Big Year for Gannon

Posted: September 6th, 2022 | Author: | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 2 Comments »

The Eagles open the 2022 season on Sunday when they take on the Lions. A lot of eyes will be focused on Jalen Hurts as most see him as the key to the team’s season. If Hurts takes a step forward, the Eagles might be title contenders. If Hurts is up and down, the team won’t be able to take advantage of one of better rosters in the league.

Almost as important is the play of the Eagles defense. Any time they faced a good QB last year, the defense struggled mightily. The Eagles shut down mediocre QBs and that made some of their statistics look deceptively good. That’s not reality. Football Outsiders had them at 25th in DVOA and that’s a more accurate rating for the defense.

The unit got some key upgrades in the offseason. Brandon Graham returned from injury. The team signed free agents Haason Reddick, James Bradberry and Kyzir White to add speed and playmaking ability. Howie Roseman traded for Chauncey Gardner-Johnson last week to give the secondary another talented player. Jordan Davis and Nakobe Dean were drafted in April.

On paper, this defense is better. Maybe a lot better.

The pressure now is on Jonathan Gannon to get the best out of this unit. That didn’t happen last year. He was too passive. He wasn’t creative enough. Good QBs shredded his defenses and really made you question if Gannon is cut out to run a top notch defense.

Go study the great defensive coaches in NFL history and you’ll find men who were tough and aggressive. They were willing to take chances. They embraced the players they had and gave them a chance to make plays.

Last year Gannon was more concerned with not giving up big plays. The Eagles were 5th in the league in fewest explosive plays allowed so that worked well. The problem is that teams were able to move the ball up and down the field with a good short/medium passing game. The Eagles were last in the league in completion percentage allowed. They were 25th in opposing QB passer rating.

In a press conference today Gannon said he needs to trust his players more. He left that open to interpretation, but it sure felt like he meant he was going to be more aggressive and take more chances. If so, that’s great news.

This isn’t an elite unit like the Eagles defenses of 1991, 2002 or 2008. But it can be better than last year and it can be good enough to beat good teams, something that didn’t happen in 2021.

Sheil Kapadia shared some of his thoughts on the defense.

The Eagles played a high percentage of zone coverage last year and blitzed at the fourth-lowest rate, as first-year defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon prioritized stopping explosive plays above all else. But opponents completed 70 percent of their passes against the Eagles—the worst mark of any defense over the past two seasons.

In terms of talent, this is a top-10 group. But Gannon needs to prove he can maximize the personnel available to him.

Sheil projected the Eagles as the #15 defense in the league heading into this season. Of course, that was before the CGJ trade. He might have them even higher now.

When we talk about Gannon needing to be more creative and aggressive, this isn’t a call for him to run The 46 Defense or some elaborate scheme. He needs to do a better job of mixing up man and zone coverage. He needs to let his corners play more press coverage. Gannon must do a better job of disguising coverages before the snap. If you line up in static looks and then play passively, good QBs are going to eat you alive.

Blitzing becomes a more complicated subject. If the addition of Reddick and the return of Graham improve the pass rush enough, there won’t be a need to blitz. If the rush isn’t working in a particular game, Gannon has to be more willing to take some chances. That puts pressure on the secondary and increases the chance of allowing big plays, but it also gives the defense a chance to make plays.

Nick Sirianni and Gannon have both talked about not wanting to be near the bottom of the league in a category. The Eagles blitzed too little last year. No one is saying they need to turn into the Buddy Ryan Eagles and take all kinds of chances. That’s not a great idea in modern football. But being 4th lowest in blitz percentage isn’t good either.

Gannon has a lot of good pieces to work with. He can really open up his playbook this year.

Howie Roseman has helped Gannon in a big way. The addition of Davis will allow Gannon to play with lighter boxes. The addition of CGJ will allow for more post-snap movement. Reddick gives him a difference-making pass rusher. Kyzir White gives Gannon a playmaker in the middle of the defense. Bradberry gives the defense a CB who makes a lot of plays on the ball. That’s a lot of help to a unit that already had pretty good talent.

The defense has the weapons to make all of this happen.

  1. There are playmakers all over the unit.
  2. The pass rush is improved.
  3. The combination of experience (for coaches and players) and improved talent level should help the defense be more consistent.

If Gannon can’t make this defense work, that’s on him.

Gannon interviewed for head coaching positions just a few months back. He seems to have a strong reputation around the league. I think a lot of that is based on his communication skills. He’s comfortable in front of the media. He has good rapport with players. Gannon is able to put his ideas into little catch phrases that makes them more memorable. He comes across as a guy who really knows what he’s doing.

Last year’s results would tell a different story. At the same time, that was his first season as a coordinator. No coach gets everything right in his first chance to run an offense/defense. This year will show us if Gannon truly learned from last year. He’s got experience. He’s got weapons. Another mediocre performance by his defense would change the narrative on Gannon quite a bit.

As much as the pressure is on Hurts, it is also on Gannon in a big way.

*****

If you want to read about a great Eagles defensive coordinator, here is a great piece on Jim Johnson from the summer of 2009, when he passed away.

An analysis of Jim Johnson’s schematic tendencies over time is like a study of any great artist — you’re going to see things you never expected work in ways you never thought they could. More and more, I was struck by the versatility Johnson brought to the field, and how he was able to translate chalkboard theory to in-field success with different fronts and formations. He was not afraid of failure, seeing it as an opportunity to adjust — and that’s what seperates guys like him, and LeBeau, and Kiffin, from the cookie-cutter coaches who slide in and out of jobs, their anonymity intact. No, Johnson’s name will live on because he was able to combine esoteric formations with the kind of smashmouth philosophies that go back to the game’s very roots, and he signed his name to them with indelible ink. That’s why he will never be forgotten.

Great work by Doug Farrar (https://twitter.com/NFL_DougFarrar) .

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2 Comments on “Big Year for Gannon”

  1. 1 The Linc - Can Jonathan Gannon maximize the Eagles’ defensive talent? - Philadelphia News Station said at 7:51 AM on September 7th, 2022:

    […] Big Year for Gannon – Iggles BlitzSheil Kapadia shared some of his thoughts on the defense. The Eagles covered a large area of the field in zone coverage last season and were blitzed at fourth-lowest rates. Jonathan Gannon, first year defensive coordinator, placed emphasis on stopping explosive plays. But opponents completed 70 percent of their passes against the Eagles—the worst mark of any defense over the past two seasons. This group is considered to be among the top-10 in talent. Gannon must prove that he can use the talent available to him. Sheil had the Eagles as the league’s #15 defense going into this season. That was before the CGJ deal. These might be even greater now. When we talk about Gannon needing to be more creative and aggressive, this isn’t a call for him to run The 46 Defense or some elaborate scheme. Gannon needs to be more creative in mixing up zone and man coverage. He must allow his corners to get more media coverage. Gannon needs to do a better job at hiding coverages prior to the snap. You will be eaten alive if your line up is static and you then play passively. […]

  2. 2 The Linc – Can Jonathan Gannon maximize the Eagles’ defensive talent? – Philadelphia News Station said at 8:38 AM on September 7th, 2022:

    […] Big Year for Gannon – Iggles BlitzSheil Kapadia shared some of his thoughts on the defense. The Eagles played a high percentage of zone coverage last year and blitzed at the fourth-lowest rate, as first-year defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon prioritized stopping explosive plays above all else. But opponents completed 70 percent of their passes against the Eagles—the worst mark of any defense over the past two seasons. In terms of talent, this is a top-10 group. But Gannon needs to prove he can maximize the personnel available to him. Sheil projected the Eagles as the #15 defense in the league heading into this season. Of course, that was before the CGJ trade. He might have them even higher now. When we talk about Gannon needing to be more creative and aggressive, this isn’t a call for him to run The 46 Defense or some elaborate scheme. He needs to do a better job of mixing up man and zone coverage. He needs to let his corners play more press coverage. Gannon must do a better job of disguising coverages before the snap. If you line up in static looks and then play passively, good QBs are going to eat you alive. […]