There’ve been a lot of changes since the Eagles lost the wildcard game to the Packers back in January. Eagles fans will be happy that the trio of Max Jean-Gilles, Nick Cole and Reggie Wells are no longer rotating at right guard. There were more significant losses on defense, however, as Brodrick Bunkley, Stewart Bradley and the All-Pro safety Quintin Mikell have now left the team.
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For a team going “all in” there are still a number of questions circling above them. Still, taking things in perspective, Philadelphia was 10-6 a year ago and seems to have got better.
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Five Reasons to be Confident
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1.) Bringing Heat from the Edge
Last season, the Eagles had a rotation of Trent Cole, Juqua Parker, Daryl Tapp and Brandon Graham. The four men combined for a +61.9 pass rush rating. Cole has been one of our most productive pass rushers over the last three years and was especially good last year on third and fourth down. Graham will be on PUP to start the season and, such is the depth of the position, Parker might not even make the team. The main addition to the group was our 10th-ranked defensive end in 2010, Jason Babin. Cole and Babin alone combined for a +58.0 grade and 144 combined pressures. Tapp will likely see more time in new defensive line coach Jim Washburn’s rotation. The group is rounded out by CFL star Philip Hunt and former third round pick Daniel T’eo-Nesheim.
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2.) Strength Up the Middle
Despite trading away Brodrick Bunkley, the Eagles still have a really strong group up front. The addition of Cullen Jenkins gives them the pass rushing presence they’ve lacked from their base defensive tackles for years. Jenkins isn’t just good, he’s the best. He ranked third last year in PRP and is first in our three year rankings. Joining Jenkins is Mike Patterson, having recovered from his AVM scare earlier in the offseason, and Antonio Dixon. The two finished 18th and 14th overall last year grading especially well against the run. Trevor Laws, Anthony Hargrove and Derek Landri will battle for the remaining spots.
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3.) Covering the Corners
When free agency opened, the idea of partnering Nnamdi Asomugha with Darrelle Revis was exciting to say the least. While it didn’t work out that way, Asomugha and Asante Samuel isn’t much of a drop off. The two were targeted a combined 70 times allowing just 32 receptions for 326 yards, two TDs, seven INTs and 12 PDs. They ranked first and second in our receptions allowed per coverage snap rankings. If Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie can revert to his 2009 form when he had the third highest coverage grade (+17.2), there won’t be many receivers running open against the Eagles. That doesn’t even account for Joselio Hanson who, if he is not traded, can certainly contribute in the dime. This group is a far cry from Ellis Hobbs and Dimitri Patterson.
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4.) A Pro-bowler and a Man Who’s Earned his Shot
Jason Peters was good in Buffalo but he’s only become better since his arrival in Philadelphia. He finished as our 12th offensive tackle overall last year and was seventh in our pass blocking efficiency rankings. The trade with the Bills certainly looks to have worked out well for Andy Reid and Co. as Buffalo continue to look for a franchise left tackle. The Eagles also announced recently that Todd Herremans will be moving to right tackle, meaning PFF favorite Evan Mathis finally gets his shot to start. Mathis never got a fair shake in Cincinnati but had a +6.2 grade in just 114 snaps last year and was even better in 2009 (+17.0 in 610 snaps). This duo has the makings of a formidable one.
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5.) Young Playmakers
DeSean Jackson may have inconsistent hands but he is one of the best deeps threats in the league. Jeremy Maclin compliments him well and he should be in the lineup Week 1 having recovered from a mysterious illness. Don’t forget Jason Avant and Steve Smith either, the former has a pair of the best hands in the league while the latter is great at finding room to work underneath. Rounding out the group is running back LeSean McCoy who showed massive improvement in his second year and ended up ranked eighth overall in our running back rankings.
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Five Reasons to be Concerned
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1.) Inexperience at Linebacker
The wide-9 system requires linebackers that can get off blocks in the run game. In his only extended action, starting MLB Casey Matthews really struggled and most draft experts didn’t consider him ready for immediate action coming out. On the strongside, Jamar Chaney will be getting the start but, like Matthews, he works better in space and is more of a finesse player. Weakside linebacker Moise Fokou has the most ability in that department but will be only a two-down player seeing as he’s removed in the nickel defense.
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2.) A Void at Safety
We mentioned the loss of safety Quintin Mikell at the beginning of the piece and his departure will be sorely felt. 2010 seventh-round pick Kurt Coleman seems to have sured up the free safety spot where he was average in limited action last year (-0.3, 339 snaps). Next to him Nate Allen is still struggling to recover from an injury that ended his rookie year. The second round pick was in fine form, even leading our rookie of the year rankings at one point, but to say he hit the rookie wall is to put it mildly. The Eagles brought in Jarrad Page as a possible replacement but, in his only extensive action for Kansas City in 2008, he graded poorly (-9.8). The middle of the Philadelphia defense is certainly a concern.
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3.) Starting Two Rookies on the O-line
When the Eagles drafted Danny Watkins with the 23rd pick of the 2011 NFL draft, everyone expected him to start right away. What they perhaps didn’t expect was for the man drafted with the 26th pick in the sixth round to be starting too. Jason Kelce has been named the starting center while Jamaal Jackson has been relegated to the bench. The two rookies struggled in the preseason game against the Browns, as they were manhandled by Cleveland’s rookie Phil Taylor. Howard Mudd is a legendary offensive line coach, though, so if anyone can make it work, it’s probably him.
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4.) A Difficult Positional Switch
Todd Herremans, long the Eagles’ starting left guard, has to now adjust to playing right tackle. He wasn’t bad in pass protection at left tackle in a couple of opportunities in 2009 but he wasn’t good either. Now tasked with protecting Vick’s blindside, there’s a lot of pressure on Herremans to perform. In those two games, he gave up a sack, a hit and five pressures with a -1.9 pass protection rating. It remains to be seen whether this was the right move considering King Dunlap has looked good in the preseason.
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5.) Two Rookie Kickers
David Akers’ two misses in the wildcard game probably precipitated his exit. Fourth-round pick Alex Henery was drafted to replace him but we won’t know how good he’ll be until he has to kick in a pressure situation. Even punter Sav Rocca, who finally improved his consistency, was allowed to leave in free agency meaning undrafted free agent Chas Henry is now the starter. Whether the two rookies are up to the task is unknown.
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The Eagles really seemed to have improved their roster. They added a number of quality veterans at positions of need. If their young players can come in and contribute immediately then this team could be very dangerous. However, should the risks they’ve taken not come off, it’s very possible the “dream team” could miss the playoffs entirely.
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