Tweaking

Posted: August 12th, 2019 | Author: | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 1 Comment »

One constant during the month of August is change. Players get hurt and that means that moves have to be made. Coaches and scouts also make constant evaluations. That can also lead to changes.

The last week has been a busy time.

These moves rarely lead to anything that will affect the season, but you never know. These moves are more about now than the future. You need healthy players for camp and for preseason games.

Jim Schwartz was asked about the team adding Eli Harold. Schwartz mentioned the fact Harold was productive last year (4 sacks) and also talked about the fact that Eagles scouts like Harold in the past. The Eagles keep college scouting reports on all the players they study for the draft. The pro personnel department also studies players each summer, in case they get cut or come available in trade discussions.

Harold is someone the Eagles had a good grade on from past reports.

It is kind of crazy that Howie Roseman and his staff spent the offseason building a 90-man roster and then have to constantly tweak it when August rolls around. You can’t just sit back and relax. Personnel work is never ending.

The Eagles have done a good job in the past of adding some solid players. DeAndre Carter was a terrific addition last summer. There was the trade for Ronald Darby back in 2017. Kamu Grugier-Hill was claimed off waivers in 2016. Corey Graham was signed in the summer of 2017.

Not all moves work. The Eagles signed LB Steven Daniels in the summer of 2017. That didn’t pan out. The team added QB Christian Hackenberg last summer. I don’t think I even have to tell you what happened there.

We are not even halfway through the month of August. More moves are likely to be made.

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L.J. Fort’s athleticism really stood out to me on Thursday night. Fran has some great clips there where you can see Fort’s burst and change-of-direction ability. If he can move like that, you want him on the field in games. Nate Gerry couldn’t do that when he was a DB.

You do sacrifice some size, but I’ll take those movement skills in today’s NFL.

*****

Jimmy Bama has some praise for Nelson Agholor and Tim Jernigan.

It’s been under-discussed how good of camp Nelson Agholor has had. He’s probably caught more passes than anyone on the team, and has had his share of flashy moments. Today he made a catch on a corner route, slammed on the breaks before going out of bounds, and then spun back to the inside to avoid Maddox before picking up some nice yards after the catch.

Agholor has become a solid receiver who makes occasional plays. If he can up his game and become more consistent as a playmaker, that will add a big boost to the offense. He must be more of a weapon after the catch. If Zach Ertz can get substantially better there, Agholor sure as heck can. It was a good part of his game at USC.

Timmy Jernigan had several nice plays in the run game, and has had a good camp. On one running play, he stuffed Miles Sanders for a loss, and then spanked him twice.

If Jernigan can be anything close to what he was in the first half of the season in 2017, the Eagles are going to have one hell of DT rotation this season. Signing him back to the team on the morning of the draft is looking like a smart move.

Cox, Jackson and Jernigan could give the Eagles the best trio of DTs in the league. I’m excited to see what Jernigan can do. When Cox was hurt early in 2017, Jernigan had to be the disruptive force and he did a solid job of that.

*****

Mack Hollins and Derek Barnett are more active at practice. This is a great sign. The defense needs Barnett to help the pass rush. The offense needs Hollins to add depth to the receiving corps. He also was good on STs as a rookie.

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One Comment on “Tweaking”

  1. 1 Tweaking | SportSpyder | said at 4:56 AM on August 12th, 2019:

    […] Tweaking […]