Fluid Situations

Posted: August 14th, 2024 | Author: | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | Comments Off on Fluid Situations

Sometimes we make things more complicated than they should be. There is a rush to judgment in the world of sports. I get it. Nuance is boring. And sometimes the initial take turns out to be the right one. Why wait? There are also plenty of examples where things changed, often in a big way.

Cal Ripken went 3 for 5 on opening day in 1982, his rookie season. Great start. He then went 4 for 63. That dropped his average to .103. Manager Earl Weaver stuck with Ripken and he ended up hitting .264 and winning AL Rookie of the Year. I seem to recall he was pretty good after that as well.

Player evaluation requires the ability to constantly adjust your thinking. Nakobe Dean feels like a key example for this. He was a backup as a rookie so there wasn’t much to judge. Dean didn’t have a great camp last year and then only played in 5 games due to injury. He didn’t look great at the start of camp this summer so that brought out the doubters, which was totally fair.

The counter to that is that Dean is a young player learning a new scheme and you never know when the light will go on. It seems like the light has gone on for Dean. He played well against the Ravens last week and then had a good showing in the practice with the Patriots. He is playing with confidence. Dean is physical and aggressive. He’s playing like a good LB. That doesn’t mean he’s going to end up as a good player, but he’s now trending in the right direction.

Howie Roseman spoke about Dean this offseason and doubled-down on the team’s belief in him. I thought that was interesting at the time. Now it looks like Howie knew what he was talking about.

James Bradberry had a terrific season in 2022 and helped the Eagles reach the Super Bowl. He was dreadful last season and I was ready for him to be an ex-Eagle as fast as possible. He didn’t play hard last year and that’s a red flag for me. If you lose your coverage mojo, you can still go tackle and bust your butt. I wanted him gone.

The Eagles kept Bradberry around, mainly because they are paying him one way or the other. Why not see if he could rebound? Bradberry has moved to safety and had a solid summer. He’s impressed Vic Fangio. Bradberry seems like a changed man. I don’t know if he’ll make the team, but I give him a lot of credit for changing the narrative. He was embarrassing last year. Bradberry is a different man in 2024. Good for him.

Ainias Smith had a terrific career at Texas A&M. There was a time when I thought he would be a Top 100 pick. The Eagles targeted Smith on Day 3 in April and were excited to pick him. Smith has stunk up the joint this spring and summer. The Eagles aren’t going to forget the way they felt about him before the draft. But they do have to adjust things based on what they’ve seen up close. Smith doesn’t look ready for the NFL right now. He might not make the roster, but I think the Eagles will try to keep him in the organzation. They want time to try to develop his talent.

Darian Kinnard was basically an afterthought until he played the entire game at RT against the Ravens. Were the Eagles trying to see what he could do? Was he just out there to eat up snaps?

People are now taking notice of Kinnard. He’s got a legit chance to make the 53-man roster. I was impressed by his footwork. That’s the hardest thing for young OL. If Kinnard can work on some other parts of his game, he could develop into a solid backup.

The OL spot that has gotten the most attention this summer is RG. Tyler Steen was the frontrunner early on, but got hurt. Mekhi Becton replaced him and has been with the 1’s ever since. Most people think the competition is over.

Steen still isn’t fully recovered from his sprained ankle. He’s battling through it to try and win a starting role. I haven’t been to camp this summer, but it doesn’t sound like either guy has been great. Becton is bigger, has more experience and is more talented. The Eagles are going with him for now, but that could change. If Becton struggles and Steen gets healthy, we could see a switch. Or maybe finds a home at RG and just mashes all year long.

It would be nice if one of the guys looked really good so everyone could be confident and not just focusing on potential.

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Thursday night’s game with the Pats will be another chance for guys to show what they can do. I hope the passing game is better. It would be nice to see some WRs make plays. It will be interesting to see if Tanner McKee gets any reps with the 2’s.

The Eagles pass rush was outstanding on Tuesday. It would be great to see that carry over to the game.

I would love to see more good LB play. I think we’re all still curious if this is real.

It would be nice for one of the backup TEs to stand out.

And please stay healthy.

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