1 hour ago, NCiggles said:

I thought Will Shipley did some KO returns too.  

He did.  He is like the invisible man.  He's awesome and nobody thinks about him. 

27 minutes ago, Outlaw said:

Like me, I feel Howie is more excited about DeJean than Mitchell, even though I think Mitchell is a hell of a talent and the better outside CB.  The versatility of DeJean just has me really excited to see how he's utilized.

I feel like that's everyone's attitude.  Feel kinda bad for Mitchell honestly. 

Maybe if he notices he has another chip on his shoulder about it though. 

6 minutes ago, Sack that QB said:

Gargano said he talked to Steve Spags over the weekend and he loves Mitchell and DeJean. I'm assuming he'd say that regardless, he's not going to rip another team's players on the record, but Gargano said Spags told him he scouted all the DBs in preparation of the draft and he believes DeJean can play outside corner in the NFL. He's not just a nickel or safety.

Sounds like tampering.

Real good breakdown of Fangio's defense.

https://theathletic.com/3311028/2022/05/24/vic-fangio-defense-analysis/

Let’s start with Fangio’s base coverage: Cover 6. Cover 6 is a combo coverage with Cover 4 to the designated strong side and Cover 2 to the weak side. The strong side is usually the side with more immediate receiving threats.

One of the key features of Fangio’s defense is how everything looks similar before the snap. Both safeties align deep, and usually one or both corners play off the line of scrimmage, so it looks like Cover 4 across the board or Cover 6, making it difficult for quarterbacks to identify the coverage.

From its two-high alignment, the defense can rotate into a variety of zone and man coverages.

To get away with playing two safeties deep and lining up light boxes, Fangio and his disciples have their defensive linemen play with a gap-and-half technique. When playing this technique, defensive linemen aren’t aggressively coming up the field and they aren’t trying control two gaps. Instead, they attack their primary gap with enough control so that they can "fall back” into their secondary gap. The objective isn’t to make a tackle but force the ball to "roll” outside, which gives defensive backs time to come up in run support from depth. What they don’t want is for vertical seams to open up on the first level and have ball carriers quickly get north and south.

In nickel (five defensive backs) personnel, Fangio and his disciples can play their "Penny front,” with three interior defensive linemen and two outside linebackers on the line of scrimmage and one inside linebacker on the second level. Fangio didn’t use this front as much as other coaches in his tree. This type of system requires run-stuffing interior linemen.

Against heavy personnel, Fangio will get an extra defender in the box, but he doesn’t like to tip his hand even in those instances.

Where the system is susceptible is against teams that run the ball from spread formations or quarterbacks who can be patient and execute consistently in the quick game.

See also https://www.readoptional.com/p/the-book-of-fangio-part-i-the-philosophy

https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2022/11/24/vic-fangio-nfl-defense/

On the divorce from the Dolphins:

https://www.palmbeachpost.com/story/sports/nfl/2024/01/31/divorce-between-miami-dolphins-vic-fangio-turns-messy-mike-mcdaniel-drew-rosenhaus-ron-jaworski/72424933007/

 

2 hours ago, BigEFly said:

After Ngata, the longest holdover and heaviest of the Big receivers that Howie has been collecting.  Basically replaced a 6’1” 239 lbs WR with a 6’6” 231 lbs WR.  Hebert was the shortest yet heaviest of the big receivers that Howie has brought in.  Big receiver is a battle throughout TC.  

All the big WRs Howie collected, none seems to have produced much.  Either the evaluation fell short or the coaches could not coach or could not find ways to use them.  They need to rethink this approach and find ways to improve or take a different approach.  

The big WR in the latest draft may be turned into a TE for blocking.  

5 minutes ago, HazletonEagle said:

I feel like that's everyone's attitude.  Feel kinda bad for Mitchell honestly. 

Maybe if he notices he has another chip on his shoulder about it though. 

Honestly, Mitchell was my top guy at CB. You just can't teach speed, and he plays the ball well. I think those 2 will be our starting CBs in 2025. This year Mitchell starts outside with Slay, and DeJean moves around as a chess piece at nickel and safety.

Looking at the Fangio articles, Carter will be one DE, I think Ojomo, Booker and Hall will get long looks in TC as 3-4 DEs. Williams will probably rotate in the 2-4 look on passing downs. Not sure he's really big enough or long enough to start on run downs if they have options. Graham comes in on 3rd and long type situations.

Davis will start at NT, with Ellis or Tui as the backup NT.

Dean or Trotter as the MLB, White, Burks, VanSumeran as the "off" LB.

CJGJ or DeSean at NCB/S. Fangio will love them b/c it'll make disguising defenses easier.

With Slay and Mitchell, he may play more man than most of his stops, with Ringo, probably more zone, Ricks, definitely cover 2 type schemes.

Think they have enough talent now for Fangio to put together a top 10 defense in terms of points allowed.

8 minutes ago, vikas83 said:

Honestly, Mitchell was my top guy at CB. You just can't teach speed, and he plays the ball well. I think those 2 will be our starting CBs in 2025. This year Mitchell starts outside with Slay, and DeJean moves around as a chess piece at nickel and safety.

I think dejean stays at safety. Too valuable there

4 minutes ago, ToastJenkins said:

I think dejean stays at safety. Too valuable there

Teams play a lot of 3 and 4 WR sets where a safety gets matched against a WR, in those cases, the difference between a safety and NCB gets blurred in some coverages.

Having CJGJ and DeSean plays into Fangio's approach, you won't be able to key on the weak side safety or other DB b/c they're interchangeable at times.

15 minutes ago, vikas83 said:

Honestly, Mitchell was my top guy at CB. You just can't teach speed, and he plays the ball well. I think those 2 will be our starting CBs in 2025. This year Mitchell starts outside with Slay, and DeJean moves around as a chess piece at nickel and safety.

He was a lot of people's top CB and yet somehow,  DeJean just seems to have created a bigger buzz since being drafted. It's a funny thing.  

12 minutes ago, austinfan said:

Looking at the Fangio articles, Carter will be one DE, I think Ojomo, Booker and Hall will get long looks in TC as 3-4 DEs. Williams will probably rotate in the 2-4 look on passing downs. Not sure he's really big enough or long enough to start on run downs if they have options. Graham comes in on 3rd and long type situations.

Davis will start at NT, with Ellis or Tui as the backup NT.

Dean or Trotter as the MLB, White, Burks, VanSumeran as the "off" LB.

CJGJ or DeSean at NCB/S. Fangio will love them b/c it'll make disguising defenses easier.

With Slay and Mitchell, he may play more man than most of his stops, with Ringo, probably more zone, Ricks, definitely cover 2 type schemes.

Think they have enough talent now for Fangio to put together a top 10 defense in terms of points allowed.

By Hall do you mean Huff? Is Huff big enough to be a 3-4 DE?

10 hours ago, NYEagle said:

I had actually posted this last year to use him this way at the end of the season/playoffs to try and get a spark for the offense using him in the slot.  That offense was sooooooo pathetic and unimaginative.  

Quite a few thought that keeping Brown and Smith on the field at all times would lead to fatigue and injuries.  

What happened was fatigue, injuries,  and then a bunch of losses and finally a playoff loss.

Having the top WRs completely fresh and healthy in the playoffs is more important than getting big regular season stats for those top WRs.

I don't see any reason why Covey shouldn't have been getting snaps and targets all along,  but

Brown and Smith had the most snaps of any WR duo in the NFL last year.   That's not a real NFL stat,  it's something you'd have to look up.

If you look at "highest percentage of targets going to the top 2 targets"  which I haven't done,  I would guess that the Eagles were #1.   I don't want that.  I want a variety of targets.  And, last year,  Covey should have been more included in that.  Same with this year. 

23 minutes ago, austinfan said:

Teams play a lot of 3 and 4 WR sets where a safety gets matched against a WR, in those cases, the difference between a safety and NCB gets blurred in some coverages.

Having CJGJ and DeSean plays into Fangio's approach, you won't be able to key on the weak side safety or other DB b/c they're interchangeable at times.

I worry more about teams picking on the linebackers.

if i were playing us i go balanced 2 te 1 back and pick on the backers

I think it's pretty obvious the Eagles think DeJean can play outside CB. I'm not saying he wont be moved around and play in different sub packages, especially year 1. But I don't think they would trade up and give up what they did if they think he tops out as just a NB or a S. That would be very unlike them.

38 minutes ago, ToastJenkins said:

I think dejean stays at safety. Too valuable there

Wouldn't really be "stays" at safety. He was an outside CB in college. The NCB/S is projection. I think he has the skillset and more importantly maybe, the smarts, to eventually play all 3. 

29 minutes ago, bpac55 said:

By Hall do you mean Huff? Is Huff big enough to be a 3-4 DE?

No. Gabe Hall is a UDFA we picked up from Baylor who I would have been happy with in the 5th round. I think he really projects well to 3-4 DE. 

1 hour ago, NCiggles said:

I don't think Davis and Willams are playing the same position so I don't think you link the decision to Davis.  My guess is that Williams will primarily share reps with Carter although, he may play situationally with Carter on long distance passing downs.   

Well they don't exactly play the same position, but if Davis proves incapable of playing extended snaps at a non-gassed level (as he has for the last 2 years), that is going to translate into more snaps for Williams in one way or another.

1 minute ago, Outlaw said:

Wouldn't really be "stays" at safety. He was an outside CB in college. The NCB/S is projection. I think he has the skillset and more importantly maybe, the smarts, to eventually play all 3. 

No. Gabe Hall is a UDFA we picked up from Baylor who I would have been happy with in the 5th round. I think he really projects well to 3-4 DE. 

Oh yea, forgot about him. Guy is built perfect for a 3-4 DE with pass rush skills. 

Had we drafted DeJeane at 22, I would be very insistent that he be an outside corner in order to justify the value of the pick and to get some future stability for the secondary.  With Mitchell in the fold, they can get more creative with DeJean.  

1 hour ago, HazletonEagle said:

I feel like that's everyone's attitude.  Feel kinda bad for Mitchell honestly. 

Maybe if he notices he has another chip on his shoulder about it though. 

8 hours ago, paco said:

That kind of feels like shades of JJaw 😕 

Wilson was the top run blocker of the top WRs though.

And if it is shades of JJaw,  Wilson is the cheaper 6th round player.  And the Eagles were bad at run blocking last year from the WR and RB positions.  The Eagles needed an upgrade at WR run blocking and Wilson should be that.

8 hours ago, mikemack8 said:

Our new goal line back!

Becton is bigger, Barkley is faster

With Johnny being almost 6 foot 7, having a 37 inch vert, and almost 35.5 inch arms is there any reason he shouldn't be lining up to try and block kicks?

Just now, garingovt2000 said:

With Johnny being almost 6 foot 7, having a 37 inch vert, and almost 35.5 inch arms is there any reason he shouldn't be lining up to try and block kicks?

He won't be active on game day?

20 minutes ago, LeanMeanGM said:

I think it's pretty obvious the Eagles think DeJean can play outside CB. I'm not saying he wont be moved around and play in different sub packages, especially year 1. But I don't think they would trade up and give up what they did if they think he tops out as just a NB or a S. That would be very unlike them.

The bigger question is this:  Does the doubling down at CB with Mitchell and Dejean a vote of no confidence in Ringo, or just a vote of major confidence in Dejean?  

Personally, I said before the draft and all offseason that there was not a single DB on the roster that should make the Eagles change their draft strategy away from BPA.   And in Round 1, I think its hard to say that Mitchell wasn't clearly the BPA.   And then in Round 2, again I think it was pretty clear that Dejean was also the BPA, and they traded up to get him.   It's likely that only one of the two really pans out as everyone hopes, but if both work out as planned... that's an amazing haul for Howie.  

10 minutes ago, Random Reglar said:

Becton is bigger, Barkley is faster

You really got to the heart of the issue there.