The Eagles defense played well enough to beat a bad Detroit team but there’s no way you can be satisfied with the way they played. I think it’s quite evident that you can run the ball on the Birds.
Teams with strong running games have to looking forward to getting a shot at this undersized defensive front. The Birds let Detroit run the ball down their throats on the first touchdown drive.
Remember also that backup quarterback Shaun Hill is nothing to write home about, but he was able to move the ball against the Birds with the game on the line. That tells me this defense needs to get much better.
Pro Bowl defensive end Trent Cole earns his money every week and he was all over the place making plays on Sunday. He made four tackles and pressured numerous times. Still, we’ve got to hear from him when the game is on the line, like those late drives by Detroit.
I was pleased to see rookie Brandon Graham get the first sack of his career but he got manhandled a few times by Pettigrew and the Lions tackles. I love his ability to rush the passer inside because he knows how to push back the guards. Graham is going to have problems against the running game because of his size.
What can you say about Juqua Parker? The guy makes a play or two in every game. He got his third sack of the season and put some pressure on Hill at other times.
Brodrick Bunkley picked up the guy blocking him and pushed him into the backfield to stop a number of running plays. Mike Patterson made a couple of plays, but for the most part the defensive tackles were relatively quiet.
The pass rush got to Hill at times, but too many tines it was missing, namely at the end of the game when the defense let the Lions get back into the game.
Quintin Mikell was very active versus the pass and he broke up a few passes and almost came down with a couple of interceptions, but he can’t make the mistake of coming up and letting a touchdown be thrown over his head with the game on the line.
That was a very important play by rookie safety Nate Allen when he picked off a Shaun Hill pass on the first drive. It was a bad throw by Hill, but Allen went and got it to prevent the Eagles from falling behind on the first drive of the game.
I liked the way cornerback Asante Samuel attacked the short plays in his area. He seems to be a lot more willing to come up and tackle.
Ellis Hobbs played well in this game as he came down with an interception by stepping in front of a receiver on a blitz.
Omar Gaither made 11 solo tackles in the win over the Lions which showed his good instincts in making some of those plays. He was active which is what you want from your middle linebacker. Unfortunately, Gaither was no where to found when Jahvid Best was lighting up the Birds with TD runs up the middle and a long 75 yard screen play.
Gaither was pushed around inside on running plays and also caught out of position on a throw to tight end Brandon Pettigrew, which went for a big gain with the game on the line.
I told everybody that I wasn’t sold on Eagles new linebacker Ernie Sims, now you see why. The guy is always out of position. Lions rookie running back Jahvid Best schooled him all afternoon. Hasn’t anybody ever told him that you have to take away the inside move when you’re playing man-to-man?
I think we have to view what we call a bad team now days, every team has some stud power to hurt you and it appears that the norm is changing where even very good defenses are starting to give way to consistant 20+ point games. the lions had to hard fought games that they could have won, yet the cowboys have loss twice and outsiders say they are just having a little trouble. Every team has talent to look good or bad on any given match up. So don’t steal my pleasure with the win by telling me the lions are a junk team, I don’t want to hear it (maybe later not now)…did we win? Yes….enjoy it. Go EAGLES,
Not complaining about G’s take on the defense, all rue statements, just the lions were better than the talkingheads thought. Hell let us all hope they beat the cowboys, giants and redskins……didn’t say they would just lets “Hope” Go EAGLES.
Omar Gaither Stinks. He’s slower than Trotter with bad knees. Cut that bum and start grooming one of those rookie Linebackers. Put Foku in the middle, anything but that bum. He is going to get McDerott Fired!
Ernie Sims Knocks out his teammates but can’t make a play in a real game. Mr. Sims please go into the film room and learn the x’s and o’s of football. Just once I’d like to see you hit somebody on the other team. All that speed and you got your draws tourched by a rookie running back at your homecoming no less. At least put on a mask when the Eagles hand you your check because you are robbing them.
Eagles D cost me $$$ on sunday
i agree bsmvideos!! Gaither is probably out of the league if the Eagles cut him. He is NOT NFL quality. At all. How bad must Gaithers back up be if he is playing? Reid always has a scrub with a prominent role on the team that would not even make another NFL roster.
The LB corps will again be the downfall of this Eagles Team.
I think they really should have drafted a ILB/MLB earlier in the Draft (S Lee for example)
and then moved S Bradley to the outside.. E Sims is a one year player here (similar to what W Witherspoon, S Jones were)
Can anyone tell me that the starting DT’s Bunkely/Patterson (Both 1st Round Draft picks) have lived up to thier expectations. I think Patterson is the most overrated player on this Eagle team
That rushing defense stinks. The commentators were pointing out the same thing we have been point out for the last couple years, “fast but undersized, run the ball”. And that’s exactly what we are. Our tackles aren’t that good and we all know about Gaither. Bradley still has to come back fully from the knee injury.
Paul, our tackles stink. They do nothing. They can’t get any pressure nor can they shut down the middle to stop the run. At least they should be able to do one of those things. They can do neither consistently.
To Scorpion,
Is there something going on with the ESPN Fantasy Leauge..
I could not locate it this morning on ESPN.. Did something change..
Nope. I was in there this morning.
Let me try again..How did you do..
I said it before and i will say it again..sean McDermott sux ass….omg..his personell matchups are awful..his adjustments are….wait..where wer the adjustments..how n the hell does jahvid best do that on OUR d….countless times i saw omar “i’m the worst LB in the NFL” matchupd on Best..are u serious??..gaither needs to get let go..and where the hell was chaney..our second fastest LB…Bradley should be the defensive MVP..y??,,because our defense turns into Pop-warner when he is not there..
On good note, Nate Allen is what we needed.. a ball hawk cnterfielder who locks it down out there…
and is Graham ok..i havent heard..and graham u need to step yo game upas and De..i see JP getting tons more pressure when hes at end…i like B.G…but parker is on his game
And Gaither is everybody’s whipping boy…not surprising at all. Bradley should be back against the Jaguars and since they are definitely a run first team I expect him to be thoroughly challenged. I also expect a lot of the theories that an effective run defense relies solely Stewart Bradley to be effective to be challenged. IMO Bradley, Gaither, Jordan would be the best starting LB group currently and in that order. It was a little funny to me that the D was getting gashed on the ground and right before the half before Antonio Dixon got subbed in at tackle. Dixon got in there and the Lions started running into a wall. After that when Patterson finally got back in he was magically more effective. Personally, I think the Patterson was living in fear of losing his job at that moment and I still say that Dixon should be starting.
The Eagles exacerbated their weakness in the middle by putting Graham in there. On running plays even when he could bull rush a guard he ended up out of position and just isn’t big enough to be able also turn and try to make a play on the rusher. One of the HUGE benefits the Eagles got with Darren Howard was that he could bull rush a guard, but also push the guy out of the way and/or stretch out to make a play on a running back or at least force him to change direction giving the D that all important extra second to respond. Probably the worst thing about moving Graham in is that it will give opposing QB’s the automatic green light to audible an inside run to that spot. It seems like it would make more sense to stand him up, more like a Joker LB or twist him in from the outside DE position just to not show as much.
Any team with a fast, screen pass catching running back will have a field day on Ernie Sims when they play the Eagles. The thing I really didn’t like was that in his post game comments he seemed to indicate that he played great. lol. Had Akeem Jordan been starting on the weak side that wouldn’t have happened.
I was not crazy about the acquisition of E Sims last Spring and now that I have seen him in Pre-season and the 1st couple of games, I like him even less, he is just not a good fit for this scheme.. He’s very weak at the point of attack, he’s very undiscplined, and he bites on every play action and usually runs himself out of position to make a play… Him and Darryl Tapp are busts in my opinion..
I’d Rather see Clayton or Fokou in there,.. This EAgles LB Corp is still a very weak line for this Defense… Bradley hides a lot, but boy, when he’s not in there, they are just flat out bad..
when jim johnson passed away I felt that andy should have brought in a veteran d-coordinator mcdermott is in over his head. those 2 dallas loses exposed him last yr
JJ’s Defense’s were not the same the last couple of seasons either..
This Scheme of “Small but Quick” has gotten old and statle the Eagles familiar foes know how to attack it..How about beefing up in the MIddle.