Iggles Blitz

by Tommy Lawlor

Shining Stars

Posted August 1st, 2023 | 2 Comments »

Training Camp is a time for everyone to compete. We tend to focus on rookies and new guys, wanting to know which players are going to emerge. Sometimes that means overlooking the star players to focus on lesser guys. With that in mind, let’s talk about some of the Eagles star players.

First up is Brandon Lee Gowton on Jalen Hurts.

Hurts is on fire right now. After turning in a sharp practice on Sunday, he looked great again on Tuesday morning. The fourth-year quarterback accurately distributed the ball to different targets all over the field. To no surprise, the Hurts to A.J. Brown connection was especially lethal. The highlight play came when Hurts aired it out and put the ball right on Brown’s hands in the end zone for a 60-yard touchdown with James Bradberry trailing in coverage. Hurts also hit Brown on an out to the left sideline and a curl route for a first down. Hurts threw a rope to DeVonta Smith, who managed to get open deep on an extended play. He hit Smitty in stride again just along the left sideline in 7-on-7. Hurts also had a really nice anticipation throw to Dallas Goedert that hit the tight end over the middle exactly as he came out of his break. At the risk of jinxing him, Hurts has still yet to throw an interception in training camp. Nice to see him stacking strong outings like this. Stock up!

This team will go as far as Hurts takes it (apologies to Marcus Mariota). Hurts isn’t resting on his laurels. He is as focused as ever and seems to be taking his game up a notch. Nick Sirianni loves to talk about how we don’t know what the ceiling is for Hurts. When you’re that talented and that driven, why try to put limits on a player? Very cool to see Hurts continuing to improve.

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Jimmy Bama on the bartender from Ocean Drive.

We may as well get the elite player highlights out of the way first. Jason Kelce had an impressive block about 15 yards down the field on a screen play to Boston Scott. He cleared Terrell Edmunds out of the way for a big gain. If you’re wondering if old man Kelce still has the athleticism to make highlight reel blocks out in space… yes, he does.

Age will affect Kelce at some point. Luckily, not this year. You did wonder if all the outside activities would affect Kelce and his play on the field, but he seems as good as ever. Special player. Special dude.

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One of the reasons Hurts is so impressive is that he’s got great receivers. BLG covered AJ Brown a bit in his Hurts notes. Brown sounds like he is in midseason form. What a great trade by Howie.

DeVonta Smith has been making his share of plays as well.

https://twitter.com/YahooSportsNFL/status/1686466832100884482

You can argue that Brown is the best receiver in the league. He’s special. And Smith isn’t that far behind him. What a dynamic duo.

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Here is Zach Berman on Darius Slay vs Smith.

DeVonta Smith versus Darius Slay exemplified what coaches call ‘good on good’ during these periods. The first pass to DeVonta Smith was incomplete, the second attempt was a catch. Coverage was tight both times, and the route was crisp both times. The reception was especially impressive because DeVonta needed to create separation at the last second to extend for the ball.

When you have good players vs good players, both sides will win their share of battles.

James Bradberry has drawn praise everyday in camp. He was great in 2022, but seems to be in Hurts mode…still hungry and driven. That is great news for the defense.

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Enough about stars. Let’s cover some of the other guys.

Fran Duffy is impressed by a backup LB.

I’m continuing to see good strides from linebacker Shaun Bradley. The fourth-year player has made his impact primarily on special teams so far in his NFL career, but this is the most where I’ve seen him show up on defense. In the first team period he attacked downhill, defeated a block, and found the ball. He got home on what would have been a sack later in the drill, taking a good angle to quarterback Marcus Mariota. In the second team period, he again showed up on an inside run, showing off his explosive power in defeating a block from tight end Dallas Goedert and getting to the ball. Here’s hoping Bradley can carry this play over to the preseason.

Bradley has not progressed as hoped. He is good on STs, but has yet to show anything on defense. Maybe the light has finally gone on for him. It would be great if Bradley continued to play well and push the LBs in front of him.

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Jimmy likes one of the backup TEs.

Staying with the tight ends, Tyree Jackson was active today. In a red zone session, he made a nice catch on a difficult ball from Ian Book in the red zone, but could not keep both feet in. Later he ran a good slant route, and Tanner McKee hit in between the numbers with good timing. Marcus Mariota also found Jackson for a completion near the sideline. If Jackson can play the rest of camp and the preseason games like he has played so far he’s going to make the team.

It is great that Jackson is playing so well. Fringe players have a ton of pressure on them. They constantly have to worry about their job. Jackson is ignoring all of that and focusing on what he can control…his level of play. Kudos to him.

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Not all the news is good. Here is Jimmy on backup C Brett toth.

We’ve noted a few times so far that Brett Toth has had a lot of bad snaps while trying to play center. Add at least two more to the tally. His bad snaps are almost becoming disruptive enough that the team has to consider getting him out of there so he isn’t messing up reps for the other players on offense.

Toth’s calling card is versatility. If he can’t play C, that hurts his value.

Here’s BLG on Mariota.

Another tough day for Marcus Mariota. We’ve previously noted that he’s not being helped by an overmatched second-team offensive line. Still, it’d be nice to see fewer mistakes. He simply overthrew Dan Arnold to get picked off by K’Von Wallace today. To his credit, Mariota responded to that mistake by coming back and throwing a nice strike to Greg Ward for a first down on the very next rep. That play drew some praise from Sirianni.

Mariota has struggled. He’s in a new system and learning on the fly, but you expect more from a veteran QB. His play isn’t a major concern right now. If he’s still like this after the preseason opener, we might need to re-visit this.

Zach Berman is impressed by rookie WR Joseph Ngata.

The down-the-depth chart wide receiver with the best highlight in these sessions was Joseph Ngata, who used his body to make a deep catch and toe-tapped to try to stay inbounds. (Couldn’t tell if he was complete or incomplete.)

The Eagles would love one of the young receivers to play well enough to earn a spot, or at the least to push for one.

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A Bigger Toolbox

Posted August 1st, 2023 | 3 Comments »

Nick Sirianni likes to talk about his players and coaches having a toolbox, answers to overcome whatever the opponent is doing. The Eagles had a lot of answers last year, but teams will now figure out ways to attack the Eagles. It is up to the coaches and players to grow their toolbox and come up with some new answers.

The Eagles were last in the league in catches by RBs last year (48). They traded for D’Andre Swift who had 48 by himself in 2022. Sirianni talked the other day about how the passing game will still go through Dallas Goedert, AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith, but there is a need to have different wrinkles for defenses. Swift is a major upgrade as a pass-catching RB.

Check out this note from Jimmy Bama.

The play of camp so far was made today by D’Andre Swift, who was streaking down the left sideline trying to track a deep ball from Jalen Hurts. Nicholas Morrow and Justin Evans were in coverage, and Morrow very cleared interfered with Swift as the ball coming down. Swift fell to the ground but kept his focus on the football and made the catch anyway. He has been very active as a receiver out of the backfield through the first three practices of camp, and is going to give the Eagles’ offense an added element as a pass catcher that they did not have in Miles Sanders.

According to Chris McPherson, that play went for 43 yards. Last year the Eagles used the empty formation as a way to open running lanes for Jalen Hurts or to get an advantage for a WR. With Swift in the mix, Hurts has another weapon to work with.

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Rookie LB Nolan Smith has been a standout so far in camp. We’ve read multiple mentions of him dropping into coverage. It will be interesting to see if Sean Desai uses this tactic with his other edge rushers. I know many fans hate watching good pass rushers drop back. You certainly don’t want it to happen too much, but it can be valuable to have rushers who can do this well.

Defensive coaches have to build their defenses to stop Patrick Mahomes and other elite QBs. You cannot count on simply rushing the passer to beat those guys. You’ve got to mix up coverages and looks. That may only slow them down by a fraction of a second, but that just might be enough to help on a given play.

Desai brings real value if he can be more creative against top QBs. I also think Matt Patricia can help in this regard. Building high quality game-specific gameplans did not seem to be a strength of JG.

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Everyone noted that Quez Watkins had a good practice on Sunday. Here is Jeff McLane’s take.

A year later, Watkins appears locked in, and as a result, has been one of the early stars of camp this summer. Sunday, he caught a number of passes on a variety of routes. The most eye-opening came when he turned cornerback Zech McPhearson around on a slot fade and elevated for a Hurts dart. But Watkins’ day didn’t end there. He caught a short cross in space vs. zone coverage and then got inside Josiah Scott on a slant.

Watkins has so far looked like the 2020 camp version of himself and the receiver that supplanted Jalen Reagor, who was drafted five rounds ahead of him, that season. Brown, DeVonta Smith, and tight end Dallas Goedert are still around and should still see the majority of targets. But Watkins, who’s in a contract year, could be in a better state of mind when the ball does find its way to him in this, his fourth season.

Watkins showed real promise in 2021, but took a step back last year. This is a contract season for Watkins so he needs to show the league that he can be a good #3 WR, or maybe even better. He’s got speed to burn, but needs to eliminate key drops and needs to be more consistent.

It is very encouraging to hear he’s off to such a strong start.

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The coaches are mixing up the depth chart and roles.

  • K’Von Wallace replaced Terrell Edmunds and worked with the 1’s.
  • Jack Driscoll moved over to backup LT and Dennis Kelly slid to the right side.

The coaches like to look at different things. You might be punishing someone by demoting them or rewarding someone by promoting them. Training Camp is the time for mixing things up. The RBs get totally rotated on a regular basis.

I do think Driscoll is better at LT than Kelly so I’m glad they made that move. We’ll have to wait to see if it sticks.

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Zach Berman with a note on Rashaad Penny.

Penny is someone else who has worked on cutting weight. He played at 235-237 pounds with Seattle and is down to 230 pounds with hopes of getting to 225, which was his playing weight at San Diego State. He said he feels lighter and his ankles and knees feel better, which he hopes will allow him to finally stay healthy.

It is smart for Penny to do whatever he can to stay healthy.

He averaged 6.1 yards per carry last year at the heavier weight. He might be even faster and more of a big play threat now that he’s in even better shape.

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I’ve read a few positive notes on UDFA receiver Jadon Haselwood. He missed OTAs, but seems to be making some plays in camp. Joseph Ngata was the more heralded UDFA, but Haselwood caught my eye and felt like the guy who had the better skill set for the NFL. Here is a note from C-Mac.

During the individual position portion of practice early, I’m watching as the wide receivers enhance their footwork through two specific drills. First, the wide receivers go through the ladder, quickly tapping their feet in and out of each box, before releasing into the route and catching the ball over their shoulder. It’s no surprise that DeVonta Smith, who is outstanding at getting his feet in bounds along the sideline, was outstanding at this drill. Undrafted rookie Jadon Haselwood also looked very quick and fluid going through this session.

Haselwood played with Hurts at Oklahoma so it would be cool for them to reunite. That only happens if Haselwood continues to flash.

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I’m not a huge uniform guy, but this is cool.

https://twitter.com/Eagles/status/1685997994422767617

A couple of people have asked what the big deal is. The Eagles never won anything big in those uniforms.

Those of us who watched Reggie, Randall and all those other great players have a lot of fond memories of that era. They disappointed in the postseason, but that hardly wipes out the House of Pain Game, the Body Bag Game, Randall to Fred in Buffalo, 11 sacks of Aikman, the overlooked Miracle at the Meadowlands, 42-37 over Washington and so on. That era should absolutely be celebrated. Those were good teams. They were fun teams. And they made a lot of people Eagles fans.

Like me.

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