Process of Elimination
Posted: August 31st, 2020 | Author: Tommy Lawlor | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 2 Comments »I love a good mystery. Who is the Zodiac killer? What happened to the Lost Colony? Why did the people on the S.S. Minnow have so much clothing for a three-hour tour?
The big mystery right now is football related. Who will be the Eagles left tackle?
Andre Dillard is headed to injured reserve so we know it won’t be him. Matt Pryor played LT in practice on Sunday and was bad. I never thought he had a chance at that spot, but now we know for sure. That’s two down.
The obvious move is to put Jason Peters there. He is still good enough to get the job done. The problem is that the Eagles signed him to a cheap deal to play RG. Peters wants more if he moves to LT. He’s only on the books for $3M right now so this isn’t about big bucks. JP just wants more. We just don’t know how much more.
The team left Peters at RG on Sunday. You can read this a couple of ways. That gave them a chance to see Pryor in action at LT against the starting defense. They needed to know how he’d fare. You could also see this as a sign from the team that they aren’t going to budge on the salary. Doug Pederson said in his press conference that you have to trust your young guys at some point.
Jordan Mailata played RT on Sunday and was up and down. I’d like to see him concentrate on the left side. The Eagles have a week until they have to really get into game week mode. They ought to let Mailata play LT a lot.
Rookie Jack Driscoll is an X-factor. I don’t think he can play LT, but the Eagles may want to take a look at him there. Driscoll has played well this summer.
I’m guessing the team and Peters will work something out, unless one of the young guys has an amazing week. Part of the issue is finding someone to be the backup LT. If Peters does move there, we know he will miss some time. He does every year. The Eagles need a plan for when that happens.
LINKS
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Unfortunately we have to go from the LT problem to talking about injuries. Carson Wentz missed practice with a soft tissue injury on his lower body. Wentz was on the field and interacting with his teammates. This doesn’t seem to be a serious issue. Keep your fingers crossed.
Jalen Reagor did get hurt and will miss time. He’s got a partially torn labrum. Reagor tried to tackle a DB after an interception. Of all the ridiculous ways for a first round pick to get hurt…ugh. I love the competitiveness, but damn. Be smart. Reagor is expected to miss four weeks, which would include a couple of weeks of the regular season.
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The star of the day was Josh Sweat. Part of that was Pryor’s poor play, but give Sweat some credit as well. He made major strides from 2018 to 2019 and looks to have done that again. I’m legitimately curious to see him in a real game. Sweat is physically gifted. If the football skills catch up to the raw talent, he could be a good pass rusher.
If Derek Barnett isn’t healthy for the opener, Sweat could be your starting RDE. We could find out in a hurry just how good he is.
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WR John Hightower had a good day. The rookie speedster might be ready to step up if Reagor does miss time. Hightower isn’t as gifted as Reagor, but might actually be faster. The Eagles plan to add depth at receiver has paid off. Alshon Jeffery might not be ready for a while. Marquise Goodwin opted out. Now Reagor could miss time. The Eagles still might be okay.
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Nate Sudfeld and Jalen Hurts split time with the first offense. Sudfeld had the better day of practice. He hasn’t stood out in camp, but part of that is playing with the #2 offense against the #1 defense. Sudfeld got to play with the starters on Sunday and looked much better. Amazing how that happens.
Hurts shows his natural talent on a daily basis, but he’s still raw. He was up and down on Sunday. Some teams around the league are frustrated with their rookie QBs. The Eagles seem to have chosen a good player who is developing nicely.
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It sounds like Rasul Douglas will be the top backup on the outside. We thought Sidney Jones might have that role, but he’s been hurt and missed time. He also has failed to stand out. More than a couple of guys who have watched practice think Craig James should make the roster over Jones. James is good on STs and has played well this summer.
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Nate Gerry had a strong day. He’s going to be the workhorse LB this year and is having the best camp of his young career. We’ll have to wait and see if he’s cleaned up the tackling issues. Gerry knows the scheme and he’s made his share of plays.
Gerry is a good example of player development. He came to Philly as a project, moving from safety to LB. The Eagles have been patient with him and he’s shown progress every year. There have been bumps in the road, but that’s part of being a project. You aren’t going to be perfect or anything close to it.
The question with Gerry is if he can go from effective starter (also cheap) to being a good LB.
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[…] Process of Elimination – Iggles BlitzIt sounds like Rasul Douglas will be the top backup on the outside. We thought Sidney Jones might have that role, but he’s been hurt and missed time. He also has failed to stand out. More than a couple of guys who have watched practice think Craig James should make the roster over Jones. James is good on STs and has played well this summer. […]
[…] Process of Elimination – Iggles BlitzIt seems like Rasul Douglas would be the prime backup on the surface. We thought Sidney Jones may need that position, however he’s been harm and missed time. He additionally has failed to face out. Greater than a few guys who’ve watched apply assume Craig James ought to make the roster over Jones. James is sweet on STs and has performed nicely this summer season. […]