One of the best things that happened during the Redskins game was the emergence of running Jerome Harrison. I thought the Birds only one running back, LeSean McCoy, who could cut on a dime and break the ankles of defenders. Harrison showed he has the same cutting ability as McCoy.
His vision and playmaking ability were very apparent on the long run where he made three or four tacklers miss. This gives the Birds depth at the halfback position, which will almost guarantee that they will have a run threat in the lineup, if McCoy gets banged up.
Harrison also did a good job as a receiver when he got the chance. Howie Roseman deserves some credit for this one. The front office admitted their mistake with Mike Bell and traded him to Cleveland for Harrsion.
Don’t be surprised if they find a way to make sure Harrison has a place in the game plan.
The Eagles aren’t getting anything out of the tight end position. Before this season is over, Brent Celek will need to punish teams who try to take away the wide receivers. Vick hit him with a nice pass down the middle against Washington but Celek coughed it up after he was hit.
He’s gotten a pass so far because the other guys have stepped up but they’re going to need him in the near future. Defensive coordinators will start to make more of a commitment to stopping the wide outs and therefore dare Vick and the Eagles to beat them with Celek.
I think Celek willl be needed on Sunday. The middle of the field will be open because the safeties will be deep and he’ll be working one on one versus a linebacker. Once Celek puts up a 100 yard game, defensive coordinators will have to go back to the drawing board.
Backup tight end Clay Harbor could have been called for holding on the Vick bomb to DeSean Jackson. Harbor couldn’t block a cornerback, so the Eagles got away with that one.
Celek took a hard hit over the center against the Colts and dropped one middle middle against the Skins and took a hit –He may be getting gun shy –He also was dropping them when his hand was injured so it may be a carry over
Recently
The one against the Colts was Vick’s fault –Celek got hung out
The one against the Skins was also a late pass by Vick ( threw it after the defenders started to close )but Celek should have held on
I know he is being held in to help the tackle in protection but all the good teams get production from the TE and it is a definite concern but has been negated so far by Vicks running
It’s great to see HArrison get some carriers, I like how he runs, he get’s to the hole,makes his 1 cut and goes, no dancing around, which McCoy still has a tendancy to do from time to time.
Harrison is also smaller and has a strong lower body which makes him difficult to see at first and then has the quick tiny steps that keeps his feet moving and low to the ground.. He also is a good receiver which is critical in this Offense. I am not sure about his blocking but he is a nice change of pace back and will help take some of the load off of McCoy which is important once colder weather and for the stretch run..You need to have 2 good RB’s in the NFL these days..
On Celek, I think I’ve mentioned a time or two, that it appears he is catcthing the ball with his body too much instead of extending his arms and catching it out front with his hands.. I am not sure if the hand injury has bothered him to a point where he can’t graps the ball properly, but i’ve noticed that balls are coming into his body too much and then bounce around causing some of his drops..
He has had a rough Season so far and the TE position is one that needs to be addressed in the off-season,and get someone who is athletic and can stretch the field more so than Celek, who is a good solid TE, but nothing more than average..
Part f the TE position is catching balls in tight coverage, taking a hit and hanging on. The TE is rarely not the 1st or 2nd option. I agree with Paul, he needs to extend his hands and catch the ball and not wait for it to come to him.
For as good as celek was last year, he has been equally as bad this year. He’s looked slow and just has not made the plays when given the opportunity. We don’t need him to be great, just good. The TE position has been completely non-existent. Bring on the Giats.
any1 miss mike bell?
lol
**************************** Trivia Time***********************
Who said “Mike Bell, the best off-season Aquisition for the Eagles since Reggie White”
The Winner will get a free order of Hot-Wings from JP Weilehans courtsey of G Cobb
******************************************************************************************************************
He’s kept in too block alot.Max protect is at an all time high this year. Slow? You guys are over the top with that.HTF has he lost his speed? He hasnt…and TE’s catch the rock on there body cause there closer too the q…need too ready themselves for a whallop and thats the most effective way too do it. Like i said yesterday..when the weather gets cold and the wide outs get shut down by press Celek will emerge. Celek is the starter for the next 3 years man.Gimme a break Paulman. Dude has an off year cause he’s playing in pain and he’s gutting it out. And he’s being used as a glorified tackle and he’s a bum now? Why do you think the o-line is playing better? Cause Celek improved his blocking enough the big guy keeps him in too max protect.
erock – spot on.
There’s no denying that Celek is having a down year. And we’d all like him to be the player he was in the past. But guess what guys, did we lack a celek catch or TD last game? I think not. If the team keeps winning, and Celek keeps playing like this… there will be 1 big problem – it will continue to bother paulman. I’m ok with that, I only care about the team winning.
It’s like if you have one lightbulb out in an otherwise well-lit room. If the room is well lit, yeah, you can change that one bad one if you want it to be perfect, purely for aesthetic reasons, but I”ll take the well lit situation either way. I’m a bottom line person, and the bottom line is that the team is winning and improving.
To say we’d like more out of Celek is one thing, but to abandon the guy after what he’s done for the team is utterly ridiculous and shows a lack of perspective, patience, and knowledge of the game.
So extend his hands and when the ball comes into his body a safety is there too knock it out with a hit..or catch it on your body so that its there when the blow comes?
The tight end has been lacking cause the o-line is in need of help. x’s and o’s birdbrains.
Dude had a 40-50 yarder called back for holding and in the redzone he’s kept in too protect.
and paulman, if your trying to mock me about Mike Bell, go for it. I highly doubt that ANYONE said anything at all with both the names Mike Bell and Reggie White in it.
And in retrospect, it took Mike Bell to get Harrison.
It’s great to be happy with Harrison here, and his play, I still am.
But to go and harp on optimism at the time of acquiring Mike Bell is childish and pointless.
Celek has been blocking a lot more than the Eagles probably want him to but at the same time when he has opportunities he drops the passes. You have to make the play when your number is called especially when you don’t get that many looks. Let’s face it, Vick is not going to look for Celek as much as a lot of QBs look for their TEs. And that’s because he can buy time for his receivers to get open and when they do he hits them for much bigger gains than Celek can give you. But Celek has to be ready to make the plays when the ball comes his way. And Harrison doesn’t surprise me. Last year, he had some very good games in Cleveland. And the only reason I know that was because I picked him up mid season in a fantasy football league and the guy was a producer. Very efficient runner and can find the endzone. His problem was the emergences of Peyton Hillis and the Josh Cribbs side show. But he’s a breath of fresh air compared to that sack of potatoes Mike Bell.
Shiller just wolfed on you like Bron on the break.
LOL @ the fact that schiller doesn’t like when people point out his over the top statements when he on the other hand is quick to point out guys like Songs and PW who said this team would suck WITH Kolb as QB. Just funny stuff.
And we all know Celek has been in a lot to block but he still drops key passes when he does get opportunities. And there’s no excuse for that. Of course with blocking his stats will not be as good but he still doesn’t make plays when he has the chance. And that’s the difference between him and the better TEs in the league. They have to block too (maybe not as much all the time) but they make plays when their number is called. You think Cooley doesn’t have to block with that horrible line? Yes he does but he also catches the ball when it comes his way. No excuses for Celek. Period.
scorp – but did I make that statement? No I didn’t. All I said was that he was on the superbowl champs, and that he could be a good pickup. I WAS wrong, I’ll give y ou that. But I never compared him to one of the best Eagles ever, if not THE best. I never came anywhere close to that. I didn’t even predict he’d play well.
Meanwhile, I don’t exaggerate Songs and PW’s statements. I do refer to them, perhaps a lot, but I don’t amplify them to gross proportions.
Scorp – no excuses, for sure. But he’ll come around. And right now, the team is doing just fine despite his drops.
schiller, calm down buddy. I’m just laughing at you and Paulman. It’s funny. No I don’t think you put him in the same sentence as Reggie White but for each and every move the Eagles made in the offseason from Mike Bell to Marlin Jackson was like signing a superstar if we listened to you all day. And then you come on here and try to throw it their face when other guys said this team would be bad. And they only said it would be bad because of Kolb. If that ain’t the pot calling the kettle black, I’m not sure what is.
Stop g’n it up on here with talk of what someone said and asking them what they thing now and yadda yadda yadaa.Real talk Birdbrains.
ESPN aritcle titled..Giants not intimidated by Vick….for real? They’re schemeing for him like no other.Those snakes will get theres Sunday night.They have beaten noone.At 6-3…that matters ..quality wins…do they have one?
schiller, I agree. I’m not worried as much about Celek because frankly, we don’t need him right now. I think the intent of this article is think of how good this offense is playing now, imagine if Celek starts playing better. So even though the team is playing well there is always room to improve and it’s ok to point that out. We don’t have to sit here and gush and act like everything is gold. It’s ok if you choose to ignore some of the weaknesses. That’s fine, I totally understand. But let the rest of us talk about where we can get better. I’m pretty sure the team knows there are areas they need to do better. Thanks for your usual defense though.
Erock, I agree. They’re entire week of practicing is based on one player. Read the article on profootballtalk where their coach said he got a headache watching Vick on Monday.
Hey, we’ve all made outrageous statements at one time or another.
I have stated since Summer Camp that I thought the TE position was the weak link to this Eagle Offense, and this is when everyone was ga-ga over Celek stating he was a Pro-Bowl Player due to having a strong season last year, But I stand by my statement that Celek is simply an avereage TE
with pretty reliable hands, below average speed and not much of a blocker but now that he is dropping many passes, he falls to the bottom half of TE in the NFC…
As far as staying in to block, many teams have had their TE’s stay in and block on occasions, check Witten on Cowboys,Cooley on Redskins, Olsen from Bears, WInslow from Bucs, Shockey from Saints,Shianco from Vikings, Lee from the Packers, Pettigrew from the Lions, Boss for the Giants,etc,etc.
As D-Jax/Maclin continue to improve and make big plays down the field, the intermediate and middle of the field routes will be open most of the game and it’s up to the TE/Avant to take advantage and make some plays. Avant is making plays and taking advantage of his opportunities and is having a very solid season… Celek has yet to make many plays and in fact, his drops on 3rd Down have stalled many drives and have forced the Eagles to Punt….
Yes you refer to their statements but you are very misleading. You choose to leave out the fact that they said this team would be bad WITH Kolb at the QB. That’s what they said. They said with Vick this is a playoff team and the same if McNabb was still here. So you go around posting half-information. That’s like if the Colts lost Peyton Manning to injury and someone said they will suck now. They lose 3 straight. And then Peyton comes back and the team is good again. So was it wrong for the person to say the team sucks without Manning? And they now change their tune about the team because Manning is back? Ummmmm duh, that’s what happens. Everyone’s opinion should be based on the players and not blindly because they should always think the team is going to be good. Were they over the top? Probably, but they were neither wrong or right. They said exactly what a lot of people thought WITH Kolb at QB. And of course that changes when you now have a better QB. Did the Miami Heat fans have higher expectations before or after Lebron and Bosh? Same thing here. The expectations with Kolb were lower than with Vick. Pretty simple if you ask me.
Paul, I’m with you. People were ga ga over him because he was better than LJ Smith. When a players is as bad as him, it’s not hard to look a lot better. He had a strong season and I felt that he (like Bradley) were very overrated. I think Celek is a good player but he’s nothing special at least not yet. He’s an average block and I’m not sure what to say about his receiving skills because some times he can make a great catch and other times he’ll drop an easy one. With defenses worrying so much about the edges of the field because of Vick, Jackson and Maclin the entire middle of the field is there. And Avant is making the most of his catches like he always does while Celek on the other hand causes us to punt the ball or 3rd and long situations.
Look, Celek better man the fuck up and stop dropping the motherfuckin football! Maybe Mike throws to hard for him! LOL. He better man the fuck up though. Celek has been pissing me off lately as a recieving tight end. But as far as a blocking tight end, he has been on point. Harrison looks really slow, but the thing with him is that he can read holes really good and get around defenders. If only Shady could read those holes when he runs inside like Harrison did last game, he would have a lot more long runs for touchdowns. I like our 2-headed back system, and it certainly doesn’t hurt with the very hard running Eldra Buckley coming in from time to time too. But we’re going to need a full team effort to beat the Giants.
Dont expect alot of catches from Brent Celek either. We’re going need him on the line to help protect against the Giants front 4. The Giants secondary is weak, so if Mike Vick has the time in the pocket or even time to roll to his left, we will be fine.
Yo who’s going to the game? I’ll be there in my usual seat.
Your right Dizzy……. We all thought that we saw the re-born of Chad Lewis since Celek was an Eagle…… Chad Lewis was slow but a great route runner but not afraid of contact after the catch….. You can see Celek glancing….. when the ball is thrown to him….. He’ll be fine…… I think that he’ll have a break out game this week against the Giants…….. We really need him to be effective down the stretch because with a reliable TE the offense is more effective!!!! GO BIRDZ
But I think since training camp when Sims put a “LICKIN” on Celek……. He just hasn’t gotten over it!!! IDK!!!
@Dizzy J…… I dont think anybody throws harder than Mcnabb LOL! You can be 10yards away and Mcnabb will throw a Randy Johnson fastball to you for no reason while a defender wasnt even around the receiver….. (Besides Brett Favre)
scorp and diz, good points.
And I know I have to let this go, and will but one more point – yes, “they” (songs, pw, others who said the team would suck this year” were saying that stuff with the notion that Kolb is the QB. That’s valid because Vick clearly changes everything.
But they were also trashing McCoy, and the Oline, and the secondary, and the linebackers, and Reid, and Howie, and McDermott, the list goes on and on. They DID say that playing Vick would make us much better, but they still said that the Eagles would definitely suck for many reasons.
Regardless of what ‘they’ said, my point of view was NOT that the birdz would succeed with Kolb as the starter, v. Vick as the starter. MY POINT was that they really were being presumptuous and silly trying to predict what would happen and that their insistence on predicting failure was silly and off base.
Ok, I”m done with it, I promise. Let’s just enjoy this thing.
yeah jroc, there may be something up with Celek, but I think the theory that it’s Vick throwing too hard is bust – you’re dead on, McNabb had that reputation.
Actually, I think it points to something that many haven’t mentioned yet – VICK HAS BETTER ‘TOUCH’ THAN McNABB!
Remember after we all saw the potential of Brian Westbrook on screens, dumpoffs, and other short passes? Ok, now remember how many times McNabb f-ed up the easies throws that all of us can make? – you know, the 6 yard sideways lobs n such? Vick does them better. Period.
That’s the thing with Vick, while everyone knows, and the media continues to pee in their pants over, Mike can flick it 80 yards with practically 0 effort and 100% accuracy, but he ALSO has very good ‘touch’ on his passes.
It will be interesting to see if that’s the next phase of development that the media observes/Vick exhibits, as he continues to develop in this offense. I’m talking about the intermediate stuff to Cooper, Avant, Celek (yes catching the ball…) and the RB/FBs…. should be fun to watch for….
HAHAHA, how funny is it that now Shawn Andrews is out with “back problems”. I think he has Philly problems. He’s afraid he’ll get made fun of…
@Shiller…… What happen to TE Mills last game….. I didnt see him against WSH……. I like him for blocking purposes and I beleive that harbor has alot to learn within the system…
It’s good to go young at times…. But you need that old veteran to perform key plays during the stretch…
I like when the birds lineup in the full-house formation….. It reminds me of the three headed monster…… But now we line up a wide-receiver in the back field in motion….(That confuses the hell out of defenses)! Vick was use to that in ATL and the Eagles are doing things to make him feel comfortable and be more deadly on offense……. GO BIRDZZZ
jroc – they were giving Clay Harbor a shot – he was in for that first play (Vick to DJax TD if you need a reminder, ha) and he had a key block (some say it was a hold – fine with me if not called!).
Yeah, I think they didn’t really need to use the TEs in the game plan much (in hindsight, clearly that was the case)…
I mean, let’s be realistic here, if you are going to be effective running the ball with the QB, and TWO running backs, tear the field up with your top 3 receivers (any arguments there?), get defensive turnovers and some key 3 and outs from the D to start the game….. how much room IS there in a game plan to mix in the TEs….
It’s just plain math, with so much keys to the RBs, WRs and stud QB freak, something has got to give.
I’m sure Mills will continue to play a role blocking down the stretch – NFC East games in early to mid winter…. you know the drill…
jroc- good point. I also thought the Chad Lewis / Celek comparison was what we had. He may be blocking more, but when given the chance to catch the ball he has not been as consistant as the last couple years. Yeah, we don’t seem to need him as much with the way Vick is getting the ball to our recievers, but we will need to have him as an outlet when Vick checks down. Hopefully he is going to improve, but I am not basing that on anything I have seen this season. The point that somebody made about the Sims hit in camp may be more valid then it appears at face value. He may be hearing steps before the ball arrives and taking away from his concentration. Didn’t he get his bell rung in one of the first couple games?
yeah, that Avant in the backfield motioning out is an awesome gadget their using. Hope it stays.
I cant wait to call those SCUM BAGZZ I use to work for in NY…… Those fudge packers put Giants stickers over my Eagles stuff outside of my car…….. We are going to beat the breaks out of them this Sunday night…….. I want blood….. And Coughlin said his stomach hurt watching the game monday night over Vicks performance at half time…….. We’ll see him VOMIT on the sideline this Sunday coming up….. LOL
Ingram is still on the squad, right Pman? Injured reserve or PUP? If that guy could get healthy and actually play in a real..not preseason game…we might of had some options at tight end.
Let’s remember, Celek played extremely hard – YAC, carrying defenders on his back for extra yards, big hits, going over the middle (TE – duh, but still)… all from the very start of his career. Maybe his best time is behind him (I doubt that but it’s a possibility). If that’s the case and they have to use him as a backup and move on, hey let’s see what harbor turns into, and I have NO problem (look into the next few years) using a high/mid draft pick on a TE prospect to groom – amidst the OL, LB and perhaps DB picks we need to make…. just a thought.
I want Celek to return to his old form, while maintaining his blocking improvments, but if for some reason he can’t, I’m grateful for what he has already given us and ok moving on.
@Green Fan….. Yes he got cracked but held on to the ball against the 49ers I think…… (if im not mistaken)
greenfan – practice squad. They can call him up at anytime, just have to cut someone…
Celeks fine and when the weather gets cold he’ll be a factor.Stop dogging him you crybabies.He’s had numerous catchs called back cause of penalties. Like i said…a 40-50 yard td catch.
Let me ask you this Birdbrains..if he had more catcheds then who do you think would have less? Djax and Jmac…so wtf do you want? 15 yard outs or 30 yards digs?
Paulman your analysis of his performance and your blanket scouting reports just leave you open too be right no matter what. Gimme a break. He’s a better tight end then you guys are giving him credit for on here. if he has a big game and he’s more then capable of doing it…is he back in good graces.Thats fairweather b.s..HE’S BLOCKING!!!! he’s not even deployed into routes.WTF do you want from him. The screen play they ran for him was sniffed out by Fletcher. The ball he dropped he got whacked and it was raining. Antonio Gates wouldnt have made that catch.
Cold weather + press+ muddy fields+rain and snow+Birdgames= Celek being targeted more.
Solve for W.
I think we should line Ingram at Wr….. He played in the spread offense at Florida….. He’s huge and a corner will be under-sized against that mammoth NEANDERTHAL LOL! That guy is a monster
If Celek doesnt catch he ball he is useless. He cant block a little bit. Maybe he needs to cool it with all the DNL segments and all the interiviews. I think a message is being sent to him when Ingram is resigned and if I heard correctly a possiblility to be activated on Sunday. How can that be? He isnt on the team all year and he jumps over Harbor? Thats a message to all concerned. Honestly I would put the best blocking TE in the game for protection and run blocking. I have enough weapons right now with McCoy, Jackson, Avant, Maclin and Owen Scmidt out of the backfield. Pure run and shoot offense why not?
All the times he got his bell rung in games last year didnt seem too stop him form making plays afterwards.
Sims hit in camp? Come on…
Mccoy catchs the rock now out of the backfield…we have two legit wide-outs that can tow the line…Avant is always open.And Mike says f the tight end dump for 15..ill scramble for 25.
AND THE PROBLEM WITH CELEK IS…..?
@Erock…… Celek is good….. Like I said before he will break out against the Giants mark my words…… Celek and Kevin Boss have been getting destroyed as of late…… Especially Kevin Boss….. There big targets for defenders to hit but Celek has been blocking alot this season……. I want to see him used on TE screen plays…….
jroc, I absolutely am GAGA over Ingram when he’s healthy (Anyone surprised? – ha ha, Mike Bell, etc…. I’ll make fun of myself to save the time – I was a huge Reggie Brown fan)….but I digress…
But the man cannot stay healthy (as of yet). That’s the problem. Matchups mean nothing if your unhealthy. Cut of Kobe Bryant’s legs and I’ll take Thad young v. him any day.
Let’s hope he gets and stays healthy, but the odds aren’t great…
i dont know y u would refer to us
we pretty much nit the nail on the head all yr
and pman i dont blame u talkn bout mike bell
schiller was mike bell this n that all offseason i said he was a bum then and now schill’s reply he’s a sb rb lmao my reply so was mark brunell
and scorp he’s only referring to us because he was wrong about every thing this whole season
so he says something dumb like i thought we wouldnt make the playoffs knowing we both said we r a lock for offs with vick as qb
he raved about ellis hobbs how he was such an upgrade over sheldon brown
how kevin kolb had a whole season to basically piss away hahah he aint even get a half
i mean i was wrong about that too i said 2 games
y there shouldnt be an open qb comp
look i was never happy about the trade this offseason because the starting qb spot was given to a backup not earned by him but given
if when the trade went down u told me there was an open comp for qb position u wouldnt have heard a peep from me i wanna win not wait 4 yrs for an avg qb to be avg
He cant block a little and thats why a proffessional head football coach has decided too keep him in for max protect?
A message about a guy who hasnt been able too stay healthy enough too even contribute on special teams right?Ingram cant block a lick and we have Riley Cooper for a big redzone target.