SBNation.com User Blog: AndersJ

"Packaged" plays and rethinking the concept of modern play calling - Grantland

AndersJ — Sat, 11 May 2013 23:08:45 -0000

"Packaged" plays and rethinking the concept of modern play calling - Grantland

Is this the future for the Eagles offense?

Ifeanyi Momah - Workout

AndersJ — Sat, 04 May 2013 04:46:07 -0000

Ifeanyi Momah - Workout (via Ony Momah)

Dont know if people have seen this, but check his numbers, they are off the chart.

Casey Matthews - MockDraftable.com

AndersJ — Sat, 04 May 2013 04:31:01 -0000

Casey Matthews - MockDraftable.com

How did this guy ever play for Chip Kelly? Those numbers are like the anti Kelly.

NFL Draft Preparation - The performance enhancement of sleep

AndersJ — Sat, 04 May 2013 04:23:14 -0000

NFL Draft Preparation - The performance enhancement of sleep

Seems Kelly is right when it comes to athletes needing plenty of sleep

Chiefs 2013 Draft: Getting to know Travis Kelce in under 11 minutes - Arrowhead Pride

AndersJ — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 22:16:37 -0000

Chiefs 2013 Draft: Getting to know Travis Kelce in under 11 minutes - Arrowhead Pride

Chiefs fans sure are drinking the kool-aid

This is so funny

AndersJ — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 18:58:01 -0000

NFL Draft Special (PART1) (via UNFMorning)

Chip Kelly Scores Crucial Early Win

AndersJ — Sat, 20 Apr 2013 23:17:38 -0000

Chip Kelly Scores Crucial Early Win

This is very good news for imo. Its great that two veterans like Herremans and Cole are buying in those making it easier for the Coach to get the young guys attention.

Chip Kelly bringing breakneck approach to Philadelphia Eagles - NFL.com

AndersJ — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 22:25:06 -0000

Chip Kelly bringing breakneck approach to Philadelphia Eagles - NFL.com

Great story about Chip Kelly

NFL Draft: What does "BPA" really mean?

AndersJ — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 20:54:54 -0000

With a little under a month to the draft, the most used phrase is that teams need to draft BPA or Best Player Available.

While that is easy to claim as a draftnick, most people who use it, does not really understand the true meaning of BPA and how you stack a draft board. I will try to explain what BPA and stacking the draft board is really all about using the upcoming draft and two prior eagles draft picks as examples.

Stacking the draft board

Before we can begin to talk about why BPA is important we first need to look at how a team stack their draft boards.

I will use NFL.com's grades to illustrate the whole thing:

PLAYER	POS	HT	WT	COLLEGE	GRADE
Warmack, Chance	OG	6'2"	317	Alabama	95.9
Joeckel, Luke	OT	6'6"	306	Texas A&M	94.3
Jordan, Dion	DE	6'6"	248	Oregon	93.5
Floyd, Sharrif	DT	6'3"	297	Florida	93.5
Fisher, Eric	OT	6'7"	306	Central Michigan	93.3
Milliner, Dee	CB	6'0"	201	Alabama	93.2

This is ranked after grade. As we can see Warmack is the highest graded player, so if we took BPA literally Chiefs should select Warmack, but we all know that nobody is projecting Warmack to go in the top 5 despite his very high grade.

This is here potential value comes in to the picture. We all know that QB, OT, CB and DE/OLB are all more valuable to a team's success then a guard, most people will also argue that DT and WR are more important and by looking at where elite RB is drafted and their very high salary NFL teams also value them higher than interior linemen.

How you value OT vs DE vs CB of course depends on scheme, but if we adjust for potential value one way it could look is like the following:

PLAYER	POS	HT	WT	COLLEGE	GRADE
Joeckel, Luke	OT	6'6"	306	Texas A&M	94.3
Jordan, Dion	DE	6'6"	248	Oregon	93.5
Fisher, Eric	OT	6'7"	306	Central Michigan	93.3
Milliner, Dee	CB	6'0"	201	Alabama	93.2
Floyd, Sharrif	DT	6'3"	297	Florida	93.5
Warmack, Chance	OG	6'2"	317	Alabama	95.9

Now Warmack is only the 6th best player on the board. While Joeckel is the best rated player.

The last thing team do is make an adjustment for need, but it is only very small and its often here teams get in trouble in the draft. If we use the Eagles as an example, I dont think the above board would change anything based on needs, maybe you could put Eric Fisher above Dion Jordan and maybe also Dee Millner above Jordan.

You of course has to be careful with how much you bump up a player based on positional value or need because as I said above then you will get in trouble

The only reason not to take the best player available is if you are in the extreme rare situation that you eg. got two very good OTs and a good backup and then you have to be extreme secure in your backup.

So why is BPA important?

Lets take Vinny Curry as an example, the Eagles had an early 2nd round grade on him, but because he "dropped" to the late 2nd round the Eagles took him and this was despite us supposedly having at least 3 other very good DE’s in front of him (Babin, Cole and Graham and maybe to some extend Tapp), but as we saw Babin got cut, Tapp was a FA and Cole had a down year so suddenly Curry was up to the primary back up with a chance to unseat Cole if 2012 was not a mirage for him.

That is the reason you draft BPA, because while a position can look like a position of strength, you never know if some one will get an injury, turn old etc.

This is also the exact opposite of Jarrett, who was rated as low as a 5th rounder by some and we took him with a high 2nd rounder because we had a very big need at safety, so instead of following the board we jumped on a player who should have been rated much lower (or the Eagles scouts should be fired)

As a team who draft 4th overall, the chance of making a huge mistake early in is minimized unless you pull a Raiders and select a guy like DHB before the 4 higher rated WRs, but when it is time for the Eagles to select in the 2nd and 3rd round (BPA after the 3rd round is a crap shoot) or if we trade back, it becomes very important that the team has stacked their board the right way and when the times comes they follow it instead of reaching for a pick like Jarrett.

With a little under a month to the draft, the most used phrase is that teams need to draft BPA or Best Player Available.

Stacking the draft board

Before we can begin to talk about why BPA is important we first need to look at how a team stack their draft boards.

I will use NFL.com's grades to illustrate the whole thing:

PLAYER	POS	HT	WT	COLLEGE	GRADE
Warmack, Chance	OG	6'2"	317	Alabama	95.9
Joeckel, Luke	OT	6'6"	306	Texas A&M	94.3
Jordan, Dion	DE	6'6"	248	Oregon	93.5
Floyd, Sharrif	DT	6'3"	297	Florida	93.5
Fisher, Eric	OT	6'7"	306	Central Michigan	93.3
Milliner, Dee	CB	6'0"	201	Alabama	93.2

How you value OT vs DE vs CB of course depends on scheme, but if we adjust for potential value one way it could look is like the following:

PLAYER	POS	HT	WT	COLLEGE	GRADE
Joeckel, Luke	OT	6'6"	306	Texas A&M	94.3
Jordan, Dion	DE	6'6"	248	Oregon	93.5
Fisher, Eric	OT	6'7"	306	Central Michigan	93.3
Milliner, Dee	CB	6'0"	201	Alabama	93.2
Floyd, Sharrif	DT	6'3"	297	Florida	93.5
Warmack, Chance	OG	6'2"	317	Alabama	95.9

Now Warmack is only the 6th best player on the board. While Joeckel is the best rated player.

You of course has to be careful with how much you bump up a player based on positional value or need because as I said above then you will get in trouble

So why is BPA important?

That is the reason you draft BPA, because while a position can look like a position of strength, you never know if some one will get an injury, turn old etc.

Inside zone: the inside story | Alabama's offensive line has turned the scheme into an art form | al.com

AndersJ — Fri, 29 Mar 2013 02:35:43 -0000

Inside zone: the inside story | Alabama's offensive line has turned the scheme into an art form | al.com

Good read on what we can expect from our new DL coach. Also Bama ran the exact same inside zone read plays as Oregon

Breaking down some of Jarvis Jones' sacks in 2012

AndersJ — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 09:06:54 -0000

Editor's Note: It seems I haven't made myself totally clear. I do not think Jones is a terrible college prospect, but this was done as a reason as to why I do not think Jones deserves to be picked 4th overall by the Eagles. I see him as mid-2nd round pick, after having watched all of his 2012 game tape that is available on draftbreakdown.com, even though I only included 4 games.

I'm going to break down the games backwards.

First is the Nebraska game:

First sack

As you can see, this is a pure hustle sack. Jones is asked to drop back in coverage, the QB is flushed and instead of tossing the ball away he decided to pull a Favre.

As the official scoreboard said Jones had two sacks, I had to go back and look through the game again and I suppose the following play is where he got the sack.

The missing sack

As you can see Jones did nothing of impact here and I cant see why he got credited with a sack.

A quick note: The Nebraska offensive line was terrible throughout the whole game, yet they still scored 31 points against a stacked Georgia defense.

Next is the Alabama game

First sack

Good burst off the side to beat Fluker (side note: he has looked terrible so far). Jones forces the turnover after the QB decides to pump fake.

Second sack

Jones is getting pass blocked by a tight end, but because of push of the middle, the QB decides to run right into the arms of Jones.

The Auburn game

First sack

He gets credited with a sack, but its really a option play gone bad and Jones got a free rush towards the quarterback because the pulling guard is way too slow.

Second sack

Jones is in some kinda of zone coverage, the quarterback gets flushed by a great push up the middle and from the right side. Jones just cleans up, but did nothing else to deserve credit for the sack.

The Florida game

First sack

Jones gets a good jump of the ball but is nowhere near a sack. But because of the rusher from the other side almost got the quarterback, Jones gets to clean up.

Second sack

Nice executed stunt where the center recognized the stunt too late.

Third sack

Another hustle sack; does not beat the LT right out of the bat, but does get by him the second time and is right there to clean it up after quarterback is flushed to his side by the other pass rusher.

Conclusion

After having watched four full cut-ups of Jarvis Jones, I can safely say that Jones is a good but not great pass rusher. Most of his sacks are what I would call "hustle sacks," where the QB is flushed by a teammate and Jones is just in the right position to clean up. The one play where Jones did the work by himself, was the first sack against Alabama where he beat Fluker with a nice speed rush and the nice executed stunt. The rest was clean up sacks.

Also if Jones does not beat his man with his first step, he has no alternative pass rush moves and he will most of the times just stand there and stay blocked.

I'm going to break down the games backwards.

First is the Nebraska game:

First sack

As you can see, this is a pure hustle sack. Jones is asked to drop back in coverage, the QB is flushed and instead of tossing the ball away he decided to pull a Favre.

As the official scoreboard said Jones had two sacks, I had to go back and look through the game again and I suppose the following play is where he got the sack.

The missing sack

As you can see Jones did nothing of impact here and I cant see why he got credited with a sack.

A quick note: The Nebraska offensive line was terrible throughout the whole game, yet they still scored 31 points against a stacked Georgia defense.

Next is the Alabama game

First sack

Good burst off the side to beat Fluker (side note: he has looked terrible so far). Jones forces the turnover after the QB decides to pump fake.

Second sack

Jones is getting pass blocked by a tight end, but because of push of the middle, the QB decides to run right into the arms of Jones.

The Auburn game

First sack

He gets credited with a sack, but its really a option play gone bad and Jones got a free rush towards the quarterback because the pulling guard is way too slow.

Second sack

Jones is in some kinda of zone coverage, the quarterback gets flushed by a great push up the middle and from the right side. Jones just cleans up, but did nothing else to deserve credit for the sack.

The Florida game

First sack

Jones gets a good jump of the ball but is nowhere near a sack. But because of the rusher from the other side almost got the quarterback, Jones gets to clean up.

Second sack

Nice executed stunt where the center recognized the stunt too late.

Third sack

Conclusion

Also if Jones does not beat his man with his first step, he has no alternative pass rush moves and he will most of the times just stand there and stay blocked.

Eagles Rewind | In-Depth Analysis of The Eagles Latest Disappointment

AndersJ — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 15:04:11 -0000

Eagles Rewind | In-Depth Analysis of The Eagles Latest Disappointment

Great job showing once again that the draft is more luck than skills

An Updated Look at the CBs | The Scouts Notebook

AndersJ — Wed, 20 Feb 2013 21:15:34 -0000

An Updated Look at the CBs | The Scouts Notebook

Interesting look at some of the top CBs in the draft

Persistence of sacks

AndersJ — Wed, 20 Feb 2013 18:04:39 -0000

Persistence of sacks

Prove It Players | ProFootballFocus.com

AndersJ — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 18:49:27 -0000

Prove It Players | ProFootballFocus.com

I really think Schwartz would be a good addition

To trade or not to trade Maclin

AndersJ — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 22:14:27 -0000

Intro

When the Eagles evaluate there roster and what player they want to keep and what players fit there long term plans, I really think they really should consider trade offers from around the league.

While the overall WR play around the NFL is maybe at its best right now, there are also some teams with just awful WR play or teams who already have a star WR but need a good WR to complement him.

There are several reason why I want to trade Maclin:

1st: He is going to be a FA after this season and I think he will get paid really well in FA and with Jackson and McCoy already getting good money, I dont think its wise to invest so much into skill potential players. I know some people will laugh at this point because some people do not think very highly about, but Maclin has actually been our most productive WR since we drafted him.

2nd: His blocking is for lack of better word, missing and Chip Kelly want his WR's to be good blockers and Maclin is the opposite of that. While we did see some improvements down the line. Fact is Maclin is a finesse player and that is fine, problem is we now got a coach who wants some toughness out of his WRs

3rd: I think Cooper, Avant and a draft pick can produce the same numbers as Maclin and I also think the majority of the offensive touches will go to Jackson, McCoy and Brown and there is only so many touches to go around. Lets say we will throw it around 25-30 times per game, that is 400-480 attempts, with a comp% of 65% that is 260-312 catches. Lets say Jackson gets 70 catches (would be a career high), also think McCoy would get around 60-70 catches couple that with around 100+ catches for the TE's, Bryce Brown and the slot WR and dont have any more catches to go around.

Looking around the NFL for potential trade targets there is some very obvious and less obvious.

The first potential trade team is the Rams and the reason is pretty obvious here. They got no real WR and there best 2 WR's the last couple of seasons have been Brandon Gibson (original 6th round pick by the Eagles) and Danny Amendola (picked up from our PS). Maclin would be an instant boost and should very quickly be Sam Bradfords favorite target. I could easily see Maclin getting around 80 receptions for around 1200 yards and 8 tds.

The Rams are so desperate for WRs that they were the only team to put a claim on Titus Young when the Lions cutted him. By trading for Maclin they can let the raw but very talented Brian Quick develop with out hurring him to much.

The 2nd team who might be interested in trading for Maclin is the Texans (got the idea from another fanpost). The Texans are a borderline Super Bowl team and outside of Andre Johnson (oh god I wish he was an Eagle), they got nothing. Maclin would give them a very good possesion WR, there also can stretch the field, this would open up things for Andre Johnson, but also help both Schuab and Foster because teams would have to respect Maclins deep speed and therefor have to play safeties alittle deeper and with 2 good WR's on the team they cant just double Johnson and loaded the box to stop Foster.

Other teams like Seattle, Colts, Vikings, Panthers, Broncos or Cincinatti are all teams who look to contend next year and either have nothing or could use a complementary WR to help them.

In terms of compentation, I wont be given him a way for free, but I would be very open to a something along the lines of a 2nd+a conditional draft pick based on if he signs with them again.

What are your thoughts? Should we trade him? If yes, who do you think would trade for him and how much do you think we can get back? If no, why?

And please no responses like "Maclyn suckzor, he is teh worst wr evah!!!111!!!" (I now I know atleast 1 person will do it for fun)

Intro

When the Eagles evaluate there roster and what player they want to keep and what players fit there long term plans, I really think they really should consider trade offers from around the league.

While the overall WR play around the NFL is maybe at its best right now, there are also some teams with just awful WR play or teams who already have a star WR but need a good WR to complement him.

There are several reason why I want to trade Maclin:

Looking around the NFL for potential trade targets there is some very obvious and less obvious.

Other teams like Seattle, Colts, Vikings, Panthers, Broncos or Cincinatti are all teams who look to contend next year and either have nothing or could use a complementary WR to help them.

In terms of compentation, I wont be given him a way for free, but I would be very open to a something along the lines of a 2nd+a conditional draft pick based on if he signs with them again.

What are your thoughts? Should we trade him? If yes, who do you think would trade for him and how much do you think we can get back? If no, why?

And please no responses like "Maclyn suckzor, he is teh worst wr evah!!!111!!!" (I now I know atleast 1 person will do it for fun)

My mock off season!

AndersJ — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 00:49:24 -0000

First my FA wish list including cuts:

Cuts: Vick, NA and Patterson

I dont think anybody is surprised by these cuts. Vick and NA are to old and to expensive and I dont think Patterson is good fit at all in the new defensive scheme.

After these cuts we should have around 43,6 mill in cap space.

I would try and keep DRC at a cheap deal, but if he wont agree to that, we should franchise him.

Franchise DRC – The franchise tag for CBs are10.6 mill – That should leave 33 mill to sign players in FA and rookies.

FA targets:

Down below is the players I think we realistically can sign (that means no Byrd because he is 110% going to be franchised).

NT – Terrance Knighton

Knighton is a really good NT and we dont really have one on the roster right now (unless you wanna count on Dixon), I think he can be had for around 3 mill per year – around 30 left

DE – Desmond Bryant

According to PFF he is the highest grade FA interior lineman and he would be great opposite Cox. I think around 6 mill a year – 24 left

Secondary – Louis Delmas and Derek Cox

Both should be had for around 4-4.5 mill per year and would be instant starters for us next season – 15 left

Pick up a cheap backup QB.

My mock draft would be:

Trade the 4th over all pick and Jeremy Maclin to the Rams for there 16th, 45th, 1st in 2014 and a conditional pick based on playing time/production.

There are several reason why I want to trade Maclin:

2nd: His blocking is for lack of better word, missing and Chip Kelly want his WR's to be good blockers and Maclin is the opposite of that

Also trade back from the 35th and pick up another 4th round

I have used CBS prospect rankings http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/prospectrankings/2013/all for the later round players.

1st: QB Ryan Nassib

After watching his tape over at draftbreakdown.com (great site btw) and reading about him, I have come to think of him as a perfect QB for our new offense. He is smart, mobile enough and got a great arm, his only minus is his footwork, but that can be fixed.

2nd: CB Jordan Pyoer

Got good size at 6.0 182 pounds and is a complete CB. He is a willing tackler and also have a knack for interceptions. He reminds me alot of Sheldon Brown.

2nd: S Jonathan Cyprien

A complete safety with good size at 6.0 and 209 pounds. He is maybe the best tackling safety in the whole draft and he can also cover mid field. I know Im not the first to say this but compares very well to Brian Dawkins in that he is good at everything without been elite at one thing, but its what I want out of my safety.

3rd: OLB/DE Michael Buchanan

Was considered one of the top pass rusher before the 2012 season but broke his jaw and therefor couldnt eat properly. If you watch his 2012 tape he is pedestrian, but if you watch his 2011 tape, you see a difference maker.

4th: WR Chris Harper

Big physical WR there actually uses his size to box out defenders.

4th: OT Terron Armstead

Very athletic OT, needs to get stronger in the run game and against the bull rush, but he is very good against speed guys.

5th: DT Kwame Geathers

Space eat, should be instant start at NT against the run.

6th: ILB Jonathan Stewart

A big ILB, to backup to Ryans.

7th: TE Zach Sudfeld

A very big TE. I honestly dont know anything about him, but his size intrigues me

7th: S Cooper Taylor

A very big safety at 6-4 229, he is more of a hybrid LB/S, have the potential to develop into an Adrian Wilson type of safety

First my FA wish list including cuts:

Cuts: Vick, NA and Patterson

I dont think anybody is surprised by these cuts. Vick and NA are to old and to expensive and I dont think Patterson is good fit at all in the new defensive scheme.

After these cuts we should have around 43,6 mill in cap space.

I would try and keep DRC at a cheap deal, but if he wont agree to that, we should franchise him.

Franchise DRC – The franchise tag for CBs are10.6 mill – That should leave 33 mill to sign players in FA and rookies.

FA targets:

Down below is the players I think we realistically can sign (that means no Byrd because he is 110% going to be franchised).

NT – Terrance Knighton

Knighton is a really good NT and we dont really have one on the roster right now (unless you wanna count on Dixon), I think he can be had for around 3 mill per year – around 30 left

DE – Desmond Bryant

According to PFF he is the highest grade FA interior lineman and he would be great opposite Cox. I think around 6 mill a year – 24 left

Secondary – Louis Delmas and Derek Cox

Both should be had for around 4-4.5 mill per year and would be instant starters for us next season – 15 left

Pick up a cheap backup QB.

My mock draft would be:

Trade the 4th over all pick and Jeremy Maclin to the Rams for there 16th, 45th, 1st in 2014 and a conditional pick based on playing time/production.

There are several reason why I want to trade Maclin:

2nd: His blocking is for lack of better word, missing and Chip Kelly want his WR's to be good blockers and Maclin is the opposite of that

Also trade back from the 35th and pick up another 4th round

I have used CBS prospect rankings http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/prospectrankings/2013/all for the later round players.

1st: QB Ryan Nassib

2nd: CB Jordan Pyoer

Got good size at 6.0 182 pounds and is a complete CB. He is a willing tackler and also have a knack for interceptions. He reminds me alot of Sheldon Brown.

2nd: S Jonathan Cyprien

3rd: OLB/DE Michael Buchanan

4th: WR Chris Harper

Big physical WR there actually uses his size to box out defenders.

4th: OT Terron Armstead

Very athletic OT, needs to get stronger in the run game and against the bull rush, but he is very good against speed guys.

5th: DT Kwame Geathers

Space eat, should be instant start at NT against the run.

6th: ILB Jonathan Stewart

A big ILB, to backup to Ryans.

7th: TE Zach Sudfeld

A very big TE. I honestly dont know anything about him, but his size intrigues me

7th: S Cooper Taylor

A very big safety at 6-4 229, he is more of a hybrid LB/S, have the potential to develop into an Adrian Wilson type of safety

USC 4-3 Under Defense – Pete Carroll | Trojan Football Analysis

AndersJ — Thu, 07 Feb 2013 18:02:29 -0000

USC 4-3 Under Defense – Pete Carroll | Trojan Football Analysis

A must read regarding our new DC (he coaches the same scheme)

Flyers compliance buyout options

AndersJ — Mon, 14 Jan 2013 15:50:34 -0000

From Capgeek.com FAQ post about the new CBA is following tidbit:

BUYOUTS

During the ordinary course buyout periods in June 2013 and June 2014, teams will be permitted two compliance buyouts. Compliance buyouts follow the same formula as ordinary-course buyouts but do not count against the cap.

So what does this mean for the Flyers going forward? First we have to look at the Flyers players cap hit after this season. From Capgeek.com we get that the only two contracts worth buying out is Bryz and Briere's.

Briere will have two years left at 6.5 mill each year and Bryz will have 7 years left at 5.67 mill each year. Because of how Briere's contract his formed he would be a perfect fit for as a cap hit player for a salary floor team, but he got a NMC which complicate it.

With Bryz it is a little easier, most people here thought it was a stupid thing to even sign him and even worse to sign him to such a long deal. As somebody on nhlnumbers.com mentioned, if we are going to buyout Bryz, why not trade him to the Islanders for Dipetro and buyout him instead? Only problem with that idea is that damned NMC again.

The only other viable buyout target is Pronger, but it is less needed because of how the LTIR work. Yes having to rely on the LTIR can comeback and bite you, but both Bryz and Briere's cap hit are higher than Pronger's.

So why would the Flyers buy them out? When it comes to Briere, he is no long even close to be worth 6.5 mill a year in cap hit and the Flyers got 3 better centers in Giroux, Schenn and Couturier there are all RFA after the 2014 season. With Bryz it is simply that he can never live up to the contract now and around 2016 he will be to old, so why not buy him out now when we have the opportunity.

From Capgeek.com FAQ post about the new CBA is following tidbit:

BUYOUTS

During the ordinary course buyout periods in June 2013 and June 2014, teams will be permitted two compliance buyouts. Compliance buyouts follow the same formula as ordinary-course buyouts but do not count against the cap.

Twitter / capgeek: It appears the "cap advantage ...

AndersJ — Mon, 14 Jan 2013 15:52:31 -0000

Twitter / capgeek: It appears the "cap advantage ...

It appears the "cap advantage recapture" penalties will not apply to teams who traded long-term contracts prior to the new CBA.— CapGeek (@capgeek) januar 9, 2013

CapGeek.com :: The definitive source for NHL salary cap data and player contracts :: FAQ

AndersJ — Mon, 14 Jan 2013 01:17:50 -0000

CapGeek.com :: The definitive source for NHL salary cap data and player contracts :: FAQ

More reasons for hope…examining turnover luck and field position. | Eagles Rewind

AndersJ — Tue, 08 Jan 2013 18:28:07 -0000

More reasons for hope…examining turnover luck and field position. | Eagles Rewind

The future is already here: How the Pistol Offense is changing the NFL - SBNation.com

AndersJ — Thu, 27 Dec 2012 15:02:54 -0000

The future is already here: How the Pistol Offense is changing the NFL - SBNation.com

Great read

Coach Chip Kelly Explains the Oregon Spread Offense – Fish Reports – FishDuck Oregon Ducks Football Analysis For The Casual Fan

AndersJ — Wed, 26 Dec 2012 23:47:57 -0000

Coach Chip Kelly Explains the Oregon Spread Offense – Fish Reports – FishDuck Oregon Ducks Football Analysis For The Casual Fan

I would advise all to read this. Not for how the scheme work, but how Chip Kelly think football. It sound so basic what he is explaining, but we have seen 14 years of over thinking stuff.

By the numbers: Foles' historic rookie rankings

AndersJ — Tue, 25 Dec 2012 18:15:40 -0000

By the numbers: Foles' historic rookie rankings

Foles stack up very well to other rookie through the history of the NFL

Eagles' Danny Watkins may just need a fresh start

AndersJ — Sun, 23 Dec 2012 13:41:12 -0000

Eagles' Danny Watkins may just need a fresh start

"I feel really natural on the left side," said Watkins, who played left tackle in college. "It's weird how moving your feet from a lefthanded stance to right feels better."

This make sense, consider how many college LTs cant make the transition to RT.

Break down of potential future Eagles HC Greg Roman's offense.

AndersJ — Sat, 22 Dec 2012 16:47:03 -0000

We all know current Eagles head coach Andy Reid is going to get fired this off season. What we do not know is who is going to take once he leaves. The hottest candidate is of course current head coach of the Oregon Ducks, but another very hot candidate is current Niners offensive coordinator Greg Roman.

I'm not going to write to much about his back ground as Stanford has a really good write up of his background before joining the Niners here.

What I am going to do, is break down how his current offense with the Niners operate. I will show some of the formations used and then try and project how the current Eagles players would fit into that formation. I have chosen two plays to begin with, there in my opinion shows how creative Roman can be and how much smoke and mirror he likes to use.

For all the people who have watched at least one Niners game over the last 2 seasons, it is clear that Roman's offense is heavy run based and then pass of the play action. The offense is not a traditional run heavy offense there just line up in base formation and run out of the I formation, instead he will often line up in an unbalanced formation (Instead of T-G-C-G-T, you got G-C-G-T-T lined up). Also TE's is a big part of the offense because they will often line up in Tank (1WR-2 TE-2 RB) or Heavy (1WR-3 TE-1 RB) formation and its here I think the Eagles current personal would mean a slight difference in formations. With the Eagles I think Roman would run Ace (2WR-2 TE-1 RB) as the most common formation and not really that much Heavy.

The first play I am going to talk about has actually been broken down really well by Matt Bowen of Nationalfootballpost.com here.

The thing he did not show, was the diamond formation the Niners lined up in at the beginning of the play, this formation is a formation the Eagles wouldn't really run because its a Pistol alignment, but the Big Wing formation would defiantly be a formation I could see the Eagles run with its current personal. The diamond formation is shown below

On this play the Niners are in Tank personal, with Gore, David, Moss, Walker and Miller. With 2 TEs and 1 FB, the Pats clearly think run first, but still has to respect the down field receiving of both Moss and Davis.

So how would this formation translate to the Eagles current group of players? I would use Jackson, McCoy or Brown, Havili, Celek and Moore (Right now Celek and Moore are the only 2 TEs on the roster for next year and Moore is more skilled than Walker). Because of Jackson's deep speed the safety has to cheat over on him and then either Celek or Moore should be wide open.

The next play I am going to break down is a play from the Niners first game against the Packers. The Niners come out with regular personal (2 WR-1TE-2RB), with Crabtee, Moss, Davis, Gore and Miller, but instead of just lining up in the I, they start off by showing empty back field as shown below.

But Alex Smith will audible (I have no clue if its just smoke and mirrors or if its a real audible), into a Weak I formation (FB is off set to the weak side of the formation) and it can be seen below

While this play only went for 5 yards, its shows the creativity of Greg Roman and how he likes to use his personal in different ways and try to create match up problems for the defense.

So how would the above play work with the Eagles? As my WRs I would use Maclin and Jackson, while neither are strong run blockers, you have to use em on running plays or the defense would just be able to guess the play. My TE would be Celek as he is a good all round TE and therefor wouldn't tell the D if its run or pass either. My FB would of course be Havili, as he is a very good pass catcher and therefor would sell the fake really well and my RB would be either Brown, Lewis or McCoy as all 3 can catch the ball well (Its here I miss Westbrook as he would have been a match up nightmare in this kinda of offense).

I hope people have enjoyed the read and if people like it, I am open to breaking down more plays.

I'm not going to write to much about his back ground as Stanford has a really good write up of his background before joining the Niners here.

The first play I am going to talk about has actually been broken down really well by Matt Bowen of Nationalfootballpost.com here.

But Alex Smith will audible (I have no clue if its just smoke and mirrors or if its a real audible), into a Weak I formation (FB is off set to the weak side of the formation) and it can be seen below

While this play only went for 5 yards, its shows the creativity of Greg Roman and how he likes to use his personal in different ways and try to create match up problems for the defense.

I hope people have enjoyed the read and if people like it, I am open to breaking down more plays.

NA wants to be back.

AndersJ — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 13:45:33 -0000

NA wants to be back.

If NA is willing to re-structure his current deal, I dont see why we wouldnt want to bring him back.
While we would need to scheme around his lack of top end speed, he can still lock down guys if he is allowed to jam receivers at the LOS.

Stanford Shows Oregon Its Own Brand of Old-School Football - The Triangle Blog - Grantland

AndersJ — Sat, 15 Dec 2012 16:51:08 -0000

Stanford Shows Oregon Its Own Brand of Old-School Football - The Triangle Blog - Grantland

I love the Eagles to get Chip Kelly as the next HC, but after reading this David Shaw is up there.

Analysis Notebook: Week 13 | ProFootballFocus.com

AndersJ — Wed, 05 Dec 2012 19:11:46 -0000

Analysis Notebook: Week 13 | ProFootballFocus.com

Great break down of Evan Mathis run blocking against the Cowboys and even have commentary from Mathis him self