Looking at the Eagles Defense

Posted: November 10th, 2022 | Author: | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 6 Comments »

Concrete Charlie. Bill Bergey. Buddy Ryan. Reggie White. Dawk. Jim Johnson. Eagles history is filled with great defensive players and coaches. Just saying Gang Green conjures up great memories.

We’ve seen epic performances. The 11-sack shutout of Dallas in 1991. The Body Bag Game. The House of Pain Game. Holding LaDainian Tomlinson to 7 yards on 17 carries is an underrated game. And of course, 44-6.

So much great defense.

The current Eagles defense is 4th in points allowed and 3rd in yards allowed. Those are very good numbers, but hardly anything legendary. But the current group is doing some really impressive things.

For some context, the Super Bowl winning defense of 2017 had an opposing passer rating of 79.5. They had 8 games during the year in which they allowed 17 points or fewer.

We may not love the way Jonathan Gannon does everything, but the defense is limiting points and making plays. Oh yeah, and winning games.

Defense has changed a lot over the years. Buddy Ryan wanted to make plays. He was willing to take chances because he believed the risk was worth the reward. Bud Carson replaced him and was less risky, but still ran a complex 4-3 and he wasn’t afraid to take his shots. Ray Rhodes and Emmitt Thomas had some really interesting gameplans in their time, but didn’t have one specific thing they did.

Jim Johnson came along and confused us all a bit. He was willing to let you run. He was more focused on limiting big plays (sound familiar?). JJ was somewhat conservative until the opponent got inside the Eagles 40. Then he turned the dogs loose. He taught us all about zone blitzes. JJ would use his Okie package with a Joker roving around the middle of the field, sometimes rushing, sometimes staying back. JJ kept an open mind. He embraced putting DEs on the inside in sub-packages (Darren Howard was very good at this). He went from having 1-gap DTs in the base look to 2-gappers (Mike Patterson, Brod Bunkley). You could probably write a book on his defensive ideas and how they changed over time, evolving with the game.

Jim Schwartz came to Philly in 2016 and brought a simplified, attacking version of the 4-3. He didn’t like blitzing all that much. He didn’t like getting too creative. He believed it was better to stay simple so his guys could play fast. That strategy is logical and can work well if you have the right guys.

Gannon is different than all of them. He’s a bit like JJ in really focusing on big plays and takeaways. He doesn’t obsess on stopping the run. Gannon is different in that he likes to be so multiple. The Eagles run 4-3, 4-2, 5-1 and 5-2 looks. Gannon is responding to the way offensive football has changed.

Offenses today are more challenging than ever. RPOs give QBs multiple options on a play. Pre-snap motion is used more than ever and can be tricky. There are more dual-threat QBs than ever and some of these guys are incredibly talented. Three-receiver sets are the norm, not just a sub-package. The passing game is more advanced than ever. QBs now start throwing passes at the pee-wee level. The exotic ideas from high school and college football find their way into the pro game now thanks to the internet. Everybody can see everything and steal all the best ideas.

Gannon uses a scheme that allows him to be creative and multiple. This gives the Eagles a chance to have an answer for any team they play, at least in terms of X’s and O’s.

The downside is that you involve a lot of players in a lot of looks and it can be hard for them to master that. Defenses are assignment driven. If two rushers attack the same gap or two DBs take the same receiver, you’ve got problems. All 11 defensive players must be on the same page. They also have to execute their assignments correctly.

Detroit gashed the Eagles with the run game in the opener. A big part of that was bad tackling. Dameon Pierce ran through the Eagles last week in part due to bad tackling. There isn’t a simple answer for this, but I do think all the new faces learning to play together is part of it. It usually takes a year or two to build good chemistry in the back seven. This group has had 8 games.

That makes it all the more impressive to see how well they are doing in coverage. There are blown assignments here and there, but the back seven has generally been outstanding in coverage. We’ve seen Eagles secondaries in the past where there was too much confusion. The Vikings game in 2019 was torturous. This group has good cover skills and they show a good feel for executing Gannon’s ideas.

The best part of this secondary is their ball skills. If a QB makes a mistake, these guys make him pay. The Eagles lead the league in INTs and some of the catches are incredibly impressive.

https://twitter.com/BussinWTB/status/1588353186985041920

Leaping picks. Diving picks. This secondary can make plays. That’s huge in today’s NFL with such an emphasis on the passing game.

It will be interesting to see how the season plays out and where this defense stands. Will they finish as a Top 5 unit? Will they continue taking the ball away at such a high pace? Most importantly, how will they perform in the postseason?

There are definitely areas to improve, but this defense is off to a good start and has a chance to do some special things. Let’s hope Gannon pushes the right buttons and gets this group to play even better in the second half of the season.

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6 Comments on “Looking at the Eagles Defense”

  1. 1 Eagles Information: NFL insider survey has Howie Roseman as the favourite to win Govt of the Yr | RealSportArticle said at 12:36 PM on November 11th, 2022:

    […] Looking at the Eagles Defense – Iggles BlitzDetroit gasped the Eagles with the run sport within the opener. An enormous a part of that was unhealthy tackling. Dameon Pierce ran by way of the Eagles final week partly attributable to unhealthy tackling. There is not a easy reply for this, however I do suppose all the brand new faces studying to play collectively is a part of it. It often takes a yr or two to construct good chemistry within the again seven. This group has had 8 video games. That makes it all of the extra spectacular to see how nicely they’re doing in protection. There are blown assignments right here and there, however the again seven has usually been excellent in protection. We have seen Eagles secondaries previously the place there was an excessive amount of confusion. The Vikings sport in 2019 was torturous. This group has good cowl expertise they usually present a great really feel for executing Gannon’s concepts. The perfect a part of this secondary is their ball expertise. If a QB makes a mistake, these guys make him pay. The Eagles lead the league in INTs and among the catches are extremely spectacular. […]

  2. 2 The Linc – NFL insider survey has Howie Roseman as the favorite to win Executive of the Year - Balance Sportscast said at 1:04 PM on November 11th, 2022:

    […] Looking at the Eagles Defense – Iggles BlitzDetroit gashed the Eagles with the run game in the opener. A big part of that was bad tackling. Dameon Pierce ran through the Eagles last week in part due to bad tackling. There isn’t a simple answer for this, but I do think all the new faces learning to play together is part of it. It usually takes a year or two to build good chemistry in the back seven. This group has had 8 games. That makes it all the more impressive to see how well they are doing in coverage. There are blown assignments here and there, but the back seven has generally been outstanding in coverage. We’ve seen Eagles secondaries in the past where there was too much confusion. The Vikings game in 2019 was torturous. This group has good cover skills and they show a good feel for executing Gannon’s ideas. The best part of this secondary is their ball skills. If a QB makes a mistake, these guys make him pay. The Eagles lead the league in INTs and some of the catches are incredibly impressive. […]

  3. 3 Linc – NFL insider survey shows Howie Roseman is the favorite to win Executive Of The Year - Philadelphia News Station said at 3:12 PM on November 11th, 2022:

    […] Looking at the Eagles Defense – Iggles BlitzThe Eagles were beaten by Detroit with their run game in the opening. Bad tackling was a major factor in that. Bad tackling was a major factor in Dameon Pierce’s success last week with the Eagles. There isn’t a simple answer for this, but I do think all the new faces learning to play together is part of it. It takes about a year to establish good chemistry among the back seven. This group has played 8 games. It is impressive to see their coverage. Although there have been some missed assignments, coverage from the back seven has been excellent. We’ve seen Eagles secondaries in the past where there was too much confusion. The Vikings game in 2019 proved to be a difficult one. This group has good cover skills and they show a good feel for executing Gannon’s ideas. Their ball skills are the best thing about this secondary. They will pay the QB if he makes mistakes. The Eagles are league leaders in INTs with some impressive catches. […]

  4. 4 Eagles News: NFL Insider Poll Shows Howie Roseman as Favorite to Win Executive of the Year - TopLaundryServices said at 3:40 PM on November 11th, 2022:

    […] Watching the Eagles defense – Iggles BlitzDetroit blew the Eagles away with a run in the opening game. A lot of it was poor competition. Dameon Pierce went through the Eagles last week in part because of a poor offense. There’s no easy answer to this, but I think all the new faces learning to play together is part of it. It usually takes a year or two to build good chemistry in the last seven. This group had 8 games. That makes it all the more impressive to see how well they do in coverage. There are some blown assignments here and there, but the last seven have generally been outstanding in coverage. We’ve seen Eagles secondary games in the past where there was too much confusion. The 2019 Vikings game was a pain. This group has good coverage skills and shows a good feel for implementing Gannon’s ideas. The best part about this secondary is their ball skills. If the QB makes a mistake, these guys make him pay. The Eagles lead the league in INTs and some of the catches are incredibly impressive. […]

  5. 5 Eagles News: NFL insider survey has Howie Roseman as the favorite to win Executive of the Year - Tnspills said at 6:46 PM on November 11th, 2022:

    […] Looking at the Eagles Defense – Iggles BlitzDetroit gashed the Eagles with the run game in the opener. A big part of that was bad tackling. Dameon Pierce ran through the Eagles last week in part due to bad tackling. There isn’t a simple answer for this, but I do think all the new faces learning to play together is part of it. It usually takes a year or two to build good chemistry in the back seven. This group has had 8 games. That makes it all the more impressive to see how well they are doing in coverage. There are blown assignments here and there, but the back seven has generally been outstanding in coverage. We’ve seen Eagles secondaries in the past where there was too much confusion. The Vikings game in 2019 was torturous. This group has good cover skills and they show a good feel for executing Gannon’s ideas. The best part of this secondary is their ball skills. If a QB makes a mistake, these guys make him pay. The Eagles lead the league in INTs and some of the catches are incredibly impressive. […]

  6. 6 Eagles News: NFL insider survey has Howie Roseman as the favorite to win Executive of the Year – Bleeding Green Nation – Daily Sports said at 1:25 PM on November 13th, 2022:

    […] a really strong argument as well, because that Giants roster stinks and he somehow has them at 6-2.Looking at the Eagles Defense – Iggles BlitzDetroit gashed the Eagles with the run game in the opener. A big part of that was bad tackling. […]