A Year Ago
Posted: May 24th, 2014 | Author: Tommy Lawlor | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 144 Comments »Last May we were doing a lot of speculating since Chip Kelly was new to us and the NFL. A lot has changed in that year, but it is kind of interesting to look back.
* I thought Damaris Johnson was a real player to watch.
The WR I’m most excited about is Damaris Johnson. He could steal the primary slot role from Avant. Check out this Yards after catch stat, per ESPN:
Jason Avant – 53 catches – 167 yards after catch – 8 receptions of 20 or more yards
Damaris Johnson – 19 catches – 104 yards after catch – 4 receptions of 20 or more yards
Avant is averaging 3.15 YAC per reception. Johnson is at 5.47. Which guy do you want with the ball in his hands?
There was good logic in my argument, but boy did that not pan out at all. I’m still not sure how/why Damaris got in the doghouse, but he almost never played on offense. That wasn’t by accident. He’s still on the roster so maybe he’ll emerge this year. Just don’t count on it. I certainly won’t be writing much about him.
* I hoped Brandon Graham would be the ROLB. He was down to 255 pounds. Graham was fired up and ready for a chance to win a starting job. Not only did that not happen, it wasn’t even close. Trent Cole embraced the move to OLB and started the whole year. Graham never looked comfortable as a LB. He got better over time, but always looked like a square peg in a round hole.
* Dennis Kelly was getting reps as the #1 LT in some of the OTAs. Jason Peters was out. Evan Mathis was too and Allen Barbre filled in at his spot. Kelly is a mystery man at this point. The Eagles desperately wanted to add a mid-round OL in the draft. That doesn’t bode well for the current backups, especially someone like Kelly who has gotten a chance to play. Kelly didn’t play for the new staff, but played RG and RT in 2012. The coaches can watch his tape vs NFL competition. Guys like Matt Tobin and Michael Bamiro have yet to hit the field.
I would love for Kelly to pan out, but it just doesn’t feel like he’s in a good spot right now. He controls his own fate. If he stays healthy and plays well, the coaches will keep him. If not, see ya.
* We found out a good lesson from Chip Kelly. He cut RB Miguel Maysonet very quickly. That may not sound like a big deal, but Maysonet had been a coveted UDFA that the Eagles gave a $10,000 signing bonus to. Kelly will be a patient man if you give him reason to be that way, but he’s also not afraid to cut someone loose.
* Obviously no one anticipated Riley Cooper making the jump that he did. There was some optimism about his fit in the new offense, especially as a blocker, but I don’t think anyone expected him to deliver big plays as a starting receiver.
* Felix Jones was an Eagle. Remember that? Weird. Boy did he suck.
* We had hope (and lots of curiosity) in regard to Ifeanyi Momah. WRs that are 6-7, 240 just aren’t supposed to run as fast as he did at his Pro Day. That was too good to be true, right? Yep, sure was. Momah might have been athletic in workouts, but never showed that athleticism on the playing field. Momah is back again, but expectations are very low. We’ll see if anything changes this time around.
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Obviously I could write quite a bit on Nick Foles and Michael Vick. They battled for the QB job last year. Now Vick is with the Jets and dealing with Geno Smith. Foles had a magical 2013 season and hopes to prove to people that he is the star QB the Eagles need to run Kelly’s offense.
One of the big changes in the past year might be the perception of Kelly and QBs. I think most people have given up on the idea that he covets a mobile QB. Kelly used them at Oregon, but in the NFL he has named Foles his starter for the next 1,000 years, drafted Matt Barkley and signed Mark Sanchez in free agency.
Kelly might someday find the right mobile QB and go get him, but any notion that he must have a guy who can run to make his offense work is 100 percent dead in the water.
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The notion, while I don’t happen to agree with it, is far from dead in the water. There are plenty of people (not just fans) who think Foles’s relative immobility is a detriment to the running game, and thus Chip’s offense as a whole.
Hopefully THESE dumb people start rooting for the cowboys
I am well aware of that fact. It, however, does not prove in any way that the running game wouldn’t be better still with more of a running threat under center. They had tremendous success running the ball with Foles. The only question becomes whether they could potentially have more.
When you have the best run game in the NFL, I think it’s time to worry about the pass
Oh, good point. Lol. But at that rate we should have a radioactive polar bear under center. He’d be unstoppable! Now we can criticize anything that isn’t THAT, no matter how insanely effective the running game already is…Geez.
And the run game was actually better with Vick than Foles, so yes it can be very good without a mobile QB, it would just be insane with a mobile QB.
The question is always how much passing ability are one willing to sacrifice for more a more mobile QB.
I prefer having the top running attack in the NFL that doesn’t have to let their QB take hits in the run game because the running back is so damn good
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Steve Young. 🙂
How many Steve Youngs are there?
Two replies, can’t decide which one I prefer:
1) Exactly
2) Quite a few. It’s a pretty common name.
very funny 🙂
About as many as there are Nick Foles.
“Wilson doesn’t even run”
Wilson runs all the time. He makes more plays outside the pocket than any QB in the league.
He put up 539 yards on the ground last year. Yeah.
– Cam – Wilson – Kaep were all in the playoffs for the NFC last year. 2 of them were division title holders.
– RG-3 and the Skins won the division in 2012. He was simply a gimp last year, coming back too early from a pretty horrific injury.
Whatever point you’re trying to make, ain’t really being made.
Maybe the point trying to be made is that Chip Kelly does not need a – Cam – Wilson – Kaep-Vick-RG3- type QB to make is offense go.
Or the point could be made that the offense would be unstoppable with one.
Vick was pretty mobile…won more with Foles.
Foles played most of the games. He also played the easiest part of the schedule.
He also played:
– Green Bay with No Rodgers
– Lions with no Bush in snowmegeddon
– Cowboys with no Romo
And got resoundingly beat by Matt Cassel with no Purple Jesus.
All of sudden that 10-6 looks like 7-9 or 8-8 – Unless you’re telling me a Foles was gonna beat a Rodgers led Green Bay and a Manning led Broncos.
(You want to argue KC I’ll argue you Dallas)
But this wasn’t a Vick/Foles convo. It was about mobile vs. non-mobile QBs. And mobile QBs have won that debate. Only the screaming and gnashing teeth are left.
The only “true” pocket passer of the top QBs in this draft was Teddy Bridgewater. And he dropped b/c of a mediocre pro-day somehow meant more than 3 years of game film. And even he was billed as a dual threat QB coming out of high school.
Next years QB class? Mobile QBs. One who was bred in a Kelly offense no-less. The slow footed pocket passer is a thing of the past – and dies out with Manning and Brady and Brees (Rodgers is not a pocket passer, nor is Big Ben or Luck or any of the other young guns).
Down to the high-school level coordinators decided their best athlete needed to play the position (due to defenders getting faster) and that transfers to the college level – and then to the NFL.
Only used Vick as a reference since he`s the one mobile QB we have to compare with Foles in Kelly`s offense.
If those teams were so easy to beat ,how then did they possibly win a game?
– Green Bay with No Rodgers- Lions with no Bush in snowmegeddon
– Cowboys with no Romo-
takes nothing away from Kellys offense.
Takes away from the win column though.
impossible to say what would have happened if…
Or if they had a giant robot. Don’t forget that. That’s a practical and valid possibility too, right?
What’s the one thing Cam, Kap and Wilson have in common? Dominate defenses. Skins don’t have a good defense, but IMO Alfred Morris made that offense run. RG3 might have had some big plays but without Morris, that offense doesn’t go.
Kaep and crew are the ONLY ones who have been able to even give Seattle a regular run for their money. They struggle with mobile QBs (Cam being another example).
The eat slow-footed ones for lunch.
Don’t forget Andrew Luck! That boy can run, too, about as fast as Johnny Football, with more size. Indy one of the few that beat Seattle.
LOL.
I mentioned Luck:
“The slow footed pocket passer is a thing of the past – and dies out with
Manning and Brady and Brees (Rodgers is not a pocket passer, nor is Big
Ben or Luck or any of the other young guns).”
I didn’t forget about him!
And ours goes without Shady?
Come on now.
The only reason the ‘skins won the division in ’12 was that the Eagles couldn’t play as well that year as RG3 did in ’13. The Redskins won’t win the division any year the birds aren’t in a coma.
Those people are huge morons who don’t know anything about football
#PERIOD!!!
Seriously, it actually is. Guys like Chris Brown has commented more than once about it. The thought where it wouldn’t be is if Foles is good enough as a passer to ignore that.
Right. That’s the balance that has to be struck. At present, Foles’s superior contributions to the passing game significantly outweigh whatever he doesn’t bring to the table with his legs. As long as that remains the case, there’ll be no problem. To put a finer point on it, the fact that Foles is slow of foot is not, in and of itself, a good thing. I’m sure if you asked him if he wished he could run a 4.5 he would say yes without hesitation. It would unquestionably help. That doesn’t mean, though, that he’s dragging the offense down due to his speed deficiency.
Only dopes think that.
Didn’t Foles rush for more yards than RG3 when they played each other?
Yes he did. Does that make him a better runner than RG3? Kyle Orton threw for more yards than Foles in week 17. Is he a better passer than Foles? The answer to both those questions is a resounding no.
What are you talking about? Damaris, is still a player to watch, just WATCH us ship his ass to KC for some Cheifs roster trash 🙂
I joke about trading Damaris…
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But we all know Howie basically pioneered these player for player NFL trades(involving players that will be cut)..off the top of anyone’s head, does anyone remember the Timeline for when Howie usually pulls off those trades? Do they usually come around draft time, or in June?
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I guess what I’m asking is, if we were going to trade Damaris for a player that was going to get cut from another team, would it have happened already?
I love how you reply to your own comments.
I agree; I think it makes a lot of sense.
Damn dude, if you were gonna answer 3 times, you could have ATleast answered the question once 🙂
I’ve done it before.
I do that when it won’t let me edit my comment
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#ipadproblems
I love those player for player trades. Basically says, here you take my “trash” and I’ll take yours, without the guy(s) hitting open market & drumming up any competition.
Why “FO”les? Ive seen you type it that way for over a year now….still dont understand it
Lol think I typed it by accident the first time I used my iPad and it autocorrects it to that… I just kept it. Sorry, wish I had a cooler story for it
FOles = backed by Front Office (FO)
Or
FOles = Front Office (FO) tested, Front Office approved.
Wow…this champions league game with Real Madrid is crazy..
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What? Isn’t this a “Foot ball” blog? Lol
God damn it, was coming here to get away from the pain of Athletico loosing :C. Was a crazy game and finish however.
Lol sorry mate… Never thought I’d run into an athletic fan,.. I’m ASR Roma, so your boys had a better year than mine lol
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Lucky for me, Rome plays Inter Milan at Lincoln financial field August 3rd… It’s not going to be like seeing Rome in Rome, with all they yellow and red smoke bombs going off in the stands, the entire stadium singing the victory song “grazie Roma” together after a win….but I haven’t been in Rome, in two years, so this will have to do
Lol my sincerest Appologies to TJ Dillashaw while I wipe the egg off my face
Anche io tifo la grande Roma.
Giallo e Rosso!!!
Pepperoni e sausage!!
Whenever I am really wrong.about something, I learn a lot. what can we learn about coop and Johnson, etc.?
I’ve learned from Johnson and Jackson that Kelly doesn’t value receivers less than 190 pounds.
Pretty soon Jazzy Jeff will be the only DJ left in Philly.
Look at ATG dabbling in pop culture…
Well, that’s what they do when they get jealous, they confuse it, “It’s not hip hop, it’s pop.”
‘Cause I found a hella way to fuse it
That why he traded for Darren Sproles right?
Wikipedia says Sproles is exactly 190lbs. From my memory, he can also break arm tackles.
We learned that Cooper needed a quarterback who could anticipate him being open or being able to give him a chance to make a play on the ball. Both mcnabb and vick only throw to guys when they are wide open from the time of their release… Johnson? He has a big climb to make the team this year IMO.
THE greatest thing Vick did for us was suck as a passer? Imagine what Coops numbers could have been if FOles played 16 games. Cooper would have been more expensive if it weren’t for Vick…thanks Mike 😉
The reason Foles didn`t play 16 games(start the season) is cause Kelly saw things about his game that we as fans were not not privy to and felt it wasn`t time for him. He didn`t start Vick cause he won the job, but so that Foles could watch,learn and be ready when the time came. With the exception of the 1st Dallas game(bad non-read by the staff to not observe his concussion soon enough),he proved to be worth the wait.
That three good games can get you a ton of bucks.
My opinions last year were mostly correct, except I thought Foles was going to win the job from day 1. However, I thought Patrick Chung was a great signing and was going to contribute in a big way… Oops.
I thought we were going to run a 4-3U….other than that, NAILED IT 🙂
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Although no one saw COOP There it Is, coming on so strong
Yeah I didn’t think much of Cooper and I certainly didn’t predict the season he had. … I actually thought we would use a lot more 2 and 3 TE sets instead of “11 personnel” so much.
Same,,,with how much Avant fell off, it’s actually amazing we used 3 WRs so often. FOles was at his most efficient with 2TEs on the field. I get the impression that both Ertz and Casey will have bigger roles than last season…
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But if Huff and Jordan can provide the blocking Avant brought to our run game from the slot, we should be much more explosive then we were last year
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We lost Desean but built a deeper arsenal of weapons, and I really expect to see this offense morph on a weekly basis, to create and exploit matchups against the different opponents we faced.. We were in 3WR all year practically, then we ran into a tough cardinals defense.. Where were they weak? LBs can’t cover, Safeties were exploitable, so we went with two TEs and destroyed them with Celek and Ertz…..Chip know has a more weapons to use to exploit the different defenses we will face, so we should see more changes in our attack from one week to the next
I think we have a much better idea what Chip wants to do now, and they’re getting close to putting together Chip’s team, I’d say 2015, but after seeing them turn the season around after the first 4 games and go 9-4 down the stretch (including NO), I’m not ready to bet against Chip.
The two things that stick out like a sore thumb are that measurables matter and intangibles matter more (as long as you have the minimum measurables).
D Johnson is dead meat, Chip don’t want no shrimp WRs, and he’s too slow to be a scatback and showed nothing as a return specailist.
Momah is interesting, ironically, he’s on more solid ground this year, after bombing last year they may feel they can stash him on the PS if he shows improvement this summer, and approach this as a learning curve situations where you are willing to invest two years in an athletic freak.
Kelly may have a better shot than I think, because Mudd picked him (despite workouts that suggest a bad fit for a zone system), and Stoutland seems to be willing to trade some athleticism for power, so if he’s bulked up to 325 lbs or so and can run block, he might be a good fit at RT. I see Lane at LT and Peters at OG in a year or two – Peters could lose a step and still be an all pro OG until 35 or so with his power and athleticism.
To add to Damaris, I believe the scientific term is He lacks “wiggle”
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Absolutely agree about JP eventually moving to OG status for us.
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Everyone assumes all we have on our bench is Barbre. I’m willing to bet we have ATleast two very promising young OL on our bench that we are happy to continue to develop. I have no idea which two OL would fit that Bill, but I just don’t see a Chip Kelly/Stoutland coached team, having a bench for two years made up of trash that needs to be replaced. OL aren’t rotated, we barely seen any of our backups, but stoutland works with them every day, I’d bet we have two young OL on our bench right now, that the eagles are much higher on than we realize
Good observation on Kinne, but I bet he doesn’t see it that way.
A guy who was not of the starting five on Dr.J`s ABA team said he had the best ever,cause he got paid to sit and watch the Doctor perform.
Tommy didn’t give you props so I will. You were the only guy to say Coop would take a big step up last year. Good call!
Are there any videos or stats that show BG not fitting in at ROLB?
I didn’t see it. In all candor I’ve always liked BG so I may have rose tinted glasses. Still though, I don’t remember ever once thinking he looked bad.
I don’t have any film of Graham but he did struggle last year. He was extremely uncomfortable in coverage. He doesn’t have enough burst or speed to really force OT’s to respect his edge rush, and he doesn’t really have any kind of counter moves other than a simple inside rip. This allows OT’s to sit on the one pass rush he does do well which is the bull rush. He does hold the point of attack pretty well.
However you need more than a bull rush and good run defense from your ROLB. The microfracture surgery took a big toll on BG from an athletic standpoint. He just doesn’t have the ability to play 34 olb. He has some value as a situational nickel rusher but I think it would be best for both the team and BG to try to move him for a late day 3 pick or in a player for player trade before the season.
Think we can get anything for a player who’s contract is expiring and can’t wait to hit free agency? Sure hope so, but color me skeptical. Think it would be much easier if he had two years left on his deal
We could probably get a player for player trade for him. The other team won’t have any guaranteed money to pay him.
Is he held to the same restrictions on his rookie deal in regards to not being able to negotiate a new deal until current deal expires, although the team picked up his 5th year option?
That’s a good question. But it doesn’t really matter in BGs case… Even if you trade for him, I doubt you are so sold on him that you offer him an extension at a starting salary, so BG most likely won’t sign on to be anyone backup until he gets to test himself in FA, but contractually that’s a great question I would love to know the answer to.
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I was pounding the table to trade him straight up for Jabaal Sheard last summer, but now the new browns coach seems to like him alot
I guess it depends on the team/trade partner and what they have. If he’s able to renegotiate a deal, and it’s a situation where he has a shot at starting he could always get that language included to add bonuses & escalators.
True….
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I think the scenario in which we get the most value for him would be to hold him into August and hope that a serious SB contender as a bunch of injuries at DE, and we can take advantage of Their desperation, kind of how we did with Sopoaga and the patriots…
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Problem is that if you can’t trade him, than what? I don’t believe Howie and Chip are screwed enough to cut him right before the season starts…so if you want to use that strategy we will have to be willing to finish out the year with him..
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Then again, I don’t think having to keep BG for the year is the end of the world. By now it’s obvious he won’t become our OLB of the future, but I’m sure he will be a better OLB than he was last year, being that it was his first time in a while..so if we do have to keep him, he can still help us… I also wouldn’t mind finishing out the year with us because he plays one of the most expensive positions. A guy who has never proven to be capable of being a full time starter, just signed a Longterm deal in free agency with 20mil in Guarantees.
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Sacks are often about luck..for all we know, BG could happen to be on the field 8 times this year when Cox,Barwin, Mykal or curry blow by their opponent and chase a QB right into BGs arms which would up his free agent money. It’s obvious by now, we won’t be adding expensive free agents next year. So since we won’t be active in free agency, if BG can play his way into a decent second contract with someone else, it should net us a decent compensatory pick down the road.,,
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See teams getting all these darn compensatory picks! when Andy drafted so bad that no one wants any of our players who hit the market…we also don’t sign free agents so we can resign our own players, so the future does not look right in terms of being awarded compensatory picks down the road…keeping BG and him having a good year is probably one of our last hopes to come out with a pick after they weigh what you lost in free agency with what you gained in free agency..
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So I really wouldn’t be upset if we got stuck keeping him for the year. I just have questions about how that would work..last year we basically only kept 3 OLBs, And pretended that Casey Mathews could backup ILB and Barwin…we preferred moving Curry to DT(3-4DE) instead of the more natural transition to OLB, when we didn’t even have bodies at OLB….a year later are we really going to jump from keeping 3 OLBs to keeping 5?
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Marcus Smith, Barwin and Cole aren’t getting cut. Think it’s safe to say Braman will most likely make this roster..so that’s already more OLBs than we carried last year…could we really keep BG on as a 5th?
If we have no intentions of keeping 5 OLBs, than BG is gone! If BG is gone, I would prefer to dump him for whatever value we can get…
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In this case, I don’t even know if we can expect a pick. Thinking the best we can do is use him to move up a round, like we did with Soap… Think the best case scenario is trading a 5th round pick and BG for someone’s 4th round pick….but even that may be wishful thinking and we have to settle on trading a 7th and BG for a 6th, or using him to turn a 6th into a 5th like soap….
Well Marcus could play either side. So that enables them to go lighter if they went that route. As far as keeping Cole beyond this year as you mentioned before, I’m trying to remember if Cole has played the left side in the past? I’d love to keep him in a backup role if the money was right. I seem to have a vague memory of Cole on the left side as a 3rd down rusher early on when we still had Hugh. Just curious if he could be a backup at both spots. Anyway, getting back to how many OLBs, I think having a guy that can sub inside and outside is valuable. I could see Marcus “subbing” for Meco in nickel & being the lone LB in dime over Kendricks.
He signed a 6 year deal under the old CBA but year 6 has been voided. Couldn’t give you any more details than that.
At this point last year I’m pretty sure we were still under the impression that we were going to run a 4-3 Under.
Yup yup
“I’m still not sure how/why Damaris got in the doghouse”
I bet it’s when he muffed that opening punt from KC.
[…] A Year Ago – Tommy Lawlor, Iggles BlitzLast May we were doing a lot of speculating since Chip Kelly was new to us and the NFL. A lot has changed in that year, but it is kind of interesting to look back. […]
Roster cuts are coming up. With the eagles surely keeping an eye on the waiver wire, anyone got any names to look out for?
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1) One of my UDFA steals from Last years draft was super athletic OT Luke ‘Marquardt. Niners liked him and some believe he was their swing Tackle of the future, just broke his ankle, and was cut. Same Ankle that he had to spend the year on IR because of…
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2) Cardinals could cut last years 4th round OLB Alex Okafor. I wouldn’t mind taking a look at the 6’5 OLB, but I doubt he has the ST ability to be a bench player for us. In other cardinals news! word is that Shaugnessey has taken Sam Acho string job… I’d love it if he were cut, a chance to get the RIGHT brother for a change.
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Think Chip would have any interest in Nassib if the Giants axe him?
What surprised me from last year:
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1) Last two years under Andy, Celek was looking like he was trying to catch passes with his feet. Once reliable pass catcher had drastically fell off the last two seasons. I thought his spot could have been in jeapordy last summer….A few months of Chip Kelly training, and the man was as reliable of a pass catcher that we could ever hope for. I was at the game when Celek caught that screen and turned the jets on….I still have no friggin clue where that speed came from but to see him run like that, and be such a reliable pass catcher, while maintaining his excellence as a blocker was an extremely pleasant surprise for me. many assume this is his last year, but it don’t buy that. Once Celek starts to fall off, I see us restructuring him and keeping him as a blocking TE… Just seems like Chip will want him battling for us, when we really take a run at that Lombardi..
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2) Thought BG would take Coles job,..sports science seemed to have rejuvinized Trent like it did with Brent. The assumption is that this will be Trent’s last year in Philly…I’m not so sure… What I am sure of his he won’t get to keep that RiDONKulous contract, but He is a high character vet, who is elite in the run game. If Marcus is ready to be a 3down OLB next year like I suspect, Trent can either finish his career elsewhere, or take a cheaper backup Role. Front 7 players get rotated so even as a bench player, Trent would see some snaps..problem is we won’t be getting ST play out of him, so I don’t know how that will work as a backup….BG is 100% gone after the season. He can’t wait to get to free agency. Not sure we will want to replace both Trent and BG in one summer.
Expectations:
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1) I don’t believe this is the last year for Cary, Brad, James Casey, or Demeco Ryan… Everyone is expecting us to try and take a run at the Lombardi next year. If that’s the plan, we shouldn’t be replacing too many veterans this summer. The good part about Chip bringing in all high character guys, is veterans like Bradley Fletcher and Meco Ryan, won’t act a fool if young players start eating into their snaps.. I’m expecting Demeco to have his best season as an Eagle. year two in a 3-4 scheme, better more developed DL in front of him, roster depth/subpackage alternatives will allow us to ask less of him, and only put him in positions where we can still shine
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2) IF Nate makes this team, it will be his last year.
We’ll see about Nate Allen. He seems to me like someone who, if signed as a free agent, everyone would be talking about as a solid starter. Sort of a Malcom Jenkins type guy. I believe PFF actually had Nate Allen rated higher than Jenkins in their stats last year. But the grass is always greener I guess…
I really despise PFF… Too much respect is given to this silly website that grades players off of TV film…these idiots don’t even regrade off the coaches All 22 film…
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I have no clue how anyone can grade a safety off the TV footage
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AGAIN, the fan in me hopes we keep Nate! but if I’m reading Howies Tea leaves, I’m not so sure… We shall see tho
Panoramic TVs that accept larger aspect ratios? The footage is there, we just can’t see it. It’s a conspiracy! 😉
Hate that site and the praise it gets…
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I mean, come on…how the hell can any site grade every single player who played, by the morning after the game? And we all know the coaches tapes aren’t made available to the media til Wednesday…it’s hard enough to grade players without knowing their responsibilities in each play, but these hacks don’t even use all 22 footage, yet because no other site grades so fast, this silly site has become famous…I hate it!
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If it’s SOOO accurate, why dont they have a bunch of former players and coaches working for them? Who the hell is grading these games? What is the tract record of the grades given by the hack who graded our players?
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That site is such a sham, i don’t even know how it became so popular
Yeah man, I personally appreciate data analysis. But only when used in conjunction with visual analysis (eye test), logic and situational info. Stats & data can point you in the right direction and be helpful but only tells part of the whole story. You have to be able to accept it as a tool and not the rule or you’ll get caught up in the paralysis by over analysis.
I wish we had a site like them, that wouldn’t be in such a rush to get the grades out the next day,..a site that would purchase the coaches tapes on Wednesday, and take their time grading the players, and release the grades a week later…. It would be a very valuable tool for fans and media…
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But on PFF who the hell knows what’s going on, when you have a site rushing to grade thousands of players by the next morning..it’s hard to know which grades of theirs I should accept, and which are a complete joke, so I try an avoid it
If Nate had been a rookie last year, him an Wolfe would be, at worst, neck and neck, probably advantage to Nate.
In Chip’s eyes, that is the situation. He said how everyone was getting a fresh start. The quote was usually applied to Vick, but it fits Nate as well.
In terms of development and potential for growth, it isn’t far off either. Nate’s first few years were a mess in terms of learning and development. I think he finally has a chance to make that “second year” jump.
On the other hand, it could just be wishful thinking. And, if Nate and Wolfe both make a big jump, Nate is going to be expensive after this year…
I like all the battles we’ll see in the secondary this year in camp/preseason. I also love, despite the winners, the next man up availability we’ll have. Reminds me of the depth that SEA had in the secondary the past 2yrs or so.
I think the job we have done this offseason of improving our depth was an solid A..
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We kept all our starters together, which was the plan, but last year our depth was pathetic and it manifested itself in a vanilla defense with little subpackage variation which caused us to ask too much from our starters..
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Our depth has improved drastically, and it’s the best kind of depth, young depth that has a chance to develop into starting caliber players… For example, I’m sure we implement a DIME package with Jaylen and Boykin defending the slots, but our Dime CB, has legit NFL starting outside CB potential
I’m Actually pleased with being able to see what Nate can finally do with schematic continuity, but because something led Keelan to turn down offers to leave our practice squad! I have a gut feeling he is our plans… 3 ways to make the team as a backup, ST, ST, and ST… Advantage Keelan
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I think a lot depends on Maragos.. If he actually looks like a depth safety, instead of just being a ST player like Colt was, I could see us only keeping 4 safeties, especially with Jaylens ability to moonlight as a 5th emergency safety..
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Again, I don’t at all mind Nate making this roster! I just don’t think it’s as certain as most people think…the drafting of Reynolds and Watkins hurts him IMO
If he does, it’s quite likely that Reynolds comes down with a lingering hip flexor or groin problem and gets stashed in IR. Can’t see them letting him walk or risk placing him on PS. That said, I still think Keelan could be the odd man out. The ability to play STs helps his cause, but that alone isn’t keeping him or anyone else on this roster unless they’re lights out on STs (a la Boykin & Donnie Longball).
I remember that Keelan had better offers to leave us, but decided to stay, but it don’t remember the story..anyone remember what I’m talking about?
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Don’t remember if our coaches coaxed him into staying, or if he just looked at our safety situation and decided himself that he had a good chance to make this years team….anyone remember what the scoop was?
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ABSOLUTELY NO SHOT IN HELL that we even consider Reynolds for the PS…someone would definitely snatch him away…like you said, if he doesn’t make the roster it will be due to a phantom injury
Was the before or after Jenkins & draft? I remember it, just can’t remember when.
Before….
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I thought that the eagles had no intention whatsoever of drafting a safety early in this draft…had GB not picked haha Dix! I’d bet we would have still traded back and took Marcus, If we had no plans on taking a safety early, because of the lack of safety depth in this draft, there probably was a good chance in our FO minds, that we wouldn’t add any safeties in this draft…
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For me, i would have bet money Reynolds wasn’t going to last til round 5.. I’d bet we were shocked he was still available..I don’t think drafting a safety was an expectation when we re signed Nate..
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I want us to win games THIS YEAR, and if we are being short sited, Nate is one of the 3 safeties we can count on the most for this season, so please no one take this as me hoping Nate gets cut, because I would really prefer keeping him until someone other than Jenkins proves to be COMPETANT…
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but if I had to bet money on a surprise roster cut, I’d probably have to go with Nate…
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Really really really wouldn’t mind being wrong about this
We have seen Cedrick Thornton transform himself from an unknown LONGSHOT, to a quality starter and elite run defender in our new scheme. Chip Kelly seems to adore him. Singing his praise on a weekly basis, often talking about him as one of our very best defenders..
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This summer, Ced seems hell bent on improving as a pass rusher. How much can he improve in that area?
This is why I think that Hart could very well be a starter in ’15 almost by default.
That’s wishful thinking. Hart unseating Thornton will only happen if we don’t resign Thornton.
Wasn’t being wishful. I think that’s what I said though. As it stands right now, player vs player, it’s Ced’s job to lose no doubt. Unless he walks. But I’m not willing to discredit the kid (Hart) in ’15, before he’s even stepped on the field this year. He’s got a lot of work to do and some strength to add, but a lot can happen between now and then.
In terms of who’s getting on the field on 3rd down passing situations, Krueger will be ahead of Hart..
After Cox/curry, I wouldn’t be surprised if Krugs develops into our next best interior pass rusher
In regards to depth chart, I think Hart backs up Ced & Kruger backs up Cox.
I’d agree…
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We rotate 6 DL each game, so I’d assume we keep 7, with Beau/hart/Kruger battling over which two get to dress every week and who the Odd man out is..
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When Beau isn’t active on Gameday, Ced sliding in at NT whenever Bennie from the block needs a breather
Sounds about right to me.
Anyone think we have any DL who can surprise us and take a roster spot from the assumed top 7?
1) Cox/curry/Krugs
2) Logan/Beau
3) Ced/hart
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Think this is the most set position on the team. I really can’t see anyone in our camp who could challenge these 7….but i strongly disagree with Kempski in that, I don’t think there is any shot we only keep 6….when you want to rotate 6 players every week, you probably want to make sure you have someone that’s not dressing in case of an injury, assuming that all 6 players stay healthy for 16 games, sounds like some Andy Reid going into a season with Greg Lewis penciled in to return punts type of ish to me… Stupidity, that ends up biting you in the ass.
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I’d be shocked if we didn’t keep a 7th, and I really don’t have a name that could possibly push one of the assumed 7… I guess it’s not fair t that I totally rule out Damon Square, but I was a big believer in Beau even before we drafted him….and I’d like to think that a good rule to live by is: No eagles NT shall ever get trucked by a cowgirls running back lol
A guy like Ced, you want him two-gapping most of the time, but it’s always good for a player to have more versatility. It’s like Foles running the football. We know he’s not a runner, and Ced is not a pass rusher. But if Ced can get as good at being a pass rusher as Foles is at running the football, he’ll make some plays.
We rotate on 3rd down…I’m sure Cox/curry will be our interior pass rushers when we go to our 4man lines, but who are the two pass rushers that will rotate in? This is why I think Krugs is more safe than media like Kempski who says we will only keep 6DL(which I view as impossible) seems to think
I will never understand why fans care about how much money these athletes earn. If Thornton becomes so good that he commands a top D Line salary, that’s a good thing, people!!!! Talent on both lines is what makes championship teams champions! Top talent gets top money. That’s the way it works.
If you’re constantly getting by with marginal and cheap talent, you’ll have a marginal and cheap team. That’s not what we should want.
I don’t give a shit how much Ced makes…I care about not losing him…dudes like Boykin,FOles,Mykal, Cox, Curry will all need to be extended soon and Ced Is only on a 1yr deal.. Don’t care who gets what, I care that we fit everyone under our cap and keep our young players in philly
Chip Kelly doesn’t like WRs who are “risk adverse to contact”
His words.
How many times we see Damaris Johnson go down/not attempt a catch cus he knew contact was coming. He’s a small guy. Didn’t handle contact well.
DeSean was similar. He would go across the middle, but there wasn’t much conviction there.
Maclin will really have to prove his “self-tacklin Jeremy Maclin” nickname deserves to be retired. I think we all remember him falling a yard short of the sticks in recent memory. That won’t fly anymore.
With defenders getting bigger stronger and faster. You can’t count on the same separation. You have to make catches in tight spaces against good coverage.
And you have to hang on.
Well that doesn’t bode well for Maclin now does it?
I’m not so sure. The self-tacklin’ aspect of his game seemed to develop after a couple of heart-breaking fumbles by WRs. At least one of those was Mac getting the ball ripped out of his hands as he fought for a couple extra yards. It leaves me wondering if the urgency in getting to the ground was coached by the staff that seemed to have a affinity for undersized players out-scheming the opponent. I’m hoping that Mac responds to the new, physical approach.
It wasn’t just the fumbles. Mac would flat out shy away from contact. Perfectly thrown balls not getting reeled in ’cause he heard footsteps.
Dude DOES NOT like getting hit. A bit of a problem for the position plays. And with Jackson gone he really is the feature guy as far as wideouts go. Couple that with returning from an ACL – well…
I dunno about the ACL being a factor, that’s still a mystery. But Mac made some plays and didn’t just rollover when he needed to step up towards the back end of ’12 with Foles at the helm, DJax out and the OL was decimated by multiple injuries. At the very least, he’s earned a shot to show what he’s got (post injury) & who better to give it to him than the team that drafted him. I saw the 5yr offer as more of a thank you from the organization, but was still team friendly, while offering Mac some financial security. Mac is a family man & I’m sure he also had their financial security in mind. The fact that he settled for a 1yr deal, he bet on himself and took his chances in an offense that could prove beneficial to his case, if he proves healthy. He’s playing for a big contract, so I bet he’ll want to erase the “Self-tackling Maclin” nickname.
LOL. Foles has little to nothing to do with the convo.
Mac has always made “big” plays here and there. He’s also has always been risk averse AND his numbers have also been better with Jax on the field than without (you can look that one up, nice little chart out there about it).
He’s a good not great wide receiver who is not inclined to take a hit and can be “punked” by the opposing defense a little too much for my liking.
He could do really well. He could fail. Or he could just get injured again. Time will tell.
I heard a lot of people like you say things like this about what our players couldn’t do….heck, I’m guilty of it. I would have never dreamed Riley Cooper could have been more than a number 4…and then Chip arrived.
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What a player did under Andy Reid has proven to be irrelevant in many cases….Mac has plenty of ability..I wouldn’t assume the worst
Cooper isn’t more than a number 4. His stats basically came from a couple big games. Down the stretch he was pretty ususless.
Nice little post on just how generally useles Cooper is.
Foles was a rookie QB behind a decimated line and needed someone to step up and help him in his cause. How could you possibly discredit that? Oh possibly because both someone shined in the absence of your beloved Vick & DJax. Sad.
To add, my earlier point didn’t have anything to do with Foles, but the fact that Mac stepped up with a rookie QB behind a decimated line with the #1 receiver out as well. You made it a point to “LOL” and pinpoint Foles.
What are you talking about?
Mac didn’t “step up” with a rookie QB.
Mac has ALWAYS been a good not great WR. He played well with Vick. He played better with DJax on the field.
He didn’t “shine” with Foles – he did what he always did – be a good not great WR. But he hasn’t been able to be good, let alone great for an entire season for a number of reasons. One of them being his “self-tacklin'” tendencies.
Most of the people complaining about players’ seeming reluctance to be hit are looking for blood or maybe a little brain matter on their TV screens. They are the ones who drool and gloat over roadside vehicle accidents, looking for the same things. Relieves a lotta stress to see someone else hurt, dontcha know.
I think that is a bit overstated. I’m not looking for Maclin to be Anquan Boldin, but Maclin has short-armed several passes where he was going to get hit regardless and has not shown even situational awareness on when to fight for the extra yard vs. just go down to avoid contact. I don’t think that complaining about that is unfair. It is absolutely a flaw in his game.
We complained about Djax doing this before he got his fat contract. Maclin seemed like he was doing the same thing.
Watch Maclin in 2009 and 2010, hell look in his college years, Maclin was a monster in the slot
He really was a menace out of the slot in Mizzou’s. Remember when we drafted him the question was could he play outside? Yet this offseason reporters were asking him if he could play in the slot if Chip needs him to? Our “educated” media…
Even in 2012 before Jackson got hurt, Maclin played a lot of slot
Yup yup.. I know we only talk about him in terms of outside WR for this year, but I’m sure there will be times we split Ertz or Sproles out wide and stick Maclin back in the slot…love his crisp route running out of the slot
As soon as we picked Matthews I automatically had Mac pegged to the slot. Then we drafted Huff & went “hmm?”. Then Chip said he’d start Matthews out in the slot. Way I see it now is guys will be moved and flexed all over the place based on coverages and situations. Chip will look to exploit his mismatches & he’s got more multipurpose tools now in that toolbox of his he keeps referencing.
Take it with a grain of salt. It’s coming from someone who referred to a war hero as a little boy who never knew to grow up and put his toy guns away
Who said that?? I take immense offense to that as an Army Infantry vet that always wanted to deploy and serve.
Maggie while initially I just found her comments usually off and annoying that one I count as offensive and insulting
Got nothing to do with that. No one expects Maclin a small dude to be Calvin Jackson-esque in his playing. But the guy DOES get punked by defenders (balls being ripped out of his hand) and will go down if pet or thinking he might be bet.
The name Self-tacklin Maclin wasn’t just given to him for fun.
Mark Sanchez “Butt-fumble” jersey goes for $820: http://espn.go.com/new-york/nfl/story/_/id/10982094/mark-sanchez-butt-fumble-jersey-sold-820-new-york-jets-fan
I have to know who ends up buying it lol
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You guys see Manziel last night? He was at the UFC fight, then he was partying with Gronk in Vegas, spraying Champagne on people…
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Makes me really appreciate FOles getting married and going into where’s Waldo mode all offseason..
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Shady is in Vegas and likes Manziel, hopefully our RB wasn’t partying with those clowns
Have a feeling that Johnny will be too big for that town. And that’s Manziel, not Geags…lol.
We are talking Cleveland bud, my little brother might be too big for that town 🙂
Lol!