OL Update
Posted: August 25th, 2015 | Author: Tommy Lawlor | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 235 Comments »One of the reasons that the Eagles offense has played so well in the preseason is that the offensive line has played well. Let’s take an updated look at some players.
* Jason Peters is a man on a mission. He is out to prove that he was the key to the left side of the line and not Evan Mathis. Peters is in the best shape of his life and he’s playing as well as I’ve ever seen. This is very encouraging.
* I like what I’ve seen so far from Allen Barbre. He may not be Evan Mathis Jr., but he’s played well at LG as both a run blocker and pass protector.
* Andrew Gardner is the least effective of the starting linemen, but he’s better than the other options at RG. Gardner has had some good moments.
DeMarco Murray's first carry as an Eagle. Great job by Andrew Gardner at second level. https://t.co/8X6W0TjzvZ
— Fran Duffy (@fduffy3) August 24, 2015
Gardner looks like he can be an effective starter, especially in this system. He’s certainly not a long term answer, though. His biggest issue is that he plays too upright at times. That limits his power as a run blocker and it gets him off balance in pass protection. When he bends his knees and plays with good pad level, Gardner can get the job done. He is at his best on the move. Despite being a big guy, he is a good athlete with impressive movement skills.
* John Moffitt has been disappointing so far. I knew he would be rusty, but I didn’t expect him to be this rusty. He does have flashes of his old self. The more he plays, the more we should see of that guy. The preseason finale will probably be huge for him. Moffitt should play most of that game. He will need to show he’s worth keeping on the roster.
* I have been pleasantly surprised by Matt Tobin as the backup LT. He played that spot in the past and looked okay, but he’s had a good showing so far. Tobin won’t be mistaken for Jason Peters any time soon, but he’s been solid as a pass blocker. I would like to see him get some reps at LG. Tobin just seems more comfortable on the left side of the line. He was a non-factor in the RG competition, but you can see the guy has talent when watching him play LT in games.
* David Molk was up and down when facing some of the Ravens bigger DL. I still think he should be the backup C. Molk has very good movement skills and he will battle like heck when run blocking a DT or NT.
* I don’t know what to make of Julian Vandervelde. He looks good when allowed to fire off the ball and attack DL. He looks overwhelmed when pass blocking at times. He really struggles to anchor on some plays. Powerful DL will just drive him back to the QB. I don’t think I would keep him on the final roster, but the coaches seem to like him.
* Dennis Kelly is maddening. He has the potential to be a starting OT in the NFL, but he doesn’t play to that potential. He’s big. He has good feet. Kelly is a good enough athlete. He just doesn’t do the little things well. If you could combine him and Tobin, you might have a solid starting OL. There are some plays when Kelly is very impressive. There just aren’t enough of those. It wouldn’t shock me to see him stick around for this season, but I doubt he’s back next summer. If the light hasn’t gone on at this point, it never will.
* I haven’t yet re-watched the third string OL from the Ravens game. Just based on what I saw when watching the game live, they looked better than they did in the Colts game. You saw some holes on run plays. Kevin Monangai didn’t run for 87 yards based purely on his ability.
I just hope one or two of those guys shows enough that they can be good practice squad material.
_
“* Andrew Gardner is the least effective of the starting linemen, but he’s better than the other options at RG. Gardner has had some good moments.”
Fitting that he replaced Herremans, RIP, who was the least effective of the starting lineman.
“Peters is in the best shape of his life and he’s playing as well as I’ve ever seen.”
Preseason drinking game: take a sip any time you hear about a player being in the best shape of their life.
Herremans has apparently been awful in Indy. Dodged a bullet there…
No surprise there. He was in rapid decline.
He had been in decline the last 2 years. No issue with letting him go or a few other things the Eagles did (trade McCoy, let Maclin walk because he exceeded their desired contract value).
Still wish the Eagles have been willing put up with Mathis (every team has at least one or two head cases or pain in the asses) for one more year and/or drafted an OL.
OL suffers more injuries than any other NFL position and most of them are ankle, knee, or head/face injuries which even the best conditioning can’t do much about. These aren’t for the most part soft issue injuries (pulls, strains). Yeah they can work on flexibility and strengthening surrounding muscles but that only goes so far especially when an ankle/knee gets moved the wrong way.
Everybody keeps talking about Bradford’s health as the key but the OL to me is where this team has the least depth and can’t adequately replace a few guys including Peters or Kelce. With those 2 out, the running offense loses some key elements.
Yeah losing Bradford for a game or two would hurt but the Eagles at least have a very experienced QB who is familiar with the system now and is arguably the best backup in the NFL or very close.
Herremans has had a great career for a late 4th round pick from a small school.
I’m not going to nitpick about kicking Mathis to the curb because I think this regime has done a great job at talent evaluation -but I totally get your point.
yeah it gets ugly real quick if one of the oline guys goes down. i guess thats why we have tebow
Interesting watching that clip – I’m no expert but that sure looked like a read-option fake from Bradford to me. I still think Suggs took a cheap shot, especially in preseason, but I believe Chip said something along the lines that they only ran the read-option stuff when Tebow was in the game…
Probably a true statement by Kelly (only run RO w/ TT in game).
Because, especially in pre-season, why would he want Bradford actually running the ball?
But that doesn’t mean — as you observed from the tape — that Bradford is *not* carrying a fake to set up a pass off the RO.
Not a fake because he doesn’t run anywhere after the handoff. It’s just a handoff, pure and simple.
I don’t think the NFL has thought through their rule. “Fair game until QB adopts a passing posture”?? NO quarterback adopts a passing posture after a handoff, because they DON”T HAVE THE BALL. What are they supposed to do, fake a pass?
I’m in awe of what Peters has looked like so far this preseason. It’s weird to be so amazed by a hall of fame player who has been the best in the game for years, but he really looks amazing.. “man on a mission” is right.. He has been fantastic so far and is allegedly at the best weight he has ever been this time of year… What’s amazing is there isn’t even a hint of Peters slowing down.. At this rate he can start another 3 years..
..
The best thing about Gardner so far is that he seems to be his best in pass protection which is everything to us when we have Bradford at QB.. Kelce has praised his run blocking/combo blocks but his pass blocking is what has really stood out for me
…
Kelces health is my biggest fear. Guy has gotten hurt a lot and losing him is a nightmare.. He has to play 16 games this year.
..
barber is solid, I don’t even worry about him..
..
Moffitt is clearly not ready to start in September, but personally I would give him a free pass this season. Just because he isn’t back to his old self by August, doesn’t mean he can’t be effective if called upon in November.. I’d like to see him get a year with our coaches before we decide to give up on him..
..
I don’t want to see BOTH Vandervelde and Molk on the roster.. One scab is enough… Hopefully by next offseason Moffitt is back to his former self, learns the center position and can give us a solid backup center to Kelce allowing us to end the Molk/Vandervelde era..
..
Dennis Kelly, I agree with Tom, he is very frustrating and is no longer a rookie, dude needs to start showing consistency, it’s now or never
.
Tobin is clearly our top backup, but he belongs on the left side, ideally guard.., I get the impression he can’t play on the right side
..
Graf has been a big disappointment.. He has been horrible
..
We have to go heavy OL in the next draft and FA. I think Chip knows and will fix it. Just like he did with the secondary this year. Hopefully we can get by with this 5 for this year but have to get some young promising talent in here. Haven’t heard anything out of the UDFA’s and they haven’t stood out in the 2 games. I thought Coccia would have an advantage because of offense familiarity.
T/G, C/G, OLB, S, maybe another WR when we get rid of Coop n Austin next year and we are set…
The key with Peters is the 2nd half of the season…he always looks good in TC, preseason and the 1st half, but he fell off late last season. We need him to stay healthy and dominate during our playoff push
I’m waiting to find out how many OL we will keep. It’s one of the biggest questions that I need answered to really get an idea of what this roster will look like… last year our 2nd team OL dominated the preseason and we rewarded them by keeping them all, even if it meant carrying more lineman then usual.. The backups haven’t been bad, but they haven’t been as dominant as last year so I don’t see them keeping so many Lineman again
..
It’s frustrating to not know how many we will keep, because we need that answered to know how many of the fringe kids like Tomilson, Bailey, Barner(a lock) we get to keep
..
I’m assuming that we will keep 8 or 9 OLineman:
the Five starters
#6) Tobin
#7) Moffitt (I think you keep him to see how much you can grow him over the course of the year)
8) Vandervelde Vs Molk
9) ???? Dennis Kelly? Graf has played like crap.. Do we even keep a 9th, or just pick someone up off the street if injuries pile up?
…
Are guys like Vandervelde, Molk, Kelly, Graf good enough to warrant losing players at other positions?
..
One things is clear, next years draft will provide an influx of talent at Center and Tackle… guard is the most undervalued position… Draft a quality tackle or Center and odds are he will be fine at Guard if you need him…Kelce’s injury history really scares me.. Would have felt so much better if we had a young talent like Hroniss Grasu giving us Kelce insurance better then crappy Molk and Meh Vandervelde..
Are guys like Vandervelde, Molk, Kelly, Graf good enough to warrant losing players at other positions? — this is the question, i’d rather keep another TE, or mostert, hopefully we can find a guard after next weeks cut downs but anyone we get is going to be developmental. We also need another tackle in training, though sounds like that could be Molk. It’d be nice to get someone in the same stratosphere as Johnson for when he moves over.
Molk at Tackle? He will never spend 1 minute playing tackle In the NFL.. He is a C/G and I question if he is even strong enough to play Guard..
..
Tobin doesn’t look like he can play on the right side.. So unless they can find a capable backup tackle on the waiver wire, I don’t see how we can afford to Dennis Kelly, he is the only thing we have an our bench that we can even consider putting on the field at RT… Hopefully we find a hidden gem on waivers… Hopefully we can get a year of good starting OL health Til we can draft some OL talent for our bench next year
..
I don’t feel very good about backup Lineman which is why we might as well keep Moffitt for a year to see if we can get him back to what he used to be.
..
I need a break from the injury disasters. Last year was so hard to endure.. I don’t even care who our starting 5 is, I just care that the starting OL remains healthy so they can gel and play together..
What are the scenarios for backups if a starter goes down on game day? I would guess Tobin is the LT and LG backup, Molk C and RG, but who is the RT backup? It can’t be Moffitt, and Tobin apparently not very good on right side. So does that keep Kelley on the roster to be backup RT(and maybe backup RG)? Then to me Moffitt is the odd man out. Why keep 9 OL?
I think Barbre would be the first choice for backup OT, so if Peters went down, it would probably be
Barbre-Tobin-Kelce-Gardner-Johnson
If Johnson went down, it would probably be
Peters-Tobin-Kelce-Gardner-Barbre
LG backup would be Tobin. RG backup would be Moffit. C is Molk.
I definitely think Peters is a man on a mission, I don’t think it has as much to do with Mathis so much as last year he started to fall off at the end of the year and people started to wonder if it was the beginning of the end. He himself was a little concerned, went back and looked at the tape and was relieved to see it was not physical, it was all mental. So he’s back to prove to everyone he’s still as good as ever.
Versatility means only 8 OL are kept. If Moffitt starts, Gardner becomes b/u at RG & RT. Tobin Is b/u at LT & LG. Molk is probably b/u at C/G. If Moffitt doesn’t start, then the battle is for b/u OG between Moffitt, Vandervalde & Kelly. Moffitt gets nod if he continues to show improvement and/ or enough potential.
But Moffitt hasn’t shown anything to warrant the starting job. Its Gardner’s job to lose period and I only see that happening because of injury.
Moffitt hasn’t even made the roster yet, as far as I’m concerned.
My thoughts exactly.
He does have game tape from past years — coaches will take some of that into consideration when making roster choices. If they think it’s a matter of shaking off rust they may let that happen in practice during the season, and keep him on the roster. It might also come down to who has practice squad eligibility (Moffitt does not). It’s as much what potential a player has versus how they are playing right now.
No doubt. But he needs to show more than he’s shown so far.
No way Noffitt is ready to start in Atlanta, still way too inconsistent… Just because Garner is going to start at RG, doesn’t mean he can’t move to RT if lane gets hurt and bring a guard off the bench..
.. Because of the strength of this roster, and the lack of depth on our bench at OL, I would keep ONLY 8 OL, 5 starters and 3 backups and if injuries happen, we can pick someone up..
..
The problem is we don’t even have 3 backup that I LOVE! Tobin is fine, if Moffitt would shake the rust off he would be fine, but that doesn’t seem like it will happen to start the season.. Molk and Vandervelde both should he replaced next year for the G/backup Center role, ideally Moffitt shakes off all the rust this year, learns the center spot next summer and can be a better backup for Kelce then Molk and Vandervelde..
If we only keep 3 backup OL I assume it comes down to:
1) Tobin
2) Molk vs Vandervelde winner
3) Dennis Kelly vs Moffitt winner
..
Anyone seeing it different?
billy Davis says the Eagles are excited about the kemdricks contract because they think he is a guy who will really Flourish now that he doesn’t have to worry about his future and can just focus on his craft and how Mykal has developed into pretty close to the “Prototypical 3down ILB” that we want..
..
Billy talked about being excited about the coverage ability/Blitzability of our ILBs, and he hopes to have all 3 Saturday but we aren’t sure if Meco will be 100% ready to go in Atlanta but that he is “close and much further along them normal Achilles recovery”..
..
billy is also hoping that Rodgers plays a lot on Saturday because it’s a great test for our defense..
..
Says that the Nickel CB spot is still undecided
..
Raved about Thurmonds ball hawk ability some more
..
Gave Cox the day off today, he is off to the side with Marcus, Ertz and the trainers
..
Billy said he saw real growth in MS2 and we hope to have him back for the 4th preseason game
Hoping we can keep Tomilson on our practice squad. big strong Caveman mofo, physical TE… He should be following Celek around 24/7 learning everything he can about becoming an elite Blocker from one of the best in the game.. If Tomilson develops into a quality blocking TE over the next two years, we will be able to make a smooth transition when the Celek era ends… Burton and Ertzy are both very athletic and versatile weapons, Hopefully Tomilson can develop to eventually step into the blocking TE role when Celek vacates it retiring as an eagle…. For a big Physical TE, Tomilson has been a better pass catching TE then expected.. Big kid can move a bit.
..
I really don’t want to lose Tomilson and Sheed Baily needs to take Pratt’s Practice squad spot.. Hopefully we can also sneak Denzel Rice onto our Practive squad..
..
It would be Great if we could trade Acho or Naje Goode for a capable backup Right Tackle/Guard that better then Dennis Kelly
..
The 6 WRs are a lock, 3 youngins, Coop, Austin and Tutu(who is only here to dominate on special teams
..
The 7 DL are a lock (only 6 dress) starting 3, Curry, Beau, Hart, Bair..
..
I assume we have to keep 5 ILBs: Big 3, Hicks and Brad Jones
..
5 OLB’s: two starters, MS2, Braman.. With Curry also getting snaps
..
5 safeties: 2 starters, 2 ST
Studs( Maragos/Prosinski) winner of Couplin vs Reynolds
..
4 RBs Barner and the big 3
..
3 QBs
..
3 TE
..
This leaves 13 roster spots left for the OL and CBs combined..
..
Since our backup OL isn’t very good, I would keep all 5 corners and just go with 5 starting OL and 3 backups…
..
5 CB: Maxwell, Nolan, Rowe, Jaylen, Bigs..
..
5 starting OL
3 backup OL
1) Tobin
2) Vandervelde vs Molk???
3) Dennis Kelly vs Moffitt?
I am surprised Pratt has lasted this long, the only noteworthy thing about him seems to be that he took over the number 10 jersey.
I am also starting to wonder about Austin and Tutu. Miles has one noteworthy catch? And Tutu hasn’t stood out on the special teams portion that shows on TV. Maybe they are more valuable behind the scenes or doing the stuff that doesn’t get on camera, but the situation seems ripe for a surprise cut.
agreed about Pratt. Bailey is takin his practice squad spot.
False.
i too was once a broke college student, but you sound like you might be a liberal arts major so you might be unemployed for awhile…your lack of technical thinking and clear concise writing makes me believe you have never taken a STEM class soooo yeah……cheers.
Your lack of confidence is clearly evident.
…well at least you can read.
i too was once a broke college student, but you sound like you might be a liberal arts major so you might be unemployed for awhile…your lack of technical thinking and clear concise writing makes me believe you have never taken a STEM class soooo yeah……cheers.
Pratt got open a few times but couldn’t make the catch after a year of seasoning on the practice squad, yet Baily comes in and isn’t supposed to be able to play at this level and he is making all types of tough catches, Baily def needs that Practice squad spot from Pratt…. Bailey spends a year practicing with us, hopefully next summer he shows enough improvement at WR and more important Special teams and he is able to make the roster, it would be a great story
..
Seems like he has a chance to grow into an Avant type of possession WR. not the fastest or biggest but makes tough catches
If Miles needed to compete for a roster spot Chip wouldn’t have held him out of last weeks game, and Tutu is going Nowhere.. The guy is a dominant ST player regardless what two preseason games say… I look forward to eventually replacing Tutu, Austin and Coop, I couldn’t care less about any of the 3, but they are all locks for this season, unfortunately… tutu I expect to get the most out of.. Can count on him making his presence felt on ST more then I can count on consistently getting production out of Austin and Coop when we have hungry young talent ahead of them.. Maybe coop n Austin play more in September, early October, but as the year progresses we should see less and less of them and more and more of Agholor and Huff
..
Unfortunately it’s another year of Coop and Austin, hopefully it’s both their last.. Next ueat Jordan and huff will be in year 3 prob feel more comfortable bringing more youth into the WR room
On Monday, the Eagles Insider tweeted: RT @EaglesInsider: Miles Austin will return to training today.
So, I don’t know that he was given the night off because his spot is locked up. The money says he has a job, but even that doesn’t have any long-term repercussions. If players truly earn their spots, his isn’t safe yet.
I don’t think Rice is going to be poached by another team to be on their 53 roster, so if the Eagles want him he will be on PS. And I’m not sure Hart makes the 53. He has shown less than Mihalik so far in the preseason games.
As far as backups I think I know who is the best of the Bunche.
But can Bunche take a punch?
He already has.
Hey whaddya got against Kevin Manongai?! 🙂
oops Monangai lol
F it… “Not 4 (Barner), Not 5 (Mostert) but 6(Mongaloid) RBs”…
..
Let’s switch it up and really be different,, since this is a “run first team” keep 6 RBs and 3 WRs… See how Heath Evans and Phil Sims love that?
..
We should trade him to Pittsburgh. They can have him third on the depth chart, behind Allegheny and Ohio.
PRESEASON SUPER BOWL F|_|CKING CHAMPIONS!!!!!!
False..
WHo are the preseason super bowl champions then? Nobody has played better than YOUR PHILADELPHIA EAGLES!!!
True…but false that anyone cares.
PRESEASON SUPER BOWL CHAMPIONS…BITTTTTCCCHHHHHH
week to week baby, only 50% through the pre-season lol
Is this that other guy that was here recently? I forget his screen name but he seems similiar in maturity level.
yeah it’s him, im on my lunch break currently lol
Right on brotha!!
Birds 24/7 has a write-up on how good Gardner has been so far… I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder
Or you can just watch his 30 preseason snaps and see that he has been pretty solid for yourself
I think what you’re saying is that you disagree with Tommy on this one…
I didn’t focus on his performance, so I have no take on it for the time being.
The Eagles are always pulling that handoff and QB fake run to the outside. That is going to get Braford killed and cost Chip Kelly his NFL career. Enjoy the preseason super bowl losers!!!!
False.
pop quiz: what is the name of that play?
Chip Kelly Special. Hot Pepper Stuck Up Your Assh0le
false,
WHERE IS THE PERSEASON SUPER BOWL BEING PLAYED THIS YEAR??!?!?! ARE TICKETS AVAILABLE ON STUB HUB YET! EAGLES E-A-G-L-E-S PRESEASON SUPER BOWL CHAMPIONS!!!
Chip CALL MORE ZONE READS WITH BRADFORD SO WE CAN WIN THE PRESEASON CHAMPIONSHIP!!!!
http://media3.giphy.com/media/CzqaMnNuBhaNO/giphy.gif
really wish that Tommy, or some other moderator here could do something about this.
also, what the heck is this gif from? lol
LOL – just googling gifs.
AG:
I was surprised at the response.
You’ve been a solid contributor here.
I’ve never seen you resort to directing personal invective toward injured players, either.
Which makes some of the “advice” ironic.
No, don’t wish harm or talk about it – at least try not to.
Which comment were you referring?
And thanks for the compliment. 🙂
Okay last comment, I think I know which one you’re talking about.
“But the Ravens will do this to another QB this year and it’s going to be devastating.”
Clarification: I’m not wishing this to happen to anyone, but teams like the Ravens only need an inch to take a mile. If you say you can hit a QB on a handoff, in the knee, because it could be read option – then you are leaving a lot of interpretation to the defense. If they are willing to go after Sam Bradford’s knees while he’s still in the pocket, who is to say they can’t go after a QB’s knees when they roll-out or try to avoid the rush out of the pocket?
This rule scares me for the health of some of the QBs in the league. And I think this sets a dangerous precedent.
Television does not present just how fast the game is on the field (or on the ice or on the court).
Distance sometimes creates the illusion that more time and more space exist where they actually don’t.
Dangerous as hell out there on a football field.
You can easily just hit the minimize button to the top right of his comments and the comments disapear from your screen, simple solution, how do you think I deal with the daily Groupies? I don’t see them lol
..
Minimizing the commemts, not reading them, and especially NOT RESPONDING is the best solution that would make this issue go away the quickest… Continuing to bitch about it or take the bait and responding is almost as bad as the idiot himself…Tom has never banned anyone, he prob won’t start now, so it’s up to us to make it go away.
.,
So stop taking the fuckin bait, hook, line and sinker every day!
..
By now, when you see that name, you should know you won’t get ANYTHING a of value from reading the nonsense, so STOP!
you are right, but not everyone gets the hint and ignores them.
if this community is going to continue to grow, such problems will only become more frequent. community moderators of some kind at least allow some self-policing in here so Tommy can spend more time writing and less time dealing with us degenerates. haha
I know.. And my post really wasn’t aimed towards you, just a general statement.. The problem is tomorrow you will make an effort to not respond and someone else will take the bait…… But this is typically a non troll community so we will eventually get bored with his crap and become a Lactose Intolerant message board that doesn’t “bite the cheese” like the Eagles new secondary 😉
Wow, way to bring things back around to Eagles football. Nicely done.
If Tommy actually policed this forum, GEAGLE would have been banned a year ago. He doesn’t, so it looks like this sometimes.
Everyone gets used to it I guess.
I didn’t know about the minimize button thanks.
It’s also a Disqus issue.
They don’t have IP bans.
Actually, Tommy can add the IP to the Disqus blacklist to take care of the problem.
https://help.disqus.com/customer/portal/articles/466242-using-the-blacklist-and-whitelist
He could also require moderation for users without verified email addresses (regulars could be added to the whitelist, I imagine)…
Interesting. That’s new wrinkle to Disqus.
Prof. Lawlor has enough to do -writing up DGR for every game going back the 1960 season, for instance. Let’s not distract him any further.
I’ll happily volunteer to take the job of monitor.
I second your nomination.
I’ll 2nd that!
he changed his name, possible he was already banned once
Troll 2
A movie so bad it was good …. Jeez
I’m going to have to add this to my watch list.
Sidenote: How does Jeff Fischer still have a job? He runs the most decrepit offense in the league, yes his defenses are usually pretty talented, but Big Red is twice the coach he is yet Reid is compared closer to Fischer (tenure) than Belichick (rings).
It has always confused me how Jeff continues to coach in the NFL. Guy hasn’t done anything in years, yet continually gets a paycheck and is admired by almost all the NFL writers… Really crazy too me.
Plus, with his trade for Nick Foles he has probably bought himself another year or two of sub par play!
…yeah this came up in my mind because Foles looked terrible the other night… i think his pick-6 was off a HB-Screen lol…. yeah he now has another 2 years, i’ll concede that the West is tough, but still the entire offense skill wise is not impressive at all.
And he will be the first coach of the LA Rams!!!
….with that personality it will totally work….him and Nick lol.
….with that personality it will totally work….him and Nick lol.
Not to disagree for the sake of disagreeing, but I think there are more boxes checked with JF than AR. Fisher is a defense builder and steward. His familiarity with offense is from a defensive back’s perspective, he loves himself a rugged RB and a durable QB. Fisher isn’t quite clueless when it comes to offense, but as HC he gets the blame for all of the offense’s ineptitude. On the other hand, AR knows less about defense than any HC has a right to, but as HC, he will get the credit when he has done zilch to earn it. I respect Reid for his loyalty to his bosses and to his players, and his attention to management structure, but the wheels fell off his Eagles ride when Jim Johnson left us, and AR displayed clearly that his ideas about defense (and its personnel) were daft. I credit Reid for hiring Johnson, and landing well in KC, but good career decisions don’t make AR 2X JF. Neither HC distinguishes himself outside of his area of specialization, but Fisher, as far as I know, has only ever wanted to coach, and his in-game adjustments support his position on the field, whereas Reid has worn management hats before, and his woeful game management skills suggest he maybe should be in a booth.
Given the embryonic stage of Eagles FO in 1999, Reid was the right guy at that time, in my opinion. But I think Fisher is unfairly maligned because of personnel decisions that he did not make.
In all seriousness, Bunche was winning most of his battles against Baltimore 3rd stringers. Seems like a developmental candidate.
Great to hear,..I liked his potential but wasn’t happy with what I saw in the Colts game. Haven’t watched the second half of the Ravens game again yet…. You talking in terms of Practice squad or actual possible 53 man roster? tobin is the ONLY backüp that I really Like.. I was High on Barbre and Gardner but they are starters now and it seems to me that our depth has taken a big hit..normally I would think BUNCHE is playing for Practice squad spots, but with how week our backups are, who knows, if he shows enough growth the rest of the way, maybe he gets considered for a roster spot?..
..
If we stay healthy this OL will be as good as any, but our depth has really taken a big hit… 1 injury we could handle, bringing Tobin off the bench… But any more then 1 injury on the OL and we are in trouble…
..
Where’s Bamiro? Did he latch on with anyone or was he that bad?
Likely practice squad. He’s not a guy that you expect other teams to take on.
Bamiro=Giant
Yeah, he was a pretty big guy, but do you know what team he is playing on?
That might be enough to get him a roster spot if Moffit doesn’t show enough in the finale.
You never know.
Just saw the Bengals waived S Erik Daragan from Oregon… Wonder if Chip releases that new Safety from NC State and picks up his Oregon boy.
http://sports.cbsimg.net/images/football/nfl/players/60×80/1737215.jpg
http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1737215/erick-dargan
Is this a Chip Kelly guy? Or is this a Chip Kelly guy?!
If you gave me four choices, using either measurables or photos, I would guess Daragan third as a Kelly guy, and only if ol’ Dirty Bastard was one of the choices.
As I recall, Dargan came in for Ifo Ekpre-Olomu when he was injured. Dargan was targeted frequently thereafter and did well. Known as a hard hitter.
I have no idea if his skill-set fits what the Eagles do at safety. He’s maybe a backup or PS candidate?
In honor of the new contract, GEAGLE will finally consider learning how to spell Mychal Kendricks’ first name.
MYchal
I’d take brevity/moderation over spelling tho
Why? Small details like facts never stop him.
He’s all about truthiness.
Good stuff, Tommy. The OL is always critical to success in the NFL and this season will be no different. How has Johnson looked? Is he starting to dominate like expected in his 3rd year?
He was dominating pretty good last year already.
Thanks, I agree he was good last season…was wondering how he is doing so far this year as hopefully Tommy has studied him more. I’ve been traveling a lot for work and missed the games
That’s no excuse! Tommy did a DRG for the Indy game couple of days ago, don’t think there was much tape to review but i’m sure tommy wrote something insightful.
I don’t think he’s looked that good so far this preseason. Not getting a good punch.
Don’t know if you guys have seen this over at Kempski’s site. Good stuff.
http://www.phillyvoice.com/sam-vs-suggmonster-childrens-book/
I got a laugh out of this.
I’m still thoroughly disgusted with Suggs. Such a bulls**t hit for a pre-season game. I thought Harborough had more class than to try and defend Suggs.
Has to defend his players, but when taken in context of the penalty on Celek or the gut-punch on Bunche – it’s pretty evident how they were “coached.”
Ravens are trained (not even quoting Chip Kelly there) to be aggressive, borderline dirty on defense -regardless of the coach.
That’s their culture. Ozzie Newsome has instilled it and brings in people like Suggs (and of course Ray Lewis) to instill that way of being in new players.
We may not like it. it may be cheap. It’s also kept them in contention just about every season they’ve been in Baltimore.
I think you can be tough and play within the rules. Though, none of the better defenses are coming to mind. Maybe the 2001 Patriots? Steelers? I’m not sure if they were considered dirty.
would you consider the seahawks dirty?
Good question. They talk more than anyone, but I don’t remember off-hand any cheap shots. So yeah, that’s a good example.
Me either off hand. In fact other than Sherman, who is obviously actually extremely intelligent, I like the public personalities of their star defenders. Earl Thomas is so much like LT2. Makes a huge play, stands up, jogs to the sideline. Something about that amps me up more than any amount of show boating. To me it says “Normal day at the office”.
Kiko Alonzo will be just like that when he actually takes the field.
I personally do not think they are dirty, but they certainly talk a big game. And this guy is a little bit over the top…
http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/13509616/michael-bennett-seattle-seahawks-rips-quarterbacks-deals-reaction-hits
What a drama queen. Sheesh.
Their DBs openly admit to holding every play. They talk a lot of trash. Is that dirty?
i do not consider it dirty, guess it depends on your viewpoint. Their holding isn’t really trying to hurt someone and their trash talking is just bravado.
to me suggs play on saturday was dirty, going at the knees, clothesline hit on celek because his fat ass was late to get over there. the guy wasn’t interested in playing football, just trying to show what a tough guy he is
Rodney Harrison, James Harrison.. both at different times voted dirtiest player in the NFL :D…I think…
I can’t remember, but it’ll be interesting to see how good this defense can be without the dirty stuff. CK doesn’t strike me as one that will allow that.
Yeah he isn’t about that tough guy garbage. His offense needs to line up immediately (remember Lesean’s and Desean’s struggle with that?), his defense can’t waste energy because they have to play more snaps than any other defense. Stupid penalties? I can only imagine the scorn that receives.
I’m good with smashmouth footbal, but this is the pre-season. There’s nothing on the line.
My response to that would be that you practice how you play, especially against another team. However, it is clear that Suggs has dogged it this off-season, been trying to get fit in camp, and at the very least gave very poor effort last Saturday.
The guy is probably feeling frustrated. That move sure looked like a guy being a little bitch because he was getting whipped. Same with the punch to Bunche.
I remember hearing on the radio how he was in such amazing shape the year they won it all and the year before. Ever since I have heard how he isn’t in shape. Lots of guys on that team who won it all don’t give the same effort.
I honestly have them in 3rd place this year in that division.
Kelce got away with a hold on Mathews’ TD run. It also looked like he released his man early, which led to the big hit on Bradford’s chest.
I think he thought the ball was out or something. Bradford did hold it for about 4 seconds.
Yeah, I agree. He must’ve thought it was already thrown.
To be fair, though, if he had waited until after the throw there is a good chance they would have hit him anyway because, who know, pump fake?
don’t trust those damn Warlocks and their dark arts!
I am hearing from my sources that Goodell is planning to punish the Ravens by making Baltimore switch teams with Cleveland again.
Are you saying that the Browns suck because they’re in Cleveland? Put Jimmy Haslam in Baltimore, my guess is his team there will suck too.
It would punish the Ravens organization by making them move to Cleveland, and punish the city that supports them by giving them jimmy Haslan’s dysfunctional mess. Meanwhile, fans in Cleveland get relevance as reward for their loyalty. Finally, Suggs can be drown in the river the next time they have a blue baby alert.
But whoever is in Cleveland will suck worse.
Man, I don’t know why, but I feel like the Browns are gonna go ham this year. I think if you put Chip Kelly on that team… man o man. Especially if Josh Gordon were playing this year…
You sound like my old college roommate. Great guy, somehow convinces himself every year that it is finally the year they turn things around. Three more starting QBs and a head scratching draft later, he is ready again. I actually root for a he Browns, just because he deserves it.
I don’t remember names, but there are some that were really upset that we let Herremans go….I just watched the Colts game and he just doesn’t have anything left. Some fans act like guys can play forever at their peak and get upset that the team let them go. Herremans was a favorite of mine too, but Gardner is a clear upgrade at this point.
I don’t there were many people on this board who thought getting rid of Herremans was a bad move.
A lot of us were surprised they didn’t draft a guard after he walked, but that’s a different story.
I remember Mathis being cut as the last straw for some people.
Yeah, that was months later though.
I’d still rather have cut Herremans even without Mathis. He was below replacement level by the end of the season. A younger guy on the same level at least has upside. Todd’s “veteran savvy” doesn’t make up for his declining skills.
Still don’t love that one.
Neither does Evan anymore.
Yep. Think general consensus here was a bit of shock, but acknowledgment that it was probably time. The shock mostly resulting because there was no clear replacement and no noise had been made of an incoming move.
It really was nice knowing he was going to be there as a steady figure. RG, LG, RT, LT. The dude was a baller.
I’m also not one that gets too worked up over roster moves. I tend to have trust in the coaches and the scouts that do this all day/everyday and know much more about these players than I ever could. I’m also very surprised at the dislike on this site for Kenjon Barner. The dude looks awesome to me…makes plays every time he touches the ball. If he makes the team there are going to be some butt hurt guys on this comment board making all kinds of noise for it. I guess my overall point is that although it’s awesome to be a passionate fan, there has to be some level of ‘maybe they know something that we dont’ when it applies to roster moves. Personally, I am just along for the ride. Go eagles!
To be fair, I think Barner has one very vocal detractor here who’s still giving his pre-season props.
So Troy Vincent released the NFL Rulebook today. Interestingly, nothing about the QB being a “runner” in the read-option. Matter of fact, there is nothing at all about a QB being a runner, but only a passer. Blandino is just #makingstuffup.
http://operations.nfl.com/the-rules/2015-nfl-rulebook/#rule-12.-player-conduct
Also, who of you are going to Fantasy Fest on Saturday?
That POS Michael Bennett opened up his fat mouth again. Saying Bradford should stop crying about getting hit & take it like a man.
http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/13509616/michael-bennett-seattle-seahawks-rips-quarterbacks-deals-reaction-hits
Can’t stand this guy. Would love to see Peters pancake this assclown into the turf if we see that team again.
every defensive guy is going to take that stance
Has Bradford complained about it?
Not really, no. More media fabrication.
I wonder what his stance would be if Suggs went after Wilson’s legs? They play this year, and I bet he’ll be the first on off the sideline if that happens. #hypocrite
This guy doesn’t seem like he cares much about his teammates longest he gets his.
My favorite part is where he said he considered holding out this year because he is unhappy with the four year extension he signed a year ago. Talk about crying over nothing.
His own coach said Blandino was wrong.
Mathis to broncos on a one year deal.
8 million?
Maybe $4 mil with incentives according to some posters.
Mathis cost himself at the very least $1.5 mil this year.
be interesting to see if the incentive are attainable.
Most likely tied to team wins, pro bowl/All pro and making the SB
Shocking.
“Evan Mathis’ deal is worth $4mil with incentives. He turned a $5.5mil deal down from another team because he wanted to play for a contender” ok Drew
oh the bullshit that comes out of that guy’s mouth
Should have stayed here Evan.
Was that other team us?
Great article on what made chip sign Byron Maxwell and the what to expect from 2015 Eagles Defense up on MMQB
http://mmqb.si.com/mmqb/2015/08/25/nfl-byron-maxwell-philadelphia-eagles
Typical Andy Benoit article. Some good stuff mixed with a few horribly inaccurate assertions.
Turned down $5.5 mil to play with the Broncos….nice spin. Turning down/holding out…same thing I guess.
Sure you did, Evan/Drew. You totally had the option of making the same amount you had in Philly and crying about your salary didn’t end up biting you on the ass.
It’s like by dropping out of college you are ‘turning down’ a highee paying career.
What’s funny is thinking Denver is better than NE or Indy right now. May not even be better than the Ravens.
BTW – reading an article today about Manning not being able to feel his finger or finger tips. That’s really sad.
The worse part is that a cramp lingered for several months
I’m going to miss Peters when he retires. Here’s to hoping he gets a chance to pancake the living shit out of Greg Hardy when he pulls to the right.
Is Peters up there with Dawkins in terms of beloved Eagles yet? I think so.
Peters is as good as Dawk of course.
but does our fanbase love him as much as Dawk?
Nah… I don’t think it’s even close really.
He’s getting close. He takes protecting the QB ridiculously seriously and I love him ALMOST on a Dawk level for it.
Good question. Dawkins has the advantage of the wow factor with his plays. A lot of fans don’t notice why the running back first encounters a defender 5 yards downfield, but they all notice when you suplex the ball carrier.
Peters moved close to #20 with his actions defending Foles in that Washington game.
I get that most readers of this blog weren’t football cognizant a couple decades ago, but c’mon, Reggie White! This guy had wow plays just about every play. Dude would take on triple teams. He should be in the conversation for best football player at any position ever. The minister of defense.
This is not an exaggeration.
For somebody who has never watched Reggie White outside of highlight films, its hard to really appreciate how good he was.
Peters is the best LT over the last decade and Dawkins together with Reed is the best safety of the 00’s (Cant compare em as it depends on style)
was a kid when reggie played, he still stood out on tv (and it wasn’t even HD).
i don’t think anyone is on dawkins level of being beloved, save reggie (jerome, bergey, etc up there too). maybe not # retired but def. in the beloved “ring of honor”
Mathis deal: 1 year 2.5 million base…chance to earn up to 4 million
Mathis is going to a situation where he is a good fit. His style of OL play doesn’t work everywhere.
it’s not the worst outcome for him by any means.
Vick to Steelers
When you constantly see “worth up to $4m with incentives” being propped up by sources you know that’s a face saving move, aren’t all deals in the NFL incentivized anyways?
To a degree. Some ALOT more then others.
let’s trade Molk to the Steelers for a 2nd round pick.
OMG, if they ever did that I’d run down Broad Street naked singing Marynowitz is the GM Jesus.
Carroll says: “There was a bunch of stuff that happened last year. I don’t really want to talk about it.”
Mysterious.
Lots of great material in here for Iggles fans allowing themselves to get their hopes up (which includes me): http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/eagles/20150825_Time_for_Eagles__Byron_Maxwell_to_turn_corner.html
Carroll was thinking:
Williams wasn’t around to complain about practice, and Allen didn’t know where he was supposed to be. Oh and Fletch is so slow he couldn’t catch a cold.
Imagine how pissed Chung is right now. Played behind Fletcher two years ago, got to play behind Revis and Browner last year, and now he is stuck behind Fletcher again. Sucks to be him.
I think Revis, McCourty, and Browner earned most of that big contract he got this off season for him.
Chung is a S, not a CB. He started with Philly and with NE.
By “played behind”, wee2424 meant that Chung played as a safety behind (on the field) the CBs of Fletcher (two years ago) and Revis and Browner (last year).
? I’m aware he is a S. I made no indication in anyway that I thought he was a CB.
Notice how I said he played behind Fletcher, that would mean he is playing behind the CB in which the S does alot of times.
I’m also aware he started with NE and Philly hence what I said.
My apologies, I interpreted “played behind” as being in reference to the depth chart. This after reading the thread talking about Carroll not getting to play because he was “behind” Fletcher.
Gotcha… all good. I can see where you can interpret it that way.
He is probably still pissed he didn’t go in over a flailing Fletcher. As a professional athlete that is competitive by nature he must have took it as a slap in the face that Davis did not bench Fletcher in favor of him while the season was spiraling down the toilet.
Probably made it even harder for him considering he was a starter in MIA and was used to a good amount of playing time.
More frustration probably mounted when he realized his position coach was way over his head, and was telling him to use techniques that as a player that has been in the league for a few years knew were incorrect.
It was also pretty thinly veiled that Lovett didn’t really teach technique, and he said they really didn’t know how to press nor where their help was coming from if they did. Sure sounds messed up, and that’s what it looked like on the field too.
I did find it interesting that the Eagles ditched both the DB coach and the DB assistant coach after the season. You wonder if there were disagreements with the players as well.
It’ll be interesting to see if Williams, Allen and Fletcher do any better this year — at least part of the issue must have been coaching. Of course the Eagles didn’t keep the players either 🙂
Allen is going to have his mistakes. He is simply just a very average S and I think he will continue that with OAK. People don’t realize how bad the S situation in the league is, and that he qualifies as average.
Williams was never really bad for us. Fans didn’t like him for his mouth and he was lumped in with a poor secondary. He was solid for us and I think he will be the same in Seattle. May be a bit better in Seattle due to his supporting cast.
Fletcher was garbage for us and he reportedly is doing the same thing in NE right now by letting up some big plays. I think he will stink it up in NE during the regular season. There is a chance he may do slightly better in NE, but that is simply due to the fact that I’m not sure if he could do.worse.
Agree on poor coaching. I find it hard to believe that Carroll would bear any ill-will toward Fletcher. Rookies know they sometimes have to wit their turn and there was never a hint of Fletcher being anything but a good teammate.
Neither Carroll nor Fletcher came to the Eagles as rookies. They were both free agents that had spent time as the starter on their previous team.
Sounds like Orlando Scandrick of the Cowboys tore his ACL. He’s by far their best cornerback. I hate injuries, even for divisional opponents.
Yeah, even for a Cowboy I don’t wish injuries on them. Now, refusing to go back on the field because Cox and Logan keeping throwing them down and hurting them, absolutely. But not injury.
that sucks, need that Jordan Matthews on my fantasy team even more now.
LMAO
Crazy how they paid Carr so much money, invested a high first round pick in Claiborne back in 2012 and another first in Jones, and Scandrick is arguably their best CB.
Goes to show how hard it is to project CBs from college to the NFL, and even NFL team to NFL team. The slightest change in scheme may alter their production and confidence tremendously.
It’s also foolish to really expect much good from rookie CBs at all. Like everything else in the world there is occasionally exceptions however. I do not think Byron Jones is one of the exceptions. Physically he has all the talent in the world but I do think he is even more raw then most 1st round rookie CBs.
Can anyone inform us on how he is doing? Gregory is surprising me and looks alot more impressive then I thought while rushing the passer.
Haven’t heard anything on Jones, but Gregory reportedly has Jason Garrett and Rod Marinelli smiling. His pass rushing was well-documented at Nebraska, but he’s getting praise for his run defense in TC. I think the proof will be across a long NFL season, will his body hold up? I’m so sorry that kid is a Cowboy.
He’s a defensive end who weighed 225 pounds at the combine. I’m thinking he may have trouble holding up to 16 games of being pounded on by NFL offensive linemen.
The Eagles can run block him with Brent Celek if we wants to.
seriously? I watched the San Fran game, i thought he got pushed around in the run game just like in college and that was by the backup LT for the niners. As far as a pass rusher he has always been quick, and uses his hands pretty well. He destoyed the Giants 1st pick Erik Flowers (who i think was probably the worst pick in the 1st round) but when they put him over the RT for Miami he couldn’t get around him. He did the same to Jack Conklin of Michigan St. who is graded as a first rounder by many….yet in other games like say Minnesota he looked like just another guy
Don’t get me wrong his athleticism is off the charts, but the kid needs to put on some weight in the worst way and has admitted in the past it’s really difficult for him to do so…wish i had that problem
I haven’t seen him this PS, but I read a couple of TC pieces that were positive. As far as his college resume, he clearly was Nebraska’s defensive star, but that D was outmatched more than a couple of times. Last year Wisconsin ran at him for a half, with very little success. But they ran away from him in the 2nd half, the RB was just getting started, and Gregory was invisible. Apparently, he’s at 245lbs now, and his coaches expect him to get to 255. To me he’s a natural 3-4 OLB, but Dallas wants to unleash him on nickel packages. If that is the extent of his use, then it’ll probably be because his run defense didn’t hold up.
http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/2015/08/byron-jones-if-mu-shoulder-isnt-popping-out-im-happy-i-can-deal-with-a-little-bit-of-pain.html/
This is still the unit I’m most worried about. Physical ability is only half the battle when it comes to OL play and we won’t know how well this unit plays together until they have to start blocking against defenses that actually game plan and picking up stunts, blitzes, etc. in the regular season. Still not optimistic about Gardner and depth is a huge concern.
So wait, Mathis lost a year on his deal, a million dollars in money and 6 million next year to sign with a “contender.” Hello? Are you dense? He could have had more security, more money and be with more of a contender than the Broncos if he stayed with the Eagles…… dumb.
I believe all that “contender” crap is posturing by Roseman. Crappy deal for a good player – sad.
*Rosenhaus
Also not sure the Broncos are real contenders as Manning might be done
Yeah but Rosenhaus gets his $$$. Nothing else about the contract really matters, does it?
the further i read into this post the more i want every draft pick next year to be on the OL. for the most part really happy with what we’ve done over the last couple years, just scares me not picking anyone in that unit.
“Mathis said that offer was equal to the $5.5 million he was set to make in Philly before being released, but said “you can’t put a price on peace of mind” or on the chance to play for a team that can make a playoff run.”
“The No. 1 priority in finding a new place to play was playing for a contender,” Mathis said. “The Broncos weren’t in the mix early on. They were kind of the darkhorse in the race. They emerged here late and I just couldn’t turn down that opportunity.”
chris polk getting a lot of time on hard knocks episode 3
Has any one publicly discussed what happened between Mathis and Jason Peters? It seems like Mathis did something to piss Peters off, and the Eagles only released him after Peters made public comments about how the team didn’t need Evan anyway.
I liked Mathis a lot, both on and off the field, but if the team was choosing between him and Peters, it’s an easy choice.