Minicamp Begins
Posted: June 8th, 2016 | Author: Tommy Lawlor | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 115 Comments »Tuesday was the first day of a 3-day minicamp for the Eagles. Since no one got hurt, it was incredibly successful. That’s kind of the way you judge practices this time of year. Let’s check out some notes from the beat writers.
First up is Jimmy Bama with a couple of small nuggets.
• Josh Andrews had a very rough day as the second-team center. By my count, he had at least three bad shotgun snaps. Credit Chase Daniel on one of the snaps for making a nice play. The ball was snapped over Daniel’s head, but he was able to grab it on the run, sprint outside the tackle box, and throw it away. Heady play.
• Tight end Chris Pantale has gotten a lot of reps at fullback. Just something to file away.
Andrews earned a spot last year, but is facing tougher competition this time around. He needs a strong showing in Training Camp to remain on the team. Andrews isn’t so gifted in other areas that he can afford errant snaps.
Doug Pederson mentioned Pantale as a Fullback the other day. The Eagles don’t need a FB for the base offense. Pederson would like to have someone for that role, but the guy will also need to contribute at another spot. Most importantly, the player will need to be a standout on STs. Pantale won’t get to prove his worth on STs until the preseason games. Until then, he needs to play well at FB and TE. He is 6-5, 254 and would be a huge FB.
Mr. Bama also wrote a bit on Carson Wentz.
• One thing that has been clear in media-attended practices so far is that Wentz takes far more shots down the field than the other two quarterbacks. It’s not even close. He has a big arm, and he likes to let it rip. There’s good and bad in that. On the one hand, that’s going to lead to a higher percentage of incomplete passes and picks. On the other hand, you’re going to get more big plays, and pass interference penalties. #Analysis.
Anyway, the point is, he doesn’t seem to GAF, which is a quality I admire in a quarterback, within reason. It’s certainly better than watching the quarterback throw short of sticks on third down all game.
• On one deep throw, Wentz threw his worst pass of the offseason, or at least the worst one that I’ve seen. It was a play action waggle to the right side, and Wentz threw deep all the way back across the field to the left side. It was a wounded duck that hung in the air for a while, and was easily picked off by Chris Maragos.
• On another deep ball, Wentz dropped one in the bucket to Hunter Sharp. Well-placed deep throw.
• Wentz seems to have the improvisation gene. During OTAs, we noted a play in which Wentz nearly tripped and fell, but made something out of a bad situation:
Wentz’s highlight of the day was a play in which the pass rush was collapsing on him. While climbing the pocket, he tripped on a lineman’s foot, and started to fall. While falling to the ground, he was able to turn his body, and still complete a throw with enough power to get to the sideline. Carson Wentz might throw harder while falling to the ground than Matt Barkley with a full head of steam.
Today, he fielded a low snap off the ground, quickly popped up, and hit Paul Turner over the middle.
• Overall, it was an up and down day for Wentz. In case you missed it, we noted earlier that Wentz will likely get as many reps as Bradford all the way up until the third preseason game.
Wentz continues to be up and down, which means he is normal for a rookie QB. He does seems to have regular moments where he looks special. That’s what you want to see from a highly drafted player. You never expect a rookie QB to look great, but you do want to see moments of greatness. That tells you the talent is real. It is up to him and the coaches to develop that talent.
It is interesting that Wentz is throwing downfield a lot. I don’t recall that with other young Eagles QBs. I tend to think it was the opposite. When in doubt, dump the ball to a RB or TE and get 3 yards. NDSU didn’t throw a ton of passes. They tended to make them count when they did throw. Wentz averaged 8.4 yards per attempt for his career, which is a good figure. Matt Barkley was down at 7.9.
I’m really excited to see how Wentz will look in August.
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Now for Jeff McLane’s take on practice.
— Bradford had what appeared to be a strong practice. He didn’t take many deep shots, but his short-to-intermediate throws were mostly on target. First the good: Bradford connected with Rueben Randle on a comeback route; he led Darren Sproles on a wheel route; he hit Trey Burton over the middle; he hooked up with Jordan Matthews on a seam route out of the slot; he tossed a beauty to Zach Ertz downfield; and he dropped a deep ball into the bucket of Josh Huff (who beat Leodis McKelvin) for a long touchdown. The bad (what little there was): Bradford threw high and wide of Nelson Agholor, who got caught in coverage; he didn’t read a Malcolm Jenkins blitz, in which he would have gotten decked had he not been off limits; he threw too high of Ertz on a quick “out” that glanced off one of the tight end’s hands.
It is encouraging to read about Bradford playing well. A lot of people are very down on the Eagles offense heading into this season. If Bradford can play like he did late last year, I think the group can surprise a few people. The OL will be better. WR should be better. RB could be, if Ryan Mathews can stay healthy. I certainly get the hesitation to think of the Eagles offense as some unit to be feared. You just don’t see the weapons. But Bradord, Zach Ertz, the Matthews brothers and an improved OL could be better than people think.
— Jordan Hicks (quadriceps spasm) was limited, but he did take part in some team drills. He said the injury came as a result of rehabbing on his shoulder and not being ready for the workload. Cornerbacks Nolan Carroll (ankle) and JaCorey Shepherd (knee) were still limited. Randle returned after missing two weeks because of gall bladder surgery. Pederson praised Randle (I’ll have more on the former Giants receiver in my newspaper column). Defensive tackle Beau Allen is still being held out of team drills for some unknown reason. Kendricks left drills briefly after apparently dinging his shoulder, but he returned.
Good injury update.
— Matthews hasn’t dropped a pass as far as I can tell during the open practices. He made a few great grabs on Tuesday – catching one ball thrown behind him and high-pointing another. … Huff had another drop. The deep ball wasn’t perfectly placed, but it hit him in the hands and he couldn’t hold on. … Eric Rowe caught an earful from defensive backs coach Cory Undlin after he missed an assignment. He later got beat on a pass underneath – he was playing way too soft – and got yanked. I’m not sure where Rowe stands as he enters his second season. One of the cornerback spots should be his to lose, but he apparently hasn’t made a strong case yet. He could just be going through some growing pains as he learns a new defense.
Jordan Matthews continues to impress. He will be the key to the passing game. Matthews isn’t an explosive receiver, but he still has big value as he keeps the chains moving. Agholor, Huff, Randle and Givens can stretch the defense and have more playmaking ability.
It doesn’t sound like Huff has stood out this spring. This is a critical year for him, after two disappointing seasons.
Rowe is still learning how to play CB. He was there for most of his Senior season at Utah and then last year with the Eagles. He’s played off a lot and is now adjusting to a system that prefers him to play tight and be aggressive with receivers. There will be ups and downs, but he’s talented and smart so I would expect the light to go on at some point this summer.
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Can’t talk practice notes without the great Tim McManus.
2:23 — Team drills start up and it’s Mike Martin, not Cox, in at tackle with the first team. Jordan Hicks is out there, though, after being limited of late with what Pederson described as quad spasms.
It’s way early, but more times than not the starting corner tandem seems to be Leodis McKelvin and Ron Brooks. That’s the case again today, with Brooks moving inside in nickel situations while Eric Rowe mans the outside.
The only reason DT Mike Martin is with the starters is that Fletcher Cox is being brought along slowly. Still, it is interesting that Martin is on the field with the starters. Taylor Hart is still adjusting to playing DT. The rookies are adjusting to the NFL. Martin got praised by some offensive linemen recently so he’s impressing the guys he’s going against every day. That’s a good sign.
With Carroll and Shepherd limited, it isn’t all that shocking that Brooks is still on the field a lot. If he stays out there when those guys are completely healthy, then we’ve got a good story on him or a couple of bad ones on them.
But this is no Kelly practice. Where everything was in hyper-drive under the previous regime, here the pace is slower which in turn makes the atmosphere a bit more relaxed. Here, Pederson takes a moment from watching team drills to mingle with the offensive line. He’s jumping up and down for reasons unknown but whatever is being said/done has brought a smile to Jason Peters‘ face and started a conversation among the group. In the next moment, he goes over to Josh Huff and demonstrates the type of technique he wants out of his receiver, who has had his share of struggles in the early going. Just little moments that didn’t exist over the last three years thanks to a conveyor belt type system that coldly zipped player from station to station.
I’m curious to see if the practice style makes any kind of difference. What Kelly did was unusual, but that doesn’t mean it was bad. He was trying to maximize limited time. It just isn’t how the rest of the football world operates. I do like hearing that Pederson is working on relationships with his players and is being very hands-on. It will be interesting to see how things go the first time Pederson has to be tough with a player. Will he have a George Hegamin incident where he shows the team that Mr. Nice Guy can be a jerk when needed?
2:32 — Wentz throws high for McFarland. Later, he connects with Chris Pantale but as the tight end is going to the ground, Quentin Gause swoops in and rips the ball out of Pantale’s hands before running the other way with it.
Gause is a UDFA LB with a chance to win a spot on the roster. Glad to see he’s making some plays.
2:52 — “Maragos gets his revenge!” Paunil exclaims, picking off Wentz’s deep-ball wobbler. Some good and bad out of the rookie today. One thing we can say for sure: he is not afraid to throw the ball downfield.
A Wentz out to Nelson Agholor hits off the tips of the receiver’s fingers and rolls out of bounds. Agholor screams, then repeats to himself over and over: “Calm down. Calm down. Calm down.” Amazing the intensity some of these guys bring to a spring practice. Pro athletes are just wired a different way, Josh and I conclude, as we fan ourselves with our notebooks.
I hate the drop by Agholor, but I love the reaction. He understands it is critical for him to play well this year and get his career headed in the right direction. The team needs that and he needs that. This might just be a minicamp practice, bu the best players never accept mistakes. They want to perform at a high level every time they’re on the field. Agholor has great intangibles. I sure hope the young man turns out to be a good player for the Eagles. He’s the kind of guy you want to cheer for.
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I think Agholor is pressing too much right now and needs to settle down.
Agreed, sometimes it’s better to be oblivious. Understanding his situation is fine, but if he gets inside his own head too hard he can ruin himself.
Often I feel the same way as an Iggles Blitz commenter. While I am glad that I typically understand the situation and can comment in a relevant way, it would be easier to obliviously type. Expectations for self can be a burden.
Same happens for me as a non native English speaker. I know I can formulate a good sentence, but sometimes my brain just cramps and nonsense comes out
You write better than 90% of native English speakers.
Certainly never would have guessed from your postings on this blog site. A guy like me on the other hand? Just hit send with spelling errors and fat finger typos. Not a care in the world!
I hear you…My fingers are to damn fat to be going back and fixing all the spelling errors. I despise the “touch screen” era….. It would take all day to correct my fat finger mistakes. Drives me crazy
There it is. The freedom that lowering expectations for oneself provides.
It is especially bad now that my new phone doesn’t auto correct the fat finger mistakes. Of course that could make you look bad too. There becomes their, etc. etc. Doesn’t really bother me though.
As long as my thought comes across coherently, I am a happy camper. Still working on getting that one down though.
The only clue that you aren’t a native speaker is that you don’t make enough mistakes or regional idiosyncrasies (improper grammar excepted as correct in a certain area, i.e. you all, yous, youns,). You have no reason to be self conscious.
Good point. Anders, I know a Malaysian guy who improved his ability to seem “native” by consciously working in idioms. For example: http://www.smart-words.org/quotes-sayings/idioms-meaning.html
disclaimer: it may also make you appear dumber
And if we are honest, with the current direction America is headed, appearing dumber will also help you to blend in.
Take it from me. Being oblivious is awesome.
Matt Barkley slams never get old.
“Today, he fielded a low snap off the ground, quickly popped up, and hit Paul Turner over the middle.”
Ah, the offseason 90-man roster, where I must rely on context clues to deduce that Turner was the intended receiver and not a LB, or coach.
Did you have to Google who Turner was?
Nope. I am flying blind, and I was a little nervous typing the comment, but I thought if I was commenting that I used context clues, I should stick with them.
Turns out Paul Turner is just a dude hired for frustrated players to punch in the chest. Nelson was telling himself to calm down because he didn’t want to kill poor Paul
[…] Tommy Lawlor Tuesday was the first day of a 3-day minicamp for the Eagles. Since no one got hurt, it was […]
“conveyor belt type system that coldly zipped player from station to station”.
Ah, the power of an adjective. Meanwhile, in SF the press and players are commenting on how much more efficient practices are this year. Pros and cons to each, but life is so much simpler with absolutes.
Read “Tanier decodes chip kelly” by bleacher reports MIKE Tanier for the other side of the chip kelly coin.
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Fun read… Seems like chip isn’t getting much of a “honeymoon period” from the media
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The article calls chip out on all his BS semantics and condescending comments he made since becoming coach of the Niners
Yeah, Tanier is definitely on the “Kelly hurt my professional feelings” bandwagon.
Tanier was spot on in this article tho. He did a great job of pointing out all the bullshit, all the Classic chip semantics game, all the lies, and the condescending answers.
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Not for nothing but after how bad the chip era crashed and burned in Philly, it’s logical that the Niners FANBASE would be skeptical of him, and for someone who got really lucky finding another job so fast, he should have enough respect for the new FANBASE to give them more than the crap he is giving them since becoming HC of the Niners,
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When the city of Philadelphia celebrated the hiring of chip, rolling out the red carpet for him, his reputation was very different than it was when the,Niners hired him to be their HC…. Instead of learning(growth mindset) from whatever mistakes me made in philly, using the experiemce to do better in San Fran, it seems like he is doing the exact opposite, DOUBLE DOWNING on his football Philosophy, double down on his condescending, lying, bullshit semantics,..its amazing to see, he isn’t even trying to fake it lol. He isn’t even trying to show that he has learned from his experience. It actually seems like it’s getting worse, and his bullshit is becoming more Brazen.. Some of the crap he is saying is amazing to me, especially since a lot of it is uneccessary, for example:
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At the owners meeting shortly after he was hired, media was asking him normal, easy questions asked of every new Head coach for example: what Are his thoughts on Kaepernick his new QB, and how he thinks Kaep could fit in his system. This was as harmless of a question as you can ask a new HC. He wasn’t under fire from a hostile media. Just a simple question partly because for years evefyone speculated that Kaep would be Chips dream QB…. This maniac, refused to give the media ANYTHING, Inexplicably he offers the most bullshit, blatant lie a coach could have the balls to muster up. He has the audacity to make up this bogus answer about how league Rules don’t permit him to answer that question and talk anour Kaepernick LOL .like what the hell is wrong with him? Lol
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Tanier points out in his “decoding Chip kelly” article that when Chip was hired in Philly he had no trouble answering questions talking about VICK and FOles… To make matters worse, after Chip gave that insane lie, he gushed and had no problem talking about Gabbert in the same interview…
He is getting out of control to the point where it’s stunning to see how Brazen he is becoming wifh the bullshit he has the audacity to feed fans and the media
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Tanier article points out all the examples of these type of ridiculuos contradictions since he became coach of the Niners…. The most recent chip kelly bullshit is he was trying to tell the San Fran media that he sees Gabbert and Kaep as the same style of player, lol which couldn’t be further from the truth,… Tanier highlites chips bullshit, for example he keeps referring to this big run GAbbert had week 11 against the Bears as one of his examples for how Gabbert and Kaep are the same type QB lol, Tanier points out that the big run play against the Bears chip continues to bring up made up for 11% of Gabberts rushiñg production, which isn’t even close to the damage Kaep has done to NFL defenses as a rushiñg threat.. Chip keeps pointing out how Kaep and Gabbert are the same height, sme weight. Similar arm strength as his justification for why he sees them as the same type of QB, Tanier points out that 6’4.235lbs, strong arm makes up like 90% of NFL QBs lol
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It’s really amazing to see how brazen he is becoming. Typically you would expect that this would happen once a guy starts getting cocky after inflating his ego due to a lot of recent success… But Niners Fans hoped that chip will have learned and grown from his recent humbling experience in Philly, yet it seems like they are getting the exact opposite, chip doubling down on his philly shortcomings and becoming even more Brazen with it saying absurd lies that wouldn’t fool a 13yr old…. Is that really the right strategy for a new coach who was lucky to get a second chance and is about to experience a horrendous season? If he is behaving like this to the Niners media now, it should be really entertaining to hear his press confrences in December after a loss putting them at 3-10…
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Niners are going to be the best reality show TRAINWRECK on TV next year. All I ask for is that chip doesnt quit after next season, and the Niners give him yeàr 2 to try and turn it around, since it’s almost a lock that the Niners will be doing hard knocks next year,
Meh, 99% of the fans want a winning team, and don’t give a crap about press conferences. It was a spin job article. You may be right about Kelly not learning, but I’m keen to see how this year and next go. Not convinced it was Kelly bringing the toxic attitude here.
That article was 100% meant as satire.
Lol right? Like Chip was standing next to the drills pretending that he couldn’t hear anyone
coldly, of course is an adverb.
Nice. 😉
Didn’t I read somewhere that Agholor bought a JUGS machine? I hope he kept the the receipt.
should just cut him..
lol
has anyone ever worked their way into good hands?
“work” = “Stick-em”
Yes. Jerry Rice.
why would he return it?
Because all work and improvement has a due date in the NFL – the first day of offseason minicamp. That’s a known fact. Improvement either happens all at once, or not at all. Human behavior and life in general are linear.
Yes, and sometimes people who start bad end bad. Do we really have to vilify the other POV?
Valid point – but I do not intend to vilify. I feel as though the general consensus or at least majority baseline is overwhelmingly “sucks and won’t improve”. I’m perennially sick of absolutist negativity. That’s all.
Schwartz must be a lot of fun behind closed doors… You can tell that he is a maniac because Watch any interview of a defensive player from the Eagles, every a reporter asks a defender about their new DC schwartz, you always see a smile come on the face of the defender before he gives his answer…. You see this all the time from BG, Curry,Logan interviews… You can even see it from last nights in studio interview with MS2 on CSN’s quick slants…. A devilish grin comes on the face of all the defenders before they give their answer and impressions of schwartz.
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He must be a raving lunatic on the field that must be a lot of fun to play for
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Hopefully he will opt to coach from the sideline on Gameday. I don’t love having a DC in the sky boxes. Prefer to stick an assistant coach up there
bounty, baby!
“In case you missed it, we noted earlier that Wentz will likely get as many reps as Bradford all the way up until the third preseason game.”
Why? They’ve stated Bradford is the starter, they are implementing a new offense, they’ve stated they want to win games this year and want the offense to be better and they’re paying Bradford gobs of money.
Bradford should get the majority of the reps unless most of this Bradford is our guy mantra is BS which I’ve suspected since the beginning and Wentz will be taking over sometime during this season.
Would think this more comes at the expense of Chase and the camp arm, than Bradford.
Check the article linked from the statement I quoted in Tommy’s original post. Pederson states all 3 will gets equal “thirds” of the reps until the 3rd preseason game which does not make sense either because Daniel supposedly already knows this offense and thus should not need as many and having the 3rd stringer get as many reps as the starter is very abnormal.
Pederson was asked as a followup whether that is how he and Reid did things in KC – his answer was, No, the starter got more of the reps.
I have to think this is either Pederson changing things up or a Reich/DeFilippo strategy Pederson has adopted or maybe even a Roseman/FO dictate Pederson is being compelled to follow. It is very strange.
I have seen every single press Confrence since Dougie has become the coach, and while he is improving and getting more comfortable with the media, you can still see a lot of contradictions from one press Confrence to the next.. I have heard the press Confrence you refer to, I have also heard Pederson say that they will split reps now but that at some point they will have to switch up and get the starter prepared to play.. I also heard him say that it’s something that the coaches are still talking debating it, he has been all over the map with this topic.
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But realistically I have a hard time believing that there won’t come a time when when the starter seperates himself (workload) from the other two,,, whether it’s bradford like they say all along, or if they surprise us and Wentz ends up winning the job, at some point a veteran staff of former NFL QBs are going to start giving more reps to the starter. Clearly it’s not going to change Now, but I have a very hard time believing we wjll see an even split all the way up TIL the end of August.
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Realistically the only reason this even split is happening is because Pederson is afraid to disrespect his boy Chase by giving the #3 more reps than chase who is the #2….since Everyone understands tnis, hopefulLy chase steps up for the good of the team, approaches the coaches and offers to Sacrafice a portion of his snaps, and frees Pederson from feelimg guilty about giving the #3 more reps than the #2… Chase can save face, spinning it about him being in yeàr 4 of the offense which is the truth,
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Everyone knows chase is ONLY in this great positipn because Doug Pederson got a HC job. He would have NEVER gotten this contract if it werent for Doug, hopefully at some point he will step up, and offer to Sacrafice some reps becayse it’s what’s best for this team. He can still be the first QB Off the bench, but everyone knows he got more than he deserved because he is Dougs boy. He would probably gain a ton of respect from fans and the locker room if he were to make this Sacrafice,
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If Chase DOESNT step up making this offer for the team, then I need Pederson to put his big boy pants on,and make the first tôugh decision as a head coach, stop coddling Chase ego, and not be afraid to give the rook more snaps than the backüp QB who has been in This offense for 4 years,…. I don’t care if the coaches have to make this decision or Chase steps up, at some point this needs to be done… There is no reason why chase needs to take as many snaps as the starter and the monster rookie investment. NO REASON besides Optics, and Ego, and Chase has been paid more than enough to not care about how it looks
Well that is silly.
From all of Pedersons interviews, my understanding is that they won’t be splitting reps evenly from now TIL the start of the season and that at some point we will switch to getting Bradford prepared for the season mode.
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If we are being honest, the ONLY reason they are splitting reps 3 ways is because the coaches want to give the rookie developmental reps and Pederson doesn’t want to spit in Chase’s face givng the #3 QB more reps than the #2…. F THAT!!!
Chase has been given more money than he ever would made if Pederson didn’t become a HC. chase isn’t stupid, he knows this offense, he knows he will never be an NFL starter, and he is bright enough to know that the ONLY DAMN REASON he is getting this many reps is because of his friendship with Pederson, and because Doug doesmt want to disrespect chase and Embarress him giving the #3 QB more reps than him.. So this entire equal 3 way split is ONLY BECAUSE we are coddling Chase’s ego, wanting to Develope the rookie without spitting in the face of the #2 QB.. I can live with this now, begrudgingly, but at some damn point, THIS NEEDS TO CHANGE!
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At some point Pederson needs to make the decision to stop coddling Chase ego, put his foot down and not be afraid to give Wentz more snaps than the #2QB… HOWEVER, Pederson has done a lot for chase Daniel, Chase would have NEVER NEVER NEVER gotten that contract had Doug not becone a HC. So the least Chase can do is step up for the Good of this team, approach the coaches and offer to Sacrafice a portion of his reps for the good of this team, and free Pederson from having to feel guilty about disrespecting Chase by giving the kid more reps than Chase gets … The Coaches Know Chase will never be an NFL starter, the players in the locker room know it. The media knows it, the fans understand it, Chase Daniels wife probably understands this,.. No reason why we should be hijacked and have to keep up this Charade not wanting to Embarress Chase… Pederson has done a lot for Chase and his family, the least Chase can do is be realistic and free his friend fron having to feel qulity about giving Wentz more reps… Chase can still be the #2 QB, and go in the game If Bradford gets Hiurt, but there is No DAMN REASON other than his ego why he should take the same amount of snaps as Bradford or Wentz during this ENTIRE preseason..
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My understanding is that at some point later in the summer, Bradford will start to take more snaps then the other two, but I need chase to be a team player, Sacrafice for the good Of this team and offer to give up SOME of his reps so that we can get the starter ready to play while making sure our expensive investment gets developmental reos
Again, check the article linked from the statement I quoted in Tommy’s original post. Here is the quote from Pederson on the topic:
“I don’t know if it’s anything he’s shown,” said Pederson. “The way training camp is usually set up, and by no means is this set in stone, you get to that first preseason game and usually you’re playing your two’s and three’s, and that’s just the nature of the deal. So why not give your two’s and three’s equal time? You’re trying to ramp your starters up for the regular season, and so it’s not necessarily anything those guys have done outside of we want to see what they can do. By giving him more reps and more opportunities, it sort of gives us that insight into where we can use him down the road.”
When asked when Bradford would begin to get more reps than Daniel and Wentz, Pederson said it likely wouldn’t be until close to the start of the season.
“When you get to that point,” Pederson explained, “which is usually around your third preseason game, when your starters take the bulk of that game, at that point then you start making the decision that your starters need to get 60, 70, 80 percent of the snaps in practice. But right now, we’re in the negotiations of splitting that time equally with all the groups.”
When asked if that was the approach when he was the offensive coordinator under Andy Reid in Kansas City, Pederson said, “No, we gave the starters more reps.”
Bradford is fragile. They don’t want to break him.
At the end of the PFT article about Ruben Randle they mention that Doug Pederson has recently said JM will continue to work mostly out of the slot. Interesting…
Yeah but he may be playing outside in Two WR sets,…. Doubt a decision has been made on players roles yet. those decisions probably won’t be made until training camp assuming we haven’t completely given up on having him train outside and inside which
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The kid HASNT linned up outside in years after chip exclusively had him linning up in the slot. Probably not a big surprise that he is still much more comfortable inside than he is outside at this early point in the offseason… The transition to outside WR may not happen overnight
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It’s certainly possible that he never gets the hang of it, and ends up committing his career to being a top slot corner, but it’s probably too early to put those types of limitations on a talented hard working kid..
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He is too good in the slot to make him a full time outside WR, but hopefully he can still grow into a WR capable of starting outside but only when we are in two WR sets… Fingers crossed
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Fortunately we added some decent yoûng veteran talent to the WR group
Usually the best receivers in the league will move all over the formation. Heck Brian Westbrook lined up everwhere. No reason he can’t move around. Would be quite interesting if he turned out to be a static slot presence.
He doesn’t have the quickness to beat starting cornerbacks. He’s gonna be better in the slot.
Wow, the Broncos spit in VON Millers face trying to offer him a 6yr 115mil deal which sure sounds great, but it only GUARENTEED him 38mil in the first two years..
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I would think he ain’t signing anything for a penny less than 60mil in Guarentees
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But because he has already been suspended for 4 games, they should put some type of protection in the contract in case he gets in trouble again whch will likely be a 1yr suspension
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For a team that has peanuts invested in the QB position, they are going to have to make a much better offer than that
“Im expecting to be at training camp”-Cox briefly addressed reporters today
The entire concept of Chip’s practices not including on-field corrections fucking mystifies me.
Letting your players fuck up a play without correcting it isn’t “different.” It’s qualitatively worse.
I generally agree, however, the other part of it is that they are going to get a chance for a whole new boatload of reps the next practice, with film review and correction in between. So while they are drilling the mistakes (awful behavior that needs just as much effort to “unlearn” prior to “relearning differently”, his system had 99bagillion reps per player per day, so there are plenty to accomplish that….
At least I think that’s CHIPlogic in this case…
…so is the “logic” that professional athletes will learn how to do something better by looking at themselves on tape after the fact, than by the coach showing them what they need to do physically?
Like I said, mystifying.
Anything not understood can be called “mystical”. Or you could just learn how it works.
Mystifying, not mystical.
As in “disregarding the importance of muscle memory, or the idea that you practice how you play, is so self-evidently idiotic that there’s no rational explanation for Chip Kelly getting another job.”
If you think that maximizing amounts of reps is disregarding muscle memory, that’s truly mystifying
…do you read?
By maximizing bad reps, and then trying to “correct” them in the classroom, rather than on the field where the correction can be immediately applied, they not only disregard the importance of muscle memory, but ignore the fact that NFL players learn by doing, not watching.
You practice how you play. If you prioritize doing plays quickly, rather than doing them right, you end up with a lot of 3-and-Outs…and a lot of tone-deaf whining about how the players couldn’t “execute” plays that the defense called out at the line of scrimmage.
It mystified his college opponents when he consistently steamrolled them, too.
He may be back there before long.
…and then the NFL adjusted to his pace, and it turned out the emperor wasn’t, in fact, wearing clothes.
That was the perception here. We’ll see.
It was also the perception on the teams who would call out our plays at the line, which Chip’s “system” didn’t let the QB adjust to.
Option plays have built in adjustments.
Actually, the NFL never really adjusted to his pace. He continued to get higher-than-expected production out of pace (I’ve posted the study, which was on 538, several times). It’s the other things that killed Chip–mostly the getting rid of good players and drafting bad players. There is no solid evidence that there was anything wrong with his practice methods. The saying is “repetition is the mother of skill”, not “doing some reps and having the coach yell at you when you mess up is the mother of skill.”
And, given that, what do you think happens when you repeat mental errors over and over again, without on-field correction?
College has tight rules about on-field practice time. Maximizing there makes a difference.
Also, this may be one of those areas where professional players don’t compare to college guys.
Never steamrolled his final opponent
You do know it was corrected, just not on the field? Any coach worth his salt tries to minimize standing around time for his players.
“Any coach worth his salt” also knows that professional athletes learn by doing, and that you practice how you play.
Which is, of course, why Jenkins spoke up last season.
That’s not what Jenkins said. And I’m pretty sure that “practice how you play” was a main theme of Kelly’s. Did they change the rules to let coaches correct mistakes on the field during games now, then redo a play? It’s all about perspective.
And practicing how they play really showed in 2015!
No, it would have been really interesting to see how Kelly adjusted to going 7-9 after 2 decent seasons. But this new Eagles team is also interesting, which I sometimes think was a main goal of Roseman’s. I look forward to comparing the Niners and Eagles over the next couple of years.
TOMMY! Awesome shout out from Donnie Jones via ‘Bama! So stoked for you to get them props! Well Well Well earned!
The greatest Eagle of all time reads the greatest Eagles writer of all time? Why are we surprised?
https://twitter.com/jimmykempski/status/740620892573687808
Actually, this makes me very happy for some reason I am failing to grasp.
Yeah, it put a big smile on face too. For me it is a combo of nostalgia – I remember being puzzled by this mysterious “Jimmy Bama” character, then interested/excited/curious when Jimmy started popping up in the Philly media, then ascended and did a good job, found a niche, and then when Tommy connected the dots for folks – I’ve followed both of them happily.
Couple that with Tommy and Jimmy’s (justified/wise) love for Donne Jones over his tenure here – it’s just an affirmation that as you implied – there is some order to this crazy world.
The greatest-dressed Eagle of all time… [corrected]
Wait, him too?!
hah, I idiotically was thinking Dhani, not Donnie.
Oops, so was I.
Very cool.
So what’s his screen name here?
must be eaglesgameball
I think Matt Barkley is more likely to be EGB.
Good question.
I have a sneaking suspicion he’s the guy who said he looked like Tom Brady and could squat 400 lbs.
What are you guys talking about?
The tweet below. Jimmy Kempski – before being a Philly Eagles reporter was an amateur scout (I think?) that Tommy met at the Senior Bowl in Alabama several years back. Tommy has been kiddingly referring to Jimmy as “Jimmy Bama” long before Jimmy started writing professionally in Philly. For years!
Anyhow, they both extol the virtues of Donnie Jones.
Cue the below tweet posted by A_T_G – the only possible explanation for Donnie using the nickname is that he reads this very blog.
BRILLIANT
Thanks. I couldn’t see the tweet on Safari, on Chrome it’s visible.
Victory for the anti-mac people like myself!
Fine. “Apple”….ugh
I have to go to the Chrome window to read this…
Jimmy came up as an early (original?) staff writer for BGN, then went solo with his Blogging the bEast in which he covered all four teams.
Does anyone remember when Jimmy used to do his Story time with Uncle Jimmy?
Those were my favorite blogs.
Those were some of the greatest stories of all time.
1st
Mini camp goals:
Everybody stay healthy
Nobody get arrested after mini-camp ends
Even Barner?
Agholor is going to be the Eagles’ most improved player.
improved his pass dropping skillz?
Not targeting you specifically but I’m bugged by the whole dropped passes epidemic narrative.
https://m.reddit.com/r/Patriots/comments/400ujn/i_did_little_research_into_jerry_rice_and_dropped/
I’d buy that for a dollar. I liked him when they drafted him, so having his play meet his draft position seems logical enough.
Question of the day:
Who’s the Eagles player on the left?? The one with the big guns…
I think the one on the right with the white head is swoop.
I believe it’s Barner.
Brazil might win this 8-0…
So Germany would beat Haiti 15 to negative 1?
Lol
go Cavs.
All of these players are better than Cox according to players.
Chandler Jones – no
Eli – no
Rivers – maybe
Trent Williams – no
Eifert – wtf no.
Ziggy Ansah – on the same level
Tyron Smith – yes
Le’veon Bell – yes
I wonder if Huff could play safety..
“Nobody is catching one deep on my watch. Not you, not me.”
Anyone else get Seth Roger vibes from Kyle long?