Lloyd a shot at MLB. I actually did a double take on that one.
Right now the Eagles need to focus on playing more like a team. There is no quick fix to this. Watch 2010 tape of Lofa Tatupu. He just can’t run anymore. Aaron Curry seemed to play best in 2009. If you trade for him, are you getting that guy or the one who was benched last week? Lloyd? He struggled with 3rd string RBs in the preseason. If run plays came right at him, Lloyd shut them down. If they went outside or he had to adjust on the move, he struggled big time. I might try him if we faced Brandon Jacobs and Peyton Hillis all year long, but Lloyd vs any athletic RB scares the heck out of me. None of this is the real key to fixing things.
Andy Reid really got on the team Sunday. Nnamdi Asomugha said he was hard on them and let them know just how disappointing that loss was. Reid later told the team that the key to all of this is becoming more of a team. Pick each other up. When the offense turns the ball over, the defense needs to come up with a stop. When the defense allows a score, the offense needs to respond with a score of their own. The STs need to help out in any way they can. Function as a team, as one.
The Eagles were highly dysfunctional in the Buddy Ryan years in large part due to the way the team splintered into groups. That hasn’t been the case under Andy Reid. He’s good at getting all 53 men to be part of one group…the Eagles. Right now that isn’t clicking.
This isn’t a case of egos or blame or problems like that. Group dynamics is a tricky subject. Getting individuals to function as a group isn’t easy even when everyone wants to. You need something to make it work. One of the best ways is the bunker mentality…us against the world.
I’m sure Reid has talked to the team about the fact there are no magical solutions to the problems. Back in 2008 Dallas was going through a rough stretch in the middle of the season. Tony Romo was injured for a couple of weeks and the team was struggling. Jerry Jones responded by trading for WR Roy Williams and I remember Eagles fans saying “They’re going to be unstoppable”.
I wrote then that it was the wrong move and it sent the wrong message to the team.
“I think Jerry Jones erred in making the deal. The Cowboys had enough talent to win the Super Bowl without Roy. They had enough talent last year. Pure talent hasn’t been an issue recently. What the Cowboys lack is intestinal fortitude.”
Later in the column I wrote this:
“My bet is that the Cowboys don’t make it to the Super Bowl, let alone win it. They won’t lack talent. They simply won’t be able to overcome some other team that has a bit more junkyard dog than the ‘Boys. Toughness can outdo talent in the postseason.”
You may recall that the Boys and Eagles met on the final day of the season with a playoff berth on the line. The Eagles had a lot more junkyard dog and won 44-6. Ugly, ugly loss for Jerry and his Boys.
Right after the trade for Roy, Dallas lost to the lowly Rams. Here’s part of what I wrote about that:
“Tough situations call for tough teams. Dallas wasn’t close to tough on Sunday. I talked about the problem with the Roy Williams trade in a recent post. It seems as if Jerry Jones was trying to solve problems by acquiring more talent. The NFL doesn’t work like that. The coaching staff has to get with the players and get them to step up. You overcome adversity with hard work, focus, and leadership. Jerry Jones had great intentions, but I think the Williams deal was a bad move for the 2008 team. It will certainly help when TO moves on in the future. “
I’m happy to report that I was wrong about Roy Williams being the guy to replace TO. Clearly I had not factored in Miles Austin at that juncture. Anyway…my point to bringing up all of this ancient history is to focus on what the 2011 Eagles need to do. Get tough and get together.
Reid will preach this message to his team. He doesn’t want his players looking around for answers. Reid wants them to realize they are the answer. He will challenge them. Some guys will respond, some won’t. That’s how you find out who can handle pressure and who can’t.
Reid will give the players ownership of the situation. And that’s key. You make the players realize that they dug the hole and now they need to get out of it. That can be a great motivational tool. Again, not everyone will buy in, but that’s okay. You need a strong core of people to step forward, to embrace the situation.
Reid has been coach of the Eagles now for 13 years. He knows how to push buttons and try different things to get players going. This is a weird team. There are a bunch of stars and a bunch of young guys. That makes for an odd mixture of personalities. In the past Reid was able to reach his teams and get them on the right path (2005 being the great exception). This is his biggest challenge in a while. I hope he’s able to sell his message and get the players to respond.
The Falcons and Giants punched us in the last couple of weeks. We punched back until the 4th Qtr. Then we went to our corner and watched quietly. Can’t have that anymore. We need 53 guys to come together and show some sense of urgency. We need action. We need results.
Jeremy Maclin needs to catch the 4th down pass. Jamar Chaney needs to tackle Michael Turner in the open field. Shady McCoy needs to lower his head and get a yard when we give him the ball on 4th/1. DRC needs to tackle Ahmad Bradshaw for a loss on 3rd/short. Nnamdi Asomugha needs to break up the pass to Victor Cruz. And so on.
The plays were there to be made and we didn’t do it. The plays will be there in the next 13 weeks. Guys need to step up and get the job done. Forget about help, this is us against the world.
* * * * *
Now, just because Reid is preaching to the players to not expect magical answers to the problems does not mean you stay put across the board. You always look at the lineup and who’s getting it done and who isn’t. Should we make lineup changes? Will they truly help or is this change for the sake of change? If you feel changes will help, make them.
And that’s just what Reid and his staff did. Brian Rolle, aka my long lost son, is now the starting WLB. Nate Allen is taking over for Kurt Coleman.
Obviously I’m ecstatic to see Rolle getting on the field as a starter. He earned it. I thought Casey Matthews was showing progress, but Rolle is ahead of him and just looks like he belongs. Brian isn’t some game changer that will come in an dominate. Here’s what he will do:
* Play at full speed. Matthews was thinking/reacting. Rolle isn’t as hesitant. He’s seeing the field clearer and that allows him to play faster.
* Shed blocks better. Rolle has a leverage advantage. He strikes the blocker with his hands. Matthews had some plays where he was able to move off blocks, but too often was slow in doing so.
* Be there. Rolle has shown a knack for being at the right spot at the right time. Matthews hasn’t. You can’t coach this. Rolle has it…for now.
Rolle gives you a WLB with good speed and power. He is a good tackler. He diagnoses plays well. He’s got excellent closing speed. He has come coverage ability. Yes, he’s undersized, but he doesn’t play that way. Rolle acts like he’s 6’3, 250. He takes on blockers when he needs to. He also knows how to use his size wisely. He’ll move through traffic better than a big LB. He’ll slip blocks when thats the prudent move.
Jamar Chaney gets start number two in the middle. Hopefully a week of practice at the spot will help him bring out the best in his game. He’s still the key to our LB play improving.
I’m very happy to get Nate Allen back in the lineup. I know many people are down on him. I’ve been a big supporter of his for a while. Terrific draft prospect, solid rookie FS. Good ball skills. Okay hitter. Solid tackler. The question with him is his knee. The Eagles brought him back this summer and worked him on and off to see how the knee held up. They decided to sit Nate for a while. He’ll play 50 snaps on Sunday. I don’t know if he’s got 50 plays worth of action so far this year.
Kurt Coleman struggled mightily in the opener and then again last week. I still have hopes for him, but Kurt was getting stuck on blocks too much and also had the missed tackle that led to a TD on Sunday. You cannot have mistakes like that from your Safeties. Mistakes by them lead to TDs or huge plays. Safeties are supposed to clean up messes created by the players in front of them.
Are there any other lineup changes or adjustments to make? I think you stick with Jarrad Page for now. I do think you try and get Jaiquawn Jarrett on the field as a STer to get him some action and see how he responds.
I’m open to benching Moise Fokou at SAM, but I don’t feel strongly about Keenan Clayton or Akeem Jordan. Plus, you want to be careful about making wholesale changes at once. Let Chaney get used to playing with Rolle for a week or two. Fokou has the potential to be a solid OLB. Maybe the new look at LB will bring out the best in him. If not, you work someone else into his spot down the road.
Obviously I leave DL and CB alone.
A few people have suggested mixing in Joselio Hanson in at Safety. I’d stick with Page for now, but I do agree we need to play Hanson more. The Nickel defense has been up and down. See how Hanson can help. He’s our best slot guy. Use him there. At least mix him in so that teams have to consider he could be on their slot receiver.
The offense isn’t safe either. Andy and Marty need to come up with a better set of ideas for the goal line offense. Steve Smith got mixed in last week. How about Clay Harbor and Ronnie Brown this week? Maybe make Brent Celek a key receiver down there. Do something.
Keep tweaking the lineup and schemes until we find the right combination of players and plays.
Tommy – couldn’t agree more. This team needs to have some leadership on the field. Other than #58, I don’t see it anywhere. Vick was supposed to be the leader, but he’s whining about not getting treated like Brady. DJax just looks pissed off, but can’t seem to translate that to doing much on the field. Assante’s too busy being Assante, and the rest of the team, well – I was really hoping Denver would rebuild this year and cut a veteran safety who shall remain nameless so maybe he could come back and provide some of that missing ingredient.
Sorry Casey, but Big Red has to send a message….
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-sV-O2-jCY#t=0m56s
Good trivia bit from Reuben Frank. Rolle will be 27th player to start at LB during the Reid era.
Who can name them? Took me a few minutes. Couple of hard ones to remember.
Emmons
Trotter
Nate Wayne
Barry Gardner
Shawn Barber
Did Ike Reese ever start?
Mark Simoneau
Keith “the Bullet” Adams
Matt McCoy
Gocong
Stewart Bradley
TKO Spikes
Witherspoon
Jordan
Gaither
Chaney
Matthews
Fokou
Rolle
That’s 19. I was around 13 years old for the early Reid years, so my memory is somewhat obscured by… other things.
The ageless rock, Levon Kirkland. Also with the footspeed of a rock.
A big rock.
The ageless rock, Levon Kirkland. Also with the footspeed of a rock.
Did Quinton Carver ever start? I’m assuming he did at some point. That puts us at 21.
Nope. Caver never started for us.
My favorite OLB, Mike Caldwell
Dickie Bow air Guitar Man
There is (with Caldwell) 2 more
Back to 20. I feel like Joe Mays started a throw away game for us?
Did Tank Daniels start one of those too?
Nope. And Reuben is wrong. We’re actually looking for 28 guys.
Yes, he did.
Ok, who started in the meaningless game against Dallas last year? Jordan, Gaither and ? Was it Clayton? Surely we rested Chaney who at that point looked to be a stud.
Clayton is correct.
Did Quinton Carver ever start? I’m assuming he did at some point. That puts us at 21.
I have the list ready to post, but want to give you guys a chance to think about it.
Who know where I should be putting these now, but opening game of ’05, Trotter was ejected before the game started for farting on the Falcon (or something close). Another guy you were hot on MikeLabjino(sp) started at MiKE
I’m all over it. Updating the total in my first post.
Well I’m struggling to think of other ‘backers that we have had. ’05 was a terrible season for injuries, could there have been another player that year? Both Kickers went down that year, meaning that both kickers from SF49ers played for the Eagles in ’05!
The others are the meaningless games, and we had a hat full of those during our glory years.
Who was the Sam from BYU? Ena? Did he get as start?
Great job. I think Labinjo also started final game of ’04.
Tracy White was around for awhile, but I feel like he was only a special teamer.
No to White.
Last 2 guys each started multiple years in Philly and then later with another team. Older dudes.
Was one a pre-Caldwell WiLL?
Yes. Gardner had that role in 2000. Who did in 1999?
I have a ’99 Lindy’s around here somewhere 🙂
That’ll give you both guys.
Willie T was still on the team in ’99. Was he the starter?
It transpired to be 2000, not ’99
I thought it was guys that played for Reid.
James ‘don’t call me’ Darling
Did Willie T play for Reid?
Yes on him and Darling.
I guess that means the insane Jason Short never started?
Side note: During the ’04 season, I went to the Eagles-Browns game in Cleveland (the T.O. has B.O. game). Short got a concussion during the game. After the Birds won in overtime, we hung outside the visitors entrance where a drooling, brain-damaged, Jason Short stumbled around.
Jason Short was a walking concussion that year. He was crazy on KOs. Never did start for us.
Here’s the final list:
Rolle
Chaney
Fokou
Matthews
Bradley
Sims
Jordan
Gaither
Gocong
Witherspoon
Trotter
Mays
Spikes
D Jones
McCoy
Simoneau
Adams
Wayne
Barber
Emmons
Kirkland
Gardner
Caldwell
Thomas
Darling
Clayton
Labinjo
Reese
This would make a fantastic Sporcle quiz.
This would make a fantastic Sporcle quiz.
What’s interesting is that change usually happens when a team’s become stale or isn’t good. Here, the Eagles aren’t even half-baked yet. Which points to the “not so good” side.
Anyway, seeing Mathews hit the pine is disappointing.
That makes the Eagles 5 for 5 on their first 5 draft picks this year not playing . . . and 4 out of the 5 have been regular inactives.
From the 2010 draft, we have on Allen and Chaney starting — a 2 and a 7. Picks 1, 3, 4a, 5a, 6, 7c aren’t on the active roster or on the team. Picks 4b (Clayton), 4c (Kafka), 4d (Harbor), 5b (Cooper), and 7b (Coleman) are not particularly noteworthy contributors.
I know drafts are like betting at the track. I get that.
But it’s just so disappointing to see how unproductive the last two drafts have been (injuries included). I don’t think a team can win a SB relying on a 6-rounder and two 7-rounders at LB.
And if Tapp and J-Parker aren’t back quickly, Juan and Washburn are going to burnout Babin and Cole — just like we’ve seen happen to Cole the past 3 years.
I don’t follow the Packers that close, but I have read articles about how many players they had on their Superbowl team who were low drafted rookies and un drafted players.
Is some of that the coaches ability to find guys who fit their scheme? The ability to identify a players strength and let him play to that strength?
Who is playing “lights out” right now? Cole, Babin, Jenkins, Samuel… those guys were practically born to play the way they are playing. The style, the position… I remember when Samuel came here he had to almost butt heads with JJ to get a chance to play his style of corner. Is some of the fault of Aso’s weakness due to his ability to go with the flow and be a team player rather than putting his foot down and say “I’m the best shut down hands on press type corner in the league, let me do my thing”?
So far this year I would only rate McCoy, Maclin, and Peters as playing on that “lights out” level on our offense. Other guys have played well, but no where near elite status. I hope that at some point we can see a clean pocket for Vick and 4 wideouts to make use of this elite team speed.
I hope that Hunt gets to see the field more this week, and I’m totally with you on hoping that Tapp and Parker get well soon. Sounds like Tapp is seeing limited practice this week.
I don’t follow the Packers that close, but I have read articles about how many players they had on their Superbowl team who were low drafted rookies and un drafted players.
Is some of that the coaches ability to find guys who fit their scheme? The ability to identify a players strength and let him play to that strength?
Who is playing “lights out” right now? Cole, Babin, Jenkins, Samuel… those guys were practically born to play the way they are playing. The style, the position… I remember when Samuel came here he had to almost butt heads with JJ to get a chance to play his style of corner. Is some of the fault of Aso’s weakness due to his ability to go with the flow and be a team player rather than putting his foot down and say “I’m the best shut down hands on press type corner in the league, let me do my thing”?
So far this year I would only rate McCoy, Maclin, and Peters as playing on that “lights out” level on our offense. Other guys have played well, but no where near elite status. I hope that at some point we can see a clean pocket for Vick and 4 wideouts to make use of this elite team speed.
I hope that Hunt gets to see the field more this week, and I’m totally with you on hoping that Tapp and Parker get well soon. Sounds like Tapp is seeing limited practice this week.
I feel like the lockout was a big part of this. The 2nd year guys missed the big jump that comes from a full off-season in the system, and the rookies basically came in with nothing.
Howie Roseman pointed that out. 2nd year guys normally make a big jump, but were really hurt by the lockout.
Howie Roseman pointed that out. 2nd year guys normally make a big jump, but were really hurt by the lockout.
Why are there so many second year players and rookies on other teams making impacts as starters?
Earl Thomas, Jason Pierre Paul, Derrick Morgan, Suh, Sean Lee, Sean Weatherspoon, TJ ward, Brian Price, Joe Haden, Morgan Burnett and others are all having excellent seasons thus far for their teams.
Of the rookies, Mason Foster, Jabaal Sheard, Phil Taylor, Von Miller, JJ Watt, Ryan Kerrigan, Akeem Ayers, Anthony Castonzo, Cam Newton, Andy Dalton, among others are all having solid seasons starting for their teams.
The Eagles are getting little to nothing from their 2010 and 2011 draft classes, however.
Wait, wait, I know this one! Because Andy/Howie are the worst drafters in the history of the known universe and both deserve to be fired immediately?
You are going a little easy letting them off with a firing. What if they go on to lead some poor high school team to ruin?
If drawing and quartering at midfield during halftime is out of the question, at very least they should be tarred and feathered with humanely harvested down from lame ducks before each game.
This would give us the opportunity to select our choice of coordinator with no experience to lead us. In fact, I think we can do one better. Maybe we can find the anti-Reid: a man who will blame the players for every bad outcome, constantly be looking backwards instead of forward, react with a violent knee-jerk to every bump, and share his thoughts repeatedly and emphatically. Does anyone come to mind?
I feel like the lockout was a big part of this. The 2nd year guys missed the big jump that comes from a full off-season in the system, and the rookies basically came in with nothing.
No Jarrett yet though, is he just not ready? I’d give him a shot.
Castillo indicated that calling out different coverages and things like that were his problem right now. Safeties must be able to make pre-snap adjustments as the offense moves around.
Castillo indicated that calling out different coverages and things like that were his problem right now. Safeties must be able to make pre-snap adjustments as the offense moves around.
The Cowboys reference about Roy Williams is interesting, but I’m not sure I fully buy your logic. Obviously it didn’t work out in Dallas, but it’s not exactly a fair example because the assumption they had in that scenario is that Williams would be a good player that helps that offense. That assumption was obviously proven wrong, not only in that year but throughout his time in Dallas. Obviously, no free agent or trade is guaranteed to play well or guarantees the success of your team, but who knows what happens if Roy Williams ended up being a solid WR for them. For all we know, they could have won another game prior to playing us and made that game insignificant.
I guess the way I look at it is ideally, you want to be able to get the best out of the players you have on the roster. You want them fired up and believing in themselves. That being said, if you have an opportunity to improve your roster, you certainly don’t miss that opportunity. You don’t hurt your team by bringing in better talent (ignoring salary cap and draft picks in terms of the long run effects). If anything, that should fire up a team that is a bit down on themselves, and frankly, it’s a coaches job to make sure that’s the way it is perceived.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying we need to just go out there and throw money at any problem we have. Obviously AR and the coaches want to get better play out of some players and by all means they should be trying to do that, but if the right guy becomes available for the right price (I’m not saying there is a guy like that available, just saying hypothetically) it would make absolutely no sense not to help out the team when you have the opportunity to do so.
I’m all for improving the team. Jerry made that move in part to solve the problems his team was having at the time. They didn’t need a WR. That was just the biggest move he could make. It felt like Jerry was throwing the fans a bone. “Look what I did for you. Got us another star WR.”
I’m all for improving the team. Jerry made that move in part to solve the problems his team was having at the time. They didn’t need a WR. That was just the biggest move he could make. It felt like Jerry was throwing the fans a bone. “Look what I did for you. Got us another star WR.”
The Cowboys reference about Roy Williams is interesting, but I’m not sure I fully buy your logic. Obviously it didn’t work out in Dallas, but it’s not exactly a fair example because the assumption they had in that scenario is that Williams would be a good player that helps that offense. That assumption was obviously proven wrong, not only in that year but throughout his time in Dallas. Obviously, no free agent or trade is guaranteed to play well or guarantees the success of your team, but who knows what happens if Roy Williams ended up being a solid WR for them. For all we know, they could have won another game prior to playing us and made that game insignificant.
I guess the way I look at it is ideally, you want to be able to get the best out of the players you have on the roster. You want them fired up and believing in themselves. That being said, if you have an opportunity to improve your roster, you certainly don’t miss that opportunity. You don’t hurt your team by bringing in better talent (ignoring salary cap and draft picks in terms of the long run effects). If anything, that should fire up a team that is a bit down on themselves, and frankly, it’s a coaches job to make sure that’s the way it is perceived.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying we need to just go out there and throw money at any problem we have. Obviously AR and the coaches want to get better play out of some players and by all means they should be trying to do that, but if the right guy becomes available for the right price (I’m not saying there is a guy like that available, just saying hypothetically) it would make absolutely no sense not to help out the team when you have the opportunity to do so.
On a completely separate note, Nate Allen is coming in to replace Coleman. I know the positions have been all mixed up, name wise, but if I remember correctly, Nate Allen plays the “other” safety spot (I think that’s strong safety in this defense). I know they are not as different as the traditional free and strong safety roles used to be, but will Allen have to make any adjustments in Coleman’s spot?
I’m sure the Safeties have been cross trained. After all, if the offense shifts at the last minute the responsibilities switch and the guys have to be able to play deep and in the box. Shouldn’t be a major issue.
I’m sure the Safeties have been cross trained. After all, if the offense shifts at the last minute the responsibilities switch and the guys have to be able to play deep and in the box. Shouldn’t be a major issue.
On a completely separate note, Nate Allen is coming in to replace Coleman. I know the positions have been all mixed up, name wise, but if I remember correctly, Nate Allen plays the “other” safety spot (I think that’s strong safety in this defense). I know they are not as different as the traditional free and strong safety roles used to be, but will Allen have to make any adjustments in Coleman’s spot?
From last year to this year we have…
Upgraded RCB
Upgraded CB depth
Upgraded LDT
Upgraded LDE
Upgraded RT
Upgraded RG
Upgraded C (my opinion obviously many may disagree)
Upgraded RB (backups)
Upgraded 4th WR
Downgraded LG
Downgraded S
Same LT
Same QB
Same WR 1,2,3,5
Same LCB
Same RDT
Same RDE
Same Mike
Same Sam
Come on guys… it’s time to start gelling and use this talent!
Interesting way to look at things. And “gel” is a very good word.
Interesting way to look at things. And “gel” is a very good word.
It’s “jell” though when you mean come together. “Gel” is what Pauly D puts in his hair.
(copy editor pet peeve)
Really? I thought he used moose.
Deal with that one, editor.
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/gelling
I don’t know how reliable this source is… but evidently this alternate spelling has gained some traction. (sorry)
Unfortunately, I think we downgraded D-Coordinator. It’s looking like it’s better to have confused players than a confused coach.
Nit picking but we have upgraded 5th WR since Cooper has been demoted and he’s better than Chad Hall
Thanks for all the feed back guys… yeah I didn’t really think about adding coaches to the mix. And good pickup on the Cooper vs. Hall… wasn’t really thinking about that experiment last year.
From last year to this year we have…
Upgraded RCB
Upgraded CB depth
Upgraded LDT
Upgraded LDE
Upgraded RT
Upgraded RG
Upgraded C (my opinion obviously many may disagree)
Upgraded RB (backups)
Upgraded 4th WR
Downgraded LG
Downgraded S
Same LT
Same QB
Same WR 1,2,3,5
Same LCB
Same RDT
Same RDE
Same Mike
Same Sam
Come on guys… it’s time to start gelling and use this talent!
Great post. It brings to mind one thing – player leadership.
During much of the ’00s, it appeared to me Brian Dawkins was a big leader on the Eagles. He was a force of personality that (and nothing against #5) McNabb was not, both before and during games.
Last year, it seemed Asante Samuel had, at least partially, assumed Dawkins’ mantle. Asante was handing out game balls in the locker room after the game. This was before he became trade bait with the DRC/Nnamdi acquisitions.
Who is(are) the leader(s) this year? Vick certainly looks like one, but I don’t know the answer.
How important are player leaders, regardless which side of the ball they play, to the Eagles success?
Leadership is important. I think roles are being defined as the season moves along. Vick is one. He’s not fiery, but players listen to him. Celek and Herremans are vocal guys that have been here a few years.
Trent is a leader by example. I think Nnamdi is a leader. Asante in his own way. There isn’t one clear-cut guy on D.
I have commended Vick for his leadership in the past, and I think he is a strong leadership presence on the team. That said, I was disappointed in him last week.
I felt like sitting and mopping on the end of the bench was poor leadership. He should have been pacing the sidelines. He should have been pounding on guys shoulder pads when they were sitting down and showing the guys that he was still with them, even if the coaches made him stay off the field.
I understand he was frustrated to watch the end of the game – again – but that wasn’t good enough.
I do think Vick is a leader and he has shown that, but I agree with you about Sunday. And not to excuse him but, as you said, he was very frustrated and not just because he was on the bench again but also because he has been taking a beating, has not played well and so on
Mikell and Sheldon Brown seemed like the defensive leaders after Dawkins left, and neither of them are here anymore. I expected there to be a leadership void, and I think leadership is important.
But I still think both games were winnable without some guy giving an inspiring speech in the huddle or on the sidelines. It’s guys not making tackles and other players they are capable of making and in position to make. To me, that’s not coaching or leadership, that’s poor play. Period.
Mikell and Sheldon Brown seemed like the defensive leaders after Dawkins left, and neither of them are here anymore. I expected there to be a leadership void, and I think leadership is important.
But I still think both games were winnable without some guy giving an inspiring speech in the huddle or on the sidelines. It’s guys not making tackles and other players they are capable of making and in position to make. To me, that’s not coaching or leadership, that’s poor play. Period.
Why not give Colt Anderson a shot at safety (I thought he did a decent job last year)…Nate Allen is not all the way back – he is gonna be a liability….and I still think Kurt Coleman is better than Jarrad Page…Coleman showed potential last year and even in some preseason games…I really dont think Nate Allen and Jarrad Page are the answer (re: Allen till hes fully healthy)
Before Roob said that I had thought of at least starting to work in Lloyd, but I think starting him may be a bit much. I don’t watch practice so the coaches know a lot more about how Lloyd’s doing. Lloyd can be inserted in obvious run downs and perhaps Jordan can be deactivated.
Also I made a snide remark about Les Bowen on Iggles Blog once, and I want to apologize. Yes, I am saying that because my modeling agency hasn’t insured my nose yet.
Since safety is questionable and we have 4 solid corners, I’m still not seeing why we don’t have 3 CB’s on the field with only 1 safety in our base D. Yes, I understand they have different roles but you can’t tell me that Hansen or DRC or whoever you want to line up back there, couldn’t have done better than either safety these past few weeks, especially last week. With all this supposed talent on this team, I think Juan is having just as difficult a time trying to gameplan for teams as he is trying to figure out who to play where and when.
My guess would be because every good cornerback doesn’t necessarily make a good safety. It’s like sliding a center out to tackle … the positions are similar but the skill sets sometimes aren’t.
I’m sure NA could cover like a safety and DRC could play corner, but in my mind, what a smart team would do is just flop the formation with motion or a shift, forcing Nnamdi to be the run-support safety and not the deep coverage safety, and then just run right at him.
We’re already weak enough up the gut as it is to try to have a cornerback filling on run plays.
I’d like to see how we do with Page/Allen. Not ideal, but it’s the best we got. As we’ve all been saying, if the LBs and Ss can be adequate and not liabilities (i.e. cover backs out of the backfield, make tackles when they’re in position) then the Eagles should be a very good team.
I agree, i guess I’m just frustrated after being spoiled with JJ for a decade. I’m all for giving the lineup a chance to succeed for a few weeks but if this tinkering doesn’t pan out, it has to be an option to consider for the team
I think the other thing Andy needs to do is make sure he gets all of his best guys on the field. In our case, it means playing more nickel and dime defenses. Dominique and Joselio are both good cornerbacks, and need more playing time than they’re getting. If this means moving Nnamdi to safety or coverage linebacker on some plays (he did play safety at Cal), and letting Dominique and Asante cover the wideouts while putting Joselio in the slot, I’d go for that.
Andy’s a good coach, and I’m sure he knows this, but I don’t understand why he hasn’t tried this out, even in the preseason. Hopefully he tries to get our best players on the field more often.
Question: If Brian Rolle is your “long lost son” and also “the little ball of hate”, doesn’t that make you,.. oh no!,….the Big Ball of Hate?!
Guilty as charged.
If the Eagles had simply taken the money they wasted on a #4 WR (Steve Smith) who has hurt the team more than helped it thus far, and spent it instead on a young, talented MLB who actually *played* in the exact same defensive scheme that the Eagles are currently playing (Stephen Tulloch), we wouldn’t even need to be debating the MLB position right now.
Think about this. Howie Roseman dropped the ball on Sean Lee in the 2010 draft. Ok, you say he was a risk because of a torn ACL, fine. But given another opportuntity in the 2011 offseason to secure a stud MLB, and with very little risk (Tulloch eventually signed a $4mill or so 1 year deal w/ Detroit), he (and/or they, Reid & co as well) STILL dropped the ball on it.
It’s absolutely insane. All they had to do was pony up a few million for Tulloch instead of wasting it on a superfluous WR, and they had the MLB position completely shored up by a player who excels in both the run AND in coverage (according to profootballfocus), AND is young, AND has experience playing behind the Wide-9. How foolish do you have to be to screw something like this up?
I mean, the perfect player for your defense was just *sitting* there in free agency, available for a pittance (relatively). And you knew coming into the season that the LB corps was a weakness and could severely compromise your defense. And you show NO interest at all in the perfect MLB for your defense? How can you trust these people to even tie their shoes in the morning?
Do we know for certain that the Eagles didn’t make an offer to Tulloch? Is it possible that he doesn’t like playing behind a Wide 9 defensive line, and wanted to go somewhere else as a result? We will never know all of the reasons behind the move, but it is interesting to think how things might have shaped up with him here.
I’ve now stopped reading any other Eagles source. Tommy’s got it all covered…
It’s true… I just flip to “other” websites to see what kind of knuckle headed comments people are making about our beloved team.
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