Bounce Back

Posted: May 29th, 2016 | Author: | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 127 Comments »

Mychal Kendricks was disappointing last year. Even he agrees with that. Some people try to rip him apart for how he played. I think those people must have missed the 2009 Eagles LBs. That was some bad LB play. Kendricks certainly had his share of bad plays, but he also made some good ones. He did have 3 sacks, one FF and 6 TFLs. In 2009 the entire Eagles LBs corps totaled 4.5 sacks and 3 FFs. No single LB had more than 3 TFLs.

Kendricks wants to get back to where he was in 2014, when he looked like a possible Pro Bowl candidate. Jeff McLane wrote a good story about Kendricks and his need to play better.

Schwartz’s run defenses have historically been solid. Kendricks said that he was still trying to pin down why that is. Linebackers in a 4-3 “under” scheme should specialize in moving downhill north to south. The two-gap 3-4, which often has linemen hold up blockers and read before reacting, is catered more to east-to-west linebackers who can run down running backs in the open field.

“We may see more people in our face, which means we would have to be more physical,” Kendricks said. “I’m all for it.”

To prepare for the physicality of the coming season, Kendricks has bulked up. He said he now weighs 250 pounds. He typically played at around 235.

“I feel strong. I feel fast still. But I’m a lot more stout than I was,” Kendricks said. “I think you can tell. I’m pretty big right now.”

The Eagles would take healthy and consistent.

I think the new scheme fits Kendricks better than some realize. He has one gap to control. There is less thinking and more attacking. Kendricks can do that.    

I also think Kendricks can be more physical with blockers than people give him credit for.

He does have playmaking ability.

2016 will be a huge year for Kendricks. If he plays well, his career is right back on track. If he has another inconsistent year, the Eagles will have to consider whether he’s worth the high price tag.

_


127 Comments on “Bounce Back”

  1. 1 Bounce Back - said at 9:11 PM on May 29th, 2016:

    […] Tommy Lawlor Mychal Kendricks was disappointing last year. Even he agrees with that. Some people try to rip him […]

  2. 2 ProbablyDrunk said at 9:39 PM on May 29th, 2016:

    Speaking of LBs, I think Bradham will be an underrated addition to the team. Legitimate, physical starter that no one’s talking about

  3. 3 wee2424 said at 10:55 PM on May 29th, 2016:

    Good in coverage as well. Many people don’t realize that. He had a very good year under Schwartz. Here is to hoping he does again. His history in this scheme suggests he will.

  4. 4 Media Mike said at 7:34 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    I know he’ll cover running backs as well, but is he tall enough to shut down TEs? We’ve been missing that type of SAM since Carlos Emmons left.

  5. 5 wee2424 said at 2:01 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    His height isn’t bad at 6’2, and he has somewhat long arms. It isn’t an ideal height, but it isn’t bad either. His athleticism will help. I don’t expect him to be an all star all covering TE’s, but he has covered well in the past so there is no reason to think he will have too much trouble now.

    The guy likes to hit though, that’s for sure. Definitely brings some attitude with him. Between him, Kendricks, and Hicks you can expect a LB crew that really looks to put a lick on someone.

  6. 6 Media Mike said at 2:03 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    That is a major positive of having a Schwartz-led D; some dudes are going to get knocked out.

  7. 7 wee2424 said at 2:12 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    It is, but you have to also expect more personal fouls and us screaming at the refs for BS flags. Regardless I will welcome the nastiness we will bring. It will be worth the occasional extra flag.

  8. 8 Media Mike said at 2:17 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    If it results in injuries to any of the following players; it’ll be worth it:

    In division: Eli, Beckham, Romo, Dez, Ziggy Elliot, Cousins

    Rest of schedule: RG3, Cutler, Big Ben, Le’Veon Bell, Stafford, Matt Ryan, Julio Jones, Eddie Lacy, Gio Bernard, and Andy Dalton.

    But I’d really love a 2 for 2 on dead bodies vs. the Giants on Eli and Beckham.

  9. 9 wee2424 said at 2:42 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Romo should be easy. You just slam him hard on the collar bone. Hopefully Hicks started a new annual tradition.

    Despite Elis’s goofy faces, and frail looking body I don’t think anyone is going to take him out. As funny as it sounds he is the new NFL iron man. As much as I hate him and the Giants I have to respect that about him.

  10. 10 Media Mike said at 2:45 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    I have no respect for him and I consider an insult that he passed Jaws on the consecutive games started list. I don’t mind Peyton and Favre over Jaws, but Eli’s unreal level of luck is too much to stomach.

  11. 11 Gian GEAGLE said at 4:08 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Just fall on Romo and that chicken bone will snap… Think he reached that VICK level where he can no longer take the weight of playërs landing on top of him.
    ..
    Probably don’t even have to hit Romo hard, just land your body weight on his upper body, and he is bound to crack a rib, or break his collarbone/shoulder
    .,
    I’ll be very suprised if Romo ever plays 16 game season again

  12. 12 Gian GEAGLE said at 4:06 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    They better start calling intention grounding on Eli, especially now that schwartz DL is going to give him even more nightmares then the past few seasons where Our DL kicked Eli’s ass
    ..
    I think romo is DONE! Stick a fork in him.., 5 more years? They are lucky if Romo has 5 more games in him lol

    Cousins has some scary weapons this year

  13. 13 wee2424 said at 1:21 AM on May 31st, 2016:

    Cousins does have some scary weapons to work with. He also has a franchise LT to help protect him. If he is as good as they believe (I think he may be), and they sure up that OL some more then that could be a scary O.

  14. 14 Gian GEAGLE said at 8:12 AM on May 31st, 2016:

    Nasty weapons on paper for sure. Hopefully Desean and Reed continue missing games to injury.
    .
    DEsean is absent from OTAs… If he isn’t staying in tip top shape, he could be further at risk for an injury once he comes back.
    .
    Reed is one of my favorite weapons in our division, but that dude has a scary concussion history. With all his concussions, he probably won’t be able to come back a week later if he has another one…. I don’t say this because he is a monster on our hated Rivals, but as a human, I hope Reed considers retiring if he has another concussion or two .
    ..
    cousins certainly looks legit, and their OL is solid, but now cousins has to prove he can beat winning teams, and perservere thru the adjustments opposing defenses will make when facing him. Think the next season after a young QB shows promise is crucial for a kids development.
    .
    I like the skins RB, but I question the depth behind him
    ..
    Assume this is Desean and Gacons last season in DC, so they need to make the most of their stacked arsenal of weapons this year

  15. 15 Gian GEAGLE said at 3:59 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    We will see Bradham on TE, and Kendricks on RBs the majority of the time. Unless they really go with a Left and Right LB in which case Both will see plenty of action against TEs and RBs..

  16. 16 Media Mike said at 7:34 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    I think Bradham will be very functional in that role. Certainly better than anybody since Emmons. I think we can do better in that spot down the road however.

  17. 17 Tumtum said at 9:27 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    We aren’t even sure who is playing the right and left and if they are playing SAM and WIL yet, right?

  18. 18 Media Mike said at 9:28 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    I’ll believe “mirrored” OLBs when I see it.

  19. 19 Gian GEAGLE said at 3:58 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Doesn’t really matter, Bradham is capable of playing SAM and WIL, so whatever they decide to do, whether its right/Left or strong/weak they should be fine as long as they can stay on the field
    ..
    I know that as soon as an eagle has a down year, he automatically sucks, but there is a lot to be excited about in terms of Kendricks as a 4-3 WIL
    ..
    It’s no coincidence that Schwartz spcifcally named Kendricks and Curry as guys who should thrive because of the scheme change, basically he didn’t think a 3-4’did Curry and Kendricks any favors, naming them as the two players he will “Take the handcuffs off of”
    ..
    The 4-3 isn’t any better than a 3-4,,, Both can be used to build an elite defense, but I expect that the switch to a 4-3 is going to have a huge effect on a nice amount of our best defenders…

  20. 20 John Down said at 6:56 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Don’t count on it. Did nothing to distinguish himself recently. That may be why no one’s talking about him. Didn’t you scratch your head and ask yourself, Who the heck is Nigel Bradham? I did. I’m sure many other fans did, too.

  21. 21 ProbablyDrunk said at 8:29 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Couldn’t really care less about how big your name is

  22. 22 Tumtum said at 9:53 PM on May 29th, 2016:

    Good post. It seems like the scheme would probably fit him better. MK has seemed to struggle with angels. If this is going to cut down on his angles, I am all for it. The guy has all the tools, has just been so erratic the last few years. Hope he gets it sorted out.

  23. 23 Media Mike said at 7:48 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    He should be free to “run and hit” at the WIL position and have a lot of his coverage responsibilities compartmentalized as well. He should just need to not miss tackles and he’ll be in business.

  24. 24 Tumtum said at 9:26 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    He runs around like Adam Sandler in the Water Boy out there. He just needs to learn to steer that rocket ship. If he does, I think he can be the best MK we have seen yet.

  25. 25 Media Mike said at 9:28 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    I hope you’re correct.

  26. 26 Tumtum said at 9:29 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    Less projecting him to actually do it, than being hopefully optimistic!

  27. 27 Media Mike said at 9:32 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    Likewise. I’d like some Bobby Wagner / Levonte David level contributions; especially considering draft position.

  28. 28 Tumtum said at 9:43 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    I think he has the ability, but those are pretty darn high standards.

  29. 29 Media Mike said at 9:44 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    And totally unreasonable; more me looking at guys drafted later in the same round at the same positions group with better careers.

  30. 30 Tumtum said at 9:50 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    In a 4-3 MK has that sort of potential. He was probably never going to meet it in a 3-4. How he will play is always one of the exciting things heading into a year, and this will be no different.

  31. 31 Media Mike said at 9:50 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    Yet another reason to hate the 3-4.

  32. 32 wee2424 said at 2:55 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    The 3-4 just like the 4-3 can be a great D. You just have to have a DC that can use its advantages. Davis was not that.

    A 3-4 is predicated on surprise and unpredictability. Davis ran a pretty vanilla and predictable scheme. He was not coming close to using the 3-4 correctly.

  33. 33 Media Mike said at 2:56 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    We didn’t use it under Buddy Ryan, Bud Carson, or Jim Johnson…………………………………..therefore it sucks.

  34. 34 Media Mike said at 7:40 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    Here is my dilemma with Kendricks:
    – can he do all of the things Tommy highlighted? Yes!
    – was that good enough in 2014 for a guy with a $1.2 mil cap number? Yes!

    -is he going to be worth cap numbers of $6.6, $7.6, and $8.6 in 2017-19 if I continued to see missed tackles and poor coverage of TEs? We’ll see.

    Kendricks should be better protected from disadvantageous coverage situations on TEs with year if he’s playing true WIL (but I don’t think Bradham is tall enough to do it well enough), but the missed tackles have to stop. I need Kendricks to not make any “Trotters” (attacking the wrong hole on a bad read and leaving a huge cut back lane) and to consistently bring the RB down at the point of contact.

    If he grows that part of his game, he’ll be a great player to keep here. If he doesn’t, we’re not going to keep spending that level of salary on a guy with limitations in his game.

  35. 35 D3FB said at 8:17 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    Kendricks contract wasn’t done by Howie. He would have to be really really bad to get cut for cap space next year. Only $1.8 million in savings. You would have a hard time finding an improvement at the LB spot that is the most playmaking for that kind of money. And we’re a bit thin on midround picks to make more holes and force ourselves into spending a pick when we’ll have other bigger needs.

    Bradham is 6’2 and has 34″ arms. That’s pretty darn good. Sure it would be great if we had a 6’5 guy, but there aren’t a ton of guys that size who can still move well enough and can play LB at a high enough level to fret too much over it.

  36. 36 Media Mike said at 8:23 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    Point taken on not getting a good replacement back for $1.8 year as a reason to take a two year view of Kendricks, but getting back $4.4 mil in 2018 and all of $8.6 cleared off for 2019 could provoke a move at that point.

    And how about this guy at 6’4 with the size and movement to play LB at a high level after a year as a special teams player?

    http://www.nfl.com/draft/2016/profiles/travis-feeney?id=2555298

  37. 37 D3FB said at 8:45 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    Net savings of cutting Kendricks in ’17 as opposed to ’18 is still only 4.8 mil. Again he’d have to be pretty disappointing.

    And I know you love Feeney (and I knew thats who it was before I even clicked the link), but until he shows he can transition to off the ball LB (he was a S and then an EDGE LB at Washington), and hold up against the run, and actually be something, lets all take a breath. SAMs don’t play in nickel, and Feeney is a long way away from being a base package player.

    And the standing reach edge between Feeney and Bradham is only 1.5″. You can more than negate that with superior technique in sticking the hip pocket.

  38. 38 Media Mike said at 8:51 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    “You can more than negate that with superior technique in sticking the hip pocket.”

    And I’ll be judging our LB coverage on TEs by that very thing. I just can’t stomach any more games where Gates comes from beyond the grave to put his best game in 5 years on us and/or Jordan Reed 9-129-2 stat lines.

    And in deference to your own draft favorites; I’ll be keeping an eye on Jakeem Grant’s production vs. that of Countess as well.

    I can also rant “we should have taken Tyler’s guy” in addition to “we should have taken Feeney.”

  39. 39 D3FB said at 8:55 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    Grant was more just a bundle of fun than anything. I’m not too worried about it. I think he could be available in August anyways if Miami doesn’t have a specific vision for him.

    However, when it comes to damnit why didn’t we draft him….

    ANDDDDD IIIIIIIIIIIIEeeeeeeIIIIIIi WILL ALWAYYYSS LOVVVEEE YOOOOOOOOOOOOOUUUUUU!

    http://pigskinprospects.com/wp-content/uploads/joehaeg.jpg

  40. 40 Media Mike said at 9:04 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    Good work!

  41. 41 A Roy said at 5:58 AM on May 31st, 2016:

    Upvote for the musicality in the lyric spelling. Although shah8, wherever he is, would comment on the Titanic reference.

  42. 42 Tumtum said at 9:30 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    When you say “next year” does that mean the season we are about to start or the season after that?

    sigh you answered below…. forgive me I’m working today and tired as hell

  43. 43 Media Mike said at 9:33 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    http://overthecap.com/player/mychal-kendricks/770/

    Here is the breakdown of his deal.

  44. 44 daveH said at 10:11 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    I am 5 8 with 34″ arms .. he has aligator arms

  45. 45 Media Mike said at 10:12 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    You should box.

  46. 46 daveH said at 10:14 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    I cant jump

  47. 47 Media Mike said at 10:16 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    I didn’t say you should play basketball. You don’t do much jumping in boxing.

  48. 48 daveH said at 10:22 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    I definitely cant play hoops. Im very white men cant crump.

  49. 49 ChoTime said at 1:30 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    I think he means the people in his weight class are 6’2″. 🙂

  50. 50 Media Mike said at 1:35 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    James Toney made it work!

    http://www.chicagonow.com/blogs/pow-mixed-martial-arts/James-Toney19.jpg

  51. 51 ChoTime said at 2:00 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    So did Shuhei!
    http://spi3uk.itvnet.lv/upload/articles/40/408328/images/Apbrinojami-cilveki-1.jpg

  52. 52 Gary Barnes said at 9:18 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    For Kendricks, it is about consistency and health. Time will tell if he can be more consistent in his performance and not miss games.

  53. 53 Media Mike said at 9:24 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    The most important ability is availability.

  54. 54 daveH said at 10:09 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    “Time will tell”

  55. 55 Media Mike said at 10:11 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    Kempski has a 53 out.

    http://www.phillyvoice.com/eagles-53-man-roster-projection-2016-ota/

    Hopefully his prediction of adding a vet at RB gets eliminates Barner’s unearned roster spot.

    I’d also hope somebody wins the starting LG job over Barbre doll.

    I’ll believe Countess makes this roster when I see it.

    Not sure if Dorenbos keeps the LS job.

  56. 56 Will:Howie is Nino Brown said at 10:41 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    You really hate Barner don’t you?

  57. 57 Media Mike said at 11:01 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    When anybody has a job because of nepotism (Quack) over somebody who earned a shot; it irks me. Barner being on the roster longer than Josey two years ago and making the roster over Mostert last year when both Josey and Mostert clearly out performed Barner in live game action in equivalent situations is really infuriating. I don’t care if we’re talking car dealerships, municipal employment, or the NFL; your organization suffers when you keep around nepotism and patronage hires over more highly qualified individuals.

    Barner ain’t qualified.

  58. 58 Will:Howie is Nino Brown said at 12:55 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    I don’t even know if Mostert or Josey are still in the NFL.

  59. 59 Media Mike said at 1:09 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    I don’t believe they are, but frankly Barner doesn’t deserve to be either. I think we’d be much better off with Polk back on the roster.

  60. 60 Will:Howie is Nino Brown said at 1:28 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    I’m ok with Smallwood playing if Mathews gets hurt. I’m not worried about the 4th RB.

  61. 61 Media Mike said at 1:30 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    I’m 100% ok with keeping 3 and adding a street FA if we sustain injuries in that spot.

  62. 62 Lord of the Rings said at 2:37 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    And I’d take Polk over Barner too

  63. 63 wee2424 said at 2:49 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Not sure about Josey, but Mostert is.

  64. 64 Lord of the Rings said at 2:36 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    How many punt return tds did those guys get in the preseason to outperform the two Barner had? Barner is ok but those two were also good, just didn’t really outperform him either

  65. 65 Media Mike said at 2:40 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    We already have enough depth at returner, but lack it at RB.

    I don’t need to spell Sproles with an inferior returner, but I do need somebody to take snaps at RB because we don’t run a feature back 35 times a game.

  66. 66 MagHelpsHubby.... said at 4:21 AM on May 31st, 2016:

    Barner is still on the team so who’s nephew is he?

  67. 67 Gian GEAGLE said at 4:35 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Im not very familiar with countess, but I don’t see how he can make the roster as a CB…. If he wants to compete at Safety, he would have a much more manageable path to earning a roster spot, especially if we end up keeping 5 safeties.
    ..
    I would assume there are better odds of him landing on the Practice squad, than the 53 man roster…but if he wants any chance at making the roster this year, it would have to be at Safety since I think Jalen Mills is going to be left at CB this offseason

  68. 68 RogerPodacter said at 11:48 AM on May 31st, 2016:

    who else is in line for the LS job? i feel like its all but his at this point, kinda like them bringing in ‘competition’ for Donnie Jones, unless i missed somebody new.

  69. 69 Gary Barnes said at 11:04 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    And the QB bs continues…PFT has a post about Matt Lombardo of nj.com reporting Wentz is picking up the new offense quicker than Bradford.

    If this is the media making up crap, fine, nothing one can really do about that except starve the stories of oxygen by having everyone ignore it and not react when asked by the media.

    However, if this is coming from the coaching staff or front office or players, Roseman and Pederson need to nip this in the bud definitively. They put themselves in this situation and should have known issues like this and Schwartz/Reich’s comments would be put under a microscope and overblown.

    Whatever their story is, they all need to get it straight once and for all and stick to it. They’ve been able to have their cake and eat it too, but this is one of the downsides of that strategy. Either Bradford is the starter or it is a fair & open competition for the position. It cannot be both at the same time.

  70. 70 Media Mike said at 11:43 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    I think we’re just seeing members of the media doing their best to evaluate what they see in OTAs. I’m sure they’ll do the same in camp.

    We’ll have the final say when they’re playing pre-season games and guys can actually get hit and face a real pass rush / blitz, etc.

  71. 71 Gary Barnes said at 12:01 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Hope you’re right and we do not need to read new QB controversy reports every day – either way the organization needs to be much clearer in its communications about the QB so the media has as little room as possible to make up crap and overblow it.

  72. 72 Media Mike said at 12:04 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    The controversy report stuff is for fan entertainment and doesn’t really intrude into the locker room. These guys all learned a long time ago (except for Wentz maybe due to playing in front of zero media) to tune out the criticism.

    Sam Bradford had to hear for 4 years how he wasn’t $hit compared to any of coach Switzer’s teams at Oklahoma; I doubt he gives an F about what’s in the media now.

  73. 73 P_P_K said at 1:47 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Many fans, in and out of the media, think their opinions must be very important. Fools. The only exceptions are guys like you and me, MM, certainly our ideas have a major impact on the Eagles organization.

  74. 74 Media Mike said at 1:49 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Too true! But at least we all have a level playing field for eval when looking at actual “game” action vs. another team.

  75. 75 wee2424 said at 2:47 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    I think Wentz is smart and confident enough to tune out the media. Our FO puts a large emphasis on how a player like Wentz will perform in front of the cameras and mikes.

    Just read about the mock press conference they held for prospects, or maybe just face of the franchise type prospects such as QB’s.

  76. 76 Media Mike said at 2:51 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Agreed. I think Wentz isn’t going to sweat that stuff easier.

  77. 77 Gian GEAGLE said at 4:28 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    I like that he has already had to experience waiting Patiently on the bench because the QB he was behind at NDSU was a multi yeàr champion… Clearly we are talking about a player who used his time on the bench to Develope, instead of pouting because he wasn’t playing.. So this isn’t anything new to Wentz and he should be able to make plenty of growth even tho he will probably red shirt the year
    ..
    Apparently he had a lot of success growing as a scout team QB in college, so I would think Pederson will have a similar plan allowing the kid to practice against the first team defense all year, instead of using a practice squad QB to be our scout team QB

  78. 78 P_P_K said at 1:45 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Members of the media also have to fill up their column inches or audio time so they might blab about whatever they can.

  79. 79 ChoTime said at 1:32 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Maybe Wentz really is a genius and can learn schemes quickly. People with eidetic memories have a big advantage in such situations. It doesn’t necessarily mean they’re better football players, though.

  80. 80 Media Mike said at 1:33 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    That’s a good way of looking at it.

  81. 81 wee2424 said at 2:07 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    I highly doubt it is the players, and even more so the FO/CS. It is just the media doing what they do best to get clicks and views. You have to expect this will happen.

    Last Tuesday there was an article on ESPN about how Wentz out shined Bradford. Then when I went to read about it on all of our local sites such as 24/7 and Kempski’s site they were all saying how Bradford had a great day and Wentz looked like a typical rookie.

    The only articles you can trust are ones from sites like these. Mostly everything else is just made for views and controversy.

    Media will also pick out 1 play that Wentz made and will spin it to sound like he was doing it all day.

    I do hope he is picking up the offense quickly though. Would be a great sign.

  82. 82 Gary Barnes said at 2:49 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Agreed. I’m not surprised this happened; it is what the media does. I just hope the Eagles have everyone on the same page and will do what they can to limit the controversy stupidity.

  83. 83 Gian GEAGLE said at 3:49 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    How can you realistically expect Lombardo to have enough access to practice to make a Ridiculuos statement like that?
    ..
    Look Id love to find out that Wentz is some QB Savant who is ready to light the league up as a rookie, THAT would be great news for our most important young player
    ..
    But for a media member with limited access to talk this shit after two weeks of OTA is a joke.
    ..
    OTAs ARENT even supposed to be considered a race, or a competition, especially when there is a coaching change. This is simply the time where players are competing against themselves, learning the new Playbooks to put themselves in the best positiin possible to compete for a job once training camp/preseason rolls around
    ..
    I see,NJ.com is up to its usual trash….

  84. 84 ACViking said at 11:34 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    Re: Memorial Day – List of Fallen Pro Footballers (repost from 5/25/15)

    Off topic. But a day for remembrance for my family (and many others).

    Thought I’d share this list of former pro football players and a coach killed overseas defending the United States.

    [UPDATE: I’ve added a link to the Medal of Honor citation for 1Lt. Jack Lummus, KIA on Iwo Jima in WWII . . . hero among heroes].
    _______________

    * World War II

    Cpl. Mike Basca (HB, Philadelphia, 1941) – Killed in France in 1944

    Lt. Charlie Behan (E, Detroit, 1942) – Killed on Okinawa in 1945

    Maj. Keith Birlem (E, Cardinals-Washington, 1939) – Killed trying to land combat damaged bomber in England in 1943

    Lt. Al Blozis (T, Giants, 1942-1944) – Killed in France, 1945

    Lt. Chuck Braidwood (E, Portsmouth-Cleveland-Cardinals-Cincinnati, 1930-1933) – Member of Red Cross. Killed in South Pacific, winter 1944-1945

    Lt. Young Bussey (QB, Bears, 1940-1941) – Killed in Philippines landing assault in 1944

    Lt. Jack Chevigny (Coach, Cardinals, 1932) – Killed on Iwo Jima in 1945

    Capt. Ed Doyle (E, Frankford-Pottsville, 1924-1925) – Killed during North Africa invasion in 1942

    Lt. Col. Grassy Hinton (B, Staten Island, 1932) – Killed in plane crash in East Indies in 1944

    Capt. Smiley Johnson (G, Green Bay, 1940-1941) – Killed on Iwo Jima in 1945

    Lt. Eddie Kahn (G, Boston/Washington, 1935-1937) – Killed from the Leyte invasion in 1945

    Sgt. Alex Ketzko (T, Detroit, 1943) – Killed in France in 1944

    Capt. Lee Kizzire (FB, Detroit, 1937) – Plane shot down near New Guinea in 1943

    1Lt. Jack Lummus (E, Giants, 1941) – Killed on Iwo Jima in 1945 . . .
    Medal of Honor recipient
    http://www.jacklummus.com/Files/Files_K/LummusAJ.htm

    Pvt. Jim Mooney (E-G-FB, Newark-Brooklyn-Cincinnati-St. Louis-Cardinals, 1930-1937) – Killed in France in 1944

    Lt. Don Wemple (E, Brooklyn, 1941) – Killed in plane crash in India in 1944

    Capt. Waddy Young (E, Brooklyn, 1939-1940) – Plane crashed following first B-29 raid on Tokyo in 1945

    _______________

    * Vietnam War

    Maj. Don Steinbrunner (OT, Cleveland, 1953) – Plane shot down on a defoliation mission over So. Vietnam in 1967.

    1Lt. Bob Klasu (G, Buffalo, 1968) – 101st Airborne; killed in action in 1970 at Fire Support Base Ripcord in the A Shau Valley . . . the last major confrontation between US ground forces and the NVA.

    _______________

    * Iraq / Afghanistan war

    Spec. Pat Tillman (S, Cardinals, 1998-2001) – Killed in action in Afghanistan in 2004.

  85. 85 Media Mike said at 11:39 AM on May 30th, 2016:

    Excellent list and makes you really see the civilian side of these guys who bravely gave their lives.

    The cover up by the corrupt defense department in 2004 and the next several years around the friendly fire death of Pat Tillman so they could stifle additional criticism of the war(s) was vile. Rumsfeld and everybody else involved in obfuscating the truth around Pat Tillman’s death can rot in hell. He and his family deserved better.

  86. 86 Gary Barnes said at 1:42 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Great book by Mary Tillman (Pat’s Mom) called Boots on the Ground by Dusk that discusses all the bs the family went through to find out what actually happened to Pat and fight their way through the lies/cover-up by the military. Shameful, but inspiring view of a family who would not give up and accept the party line.

  87. 87 Media Mike said at 1:43 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Really an amazing family all the way around.

  88. 88 P_P_K said at 1:44 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Great work, ACV. Thanks. Gives me the chills.

  89. 89 A Roy said at 5:29 AM on May 31st, 2016:

    Nice job, ACV. They, and many, many more young men paid the ultimate sacrifice.

  90. 90 Media Mike said at 2:08 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Only reason that it is a shame that we’re not in a 3-4 anymore is because I’d enjoy seeing Geagle’s trade offer.

    https://twitter.com/ProFootballTalk/status/737341912861007872

  91. 91 Jasanova said at 2:48 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Kendricks has always been an over rated player.

  92. 92 wee2424 said at 3:04 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    I wouldn’t say that. Inconsistent and durability issues are a better match. I would agree with you if people didn’t realize his issues, but when you hear his name those same negative traits are mentioned shortly after.

    When he is on point he is a very good LB with the potential due to his god given gifts to be a play maker.

  93. 93 Media Mike said at 3:07 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Exactly. He does a lot of nice things but folks (here at least) aren’t banging a pro bowl drum for him.

  94. 94 wee2424 said at 3:40 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    I would even say more then just folks here. When he messes up its usually a pretty glaring mess up, so even the average fan will notice it.

    He has the potential for PB. He just needs to get certain things that are under his control under control. The other major thing is injuries in which for the most part are not in his control.

  95. 95 Rellihcs said at 10:54 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Who Barner?

  96. 96 Media Mike said at 4:51 AM on May 31st, 2016:

    Weak

  97. 97 daveH said at 5:28 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    If we coukd mix kendriks with Dhani jones and casey matthews.. we’d have an athletic well dressed spider chart running all over the f in place. …..
    Stupid sorry

  98. 98 Gian GEAGLE said at 6:15 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Hard to find an eagle that I have ever hated more than Dahani Jones.. Like I really hate that guy, on some Medi MIKE Kenjon Barner tyoe of hatred

  99. 99 daveH said at 6:26 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Epic funny and epic brief.
    ..But him and his bowtie on the cover of GQ .. he was so dapper

  100. 100 Gian GEAGLE said at 7:59 AM on May 31st, 2016:

    I wanted to throw Tomatos at him when he was playing his silly Guitar on the subway platform. I really hate that dude

  101. 101 Jasanova said at 3:08 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    He always get to much credit for being athletic. He is a very good blitzer but otherwise he’s just average. For as athletic as he is, he should be able to cover way better than he does. His instinct are not very good. Just look at how much hicks was around the ball in his rookie year. Kendricks could never match that.

  102. 102 Gian GEAGLE said at 5:21 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    another part of this Kendricks story, is he claims that last years rotation negatively impacted his game, calling the rotation “weird” and that it kept him from getting comfortable.. This Wasnt an issue early in the year because Kiko got hurt so early in the year. But once Kendricks got hurt, when he came back from the injury he had to deal with a rotation that wasn’t the case early in the season and he claims that it bothered him and kept him from getting in a Rythem. In fairness to him, dealing with a rotation was not something he was used to.
    ..
    I still think KIKO could rebound and become the baller he was on the path to become as a rookie, but I don’t know if it was Chip trying to justify the shady trade, but it made no fucking sense to keep putting KIKO on the field when he came back from his injury later in the season. He should have never been on the field. Forget even debating if he was back to full strength after the injury, his body doesn’t even matter because clearly we saw a young LB who Wasnt ready to play mentally, a clear indication that KIKO did NOT trust his body, and a LB is DOOMED when mentally he isn’t trusting his body coming off an injury. You can see it easily with how timid he was…KIKO is better than THAT, I have no doubts.. But mentally, he should have never been on the field when he came back from the injury. Instead of shutinf him down for the entire season, Chip was Adament about playimg him and Kendricks seems to think having to come Off the field because of the rotation negatively impacted his game..
    ..
    I don’t LOVE hearing players use lack of playing time for an excuse for their poor play. Cough cough Demarco, Cough Kendricks… But in fairness to Kendrcks rotating like that wasn’t something he was used to after the past two seasons where he never came off the field unless he got hurt
    ..
    Kendricks is the one who decided to use this as an excuse, now he wjll have to back It up, because Clearly he won’t have to worry about any sort of Rotation with our lack of LB depth. Kendricks is going to get his wish. Bradham will come off the field in Nickel,And it will be Kendricks and Hicks playing on 3rd down.. He should also be positively effected by the scheme change, 4-3 WIl was ALWAYS the IDEAL position for Kendricks, and our new deensive Coordimator singled out Curry and Kendricks as the players who will benefit the most from the switch to a 4-3, calling those two “Handcuffed” by the 3-4 chip insisted on. so there will be no acceptable excuses for another down year like last season.. He has EVERYTHING he needs to have a big year:
    1) playing his ideal position, in an Ideal scheme
    2) Playing Behind a dominant DL and next to a stud MIKE LB
    3) won’t be able to use having to rotate as an excuse because he Will get all the snaps his body can handle
    4) He Put on some muscle, heard his lower body even looks notceably stronger so no excuse why he shouldn’t thrive under Schwartz
    ..
    I don’t get carried away by a down year, but he is going to have To really produce this year, stay healthy, and finally put it all together. if that happens, think fans kind of forget just how good Kendricks is capable of being.
    ..
    I worry more about the lack of durability, I know how talented he is, and I know we have a DC we can trust to put him in positipns to succeed, Im confidemt he can bounce back in a big way, but my concern is the durability… He can’t have another year where he misses 4 or 5 games.
    ..
    A healthy bounce back year from Mychal would be BIGTIME for this defense

  103. 103 wee2424 said at 1:29 AM on May 31st, 2016:

    Agree on everything you said about Kendricks. I also 110% agree regarding Kiko. He is way more talented then how he played. He looked like Casey Mathews out there during the season. He is far better then that. He wasn’t prepared physically or mentally. Chip really messed it up with him.

    If Chip pulled the plug on him early in the season I wonder if he would still be on the team and there would be a battle between him and Kendricks at WILL. Its not like he would cost much.

    Or maybe that is not plausible because MIA really insisted on him in the trade.

    Either way I am really curious how he plays in MIA. There is some talent on that D to assist him. They get to the QB as well.

  104. 104 Gian GEAGLE said at 8:24 AM on May 31st, 2016:

    Yeah I would have liked to keep KIKO for one more year before giving up on him, but can’t complain when it moved us into the top 10 and got the Byron Marshall comtract off the books
    ..
    Chip did a lot of things that didn’t make sense, but continuing to play a LB who had no faith in his body was a really poor decisipn… The only reason I can come up with is chip was trying to validate the shady trade, but KIKO was horrible. And playing him is even worse if it’s true that coming off the field negatively impacted Kendricks game
    ..
    Kendricks owes us a Big 2016 season. His poor play last year seemed to make some fans forget how good Mychal can be
    ..
    Can’t want to see Hicks play again. It’s one of the most exciting storylines for me going into the season. By the end of the year Id like to see Hicks competing with Sean Lee for title of best LB in the NFCE
    ..
    ihopefully the LBs can stay healthy this year

  105. 105 Gian GEAGLE said at 6:05 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Kimmy Jempski made his list of First team NFC East defense
    .
    He had 5 Eagle defenders on the first team (could have even added another eagle or two), and the next best team was the Giants who had 3 players on the all defensive team. Washington had two Players and the lone Cowgirl was Often injured Sean lee
    ..
    His first team defense was:

    1) Defensive End: Olivier Vernon(Giant) and Ryan Kerrigan(Skins).. Vernon is a solid player, a clear upgrade for the Giants, but the insane contract it took to sign him lowers his value significantly in my mind… They friggin made him like the highest paid DE in the League, which is crazy… nice Player, but I don’t expect him to be on another level from what I expect Curry to be for us under Schwartz, and his deal Dwarfs Curry’s
    ..
    2) Defensive Tackles: Fletcher Cox and Damian Harrison (Giants)
    .
    3) his Linebackers were Sean Lee(cowboy), Hicks and Kendricks
    .
    4) His Safeties were Rockin Rod McLeod and “brother Mouzone” Malcom Jenkins
    .
    5) Corners were Janoris Jenkins(Giants) and Josh Norman (skins)
    ,.
    Don’t have too much of a problem with this list, but my impressions are:

    Giants: shows how terrible thier defense was when their 3 first team defendwrs are all guys they had to pay Big Money for in free agency this year. With all our experiemce with trying to pay for DREAM TEAMS, what are the odds that all 3 of their big money free agents will live up to the hype? Probably slim to none. It’s even worse when you consider they had to pay way more than Those players were worth… A clear indictment to The poor job GM Reese has done drafting…the last stud defender they drafted blew half his hand off
    .
    The ONLY players to make this list that our Rivals drafted and developed were Kerrigan and Sean Lee… We drafted more players on this list than all 3 of our rivals drafted combined
    ..
    1) I don’t have a problem claiming that Kerrigan and Vernon are better than our DEs on paper. that’s fine… But there is little doubt in my mind that the Eagles will get more production from the defensive end position than any of our Rivals.. I wouldn’t be surprised if Curry, barwin, and BG ALL come within two Sacks of what Vernon Produced which says a lot about how badly they had to over pay to get him. So while our DE’s DIDNT make this list, I doubt anyone would trade our group of DEs for any of our Rivals DE group
    ..
    2) I have a big problem putting the Giant Free Agent Harrisson over Bennie Logan… bennie had a mini breakout year last season, and for me that indicates the calm before the real Breakout storm… Expecting Logan to really impress this year and there will be no question after this season that Logan/Cox are one of the very best interior tandems in the game. We KNOW we can count on Logan, do the Giamts know that harrison will give them their free agent money’s worth?
    .
    3) Sean Lee certainly deserves to make the list, but it’s clear that on paper we easily should have the top LB group in the division
    ..
    4)’don’t think anyone would argue that our two safeties are the best in the division, and by a pretty significant Margin… None Of our Rivals even have 1 safety who’s on McLeod and Jenkins level, and we have two of them which is so damn exciting, we DESERVE IT, we paid our dues enduring crappy safeties since we lost Dawk
    .
    5) CB, on paper, Jenkins and Josh Norman absolutely deserve to make this list.. However. Both were high priced free agents, so it remains to be seen if they will be as good as they were last year playing on Rams and Carolina teams who had quality defense.. Now Jenkins is joining a defense who’s best players are all free agent signings, which DONT always translate to new defenses, we learned this the hard way. jenkins has shitty LB in front of him, and shittier safeties behind him… josh Norman DOESNT have half the Talent around him that he enjoyed in Carolina..
    ..
    And the Cowboys defense is just pathetic, which should put a monkey wrench in their entire plan…it’s no secret that the cowboy plan is to bring back 2014 team that had its weakness, but the team was able to mask a lot of their flaws playing complimentary football. The defense over achieved, and both the defense and QB were protected by running demarco Murray into the ground… They are trying to replicate that formula but I think they will fall flat on their face because the defense is too Flawed to protect even by an elite Run game ball control offense, they can kill the clock, but what good is it if the opposing team scores with ease as soon as they get the ball back? The defense is Too crappy to play complimemtary Football at the level they hope. The defense will give up so many points that they are going to end dragging Romo into a shootout too often, and exposing Romo like that is probably going to be their undoing.. You can hide some flaws, but you can’t hide a crappy pass rush even with an elite secondary, so dallas should really struggle asking an average Secondary to holdup between what’s probably the worst passing DL in the NFL when they are at full strength. Scary to think how much worse they will be when their two starting DEs are suspended in September
    ..
    No idea how year 1 under schwartz will measure up compared to the contending teams, but there is no doubt in my mind that the Eagles defense will be on another level compared to our three Rivals
    ..
    When you look at our 5 players on this list, ONLY 1 is first year Eagle FA we haven’t seen yet (McLeod)… Where as 4 of the 6 players from our Rival teams are all new free agent signings that haven’t proven to live up to their Loafty contracts yet
    .,
    A lot to be excited about when it comes to The 2016 defense and I don’t think we are too far away from having a defense worthy of our rich history of nasty Eagle defenses. The CB position Should determine if we see a good defense this year or a great defense

  106. 106 unhinged said at 7:36 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Re: Bennie v Damon. The Giants seem to be betting heavy on a true nose tackle with negligible pass rush skills, and a DE in Vernon who is merely okay at playing the run, but is a pretty good pass rusher. That division of labor is further exposed by the other DL starters which are less capable mirrors: a DE that is weak v the run and so-so rushing the passer, and a Harrison mini-me who may get to the QB a couple times more than Damon, but together with Harrison will eat space, making it tough to run inside, and will not collapse the pocket all that well. Harrison and Hankins, the other DT, should be stellar at clogging the middle, but I like our starters for their versatility. The Giants have youth and perhaps better quality depth on their DL, but we have a savvy DC who will introduce us to at least one no-name who will turn our heads. I think the best D in the conference will reside in Philly or DC. I am sooo happy that Steve Jones grabbed Elliot with Ramsey still on the board.

  107. 107 wee2424 said at 1:50 AM on May 31st, 2016:

    Bennie should be on that list over Damon. Curry will be on that list next year over Vernon.

  108. 108 Berdj Rassam said at 8:13 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Kendricks is a solid player and one of their best defenders. And I’m not sure how much more he can improve as many feel he’s playing up to or near his max potential.

  109. 109 Aaron said at 9:35 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    what has he done

  110. 110 wee2424 said at 1:45 AM on May 31st, 2016:

    He can prove that he has the ability to play at a consistently high level. There are times when he plays great and then times when he plays like garbage.

    Also stay healthy. I know that isn’t close to being 100% under his control, but it is one of the biggest knocks on him.

    Considering his level of play last year, and his own self acknowledgment of that I would say he has something to prove. Especially playing like that after he just got his contract.

  111. 111 BobSmith77 said at 8:32 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    My single biggest disappointment on the team last year. I’ve kind of given up on Kendricks being a Pro-Bowl caliber player at this point. Just is too consistent at being inconsistent week-to-week. Not being able to stay and get back on the field along with lingering leg injuries don’t help.

    I’d be thrilled if he is solid vs run this year, plays 14-15 G, and is a reliable starter.

  112. 112 Dude said at 1:29 AM on May 31st, 2016:

    Kendricks is a fly-around kind of guy. All of the tools, few of the intangibles. If you put him in a scheme that works for him, and surround him with the right guys, he can be a highlight reel kind of guy. You certainly don’t build the defense around him, but he can be a real asset. In the right system, with the right teammates, he can be the LB version of Asante Samuel, but probably never a Troy Vincent.

  113. 113 wee2424 said at 1:43 AM on May 31st, 2016:

    Liked the analogy there.

  114. 114 MagHelpsHubby.... said at 4:11 AM on May 31st, 2016:

    Troy Polomalu and Lawrence Taylor were fly around guys too. Unfortunately the guys who stay in place and cover for them rarely get noticed.

  115. 115 Aaron said at 9:38 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    first

  116. 116 daveH said at 11:20 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    First

  117. 117 SteveH said at 11:39 PM on May 30th, 2016:

    Lets trade Okafor for Curry, Golden State needs a big and they have too many PGs.

  118. 118 wee2424 said at 1:21 AM on May 31st, 2016:

    Sounds like a plan!!!

  119. 119 SteveH said at 7:54 AM on May 31st, 2016:

    #fanlogic

  120. 120 Gian GEAGLE said at 8:13 AM on May 31st, 2016:

    We might have to throw in Isiah Canaan to get that deal done

  121. 121 A_T_G said at 12:22 AM on May 31st, 2016:

    So…San Fran?
    https://twitter.com/pfrumors/status/737496338439405569

  122. 122 wee2424 said at 1:43 AM on May 31st, 2016:

    MIA still owns the rights to him correct?

  123. 123 ChoTime said at 1:21 AM on May 31st, 2016:

    You guys are going to love this. On a writer’s website, some guy said he used to study Poker Tells and how to tell if people were liars. He said he could tell Chip Kelly was a liar from his first press conference. 🙂

  124. 124 wee2424 said at 1:42 AM on May 31st, 2016:

    Link? Should be interesting to read. Maybe it will help teach me to tell when my employees are lying…..

  125. 125 ChoTime said at 1:05 PM on May 31st, 2016:

    Can’t find the post, but check out “I Can Read You Like a Book” by Hartley and Kirinch, which has similar subject material.

  126. 126 MagHelpsHubby.... said at 4:07 AM on May 31st, 2016:

    Ridiculous. All coaches lie to the media. They would be beyond stupid to stand baring their souls and play books.

  127. 127 xmbk said at 8:46 AM on May 31st, 2016:

    I think one of the things people didn’t like about Kelly is that he was really uncomfortable lying. Doesn’t he come from a Jesuit background? I got the feeling that part of what he despised about press conferences was the dishonesty dance. His fault for not figuring out a way around it, but I’m more sympathetic than the Philly media (shocker).