Iggles Blog - Philadelphia Eagles Blog

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.)

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.

Eagles Reading Day

The last two days have brought an avalanche of Eagles coverage from the two big locals.  There's so much over on the philly.com sports section that I barely even feel guilty about not contributing much that's new.

- - - - - -

I have been critical of Inquirer beat writer Ashley Fox in the past on more than one occasion, but I have to say, her piece on the Eagles' post-game recovery techniques is really, really good.  It's not all new information, but I learned something reading it. 

What I assume is the sidebar is also interesting.  Guys like Mikell are well aware that any time missed just gives someone a chance to take your job.  Also this:

"It's a fine line you walk, because the player has to know that the trainer is out for the best for him. And at the same time, the trainer has to have enough wherewithal to push the guys to get them back out there," said coach Andy Reid, who would not let Burkholder comment for this article.

- - - - - -

On a related note, it may not seem like it, but I'm always a little wary of criticizing any of the female writers, because when I do, I end up with comments and emails that edge up close to the line of:  "What do you expect when you have girls writing about football?"

Which means I'm doubly reluctant to make this point, since I know how it's going to sound, but given that this piece was so good and some of Fox's more hard-core football stuff has, on a few occasions, seemingly been a little wrong-headed, I wonder if she might more profitably do more of the former, and less of the latter. 

We all have to know what we're good at.  I suck at anything feature-y.  Just a thought.

- - - - - -

Were the Eagles special teams good or have the Pats special teams just been really bad?  Here's a view from the other side (hat tip to Eagletarian).

- - - - - -

He's not the 2001-2004 Donovan.  Maybe '04, but not before that.  McNabb is a much better quarterback than he was then.

Hate to say it, since it brings up bad associations, but to me, McNabb looks a lot like the 2006 Donovan.  Hope he stays healthy this time.  That duckdown in the pocket on an obvious sack last game was a good first step.  I wonder if Westbrook taught him that.

- - - - - -

Too late, Dave. 

- - - - - -

Speaking of DeSean, are people still wondering why the Eagles don't give away all their second-round draft picks to WIN NOW DAMMIT or have we gotten past that for awhile?

And not to get even further ahead of ourselves than we already have, but Trevor Laws is well on his way to becoming the answer to a trivia question, isn't he?

Jackson Starting Friday

From PE.com:

8/20/08 … 8:30 am
The Eagles starting units will see plenty of action Friday night in New England as Andy Reid is slated to play his starters into the 3rd quarter. One starter that will definitely not play is WR Reggie Brown, who will be sidelined with a hamstring strain. Rookie WR DeSean Jackson will take his place in the starting lineup. As far as Shawn Andrews' status, Coach Reid has been pleased and encouraged by his week of practice but no determination has yet been made on whether he will see action on Friday night.

Hello, big time.

More From the Coordinators

Interview time for Marty and Rory today.

Starting with special teams:

On what he saw out of the special teams in the game at Pittsburgh: "We didn't do nearly as well as we'd like there. We were trying to get a lot of guys reps and, as a matter of fact, we had the starters in for the first kickoff and then we started subbing from that point. We got a lot of young guys some reps; a lot of new guys in there. We're just trying to get some talent evaluated. It was a good opportunity to get that done."

One presumes the evaluation was "crap job." 

On what conclusions he drew from WR/PR DeSean Jackson's return ability: "It was a learning experience for him there..."

On whether the mistakes were because it was the first time Booker had ever returned kicks in a game: "It was the first time he's ever had a kick return in a game, so it's to be expected..."

You know where this is going, right?  Think there's any chance the beat writers have forgotten the Greg Lewis / J.R. punt return experience?  Uh-uh:

On why the team would bring in players who didn't have prior experience as returners: "In terms of punt return, we've got DeSean back there. That's what he's done (for years). The only guy we brought in (who didn't have experience) was Booker..."

On whether they tried to bring in someone who did have experience: "We brought Booker in..."

Last bit on a guy who seemed to jump out at everybody watching that game:

On what rookies have impressed him: "(LB) Andy Studebaker did a nice job for us. It felt like he was aggressive, playing downhill, and I feel like he's going to be able to give us some things there..."

Marty's turn:

On how quickly WR DeSean Jackson has picked up the offense: "He is one of the faster ones that I have coached. Yes, he's been one of the faster ones."

On why he thinks Jackson has been able to pick up the offense so quickly: "There are a couple of things that he has that allows him to be a really fast learner. First of all, he's a natural player. His movements are just natural. He does a lot of things that we teach that he just does naturally. I hope I explained that well enough. Secondly, he's really sharp, football-wise. Really, for him it takes him once or twice, maybe three reps, and he's got it. He can take it from the classroom to the field very quickly as well."

This is such a fascinating experiment.  If Jackson comes right in and performs, doesn't that pretty much lay to rest the idea that first-year wide receivers can't play in this system? 

Remember that Reggie Brown put up 34 / 463 / 4 in the nine games he started as a rookie in 2005, and that was with Mike McMahon at QB.

On how much input he has with personnel decisions: "We discuss personnel every night."

On your chances of scoring with an Eagles cheerleader this season:  "They will also be attending the games."

On FB Jed Collins: "His consistency is high. He has taken advantage of an opportunity here. It will be interesting to see how he does."

Guess we know who I'll be posting about on Thursday.  Thanks, coach.

On TE Kris Wilson: "Kris is just now, over the last several days, (appearing) very comfortable with our offense. He went through that learning process. It was probably the last time I might have spoken about him, and he was right in the middle of that learning process. It looks like he's finding his way through that and it looks like he's playing really comfortably right now. He has done very well the last several days and he did well during the game."

This is actually interesting.  Matt Schobel may not be out of the woods just yet.

Learning From The Coaches

A few interesting nuggets the last couple days in the Reid and Johnson press conferences.

Starting with the defensive coordinator:

On whether he was disappointed in the defense's first series vs. Pittsburgh: "...There are some things, I don't think we did a good job on the blitz as they scored a touchdown. And, there were a couple things where we just didn't have really good outside run support."

The first part is an understatement.  The second mirrors what we saw in the rewind.  The line wasn't getting dominated, the front seven as a group just did a bad job setting the edges.

Why are these guys so typically slow starters?  My guess is that it's just lack of experience.  You can fool them the first couple times down the field, then they figure things out and their athletic ability comes into play. 

On how DT Trevor Laws played at Pittsburgh: "Good. For a guy that really played with a lot of pain and injury, he did a good job. Because, really, he was hurt, but he did a good job and I'm happy with him; happy with his progress. He just needs to play more."

On whether Laws is still bothered by his foot: "Yeah."

Glad to see Laws is a gamer but should he even be out there?

On whether CB Sheldon Brown will play right cornerback: "Sheldon will be on the right side. It depends on the personnel group. All three of them could be on the field to start the game."

I have to tell you, I'm going to be shocked if the Eagles don't start in nickel against Carolina, assuming Asante can go.  Kick that can a little further down the road.

Head coach:

On FB Jed Collins working with the ones: "Jed did a nice job in the limited plays that he had offensively, but also on special teams. That fullback position, you've got to produce on special teams or you're going to struggle to make it there. He did the best job of the other guys on the special teams unit."

Reid is really trying to light a fire under guys with this move.  I thought Jason Davis looked pretty good running with the first team offense, but it's impossible to tell how the ST coverage/blocking units are doing from the TV feed. 

On the backup plan for left tackle, should Thomas miss any games, and whether T Winston Justice is solely a right tackle now: "We're just trying to keep Winston in one spot, let him be productive at that spot. (G) Todd (Herremans) is playing out at the left guard spot and he loves playing tackle, so it gives him a chance to work in there and he's pretty good at it. We also keep bringing (T) King (Dunlap) along. He had a good game the other night. He's getting better ever day; working his tail off."

One thing people have to keep in mind here -- and I've seen plenty of jumping to conclusions so far -- is that the game day roster limit certainly has an impact on how the different line parts are shuffled.  Herremans practicing at LT for the day doesn't say anything about the long-term plan at that position.

Even if you keep 10 offensive linemen, realistically only seven or eight are going to be active on game day.  One of the extra people has to be the backup center -- looking like Nick Cole's job to lose since the rookies aren't getting much hype -- and you have to think that MJG is considered the top other backup on the line right now.  So if you have seven active, you may not have a backup offensive tackle, which means someone's going to need to slide out from guard.  If you go with eight, Winston Justice may be the next pick, but he's only playing RT these days, so that doesn't solve the LT issue. 

Herremans needs to get some reps out there just in case he's called on to play the position later this year on an emergency basis.

On whether he would still consider Shawn Andrews at left tackle: "I think Shawn could be a great left tackle. I think he could step in and be one of the better left tackles in this league. He just hasn't had a chance to work there. We were going to do it in the offseason and he had the baby and that situation there, then this here. We haven't been able to work him in there. We have in years past; he's worked there in the offseason. He just hasn't had any work there this year."

So I guess that answers the question of what Andrews' personal issue was back in mini-camps.  Not sure Andy meant to have that one spill out.  Moving on...

On how he thought G Max Jean-Gilles played at Pittsburgh: "You know, Max did a nice job. I thought he played very well, actually. Now, it's against a 34-front. He had a handful of times that he was covered where they kicked it down on the weak-side. This week, he'll be covered up just about every snap. It'll be another challenge for him there."

Carolina's starting LDT is a big dude, but not much of a pass rusher.  It will be interesting to see if MJG can get any push in the running game against this guy. 

Update on Baskett

Some added color for the Baskett ruminations below come in today's Daily News:

[I]t also seemed the Eagles and Baskett got the wrong idea when he broke loose for some long catches as a rookie - that he was a greyhound, and not a possession receiver.

"You fall into a little rut," he said. "Last year . . . I wasn't going up and attacking the ball like I was the year before. That's one thing I've tried to come back and do. Coach Reid got on me a couple of times in the offseason about not going up and getting the ball. That's what I've been focusing on this camp.

"Like he told me today, there was a catch in the red zone - he's like, 'That's what you do, you use your body' . . . make the defender go through me. I've just got to go back to using my strengths. Every receiver's different; I'm not going to be the quick, shaky guy. I tried to do that somewhat last year, and it set me back a step, trying to change my game instead of using what got me here.

"This year, I've lost the weight, I feel quicker, I feel healthier. I've just been focusing on the few little things I sort of overlooked last year in camp."

Two Interesting Things Here

Good post on Eagletarian today by Domo, who's finally arrived to help carry the load.  Two interesting points, the first obvious:

Another training camp day, another two practices under the hot late-July sun without MIA right guard Shawn Andrews. Why Andrews isn't here at Lehigh remains a mystery. But at least one of his linemates has a message for him: get your butt in camp.

"It's not helping us and it's not helping him sitting out,'' right tackle Jon Runyan said. "The longer he holds out, the longer it'll be before he gets in there. So it's going to be a tough situation. If you keep giving reps to the guy who's backing you up, at some point, he's going to pass you..."

Asked whether Andrews can miss most of training camp and step back in to his right guard spot and start, Runyan said, "Coach Reid isn't going to let that happen. So I'm not worried about it.''

The second more subtle:

Donovan McNabb never has been a big fan of the fade pass, which is why the Eagles don't throw it much. But he completed two nice fades to wide receiver Hank Baskett and tight end Matt Schobel in 11-on-11 goal line work.

I've never really like the fade down by the goal line that much (unless it's to Plaxico vs. any person in our secondary -- then it can't miss).  It's almost a bailout / coin flip call by the coaching staff, especially when the team doesn't have Randy Moss type leapers on the outside.

On the other hand, defenses have known for years that they didn't really have to respect the fade from the Eagles, which has made it harder to execute the rest of the offense in the red zone since everyone can kind of cheat to the inside.  It wouldn't hurt to see more of this in training camp.

By the way, is it definitively established that it's McNabb who doesn't like the fade and not Reid?  Donovan seems to throw that ball just fine up the sideline. 

There's another side to that coin.

An "Outsiders" Look At The Eagles

Long-time readers know I am fond of using the stats at FootballOutsiders.com when arguing about the Eagles and their opponents.  Their creations are always a work in progress, but I have yet to find a better place for comparing players and teams across the league on a reasonably level playing field. 

In addition to the website, every summer the FO guys put out the Pro Football Prospectus, which really does live up to its billing as the "essential guide to the 200X pro football season."  I like to wait a couple weeks before I start citing numbers from the new edition because everyone should buy this book, but I believe at this point the proper time has passed so that I can share a few things.

First, the other teams in the division:

Dallas

• Mean projection: 8.1 wins.
• Dallas overachieved last season.  Based on the traditional stats, they should have won 11 games.  FO had them at 10.8 games based on their proprietary stats.  The Cowboys, you'll remember, went 13-3.
• PFP is not as high on Felix Jones as, um, I was:  "Warning signs surround Jones: He played as the lesser back in a two-back rotation in college, relied somewhat on a gimmick offense, and at 207 pounds his 4.47 in the Combine 40-yard dash yielded only a 103.7 Speed Score, below the 112-point average for a first-round pick."
• When I did this review of the Cowboys roster a few weeks ago, I noted that Dallas really didn't seem to have much depth at a few positions.  Well, one of the reasons that hasn't mattered much is that Dallas has been the best team in the league the last five years at avoiding missed time due to injuries.  PFP seems to want to argue that this is due to the training staff of the Cowboys.  I think it's more likely luck combined with the noted displeasure of Bill Parcells when guys take themselves out of games.  Either way, it's worth pointing out that the second-healthiest team during that timeframe is the Houston Texans ... who had four good years and then got nailed by the injury bug in 2007.   

Washington

• Mean projection: 6.9 wins.
• Fantastic charts in this chapter about the winning percentage of head coaches by age.  Old is bad.
• New coach Jim Zorn is bringing the west coast offense to Washington.  PFP is bullish on the fit of the personnel for this scheme, with the possible exception of the two starting WRs.  Given how surgically Jason Campbell picked apart the Eagles off three-step drops in the first game last season, I would tend to agree.

New York

• Mean projection: 9.6 wins.  "They should be better than the regular season Giants and not as good as the postseason ones."
• "Week 14: David Akers lines up for a 57-yard..."  Ugh.  Thanks for the memories.
• "Judging Manning's ability based on those [stupendously fluky] outcomes is like crediting your neighbor for buying the one house in the neighborhood that has oil underneath it."
• "Table 4: Giants' Fumble Luck in Playoffs."  I'll say it again, buy this book, if only to use it to shut up obnoxious Giants fans.
• "Eli Manning was hurried on a below-average number of pass plays, but when he was hurried ... he had the worst DVOA of any quarterback with at least 30 passes under pressure."

Philadelphia

And now for the main course:

• Mean projection: 11.7 wins.
• "As easy as it is to lay the blame at his feet, Donovan McNabb was not the problem with the 2007 Philadelphia Eagles."
• "As easy as it is to lay th--"  Oh, you heard the first time?
• "The difference is that [Tiki] Barber spent virtually his entire career without missing time due to injury, while Westbrook has missed time each year."
• Special teams last year were crap.  You knew that already.
• Eagles are projected to have the easiest non-division schedule in the league.

Some statistics:

% runs (all plays):  36%, 29th
% runs (first half): 37%, 26th
% pass (ahead in second half): 59%, 1st

Let's hear again how the Eagles actually don't pass that much if you look at things situationally, please.

Here's some more:

• "No team passes more often from two tight-end sets."
• Another sign the pass rush wasn't that bad last year:  "Philadelphia hurried quarterbacks more often than any other NFC defense..."
• "Seventh-round pick King Dunlap has a first-round name, third-round talent, and 47th-round work ethic."
• Trent Cole actually managed only 11 hurries last year.  That's not a bad number, but it's not elite.  And only one better than Juqua Parker-Thomas managed on the other side.  Cole is amazingly good against the run for a guy his size, though.
• According to the FO stats, Lito was really, really bad last year.  One imagines Joe Banner has this section framed on his wall.
• These special teams coverage numbers are truly awful.  My new roster theory is that there are going to be some low-end surprises as the team shakes up the bottom of the roster looking for better special teams performance.  I should go back and see if I can dig up the ST production stuff from last year.

Final random note from the Giants section:

• Last year, game charters listed Asante Samuel on the right side of the formation 15 times as often as he was on the left.  Yet this season he's going to be the LCB for the Eagles.  I'm confused.

Football's Back!

Full slate of coverage at philly.com today.

Hallelujah.

Check out this particulary informative pdf that lays out the Eagles training camp schedule.  Interestingly, it also includes a picture of Sav Rocca practicing either field goals or kickoffs?

Best line in the bunch:

Booker is more of a third-down back than Westbrook ... but he sure seems to be able to run a pattern and catch a pass. Andy Reid likes backs who do that, the Daily News has learned.

--Les Bowen