Some Thoughts on the Defense

Posted: October 8th, 2013 | Author: | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 114 Comments »

Bill Davis had his PC today and said some interesting things.

He continues to talk about improved technique by the players. I’m sure some of you roll your eyes at this comment. There is truth in what he’s saying. It takes time for guys to learn how to play the 2-gap technique. That’s just not natural for players. Guys prefer to attack, not engage blockers and read plays. Think about JPP and JJ Watt. Both guys were good rookies, but then dominated the league in their 2nd year. Watt had to learn the 3-4. JPP was just extremely raw overall. He was an athlete playing football. As the players learned how to function in their roles and the subtleties of playing DL, that complemented their natural gifts and allowed them to become great players.

Watt and JPP are extreme examples, but the point is to show you that experience and technique are important. You can have great natural gifts, but that won’t guarantee you’ll immediately be a great player. Football looks like random violence, but coaching is more precise than you’d ever imagine. It is great every year at the Senior Bowl to listen to coaches talk to players about hand placement or how wide their feet should be or how to use choppy steps vs long strides. Playing on the DL is a lot more complicated than it looks, especially when you’re facing NFL blockers.

Ced Thornton is the guy who really jumps out. He’s getting more and more comfortable. He did play in the 3-4 some in college so this isn’t completely foreign to him. Fletcher Cox is still figuring things out. He flashes in every game. The raw ability is there. He’s just got to continue to figure out the little things.

Davis talked about Bradley Fletcher’s ability to play the ball and how calm he is. This is a great point. A lot of CBs panic as they go to play the ball. You can have tight coverage, but the moment of truth is when the ball gets there. Good CBs will stay calm and play the ball. Other corners will be sloppy or over-aggressive as they go for the ball. This leads to PI flags.

Davis said that he’s happy with the way the CBs are playing and that’s one of the reasons that he will leave Brandon Boykin in the slot. This is another point that may get some eye rolls. I get his point, but don’t mis-read him to take this as a long term endorsement of the CBs. I think Davis knows that the team needs to get better there. I think he’s talking about the fact that Williams and Fletcher are playing to their potential. Both guys are flawed players so you can’t expect great play from them. They have made some plays. They have generally tackled well. There is no question about effort.

I do enjoy listening to Davis. I hope the defense continues to get better so that he can have some positive things to discuss.

* * * * *

PE.com has another good video to watch. This is Adam Caplan and and Greg Cosell discussing the 3-4 vs the 4-3. Most of the info is common knowledge, but Cosell does a good job of explaining things and is always interesting to listen to.

* * * * *

Football Outsiders has the Eagles with above a 50 percent chance to make the playoffs. That’s the NFL playoffs. Oddly, they don’t have the final record projected as 13-3.

This isn’t some crazy belief in the Eagles so much as an acknowledgement that the NFC East sucks and the Eagles don’t play a hard schedule.

I’m sure Chip Kelly is already calling the NFL office and asking when the trophy will arrive.

* * * * *

Jimmy Bama and I did a new podcast. The levels were very low for me this time. Jimmy ran the show through a program and it evened the levels fairly well.

But..the show is a .wav file and it is massive. Sorry for the problems. We’re working through things as we go.

* * * * *

Couple of odd tidbits.

Bradley Fletcher is tied for 6th in the league with 7 pass deflections.

Eli Manning threw 3 INTs the other day. Vinny Curry was on the field for 2 of them. Just worth noting.

_


114 Comments on “Some Thoughts on the Defense”

  1. 1 PeterAkkies said at 12:00 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    It’s too early to judge his coaching, but man I also love listening to Bill Davis speak. He’s eloquent and has a heck of a voice. He also uses his intonation really well. Now let’s hope his eloquence translates to teaching players well.

  2. 2 mtn_green said at 2:15 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    This.
    Glad I’m not the only one that enjoys his press conferences. On the cbs, I think he knows he has 2 number 2 DBs (number 3 on some teams) with limited speed, but good tacklers and can turn towards the ball while in coverage.

  3. 3 PeterAkkies said at 12:01 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Tommy, do you think Ced Thornton is big enough to be a long-term nose tackle for us?

  4. 4 Anders said at 8:46 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    This is the list I made of the starting NTs and there height and Weight
    Teams
    Starting NT
    Height
    Weight

    Chiefs
    D Poe
    6’3″
    346

    Saints
    John Jenkins
    6’4″
    346

    Colts
    A Franklin
    6’1″
    315

    Jets
    D Harrison
    6’4″
    350

    Ravens
    H Ngata
    6’4″
    340

    Browns
    P Taylor
    6’3″
    335

    Steelers
    S McLendon
    6’4″
    280

    Cardinals
    D Wiliams
    6’2″
    314

    Chargers
    C Thomas
    6’4″
    335

    Texans
    E Mitchell
    6’2″
    298

    Niners
    G Dorsey
    6’1″
    297

    Eagles
    I Sopoaga
    6’2″
    330

    Packers
    R Pickett
    6’2″
    338

    Redskins
    B Coefild
    6’4″
    306

  5. 5 austinfan said at 10:51 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    The ideal two gap NT was probably Casey Hampton, a fire plug at 6’1 320-330.
    However, Hoke stepped in one year at 6’2 310 or so and the Steeler defense didn’t miss a beat.

    Given that the NT doesn’t play the run as much as they did a decade or two ago, you’d probably be willing to sacrifice some bulk for athleticism.

    6-2 310 is a little light, but that’s where technique comes in, you need to be able to anchor against the double team. Some of that is size, but a lot is heart and technique. Kelly Gregg certainly wasn’t the biggest dude.

    I think Logan is probably targeted for the job next year, he played it in college, just needs more strength to do so in the NFL.

  6. 6 GEagle said at 10:58 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Don’t disagree…but Thorton was like 300lbs last year, this week I heard he was up to 315 and is still agile..maybe he can get up to 325 next year…anyway they use them, I do think Cox,Thorton,Logan, and Curry as he pass rush specialist is a nice young core to build on…

    Doesn’t Cedric’s hit free agency this year? Or ATleast RFA?

  7. 7 Anders said at 11:01 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    He will be RFA. He signed a 3 year deal a a rookie and Im pretty sure you need 4 years of service for UFA.

    I hope we can lock him up for 4+ years

  8. 8 GEagle said at 11:32 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Thanks…yea I’m pretty sure you are right. Luckily NFL owners inexplicably colluding to not not poaching each other’s RFAs, so we don’t have to worry to much about losing him next year

  9. 9 fran35 said at 11:54 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Are you pitching Ced for NT? While he may have the weight, he seems kind of long to me for the position. Might lose some leverage when anchoring. In any case, for me, this kid has been one of the better feel good stories for the Birds the last few years(we havent had too many). UFA, not highly regarded, bounced on/off practice squad, dealt with the dysfunction and kept working his tail off. He is the kind of character you can build around.

  10. 10 GEagle said at 1:15 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    I’m pitching for him to Chip in at NT until Logan is really strong enough to handle it full time..Sooner or later Soap and Gaethers won’t be eagles, so just from a numbers stand point another Dlinemen will have to be signed or drafted, and I would expect it to be a 320lb plus addition….but until our future personel is really in place, yes I do think Ced should help out at NT when Soap is struggling…I have defended soap but there was a stretch of KC and chargers games that he couldn’t even stay on his feet…

  11. 11 JulzPE said at 12:12 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Delighted with the CB play this season really. Nowhere near perfect but just seeing PBUs on a semi-regular basis is something I could get used to.

  12. 12 GEagle said at 6:54 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Agreed…CB play will only get better as our guys Gel, but we won’t really know how good they can really be until they get a stud safety to play with

  13. 13 Anders said at 8:45 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    yea agree. Upgrade safety in FA and improve the pass in some magic way and the pass D should be more middle of the pack than blowing donkey balls.

  14. 14 Chippah said at 12:18 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Has anyone else had trouble with the podcast link? All I get is code.
    Just a heads up, Tommy.

  15. 15 Iskar36 said at 12:40 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    When trying to listen to it through iTunes, I couldn’t get it. If you follow Tommy’s link in his tweet this morning:
    @lawlornfl: New H2H show is here. Levels are still off. @JimmyKempski used a program to try & fix ’em, but they still need work. http://t.co/owxMhEwWV2

    You should be able to listen to it.

  16. 16 Chippah said at 1:12 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Thanks

  17. 17 Flyin said at 1:05 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    That code will get you a free pair of Golden Underwear.

  18. 18 Call Me Carlos the Dwarf said at 12:36 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Does he talk about plans to improve the pass rush?

    Personally, I think throwing in some 4-3 looks so that our best pass rushers are on the field is an obvious solution, but maybe he has a better idea.

  19. 19 GEagle said at 6:38 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Talked about getting curry more snaps in pass rush situations

  20. 20 Anders said at 8:44 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Why are people so obessed with 4-3 or 3-4? Scheme does not matter, its who we play (and where)

  21. 21 Call Me Carlos the Dwarf said at 12:53 PM on October 9th, 2013:


    Because the scheme is literally the thing that determines who we play and where we play them?

  22. 22 Iskar36 said at 12:38 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    I posted this in the previous defense thread, but posted it late:
    “Tommy, I was hoping you could talk a bit about Bradley Fletcher’s PDs in the last game in your DGR with a little detail. The fact that he got the PDs was great, but watching the plays live, it seemed to me that on at least two of them, he was out of position and was beaten deep, but a poor throw from Manning allowed Fletcher to recover and get the deflection. To be fair to Fletcher, I wonder if the safety was supposed to provide help over the top (Nate Allen I think was close by on both of the deep throws I am remembering). It just seemed to me that a better throw would have resulted in a big play rather than a PD, so it makes me wonder whether the result is overshadowing the actual execution.”

    Your point in this post is still very valid. Regardless of start of the play, when he had a chance to get a PD, Fletcher managed to do that very well. That’s definitely a great positive. Still, the separation it seemed the WR got from our defenders bothered me, and I’m curious if others saw it that way or if they feel I am being overly critical.

  23. 23 GEagle said at 6:37 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    If memory serves me correctly, Nate had over the top help (well he was supposed to lol) on one of the plays…on the other play, Nate had his own man to cover, but was close to fletch man so when the throw was made. Nate peeled off his guy and went to help Brad make a play(so can only blame Nate for one of those throws)

  24. 24 Anders said at 8:47 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    You are correct and on the first play Fletcher had a PBU anyway.

  25. 25 SteveH said at 2:38 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    I haven’t really seen the corners as a problem so far when it comes to pass D. Fletcher has been steady, not awesome but solid (and holy cow 5 breakups in one game? When was the last time we had a corner do that…) while Cary Williams has been more up and down, but has provided some big plays. Boykin obviously has been our best corner and is turning into a playmaker.

    The safeties on the other hand, I think have been landing somewhere between tepid and awful. Hearing about how the Eagles gameplan was to not let Cruz and co. get over the top and beat them deep, then watching Nate Allen let people get behind him several times in the first half made me wonder how much worse he has to play before Kurt Coleman starts getting another crack at the starting LU.

  26. 26 GEagle said at 6:38 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Nate is allegedly improving… Lol

  27. 27 Nah__Roots said at 8:55 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    It’s sad that an “improving” Nate Allen is doing what any NFL safety is expected to do. Don’t give up the big play and make tackles. Ahhh, the McNabb trade. Everybody loses!

  28. 28 Anders said at 8:56 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    You be surprised how bad safety play is around the NFL.

  29. 29 austinfan said at 10:46 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Playing safety has become much more difficult as NFL passing games become more sophisticated. The days of the 220 lb SS who was more of a big LB are over, OCs will scheme to match that guy with a slot WR. So the ideal safety these days is 6’0 210 lbs, able to tackle in the open field, cover man to man in zero coverage, has the quickness and anticipation to quickly break on the play in zone, can recognize play action and not get caught flat footed, can read QBs and not be fooled by their antics.

    I’d rather put an elite DB at FS than CB these days, a CB can shut down one player, an elite S can elevate an entire secondary (Dawkins, Polamalu, Sanders when healthy).

    One argument I’ve had with Tommy over the years is that safeties have to have real speed now, the days of the 4.65 safety, no matter how good his instincts, are over. A fast safety, even with mediocre instincts, can be productive (Demps has 2 Int, 7 PD in KC in a part-time role). A fast safety with good instincts can be a game changer, a slow safety with great instincts will still be exposed the further he gets from the LOS. Doesn’t mean you have to have a 4.35 guy, but you want guys who run in the 4.45 range, i.e., enough speed to run with big WRs and not let them get behind the defense.

    Wolff physically is the prototype safety, but Chung has similar measurements but lacks instincts and cover skills to play off the LOS, we’ll see about Wolff.

    One reason I’d look at big CBs with “average” speed is a guy with CB cover skills but average hips who runs 4.45-4.50 is perfect for safety IF he can tackle and has the football IQ to master the position – the experience at CB prepares him for zero coverage.

  30. 30 Anders said at 10:57 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    I agree. I much rather have the elite safety than elite CB.

    Also reason why I really wants HaHa Clinton Dix. Perfect size, good speed and good ball skills and can tackle.

  31. 31 GEagle said at 11:05 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Totally agree about having the elite safety vs. Elite CB…I’m a Haha fan…but I would prefer getting our stud safet any stud OLB in FA, so we can se our draft picks to let Chip build his offense….we also can’t really afford to wait for an OLB and Safety to be drafted and developed because we have a nice cast of Robin’s, but we need a batman or two for our guys to really be able to show their worth……offense has a nice corp of batmans, so they can afford to build through the draft….I’m a defensive guy! but I’m not delusional…I know we will be an offensive team under Chip…so just break the banks open for Orakpo and Byrd, and Chip can draft all the offensive players that he wants

  32. 32 TheRogerPodacter said at 10:52 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    everyone hated him when he was playing awful football and making mistakes. now that he is making fewer mistakes, we all still hate him?
    i’m no nate allen superfan, but i have to give him credit for picking his play up. maybe Davis has put him in a position that minimizes his weaknesses, kind of the opposite of the Castillo/Bowles defense.

  33. 33 Nah__Roots said at 11:04 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Never said I hated him. I’m glad to see him coming around. It’s the investment of a 2nd round pick on a player who is just now starting to play average on a consistent basis that hurts. And I acknowledge he had no control over that.

  34. 34 GEagle said at 11:18 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Just tough to get excited about his improvement when I see No way that he will still be here next year…if he isn’t improving enough that makes him indespensable to us, then his improvement doesn’t really matter to me,,,this year is about grooming guys that will give us a successful future…don’t see much of a chance for Nate to be a part of it

  35. 35 fran35 said at 12:00 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    I agree. Nate looking average half the time feels like a win…
    But this defense was so dysfuctional the last 2-3 years with McDermott/Castillo and Washburn’s BS, who knows how badly that tainted Nate and other young guys.

  36. 36 TheRogerPodacter said at 12:57 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    yea, i hear ya.
    i’m certainly pulling for him to succeed, mostly because of what you said – we get a return on our investment of a 2nd round pick and we can at least somewhat solidify our weak defensive backfield!
    do i think he will turn the corner for good? i dont know… but i sure hope so.

  37. 37 GEagle said at 1:22 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    So we can finally groom Nate so he can go be COMPETANT for some other franchise? Let’s say Nate gets it together and becomes good, he will Never be great…Chung is good at best! Wolff can be good, but probably isn’t going to be a game changer…somewhere in this secondary we have to have a serious game changing playmaker….Nate will be a free agent at the end of the season! and I do believe that up grading his position is our best bet at making it work with Cary and Brad….Chung or Wolff can’t be the best safety on this team…for this entire Secondary to work, we need a stud for these guys to compliment….even if Nate rebounds and becomes good, he won’t be that stud and from a numbers game at the safety position, it makes No sense to sign Nate to a second contract especially since he can’t be a backup because you can’t really play him on ST…..

  38. 38 Anders said at 1:25 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Chung will 99% not be on the team next year. He was a stop gap solution anyway, cant stay healthy and has been the worst in pass coverage of the 3 starters.

    Bring Allen back on a cheap deal, bring in a FA, draft a safety+Wolff and have those 4 compete for the two starting spots.

    Sorta like we did this year, just with potential better players and safeties with actually knees.

  39. 39 GEagle said at 1:37 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Disagree completely. Chung is a team guy who would be professional and take a backup Role while BRINGING IT on ST…Chip also likes his versatility in that Chip believes he can backup Boykin in the slot….

    Once they get that true play making centerfielder Chung can play more to his strengths…Chung,Wolff,Kurt,Colt all make drastically bigger impact on ST then Nate….I would be absolutely shocked to see Nate here next year, when Chip has proven that backups are heavily heavily decided by ST contributions and versatility…Nate brings neither to the table and isn’t good enough to start….I know you act like Nates protective mother but I’m really not sure how you can think we would bring him back….we are trying to turnover this roster. I don’t think ANY average Eagles will be retained when they hit FA….we will have to agree to disagree because I think Nate being gone is a foregone conclusion..we’ll see I guess….I thought we were all in agreement on this, but I I guess not

  40. 40 Anders said at 1:46 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Chung has been worse than Allen. I know you have a hard on for guess who can hit, but if he cant tackle or cover, how good of a safety is he?
    Chung might have lost us the Chargers game with his bonehead holding penalty and he has missed more tackles than Allen

  41. 41 GEagle said at 1:57 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Chung’s upside is way higher…Chung is capable of making a play or two…Nate ceiling is not completely blowing it, or shadowing a guy well enough so a QB looks else where…how many plays has he actually made this year? The one play where he was decisive, came up and made the sack?
    ….
    I’m not even talking about my opinion, I was trying to predict the eagles point of view and I see Chung’s ST ability and backup Nickleback versatility, combined with the fact that he is under contract and a Chip Kelly guy, in my eyes! makes it an absolute No BRAINER that Chung is here next year and Nate isn’t. I would really be surprised if I’m wrong about this one

  42. 42 Anders said at 2:01 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    How is Chung’s upside higher than he is terrible? He got benched by Belichick and so far he hasnt been good with us either.

  43. 43 GEagle said at 4:33 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Chung will ATleast go out and make a play once in a while…he is agressive. Nate is scared, and the best he can do is keep guys from making a play on him.

  44. 44 anon said at 1:55 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    if he grades out well maybe we can get a 2nd day pick for him.

  45. 45 GEagle said at 1:58 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Oooooh!!! Now that’s a very good point and something to get excited about. Thank you for showing me the light…lol GO Nate!!!!

  46. 46 Anders said at 8:43 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Allen let Nicks Randle get behind him once in the first quarter where Fletcher broke the pass up.
    We was in cover 0 (no deep safety) on the next play and Allen had man coverage on Jerrigan.

  47. 47 GEagle said at 6:39 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    I guess Billy wasn’t blatantly lying last week…no surprise here. Love that dude

  48. 48 Bob Brewer said at 7:17 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    I admit, I unsubscribed from the Tommy and Jimmy podcast. I didn’t think another would happen with Jimmy’s new job.

  49. 49 Cafone said at 11:11 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Well, if you subscribed through the helmet2helmetshow.com RSS like I did it wouldn’t have mattered anyway. That domain has apparently died and is up for sale on godaddy. It looks like the libsyn feed is the way to go because they are all there: http://helmet2helmetshow.libsyn.com/rss … or iTunes I guess if you’re one of those Apple hipsters.

  50. 50 Weapon Y said at 7:45 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    I’m pleased to welcome you to the Vinny Curry fan cult.

    On a more serious point, Tommy, for guys who have boat loads of potential like Fletcher Cox and Mychal Kendricks, would you say it’s more likely to make a third-year jump rather than a second-year jump because of the new defensive system?

  51. 51 GEagle said at 7:47 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    I think guys will arrive by mid November, but yeah next year is the year for them!!!They have to arrive by their 3rd year..by the 4th year, they are what they are

  52. 52 A_T_G said at 8:12 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Wait, I thought he was saying that, “Eli Manning threw 3 INTs the other day (and Matt Barkley threw none). Vinny Curry was (only) on the field for 2 of them. Just worth noting (that it happens with or without him. Meanwhile, Matt Barkley was on the opposing sidelines, his eyes burning into Manning, willing Manning to quake in the knowledge that Barkley was only a single injury away from walking onto that field and forevermore ending the days when people talked about other quarterbacks. That knowledge, that fear, was clearly the catalyst in Manning’s spontaneous combustion).”

    At least that was the way I read it. I guess some might interpret the subtext your way, too.

  53. 53 Corry said at 8:40 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    I think any rational fan would have interpreted it that way.

  54. 54 P_P_K said at 8:50 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Hard to argue with logic like that.

  55. 55 Anders said at 8:41 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    I think Tommy already eluded too that earlier in the year regarding Cox. Simply put he might need another year to acclimate to the 2 gap and the reason why it makes sense to chance now and not in a year or two.

  56. 56 GEagle said at 5:56 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Btw, the Vinny Curry fan cult needs a cool nickname

  57. 57 ohitsdom said at 8:21 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Tommy, you never use Tom Brady as an example for QBs because he is too rare a talent and not something to be counted on as reproducing, especially from a late round draft pick. This is similar to how I view JJ Watt. The guy is a freak and absolutely dominates games. I have a really hard time using him as an example for Cox to live up to. Do you really think Cox could dominate a game like that? One also thing to note is I believe the Texans have a 1 gap system. Are there any good examples of a dominate lineman in a 2-gap system?

  58. 58 GEagle said at 11:07 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Hell NO..JJ is the best defender in the NFL…Monsters like him will come and go, but a monster like him with THAT type of Motor, is special

  59. 59 fran35 said at 12:05 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    When I make my next statement–no one is allowed to scream “heretic!”

    JJ Watt seems to remind me of Reggie White at times. His size, speed, and strength ratio is rare and he has the motor as well.
    Now, let JJ do this for the next ten years and we will have serious Reggie conversations

  60. 60 GEagle said at 1:41 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Lol…if I had to bet money on a player today achieving that Reggie Status, I can’t think of a player that gives me better odds than JJ

  61. 61 Anders said at 1:42 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Von Miller or Aldon Smith.

  62. 62 GEagle said at 2:01 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Isn’t one In rehab and the other suspended in a drug program or cheating scandal or something? For my money I would take JJs Odds, but yeah Those guys are Certainly awesome

  63. 63 Anders said at 2:02 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Yes, but Von Miller/Aldon Smith can be the LT of the White/LT debate? 😛

  64. 64 Corry said at 8:31 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    When you listen to Davis, the man sounds like he knows what he’s talking about. Of course, then I see some of his concepts and then I question if he does know defense at all…

    It was good to see the defense make some plays against the Gmen. I do think that a lot of it was that the Giants offense is just terrible. Eli is playing horribly and the whole offense is out of synch, but I think the confidence that the defense is building in games like that is incredibly important. I think games like last Sunday will really help them get into Davis’s system and hopefully let the start to play faster in the later parts of the season. I expect them to have another decent showing against Tampa.

    One thing I picked up on was when Davis said he made no adjustments in the second half and it was really about the players making plays. I’ve stated that I hate the choice of Davis as DC, but he’s right. The players need to step up at some point and just make plays. It’s not Davis’s fault that Allen takes a poor angle or Chung mistimes his jump on a PBU/INT attempt. They were in the right position, they just didn’t execute. Eventually, I think these guys will stop thinking about what they need to do and just do it.

    That is the last time I will be complimentary of Davis 😛

  65. 65 GEagle said at 12:22 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Eli seemed to play well in the first half…then the pressure started getting I his face and Dr. jeckyl became Mr. Hyde..That’s exactly what happened against KC….Eli had the Giants in that game, and then the defense started getting to him and KC blew the roof off of what was a close game….sure the loss of David Wilson helped us. And the Giants aren’t a good team…but I do think our D played well, held up nicely until the pressure started to break thru and make Eli erratic….nothing to blow out of proportion, but with everything being so new and so young, it’s a solid performance that they can build off of…

  66. 66 OregonDucker said at 3:51 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    The D did not let past mistakes in this game beat them. They improved and stayed aggressive. This made me feel fuzzy all over. 😀

  67. 67 Daniel Norman Richwine said at 9:02 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    I’m interested to see.of.chip’s teaching and conditioning techniques will start to show a difference in the Eagles second half of the season.

  68. 68 A_T_G said at 9:05 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Unfortunately, it might be hard to separate those impacts from the impacts of our schedule getting much easier.

  69. 69 GEagle said at 11:12 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    I don’t buy the easy schedule talk…especially for a team that has won 6 of its last 21 games…so much parity in the league, not a huge difference between middle of the pack and good….It’s important that our players learn how to win again, claw, scratch, fight your way to ugly wins..We have to crawl before we can run, so I don’t care who is on our schedule! any win is huge for where we are right now…….not to mention, I wouldn’t call us a Lock against Tampa,Dallas, Oakland…so if I can’t consider us a Lock, I have to be pleased with a win, even when it’s not against the best teams…if everything goes well this year, I can have loftier expectations next year…
    ..
    But to me this year is like 1999, Andy’s first year…..take any win I can get

  70. 70 A_T_G said at 11:53 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    What I was saying is that we are not going to be able to say, “Yep, we did better against Oakland and NY than we did against KC and Denver, it must be that conditioning.”

  71. 71 fran35 said at 12:29 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    KC is a legit playoff team. I contend that we beat ourselves with that one. 5 turnovers and we do not get blown out

  72. 72 BlindChow said at 5:14 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    I was excited to see KC play some heavy hitters, but man, their schedule is soft! Reid lucked into that one.

    Looks like the hardest games for them will be their 4 divisional games against Denver and San Diego, plus Indianapolis. And if Rivers is beginning his yearly collapse, then even those games will be easy.

    Otherwise: Buffalo, Cleveland, Washington, Houston…reminds me of our schedule, actually.

  73. 73 GEagle said at 1:51 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Fair and true…but right now I’m to worried with getting back to consistently beating bad teams, and winning a game at home before another calendar year passes by…….Where we stand right now, we could just as easily lose the next 3 games. Tampa, Dallas and Oakland all worry me…
    ….
    My Super Bowl is Nov 17 against the skins(watching the game from the eagles sideline)…losing that game is heartbreak for me…so I’m just hoping to see them build some confidence and steam against these bad teams to give myself the best chance at having an awesome experience(my own selfish reasons lol)

  74. 74 OregonDucker said at 3:48 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    If the D continues to improve, and the O gets its footing we will be hard to stop.. These are BIG IFs but doable. I am encouraged by the improvement on D and on the IMPACT of Vinny THE MAN Curry.

    If Foles can look-off receivers, avoid turnovers, then this O will roll baby.

  75. 75 Tom33 said at 10:29 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    I think one positive is the team has 9 takeaways this year through 5 games. They only had something like 13 all of last year. And they get to play Eli again in a couple of weeks.

  76. 76 anon said at 11:31 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Yeah i like that we get to kick them while they are down.

  77. 77 austinfan said at 10:38 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Players have different career trajectories, some is due to talent, some to personality, some to position, some to scheme.

    QBs tend to hit their peak in their 4-5th season, Brady was a much better QB (and given more responsibilities) in 2004, before then he was primarily a caretaker QB. Eli was horrible until his 5 season

    RBs are like shooting stars, they emerge immediately, though pass game skills especially blitz pickup) may take a couple years to perfect.

    WRs take 2-3 years to develop, the more athletic may be able to contribute immediately as deep threats, but route running and working with a NFL QB can take time.

    TEs take a couple years, blocking at the NFL level is definitely a skill that requires development, as does route running. For both WRs and TEs, the predominance of spread formations in college retards their development as pro receivers.

    OL take a couple years, they need to both improve technique and get stronger, though big program red shirts are usually close to their physical max.

    DL depend on their history, many come out as juniors at 21-22, and need a few years to physically mature, it’s easy to match a top college DL with an inferior O-lineman, in the pros, everyone is big and strong. Edge rushers emerge faster, DTs may take a few years (Kelly Gregg is the poster child for developing DTs).

    LB depends on role, space guys can contribute immediately, inside LBs need to add strength, improve technique shedding blocks and recognition. Most college LBs need a lot of work on pass coverage skills.

    CB, one position where a top athlete can contribute as a rookie, though even there experience helps in recognizing play action and anticipating routes.

    S, experience definitely counts, a position where recognitioin is crucial.

    You’re seeing this in action, Thornton is a 3rd year guy who’s coming into his own, Cox and Kendricks are talented second year guys who flash but are inconsistent, Boykin flashed last year but is becoming more consistent, Wolff looks lost at times. Logan isn’t strong enough as a rookie for NT, Curry is adjusting to 3-4 DE and probably needs another year to add strength and develop two gap technique to play on run downs.

  78. 78 GEagle said at 11:15 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Good post…

    I will disagree about rookie CBs…I. Hate Them!!!

    I think it’s easier to plug and play a rookie safety then CB, even if the safety position is becoming more difficult then the past

  79. 79 BlindChow said at 12:09 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Yeah, hasn’t been a good year for rookie CB’s. Even Claiborne, in his second year, got benched.

  80. 80 anon said at 1:31 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    then picked off peyton — might be starting again after that.

  81. 81 Anders said at 1:41 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    That pick was an under thrown ball by Peyton.

  82. 82 GEagle said at 2:05 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Dre Kirkpatrick still can’t get it together,,,,Stephan Gilmore is hurt…Casey Haywood was hurt! Janoris Jenkins hasn’t really taken that next step the way I thought he would…Amerson is struggling, slay is struggling, my boy Trufant and the other falcon CB are struggling…Claiborne was abused by the Denver TE

    .yet we are seeing safeties like Reid,Elam,Cyprien,Vaccaro, Swearinger being capable early in their rookie seasons..

  83. 83 Anders said at 2:08 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Elam and Cyprien are struggling big time.

    Amerson was a mid round draft pick so not sure why you are using him. Also you shouldnt factor in injuries as that can happen to any play.

    I get where you are coming from and I want a safety over a CB, but if the clearly BPA in the draft is a CB, we have to take him.

  84. 84 GEagle said at 2:43 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    The only Cb who I really liked play as a rookie was the Hayward kid from the packers

  85. 85 D3FB said at 7:24 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    I think it’s right around the trade deadline.

  86. 86 GEagle said at 11:28 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    As much as I like hearing Billy talk, it’s really impressive listening to FOles…kid is really growing up…and can’t give props to men, without mentioning the class act that Vick has become. few redemption stories as good as Vicks

  87. 87 GEagle said at 11:45 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Chip is doing a PC right now:
    Reporter: “Hi I’m from NFL Japan”
    Chip: WTF in the thinking bubble that appears over his head..”ok” as he looks at her as if she has ten heads..
    ..
    I LOL’ed….why the hell is NFL Japan covering a weds Chip press conference? With the NFL announcing that they can and will force teams to do HardKnocks…. I just feel it in my gut, that if no team volunteers, we will be on hard knocks next year….too much interest in this 2-3 team coming off a 4-16 team….my cousin in Rome is flying in for the Dallas game lol

  88. 88 Anders said at 11:46 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Just have to make the play offs and we cant be forced

  89. 89 GEagle said at 11:48 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    I think you can’t be forced if you made the playoffs two years in a row…..the restrictions were teams that have volunteered in the past decade, teams with a new Coach, or teams that made playoffs two years in a row….can anyone confirm or deny this with certainty?

  90. 90 Anders said at 11:52 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Was pretty sure it was made the play offs in the last two years

  91. 91 anon said at 11:53 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    Agree – we need to win the NFC East. I don’t want us to do hard knocks, but i would obviously watch it.

  92. 92 TheRogerPodacter said at 1:00 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    haha that would be such a love/hate thing for me.
    i’d love to watch it, but i wouldn’t like the fact that everyone else in the NFL could be doing the same, and i hate the fact that it could cause distractions for the team.

  93. 93 BlindChow said at 12:06 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Yes, you only have to have made the playoffs in one of the last two years to be ineligible. I wonder how they will end up choosing. Coin flips?

    It’ll be amusing if it’s forced on a team to see every person in the locker room act like James Harrison on this year’s Hard Knocks…

  94. 94 GEagle said at 2:47 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Thanks

  95. 95 GEagle said at 2:46 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    You might be right…it does have something to do with two years tho…either two years in a row of playoff appearances or in the playoffs within the last two years..

  96. 96 Nah__Roots said at 1:31 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    We’re forcing teams to do this now? Wow. Does the NFL really need to be scraping any more off the top? And I read somewhere they’re gonna play more games in London next year. I thought this was America’s game. Hey, Roger- blow.

  97. 97 GEagle said at 3:19 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    If we don’t win a home game soon, we will be begging for the NFL to take away a home game and send the eagles to London…hashtag THE-Linc-Is-Cursed

  98. 98 Jason M said at 11:51 AM on October 9th, 2013:

    3 guide for converting WAV into MP3. Not too difficult.

    http://www.unc.edu/soe-itech/resources/docs/audacity_MP3_conversion.pdf

    http://www.wikihow.com/Convert-a-WAV-File-to-a-MP3-File

    http://www.wikihow.com/Turn-Wav-Into-Mp3-with-Audacity

  99. 99 GEagle said at 12:07 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    It’s hump day, time to start talking some Bucs vs. Eagles

    Things I hope to see this week:
    ..
    Chip talked today about how the Bucs front 7 isn’t huge, but they are fast…interesting battle between a good, fast Dline, and our quick and Mobil Oline

    Hoping to see our 3tec(Cox) make more of an impact then their 3tec(Gerald McCoy) does..

    Hoping Kendricks steps up and out plays Lavonte David

    Hoping to see FOles be effective and judicious with the ball when going against playmakers like Revis, and see him manipulate Dashon Goldson with his eyes..

    This week it’s important to have Big CBs..V-Jax and M.Williams are big boys…Boykin won’t be matched up against a top slot WR this week, so it’s important that he dominates this week and takes their slot corner out of the game, while also being an effective Blitzer against the rookie QB

    Revis pretty much shutdown Djax on the jets..but Revis has gotten criticism in Tampa because he hasn’t shadowed the opposing teams best WR all season long. interesting to see how often Revis is on Jackson! and if FOles can make Desean effective, or will he be taken out of the game….Expecting Shady to have a big game as a Receiver with FOles in the game. To me it seems as tho Vick holds the ball to long because he refuses to check down to shady…That clock needs to be going in your head..can’t find anyone in 3 seconds, immediately check it down to shady or take off…

    Tampa will try to rely on Doug Martin, it’s important that our D steps up and takes him out of the game long, while it’s important that the offense gets points on the board in the first half so we can get them in a position where they have to throw the ball in the second half, making them one dimensional allowing us to unleash Vinny C

  100. 100 fran35 said at 12:37 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    What’s the read on Glennon? Is he a legit passer, or more of a game manager?
    I agree with your assesment RE: Shady. I do not expect a huge day running the ball, but he will end up with a big day receiving. Maybe Bryce as well. Also, my bold prediction for this week: Jason Avant has big game. It seemed as if Foles developed a rapport with him last year. And since Foles is big with timing and rounte anticipation, it will make Avant more relevant–as we all know Avant is never running free down the field.

  101. 101 GEagle said at 2:52 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Glennon is a Big, statue, FOles type, but he has dangerous skill positions that could really pose problems for our defense surrounding him…I’m glad we are facing him early in the season before he gets acclimated. No matter how ready he is, he is still a rookie…get pressure on him and he will undoubtably become erratic….the trick is to not let him get comfortable…contain Doug martin long enough to build a lead and make Glennon play catch up, become one dimensional, which then becomes Curry Time lol……tricky situation because of the good weapons around an unknown QB with a decent defense behind him…

  102. 102 austinfan said at 3:47 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Glennon is a Derek Anderson type, big arm but questionable accuracy and judgement.

    Not nearly as good of a QB as Foles in college.

  103. 103 GEagle said at 4:37 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    D.A is the perfect comparison…forgot all about that bust…is he still in the league?

  104. 104 Jack Waggoner said at 4:45 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Carolina

  105. 105 GEagle said at 5:55 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Wow…amazing how bad some QBs are who have Jobs…STANKchez will go somewhere and steal more money as a backup next year….how bad is Jamarcus R ussel for guys like Kafka to have jobs more recent then him?

  106. 106 Jack Waggoner said at 6:24 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    I’d take my chances with Tebow before I gave JaMarcus another shot

  107. 107 BlindChow said at 5:05 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Tampa has been playing Revis in more zone coverage. Their defensive coordinator is taking heat for it, considering they gave up a first round pick for the best man-coverage guy in the league. Reminds me of the Eagles in 2011-12, when we totally misused Nnamdi and DRC.

  108. 108 GEagle said at 12:42 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Former players talk FOles:
    ..
    Mike Quick talked to Angelo this morning about a season when jaws and Randle were competing and he talked about how WRs would much rather catch balls then block down field when he was asked about the FOles vs. Vick debate…
    ..
    Darwin Walker post game: “FOles will become a very good QB in this league in a few years after growing through experience”

    Ike Reese: Gives more props to the coaches, then Nick FOles for the two TD throws because he said those two TDs came on brand new plays that the eagles have never ran yet. He argued that It’s not like Vick had a chance to make those plays and failed. Credit the coaches for dailing up two new effective plays that worked for TDs
    1) “FOles rolls left(designed for Vick because the play is designed to get the defense to flow left with Vick threatening to run” while we slip Celek moving to the right with a ton of open field to work with, much bigger Celek with a ton of space to run, so QB can safely put it up where only Celek can go up to get it.
    ..
    2) in the preseason everyone wondered why FOles was throwing fades to Desan, well this time coaches saw the way Desean was being played in the RZ and took advantage of it by running a stop and go fade route that worked beautifully…..according to Reese.

    if anyone has heard any other FOles oppinions from respected former Eagles players, please Post their reactions under this post

  109. 109 Jack Waggoner said at 4:46 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Why do you capitalize the O in Foles?

  110. 110 BlindChow said at 5:01 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Damn you, Autocorrect?

  111. 111 GEagle said at 6:00 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    Yeah…autocorrect…did it the first time by accident and it acts like a retard and types it that way every time…it’s bad enough I have to delete the apostrophe every time I type Kendricks so in don’t have to hear it from one of you picky Focks (jk)…

  112. 112 Jack Waggoner said at 6:25 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    wouldn’t have mentioned it if I hadn’t seen it over and over again…autocorrect explains it though.

  113. 113 GEagle said at 7:37 PM on October 9th, 2013:

    No worries

  114. 114 My Homepage said at 12:51 PM on October 13th, 2013:

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