Foles Continues to Impress
Posted: December 2nd, 2013 | Author: Tommy Lawlor | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 176 Comments »Nick Foles had a QB rating of 112 yesterday and that actually lowered his QB rating for the season. Think about that for a second. Foles was up at 128. He’s now all the way down at 125.2.
We keep waiting for something to change. But it hasn’t.
On Sunday Foles faced a defense that was Top 10 in yards, points and opposing passer rating. Football Outsiders had the Cardinals defense 2nd in DVOA. The Cards had a takeaway in all 11 games this year. This was a good defense.
Foles shredded the Cardinals for almost 3 quarters. He threw 3 TD passes and made it look easy at times. The Eagles had 24 points early in the 3rd quarter. To put that in perspective, the Cardinals had given up 25 points in the previous 8 quarters combined.
People are really starting to believe.
Peter King did an interview with Foles and made him the headline at MMQB. About the non-INT…
“Man, horrible throw, horrible decision,” Foles said from Philadelphia an hour after the game. “When I saw the flag and heard the call, I said, ‘Thank you God.’ I learned my lesson there. But that’s what I try to do: I build a database with decisions like that, and I learn from them. If I get that same look the next time, I’ll make a different throw, or I’ll throw it away. The good thing about it is, Coach has confidence in my decision-making.”
Those are beautiful words to my ears. Nick got lucky and he knows it. Learn from the mistake. Don’t repeat it.
Here are some interesting comments from someone at Football Outsiders.
Vince Verhei: This was the first time I paid any real attention to Nick Foles on his hot streak. And for three quarters, he looked just as good as his ridiculous numbers. It seemed like he never made a bad decision or throw. It’s not just that he wasn’t throwing interceptions, he wasn’t throwing anything that even had a reasonable chance of being intercepted. The fourth quarter was another story. He threw his first interception of the season, right to Patrick Peterson, but it was wiped out by a penalty. He threw another two or three balls that could have been picked but were broken up by his receivers, and had another pass tipped at the line and up into the air. I don’t know if Arizona was doing anything different on defense at the end of the game, but Foles looked like a different guy.
That’s fair criticism.
And here are some interesting thoughts from Sigmund Bloom, a football writer and analyst. He had a good discussion on Twitter with some other football guys. None of them are Eagles fans so that’s what makes this so interesting.
thats where foles is hitting imo. has mindmeld w chip flow chart of options for QB on any given play
he’s making correct read and executing. very little improv, just taking plays from chalkboard to field
plays set up matchups they think they can win (TEs today) and foles executes
i think chip has the effect of turning calculus into addition/subtraction.
None of us has any idea what to truly make of 19 TDs and no INTs. This is mind-blowing stuff for such a young QB. How much of this is Chip Kelly’s offense? How much is luck? How much is circumstances? These are all fair questions.
Kelly’s system is pretty darn good. Michael Vick posted big numbers in the first 2 games. He had QB ratings of 112.6 and 123.4. The difference between him and Foles is that Mike couldn’t stay healthy. He got hurt late in the SD game or early vs the Chiefs and his play dipped. Vick also posted those numbers against 2 of the worst defenses in the league.
Foles played the Bucs, Raiders and Cardinals when those teams were rated highly. Foles threw 13 TD passes in those games and the Eagles won all 3. You can no longer use the “who did he play” question with Foles. He’s done well against against a variety of teams and schemes.
Defenses have seen the Eagles and Foles now long enough to know what’s coming. This is no longer teams studying Oregon tape to prepare. They know what the Eagles do. They know what Foles can do. This isn’t voodoo. This isn’t luck.
I get that some of you still have doubts about Foles. That’s fine. Just don’t be unreasonable as you judge him. This is enough of a sample size that you can’t dismiss it to just being a couple of good games or anything like that.
Deion Sanders brought up the question on the NFL Network of whether Foles should be in MVP consideration if he continues to play like this. And Michael Irvin praised him left and right. Those guys are huge Vick fans, but they can see that Foles is the better player right now.
Foles is playing at a consistent level. He’s making smart decisions and accurate throws. That is QB 101. The fact he isn’t making highlight throws and great runs should be encouraging to you. Those things are tough to sustain. Being smart and accurate? That can last for a decade.
Foles is the QB of the present and every week he looks more like the QB of the future as well. Jeff McLane posted a quote from Kelly on WIP this morning.
Chip Kelly gave Nick Foles the closest thing to a long-term endorsement when he was asked by Angelo Cataldi during his regularly-scheduled Monday appearance on 94-WIP if the second-year player had the makings to be the Eagles’ quarterback of the future.
“Yeah, you hope so,” Kelly said. “And I don’t mean to be coy. I always say this … you can say that whomever is your player of the future and then the next week they get hurt. I hope that Nick’s here for a long time. I’m a big supporter of him. I think he does a fantastic job. But we also know that injuries occur in this game and that’s why I always qualify what I say. But I love the kid and I think he’s playing outstanding.”
I think the ultimate compliment I can pay to Foles is that I now expect him to play well. There used to be hoping and wishing. Now there are expectations.
_
Tommy, not sure if you already answered this,
It seemed like the entire offense struggled in the 4th qtr yesterday.
I understand that Peterson and Honey Badger are special players. What can Chip do as far as playcalling and alignments to combat this strategy (man coverage/loading the box)?
Like that avatar…only one better would be #20 flying through the air wlile tackling..
Lol the flying BDawk that comes to mind was the sack and tomahawking forced fumble of Romo in that 44-6 blow out years back.
I need to check the tape. I talked yesterday about the issue.
“Here’s the most simplistic explanation I can give you. Late in games, defenses are daring the Eagles to throw. Kelly will spread them out, but defenses will keep 7 in the box. With only 5 blockers, that’s not a winning formula. Defenses are single-covering on the outside and daring the Eagles to throw the ball.
Kelly has 2 choices. He can go to a more conventional set and load up on TEs and use Casey as a FB and then pound the ball. Or he can throw it. Spreading them out and running against a 7-man box isn’t working.
It would help if the Eagles had more of a downhill runner that packed some pop. Shady looks for big plays and loves to move laterally. Late in games you want a N-S runner that will attack the LOS, whether there is a hole there or not.”
Maybe my frustration comes from Kelly not picking one of your two choices. I am starting to think the GB game ending drive was bad b/c now Kelly thinks he can do that every time.
Tommy, maybe you could help me out with this…. wouldn’t a play like a reverse or having trips to one side and have Desean come across the backfield in cases where the box is stacked help? It seems counter-productive to just keep ramming your head into a brick wall, something that presses the edges a little? Or how about more bubble screens in that case. If the defense won’t respect the edge, make them pay. And a screen should be like a long handoff.
And, on a crazier, can’t believe I am typing this note, what about putting Vick in (and this is coming from a guy who does not believe in a 2 QB system)? If you are going to commit to running anyway, let Vick run the offense so there is more of an edge threat. It might hold an unblocked rusher better.
Great work as usual by you Tommy!
I had problems with Disqus yesterday and couldn’t comment. But I want to follow up on the some of your thoughts in the post yesterday and response to bdbd20. I’m happy for the Eagles victory but it’s frustrating to watch the Eagles offense bog down in the 2nd half and seem to struggle running out the clock.
TL you wrote it would help if the Eagles had a N-S runner but I think Brown could be that weapon but is not being utilized/put in position by the coaches to succeed. Brown reminds me of Frank Gore. Gore is very effective in the 49ers power running game with a lead blocker – http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1506488-super-bowl-xlvii-preview-breaking-down-the-san-francisco-49ers-running-game
Sometimes I scream at the TV asking why don’t the Eagles deploy Brown with a lead blocker? Why isn’t Casey used as a blocker rather than a situational TE and emergency QB? What did they sign him for?
Casey is a mystery man.
Was he injured? Has he been outplayed by the rookie and Celek? What’s up with him exactly?
I like that Brown has listened to his teaching and is now more likely to run where the play is designed rather than head straight for the open field (sideline). But he is still a far cry from being a N-S runner.
I always come to line by DeNiro from Heat, “you know there’s a flip side to that coin” Brown does bounce it out but is that (bad) habit or there’s no hole from the blocking up front (always just the 5 OL). A while ago TL posted a good link to a site that looks at draft prospects that gave a break down on Bryce from his very limited college tape from Tennessee and in this one play (with a lead blocker) Brown looked like a natural runner with good vision.
I honestly think it was a bad habit. I don’t think Brown has football in his blood like some guys do. He is handling himself now like a professional athlete should and is finally doing the right kinds of things in games, but I don’t think he relishes the physical aspect of the game. (and I don’t blame him one bit) He has tons of talent, and I like him as a player and now as a character as well, but he’s not a pile pusher and footballer like say… Polk is.
Wouldn’t bringing out a lead blocker and having Foles under center be a more conventional set? Kelly talks about running a “See Coast” offense but he seems to be very averse to placing the QB under center.
My last point: the Eagles difficulty scoring off TOs. What’s the deal? The Eagles have markedly improved in forcing TOs and TO differential but are 18th in scoring off TOs. I scratch my head how a top 5 offense can’t score more off of TOs. The Eagles were +3 yesterday at home and won the game by 3 points?!?!
I think Chippah is leaving points on the field.
We’ve seen a few under-center plays, but not very often. I do kind of wonder if his aversion to them is more stubbornness than a philosophical imperative.
I bet it has to do with how little they practice from formations under center
It would help if Brown didn’t try to break so many runs outside of the tackles though. Brown has been the most frustrating player to watch on this team.
I don’t know if anyone remembers the end of the first Giants game (at least I think it was that game) where that was exactly what they did. They grinded out two first downs that way and that was the end of the game.
Casey has been as useful as wooden tits on a boar hog this year. I would rather they had a proper FB who can play on special teams. Bring back Owen Schmitt! Bring back Stanley Havili!
i miss Jon Ritchie. and Leonard Weaver. though i’m not sure Chip would really even want either of them on the team (though maybe weaver’s versatility could earn him a place here)
Weaver would just be a normally RB for us. Kelly would love to him as a bruiser. Remember Kelly once had Blount as his star RB.
Yo shah, I’m gonna post this again because I think you missed it. Why are your two favourite whipping boys for arm strength leading the league in passer rating currently? IE, what do you know that defensive coordinators don’t, I guess?
Please don’t just say passer rating is meaningless. It’s flawed but it indicates you throw a lot of TDs, few interceptions and most importantly have a good YPA. In terms of YPA Foles and Manning are 1 and 3 respectively.
This year Manning, Foles and McCown are 3 of the QBs with over 100 in passer rating but all have “weak” arms. One could also talk about Drew Bress and his “lack” of arm strength.
The all time whipping boy is Chad Pennington. Guy couldnt complete a passer over 20 yards, yet still has one of the highest career passer ratings.
I would think 5-1 is one of the best QB ratings in the league… next to Payton’s 10-1. Shah8 will probably be in shsssh mode this week. Or blame the 4th qtr on Foles incompetence.
or talk on how Joe Webb would have tossed 5 TDs while rushing for 300 yards.
Guys, let’s try to keep this from getting personal. shah8 isn’t a Foles guy. He does love QBs with strong arms. Nothing wrong with that. The world would be boring if we all agreed.
My problem isnt that he loves strong armed QBs, but when he begins to say things like “Joe Webb would be better than Nick Foles is right now”.
Its okay to think a Vick type QB is still the best option long term, but Joe Webb?
That’s over the top. I don’t dispute that.
Just try to keep this from getting too personal. Rip the guy a bit. That’s fair. We’re all accountable for our comments. Just remember at the end of the day we’re all Eagles fans.
Yea, but maybe I just get annoyed when people go over the top.
I can 100% see why somebody would still question Foles. Hell I even do it sometimes, I can sometimes see a play and wonder, if Foles was just faster or had slightly stronger arm, he would have made even more plays.
You know who wouldn’t go over the top? Ronnie Brown. But, he tried to throw over the top. Still finding dry bits of vomit from that play…
Shouldn’t you be taunting Bama fans?
I’m of the opinion that a gloater should be able to take what he dishes out. (Ideally all in good fun.)
Anyway, Foles will have a bad game eventually, and all the non-Foles guys (and girl) will get to have their day again…
My bad if it seems like I’m making this personal. I just wanted to see if he had an explanation.
I don’t think your post was personal, but the board, myself included, did go that direction yesterday. I think Tommy’s trying to nip it in the bud before it gets to be a regular thing.
Yeah, I know what you’re talking about. Good call.
Agreed. Shouldn’t post before coffee. my bad, y’all. Just like Chip in the 4th qtr, we’re all learning and growing
Actually, a couple of those passes were flat-out excellent and wouldn’t be highlight reel eligible only because they weren’t TDs. Outstanding touch and location…at least for the first 2 1/2 periods.
I don’t think anyone believes Foles is as good as he’s looked right now, that level of play is almost unsustainable unless you’re Peyton, Brady, Brees or Rodgers, and we’ll need about five years to make that judgment on Foles. However, you can make a good case that the sample size is large enough to proclaim Foles a legitimate top 10 QB candidate. And that’s just fine, Big Ben and Eli have two rings, etc. Top 10 is good enough for the rest of the decade, top five (i.e., elite), well, I’m not counting on it.
Foles is a good fit for the zone read, he can run just enough to be credible, but the important aspects are “repetitive accuracy” and decision making, and it’s hard to make the claim he doesn’t excel in those areas. His size also helps, on some of the screens where he fakes one way and looks the other, his height keeps him from making mistakes that a shorter QB might make because he can see the defenders over his linemen. And he’s shown the judgment to pull it down when the defense blows up a play and improvise rather than force the ball into a tight window.
Only question is whether Foles can process faster and tighten his delivery, sometimes he looks a bit hesitant, and he can “loop it” a little. But to be fair, he still doesn’t have a full year of NFL starting experience, it’s not unreasonable to assume he might improve the next few years.
I wouldn’t say he’s a good fit for the zone read. He’s a decent fit because of his decision-making and seeming ability to absorb contact, but defenses will never respect him on the keeper. They’d much rather make Foles run for 5-10 yards than dedicate attention to him and leave McCoy with more space, opening up the possibility of a 40 yard run.
Anyone that can consistently make the correct read is a good fit for the zone read. Chip will gladly take those 5-10 yards.
those 5-10 yd plays are way better. not only that, they’re more sustainable. Foles showed in the first half that he does a good job diagnosing blitzes and getting the ball out (good for 70% accuracy against the blitz). blitz? he finds the open man. zone? WR routes eat those alive. defenders will be wary of crashing too hard upfield as long as they have to eye Shady on the way there.
The zone read does not require a running qb, merely a qb who reads a key defender and dictates the play accordingly. And Foles is doing that at an “elite” level right now.
You’re underestimating the ramifications here. The occasional 5-10 yard gain Foles can pick up is not worth nearly as much. In Chip’s ideal world, the QB doesn’t even have to run, but instead creates a tremendous amount of space for the RBs. A lot of the plays that look like zone reads are designed runs anyway, but those plays are less successful, as the defense just ignores anything Foles might do. That’s why, when defenses know the Eagles are just trying to run out the clock, we see so many defenders in the backfield attacking McCoy or Brown. If on every play in the shotgun with a back next to the QB the defense had to account for the possibility of Foles taking off, those plays would be much more effective.
Foles has extended drives by capitalizing on defenses disregarding his keepers. That was a big factor in that 9-minute drive in Green Bay.
It also makes it far less likely he gets hit during a designed run, as he’ll usually have plenty of time to see the defender bearing down on him…
I agree with this. His numbers make him look like a top QB in the Brady/Brees/Manning category, but I’m not willing to go that far. But he’s certainly playing well enough to win.
Even Brady/Brees/Manning didn’t look like Brady/Brees/Manning in their first year(s).
It would be fair to compare Foles to RG3, though…
You’re right Cafone; we should not get carried away with Foles.
don’t ever stop
“As good as he’s looked” and “As good as his numbers have looked” are different IMO. I think he is as good as he has looked… but his numbers have looked better than he really is.
And there are still a lot of questions that can only be answered as things come up.
We shouldn’t really be looking at Brees and Manning and the veterans when we’re comparing Foles, but we should be looking at the guys that have come out the last few years – Luck, RGIII, Wilson, Kaepernick, etc. in order to get a better gauge on where he stands.
“…his height keeps him from making mistakes that a shorter QB might make because he can see the defenders over his linemen.”
Hater!
I wish we had run a fake WR screen late in the game. Seemed like the Cards were keying in on it (the Badger hit on DJ) because we ran it a couple times successfully. I’m not sure how the fake would look, but it felt like their was room to try it.
that was a hit — foles should have faked it. he had a couple of bad passes in the 4th.
I think it was in the cards (bad pun alert!), but each time we set up to fake the bubble screen they either brought a blitz or generated internal pressure, meaning there wasn’t quite enough time to slip the “blocking WR” out into the seam.
I believe (and someone correct me if I’m wrong here) that the pass to Avant on a mid-range corner route that fell incomplete after “incidental contact” might have at least had the formation of the bubble screen (don’t think Foles pumped it out there, though).
The offense seems to bog down in the second half during this streak. They waited until the 4th quarter yesterday, but this trend is pretty apparent. Do they go into hang-on mode for an entire half? Defenses are still keying on McCoy, making it difficult to run when they need to burn clock. There were a number of 3 and out or 6 and out drives that Jones bailed (punted) the Eagles out of. A number of tackles occurred in the backfield in the second half. They need to be able to run the ball when everybody knows they are going to run the ball.
was thinking donnie jones should be team MVP. great job for ck knowing importance of special teams.
I don’t think it’s the same thing each time. Lack of execution will always be a factor when teams struggle, but I think playcalling was a much larger factor against Washington than it was against Arizona.
Looking forward to the All-22s for further clarification.
There were definitely more passes called during the struggle period than against Washington. Not sure what the issue was. Coverage may have tightened a bit.
It seems to me Kelly is learning that, as good as his OLine is at run-blocking, it’s not 5 v 7 or 8 good, at least against above average NFL defenses, kinda like Tommy pointed out above. Shady doesn’t necessarily help with his proclivity for trying for a big play, but I think that’s the lesser part of the problem. If you’re going to run in the NFL in those situations, you stop with the cute stuff and go 2 TEs or bring in an extra tackle and just smash away. Not that you have to switch to a true power run game, which I’m not sure is the strength of this OLine at this time, but you have to get the numbers “right” to the point where you’re just asking your OLine to execute 1 v 1 with maybe one “read” defender. And from there, you can work in the occasional PA to DeSean or a TE deep, just to keep the safeties honest.
exactly opposite of ck’s philosophy. if they have 5-7fat guys in there let’s spread and take them out of the game.
I agree that it’s opposite of what he wants to do early in the game. The caveat here is that he wants to keep running late in the game, and that’s not a formula for running late in the game. They’re taking away the run, and CK’s philosophy normally dictates a pass in that situation – but as we’ve stipulated, if Chip wants to run anyway…
This is where CK runs “Stubborn Coast” O rather than See Coast. If CK borrows successful schemes from multiple offenses, that should be the time he runs a power attack with extra blockers (TEs, OLs, maybe even a FB a la 49ers) so he gets 7v7 or 8 instead of 5 v.
I’d really like to see more screens used in those situations. They keep the defense “honest” and looking at the receivers instead of just keying on the backfield. A sweep or bubble screen, or hell, even a slant/crossing route just over the heads of the LBs that are cheating up to stop the run would (should?) open up the run game more.
I wonder if you can find me an OL who can block 7 or 8 guys with just 5.
Maybe the Cowboys’ line from ’93 or ’94? That’s the most dominant OLine I can remember, but I doubt that they were often asked to block 5 v 7.
Well they had at least 1 TE and 1 FB to help them 🙂
I think Foles has proven enough that you go into the offseason with him being the guy. However, you still need to keep your eye out in the draft. If someone like Carr drops to the 20s (where I assume the Eagles will pick), you take him. Or, if Chip is comfortable with Lynch or someone similar later on, you take him.
think ck should run competition every offseason, except for shady since his workload is so crazy.
I think there might be an advantage to letting a single QB get most of the snaps in training camp and preseason…
I think Kelly wants his no. 2 backup to split the starting reps.
As Kelly always says: “The backup is just a chin strap away from playing”
I really don’t think it would be a 50/50 split and a true competition like it was this year. Maybe a 70/30 split at most.
yea, but I still want Barkley or who else is the backup to get a good amount of snaps. There should be plenty with they way they practice
I’d really be happier if they concentrated on other parts that need help more than QB. Safety, corner, LB all need help. Yes, they have come together, but that “elite” talent is missing. We also need more help on the d-line to get consistent push.
Agree. Right now for me ILB (Im a big Kendricks fan, but Im not sold on him yet and Ryans is getting older), OLB and CB is the biggest needs. I think we are good enough at starting safety with Allen and Wolff especially if we get a better CB instead of Williams and stud pass rusher
I’d love to see Kendricks at OLB. I know he’s small, but if Goode can play inside for a few snaps, it’ll free up Kendricks, letting us see what he can do at the position he played in college.
Kendricks played ILB at Cal.
yea he played ILB in a 3-4 and OLB as a 4-3 OLB.
Yea but never OLB in a 34 like BlindChow is thinking. They did use him creatively his senior year, but never consistently at OLB.
agree. Also Kendricks would be a super undersized OLB.
I mean didnt people complain about undersized DEs under AR?
Well, damn, I knew Cal used a 3-4, but a draft site listed him as an OLB, so…
Still, he’s surely gotta be better than Blitzin’ Boykin…
I would like to see the Eagles go after a mid-round safety. Kenny Ladler is my personal man crush right now. He is being projected in the 4-5 range which from tape study I’m pretty sure is his grade coming into the year and he will rise as people get around to his tape from this year. Deone Buchanon is also intriguing. The hardest part about trying to get a feel for ILB is what kind of guy do Davis/Kelly want. Do they want somebody who is very similar to Meco? That would be Skov. Or are they looking to have a linebacker unit like San Fran with two linebackers that can fly all over? If thats the answer then besides Mosley (who would be a mismanagement of resources) you’re looking at some late round guys with size and speed to be projects (Jordan Zumwalt).
I’ll admit I’m not the smartest guy when it comes to football bit I love watching me some tape! And you know who myan crush is, Justin Gilbert.
Can’t stand Gilbert. Allergic to contact. Fake tough guy. Kid is a combination of DRC and Asante. And I don’t mean that in a nice way. Has talent. But also probably buys his tampons at Costco in bulk.
I really didn’t see that at all. Maybe not the most physical but definitely not as bad as people make him out to be. Any sort of deficiencies he has could be coached out imo.
He refuses to get off blocks. He literally gets himself blocked more. That is a question of effort and “heart”. You can’t coach that.
Don’t get how people can want to replace Cary or Brad after yesterday…unless Howie wants to make a splash and go sign the kid from the titans, I am good with our CBs for one more year..
…
Nate is Balling, but we have no rights to him in two months, We are going to have to outbid him to retain him..I’m also weary of kids who ONLY play well during their contract year, but if he keeps playing like he did yesterday I’m open to bringing him back,,,because we have to outbid teams for him I would still try and upgrade! but it’s nice to have him emerge as a fallback
…
Drafting in the 20s I’m looking at:
1) Van Noy OLB(worth trading up a few spots to grab, I know you don’t like him)
..
2) Vic Beasley OLB Cole and Brandon can hold down the fort while he gains weight
…
3) WRs
…
4) the athletic guard from Baylor Cyril
…
5) NT or DTs Luis Nix, Shede Hagemen
,.,,
I think Meco and Kendricks will start together for another two or 3 years
Would agree on Carr, can’t see Lynch as a QB in the NFL. Jimmy Garoppolo would be one I’d be very interested in picking up.
Lynch has said he’s open to switching positions.
He’s too pretty. Can you imagine poor Foles in the meeting room with Barkely and Garoppolo? It would destroy the dudes confidence.
During the 4-game winning streak, it seems like Kelly has wisely decided to go with a lot more 2-TE sets than previously in the season. I saw some numbers 2 weeks ago but haven’t seen an update.
I would love to see the stats breakdown on how the offense performs on the 2-TE set and how often the Eagles are employing it when they have gotten out to large leads the past few weeks while trying to run the ball.
My initial thoughts are that Tommy is right and that Kelly is trying to spread the field out with 3- WR sets without much success since the Eagles don’t have the numbers, McCoy isn’t the ideal back for success in that scenario, and that teams just don’t respect Foles ability to run, and that the Eagles are running the read-option too much in those circumstances.
i’d like to see more 2 TE sets with a guy like Ertz in there. we can bring him inside to block or split him out wide to take the place of the 3rd WR if we want to spread out the D.
problem with bringing him inside is that will likely bring in another defender too which may not give us any different numbers advantage…
I think a lot of that had to do with the tendencies of the defenses they were facing. Arizona has a bigger problem with tight ends than they do with outside receivers, so the game plan included ways to get the tight ends more involved.
is there any way to get a 2 RB set or a 1 RB 1 HB (Casey) set worked into the offense for late in these games? would that give the offense more ‘options’ to run the ball to different places to keep the D guessing as to where the play is going?
They’ve used those before, with Brown and McCoy flanking Foles.
Yeah, it’s old school, but I wouldn’t mind them adding some I-formation, under-center looks for lead-protection situations.
Man, we have awesome personel to run the pistol with TEs who can block like Ertz and Celek…I know Chip ain’t a pistol guy! but it would fit us and our line so well
How about the wildcat…..lol,,,,hehehe…..not going to do the hehehe anymore when we recover a fumble …. everytime I do it gets reversed.
Donnie Jones
Kind of funny how he arguably might be the best FA signing the Eagles made this past offseason.
Punts Inside the 20 – 45% (last year it was 15%)
Return – 4.5 yards (last year it was 13.6 yards)
Net – 41.3 (last year it was 38.8)
Some of the credit certainly goes to the special teams coverage and the greater emphasis the Kelly places on it overall. Still, for a defense that gives up a ton of yards it has been really critical that opposing teams start deep in their own end. Jones and the punt coverage team have made sure that has happened a lot especially the last few weeks.
Some of the credit certainly goes to the special teams coverage and the greater emphasis the Kelly places on it overall.
hah. i was just about to say this.
think about how we managed the field position in the second half of this game. we got great punts and coverage out of our guys and on the return side, we seemed to begin with pretty good position in most cases.
remember back to the beginning of the season when everyone loved Coach Fipp? and then there were some subpar ST play for a few weeks? is it safe to say that Coach Fipp is turning it around again?
(please note that the Redskins awful ST unit may be skewing the results from early season and the recent ‘turnaround’ lol)
It’s Jones, but yeah. He has been a big part of the last couple of wins especially.
Foles – It seems like he was lofting things too high yesterday most of the day but especially in the 2nd half.
One of the weaknesses Foles seems to have so far is his touch & accuracy on check-downs or flare routs out of the backfield although I would love to see some numbers to actually confirm/deny that observation.
Overall though people are really nitpicking on Foles if they are going to criticize him for a couple of bad throws. Even as great as Manning was in the 2nd half yesterday vs Chiefs, he threw 2 INTs and had another ball dropped that could have been picked by the Chiefs’ safety.
I’m sure he’ll get better. Doesn’t even have a full year of starts which is crazy.
Really pulling for him to break that record. That is something requiring skill and luck. He did get away with one yesterday, still so many things can go wrong on a pass play. Odds are not in his favor, but just two more, even one.
But if you think about it, if they had made the right call on the Cooper catch against Washington he’d have already tied it. And if Celek had gotten another 1/2 yard, he’d have already broken it. Luck evens out.
Did have last week on my mind. Watching the NY Wash game, balls going through receivers hands and getting picked, Can happen even on a good throw. Just sayin it’s a difficult thing to do.
Yep. With the 7 td performance and if he breaks the record, it is hard to argue against him being at least a little special.
I would not say his accuracy on checkdowns has been an issue before yesterday. His ball placement on screens and flares is usually very good.
Trent Cole
I was at the game yesterday and it mystifies me that you don’t see more Cole jerseys. I think I saw 1 all day. You see a ton of Jackson and McCoy jerseys and to a lesser degree Celek. Even see more Vick jerseys.
Just don’t get why Cole hasn’t been more popular than he was in Philly. Never bitches, never showboats, never makes excuses, and never question his effort during a game. Basically the anti-Jackson. Also has produced a very high level with the exception of last year when he was playing with a serious undisclosed injury all year. He could have shut it down but instead gutted it out.
Cole has been my favorite player on this team for a while now & it has been great seeing him have a mini-revival the past few weeks. Looked like the Cole of old a couple of times yesterday where he just let loose and blew up the LT. Even got some double teams yesterday.
I be honest when I bought my jersey I was deciding between Celek and Cole. Ended up with Celek.
I doubt you find an Eagles fan who does not love Cole
I think part of that is because casual fans (who make up the large majority of the fan base) go for the big name flashy players. I would imagine McNabb and even Westy had better sales than B-Dawk. Also cole has always just gone about his business. He’s not a look at me kind of player. You show me somebody who buys a Mathis or Thorton jersey and that’s the fan who you want to watch the game with.
Don’t know about that. You saw a ton Dawkins’ jerseys and I still saw more than several yesterday.
Dawkins is a bad comparison for Trent. Dawk is an all time league great. Trent is best defensive player on the team for an extended period. Still by and large offensive skill players will outsell defensive players.
I own several replica jerseys in the usual suspects over the years (Jackson, Shady, McNabb, Westbrook, etc), but I own one authentic jersey–Cole. He’s been my favorite player since Dawkins and Sheldon Brown left. I’m really hoping that his improved play the last few weeks bodes well for him sticking around for at least another year.
Consider his contract, I think 14 is his last year.
Probably true. Still an improvement over the general consensus earlier this season that seemed to be “If we have the cap room, why haven’t we cut him already” or “He’s definitely gone at the end of the year.”
I’ve got a Cole jersey… Great player, and well worth keeping even after he retires.
same here. one of the few jerseys i own.
Wonder if Tommy is telling us it’s ok to get a Foles jersey. They out in abundance yet?
I think it’s time to stop talking “rebuilding year” and start talking Superbowl. There isn’t a team in the NFC the Eagles can’t beat right now, and this team is continuing to improve as the season goes on. By the time the playoffs get here, the Eagles will be the most feared team in the NFC.
They would be big dogs on the road in Seattle and New Orleans and rightly so.
New Orleans would be a blood bath, that would not be a favorable situation. The hardest part about Seattle would be playing at Quest. We match up fairly well with them. They are a heavy run offense which matches up well for our D. They don’t have dynamic receiving weapons (haven’t watched them since Harvin returned though). Sherman is an elite corner but smaller quicker receivers give him fits (see T.Y. Hilton) so DJax could really go off. We would definitely be dogs but it wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibilities to steal that one.
Harvin isn’t really seeing much playing time at the moment. It’s possible they use him more in the playoffs, though.
Their secondary is hurting after all the drug busts, though.
Here’s the question: do we try to sign Browner at the end of the year? With te drugs he may come cheap. Worth the risk for a corner with the stature and skill we want?
He is out until week 10 at least next year and that is if he is re-instated.
Whelp. Nevermind then. Thank you
I would consider letting Maclin walk and trying to take a run at decker…Cooper,Decker,Ertz are some big targets, Desean would be perfect sprinkled in with those big boys,,draft another WR in like round 3…and FOles has serious weapons to grow with…
..
I know it’s a LONGSHOT, but We can easily offer him more money then Denver can if we thought he was worth the investment
I think Maclin is better than Decker.
Overall..maybe…Decker seems to me better suited for this offense. kid can block. if decker doesn’t get injured he will be much less riskier. Of course he will be much more expensive…I want size at the position especially I since we will give Desean a new contract…I would be desperate for an Anquan BOldin! Brandon Marshall, Fitgerald, Vincent Jackson type because I think FOles can do WONDERS with that type of weapon…Decker isn’t THAT but he is closer to it Stylistically than Maclin is..
…
Maclin and decker would be two very different signings. Signing Decker is a big investment, you expect him to come in and horse…signing Maclin coming off an injury is more like taking a flier
Now if Demaryious Thomas was hitting the market, I would be pounding the table for him all day..adore that kid
First we are not giving Jackson a new contract, he is 4 years left on his current.
2nd how much money are you going to give a guy who is a product of P Manning?
3rd, there is several Decker types in this draft we can get for around 5 mill less per year.
4th. Have Decker and Cooper would mean we are putting over 25 mill into the cap on WRs (when you include Benn and Jackson)
Aren’t we redoing Djax contract?
…
After last years ridiculous markets of Mike Wallace!the TE for the Rams,Kruger….I think the market will drop a little this year kind of how teams seemed to learn their lesson about reaching for QBs in round 1, but we will see.
…
I literally have no clue what Cooper will cost
..
Will Benn still be on the books after the year?
…
If FOles is that legit pocket sniper who we are going to build around, I can’t stand to see his era mirror that of Donovan where he only had that TO weapon for one year…if we decide to build around FOles, we probably have to redo this WR corp..the only two I’m sure I even want for the future are Desean and Riley..if you are going to build around a pocket passer then do it right! get him that serious workhorse like F itgerald that’s gonna get his no matter what..move up for Evans, trade for Vincent Jackson, trade for Josh Gordon and figure out a way to rig his drug tests..do something!
too many awesome BIG WR for us not to have on for our pocket passer. I really like Desean but I don’t really view him in the tier of:
Calvin
Fitzgerald
Marshall
AJ
Julio
Demaryious Thomas
Vincent Jackson types who will get their no matter what
..
I view Desean and Cooper as the perfect high quality compliments to THAT player on a serious playoff contender…but because of finances, I agree that player probably needs to be drafted!
..
It gives me chills to think what a weapon like that can do in a Chip Kelly offense with FOles playing this well
..
I’m just throwing Deckers name out their because him and Jimmy Graham are the best weapons out their…I’m more concerned with redoing this WR corp and adding to Coop and Desean, then I am married to decker. I won’t be pounding the table for him…
Teams are always going to overpay in FA.
Benn has one year left after this year.
As said, there is plenty big WR with potential in this draft.
Before this weekend Decker had 3 touchdowns all year, with Peyton Manning at QB. I’ll take Mac, Benn, and a draft pick fighting it out.
Harvin is out tonight with a re-injured hip and Seattle only has 1 quality CB left in Sherman as Browner is getting suspended and Thurmond is on IR.
Seattle do have a quality pass rush, but how do you separate it from great coverage?
Seatle has PROBLEMS on the Oline, our front 7 should lick their chops to face them with how they been playing..but yeah, we certainly wouldn’t be a favorite at quest
Funny what a 4 game win streak can do. After the Giants game, we was talking about potential trading up for a top QB, now we are talking deep play off run
what were people saying after the Dallas game?
Foles was garbage and Barkley was a wasted pick.
My expectation now is the playoffs and frankly it would be a disappointment if this team didn’t make it after yesterday’s win. After that, I have no expectations because I thought this team would win 7 games all year.
wow — your glass is half full. There’s still a good team to play next week and a Dallas team that whipped us pretty good…
This team and this QB are rounding in form at the right time.
Have you been in Colorado recently?
Why? Did they get an NFC franchise?
I figured he was smoking…legally, of course.
Lane Johnson
I understand he is a rookie but man he has had some really ugly games in pass coverage including yesterday. Abraham whooped his a$$ yesterday when they were matched up and Johnson looked really lost most of the days especially on blitz packages when the Cards stunted or brought pressure from the corner.
You expect Johnson to take his lumps as a rookie starter but he has really inconsistent at times this year including this past week. Like to see his performance level out a bit more over the final month of the season.
For me the whole OL had problems. I would say the only really bad play was the Abraham sack, but lets be fair, Abraham is 11th all time in career sacks 2½ sacks behind Lawerence Taylor
Yeah Abraham is a still a great pass rusher when he is healthy and it is the one piece this defense lacks right now even with Cole and Graham.
Johnson just seems lost though and I am not sure if that is more on him or the line adjustments that Kelce & Foles make to pick up anticipated blitz packages.
Dude, before yesterday Lane had like 3 really solid games in a row…he is by far the best OT in a last years draft,while being the rawest….there is literally no reason to complain or worry about lane
JA is one tough row to hoe for anyone let alone a rookie. I’m sure the Cards saw that match up and pre-checked it a win. I think LJ is coming along pretty well and I think he will continue to improve.
I hate Coleman but is he really worse than Chung has played the past 2 weeks? Is Wolff supposed to be back any time soon?
Wolff’s neighbor posts here. We should be able to get constant updates on his limp.
I would rather Coleman play. I actually like the kid. As a person.….
“I think the ultimate compliment I can pay to Foles is that I now expect
him to play well. There used to be hoping and wishing. Now there are
expectations.”
I said this 2 weeks ago.
I assume you built a time machine, traveled to the future, stole my comment and then returned to use it.
I may be overreacting, but this is one of the funniest things I’ve read all day.
Think i was just super eager for foles
That seems hard to believe.
When you eliminate the impossible, whatever is left, no matter how improbable, must be the explanation.
I see no other possible explanations.
If the guy who successfully predicted a Nate Allen interception acknowledges the existence of time machines, you gotta take notice.
Sounds like the story “Who’s Cribbing?” by Jack Lewis. You should read it – maybe you’re the time traveler Tommy =)
http://beccas-book-blog-documents.blogspot.com/2009/12/whos-cribbing.html
Maybe I’m wrong, but I thought the OL generally played really well in the first half yesterday, at least when pass blocking. There were some bad plays, but it seemed to me that Foles had good time and a nice pocket most of the time. Things were quite different in the 2nd half though
Here is some insight about Foles that I found fascinating. It is posted by “Claudius” on BGN who has seats near the bench at the Linc.
” Foles usually comes back and hits the phones and chats with the offensive assistants after each series. The dude is totally unflappable. He never seems to get mad or excited. He just looks at the alignment sheets and the All22 and discusses, nods agreement and moves off to get onto the field for the next series. Honestly he just radiates calm, poise and toughness.”
Foles is the real deal folks. We might be seeing the beginning of something really magical. I believe he has a “mindmeld” with Chip and can slice up ANY defense. (Wow, I can’t believe I typed that last sentence but it is the truth.)
edited for the holidays: “and can slice up ANY defense like Emeril with a fresh set of ginsu knives and a six legged turkey.”
(hat tip to Madden and his multi legged turkeys for the thanksgiving games back in the day)
Or a Turduckhen…
THE TRUTH aka The Rainmaker aka The Jolly one aka St. Nicholas aka Sergeant Nicholas Brody(who was pretty gangster last night just like Folesy)…..
…
The GREATEST thing Nick ever did for this franchise was allow us to draft Cox,Kendrick and curry before getting to Nick…while the skins sold their soul to the devil for RGme,myself and I..and the colts kicked out The legendary Peyton for Andrew Schmuch who could use some luck right about now..
.
Fly Folesy Fly…we are getting a heckuva round 1 Player thanks to FOles eliminating QB as a need!!
Kelly simply needs to continue passing it until there are less than 10 minutes left in the game.
first 35 minutes vs redskins, 24 pts, passing 69% of the time.
last 25 minutes vs redskins, 0 pts, passing 25% of the time.
first 35 minutes vs cardfinals, 24 pts, passing 64% of the time.
last 25 minutes vs cardinals, 0 pts, passing 46% of the time.
You can no longer use the “who did he play” question with Foles.
I wouldn’t bet on it…
You can no longer reasonably use the “who did he play” question with Foles.
Better? lol
Excerpt from a Kansas City Chiefs blog:
Chiefs fans are starting to learn what Eagles fans already knew.
I almost feel sorry for them. Almost.
Brandon Albert went down!
..
Fisher is Horrible lol sorry Mike Kaye 🙂
..
Sean Smith is proving to be a horrendous signing who can’t cover ANYONE NNamdi part Deux if you will..
…
Their new QB either CANT or is ALLERGIC to getting the ball to their pro bowl WR.
…
3 KC losses in a row in November/December while Eagles are one of the hottest teams in the league during that stretch..
..
Trouble in Paradise? 🙂
Winning cures all ills. They’ll kill Washington which will put them back in the groove to beat Oakland. Then they get the Colts at home. If the Chiefs playes don’t beat the Colts, ArrowHead will.
May or may not be resting guys against San Diego to finish the season depending on the Bengals and Colts records as it relates to home field advantage in the first round. So I still expect a 12-4 or 13-3 finish out of them and a 1st round playoff win.
Wow..I was unaware of that schedule..you prob right..
…
In other news, the skins will deliver the first pick In the draft to the Rams lol
They should rest guys no matter; with the losses to the Broncos, they’re (almost) locked into that 5 seed.
Boy, sure hope they destroy the ‘skins….have their D/ST, need them to carry me in the fantasy playoffs!
But remember, the wild card team would now get home field over the division winner they’re playing against if they have the better record.
really? was that a recent change? I thought div. winners (3 & 4 seed) always had home field.
Also, KC is at 9 W’s, Bmore and MIA are 6-6. Both would have to win out, or at least 3-1, and KC would have to lose out to somehow fall out of that #5 slot. Don’t see it. Bengals and Colts don’t scare anyone much, and unless NE falls to 3 seed I see a Divisional round shaping up to be Den/NE/KC/maybe BAL? out of the AFC
I thought that was a change they just made, but I can’t find anything about it. Did baseball just make a change like that and I’m getting my wires crossed? Stupid human memory.
yet I heard so many Chiefs fan pro claim that AR had learned his lesson and he would use Charles better
Ahhhhh finally I get to read articles like this everywhere I look..this was a darn good one TY law.
…
Finally it’s not just about luck and defenders falling down..
…
I don’t know how good he will max out at, but I do think he has earned the right to never have his name mentioned with Hoying and Kolb again.,
…
Nick FOles has literally made Himself priceless for the 2014 offseason. Untradeable!!! the only possibility is that Chip still drafts a QB in round 1. I doubt it, but it is a possibility, unlike trading FOles this offseason which has zero chance of happening. if Chip were to draft a QB high to compete with Nick, I highly doubt that QB would be ready to be a better option then Nick when we start the 2014 season…So in NICKs Absolute worst case scenario another QB is drafted in round one, takes over for Nick at some point next year and then manages to convince Chip he is a better option then Nick…so basically, no matter what compensation is offered, the haters are stuck with St. Nick thru ATleast next season….Yous better find a way to get over the foot speed lol or our will drive yourselves crazy 🙂
The only legit D (and team) has been the Cards.
Raiders and Bucs ranked high in some aspects but overall were middle of the road or worse. When teams have the records they have..you can’t talk about them being worthy opponents.
Think you are slightly blinded by your hate?