I think Milton Williams will be starting by November. I think he’s a better player until proven otherwise. I’m in a prove it to me zone with Davis.

11 hours ago, LeanMeanGM said:

That’s a bold take. What would you have ahead? 

Not top 5 but a personal favorite is turning two 7ths into a future 5th during day 3 of the draft.  I appreciate being able to squeeze blood from a stone.

1 hour ago, paco said:

I mean I know Minnesota must be an absolutely awful place to live, but I would think there are easier ways to go about leaving

6 minutes ago, ToastJenkins said:

I think Davis will excel in Fangios scheme and with some continued maturity and development. Especially with Carter next to him

We've been running Fangio's system for while now, but Vic can teach it better and find solutions on the fly.  I think the goal for JD is to be assignment/technique sound for more snaps.  If the defense as a unit plays better, the splash plays will come - if the opposing offense can target the B gaps due to indecisive LB-play or get the ball out quick against off coverage, he won't be a factor.

8 minutes ago, mikemack8 said:

I mean I know Minnesota must be an absolutely awful place to live, but I would think there are easier ways to go about leaving

What allowed me to exit was more extreme.  I spent a lot of time there between 11/2019 and 3/2020.  Then a global pandemic hit so I didn't have to travel anymore.

1 minute ago, paco said:

What allowed me to exit was more extreme.  I spent a lot of time there between 11/2019 and 3/2020.  Then a global pandemic hit so I didn't have to travel anymore.

And then you have @Agent23 living there on purpose  

19 minutes ago, ToastJenkins said:

Yup

and now i gave to wonder if the vikings will have a fire sale to load up for next yr

McCarthy wasn’t scheduled to start this year and Darnold wasn’t that bad in 2022, especially as bad as that Panther OL was, and the little action he saw last year with the 49ers. He’s the transition QB. He may have a better OL in Minnesota than he has had in his career.  Certainly better WRs.  Addison looks like he only has an ankle sprain.  Frankly, it’s their D that is worse off.  Now, the NFLC has been reloading so the Lions and Bears will be better that the Vikings have faced. Frankly, I could see the Bears being better than the gints or commies.  But fire sale?  Don’t see that.  If Darnold is failing the Vikings might call about Fields, Pickett, Bissett if Maye is starting, etc.  

15 hours ago, bpac55 said:

From the sounds of it, he is. From a practical standpoint, can they afford to keep a safety on the roster who offers nothing on ST or future value? Is Tristin McCollum a better option? He's a core ST player and has improved steadily during his time here. He's not starting material, but he's quality depth and ST starter that winning teams need.

My biggest question is whether or not Jordan Davis is living up to any hype and if he should be moved. You hear about Carter, Williams, Ojomo, Tuipulotu...even Booker and Mustipher are getting some mentions lately. I know he's the NT and Tuipulotu is the backup, but could they have enough of a rotation where Davis could be expendable? I just don't hear enough good things about him. He's serviceable but nothing special considering his size and athleticism. Would you swap Jordan Davis for a WR3 and a draft pick? Is there anyone worth trading him for? 

Howie isn't going to let go of Bradberry unless he gets an offer.  My sense is that they will want to keep McCollum but I don't think he's going to be snatched up if he's on the practice squad.  

Davis has gotten all of the starting reps. I think there have been some good reports on him.  The question is how he holds up during the season and his conditioning.  There's no world in which I think the Eagles should trade him for a WR3.  I just don't think that make sense at all given his play and the fact that the back up, Tuipulotu, hasn't had a full healthy season.  

 

Jason Kelce

 

32 minutes ago, Sack that QB said:

I think Milton Williams will be starting by November. I think he’s a better player until proven otherwise. I’m in a prove it to me zone with Davis.

Isn't he already? Williams-Davis-Carter. In nickel sets, I doubt Davis will see more opportunities to rush the passer than Milton will.

34 minutes ago, Connecticut Eagle said:

I'd be interested to see if the new DL coach, Clint Hurtt, makes a difference.

Hurtt is the inside DL coach and more importantly the Senior Defensive Assistant.  He has experience as a DC too. Washburn remains the OLB/DE coach. But Fangio also brought in Parker as Passing Game Coordinator.  Parker has more experienced DB coaches in Anderson and Kasper. (When I say Kasper as experienced, that shows how green the DB coaches were last year).  One holdover from the secondary is nickel coach Williams, who is now assistant LB coach (and defensive quality control) but they kept last years assistant LB coach, Scudder, as a defensive quality control coach.  Interestingly, both Fangio and Nick have mentioned Scudder and Williams in PCs. I also like the King hire. Experience at both LB coaching and DL coaching.   This is a much stronger staff than what Desai assembled.  The defensive game planning should be better this year. Play calling will be better under Fangio.

I do like that the front seven has some discretion in their stunts.  Think audibles  somewhat from a D perspective.  I wonder if the backfield has any discretion on MEG, MOD, man match tweaks from the zone assignments. They have some DBs displaying some skills in that area, like Mitchell and Ringo.  Not freelancing but more communicated adjustments. 

I don’t think we see Gang Green out there this year but I am optimistic we see a better less predictive D this year.  

26 minutes ago, schuy7 said:

Isn't he already? Williams-Davis-Carter. In nickel sets, I doubt Davis will see more opportunities to rush the passer than Milton will.

If there is one consistent characteristic of Fangio's defenses, it is that he likes a light box. Four down linemen. Guys who can control the run game without help or at least slow it down.

1 hour ago, Sack that QB said:

I think Milton Williams will be starting by November. I think he’s a better player until proven otherwise. I’m in a prove it to me zone with Davis.

Williams is a different player than Davis and about 60 pounds lighter. They are not interchangeable.

12 hours ago, Saltpeter said:

Hard sell. Easy to talk yourself into it (great size and football IQ, way above average length), but he's not physical and can't deal with suddenness. Might be a bold statement, but I think even a guy like Calcaterra would destroy him.

Don't be in such a hurry. A quick glance at the status of the Eagles safeties shows me that if you count DeJean as a safety, five, count 'em five, are either out or questionable.

C.J. Gardner-Johnson Q	Tristin McCollum	Andre' Sam Q	-
Reed Blankenship	James Bradberry IV	Sydney Brown O	Mekhi Garner Q

 Cooper DeJean Q

2 hours ago, mikemack8 said:

I mean I know Minnesota must be an absolutely awful place to live, but I would think there are easier ways to go about leaving

Leaving Minnesota with a Lombardi Trophy was pretty sweet though!

12 hours ago, Aerolithe_Lion said:

Part of it is that at the time, I don’t think it was a huge overpay. We had only just traded for him from STL for Foles, a 2, and a 4. Sam was a starting QB who could have had some franchise QB in him. He would have been our starter had we not traded him. He played alright with us and had a full season without falling apart. What was his actual value? A 2nd? Fringe first? It was great we got a 1 for him, but there have been other moves I found impressive.

Future draft picks worth pennies on the dollar will always be nuts to me. So Even if the points chart says it was right, getting a 1st, 2nd, and 3rd for our 2022 1st from NO is a gigantic steal.  And that’s before we factor in hindsight of it becoming Jalen Carter, Cooper Dejean, and Nakobe Dean. I hope teams offer us that deal every year, it’s so stupid.

Slay for a 3 and a 5 has been an absolutely phenomenal trade. he wanted a new deal, but it’s really surprising no one offered more. Maybe they thought he was done. This is probably my #1

Getting more for Carson was bigger than Sam. Sam could play; Carson was spoiled milk. A 1 and a 3 for him was bonkers

This one is actually my #1:  trading away Chip Kelly’s FA trash from 2015 to move up in the 2016 draft was one of the greatest things Howie ever did. Kiko, Byron Maxwell, Demarco Murray… no idea how you convince teams to take those contracts AND get draft capital.

Hmm, will take me a minute to find a fifth but I think it’s there. Maybe getting Sproles for a 5. Everyone knew NO Fed up when they did that. Thats one of those trades where you wonder if Howie cornered Loomis and didn’t let other teams know Sproles was available

Wentz had more potential than Bradford IMO. A team would be trying to get back into his MVP form

2 hours ago, paco said:

Not top 5 but a personal favorite is turning two 7ths into a future 5th during day 3 of the draft.  I appreciate being able to squeeze blood from a stone.

I really want him to do the paper clip challenge. Keep trading until a 7th turns into a 1st.

10 minutes ago, just relax said:

Williams is a different player than Davis and about 60 pounds lighter. They are not interchangeable.

And absolutely NOT a NT.

15 minutes ago, just relax said:

Williams is a different player than Davis and about 60 pounds lighter. They are not interchangeable.

He also has short arms, needs to be moving to use his elite athleticism (tests like Donald) to compensate.

A "tweener" in this defense, a prototype "3" not long enough for 3-4 DE, not stout enough for NT.

Apparently there are arrests being made following the investigation into Matthew Perry's death.  I sure hope he didn't get those drugs from friends -- could that BE anymore ironic??

 

10 hours ago, BigEFly said:

I see it differently.  Next year the Eagles have the big cap hits from Kelce and Cox, the first part of the Graham hit.Likely the first or second (larger) of the Bradberry hit, dependent on if he makes the team this year on which of those hit.  Possibly Sweat and Slay cap hits.  That’s serious dead money against the cap with some extensions due (Jurgens, for example) too.  I doubt the Eagles are players in free agency much so I see that draft capital being used for players this coming draft. 

He already has a very young roster, he'll clear out the dead money next year and get even younger.

I don't think Howie has much interest in big money FAs, they tend to be bad value.

He's learned to stockpile "red shirts" and move them into the lineup 2nd or 3rd season, and extend the ones they like before they hit FA.

2 minutes ago, just relax said:

Williams is a different player than Davis and about 60 pounds lighter. They are not interchangeable.

If Davis isn't playing well, I don't think he'll continue to be the guy on base downs just because he's heavier. I think Fangio would play Williams and Carter and adjust the defense accordingly if he needs to. And weight doesn't necessarily mean much if you can't use it to your advantage. We've seen him do it at times, and other times he gets driven out of the play like he weighs 300 lbs. Depends on what version of Davis we are going to get this season. I think one of his weaknesses is he lacks raw power.

Curious if the offensive starters get any time tonight.

3 minutes ago, RememberTheKoy said:

Curious if the offensive starters get any time tonight.

Vagianni said this off season regarding last pre-season, if he could do it again, he would play the starters more.  Let's see if he was telling the truth.