Eagles 2020-2021 Season

[bkeich]

Please get Wentz out of there before he gets killed.

They can’t block anyone.
They can’t catch what he is able to throw (poorly)

Just put in Hurts and run the ball. It will slow down Baltimore from scoring if we keep the clock moving.

Either that or just don’t come out for the 2nd half

[bkeich]

Sad part is that the Eagles dropped 2 TD (one for sure) and missed a FG and are down 17-0.

[bkeich]

Arcega Whiteside may have finally found a use.

He can block downfield and he actually didn’t drop the fumble in the end zone (I assume he dropped it on the way back to the sideline)

On the successful 2pt conversion to make it 24-14 he had a ridiculously bad pick block before the throw, but somehow the officials missed it.

[flyers19rw]

The number of injuries that this team has suffered is amazing.

[bkeich]

I actually wondered who was coming out after Driscoll was hurt. Forgot they just signed Toth, who is I believe our 5th string tackle

[xogfog]

Another game of two completely different halves for the Eagles and another loss. Hopefully Sanders is not badly hurt. Gotta bounce right back up for a Thursday night game vs. the Giants...

[gmwannabe]

i dvd'd the game, since it was a beautiful day and stayed outside. Watching it now and on the Wentz fumble, in the first quarter, take a look at the haymaker that Mialata puts on the player that picked up the fumble. the ball flew out of the Raven's player's hand like it was shot out of a cannon. The Raven D Backs hold nothing on Jordan.
gm

[bkeich]

He was probably happy to fumble. I am guessing getting punched by Mialata would not be a pleasant experience.

His fairly solid play for the last 3 weeks has been one of the few good stories this year. He has given up some plays, but he clearly belongs in the NFL.

Brown was atrocious today. Not a surprise, he is not a guy who should be a starting OG, he just is not there yet or even close.

[phillychuck]

I'm pretty sure I remember years that the Eagles went through an entire 16 game season with only one or two injuries on the offensive line--it's not a position where injuries are inevitable (like running back, QB, and DBs). Except on the Eagles lately.

[bkeich]

OK, season starts now.

3 very winnable games, in fact they are as close as you can get to must wins.

The 5 games after that are all games which we will be heavy underdogs. If we can somehow win 2 of them it is possible to win this division provided we sweep the reat. The season ends with 2 games against Dallas and then Washington, it is very possible those games will determine the division championship and which team will get slaughtered in the first round of the playoffs. I expect us to be on the outside looking in by then, but who knows, this division is laughably horrible, Dallas is the clear favorite, but I am actually thinking that NYG might pull off a miracle and go past everyone.

Honestly, I almost want to see a 2005 type season, where we had guys trying but they just had so many injuries that they lost 10+ games. We need young talent, we have very little, and we keep doing stupid things like activating Vinny Curry and losing Toohil.

It is possible that the next game will have 2 starters on offense (Wentz and Kelce) and 9 backups. Some of them deep, deep backups, 3rd to 5th string guys (ahh, Richard Rogers as starting TE and then....). Hopefully we have found some solid contributors in guys like Fulgham, who is quickly becoming a fan favorite (and clearly is someone Wentz trusts). All the patience with Mialatta seems to be paying off. Herbig had a penalty last game, but he has been very, very solid for a unheralded guy. Josh Sweat has also had an impressive 6 games.

Unfortunately, our veterans have almost exclusively gone the other way. Almost every player with a few years experience is looking slow and out of sort, I can't really think of one of the guys over 27 that has looked good this season (McLeod, Malik Jackson and Brandon Graham maybe). Sanders isnt really a veteran yet, so I dont count him, but of course he has looked very good (although he still rarely breaks a tackle).

Maybe it is time to start raiding other teams Practice Squads.

I would certainly look to trade Ertz, whose time here is coming to an ugly end. If we could unload more of the veterans for draft picks I would do it, pretty much everyone except Wentz and Sanders should be on the block (and of course the young guys I mentioned above). Obviously I would not move any of our young players unless they are at the bottom of the depth chart (i.e. a guy like Toth or someone if they need to be thrown into a deal).

In a perfect world I would love to see 3 players traded for draft picks. We need quality young players horribly.

Cox (sadly)
Graham (Very, very sadly)
Curry (no value)
Kelce (also horribly sadly)
Jackson
Jeffries (lol, no one is going to take him even if we through in a draft pick and got nothing back)
Ward
Scott
Clements
Malik Jackson (contract is a big problem or he would be a great trade candidate)
McLeod (sadly)
Mills (honestly, I still think he is more hype than player)
Any LB (none of them belong in the NFL, except Singleton who is a good Special Teams Player)
Elliot
Johnston (I think we could get something for him, he is one of the best punters in the league)
Lane Johnson if healthy. He seems to be in decline at this point, I am not sure he is worth his salary or the next contract.

We wont get much for these guys, but it allows us to pick and choose off other teams practice squads and get a 5th -7th round pick for each. Sorta double dipping at adding youth to the bottom of our roster.

[bkeich]

Yesterdays game (and 2nd half in particular) should put any "Bench Carson Wentz" silliness away. He is almost as good as he has ever been, most of his bad throws yesterday were because he could see the free rusher coming and had to unload it too early. He did have a few unforced bad throws, but every QB does, they just get magnified when you are also making bad throws because of pressure.

I agree with the article today, make Hurts a bigger part of the gameplan. Have him out there as a WR/RB combo for 15-20 plays a game and 5 plays at QB. He is a weapon and we dont have very many of them, we have weapons in the training room, but not on the field. Dont do anything stupid with him like plunge runs or send him out on crossing routes where he is going to get killed by a LB, but having him flare out and take sweeps, off tackles and screens. Send him on a fly pattern or two, he is hard to account for by the defense. It is hard for the other team to know what to do against him, put a CB on him incase he takes off, put a LB on him to stop the running action? Exploit that difficulty, maybe even give him some option routes (If you see a guy on you with a number in the 50s, go on a fly route, if it is in the 20s come back to the backfield). It also allows the possibility of getting Wentz in open spaces, where, as he proved yesterday, he can be extremely dangerous (although make it clear to him that if he catches a pass he is looking for a sideline since his QB protection is now gone).

Hurts is a weapon, or at least he can be. He can be used responsibly and not put him in undue harms way.

[bkeich]

Since I suspect I have been ultra critical of Arcega Whiteside, I have to give him credit yesterday. He still is an awful WR, he did have a target and catch yesterday for a 2pt conversion. He was also wide open a couple times and clearly Wentz knows not to throw it to him unless he has to.

He made a pretty good block on Sanders run (again, he made a great one last week) and of course was heads up enough to pounce on the ball in the end zone (and shockingly enough held on to it).

He still is a long, long way from being worth a roster spot and should be cut immediately, but effort apparently isnt the problem, he just doesnt have any talent (bad hands and slow). Basically he is Jason Avant without the hands.

Speaking of Avant, is there any chance that Greg Ward is actually his little brother or son? They are exactly the same guy. Catch almost everything, never elude anyone, best you can hope for is they catch it and fall forward for an extra 2 yards. But they catch it.

[gmwannabe]

BK, i might be with you, in the raiding other teams practice squads, but you have to remember that this will be the eagles organization doing this. with their past drafting results, can you count on them for success. start looking at all of the successful programs and raid their squads. you would at least have help with the premise that these teams have good people in their scouting departments and their players might have a good chance of developing.
gm

[bkeich]

BK, i might be with you, in the raiding other teams practice squads, but you have to remember that this will be the eagles organization doing this. with their past drafting results, can you count on them for success. start looking at all of the successful programs and raid their squads. you would at least have help with the premise that these teams have good people in their scouting departments and their players might have a good chance of developing.
gm

We have certainly had our share of bad picks lately, but to be fair there were some good ones also. Just have to hope they are addressing the issues in finding talent, what else can we do. I dont join in the "fire Howie" idea, the guy won a freaking SB partially by finding questionable players and getting them as backups and FAs. (Foles, whose career was ending, Clements, who was undrafted, The slot corner (forget the name) who was a failed 1st round pick somewhere else, etc.). Howie's "pass" for his actions since then is running out, but to me he still gets the benefit of the doubt for another couple years. Took us 50 years to win a SB, kinda hard to implode what got us there.

[xogfog]

So Sanders is out vs Giants, maybe the following week vs. Cowboys too. Ertz is likely out 4 weeks and might go on IR, meaning Rogers is the fist string TE. Johnson won't play this week and Driscoll will miss a couple weeks meaning Toth will start his first game on Tuesday after playing his first NFL snaps Sunday. At this point, I'm not even sure they can beat the Giants, let alone anybody with this depleted roster...

[bkeich]

Makes you wonder if we might have a older journeyman OT trade happening soon. I am guessing we could unload a DE for some very bad teams OT since we desperately need one.

Maybe a throw in on another deal?

[zambonir]

Twitter is buzzing with the possibility of a 4-11-1 team winning the NFC East

[gmwannabe]

The skins?

[xogfog]

You mean the football team, ain't no skins no more.

[allentown]

It also ain't a football team. There aren't any football teams in the NFL East.