41 minutes ago, Connecticut Eagle said:

As of this morning, our defense is 9th in yards per game and 7th in points per game.

We just played two of the worst offenses in the NHL, while the upward trend is good, let's see how they fare against better offenses.

2 minutes ago, austinfan said:

We just played two of the worst offenses in the NHL, while the upward trend is good, let's see how they fare against better offenses.

I’d love to see an NFL team play an NHL in some weird hybrid game of football hockey. 

17 minutes ago, Godfather said:

It's funny how desperate rtk is to defend his bf's horrible play week after week

It's blatant trolling; the "extremely smart foorball" was a giveaway.

It's not "extremely smart foorball" to stand back there and take 5 sacks when it should have been the first point of emphasis to get the ball out on time and on script against a Giants defense leading the league in sacks.  That 3rd sack he took to Lawrence was absolutely god-awful -- he kept retreating and retreating and running in circles until the pass rush brought him down.  Absolutely no excuse for that from an NFL QB.

He's heading for injury again with those decisions.

10 hours ago, e-a-g-l-e-s eagles! said:

 

So what changed? Did he just start playing better or is Vic using him differently?

10 hours ago, Sack that QB said:

Burrow will move the ball, the defense will definitely look much worse next week. The offense is going to have to score.

Today is a prime example of why stats lie. The numbers will look like Hurts played well. He didn't. He was pretty bad. Made one great throw, everything else was a dump off pretty much and he missed several wide open guys through the game. Why he simply can't see wide open guys right in front of him is beyond me. And if he does see them and for some reason isn't pulling the trigger, that's honestly even worse. If he plays like he did today against the Bengals, the Eagles are going to get smoked unless Barkley runs for like 250.

I've seen replays of that Brown TD and it still looks like a 'F it, Brown is down there somewhere' type of throw

10 hours ago, judunno said:

Time to make that move for Myles. Watson is done and Myles was ripping the fans today for cheering his injury. Browns are in tank mode for sure now. Go get him Howie!

Likely going to be a bidding war. Do we even have the draft picks and cap for him?

3 hours ago, Wentz_Era said:

Morning after thoughts…

Yesterday was a win, a very convincing one at that.  Yet, I can’t still help but feel like I still don’t enjoy watching the Eagles team.  Is it carryover from last year?  Irrational? I’m not quite sure…

The traditional juggernauts are struggling as well this year.  Whether it’s injuries or inconsistent play.  In the grand scheme, how does the Eagles play compare to that?

We should all be happy on the surface with a 4-2 record.  The defense seems to be clicking, new pieces are stepping up.  The problem still seems to be the offense, where the only consistency is, when we run we dominate.  Another week of ‘is it the QB or the coaching’ is upon us.

No points in the 1st quarter is still a problem that needed fixed weeks ago

1 hour ago, RememberTheKoy said:

I saw the same thing on the Barkley play on the replay during the game.  Jalen just playing extremely smart foorball right now.

 

 

Or he could have stepped up in the pocket and throw it. Giving him props for basic QBs mechanics like not fumbling the ball. He's year 5 into the league

Thos blog lives in an alternate reality of delusion. 5 TDs over the past 2 weeks, zero turnovers, back to back QB rating of 126.1 and 119.3 against two of the beat defenses in the league.  Meanwhile QBs around the league are turning it over like crazy from Mabomes to Purdy to Stroud to Love to Rodgers.  All of them.

1 hour ago, judunno said:

Hurts threw the ball 14 times ran the ball well, and sat for much of the 4th quarter. At one point in the game I think he had a 90% completion percentage. The problem is their opening drive scripts and OL going down. Hurts will never be perfect (nor is any qb for that matter). Does he miss passes at times... sure. Most QBs do. I'm just glad he didn't turn the ball over. If he protects the ball, the Eagles always have a shot.

I've been more optimistic than most about Hurts, trying to balance out the evaluation. I've argued since last season that he's not as bad as some say and not as good as other say. He's not garbage but he's not elite. He has regressed and there are a number of issues with him. But I also asked why can't the coaches scheme to his strengths and make it work? There are QBs around the league that are in that 8-15 range that can perform well enough. Our defense loses to them, we know.

But if the bar is set to "at least he didn't turn the ball over" that's a low bar. Yes when it's been a problem, it's definitely a positive to see that. Turnovers are a killer.

Yesterday was weird for me because I was so glad to see heavy reliance on the run game, the defense playing well and beating a team convincingly. But I thought Hurts was very underwhelming, to say the least. The Giants do have a good D line, and there were a couple injuries for us on the O line and Goedert out. But with Barkley, Brown and Smith they still have their top 3 stars. And that should have been a game to FEAST offensively. 

I do think the coaches called a good game and was pleased to see improvement there. Yesterday, Hurts was a problem. I keep waiting/hoping for the offense to improve on the slow starts and missed opportunities, thinking surely they have enough film of this season to analyze and grow.

Hurts is still missing open receivers, still not making good reads, still taking way too long to snap the ball, still looks sluggish, still shows hesitancy, still leaves the pocket too early at times and runs scared, still takes the sack instead of throwing the ball away or rushing forward for at least a couple positive yards. He certainly makes plays sometimes like that great throw to AJ Brown. In past games he's completed some really good passes. He's inconsistent from one drive to the next sometimes and they have to figure out how to get more of the good out of him. 

Now, some games go that way where it's heavy run and the QB doesn't have to do that much. But yesterday there were too many opportunities left on the field. And it's the Browns and Giants recently. Thankfully they have an easier schedule for most of the rest of the season. But against the best teams and in the playoffs, that won't cut it. A simple game manager QB with an efficient performance would have done more with the offense yesterday. The further we get from 2022 it shows that was an outlier. 

4 minutes ago, RememberTheKoy said:

Thos blog lives in an alternate reality of delusion. 5 TDs over the past 2 weeks, zero turnovers, back to back QB rating of 126.1 and 119.3 against two of the beat defenses in the league.  Meanwhile QBs around the league are turning it over like crazy from Mabomes to Purdy to Stroud to Love to Rodgers.  All of them.

According to statmuse Hurts is tied 2nd with the most fumbles

8 minutes ago, Alphagrand said:

It's blatant trolling; the "extremely smart foorball" was a giveaway.

It's not "extremely smart foorball" to stand back there and take 5 sacks when it should have been the first point of emphasis to get the ball out on time and on script against a Giants defense leading the league in sacks.  That 3rd sack he took to Lawrence was absolutely god-awful -- he kept retreating and retreating and running in circles until the pass rush brought him down.  Absolutely no excuse for that from an NFL QB.

He's heading for injury again with those decisions.

A couple of the sacks were just bad blocking where the DL got instant pressure, the first from the backside, cant fault hurts much for that.

The one you mentioned though I agree was awful, was comically bad watching him on that play just cluelessly run around...😒

Im not sure what RTK said seems he went the other end of the hyperbole train.

8 minutes ago, Mike030270 said:

So what changed? Did he just start playing better or is Vic using him differently?

I've seen replays of that Brown TD and it still looks like a 'F it, Brown is down there somewhere' type of throw

Likely going to be a bidding war. Do we even have the draft picks and cap for him?

No points in the 1st quarter is still a problem that needed fixed weeks ago

Or he could have stepped up in the pocket and throw it. Giving him props for basic QBs mechanics like not fumbling the ball. He's year 5 into the league

I noticed that Nolan Smith started the game at Left Edge.  I think that's a big difference.  I think Huff started and was used more in traditional run downs.   I don't think he's effective doing that and it just wears him down so that he's tired for the pass rush opportunities.    This was a major question going into the signing.   Could he handle an increase in usage and maintain his effectiveness... the answer seems to be clearly NO.     He got the same percentage of snaps as previous games, but if we break them down into situations, I think we'd see Smith more in run downs and Huff more in pass downs.

2 hours ago, Iggles_Phan said:

Unless they are running a bubble screen and he just whiffs.  He had multiple whiffs in those situations yesterday.   Ultimately, I see any play design that relies on him to be a reliable blocker to be doomed from the start.

It's infuriating when I see plays get blown up because Calcaterra can't block. And it's not a one time thing. And you're right about it happening multiple times yesterday. I think it comes down to poor play calling. Sure, a play may look great when you scheme it up. But you also have to account for the person who the "X" on the play design represents. Sure, it's designed for your X to block their O, but if your X is simply incapable of doing so, why even bother to call the play?

1 hour ago, DrPhilly said:

We are one simple Barkley catch of the ball to be 5-1 and in good shape.  Yes, the O needs to find a way to improve and that means a mix of better coaching to fit Hurts and also some improvement by Hurts.  Not sure that will happen but just one nice solid step forward would make a world of difference.  At least, he is staying in the pocket now for the most part and certainly better than last year.  That plus two games without a TO is a good start.

We made similar arguments last year with ugly wins where they were inconsistent, maybe a little lucky, and fans could see the trouble coming once they hit "the gauntlet" part of the schedule. The fanbase has PTSD after that collapse. I think the defense is improving and showing heart and work ethic unlike how last years' team seemed to give up. 

So when they make small improvements, it's nice but we want to see more to feel confident. This roster is too talented for some nice regular season wins and highlight reels and then a 1st round playoff loss again. I think a lot of fans just need to see more to feel confident in a playoff run.

29 minutes ago, austinfan said:

That's like saying they hit too many HRs.

Now if you swing for the fences and end up with a low OPS b/c you strike out too much, that's bad.

But if you pick your spots and don't distort your swing (offense), HRs/big plays are always a good thing.

Its more like saying the only way you can score a run is a HR. While you can score that way, its not sustainable and will not be a winning formula when it comes playoff time.

In no way am I saying big plays are bad or that we shouldn't try. My concern is around the fact the offense was completely inept unless it hit on a big play against the giants of all teams.

The Eagles offense is distilled down to hoping Hurts doesn't turn the ball over, hoping to hit 40+ yard plays, get inside the 10 and tush push your way in.

Ben VanSumeren 

Jordan Davis  

 

Some thoughts off an actual blowout win that didn't elevate my heart rate much at all.

Offense

- Let's start with this: The Giants have a pretty good defense. The 28 we scored against them are tied for the most points they have given up in a game all year (week 1 to the Vikings), and we pulled everyone at the beginning of the 4th. They gave up 17 to the Bengals, 20 to the Seahawks, 20 to Dallas and 21 to Washington. They lead the league it sacks as well, and they have the 12th best defense by yards and 13th by scoring (after yesterday). While the Giants' offense is terrible, the defense is an above average NFL unit.

- Hurts: I know there are people who will hate on him no matter what, but there really isn't much to complain about here. For starters, the guy threw only 14 passes. The 3rd down where we missed Smith (locked on Gainwell, then pressured) and then the miss of Saquon for a TD (locked on TE, pressured) -- well, he threw a TD to Brown on 4th down after the Smith miss, and then he ran himself on 4th after the Barkley miss. On the flip side, he made 2 spectacular plays yesterday that come to mind. The TD throw to Brown as he was getting hit was perfection. And his 3rd and 7 scramble/Houdini act on our last TD helped put the game away. Most importantly, for the 2nd straight week, the ball was never put in danger. He needs to process faster and move off his 1st read quicker, but it's a new offense and he's improving. The criticism is getting silly. If he plays like that, we can beat anyone, and he seems to be improving in the offense.

- Barkley is a cheat code. That is all. I am very happy to have been so wrong about the wisdom in that signing. Cincinnati is giving up 136 yards per game on the ground, so I'd just keep running him this coming week.

- Fred Johnson really is going to need help the next few weeks -- Trey Hendrickson, Josh Allen-Hines and Micah Parsons incoming while Mailata is on IR. He's a nice story, but Burns was taking him to school. I'm not sure Becton is ready to bounce to LT (assuming he clears protocol), but they really need to put a TE over there and use RBs to chip. They also need to just keep running it to slow down/wear out the pass rush.

- Kudos to Kellen for putting Van Sumeren in as a FB. Helped pop a few runs.

- We're 3-0 when AJ Brown plays. 

- While I loved the blowout and getting the starters out of the game...please never make me watch a Kenny Pickett pass ever again.

Defense

- OK, the Giants suck. They were averaging 16 points per game coming into yesterday, but it was nice to see us just crush an inferior opponent. Andrew Thomas being out clearly hurt them as badly as missing Mailata hurt us.

- The D-Line feasted, obviously. The one guy I was most encouraged by was Nolan Smith. That's 2 straight games where he is starting to look like a 1st round pick. And loved Vic giving him the start and having him on the field to play the run -- he's much better than Huff as a run defender.

- Speaking of Huff, nice to see him finally showing up with pressures and a sack.

- Nakobe missed his 1st tackle of the game, then turned into a Tasmanian devil. 

- So...our secondary might be really good. Q is playing lights out, and Cooper is a huge upgrade over Maddox. Slay played well yesterday as well, and having Brown back should help. The Giants suck, but Nabers is a stud and we locked him down all day.

- Someone get Q on the JUGS machine, stat.

2 minutes ago, FranklinFldEBUpper said:

It's infuriating when I see plays get blown up because Calcaterra can't block. And it's not a one time thing. And you're right about it happening multiple times yesterday. I think it comes down to poor play calling. Sure, a play may look great when you scheme it up. But you also have to account for the person who the "X" on the play design represents. Sure, it's designed for your X to block their O, but if your X is simply incapable of doing so, why even bother to call the play?

Yup, Calcaterra is really just a big WR, hes atrocious as a blocker.

One would think the team would have a better plan for when Goedert misses his annual 4-6 games ...

11 minutes ago, Connecticut Eagle said:

Ben VanSumeren 

Jordan Davis  

 

When you’re up by multiple possessions, you pull your NT because they’re (or should be) throwing it 

4 minutes ago, wussbasket said:

Its more like saying the only way you can score a run is a HR. While you can score that way, its not sustainable and will not be a winning formula when it comes playoff time.

In no way am I saying big plays are bad or that we shouldn't try. My concern is around the fact the offense was completely inept unless it hit on a big play against the giants of all teams.

The Eagles offense is distilled down to hoping Hurts doesn't turn the ball over, hoping to hit 40+ yard plays, get inside the 10 and tush push your way in.

 

1 hour ago, HazletonEagle said:

It also doesnt make much difference "where they truly are". Its not a static situation. It appears they are headed in the right direction. Obviously theyre not going to hold the Bengals to under 200 yards or anything.... but if they can get sacks, get stops, continue blitzing like they have been.... its clear theyre playing better even if we end up seeing some more points on the board next week. All that matters is that they continue to improve between now and the end of the season. 

There will probably be some people pointing at the scoreboard and saying, see I told you the defense was still trash. Thats gonna be BS as long as we continue seeing the same signs of growth that we have seen the last 2 weeks. 

Actually if you look what the Giants and Browns did to the Bengals full strength offense, it's not out of the question they could hold them to 220 - 250.

OK, I woke up and chose violence. 

Hurts is reminding me of...Donovan McNabb. There are plays that drive you nuts, and then plays that simply amaze you. The difference is, I think Hurts is clearly more dedicated to improving than McNabb ever was, but McNabb was clearly more physically gifted. And to be clear, I am a McNabb fan.

6 games in to a new offense, we are seeing improvement. Hopefully it continues. 

5 minutes ago, Connecticut Eagle said:

Ben VanSumeren 

Jordan Davis  

 

Concerning that your top 15 pick got out snapped by a street FA and a late round pick.

I liked the Davis pick at the time, I really wanted Hamilton but knew howie would never tke a Safety that high but I mean who needs a all pro safety in a passing league when you can have a run stopping NT play 12 snaps...😒

Q falling to us at 22...sometimes it's better to be lucky than good.

 

10 minutes ago, FranklinFldEBUpper said:

It's infuriating when I see plays get blown up because Calcaterra can't block. And it's not a one time thing. And you're right about it happening multiple times yesterday. I think it comes down to poor play calling. Sure, a play may look great when you scheme it up. But you also have to account for the person who the "X" on the play design represents. Sure, it's designed for your X to block their O, but if your X is simply incapable of doing so, why even bother to call the play?

Yup.  Personnel matters.    If a play depends 100% on Calcaterra being a primary blocker, just pull it out of the game plan OR put Stoll in for that play.   Calcaterra is a waste as a blocker.   At best, sometimes he gets in the way.   Most of the time, he misses or falls off the block immediately.

10 minutes ago, NOTW said:

We made similar arguments last year with ugly wins where they were inconsistent, maybe a little lucky, and fans could see the trouble coming once they hit "the gauntlet" part of the schedule. The fanbase has PTSD after that collapse. I think the defense is improving and showing heart and work ethic unlike how last years' team seemed to give up. 

So when they make small improvements, it's nice but we want to see more to feel confident. This roster is too talented for some nice regular season wins and highlight reels and then a 1st round playoff loss again. I think a lot of fans just need to see more to feel confident in a playoff run.

Agreed but I’m afraid the best case scenario is that we improve slowly. As you say, at least the D is headed in the right direction. 

DeJean is seventh in the NFL in punt return average.

9 minutes ago, vikas83 said:

 

- Hurts: I know there are people who will hate on him no matter what, but there really isn't much to complain about here. For starters, the guy threw only 14 passes. The 3rd down where we missed Smith (locked on Gainwell, then pressured) and then the miss of Saquon for a TD (locked on TE, pressured) -- well, he threw a TD to Brown on 4th down after the Smith miss, and then he ran himself on 4th after the Barkley miss. On the flip side, he made 2 spectacular plays yesterday that come to mind. The TD throw to Brown as he was getting hit was perfection. And his 3rd and 7 scramble/Houdini act on our last TD helped put the game away. Most importantly, for the 2nd straight week, the ball was never put in danger. He needs to process faster and move off his 1st read quicker, but it's a new offense and he's improving. The criticism is getting silly. If he plays like that, we can beat anyone, and he seems to be improving in the offense.

 

He's in year 5. It's not silly to ask for the $255M QB to have the fundamentals down (especially when the HC won't shut up about them)