1 hour ago, RUEagle said:

Yea but covey touched the ball like twice in 2 games while hurts touches it 70 times a game.  
 

see how silly you seem now?

The point I was making is it seems as though many on this board really come down hard on 1 fumble, look at how many wanted Watkins burned at the stake form attempting to get up and lost a fumble after getting hit from behind, and how the world was coming to an end after drafting Sanders because he supposedly had fumbling issues.

Bottom line, fumbles happen, it's a part of the game, no matter how seldom, they happen, just ask The Bus (Bettis). 

Now if one has fumblitis, that's an entirely different story but just 1 fumble, give the guy a break.

3 hours ago, EagleVA said:

I don't think a fair catch hurts your return average, moreover, one must use good judgement when attempting a return, if a defender is bearing down on you you'd be wise to fair catch it, bang bang plays is when fumbles usually happen on punt returns.

You're misunderstanding Covey. He says some people are worried about their return average so they fair catch a punt so it won't affect that average. His feeling is that if there is two yards that can be gained, gain the two yards. 

He's not against fair catching. He's against needless fair catching. 

1 hour ago, brkmsn said:

You're misunderstanding Covey. He says some people are worried about their return average so they fair catch a punt so it won't affect that average. His feeling is that if there is two yards that can be gained, gain the two yards. 

He's not against fair catching. He's against needless fair catching. 

You're misunderstanding me.

Unless you know that not fair catching will cause the ball to take a bounce in your favor, fair catch it if possible. Since it's almost impossible to know how the ball will bounce there's no such thing as needless fair catching in my book.

On 9/21/2023 at 2:49 PM, pgcd3 said:

Didn't he have a big return in the super bowl?  Statistically he's been a very good returner for a while after a slow first 6 games last year.  But yes if he fumbles again then it's a problem

Yeah, he turned out pretty good last year after that horrible start.  He has fumbled a couple of times now though and been lucky we've retained possession.  Not time to call it a problem yet but it is worth monitoring.

1 hour ago, EagleVA said:

You're misunderstanding me.

Unless you know that not fair catching will cause the ball to take a bounce in your favor, fair catch it if possible. Since it's almost impossible to know how the ball will bounce there's no such thing as needless fair catching in my book.

So ... should RBs give themselves up (slide) before contact on every run to avoid the possibility of fumbling? All Covey is saying is that if the ball can be fielded safely, the returmer can fall forward for a couple yards. Obviously if the coverage arrives or is likely to arrive before the ball, you fair catch it. You should not FC a punt simply because you don't want a short return affecting your average. 

Covey's okay, but it would be nice to have someone that was at least semi feared for breaking a big return.  Although to be fair, our punt coverage almost never gives him much to work with. 

On 9/23/2023 at 3:15 PM, brkmsn said:

All Covey is saying is that if the ball can be fielded safely, the returmer can fall forward for a couple yards. 

All I'm saying is if falling forward for a couple of yards is what the returner figured is the best he can do then he should have fair caught the ball, it's all about judgement.

He fumbled last week and I can’t tell you how many times we’ve seen him get popped and worry that the ball was going to come out.

On 9/21/2023 at 7:47 AM, Cochis_Calhoun said:

Our whole special teams approach is lights off missionary position to functional completion once a week.

Covey is the base model beige Toyota Corolla with fabric upholstery and no options of punt returners, he'll return punts the average distance for the league with very little variation reliably and be dull as ditchwater as he does it.  He has no tricks, the blocking never seems designed to do much more than get him to the 30 if he's lucky.  I saw a punt return on Redzone over the weekend and the returner caaught it at the 15, immediately headed for the outside and got beyond the 35 before the coverage team even got anywhere near him, and I just thought it never looks like the Eagles are even trying to do this, our returns always seem to be straight ahead at the coverage with the blockers in a straight line across the field.

Are people still not paying attention to how this young man has improved every week? He was already in the top 10 in return average last year --- even after a very slow start. 

Some people may prefer the speed demon that runs sideways to begin every return. I do not. What made Brian Mitchell such a great return specialist was that he went forward and didn't leave yardage on the field 2 out of every 3 returns. When a guy has a a little space to begin a return, it's easier to make the first player miss if you are moving forward as opposed to sideways. Covey is a little bigger than last season (5 lbs) and a lot stronger. He's not only making some people miss, he's not going down on the first contact. He's one of the better punt returners in the NFL. 

Covey was a man possessed tonight 

 

By far Covey’s best game as an Eagle. He aggressively attacked the Bucs ST units. Maybe they should give him a chance to KR. 

9 minutes ago, EazyEaglez said:

By far Covey’s best game as an Eagle. He aggressively attacked the Bucs ST units. Maybe they should give him a chance to KR. 

He's been a top returner since a slow start last year.  He's probably top 10 in average return for the last 12+ regular season games now

1 minute ago, pgcd3 said:

He's been a top returner since a slow start last year.  He's probably top 10 in average return for the last 12+ regular season games now

Still never played this good. Before he made returns, but today he was an actual weapon. 

38 minutes ago, EazyEaglez said:

Still never played this good. Before he made returns, but today he was an actual weapon. 

I understand why you doubt players that show regression, like Wentz, and Watkins. But Covey has shown steady improvement since week 7 of last season. He's been getting better. He's been putting in the work. It is nice to finally see our return game offer something after several years of blah. 

10 minutes ago, brkmsn said:

I understand why you doubt player that show regression, like Wentz, and Watkins. But Covey has shown steady improvement since week 7 of last season. He's been getting better. He's been putting in the work. It is nice to finally see our return game offer something after several years of blah. 

I doubted him as a JAG but damn. In my defense how many little white guys do well as a PR?

20 minutes ago, brkmsn said:

I understand why you doubt player that show regression, like Wentz, and Watkins. But Covey has shown steady improvement since week 7 of last season. He's been getting better. He's been putting in the work. It is nice to finally see our return game offer something after several years of blah. 

I didn’t say I doubted Covey, but the Eagles are the ones who were stringing him along. They finally put him on the permanent roster and he showed out. Prior to that, they were giving Covey the Siposs treatment. On a side note he actually did something to earn my praise here and that’s why I’m giving it to him. Praising a player who has done nothing to deserve it is foolish to me. 

5 hours ago, brkmsn said:

Are people still not paying attention to how this young man has improved every week? He was already in the top 10 in return average last year --- even after a very slow start. 

Some people may prefer the speed demon that runs sideways to begin every return. I do not. What made Brian Mitchell such a great return specialist was that he went forward and didn't leave yardage on the field 2 out of every 3 returns. When a guy has a a little space to begin a return, it's easier to make the first player miss if you are moving forward as opposed to sideways. Covey is a little bigger than last season (5 lbs) and a lot stronger. He's not only making some people miss, he's not going down on the first contact. He's one of the better punt returners in the NFL. 

I'll grant you he had a good game last night, but his two big returns were because the punter out drove his coverage with line drives. You want to anoint him as the next Brian Mitchell, I think he just had a good game, it was a step above his usual but I'm not tenting my shorts about it, he'll be back to business as usual next week.

2 hours ago, Cochis_Calhoun said:

I'll grant you he had a good game last night, but his two big returns were because the punter out drove his coverage with line drives. You want to anoint him as the next Brian Mitchell, I think he just had a good game, it was a step above his usual but I'm not tenting my shorts about it, he'll be back to business as usual next week.

I've stated several time that I've seen steady improvement from Covey since midway through last season. For me, this isn't after just one game. All the people saying he'll never break one --- I just don't know what they're watching. He did this routinely in college. It's why he was signed as a rookie. He's getting better and gaining confidence each week. Last year, I don't think Covey breaks the tackles he's breaking this year. The work he's put in to get stronger is making him a better player this season. He was a top 10 PR last season. 

Also, every big return has something to do with the coverage team. Nothing new there. 

39 minutes ago, brkmsn said:

I've stated several time that I've seen steady improvement from Covey since midway through last season. For me, this isn't after just one game. All the people saying he'll never break one --- I just don't know what they're watching. He did this routinely in college. It's why he was signed as a rookie. He's getting better and gaining confidence each week. Last year, I don't think Covey breaks the tackles he's breaking this year. The work he's put in to get stronger is making him a better player this season. He was a top 10 PR last season. 

Also, every big return has something to do with the coverage team. Nothing new there. 

Oh come off it bud. Covey has hardly looked like he did in this game compared to any other in his NFL career and that includes this season. Two returns against the Pats for 30 yards with along of 25. That means the other return he got five friggin yards. One return against the Vikings for two yards and a fumble. You’re literally just making stuff up at this point. My goodness people finally give props to one of your mediocre love bunnies and you’re still not happy about it. 🙄

On 9/25/2023 at 10:56 PM, brkmsn said:

Are people still not paying attention to how this young man has improved every week? He was already in the top 10 in return average last year --- even after a very slow start. 

Some people may prefer the speed demon that runs sideways to begin every return. I do not. What made Brian Mitchell such a great return specialist was that he went forward and didn't leave yardage on the field 2 out of every 3 returns. When a guy has a a little space to begin a return, it's easier to make the first player miss if you are moving forward as opposed to sideways. Covey is a little bigger than last season (5 lbs) and a lot stronger. He's not only making some people miss, he's not going down on the first contact. He's one of the better punt returners in the NFL. 

Yeah,  this year so far he's got the 2nd most punt return yardage and 2nd highest yards per punt return.

4 hours ago, Random Reglar said:

Yeah,  this year so far he's got the 2nd most punt return yardage and 2nd highest yards per punt return.

He's no Reno Mahe 

On 9/26/2023 at 2:45 AM, Cochis_Calhoun said:

I'll grant you he had a good game last night, but his two big returns were because the punter out drove his coverage with line drives. You want to anoint him as the next Brian Mitchell, I think he just had a good game, it was a step above his usual but I'm not tenting my shorts about it, he'll be back to business as usual next week.

We also have to take into account the overall effort by the league to deemphasize the return game. Yes, it's mostly on kickoffs at this point but both kick returns and punt returns will soon be relegated to the past.

On 9/25/2023 at 10:58 PM, Bwestbrook36 said:

Covey was a man possessed tonight 

Yeah their punter made some bad kicks, but Covey took complete advantage of them and even on some good punts Covey broke tackles and made people miss. By far his best game as an Eagle. Hopefully he keeps it up.