I wondered if we might end up signing/drafting a FB/TE tweener but we did not. Then again the best two were drafted in the third round. 

1 minute ago, HazletonEagle said:

They could use a vet in the group. And Barron as well as Bucannon are the exact type of LB the eagles have been trying to bring in. They are guys who have successfully made the transition from safety as undersized LBs before it became popular in the NFL. 

Successfully is being used liberally. They’re bad linebackers. 

1 hour ago, Iggles_Phan said:

   First HE... now you...   So painful... 

My spellcheck is doing crazy things with names. Expect a Hargreaves or Hargrove to slip through on Hargrave. Expect an Alston for Alshon. Riggs or Rugs for Ruggs. Heck I tried to use the postal abbreviation for Virginia and can’t get by V.A.  I love my IPAD but it really needs to let me add to its autocorrect. I blame it for why I am behind on the Blog all the time.  Probably took me four minutes to write this.   Well, that and my tendency to hit the m or , instead of the space bar 

19 minutes ago, HazletonEagle said:

Im not really obsessed with Killins. Im just really intrigued by that speed for returns and maybe just a few passes a game. I think if he doesnt make it here its just because he is too small and may not make it anywhere. Im not ready to bet on him having a successful career here or elsewhere. 

Guys like Hightower and Quez Watkins were guys I discovered and was the first to bring to the EMB's attention. Pretty pumped to have gotten both. Especially Hightower. Though Im not really obsessed with them. They are mid-late round guys who may not hit. 

And I seem to be higher on Goodwin than most. It seems people question whether he is even good. I believe he is awesome.  Just needs to stay on the field. His speed just is not fair. But still not obsessed. I realize his last/only good/healthy season was 2017. Hes extremely unreliable. 

 

I dont really have an obsession with this class. A lot of guys I liked though. I think the one Ill be pulling for the hardest is Warren. I need him to make the team because we have no other back like him. Im not a Holyfield guy. And he is the one who will go do well elsewhere if we dont keep him. The skill he has translates to the NFL. As I have said, there were few RBs I wanted in this class compared to other years but he was one of them. 

Give Killins time to destroy in preseason or whatever he's shows out in.

I was just ribbing you about Mostert and others.

😁

8 minutes ago, HazletonEagle said:

Im not really obsessed with Killins. Im just really intrigued by that speed for returns and maybe just a few passes a game. I think if he doesnt make it here its just because he is too small and may not make it anywhere. Im not ready to bet on him having a successful career here or elsewhere. 

Guys like Hightower and Quez Watkins were guys I discovered and was the first to bring to the EMB's attention. Pretty pumped to have gotten both. Especially Hightower. Though Im not really obsessed with them. They are mid-late round guys who may not hit. 

And I seem to be higher on Goodwin than most. It seems people question whether he is even good. I believe he is awesome.  Just needs to stay on the field. His speed just is not fair. But still not obsessed. I realize his last/only good/healthy season was 2017. Hes extremely unreliable. 

 

I dont really have an obsession with this class. A lot of guys I liked though. I think the one Ill be pulling for the hardest is Warren. I need him to make the team because we have no other back like him. Im not a Holyfield guy. And he is the one who will go do well elsewhere if we dont keep him. The skill he has translates to the NFL. As I have said, there were few RBs I wanted in this class compared to other years but he was one of them. 

Agreed on Goodwin. He's being overlooked. Has the ability. Health is the issue.

1 hour ago, Iggles_Phan said:

The network had him as an OT.  The Commish said OG.  

Eagles VP of Communications, not the Commish, IIRC

8 minutes ago, ManuManu said:

Successfully is being used liberally. They’re bad linebackers. 

yeah.... so are ours. I think we can use a vet. Those guys have all had good NFL seasons and would still be able to teach quite a bit to the young guys trying to make the same transition.

4 minutes ago, PrinceKelby said:

Give Killins time to destroy in preseason or whatever he's shows out in.

I was just running you about Mostert and others.

😁

I get it. Ive crushed it with UDFA backs. Breida was a guy I brought to the EMBs attention pre-draft as well. I should be working for the team. 

1 hour ago, bpac55 said:

Just a thought here since we are in a lull and have plenty of time now to toss ideas around and have conversations.  The Eagles drafted 2 players who easily could be swing tackles and Prince potentially a starter.  It looks like Mailata is on the outside looking in.  The guy is still a massive athletic freak.  They have invested a ton of time developing him at tackle.  Prince and Driscoll in my mind come in with the clear advantage over him despite Mailata being in the system.

With all that being said, would be make any sense to try Mailata at DT or DE?  Does anchoring as a tackle put more pressure on a back or does exploding out of a d-line stance?

Just a wild thought trying to pass the time.  I love his athletic ability and his drive but it seems the numbers and inexperience might catch up to him.  Maybe defense could help him get on the field.  He would still have reads and assignments but much easier to see ball get ball then it is to stop Chase Young.

I think Driscoll is a swing every position guy. Sort of Seumalo 2.0.  In fact, I suspect his primary role is back up LG.  I think Tega is our swing T for the future but I am not sure he can play that role this year.  Herbig isn’t a lock,to make the team, especially if Driscoll can play center for part of a game.  (Next game Seumalo preps,formand moves to C and Driscoll plays LG. Opeta may well be a casualty of the Driscoll pick.  Both have similar size and a T background.  Mailata is in a make or break situation this year.   He needs to show he is a viable backup. Tega’s knee needs to be considered too.  I think any backup OL better be able to play at least two positions. 

7 minutes ago, BigEFly said:

I think Driscoll is a swing every position guy. Sort of Seumalo 2.0.  In fact, I suspect his primary role is back up LG.  I think Tega is our swing T for the future but I am not sure he can play that role this year.  Herbig isn’t a lock,to make the team, especially if Driscoll can play center for part of a game.  (Next game Seumalo preps,formand moves to C and Driscoll plays LG. Opeta may well be a casualty of the Driscoll pick.  Both have similar size and a T background.  Mailata is in a make or break situation this year.   He needs to show he is a viable backup. Tega’s knee needs to be considered too.  I think any backup OL better be able to play at least two positions. 

I'm actually really excited about all of the o-line prospects.  Opeta and Herbig especially.  If Herbig, Driscoll or Seumalo can slide to center once Kelce retires that would be huge.  I think we could be set for a good bit with the line.  

1 hour ago, austinfan said:

Do you remember when McNabb was drafted out of Syracuse, he ran an option system that had him only looking at half the field, then pulling it down.

Hurts was probably told to go through his reads, then at 3 Mississippi, take off and run, because he was the best RB on Oklahoma, and by then the LBs had cleared out and he had lots of room to pick up yardage. So it's very possible this was more a matter of coaching than Hurts - because Alabama ran a more conventional offense when he was the QB.

If I remember, Doug was the starting QB when McNabb was drafted, he might be recycling the Andy playbook here.

McNabb had a stronger arm than Hurts (stronger than almost any QB), but Hurts comes out of college with far better credentials, he's played Championship football at two different programs with two different schemes, and it wasn't like he was benched in Alabama for a meh QB, Tua went #5 even with his injury concerns.

I remember that was a concern when McNabb came out of college.  But Hurts at Alabama, albeit a sophomore Hurts, didn’t go through his progression like Tua.  Still a concern.  Now, Riley runs a variation of Leach’s offense.  Somewhere on the web there is an interview with one of Leach’s Texas Texh QBs. Might have been Kingsbury, who talks about the zone reads in Leach’s offense. Where the QB would look one direction and read a couple receivers then immediately move on to the next zone.  Might be in the old 60 Minutes piece on Leach. 

A couple of underrated players on our roster who I'm curious to see more of in (hopefully) August are WRs Deontay Burnett and Robert Davis. Both made a couple nice plays late in the year.

1 hour ago, bpac55 said:

Just a thought here since we are in a lull and have plenty of time now to toss ideas around and have conversations.  The Eagles drafted 2 players who easily could be swing tackles and Prince potentially a starter.  It looks like Mailata is on the outside looking in.

Prince has played five years of football. He literally never walked on a football field before in his life before his senior year of HS.

What makes you think a player that is giving up 50 pounds and has had one year of HS coaching and four years of college coaching is going to start over a guy who has had two years of professional coaching from perhaps the best person at that job on the planet and who has consistently practiced against Graham, Barnett, Bennett and Long?

It is odd that people keep writing this kid's obituary despite the fact that the team always planned on not playing him for the first two years, and that when he has been on the field, he has outplayed every backup that we have.

1 hour ago, ManuManu said:

 

 

In 2019, we saw Oklahoma coach Lincoln Riley maximize Hurts’ vision, elusiveness, and power to the tune of 0.26 EPA/Carry on designed runs, which ranked 5th among QBs with at least 50 attempts. Although the Sooners had a diverse option game that featured the traditional zone read, power read, bash, GT read, and Riley’s patent-pending counter speed option, Hurts also had his number called on QB Power, QB Counter, QB Draw, and QB Lead. Some of these concepts were married to the Run Pass Option (RPO) game, another area that Hurts thrived in.

16% of Oklahoma’s offensive snaps featured some sort of RPO element in 2019. The Sooners ranked third in the country in RPO success rate (58%), thanks in part to Hurts’ pre-snap identification of numbers and leverage advantages and post-snap decisionmaking.

 

Now what HC took an average QB and turned him into a RPO monster? And Foles couldn't even run.

So you know why Doug was grinning when they picked Hurts.

Thought this was interesting from Albert Breer.  

If he is right the Eagles were also debating S Jeremy Chinn or RB JK Dobbins at #53, before deciding to go with Jalen Hurts.

I was not surprised to hear about Chinn (one of my preferred choices at #53), but I was surprised they may have been strongly considering using #53 on another RB.

 

Quote

• I’ve got a couple of fun notes on the Eagles’ vetting of Oklahoma QB Jalen Hurts, which provided the runway for his selection as the 53rd pick on Friday. One, VP of player personnel Andy Weidl actually got live exposure to Hurts in game action—he was on site for the Sooners’ 52–14 beatdown of West Virginia. Hurts threw for 316 yards and three touchdowns on 16-of-17 passing, and his only incompletion came on a drop by Drake Stoops (yup, Bob’s son); and he rushed for 75 yards and two more touchdowns on 10 carries. Two, pass-game coordinator Press Taylor was on site for Oklahoma’s pro day on March 12, which took place just before the scouting circuit was shut down, and gave Philly another data point to work off. Obviously, both of those guys had positive impressions. And again, I think the main argument here is how high Hurts was picked, given that the Eagles just gave their young franchise quarterback a top-of-the-market deal. Only time will tell us the rest of the story. And if you want something to track coming out of all this: Southern Illinois S/LB Jeremy Chinn (Panthers) and Ohio State RB J.K. Dobbins (Ravens) were two players I’d heard would’ve been under consideration, had Hurts not been the pick at 53. Gun to my head, I say Philly would’ve taken Chinn in that circumstance.

https://www.si.com/nfl/2020/04/27/monday-afternoon-quarterback-jacob-eason-jalen-hurts-draft

 

36 minutes ago, ManuManu said:

I wondered if we might end up signing/drafting a FB/TE tweener but we did not. Then again the best two were drafted in the third round. 

We do have Perkins, not sure he can block at FB though.

Kinda see JJAW as a better version of Perkins, a WR/H-back tweener who can be used in both roles.

The advantage of versatility is you can line up with different packages week to week, depending on the team you're facing and their weak spots on defense.

3 minutes ago, jsb235 said:

Prince has played five years of football. He literally never walked on a football field before in his life before his senior year of HS.

What makes you think a player that is giving up 50 pounds and has had one year of HS coaching and four years of college coaching is going to start over a guy who has had two years of professional coaching from perhaps the best person at that job on the planet and who has consistently practiced against Graham, Barnett, Bennett and Long?

It is odd that people keep writing this kid's obituary despite the fact that the team always planned on not playing him for the first two years, and that when he has been on the field, he has outplayed every backup that we have.

OK, I didn't write his obituary.  It was a question as to where he fits in.  Prince may have have played 5 years of football but 4 of those were in the SEC, getting actual game and starting experience.  My post was nothing negative towards Mailata.  It was 100% an honest question as to his fit.  At some point he either gets it or he doesn't.  I would love to see him develop in to a starter and eventually take over for Lane when he is done or become a swing tackle. 

Mailata has all the physical tools you want.  He now has legit competition though.

 

Ellis is the FB/TE on the roster.

If Mailata is healthy, he starts this year, even over Dillard.

Watching him last spring, he improved by leaps and bounds, he's bulked up (which is scary), he has tremendous length, smooth out his technique and he's a monster in the making.

Peters only needed one year to go from TE to starting OT, now he had more football experience, but not OL experience.

If you're a great athlete like Mailata, you can "fake it" the first couple years and still be better than most.

The real issue is whether the back was a tweak or something serious that could hinder him long-term.

The Dobbins/Chinn note just tells me those were probably the top two players rated on their board at 53 - which makes sense. Both would have been a good pick. Chinn more of a need and Dobbins more of a luxury. But good drafting teams don't bass up on good players. Hopefully, Hurts works out...

Just now, austinfan said:

If Mailata is healthy, he starts this year, even over Dillard.

Watching him last spring, he improved by leaps and bounds, he's bulked up (which is scary), he has tremendous length, smooth out his technique and he's a monster in the making.

Peters only needed one year to go from TE to starting OT, now he had more football experience, but not OL experience.

If you're a great athlete like Mailata, you can "fake it" the first couple years and still be better than most.

The real issue is whether the back was a tweak or something serious that could hinder him long-term.

I'd like to see him block starting DEs before I make that projection.

I found it interesting that there’s some major cap savings starting 2021 if Carson is traded post June 1st. Could mean nothing of course...

 

12 minutes ago, schuy7 said:

A couple of underrated players on our roster who I'm curious to see more of in (hopefully) August are WRs Deontay Burnett and Robert Davis. Both made a couple nice plays late in the year.

Burnett is just too slow.  I am done with Davis.  If he could not learn to crisp his turns and not round his routes by now, he never will.  He is everything that I dislike about a lot of college speed receivers. Watkins has a bit of that in him but we get him young and hopefully able to train it out of him. 

13 minutes ago, BigEFly said:

I remember that was a concern when McNabb came out of college.  But Hurts at Alabama, albeit a sophomore Hurts, didn’t go through his progression like Tua.  Still a concern.  Now, Riley runs a variation of Leach’s offense.  Somewhere on the web there is an interview with one of Leach’s Texas Texh QBs. Might have been Kingsbury, who talks about the zone reads in Leach’s offense. Where the QB would look one direction and read a couple receivers then immediately move on to the next zone.  Might be in the old 60 Minutes piece on Leach. 

A healthy Tua might have been the #1 or #2 pick. That's another level of player.

Which is why Hurts is no threat to Wentz, same way if we signed Dak, he'd be no threat to Wentz. Wentz is that "other level of player."

What we want from Hurts is to grow into a package built around his skill package, don't ask him to sit in the pocket and make four reads, give him those RPO plays that Foles excelled at, pre-snap read, post-snap read, handoff/throw/run. Your backup QB just needs to be able to win a couple games - if Hurts has to play 18-19 games at best we can hope for competence, we shouldn't expect elite play from any QB picked at #53.  That's basically what we got from Foles. Except Hurts has a lot more upside than Foles because of his running skills.

3 minutes ago, schuy7 said:

The Dobbins/Chinn note just tells me those were probably the top two players rated on their board at 53 - which makes sense. Both would have been a good pick. Chinn more of a need and Dobbins more of a luxury. But good drafting teams don't bass up on good players. Hopefully, Hurts works out...

Really like Chinn too. Him and this Taylor kid (my favorite player this draft class) would have put some serious impact, speed, nastiness and crushing hitting ability in our back 7. 

3 minutes ago, austinfan said:

If Mailata is healthy, he starts this year, even over Dillard.

Watching him last spring, he improved by leaps and bounds, he's bulked up (which is scary), he has tremendous length, smooth out his technique and he's a monster in the making.

Peters only needed one year to go from TE to starting OT, now he had more football experience, but not OL experience.

If you're a great athlete like Mailata, you can "fake it" the first couple years and still be better than most.

The real issue is whether the back was a tweak or something serious that could hinder him long-term.

I think this is the question about him.  Hopefully the back isn't either a serious or chronic injury.  It's kind of a bummer to watch him make strides like he has and then to end up on IR at the end of the last 2 seasons.  The kid needs as many reps as he can get and the more playing experience, even against 2nd/3rd team players (though ideally getting more reps vs 1st teamers will really tell the tale of where he is), the better and quicker he can reach his full potential.  I really hope his back is fine and he's healthy and ready to go and he'll get a fair chance to prove himself.