The Third Man

Posted: July 11th, 2018 | Author: | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 1 Comment »

Howie Roseman is the face of the Eagles front office. He’s the dealmaker.

When we talk scouts, there are two names who come to mind: Joe Douglas and Andy Weidl. They run the draft for the Eagles. They go to college practices, college games and workouts. That’s what most people think of when they hear about scouting.

There is a third man in the scouting hierarchy.

Dwayne Joseph is the Director of Pro Scouting. He doesn’t get the attention of the other guys, but Joseph has been a critical factor in the Eagles success. I wrote about Joseph and the key moves the Eagles have made in free agency.

Pro personnel moves can be crucial to winning.

Under Ted Thompson, the Packers were hesitant to use free agency. They focused on the draft and retaining their own players. I think you can make an argument that’s one of the reasons that Green Bay has only won a single Super Bowl despite having one of the greatest QBs in NFL history.

Dallas has struggled to get serious help from pro personnel moves. You have to think that’s one of the reasons they’ve struggled to win in the postseason.

Try to imagine the Eagles last year without Malcolm Jenkins, Brandon Brooks, Alshon Jeffery, Patrick Robinson, LeGarrette Blount, Chris Long, Corey Graham and so on. The Eagles get significant impact from those moves. And they aren’t just flashy names that got mega-deals. Those were smart, strategic moves.

The Eagles have hit some home runs in recent years. It will be interesting to see how this year’s moves pan out.

Michael Bennett
Haloti Ngata
Mike Wallace
Richard Rodgers
Corey Nelson

There are also the long shots.

Matt Jones
Markus Wheaton
Marquess Wilson

Dwayne Joseph and his staff have been great recently so there is plenty of reason for optimism.

*****

One of the reasons the Eagles were so good on 3rd down last year is that the key receivers just didn’t drop the ball.

That was a huge problem in 2016 and it showed. Last year could not have been more different. The Eagles were arguably the most clutch team in the league. They made key plays at critical times.

*****

The Eagles didn’t make any moves in the Supplemental Draft.

CB Brandon Beal went to the Giants in the 3rd round. CB Adonis Alexander went to the Skins in the 6th round. NFC East teams need all the DB help they can get. Facing Carson Wentz and the explosive Eagles passing attack is a major challenge.

S Brandon Bryant signed with the Jets.

*****

Fantasy Football guru Evan Silva posted his preview of the Eagles offense. I’m not a big FF guy, but Silva knows his stuff and is very thorough.

I was blown away by this nugget.

Ajayi’s efficiency spiked in Philly’s potent offense, averaging 5.29 yards per carry over ten appearances. He received zero carries inside the five-yard line all season, however, and scored just one rushing TD. Following the trade from Miami, Ajayi was out-carried inside the ten-yard line 4 to 2 by Clement.

I did not realize Ajayi didn’t have any carries inside the 5-yard line. That’s wild.

The Eagles had Blount as their 250-pound sledgehammer at the goal line. They also used Clement, who is quicker and had fresh legs.

Ajayi will get some goal line carries this year.

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One Comment on “The Third Man”

  1. 1 Eagles News: Philadelphia has one of the NFL’s best wide receivers on 3rd and 4th down - Football News Latest said at 9:24 AM on July 12th, 2018:

    […] The Third Man – Iggles BlitzUnder Ted Thompson, the Packers were hesitant to use free agency. They focused on the draft and retaining their own players. I think you can make an argument that’s one of the reasons that Green Bay has only won a single Super Bowl despite having one of the greatest QBs in NFL history. Dallas has struggled to get serious help from pro personnel moves. You have to think that’s one of the reasons they’ve struggled to win in the postseason. Try to imagine the Eagles last year without Malcolm Jenkins, Brandon Brooks, Alshon Jeffery, Patrick Robinson, LeGarrette Blount, Chris Long, Corey Graham and so on. The Eagles get significant impact from those moves. And they aren’t just flashy names that got mega-deals. Those were smart, strategic moves. The Eagles have hit some home runs in recent years. It will be interesting to see how this year’s moves pan out. […]