31 minutes ago, vikas83 said:

My guess is it is a combination of 1 and 3. Reddick reportedly was looking for a $25mm AAV. That's just too much for a 30 year old. Combine that with reports that players were abandoning he scheme at the end of last year and hunting for stats, and maybe that was Reddick (we thought it was Sweat, but he is back). Reddick is a weird tweener fit, and his game may not age well given his reliance on speed (though he's better against the run than he gets credit for).

I think they decided Huff for $17mm AAV was the better play -- younger, ascending, strong advanced metrics. That may have been a mistake, but I just don't think Howie was willing to go anywhere close to the numbers Reddick wanted.

That would be in line with what the guys with similar production got in free agency like Danielle Hunter. We will see this year if Hunter proves he was worth the money.

10 minutes ago, vikas83 said:

Love that scene (and movie).

I'm sure Howie was talking to both of them and was always going to get one guy signed and ship the other out of town.

I guess I need to go back and re-watch, but that was my least favorite of those 3 films; I liked the ones with Liam Neeson and Tom Hardy more.  

2 minutes ago, Alphagrand said:

I guess I need to go back and re-watch, but that was my least favorite of those 3 films; I liked the ones with Liam Neeson and Tom Hardy more.  

I thought all three of them were good. Can watch each one of them over and over. And I’m not a huge DC fan. That said the third one with bane was my favorite but then again it had Anne Hathaway in it so 

I'm borderline irrationally optimistic about the defense. This is the fastest, hardest hitting, youngest defense the Eagles have had in a long time. And we still have Cooper DeJean, Sydney Brown, and Jalyx Hunt left to play. They don't have to be a top 10 group, but if they're assignment sound and can let their athleticism shine, this will be a group that can force some turnovers.

13 minutes ago, Iggles_Phan said:

They all appear to be staring at Hurts the entire time, which would indicate 'zone' coverage.  Where do you get the idea that the defender's back was turned?   They were all looking at Jalen.   And the QB School showed that Alexander was looking back to the backfield, then he turned, ran to a spot and turned back to find the ball.   Sadly, he never discussed the left side of the field, or the fact that its a perfect pocket that he bailed from.

When Hurts pointed, the corner was staring straight at AJ Brown, who is waving.

It's really easy to see on the all 22.

Also, when a former pro qb doesn't parrot your talking points, that may not be indicative that he's the one making a mistake. 

 

 

5 minutes ago, jsb235 said:

When Hurts pointed, the corner was staring straight at AJ Brown, who is waving.

It's really easy to see on the all 22.

Also, when a former pro qb doesn't parrot your talking points, that may not be indicative that he's the one making a mistake. 

 

 

He actually parroted quite a few... as in, don't point, just throw.  But that's ok.  He's allowed to miss a few points.  He puts out a ton of these videos each week, so he doesn't have nearly the time to dissect it as those of us who are more focused on only one team.

56 minutes ago, LeanMeanGM said:

He did it!

Take THAT Giants! 

15 minutes ago, Saltpeter said:

I'm borderline irrationally optimistic about the defense. This is the fastest, hardest hitting, youngest defense the Eagles have had in a long time. And we still have Cooper DeJean, Sydney Brown, and Jalyx Hunt left to play. They don't have to be a top 10 group, but if they're assignment sound and can let their athleticism shine, this will be a group that can force some turnovers.

While we need to see more and it's still early, currently there's optimism. We knew bringing in Fangio would at least bring in consistency and experience regardless of whether or not you like his scheme. He holds players accountable. The defense has some weak spots, but they can be overcome with good coaching. I agree on the youth. There are concerns about the pass rush and LB depth. But they did a good job upgrading the secondary and as you noted, a few guys still haven't contributed yet.

The way the team is built, the offense should be putting up a lot of points and put the opponent in position to catch up which helps the defense. Last year, the poor offensive performances and turnovers hurt the defense. They need to put them in better position this season.

It's difficult with the week 1 game because of the travel, field conditions and no preseason for the starters. Still, you don't want to see the Hurts turnovers again, it doesn't show confidence we've moved on from those issues. He did do well against the blitz so that is optimistic. They need to have a clean game Mon night and show the rust is off and reduce the mistakes.

@mattwill  Eagles 33 Falcons 19

BONUS: Dotson with 2+ catches.

@mattwill

Eagles 31

Falcons 16

Bonus: Eagles get 4+ sacks

@mattwill

Eagles 34

Falcons 20

Hurts two turnovers 

39 minutes ago, austinfan said:

Hot takes off the 1st game on a bad field.

Let's give it a few more games before jumping to conclusions.

Huff, for example, probably didn't lose his pass rush skills over the summer.

Yeah, I’ve seen a lot of conclusions drawn after week one all over the place… Not just here in the blog but on TV as well.  Sort of surprised to see so many.  

I’m in wait and see mode until October.  I thought that this season may be sort of the opposite of last season. A slower start, but a much better finish.  

The Eagles pass rush can be bad this season and the Eagles still made the right call on Reddick. It is what it is. 

@mattwill

 

Eagles 41

Falcons 13

 

Defense scores a TD

32 minutes ago, Saltpeter said:

I'm borderline irrationally optimistic about the defense. This is the fastest, hardest hitting, youngest defense the Eagles have had in a long time. And we still have Cooper DeJean, Sydney Brown, and Jalyx Hunt left to play. They don't have to be a top 10 group, but if they're assignment sound and can let their athleticism shine, this will be a group that can force some turnovers.

I'll go with cautiously optimistic. I think the field conditions in Brazil were bad enough that we didn't get a fair look at the defense, in particular the pass rush and slot corner. I add the slot corner in particular because Maddox didn't have the benefit of using the sideline like Q and Slay -- the receiver knew where we was going, and on tough footing, Maddox would be hampered. The pass rush is obvious, and I also think the maybe the run defense was impacted as guys had trouble anchoring. This week, against an immobile QB, we need to get home and sack the QB.  

@mattwill

Eagles 29

Falcons 17

Bonus: Devonta Smith TD 

Interesting concept by Spike.

Rellace someone on the 2024 Eagles with someone on the 2017 Eagles.

 

I would go Malcom Jenkins for CJGJ 

@mattwill 

Eagles 24

Falcons 23

Another sluggish game and the Eagles come from behind to win

@mattwill

Eagles 31

Falcons 23

Huff gets a couple sacks (hell the Eagles should get to him at least 5 times the way he’s moving)

I think the Eagles struggle a little bit with Bijan Robinson and he makes some plays

15 minutes ago, RLC said:

The Eagles pass rush can be bad this season and the Eagles still made the right call on Reddick. It is what it is. 

There I'll disagree. Especially if say Reddick does get paid eventually and goes on to average 14 sacks per season the next 2-3 years, and the Eagles get bounced in the playoffs because they couldn't generate pressure.

One of you bloggers recommended The Demon of Unrest by Erik Larson. I'm sorry to say I don't remember who. Anyway, I am grateful. I'm about halfway through and am enjoying it thoroughly. Beautifully written and superbly researched.

1 hour ago, LeanMeanGM said:

Yep, it does. 

If Reddick was smart he'd show up last minute before whenever the deadline is to avoid that. But who knows if he does that or just pulls a Le'Veon Bell at this point. 

At some point before the tenth week, his fines will exceed the remaining salary. IIRC, he’s already at $5 million in mandatory fines. 

1 minute ago, Sack that QB said:

There I'll disagree. Especially if say Reddick does get paid eventually and goes on to average 14 sacks per season the next 2-3 years, and the Eagles get bounced in the playoffs because they couldn't generate pressure.

There's the old line: Chances of that are Slim and none and Slim left town.

Thursday midday Predictions Update

32 predictions recorded ... all for an Eagles win.  Average predicted score is Eagles 32 Falcons 18.

As always, please tag your prediction post with @mattwill that way I will be sure to see/record it.  Score predictions can also have an optional "Bonus Pick" tiebreaker prediction. 

A list of the predictions is presented below, sorted alphabetically by the name of the predictor.  If you don't see your name there, then I haven't yet recorded a prediction for you.