Iggles Blitz

by Tommy Lawlor

Help Needed

Posted March 5th, 2024 | 2 Comments »

Now that Jason Kelce’s retirement is official, the Eagles need to figure out a plan for the offensive line. They have four of five starters returning so this isn’t a rebuilding job. They just need to find a fifth starter.

I think the Eagles will move Cam Jurgens to center. He played great in the middle in college and is a perfect fit for what the Eagles like to do in terms of having the center move around and block on the run. Jurgens also knows how Jeff Stoutland wants things done. There is real value in that for the center.

I expect the Eagles to give Tyler Steen every chance to win the job. Win is the key word. The Eagles value the OL way too much to just give a job to a player. The Eagles are paying a lot of attention to OL prospects.

Visits to Philly

OG Cooper Beebe – Kansas State
OL Brandon Coleman – TCU
OT Roger Rosengarten – Washington
OG Christian Mahogany – Boston College

Last year Steen battled Jurgens and some other players for RG. Jurgens was able to win that job and played well. Steen only started one game last year, but played in 11 overall. That’s not a ton of experience obviously. Still, he has been on the field in big games and has an idea of the challenges of the NFL.

Beebe is a guard prospect. Coleman has mainly played LT, but has started at LG. Mahogany is a guard prospect. Rosengarten is a 2-year starter at RT.

The Eagles are showing flexibility. Any of these guys could play RG. Coleman and Rosegarten could also play OT. We know the Eagles like versatile OL so all of this makes sense. They will be bringing more guys to Philly in the future. This is a deep, talented OL class. The Eagles will check out as many as they can.

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The salary cap went up by $10M, but teams are cutting players as if the cap went down. Maybe I’m just not remembering past years correctly, but it feels like more guys are getting cut this time around.

That means the Eagles will have extra choices when they look for help at LB or SAF or whatever position you want to talk about. The problem is that a lot of these players are 30 or older. I would say no to them, for the most part. Focus on players in their prime, guys who can contribute for multiple years.

One guy who might be of interest…

I need to watch tape of him, but Baker is 27 years old and a talented LB with 82 career starts. At the least, he’s worth a look.

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Not a cut, but…

McKinney is young and talented. He’s got 46 starts and 9 INTs in his career. I don’t know if the Eagles will spend money at safety. If they do, McKinney is definitely a player that should interest them.

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The other day I wrote about 6-8, 340 Amarius Mims posting a great short shuttle time at the Combine.

Oops.

We don’t have a time for Mims. Chances are he will not post a 4.33. If he does, we’ll go back to raving about him. As it is, he is still a highly talented prospect who will go in the first round.

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Legend

Posted March 4th, 2024 | 1 Comment »

Jason Kelce the football player is no more. After 13 amazing seasons as the center for the Philadelphia Eagles, Kelce announced his retirement on Monday. Put simply, this is the end of an era.

Do yourself a favor and watch his press conference. It goes for 40 plus minutes, but is absolutely worth it.

Kelce will go down as one of the greatest centers in NFL history. It is hard to say where he fits with Jim Ringo, Jim Otto, Mike Webster and Dwight Stephenson, to name a few of the top centers of all time. Heck, he might not even be the best center in Eagles history. Chuck Bednarik was a 5-time All Pro and he’s in the Hall of Fame. He also played both C and LB.

Kelce played a long time. He has the best movements skills I’ve seen from a center in the last 30 years. While Kelce is small for today’s NFL, he’s bigger than most of the guys listed above. They played in the 240-250 pound range.

Here is what I wrote about Kelce back in the spring of 2011.

Jason Kelce is a player I should have talked more about during the season. The problem was that Cincinnati was so bad that I watched them very little. I also had concerns about Kelce’s size. He’s only 6’3, 280. I wasn’t sure if NFL teams would be able to get past that build. When you watch Kelce play you can’t help but like him. Typical undersized guy. Plays with a chip on his shoulder. Goes full speed on every snap. Maximum effort. I think Kelce is the kind of guy you take a chance on late in the draft. The coaches have to love the thought of seeing him in practice. Kelce will drive D-linemen crazy. He’ll start fights due to his tenacious blocking style. He’ll bring out the competitive side in everyone around him. There is no guarantee Kelce will be good enough for the NFL, but this is a guy you want in Training Camp. Give him a chance and see what he can do. Jason is a good fit for Howard Mudd’s style of O-line play.

Notes on Kelce:

Undersized, but very athletic player.  3-year starter.  First couple of years were at LG.  Moved to C as a Senior.  Did a good job with shotgun snaps.  Usually crisp, accurate.  Lean, athletic build.  Has good feet.  Natural pass blocker.  Sinks his hips and widens his feet so he can anchor. Lacks ideal bulk, so technique is crucial for him. Outstanding blocker in space.  Very good on screens. Athletic enough to get upfield and will then go and get big hits on defenders. Active blocker. Always finds someone to hit. Works hard to sustain blockers. Defender might get by him initially, but Kelce will keep his hands on the guy and move his feet so as not to let the defender go free in the backfield.  Lacks ideal bulk/strength. Isn’t going to get as much push on run plays as you want. What he will do is stick with a block and wear defenders down. Puts guys on the ground when he gets a chance. Plays with a lot of attitude.

Does he have the functional size and strength to start in the NFL? If not, could be a TE, FB, or H-back. Good player. Would be mid-round target if he were bigger.

Thank goodness Howard Mudd was the OL coach back then. He pushed for Kelce to be drafted and then put him on the field ASAP. That turned out to be a terrific marriage of player and coach. Amazingly, things got even better in 2013 when Jeff Stoutland arrived. He turned out to be the perfect coach to guide Kelce from good starter to All Pro.

Mudd got Kelce to Philly and the NFL. Stoutland helped him become great. Five years from now, Kelce will be headed to Canton, Ohio.

Beyond Jason Kelce the player, he proved to be an amazing fit for the city of Philadelphia as a person. Kelce is an underdog and a grinder. He also loves to have fun. Watching him at Phillies games or tend bar for charity or go wild at a Bills game, Kelce seems like your crazy buddy. He doesn’t come across as a star football player.

We were lucky to get to enjoy life with Kelce for 13 years. He is undecided about what comes next, but something tells me he’ll be entertaining us for a long time.

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BG might be coming back.

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