Iggles Blitz

by Tommy Lawlor

Practice Roundup

Posted June 3rd, 2019 | 1 Comment »

The Eagles began another week of OTAs, with Monday being open to the media. Let’s see what everyone had to say.

We’ll start with Jimmy Bama.

Is it getting tiresome to note that Carson Wentz looks really, really good? Today, I can count one throw he’d like to have back, an underthrown deep throw to DeSean Jacksonthat was broken up easily by Jeremiah McKinnon. Otherwise, Wentz was dialed in, as usual, and was dropping dimes all over the field. The highlights:

    1. Fade to DeSean about 35 yards down the sideline, on the money.
    2. Nice window laser to J.J. Arcega-Whiteside, who settled into a zone 15-20 yards downfield.
    3. Gorgeous deep throw on a post corner to Markan Michel in 7-on-7’s. That was the prettiest throw of the day, in my opinion.

Wentz is really good, and it’s pretty easy to predict that he’ll have a big year if he can stay healthy.

This may seem like obvious material, but it really is critical. When Wentz plays well, the Eagles are an elite team. He gives them the ability to beat anyone. A year ago, Wentz wasn’t on the field in May and June. He was rehabbing and taking mental reps, but that’s not enough for a young QB. Those guys need actual reps.

Wentz is healthy now and looks sharp in practice. He’s adjusting to new teammates and getting his chemistry back with returning players.

You can dismiss the importance of Wentz looking good in OTAs, but I think this is legitimately important and a great sign for the upcoming season.

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Here is Bo Wulf with some love for…Deiondre’ Hall?

12:15 p.m. — Hall gets his hand on a Nate Sudfeld pass to cause an incompletion. Hall is an interesting player to follow this summer after a bizarre first season in Philadelphia. The Eagles liked him enough to trade for Hall during the roster cutdown process, even if the compensation was minimal. But he played only six total snaps on defense all year, despite being healthy and the team suffering a never-ending series of injuries in the secondary. He also made little impact on special teams. Safety is a difficult position to pick up in a new system midstream, so Hall gets some benefit of the doubt, but he’ll need to impress this summer just to make the roster.

12:36 p.m. — Hall picks off Sudfeld in a red-zone drill in which three receivers are covered by five defenders.

“This is easily Hall’s best day as an Eagle,” I tell Sheil.

It really is fair to question just how bad Hall was last year. The Eagles traded for him, showing a real desire to have him on the roster. Despite DB after DB getting hurt, Hall could not get on the field. That is generally a terrible sign. What did he do to offend Jim Schwartz? Hall must have been awful in practice. Or maybe he just spoke openly of his disdain for football coaches who use baseball analogies.

As Bo points out, this is Hall’s first offseason with the Eagles. He should know the playbook now and be comfortable with his role in the scheme. There are no more excuses. He has to play well or he’s out. The Eagles are no longer thin at safety.

It is encouraging for Hall to have a good day in practice. This doesn’t mean anything definitive of course, but it is a good sign. Maybe the light has gone on for Hall and he will push for a roster spot and even some playing time.

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Mike Kaye has some praise for rookie DE Shareef Miller.

The fourth-round rookie put together a solid performance on Monday. Penn State coach James Franklin was at the NovaCare Complex to observe practice and his former pupil had some strong moments during 11-on-11 drills. NJ Advance Media noted at least two “would be” sacks for the rookie.

The lack of pads and “live” contact probably helped Miller gain ground but he looked fast and strong out there among his counterparts. While he still has a lot to learn, this workout was a step in right direction.

It is important for Miller to push the DEs in front of him, Vinny Curry and Josh Sweat. The Eagles need a deep DL. Just having good starters isn’t enough. Miller isn’t some complete project that will need time to develop. He’s got a chance to contribute this year. Miller has good size and athleticism. He’s played against elite college competition so that should help his transition to the NFL.

The real test for Miller will be going against Jason Peters and Lane Johnson in TC.

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Here is Brandon Lee Gowton with a variety of nuggets.

Vinny Curry stood out when it came to both rushing the passer and stuffing the run. He got the best of rookie offensive tackle Andre Dillard on a number of reps. Curry also brought great energy to practice. Curry started barking like a dog after J.J. Arcega-Whiteside dropped a slant from Wentz. Timmy Jernigan ran up to Curry and started yelling “ALRIGHT! ALRIGHT!” Gotta love the d-line guys bringing the juice in a June 3 practice.

Curry is happy to be back in Philly and it sounds like he’s having fun. Coaches love it when DL bring a lot of energy to the field. That is especially true for Curry and Tim Jernigan. Practice is hard. Anything you can do to get things going can help players and coaches.

More up and down from Nate Sudfeld. The good included a fade pass touchdown to Charles Johnson and a jump ball touchdown throw to Johnson in the middle of the end zone. The bad included a pass intended for a target in the flat that sailed wide and out of bounds along with an interception thrown right at Deiondre’ Hall. Sudfeld tried to throw over Hall but the defensive back made the leaping pick.

The Eagles are rolling the dice by going with Sudfeld as the primary backup. It is fair to be nervous about his performance so far. Sudfeld has not exactly been lighting it up.

The flip side of that is keeping things in context. Plenty of backup QBs have struggled in practices over the years. They are playing behind a backup OL and throwing to backup skill players. That said, it would be nice to hear Sudfeld had a few good practices in a row.

T.J. Edwards continues to stand out. He blew up another screen play, this one to Wendell Smallwood. He’s good at recognizing what the offense is doing.

Edwards is having a good spring. That’s exactly what you want from a UDFA who is trying to impress the coaches and win a roster spot.

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MISC

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This doesn’t mean Joe is coming back necessarily, but it does make you wonder. The Jets may have wanted to finish all their interviews before making a decision.

But if you’re the Eagles and you think Douglas is leaving…do you really have him attend practice?

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Appreciating the Eagles

Posted June 1st, 2019 | 2 Comments »

Since Jeffrey Lurie took over the Eagles in 1994, he wanted to turn them into a good organization. The first few years were erratic, on and off the field. There wasn’t a strong leader for the organization and it was easy to question just what was going on.

Lurie hired Tom Modrak to be the team’s General Manager in 1998 and that had a huge impact. He brought experience and structure to the front office. Lurie and Joe Banner then hired Andy Reid in 1999 and that really changed things.

In terms of being part of the community, the first memory I have is Jermane Mayberry’s eyemobile for kids. That started in 1996. Now the Eagles do all kinds of charity events. Players do charitable things on their own. Some of this is for PR, but I think a lot of it is genuine. Become part of the community and help those around you. Take advantage of your time in the limelight.

It is easy to be an Eagles fan with what you see, on and off the field.

Just look around the rest of the sports world and you see some less than stellar organizations.

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Johnson, aka Megatron, is one of the best receivers of all-time. He is one of the best Detroit Lions of all-time. The end of his career was messy and there isn’t a relationship between him and the Lions because of that.

Think about how the Eagles embrace former players and make them welcome to remain part of the organization. Part of the fun of being an Eagles fan is the great history the team has. Ron Jaworski hasn’t played for the team in more than 30 years, but he still bleeds green. Dawk will forever be part of the Eagles.

You see players leave in free agency and many of them try to return. They love the city and the organization. They want to be part of it. That isn’t true for a lot of teams.

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The Rays have the 5th best record in baseball. That stadium is terrible and the team does a poor job of marketing and developing fans.

The Eagles drew 15,000 or so fans to a charity softball game. If Training Camp were still open to the public, practices would bring in 10 to 20,000. It is crazy that the Rays do such a poor job with their fans.

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It isn’t a good sign when candidates don’t want the job.

https://twitter.com/nyjets/status/1134914193549905925

The way the Jets went about firing their GM and then started this search so slowly is weird enough. Now they are announcing when interviews are over. This isn’t a huge deal by any stretch, but it is weird. Are they bragging that they were able to interview someone?

Joe Douglas will interview on Sunday. I’m really curious to see if he takes that job.

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Think about the Chiefs. Kareem Hunt was involved with multiple incidents and eventually cut. The team drafted Tyreek Hill despite him having attacked his pregnant girlfriend. Now Hill is being investigated for hurting his son. NFL players don’t need to be choirboys, but the Chiefs have made some questionable choices in recent years.

The Raiders just signed Ritchie Incognito. He’s got all kinds of issues in his past. Mike Mayock talks about building the right kind of culture and then makes a signing like this. I get that Incognito is a physical blocker and can help an offense in the run game, but is he really worth the risk? Do you want him around all your young players? I don’t get that at all.

The Raiders also signed Vontaze Burfict. He and Incognito have to get into regular Training Camp fights, right? I mean, is there anyway that can’t happen?

The Eagles aren’t perfect by any stretch, but they generally are smart about the chances they take.

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This is payback for 1980, 1982 and 2001.

The Lakers have turned into a joke. They still have a great history, but it sure feels like they are a long way from getting back to being a contender.

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Seattle hasn’t made the postseason since 2001. They haven’t won 90 games since 2003.

They did win 89 games last year. They’re off to a slow start this season and have already gone into rebuilding mode. That seems crazy to me.

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The Washington Redskins.

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