Non-Moves
Posted: December 4th, 2013 | Author: Tommy Lawlor | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 174 Comments »There is an old saying in sports that sometimes the best moves you make are the ones you don’t make. That is certainly true in regard to the 2013 Eagles.
* Missing out on DL Ricky Jean-Francois turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Ced Thornton and Fletcher Cox are better DEs than him. They’re also younger and cheaper. RJF would have affected the development of some young DL, whether Thornton or Bennie Logan or some other part of the rotation.
Secondly, the money the Eagles put into RJF might have kept them from spending on some other player. It was disappointing to see him go to Indy back in March, but that actually turned out to be a great thing.
* Not trading Nick Foles is looking to be a huge move. We don’t know how close the Eagles ever got to actually dealing Foles. I tend to think they wanted to keep him, but I’m sure Andy Reid did inquire about him at some time. Chip Kelly could have pushed Foles out while going for a more athletic QB, but wisely kept Foles around. That could turn out to be a franchise-changing type of move.
* Passing on Geno Smith and EJ Manuel. The Eagles had the 4th overall pick. There were more than a few people who thought for sure that the Eagles would spend it on a QB, even though there wasn’t great value. Smith was the guy getting the early buzz. Then Manuel became the flavor of the month. The Eagles checked both guys out thoroughly. And passed. Both guys might pan out, but the Eagles have Foles playing at a Pro Bowl level right now so he looks like the more sure thing of the trio.
* Not dumping Riley Cooper. This was far from a no-brainer back in the summer. Cooper’s concert incident is one of the worst Eagles-related memories in a long time. The team could have taken the easy way out and cut him. Cooper wasn’t a star player. They didn’t have a high pick or much money invested in him. The whole world would have gotten behind the Eagles for dumping Cooper. They chose the tougher path and kept him around. To be fair, the Eagles were thin at WR. But again, Cooper was just a guy back then. He had 5 TD catches in 3 years.
A ton of credit goes to Jason Avant for being the guy who kept the peace. He and Riley are friends. Jason is incredibly respected in the locker room so him sticking by Cooper meant a lot. I think Chip Kelly also handled the situation wisely by not ignoring it, but also not going overboard with it. I think he gauged the pulse of the team and saw this was something the players could handle.
Cooper has turned out to be a key player, especially in the last 6 or so weeks.
* Not trading Vinny Curry. Eagles fans loved what they saw from Curry this summer. Coaches did not. They looked past the plays he made and focused on the fact he wasn’t playing within the framework of the defense. The coaches could have given up on Curry and told Howie to deal him to a 4-3 team. Instead, the coaches kept coaching Vinny. They worked on fundamentals over and over. Curry got on the field in Week 3 and showed ability right away. Since then, he’s actually started to play well in the base defense as a 2-gap DE. I don’t know if Curry will ever be a starter, but he could be a critical role player for the Eagles. Patience paid off.
* Passing on Eric Winston. Remember when the Eagles were linked to Winston at least once a month? The team decided against that and focused on finding a RT in the draft. They took Lane Johnson 4th overall and he looks like he could be a stud OL.
* Not cutting Nate Allen. The Eagles could have easily let Allen go in the offseason. He didn’t play well in 2012, actually getting benched late in the year. The fans hated him. But the Eagles decided to keep Allen around and see if the new staff and system would get Nate back to the form he showed as a rookie. That has worked and Nate is playing the best football of his career. Nate’s future is up in the air, but the fact he’s made Eagles fans discuss re-signing him is arguably the biggest miracle of 2013. Not just Eagles 2013, but all the events in the world. Crazy. Great job by the staff and Nate.
I might be forgetting a non-move or two. Let me know if I’ve overlooked something good.
_
When Maclin and Benn went down there was a lot of talk about going out and getting a replacement since Cooper couldn’t be a #2 WR. Non-move is working out pretty well there.
I would say not spending big money on Paul Kruger and Goldson
Hiring Kelly instead of Arians if we had we would have lost to the cardinals
Would bringing back Vick be a non-move (not cutting him loose)? You could argue that the competition brought out the best in Foles. Hard to prove that either way, but certainly doesn’t seem to have hurt him in the end.
Thought about that, but such a complicated discussion that I left it out.
I’m one of his biggest critics for his on-field play, and wanted him gone in the offseason, but I think the hero worship of many on the team coupled with the maturity with which Vick handled everything this offseason and season is a big factor in how the team has “bought in,” and I think he deserves just as much credit for saving Cooper as Avant does.
I know that Vick had plenty of selfish reasons for acting the way he did, but the history of the NFL is chock full of athletes who let their ego run free to their own ultimate detriment. Further, a lot of small things that have happened make me think this is genuine (that one picture from a few weeks back where Vick was peeking over both Barkley’s and Foles’s shoulder while the coach was going over film during a game where Vick was inactive really sticks in my mind).
It is complicated whether Vick being on the roster helped Foles or not. Ditto whether the move helped the team “on the field.” But I feel confident in saying that I was wrong; keeping Vick on the roster was good for the team this year.
Eagles signed the wrong Rugby player.. Should of signed Adongo not Purcell
http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap2000000292385/article/daniel-adongo-joins-indianapolis-colts-active-roster
Keeping Duce Staley to coach RBs.
Was JUST thinking the same thing, very under the radar, but looks to have paid off very well
The fact that they kept Coleman leaves me to believe that Nate was never in jeopardy.
Remember that Kurt was never benched last year. Nate was.
I’m not sure I really want to find out (because it would mean lots of injuries to our safeties) but I’m wondering if Coleman could be improved as much as Nate Allen was.
I’ve said it before: Kurt Coleman is the kinda guy you win championships with. I hope dropping him was never a serious consideration
I’ve felt for a while that Kurt has been wrongfully implicated in the Eagles troubles in the past. Not saying he is good, but the system they had the Eagles playing put too much of a load on the secondary.
Tommy demonstrated that Washburn had 220-230lb monsters at safety in the Tennessee years. I think it was Tommy anyway. None of those players were short on talent. And even with that personnel, I don’t see how you aren’t going to get burned as a matter of course. That’s just how the scheme is built.
I asked something like this before. Detroit runs the Wide 9 and last time I checked they were high ranking in run defense. It had to do with the fact their linebackers are better overall making tackles.
Great.
Credit goes to @MatthewJPluck via Enrico @The700Level.
Oh, I am going to have my son ask right now. He loves Siri.
Thank you.
Not bringing back Marvin Favorite.
With him flying around our defense, no one else would need to learn to tackle.
I’m really impressed with eagles strategy on defense to fill every hole with a ‘good’ player before the draft. Really allowed the draft to be BPA. That strategy was huge for drafting good players.
Seems that part of the draft strategy regarding certain body shapes and sizes is not only the idea of perfect fit for position, ie “big people beat up little people”or “big hands on QB”, but that when a draft with that body type doesn’t live up to expectations, you still get a serviceable player.
What would be your take on not firing Howie Roseman?
Howie’s job was never really in jeopardy. Keeping him was definitely smart.
At first, I had a hard time believing Lurie’s story that Howie only started having real power in 2012. Given that the 2012 and 2013 draft classes both look pretty good, his story seems more believable. Unlike some spend-thrift teams like the Redskins, the Eagles dont have to dump a bunch of guys to stay under the salary cap. It seems like keeping Howie was a good move.
Not going through with the “trades” we were linked to early in the year and before the deadline….namely acquiring Josh Gordon and Byrd. Interesting, though, not sure how either of those moves (if actually possible) would change where the birds are today.
Conversely, not trading away Cole or Graham to a 43 team.
Not aquiring Josh Gordon. Hrmm. Not sure I am on board with that one. Due to his suspension? His seemed the most legit he said he had a prescription when everyone else that took “aderol” got 4 games.
Kind of off topic — My son is getting to the age where he is discovering the, um, wonders of the internet. He may not be master of his domain for long. After a discussion, we agreed putting some parental control filters on our web browser was a good idea. Well, I was blocked today from accessing Iggles Blitz! Who ever thought our comments could trigger parental controls? Is this filter reading our words or our minds?
Sorry, it was probably my lucky charms picture.
I blame Jimmy Bama.
Hilarious. Just tell him you’ll buy a magazine and stay of the Internet. There’s bad stuff on that thing.
too many posts containing fantasies of Megan Fox, chocolate pudding and PBR.
2nd this. He’ll discover it (and all the bizarre, disturbing and sometimes horrifying variations of it) eventually but for the love of all that is holy, the later the better…
Tommy’s other site “eaglesblog.net” is blocked at work for being a “gambling site”.
Tommy,
This isn’t entirely related, but I was thinking earlier on about something and thought it interesting.
Chip has never really been through a free-agent type system in the offseason where his system of cards and signals and everything could be explained. I know players graduate, but people who graduate from a program largely want it to succeed, so no reason to give away secrets. I realize a lot of it is smokescreens, and whatnot, but do you think there’s any chance that there’s something to this?
The Eagles have already faced players they’ve cut. Dallas Reynolds was with the Giants. We put up 36 points on them the first time. The next game our problem was QB play, not lack of secrecy.
Something to keep an eye on in the future, but nothing to be overly concerned by.
I don’t KNOW the specifics (why would I know the specifics?), but I’m certain Kelly has a way to negate this possible hole. I would imagine it involves the fact that most of the signs are decoys on any given play. I don’t think which signaler is the real call stays the same for a whole game, and I’m sure the rhythm by which the real signaler changes also varies from game to game.
when the eagles brought demeco ryans over it was to play in a 4-3 defense bc he was flailing in texans new 3-4. when kelly transitioned to current defense he kept ryans as defensive leader + it has paid off.
That’s not entirely accurate. He was flailing as a result of his injury, and had actually started to settle into the Texans 3-4 before he was traded. They had younger, cheaper talent they wanted to go with. The whole “Ryans can’t play a 3-4” is way overstated, as evidenced by his recent successes.
They should have traded Bryce Brown when he had value. I don’t understand why he’s ahead of Polk right now.
So what makes Polk a better option than Brown right now?
The fact we know almost nothing about him.
Polk – Bum shoulder, had like what 20 touches in his entire career, uhh I think his longest run was like 22 yards, ??????…UDFA.
Brown – Started a few games, had monster games in those 2 games, can be a threat after a catch and run, has Shady-itis and won’t go straight up field, 7th round pick.
I wonder if Deuce/Shurmur is making the decisions and not Chip?
I wouldn’t be so sure Brown ever had value. His talent is immense, but the questions about his instincts didn’t crop up this season.
I would venture a guess that, this past offseason, somebody would have given up something slightly better than the 7th round pick that we spent on him. It’s pretty forgotten now, but there was some serious hype around him last year…and it wouldn’t have been that much of a red flag to shop him considering we had Shady.
Brown never had any value. Tho I kinda wonder what Indy would have given up for him….
Really good article. Every team makes mistakes and it usually takes years to evaluate but a lot of non moves that made early sense. Also, liked the moves they did make, including dumping DRC though he is playing well in Denver. Not a good fit for our locker room and translated poorly onto the field.
Agree. One of Tommy’s best..
How about signing Donnie Jones or Allen Barbre? Donnie Jones had 7 punts inside the 20 last week and Barbre has filled in very nicely at LT when Peters was hurt.
Those were good moves we did make.
What a great article. Very creative to look at moves that were not made. I still can’t believe how Nate Allen has worked out.
We’ll find out during the offseason that Nate got contact lenses in November this year.
And he took his hair out of a bun and was suddenly beautiful.
the next wild thing? (football, baseball, whatever)
I posit that he was a germaphobe & found a great therapist.
Nate has worked out? Let’s take it easy on the Nate thing. He’s OK. His talents are dime a dozen. His position an use a huge upgrade. He is improving — but it’s easy to improve on horrible play.
Almsot ALL the moves in the off-season weren’t sexy but proved to be awesome… Nothing sexy at all (Barwin, Jones Barbre).. The draft wasn’t sexy RT in the first… Ertz in the second when we all were clamoring for a S, Bennie Logan NT in the third, etc..
What about keeping Celek after signing Casey and drafting Ertz? Celek has turned in to a great blocking tight end out of nowhere. Also, im torn over this one: keeping boykin in the slot instead of making the move to the outside? He’s been a beast in the slot, but could he be even better if he played outside too? Or do you think that we are maximizing his talents by keeping him inside?
there was a lot of talk about trading celek during camp if i remember correctly. some people thought the patriots would come calling after the whole hernandez situation
I thought we were more in favor of trading Harbor.
Hilariously stupid article of the year (on breitbart)
http://t.co/n2S9iD4NlC
Bold claim. Hard title to earn.
OK, wow.
The last paragraph is truly masterful. I’m in awe.
Not to butt into Neil’s conversation, but I hope you all made it to the comments. In them, a reader claims that this was not a case of discrimination against a Christian, but in fact descrimination based on skin color.
Personally, I am appalled that no one is willing to talk about the elephant in the room. This is clearly a case of gender bias at play here.
Yeah, that place is a cesspool.
I added a few comments to their conversation. I just couldn’t help myself. After the first I read a little deeper. I realized that if I was going for humor through absurdity, I was going to need to step up my game on that site. A comment is now awaiting moderation. I think it is because I used the word cockpit.
You can say pretty much any crazy thing there and the majority of those guys will never realize you’re just messing with them.
I am expecting a good reaction to my antilefthandists theory.
antilefthandists
It’s the real reason I wanted Foles to start.
sort of like what you’re doing here?
why do you think you’re any better?
cats and dogs just can’t seem to get along.
I hope you took a good hot shower afterwards and burned your clothes.
It’s clear though that the league hates Christianity, which is why they shunned Dawkins, Reggie, and all those others who were so open about their faith.
It’s the real reason it took so long to get Foles on the pro-bowl ballot.
is this comment part of your “stepped up” game?
Isn’t that where it gets a little sweaty next to your testicles?
yet you troll there?
Haven’t posted anything at all there. So no, not trolling there. I just followed a link on Twitter, read the article, and found it to be breathtakingly stupid. You, on the other hand, are trolling here.
Don’t feed it.
Yeah. Good point.
I saw you jump in there. I read a few of those comments, like examining the cars in a train wreck. Quickly came back here to *relative* sanity.
Sad when a site dedicated to Megan Fox, pudding, and loving the Eagles has more of a claim on sanity.
don’t forget the funyuns and pbr
And metal references.
Evidently, the NFL only likes players who wear the armor of Darwin. Or Underarmor, the official jock padding of the NFL.
Seriously, can we get some of those guys over there and make sure they’re the ones with fingers on the buttons of nuclear launches? I know I’d sleep a lot better with someone at that job who feels like a flame-filled rapture is coming to judge us.
I think “do you think it would be any different if he were a black muslim” is my favorite internet comment of all time. It’s like everyone’s cranky, out of work uncle was suddenly merged into one creature with internet access.
This is all sarcasm right ?
Not that there was a choice but: NOT using the 4th pick on Dion Jordan. Anyone else with me on that?
I sort of think that one is an impossible one to truly assess. If I’m being honest, I did not want him back in the draft (in the sense that I preferred several other players at that pick), so when I see that he has had a minimal impact, part of me feels like I was right. However, everything I have heard has been that Miami hasn’t used him the right way. And also, it is way to early to determine whether or not he will succeed in his career. If he ends up being a bust in Miami, that doesn’t necessarily mean he would have been a bust here. Alternatively, if he ends up succeeding in Miami, that doesn’t necessarily mean he would have been successful here.
he’s vinny curry at the start of the year and he’s been hurt.
I agree with ya. Kid hasn’t been used correctly, coached, or allowed to get healthy from shoulder surgery. In our defense as a 3-4 olb he would be able to use his length, and agility and speed to cover, disrupt and rush and spy. Still can’t believe Miami traded up and took Jordan over an olineman. After the martin and incognito fiasco and tannehill getting killed, bet Ireland wishes he took Lane.
Dion was NEVER meant to have a big rookie year…you DONT draft Dion for what he can do as a Rookie…
I was a big Lane Johnson fan from the word GO. Not just because of his measurable qualities, but his intangibles, and the fact that I believed this team needed a top shelf o-lineman more than a roll of the dice OLB.
A great non-move was not cutting Trash Can so that his talents could be applied to the practice squad.
From Tim McManus:
“The strip sack is also something that the players routinely work on. Several trash cans were lined up a few yards apart from each other on one section of the practice field Wednesday. The linebackers and defensive linemen had to maneuver past them before making a B-line for an assistant coach, who was playing the role of the quarterback during this drill. As the defender approached the coach raised the ball over his head and the defender had to try and swat it out.”
honest question – is it “B-line”? i always thought of it as “bee-line”, but that doesn’t make any more sense to me… lol
I beelieve it is “beeline” named for our winged apiarian friends. Here’s the unfortunate reason why I know this.
As an occasional sufferer of insomnia I “enjoy” all kinds of late-night programming through a set of wireless headphones so as not to disturb Mrs. Baloophi. Of course the headphones constantly lose reception so in order to catch the frequency I’m constantly moving my head around like a supine Max Hedroom thereby defeating the goal of silence, but I digress.
Anyway, in one of my recent attempts to lull myself to sleep via pseudo-academia I was taking in a BBC show called “Animal Camera” when a segment about bees came on. They attached antennae to several bees and tracked their speed and locations in a field. Apparently, once a bee has found a good source of pollen and returned to the hive, it will fly back to the same source in a dead-straight line over and over again… and at 30 mph! Not bad…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2YEzY8tzMU
I bee sure you’re correct.
I beelieve so as well.
Hey A Roy, Andy, that’ll bee enough you two.
You’re right. All these puns are truly beeneath us.
downvote for pun-hating! That’s just Howie do on these threads
That’s awesome. I think the “howie do” pun is beecoming pretty popular.
Funny story about Trash Can. We had video posted here back in the spring. Someone from Rubbermaid sent me an email to request we take down the video. Never figured that one out.
Bizarre.
Well, you know the old saying: “There IS such thing as bad publicity.” The last thing Rubbermaid wants is free word-of-mouth or increased “mind share” about their line of reputable commercial and residential waste management products. Marketing shmarketing!
…Unless asking you to remove the video was part of a deliciously devious publicity campaign anticipating this very back and forth, in which case they should be commended for being as innovative and forward-thinking as their selection of composite bamboo mop handles…
Probably a Dallas fan
Heh. I think I posted that video.
Trash Can needs to fire his Agent
Never realized trash can is a BRUTE!
Not totally cleaning house by getting rid of Duce and Ted Williams, Not panicing on seemingly gaping holes and drafting/signing/trading recklessly for need. Not panicing and immediately settling for our 2nd preference when Chip initially declined the job.
Not giving Big Red one more go around….
Nate Allen’s success this year I think really points to just how difficult it is to separate “nature vs. nurture” with respect to the draft & coaching.
We all wanted Earl Thomas, but would he be as good under the previous regime? Great coaching is so so so important to a player’s development.
I though this quote was interesting:
“One NFC East scout told me they are trained to look for athletes first and then move on to the technical aspect of the position. He noted that “especially on defense, [redacted] wants athletes. Big bodies with speed.”
(http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1874235-2014-nfl-draft-matt-millers-scouting-notebook-for-week-14)
Bet that was an Eagles scout. Chip & co. can teach fundamentals and technique. Get the athlete then worry about everything else.
Our drafts are going to look really good over the next several years, and its going to be because of mind meld between Chip, the FO, and the position coaches. Draft athletes and make them fundamental football players.
wouldn’t surprise me if the Scout was from the Giants either. They’ve been drafting with emphasis on size and speed for years (while we had been drafting for quickness, and motor)
Not jumping on The Gus Bus when Chip didn’t sign straight away. Given how quickly the available coaches were signing up elsewhere, it would’ve been easy to panic and grab someone else in case Chip decided to stay in school.
In fairness to Gus, he is on a 3 game winning streak with jaguar trash
..
I wouldn’t want anyone over Chip, but I feel like we woulda been in good hands with Gus too
Not that Lurie cared, but Gus was my (close) second choice to CK.
I really hope so too. Bradley felt like a good guy and i wouldn’t have minded him being our coach, too bad for him that Chip Kelly was available. I think Gus would have done a terrific job here, its just that Chip Kelly has the potential to be one of the best NFL coaches ever.
I really respect that Bradley took the challenge of the truly terrible jags, their crazy owner, the failing fan base and a small market, instead of going back to Seattle, running that defense one more year(maybe getting a ring) and then being the top HC candidate for 2014, on a different team with a amazing QB class. I hope he is able to create a monster defense in Jacksonville and prove that he was just as big a part of the Seahawks D as Pete Carroll is. Plus, isn’t it time for the Jags to have some success? I mean, being a new team and getting put in the same division as Peyton Manning, who when he finally leaves, get replaced by Andrew Luck.
Carroll gets credit because he is known as a defensive backs coach guru and the secondary has been the strength (tho that pass rush is very scary as well)
Their LBs are all over the place too. Not sure that D has too many holes.
you can run at em. Also right now, you can pass at em if you get the time (meaning you can hold off that pass rush, something the Saints have had trouble with all year)
It’ll be interesting to see how often we call RB screens… Hopefully Foles doesn’t get crushed when he hangs in there till the last second.
http://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/teamdef
Something pretty mind blown. The Hawks aint that great at WR1 and WR2 (would be Jackson+Cooper for us), but are great against RBs, WR3 (Avant) and TEs
2 game winning streak. The Cardinals toasted them.
Well we was about a couple hours from signing Gus and then Chip changed his mind.
I doubt we would be this good with Gus, but he seems like a good coach for the Jags and hopefully get at least 3 years to turn them around.
Great article Tommy.
I think fans seem to focus far too much on the moves which we make which don’t pan out and forget the ones where we dodge a bullet.
A good case in point was LeCharles Bentley.
Back in the spring of 2006 I think it was, he became one of the biggest names in free agency. A dominating center for NO, he was coming off a Pro-Bowl season and he was just what the Eagles needed (or so it seemed).
The Eagles wanted to move on from Fraley, who wasn’t nearly as dominating a run blocker as Philly would’ve liked.
It appeared to be a toss up between us and the Browns for his services.
Well, he decided to sign a huge contract with his hometown Browns, tore his ACL in training camp, was operated on, caught a staph infection in the Browns facility (with a few others), had several subsequent operations and never played another regular season game.
The Eagles decided to go with Jamaal Jackson who turned in some very good seasons – ironically enough, Fraley ended up signing for the Browns and played there for 4 more years.
Most remembered from the first sentence of Mark Eckel’s notorious article: “By the time you read this, LeCharles Bentley will be an Eagle.”
If I remember right, Bentley tore his ACL on the very first snap of the very first practice for the Browns. Felt like karma to me.
We should send that memo out to the NFLPA. Sign cheap for the Eagles, or else!(que Mr. Burns evil laugh)
[…] Non-Moves – Tommy Lawlor, Iggles BlitzThere is an old saying in sports that sometimes the best moves you make are the ones you don’t make. That is certainly true in regard to the 2013 Eagles. Not trading Nick Foles is looking to be a huge move. We don’t know how close the Eagles ever got to actually dealing Foles. I tend to think they wanted to keep him, but I’m sure Andy Reid did inquire about him at some time. Chip Kelly could have pushed Foles out while going for a more athletic QB, but wisely kept Foles around. That could turn out to be a franchise-changing type of move. […]
Weird. Reggie Bush pulled an Ellington. Injured himself in practice…
Not sure how severe it is.
Best move of the season: Employing a special ops dude.
Best move of the season: Not employing pansies like Reggie Bush.
So when do we start to hear about how opposing RBs are afraid to face us?
Disqus seems to be acting up the last couple days or so, for me at least. I hit the “Open 1 new reply” link and it sends me to the top of the page. Anyone else experiencing this?
Yes.
Also yes.
Scroll past it and use the “X new comments above/below” thing that pops up. That seems to work.
they seem to be making changes recently. has anyone else noticed the new system for mobile browswers? open the comments page, it shows you two comments, then click another link to see all of the comments ( with no article! ) not sure how i feel about it…
I had issues with discus for mobile browsers before the change in that it would freeze and then turn off my browser so I would have to reload the page (this happened mostly on gamedays, so it may be due to the huge comments sections, but it also could be I noticed it more since I was commenting more), so I am hoping the new system fixes that problem. On the other hand, I agree with you that I am not a fan of the layout.
Probably depends on the type of phone. My Droid X shows the two comments and then does absolutely nothing when you click the link too read the rest.
I have an iPhone and with the new system, you see the two comments and then it opens up a new, separate webpage when you click the link.
I had that too. A survey popped up the third time. When I said that I didn’t like it I was asked if I wanted to chage back, I did and things have been fine on my iPhone. On my iPad, on the other hand, Discus often crashes either Safari or Chrome, particularly when I touch to see a new reply or to load more comments.
Not trading any of our top 3 draft picks for “help now” especially on defense. Johnson, ertz, and especially Logan have been solid if not great at times.
ehh, i think Ertz is replaceable at TE, there’s tons of them looking for work, James Casey would probably agree 🙂
its funny how jason avant gets credit for keeping the riley cooper situation calm now that vick isnt the starter. every chance tommy gets to devalue/downplay mike vick he takes it
Go troll somewhere else. What has he devalued and downplayed? Give me some links and quotes, or get out.
I think Tommy made the exact opposite clear several times. He has mentioned before that the locker room loves Mike Vick and players like Shady look up to him because of the way he played when they were kids. I think Tommy have made it absolutely clear that even though he thinks Vick is lacking on the field, he is a huge part of the locker room.
Exactly. I’m very protective of the few places on the internet where one can have a real discussion about the topics at hand.
You’re going to have a miserable life if you continue to spend it chasing perceived slights.
What again has Mike Vick earned in regards to universal respect and praise again? If I can play devil’s advocate.
I’m not sure what you mean here, but Vick’s been a pro’s pro this whole year. To say anything else would be uncivilized. As far as the Cooper situation Vick was the clear team leader in that situation, with the media, the players, etc. go look at reporting from that time. Avant was less outspoken but he was Cooper’s best friend on the team i think and so i’m sure he played a role.
Trading for Jarius Byrd. who often injured
Jairus (sp?)
I would say not trading for Jairus Byrd worked out so far….
Reuben Frank has a story up that claims we’re only the 25th worst defense in the league at stopping on 3rd and 7 or longer. Reuben is a good numbers guy, but man, I really find it hard to believe that there are really 7 teams worse than us at 3rd and longs.
http://www.csnphilly.com/football-philadelphia-eagles/eagles-d-prone-big-plays-3rd-and-long
Re: Kelly v. Gus Bradley
Speculating that only Kelly would have the Eagles at 6-5 is a bridge too far for me.
Bradley’s squeezed 3 victories out of a wretched Jaguars team with only 1 player of note (MJD).
The Eagles that Kelly inherited — before resigning Vick — had DJax and McCoy, a recovering Peters and Kelce, Mathis, Celek, Ryans, Kendrick, Fletcher Cox and Thornton.
Moreover, for all we know, Bradley would have advocated jettisoning Vick and going with Foles from Day 1 — maybe Kelly should have, too. Don’t know.
I wonder if Kelly could have squeezed 3 wins, so far, out of the Jags? Maybe.
All I’m saying is that’s one decision that is impossible to say “Good No Choice” — at this point, at least.
Our D would probably be crazy.
Great point. Thornton, Cox, Kendricks, Cole, Graham running wild.
Like they already is? 😛
Not quite yet.
Kelly v. Gus Bradley v. Mike McCoy.
That’s potentially a great conversation in 5 years.
Chip vs. Arians…currently the two most successful rookie coaches
Winning over Houston, Tennesse and Browns isnt exactly murderous row.
I know we only have 1 quality win, but would Gus really have gotten more out of this defense than Davis is getting now (some would argue yes because we would run the 4-3 under) and how would this offense perform compared to how it is performing now under Kelly?
I think we wound up with the better coach of the two, but it is impossible to really know.
That is all I’m saying. Thanks.
Agree and that is what I think most people have been saying.
Most people back when we was looking actually wanted Gus (at least over at BGN) because of his defensive back ground
I liked Gus but at that point I thought, as most of us did, that Chip had already said no and that was that. So I never really evaluated who I wanted more.
I wanted Gus
He (Gus) was definitely the popular choice.
And the Eagles’ 6 wins are against Seattle, New Orleans, SF, New England, and Denver?
Not that it changes your point at all, but the Eagles are 7-5.
ICD . . .
I’ve been drafting a brief on a tight deadline the past few days.
I’ve not slept. And obviously have forgotten that another week of my life (including last Sunday) has passed.
Thanks for reminding me!!!
If your briefs are drafty, a shopping trip may also be in order.
He also has Jason Babin 😉
Re: Time to Judge Coaching Choices
In January 1969, right after the Jets beat the Colts in the biggest upset (still) in NFL history, two teams reached into the assistants ranks of those opponents.
The New England (then-Boston) Patriots hired Jets OC Clive Rush.
The Steelers hired the saturnine Colts DC Chuck Noll.
In the ’69 season, the Pats went 4-10. The Steelers went 1-13.
Clive Rush was fired in 1970.
Chuck Noll won 4 SBs.
Jumping to conclusions about Kelly v. Bradley seems early and impossible.