Iggles Blog - Philadelphia Eagles Blog

Final Cuts Made

Here's the list.  Only a couple of surprises:

• Jerome McDougle -- I guess the team just had no faith in his ability to stay healthy.  He sure looked good this preseason though.
• Kris Wilson -- IgglesBlog readers won't find this surprising.
• Andy Studebaker -- I'm not sure about this one.  This kid looks like a football player.  Interestingly, his description isn't in the past tense: "Small-school defensive end learning linebacker spot."  That's in contrast to most of the other guys on that list (had, was, etc.).  Wonder if there's a handshake deal there on the practice squad?

Tony Hunt is your starting fullback, at least for the next 48 hours.  I guess we're going to see a lot of one-back / split backs in the early part of the season. 

Two rookie offensive lineman (Dunlap and Gibson) stashed on IR.  Neither one mentioned in Andy's post-game injury report on Thursday.  I'm sure that was just an oversight...

Did I Mention I'm Out Today?

Yeah, the "grandparents" came into town last for a visit the holiday weekend.  Haven't even watched the game yet.  Glad to see no major injuries. 

I'll check in at some point when we hear the cuts, but won't be around much the next couple days. ave a great weekend everyone.

Oh Those Rookies

Today's DeSeanism:

For fans that enjoyed watching Reno Mahe fair catch punts for the past five years, new Eagles returner DeSean Jackson has some bad news.

While Mahe was good at his role, those days are long gone.

"I really don't like to fair catch too much," Jackson said. "As you've seen, I haven't fair caught it yet. That's not really my deal. But if somebody runs up into my face, I'll be smart and fair catch it so I don't have to take a big hit. But that's not my deal. I don't like to fair catch it."

So I guess we can count on that crucial fumble after he gets laid out by an NFL-caliber linebacker coming by, say, week three?

“And the ball is up in the air … and Carpenter HAS IT … and he’s at the 20, the 10, TOUCHDOWN COWBOYS!”

Ugh.

Truly Fantastic Article

BGN linked to this last night, but it's such a good article it's worth a follow-up post:  Defensive masterminds have turned up heat on NFL offenses.

Really deep.  Really good.  This is a must read.

Of course, there are a couple of points I'd nitpick on.  Jim Johnson certainly wouldn't agree that there's anything inherently less safe about his pressure packages.  A big point of emphasis for him is just how sound they are.  It just looks a little more reckless because he's middle of the pack (15th) in terms of bringing five guys, but way up near the top (3rd and 2nd) in bringing 6+ or 7+.  (All stats from PFP.)

And it's not just that the Tampa-2 "demands" that almost all the pressure comes from the front four.  There are also differences in responsibility.  JJ's system requires the line to be sound against both the run and the pass.  The Tampa-2 linemen basically only play the run if it comes up on their way to the quarterback. 

But it's still a really, really good read.  And I'd especially like to hear more about how JJ tries to get offenses "[d]oubting where the Mike (middle linebacker) is so they are unsure how to read his defense."  That's something we saw last year when Brady was mic'ed up for the game and he kept saying things like "24 [Sheldon Brown] is the MIKE."  Then it turns out he wasn't and the protection was off.

If anyone's got a link to an even deeper discussion of that stuff, I'd love to see it.

Chance of Super Bowl? Four Percent

With a couple minor exceptions (NCAA pools, fantasy, random sportsbook run in Vegas), I don't wager on sporting events.  It's a self-preservation thing more than anything else.  I'm not a good game picker.  I have a tendency to fall in love with storylines, which clouds my judgment on the actual nuts and bolts of the match-up. 

Good for writing, bad for the pocketbook.

With that said, I appreciate what Vegas has to tell us about the games in a "wisdom of the crowds" sort of way.  I'm not fluent in the language, but I still like reading that stuff.

Yesterday, a publicist for Bodog emailed me a bunch of relevant odds for the upcoming season.  (He happened to be a Philly guy -- "Born in Philly, raised in Cherry Hill" -- we're like Red Sox Nation but so much less annoying, I'm telling you.)  

I saw the numbers posted somewhere else, but I thought I'd go through it with a bit more commentary:

Season Results

Odds to win the 2009 Super Bowl XLIII
Philadelphia Eagles 25/1

Odds to win the 2008
NFC Championship Philadelphia Eagles 10/1

Odds to win the NFC East Division
Philadelphia Eagles 7/2

The first two numbers seem about right to me, that last one doesn't.  The Cowboys are the clear favorite, but I'm not seeing how the other two teams are pulling much away. 

Still, I know what Philly fans are thinking.  "You're saying we've got a one in 26 chance to win a championship?  Well, we've had 25 years of failure, so that must make this the year!"

Wins

Philadelphia Eagles Regular Season Wins
Over 8.5 -180
Under 8.5 +150

See, this is where the language of sports betting gets beyond me.  They've got that 8.5 number sitting there just to annoy you, but then you have to wager a heck of a lot for not much payout if they go over it.  Seems fishy as all get out to me.

Miscellaneous

Will Andy Reid be head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles for week 1 of the 2009 NFL season?
Yes -170
No +140

I'd say this is free money, but again, given my track record, I don't want to jinx the big guy.

Player Performance

Donovan McNabb Passing Yards
Over/Under 3200

Donovan McNabb Passing Touchdowns
Over/Under 18.5

Donovan McNabb Starts
Over/Under 14

If McNabb actually starts 14 games, he's going to obliterate those other numbers.  Seems like there's a hedge opportunity here that one of my far more financially savvy friends could exploit.  I'm hoping one in particular emails me to enlighten me on how that could work.  You know who you are, Mr. Throat.

Brian Westbrook Rushing Yards
Over/Under 1230

Brian Westbrook Receiving Yards
Over/Under 700

Brian Westbrook Total Touchdowns
Over/Under 11.5

High, high and high.

Lorenzo Booker Rushing and Receiving Yards
Over/Under 475

Also seems high.  Buckhalter isn't dead.

LJ Smith Receiving Yards
Over/Under 600

LJ Smith Touchdowns
Over/Under 4.5

Both low.  McNabb is going to feed LJ this year, I can just feel it.  (See, there's that storyline thing again.)

Trent Cole Sacks
Over/Under 11.5

Will look like a sure thing after September, will not look nearly as good after November.

Asante Samuel Interceptions
Over/Under 4.5

Book it.  You can't just avoid Samuel because the other corners aren't chickenscratch.  Samuel -- if he stays healthy -- is our new Ronde Barber, except this time he's on our side. 

Wow, This Is Dumb

I try to avoid getting caught up in this kind of link-bait stuff, but just got this email from Kevin at Them's Good Eaton passing along an SI.com link:

Hey Derek,

I know it's just an opinion piece, and I know it's based on who he thinks fits the system, blah blah, but come on...

Don Banks: Ranking each team's No. 2 quarterback

My favorite part is where he explains that Kolb is at No. 24 because there isn't "much of a body of work" on which to judge him -- and then he goes ahead and puts guys like Brady Quinn (No. 8), Chad Henne (No. 14), and the esteemed Brett Ratliff (No. 22) ahead of him.  To that I say: come now, Mr. Banks.  Weren't you an extra in Invincible?  Shouldn't you cut us Iggles fans some slack here?

Anyway, just thought I'd pass this along...

--Kevin

I'm honestly not as concerned with where he lists Kevin Kolb.  The truth is that we really haven't see much of the guy, and he hasn't looked overwhelming when he's been out there.

But ... some of those other picks are real head-scratchers.  Right now Kyle Boller can't even lift his arm.  And he's lost 22 of those 42 starts, many on pretty good teams.

Whatever.  I would, however, like to point out the number of Redskins alums on that list.  Todd Collins, obviously, but also Sage Rosenfels, Trent Green, Brad Johnson, Gus Frerrotte, Mark Brunell and Patrick Ramsey. 

That's just from memory, but even if I'm missing a guy, that's an absolute murderer's row of backup quarterbacks. 

It's Bill Belichick's Fault!

Will this man's reign of terror never end?  

Per Spadaro:

Ryan Moats was injured on the final punt of the game last week in New England when Patriots coach Bill Belichick called three timeouts to give his return man a shot [sic] another shot. Sav Rocca's punt was great and on the sideline, but somehow Moats got hurt and won't have an opportunity to carry the football 15 times in a game he needs to get on film and show the rest of the league what he can still do.

Also, in case you were worried about Bryan Smith:

Smith, by the way, is going to be a very good end. He just needs some time.

So that's settled.

(I will say, in Smith's defense, that I don't think he was 100 percent in that first game he played where he looked Reno Mahe slow out there.  He's been much quicker in the later games.)

Hunt Isn't Happy

Remember when Tony Hunt seemed happy about the fullback opportunity?  When he was saying things like:

"Studying the position isn't really the thing. Playing running back, you know the fullback position..."

"Pass blocking is the same. It's not like I have to learn too much more. For the most part, you know a lot of the fullback [responsibility] from being a running back. I would say it's just the run blocking."

As well as:

"Most things are the same. You just know it, because you're in the same meeting room. It's not really much of a change . . . Pass plays, you're still doing the same thing on every pass play. The only thing that changes is the run-blocking, and it's not that hard. The guy's going to come to you. It's more about just wanting to do it..."

"I just want to play," Hunt said yesterday. "That's about it. Just from playing last year, you understand that Brian's going to play [at running back], and there's not really much room for a lot of other guys to play. You just know that you just want to play football. You want to get in the game. So any time they're telling you they want to put you on the football field, that's a good thing."

Let us know if you see that guy around anywhere, because now #29 is saying things like this:

"It's kind of frustrating trying to pick up a position this late in the preseason," said Hunt. "It's like 'All right. You've been doing this for a year and a half, but now we're going to try something different.' You have to start all over and get on the same page as guys who have been in there doing it. So, you know, it is a little frustrating..."

"I've never done this, so I have no clue" how long it will take, Hunt said. "I've only been doing this for a week and a half . . . It would be like me asking you how long it would take you to go be an astronaut."

Come on, man.  You can do this.  Just keep blowing it out on special teams and stay low on those linebackers.

So Much For That...

Playing the starters tomorrow as a way to achieve a faster start?  Not so much, according to the BWs.

Bowen:

Eagles coach Andy Reid said Tuesday he hadn't decided on the playing time breakdown for the various units in Thursday's preseason finale, but Reid seemed to indicate he wanted to get more reps for his starters. However, the starters played a limited role in practice Tuesday, and other sources said this preseason finale will be like all the others for the past several years -- a last fling for roster hopefuls battling to survive, in which no starters' health will be risked...

“It seems like a long period of time (before the Sept. 7 regular season opener). I wanted to get those guys into the third quarter in this last game and ended up pulling them out at halftime," Reid said.." It’s just something to evaluate, the number of plays they have had.” 

Apparently, the key word there was "evaluate." Indications are that despite what Reid said, the evaluating has already taken place, and Reid has decided 9 days isn't too long a break, after all, when weighed against the possibility of injury. So don't look for any starters Thursday. Do expect to see a lot of Shaheer McBride and Marcus Paschal.

Brookover/Panaccio:

It was another case of watching what Andy Reid did rather than listening to what the coach said.

Even though Reid said he had not decided whether his starters would play in tomorrow night's exhibition game against the Jets, you could tell by the way practice was run yesterday that they would not.

Quarterback Donovan McNabb and the first-team offense spent the morning working as the scout team for the reserve defense, and the first-team defense did the same for quarterback Kevin Kolb and the reserves on offense.

Throw AJ A Bone

Ok, so I get why the guy doesn't get to play in any of the preseason games.  But if you're going to use the homepage of PhiladelphiaEagles.com to hype an upcoming U.S. Women's Soccer game, couldn't you at least use his girlfriend in the accompanying picture?