EMB Blog: 2020 Regular Season

[e-a-g-l-e-s eagles!]

15 minutes ago, Green Dog said:

There could be multiple candidates.  Remember, they brought in a couple new guys this year to tweak the offense.  Clearly they are going to move towards favoring deeper routes and progressions evidenced by the speed drafted at wr.  And we know Carson prefers the deep ball because he is constantly trying to extend plays looking for it.  But after Jackson went down last year, there was never anyone to throw to.

Again just because you have better talent in the pipeline that does what Carson likes to do does not mean they are ready to step on the field in a regular season game and play meaningful snaps. Again i think people get carried away with mclaurin, Aj brown and metcalf last year and think that’s more of the norm. I would be floored if Reagor, Watkins or Hightower came in and set the world on fire like those guys did. I would be surprised if Hightower and Watkins were capable of starting this year if needed and being super productive that would be asking a lot of two late round picks. Hopefully it ever comes to that

Do i think they are talented and with seasoning be good WRs in time? Yes. i like all three. I loved the Hightower pick and liked reagor and Watkins. I don’t like having to rely on all 3 as rookies and JJAW when desean inevitably gets hurt and alshon who knows. More talent then those practice squad guys for sure. Just saying some of those PS guys have 2-3 years of nfl coaching which those rookies dont have. They definitely aren’t as talented but they know what to expect and do being in the league for multiple years. It’s why I think word was able to be productive last year. I don’t think he’s more talented than any of those three wide receivers we drafted this year. But he had the luxury of NFL coaching and experience in the NFL

[DEagle7]

18 minutes ago, e-a-g-l-e-s eagles! said:

I’m not being disingenuous. He has not played 15 games in 4 seasons. And he’s now a year older coming off a core hernia surgery at his age. Those are the facts. So you are going to have to replace him when he is not on the field for those games. If he’s out. alshon we have no clue about what he looks like off his injury. Now you’re back to three rookies, JJaw who has proven nothing Yet and Greg Ward. How is that significantly better than it was last year? Three unknowns In rookies, a guy who hasn’t proven anything yet and Greg Ward. Do they have better potential than what we had last year? Yes. But that doesn’t mean they are better just because they are more talented. Talent doesn’t mean it always translates. 

again you’re assuming they’re just going to be better because they are talented. That is a mistake. People did that with JJAW last year and you’re doing it again with a six and a seven round rookie. If you believe a 6th and 7th round rookie should be just assumed to be good contributors their rookie years then by all means believe that. However I’ve seen more sixth and seventh round rookies struggle to be productive in their rookie years than asked to be ultra productive. Add on the fact that they had no mini camps, no preseason and no OTA’s because of Covid. 

are they more talented than what we finish the season with? Hell yeah. However just because you have more talented rookies than PS guys that does not mean they are ready to be those type of guys you are expecting in year one

You absolutely are being disingenuous.  First of all he played 15 games in 2016 so yes he has played 15 within the past 4 seasons considering 2020 hasn't started yet.  He also played 14 in 2017 which is why I'm assuming you decided to pick 15 as the cut off.  He has averaged about 13 games a season (11 over the past 4 since that's what you wanted to focus on) so yes once again if you're talking betting odds no one in their right mind would place an even money bet on him playing less than the 3 games he played last year.

And when it comes to our rookies you're even willing to admit they're more talented and have better coaches than what we had last year but somehow that still doesn't mean they're more likely to succeed?  More talented players are absolutely more likely to outperform less talented ones. Players with better coaches are more likely to outperform players with worse ones.  Doesn't mean they will, but again we're talking about what is likely. You're making my point for me.

[Alphagrand]

18 minutes ago, Green Dog said:

There could be multiple candidates.  Remember, they brought in a couple new guys this year to tweak the offense.  Clearly they are going to move towards favoring deeper routes and progressions evidenced by the speed drafted at wr.  And we know Carson prefers the deep ball because he is constantly trying to extend plays looking for it.  But after Jackson went down last year, there was never anyone to throw to.

Hopefully the OL can block up well enough for those deeper routes to develop.  I’m counting on Lane Johnson to rebound from what, for him, was a subpar year last season.

[315Eagles]

23 minutes ago, Alphagrand said:

My suspicion is once Goodell encouraged teams to bring him in that at least one team (almost guarantee SEA) reached out to him, and found out what I’ve been saying for two years — the guy isn’t employed because he expects to get paid starting QB salary.

The good news is he’s back active in Madden 2021 — and has an overall rating of 82; higher than Newton and Mayfield.  Now, that’s ridiculous 

Think I read somewhere that the last Madden he was in his rating was 74.  So he hasnt played since and he's an 82?  Makes sense.

[e-a-g-l-e-s eagles!]

3 hours ago, DEagle7 said:

You absolutely are being disingenuous.  First of all he played 15 games in 2016 so yes he has played 15 within the past 4 seasons considering 2020 hasn't started yet.  He also played 14 in 2017 which is why I'm assuming you decided to pick 15 as the cut off.  He has averaged about 13 games a season (11 over the past 4 since that's what you wanted to focus on) so yes once again if you're talking betting odds no one in their right mind would place an even money bet on him playing less than the 3 games he played last year.

And when it comes to our rookies you're even willing to admit they're more talented and have better coaches than what we had last year but somehow that still doesn't mean they're more likely to succeed?  More talented players are absolutely more likely to outperform less talented ones. Players with better coaches are more likely to outperform players with worse ones.  Doesn't mean they will, but again we're talking about what is likely. You're making my point for me.

And I said he hasn’t played 15 games since 2016. So the last three years he hasn’t. You can call a disingenuous I call you naïve for thinking he’s going to play more than 80% of the games. I choose three years because three years or less is indicative of a player then going back to your four or five years or more which is almost a half decade ago. 3 years is how I’d evaluate any of player such lane, or kelce or brooks or peters. 3 years is a better timeline then 4 years ago when he was just turning 30 or 5 years ago when he was 29. 

I’m assuming so you wanna make the cut off 2016 but you won’t go back to 2015 where he missed 7 games. which Also makes it a half decade of years. So you just did the same exact thing that you’re accusing me of stopping a year early because it hurts your argument. Just so we know he’s missed on average over the last five years of his career 5.2 games. Even if you want to go before last season he on average missed 3.3 games which would be just under a quarter of the season. But if you include some of the games he left early it would be approximately around four

And so you know in those other two seasons (2016/2017) he also left games early. Like leaving in the first quarter or the second quarter. So those don’t count but the fact he still left those games. he didn’t finish the games

no because you keep making this Just cause you’re talented it means you’re going to translate it on the field as a rookie and just be better than PS guys who have 2-3 years of nfl experience and coaching in them. ward is definitely not more talented then JJAW and yet Greg Ward last year look like a competent NFL wide receiver while Jjaw was lost. That’s the problem with rookies you could be talented and does not Always translate on to the field as a rookie. You assume covid offseason doesn’t matter and better coaching just means rookies will be better. That’s not a given  

 

[315Eagles]

3 minutes ago, Alphagrand said:

Hopefully the OL can block up well enough for those deeper routes to develop.  I’m counting on Lane Johnson to rebound from what, for him, was a subpar year last season.

Carson can always roll out or bootleg to buy some time and throw deep down field.  As long as he protects himself when running.

[Allhaildawk]

1 hour ago, HazletonEagle said:

the other guy cant count to 1 before posting 8 different tangential thoughts and forgetting what he was trying to do in the first place. Then ends it with some random music video that probably no one ever watches/listens to. 

355lbs.

Wonder if we see a wave of OL and DTs opt out next.

Does the virus affect all 350lbers equally though?  It’s hard to imagine a 350 #er with 220lbs if muscle being hit the same was as one with 135lbs of muscle. 

[BigEFly]

34 minutes ago, 315Eagles said:

Not sure if it was brought up earlier but any of you see that Deadspin article about McCown having a job with the Eagles but Kaepernick still cant get one?  Beyond stupid.  Came from Rob Parker so it's not surprising.

What has Kaepernick ever said that would convince anyone that he would take a PS position where he agrees to self quarantine so he would be available to play. What has he ever done to convince folks he would add almost a second position level coach input in the QB room?

[315Eagles]

1 minute ago, BigEFly said:

What has Kaepernick ever said that would convince anyone that he would take a PS position where he agrees to self quarantine so he would be available to play. What has he ever done to convince folks he would add almost a second position level coach input in the QB room?

That's why the article is incredibly stupid.

Honestly I dont think the writer can be this dumb.  Has to be some kind of click-bait article.  But I mean at least make it have some sense.

[eagle45]

Every year people compare the prior seaon's week 17 roster to the new week 1 roster and manage to get excited about the upgrades via players returning from injury.

Is it better now?  Yes.  Guess what is also better now?  The current roster compared to week 17 of this year.

[DEagle7]

3 minutes ago, e-a-g-l-e-s eagles! said:

And I said he hasn’t played 15 games since 2016. So the last three years he hasn’t. You can call a disingenuous I call you naïve for thinking he’s going to play more than 80% of the games. I choose three years because three years or more indicative of a player then going back to your four or five years which is almost a half decade ago. 3 years is how I’d evaluate any of player such lane, or kelce or brooks or peters. 3 years is a better timeline then 4 years ago when he was just turning 30 or 5 years ago when he was 29. 

I’m assuming so you wanna make the cut off 2016 but you won’t go back to 2015 where he missed 7 games. which Also makes it a half decade of years. So you just did the same exact thing that you’re accusing me of of stopping a year early because it hurts your argument.

And so you know in those other two seasons he also left games early. Like leaving in the first quarter or the second quarter. So those don’t count but the fact he still left those games. he didn’t finish the games

no because you keep making this such a just cause you’re talented it means you’re going to translate it on the field as a rookie and just be better than PS guys who have 2-3 years of nfl experience and coaching in them. Great ward is definitely not more talented then JJAW and yeah Greg Ward last year look like a company NFL wide receiver well Jj was lost. That’s the problem with rookies you could be talented and not translate it to the field as a rookie

15 games, 80%, 3 years, literally all arbitrary cut-offs you landed upon not based on anything I've actually said. 

I'll make it simple, yes or no: Is Desean more likely to play more or less games/play more snaps than he did in 2019? aka the least amount he has ever played in his professional football career by a factor of 3.

[DEagle7]

4 minutes ago, eagle45 said:

Every year people compare the prior seaon's week 17 roster to the new week 1 roster and manage to get excited about the upgrades via players returning from injury.

Is it better now?  Yes.  Guess what is also better now?  The current roster compared to week 17 of this year.

Not if we trade for Golden Tate at the deadline...

[e-a-g-l-e-s eagles!]

23 minutes ago, DEagle7 said:

15 games, 80%, 3 years, literally all arbitrary cut-offs you landed upon not based on anything I've actually said. 

I'll make it simple, yes or no: Is Desean more likely to play more or less games/play more snaps than he did in 2019? aka the least amount he has ever played in his professional football career by a factor of 3.

I use the arbitrary three years because most the evaluators go based off the last three years of their career. not go back Nearly a half decade like you. I don’t care what he did 4,5,6 years ago cause that’s an eternity in the nfl. 

furhermore He missed 7 games in 2015. That means 3 out of 5 years he’s missed three or more games. That’s 60 percent of his seasons he’s played over the last 5 years, he’s missed 3 or more games. And in 2017 he left a game and if not mistaken multiple games early Like he did last year vs. bears. 

Should he? Yes He should. However he’s never been 34 years old before or 34 coming off a core hernia surgery. Where have I said he’s going to miss 13 games? I didn’t say that. I said you are going to have to account for him missing games. Which is a true statement. Because the last five years (not your arbitrary 4) he’s accounted for 5.2 miss games per season. He’s also a year older now so I don’t know how fast he’s going to recover if (when) he does get another injury. And older players tend to have more injury problems And longer to recover  

Which again brings us to the point you keep saying because we have better talent In place we are just better. Just because you have more talented players at the position in terms of rookies does not Assure you they can handle that load as rookies. That should be clearly obvious as Greg Ward outshined Jjaw last year as a 2-3 year practice squad guy and JJAW was a second round pick. Again they have more talent now. BUT if that talent goes on the field and fails to be productive like JJAW and agholor did then really It isn’t significantly better. If they are actually confident and perform then yes they would be significantly better. But just assuming they’re going to go out there and play well because they are talented it’s not something I use as a given

 

[EaglePhan1986]

I know it’s a position not very valued but our LB situation does not look pretty. Expecting lots of 6 DB sets... which isn’t enticing either. 

[Green Dog]

22 minutes ago, Alphagrand said:

Hopefully the OL can block up well enough for those deeper routes to develop.  I’m counting on Lane Johnson to rebound from what, for him, was a subpar year last season.

3 wide set, Jackson, Reagor, Hightower.   All 3 verticals.

Carson 3 step drop, flick of the wrist 70 yds to whoever was covered 1 on 1.

Good work, OL.  Now go celebrate. 

[e-a-g-l-e-s eagles!]

1 minute ago, EaglePhan1986 said:

I know it’s a position not very valued but our LB situation does not look pretty. Expecting lots of 6 DB sets... which isn’t enticing either. 

I actually think that’s where the Parks injury hurts the Eagles early. Probably envisioned slay, NRC, maddox, mcleod, Mills and parks out there with four rushers and Gerry. Now it’s gotta be a rookie in wallace or Leblanc or Craig Smith. Not as appealing. 

[DEagle7]

2 minutes ago, e-a-g-l-e-s eagles! said:

Should he? Yes He should. However he’s never been 34 years old before or 34 coming off a core hernia surgery. Where have I said he’s going to miss 13 games? I didn’t say that. I said you are going to have to account for him missing games. Which is a true statement. Because the last five years (not your arbitrary 4) he’s accounted for 5.2 miss games per season.

Gonna just cut out the rest of the circle talking and arbitrary stat selection and focus on the actual point here.  We are talking about whether or not we are better off at WR this year. That was the whole point of the argument.  Desean played 3 games last year (and not even that if you want to look at snaps).  So in evaluating whether or not we are going to be better off, from a purely Desean POV, this year that seems like the mark we should be looking at.  Is he more likely to play more than 3 (ish) games.

So I'll try this once again: Even money you have to bet the over/under on Desean playing 3 games.  What do you take? Seems like a pretty easy choice to me.

6 minutes ago, EaglePhan1986 said:

I know it’s a position not very valued but our LB situation does not look pretty. Expecting lots of 6 DB sets... which isn’t enticing either. 

Yep.  We've got some smart football players in Gerry and Edwards.  We also have some physically talented guys in Riley, Bradley and Taylor.  Problem is no one has show that they can do both yet.  Hopefully one of those guys can take the next step.  Or hopefully this "positionless defense" talk actually means they have a plan to sheme to everyone's strengths and isn't just coachspeak for "we suck at LB and Safety so we're just gonna combine em this year".

[vaeagle2]

1 hour ago, 315Eagles said:

Would be funny if Darby locked him down all game 😄

 

you do remember darby in the superbowl WR"s having a 5 yards or more buffer , he hasn't changed.

[e-a-g-l-e-s eagles!]

3 hours ago, DEagle7 said:

Gonna just cut out the rest of the circle talking and arbitrary stat selection and focus on the actual point here.  We are talking about whether or not we are better off at WR this year. That was the whole point of the argument.  Desean played 3 games last year (and not even that if you want to look at snaps).  So in evaluating whether or not we are going to be better off, from a purely Desean POV, this year that seems like the mark we should be looking at.  Is he more likely to play more than 3 (ish) games.

So I'll try this once again: Even money you have to bet the over/under on Desean playing 3 games.  What do you take? Seems like a pretty easy choice to me.

Yep.  We've got some smart football players in Gerry and Edwards.  We also have some physically talented guys in Riley, Bradley and Taylor.  Problem is no one has show that they can do both yet.  Hopefully one of those guys can take the next step.  Or hopefully this "positionless defense" talk actually means they have a plan to sheme to everyone's strengths and isn't just coachspeak for "we suck at LB and Safety so we're just gonna combine em this year".

I would actually take the over that he misses more than 3 games. He’s a year older. It’s going to take him longer to recover at 34 than it did at  31 or 30 which is your arbitrary numbers. If you haven’t realize each consecutive year he’s missed more games since 2016 where he played 15. Do I think he’s going to miss 13 games this year? No I don’t. But I do think it is a distinct possibility that he misses four games this year. And we haven’t even talk what happens if he does lose a step as the season progresses on. 
 

I don’t know if they’re better off. I know they are much more talented but talent doesn’t mean given they are just going to play better. Because I can’t just trust DeSean Jackson at 34 years old stays healthy and be the same guy he was before the injury last year. I can’t assume alshon is alshon coming off of lis Franc injury. I can’t Just assume three rookie wide receivers who had a Covid off-season can just step into the fire and just hit the ground running. You say they are better Before any of that has been proven. There’s a lot of question marks. Are they more talented should be the question right now. Yes they are significantly more talented right now than they were a week 17. Does that mean better? No because they haven’t proven that yet. none of the rookies have done anything yet. JJAW hasn’t shown anything yet. Desean hasn’t played yet to show he can stay on the field  

this is the same argument that I had with somebody last year about the defensive tackles being (significantly) better before the season started. Saying we have great depth now and malik. My argument then was similar, jackson was coming off a down year so don’t know what really to expect. Jernigan Had a back injury The previous year so don’t know what to expect out of him Or staying healthy as he missed games the previous two years. And the other guys were young and promising but that didn’t mean ready for significant snaps. Literally a week into the season malik got hurt. Then Jernigan. And the defensive tackle position was a mess for the entire year and not better. Until they prove it on the field it is not better yet. They have more talent. And that’s for sure they have more talented players at WR but that doesn’t mean they’re better yet. Are they better suited for successful due to more talent at the position? Yes. But if that talent craps the bed then it wasn’t better. 

[Sack that QB]

I'm gonna go 8-8 too. Reasons:

OL a concern. Brooks gone, Peters at LT a year older where his heart may or may not be in it, but most importantly they have zero quality depth. They can't afford to lose a single player on that line without being in deep trouble. If Peters pulls a hammy or sprains an ankle will he even bother to fight through it this time around if he knows he's that close to retirement?

I don't think WR is that improved.... yet. It has potential to be if Reagor and/or Hightower or Watkins are the real deal. But I won't just assume that without seeing them play yet. The biggest difference is DeSean Jackson is healthy right now, but he's injury prone and I don't think he's some savior either. Remember, when we traded for him from Tampa he was essentially supposed to be a complimentary deep threat. Now the entire WR corps is basically clinging to his health. Ward is a nice story, but he's just a guy, and the other wideout whether it be Reagor, JJAW, Hightower, etc all remain questions. It's still probably a bottom 5-7 group in all the NFL.

DE depth. Love our DTs, but outside pass rush worries me. Yet again, the common theme here is depth. Graham, and a bunch of meh. Curry is fine as a rotational guy, but he's not a difference maker. Barnett has underachieved and can't stay healthy. Sweat only dominates when he faces Pryor in camp practices.

LB - arguably the worst LB group in NFL history and that isn't hyperbole.

Safety - Mills is an unknown and I think McLeod has been average there for 2 seasons now.

But overall depth is the key theme. Maybe this applies to every team in the NFL to a degree, but it feels extreme with the Eagles. They have so many positions where if they lose one guy they are totally screwed. DeSean, Sanders, Slay, Graham, anyone position on the OL. DT, nickel corner, TE are deep, everywhere else, not so much.

Plus I just think Dallas has more talent, upgraded their head coach, and this may be a small difference, but will have fans to start the season when the Eagles won't, so we'll see if that makes a difference. And we have a first place really difficult schedule.

The team has regressed each of the last 2 seasons. SB--->Divisional Round exit---->Wild Card round exit---->????

Hope they prove me wrong, I've been dying for football, I can't get into these other sports without fans.

 

[315Eagles]

18 minutes ago, vaeagle2 said:

you do remember darby in the superbowl WR"s having a 5 yards or more buffer , he hasn't changed.

That's why it would be funny.......because it's unlikely to happen.

[DEagle7]

3 minutes ago, e-a-g-l-e-s eagles! said:

1) Do I think he’s going to miss 13 games this year? No I don’t.

2) Are they better suited for successful due to more talent at the position? Yes.

Cutting out the extraneous fluff these are the answers to my questions.

1) We're way more likely to get playing time from Desean this year than last year

2) Our other receivers are much more talented than they were last year.

Both of those are clearly indications that our WR group is likely to be better than they were last year. Doesn't mean they definitely will but can we at least finally admit that it is very much likely that's the case?

[e-a-g-l-e-s eagles!]

2 minutes ago, Sack that QB said:

I'm gonna go 8-8 too. Reasons:

OL a concern. Brooks gone, Peters at LT a year older where his heart may or may not be in it, but most importantly they have zero quality depth. They can't afford to lose a single player on that line without being in deep trouble. If Peters pulls a hammy or sprains an ankle will he even bother to fight through it this time around if he knows he's that close to retirement?

I don't think WR is that improved.... yet. It has potential to be if Reagor and/or Hightower or Watkins are the real deal. But I won't just assume that without seeing them play yet. The biggest difference is DeSean Jackson is healthy right now, but he's injury prone and I don't think he's some savior either. Remember, when we traded for him from Tampa he was essentially supposed to be a complimentary deep threat. Now the entire WR corps is basically clinging to his health. Ward is a nice story, but he's just a guy, and the other wideout whether it be Reagor, JJAW, Hightower, etc all remain questions. It's still probably a bottom 5-7 group in all the NFL.

DE depth. Love our DTs, but outside pass rush worries me. Yet again, the common theme here is depth. Graham, and a bunch of meh. Curry is fine as a rotational guy, but he's not a difference maker. Barnett has underachieved and can't stay healthy. Sweat only dominates when he faces Pryor in camp practices.

LB - arguably the worst LB group in NFL history and that isn't hyperbole.

Safety - Mills is an unknown and I think McLeod has been average there for 2 seasons now.

But overall depth is the key theme. Maybe this applies to every team in the NFL to a degree, but it feels extreme with the Eagles. They have so many positions where if they lose one guy they are totally screwed. DeSean, Sanders, Slay, Graham, anyone position on the OL. DT, nickel corner, TE are deep, everywhere else, not so much.

Plus I just think Dallas has more talent, upgraded their head coach, and this may be a small difference, but will have fans to start the season when the Eagles won't, so we'll see if that makes a difference. And we have a first place really difficult schedule.

The team has regressed each of the last 2 seasons. SB--->Divisional Round exit---->Wild Card round exit---->????

Hope they prove me wrong, I've been dying for football, I can't get into these other sports without fans.

 

Nailed that. I think they improved the talent level in the WR group. They have more talent going into the season then they did toward the end of last year. But like you said a bunch of question marks surrounding nearly every wr in that group. 

[e-a-g-l-e-s eagles!]

13 minutes ago, DEagle7 said:

Cutting out the extraneous fluff these are the answers to my questions.

1) We're way more likely to get playing time from Desean this year than last year

2) Our other receivers are much more talented than they were last year.

Both of those are clearly indications that our WR group is likely to be better than they were last year. Doesn't mean they definitely will but can we at least finally admit that it is very much likely that's the case?

I never said it wasn’t likely. I do think it is more likely as they have upgraded the talent level. That doesn’t mean I trust hightower or Watkins if they have to play significant snaps though. I 100% agree they have more talent than they had at the end of last year at that position

but i don’t think it is definitive that they are better. There are way too many question marks right now at that position. A lot of us were saying the exact same thing last year about the wide receivers At the end of 2018 compared to what 2019 was going to be. we were saying We were better with desean and Jjaw going into the season then with jeffery, tate and agholor at the end of 2018. Then desean got hurt, jeffery got hurt and JJAW was a bust last year. 

don’t get me wrong I’m hoping they surpass my expectations. However I played the game before where I said oh we are better than we were last year and then when we get to week 17, I look around and say wow we weren’t really better

[Sack that QB]

9 minutes ago, e-a-g-l-e-s eagles! said:

Nailed that. I think they improved the talent level in the WR group. They have more talent going into the season then they did toward the end of last year. But like you said a bunch of question marks surrounding nearly every wr in that group. 

Right. Compared to last December, anything would be an upgrade. I think fans are so desperate they'll welcome anything as a major upgrade. But overall I wouldn't say this WR group is anything special unless Reagor comes in and absolutely balls out. Or JJAW, Hightower do.