On Monday, rookie first round draft pick Lane Johnson benefitted from the absence of Pro Bowl left tackle Jason Peters being absent from the team practice. The current starting right tackle Dennis Kelly was moved over to Peters’ left tackle spot and Johnson got the chance to play as the first team right tackle.
Johnson hit the ground running and had a solid day in the rain and mud. “I just came out here today and they told me I was with the ones, Johnson said after practice. “So that’s who I went with. So, I just went out there and played.”
I like his competitiveness. He’s not awed by anybodyt, but at times you could see that he needs to be more patient and not so anxious and aggressive. I was impressed with the fact that he realized that when practice was through.
“They’ve been playing a lot, so they have a lot of moves up their sleeve and they’ll break it out on you when you least expect it, Johnson said about going against NFL pass rushers. “So you’ve got to be disciplined with your technique.”
“You just got to know when to hold back and know when to let go, you’ve got to know when to use the right tools at the right time.”
The game’s best offensive linemen are all very good counter puncher. They let the defensive pass rusher make the first move and then they counter, but they don’t go for a knockout. When the rushers reach to grab a shoulder, the good offensive linemen slap his hand down, but don’t get caught lunging forward.
Like a good boxer they don’t get caught with all their weight and momentum leaning forward. A fighter will have his chin sticking out if he gets caught lunging forward and risk being knocked out, while offensive linemen will be susceptible to an arm over move, if they get caught lunging forward.
Johnson who is doing a good job so far in getting better daily, is learning that his best technique is to use his long reach to keep the pass rushers off of him with a good jab with one hand or jabs with both hands. You don’t have to knock the pass rusher out, just keep him off the quarterback.
“Trying to use my hands more, trying to not start grabbing, trying to be more forceful with my hands, punching”, the rookie said when asked where does he need to make the most improvement.
He has noticed a difference in NFL pass rushers as compared to guys in college. “Probably stronger, Johnson said about NFL pass rushers in comparison to college rushers. “College and Pro’s pretty much the same quickness. Maybe the Pro’s a little quicker. You’ve can definitely feel the strength difference.
The Eagles don’t have to ask Johnson to get in the weight room and work because the young man’s work ethic is one of his biggest assets. His work ethic and upside are two of the major reasons they felt comfortable drafting him in such a high spot.
I expect Lane Johnson to be the Starting QB by Week 7 under Chip Kelly,with his size,strength and quick release.. On a more serious note, Johnson will be the Starting RT for Week #1 and eventually take over for LT Jason Peters by 2015 or poosibly sooner if Peters were to get re-injured (Remember that Peters does earn $15 Million per Season)
But Healthy Peters at LT and Johnson at RT gives the Eagles probably the most athletic Set of OT’s in the NFL which is a required for Kelly’s up Tempo fast pace on Offense which is why I liked Lane Johnson’s upside over Joeckel,Fisher and Fluker due to his overall athelticism.. Lane Johnson is a perfect fit for what this Eagles Offense will become
Both the T’s will be improved this year and the Eagles looking to run will help the line overall. What will be telling about how Chip feels about this Oline will be the work of the TE’s; If they are set loose up the middle, we will know Chip has the confidence to let the line play without using the TE’s to chip as much as they did under Andy’s flawed throw, throw, throw style. I am looking forward to seeing how much better this line will be with Johnson and the running game.
Lame Johnson lol. wasn’t a fan of the pick but only bc I don’t think he is worthy of a number 4. I want to be as wrong as possible as an eagles fan and hope he is an all-pro. Something about being an offensive lineman most of his career is not encouraging. your reps at the position are important all the way back to the high school level they are building blocks to a mental toughness aside from the physical that you can get the job done game in and game out. Jason Peters was a TE in college but he blocked most of the time and is the exception. not every player can make that switch at an high enough level to be good in the NFL. its more of a gamble than people think and a good o-lineman can play in almost any system. people keep saying oh he fits his Kelly’s system, I say what if Kelly stinks as a coach? I want players that can play for anybody! its the Philadelphia eagles at the end of the day and I don’t want to head down the same path we did with Reid, picking players because they are “Andy Reid/Chip Kelly” type guys instead of the best guy possible for the team regardless of coach or whatever. If Matt Barkley can be a qb in this system then there should be no reason you have to be locked into picking the third best at a position 4th in the draft. If you don’t pick him there tackles slide down and you prob end up with a Kyle Long or Fluker or trade back and add another selection, and still get Ertz. time will tell and one year won’t be the judge either way.
Just a Question for NuGreenbol
Looking at this 2013 Draft, What Player in your Opinion was worth
The #4 Pick??
Remember that Fisher, Joeckel & Dion Jordan went 1,2,3 ..
Who available was “Worthy” of the #4 Pick..
to be totally honest im not sure for this team. I don’t think there was a player I wanted that could go that high. there are some players that will pan out to be #4 pick worthy like a Millner, Star ect but I don’t see them as necessary picks for the Birds at 4 either. I would have traded back simply because I can’t see taking the 3rd best a pos 4th pick. that is like football blasphemy when you look at it. The draft had some serious depth however and this team could have really stock piled for the future because you and I both know they are going to end up cutting players like a Cole ect. and getting nothing it would be nice to have some serviceable promising young players with a year under they going into next years draft without serious “needs”. say what you want Lane Johnson was not best player avail. he was not the 4th best player in college football by any stretch of the imagination. so from that standpoint its a fail. there may not have been a trade buddy in the top 8 but 12 -17 had some decent players and trading back that far would get you a 2 & 4 at least and possibly a future 3 minimal, throw some dead weight in like a Cole or a Herrimans.(neither will be here when the team gets good) then you can justify taking the G from Carolina who we all know will be an all-pro. you can get an OT that can play good enough to win. most top pick tackles are not in the super bowl, or don’t pay off until they are on another team. ( both Ravens Tackles one a high pick the other Ore later but still good) so that should tell you its not a must have that high. now we have I high pick project that may or may not pay dividends.
Bottom line in 2013 there was not much of a market on Trading down
Team were unwilling to give up 2nd or 3rd Round Picks in this years Draft Class which is where the Depth was as I suggested on pre-Draft run-up
Raiders received only an additional 2nd Round pick from the Dolphins and that was to trade out of the #3 Overall Draft Pick..
Great post nugreembol, you are a Philly fan, one of the many on here, keep posting my man
thnx Jakedog. in the picture above he needs to drop his ass a little lower smh see already lol just kidding
NuGreembol, Thank You for reiterating what I said after the draft. These were very impressive postings brother.
I too felt trading down was necessary, but some on here will argue that “If you you don’t have anybody to trade down with, then it won’t happen”
I say if you are not aggressive enough, don’t have enough balls to trade players that are flat out overrated (like Brandon Graham, and Trent Cole) and have no vision of what you team SHOULD look like, you won’t think about trading down because you thought Dion Jordan would be there, and he was your guy, not Lame Johnson….then you won’t look to trade down, and that is what happened.
Again, very good post NuGreembol. GMCliff is impressed.
I still like the pick at 4. I don’t think a team should ever take anything but QB, OT or DL with a top 10 pick. They are the only positions that represent long term value for that pick (if they pan out).
Johnson was the highest ranked tackle available there, and they grabbed him……so I really don’t think the birds can be faulted for the pick, even if he doesn’t turn out. I don’t think there were any serious offers from teams “wanting” to move up at that point.
A good LT (or RT) doesn’t have to be as phisically “dominating” as we often think. I really like the mentioning of the “jab” in this article…and that’s all a RT has to do (in pass protection)…not “stop” the DL, but rather just keep him outside, and steer, or angle him, using his own momentum, out and around the quarterback, allowing the DL to eventually converge or crash in 12 to 15 yards behind the LOS.
Except of course thats right where Mike Vick is usually standing……..
So I guess all OT have to do is pass protect and jab people. I guess its like boxing huh? stick and move smh. What about the trenches a 4th pick can’t be half a product! a Fourth pick should be physically dominating in some point of his game. sliding quickly in front of someone its not gonna help once they figure out they can over power you. that’s when as an OT you start to think about the man in front of you too much and a Winston justice night happens lol
Damn vinnie, did you really have to bring Vick into the convo about the tackle position, man you are relentless, you have earned a Phd in Vickology, a board certified Vickologist
This place gets dull without people yelling and screaming at each other. Lane Johnson? How’s he going to get anyone riled up?
gotta keep the good times rolling….
Thats bullshit, you just can’t keep Vick’s nuts out ya mouth! bottom line!
Ya. That’s right. I’m the one “on his nuts”. makes total sense.
This coming from the guy who gets hard staring at the Starship 7 poster on his bedroom wall.
Fucking Realtalk still can’t finish with his old lady unless he’s got a ‘2004 The Mike Vick Experience’ highlight film playing in the backgrounde.
Now that I think about it, that was you named in the Ron Mexico herpes lawsuit 10 years back.
Damn Realtalk, not just a broken heart, your lover boy leave you with a little extra someting to remember him by?
Real talk talking about Vick. His privates and homosexual sex acts – nothing new to see here.
haha…you cats are funny…bunch of ass grabbers and sniffers if you ask me…Nothing directed to MHeShe at all, but he/she felt the need to take up for his/her buddy Vinnie…
I’ve been catching up on a lot of the articles I’ve missed over the last few days…and Vinnie/Mhese you’re on every damn one…are you employed? are you making a positive impact in your local community in anyway? or are you specifically on GCobb to vent, bitch, moan because of the shortcomings you have going on in your lives?
I didnt stick up for anyone I just observed you talking what you always talk about. You clearly have issues, talking about sniffing and grabbing butts again.
you come on here to talk about privates and homesexual sex and other sexual things.
we come on here to talk about sports.
and you are asking us about working, making positive impacts, shortcomings and call educated discussions bitching. interesting.
some would disagree, in fact many would disagree…your ramblings and your counterparts, are far from educated discussions and or comments, son!
ok. you are one classy guy.
Its actually pretty logical to bring up a QB who held the ball 2nd longest in the league (Wilson was the longest, but give me a break the guy is a rookie) in regard to a discussion on how well Lane Johnson (and the rest of the Oline) would look. Common sense says the Oline will not look as good with a QB who holds the ball 2nd longest in the entire league.
and round and round we go…… lets see…. what will get a qb killed first…. a coach who calls for hailmarys on every play while never running the ball? or a coach who stresses running the ball and quick throws? i dont care who the QB is….. the Andy Reid days are over and that means we are lightyears ahead of last year. Anyone heard from Fireman yet? Hows he looking?
LOL..Stevo those plays were never called it was a myth…lol
LOL yep if Lane Johnson is a bust blame it on Vick because why not. This post has nothing not one thing about the QB’s. Don’t worry fellas Denny or G will write something about the QB’s soon and it will be back to normal. LOL
Article le in Philly daily said he was back playi g with the 1’s. Also, said we should not make too much of him running with the 2’s last week in an open practice.
The eagles were atop the league for years in plays of 20 yards or more…. why? Because they took chances deep, often. The problem is…. those plays take time…. anyway.
F^#@ Vick, & his alter bowing imbeciles! Sorry, I had to. XD
LOL, Hahahaha. Too funny.
How are some of the other Draft Picks looking so far in Camp..
Is Ertz catching everything .. Benny Logan looking
Like he’s a Player and Eric Wolff..Haven’t read much on
These guys along with the 7th Round Picks (Kruger & Poyer & King)
Great offensive tackles are hard to get. You almost have to draft them. I know the Eagles traded for Peters, but that’s not very common in the NFL. Teams tend to hold onto Tackles.
All we can do is hope Johnson turns out to be a good player. The odds are better for first round tackles than they are for first round quarterbacks.
Eagles 53 Man Roster as of June 2nd
Special Teams (3) – Kicker Henery, P Jones, LS J Donebros
Offense (25)
QB – Foles, Vick & Barkley
RB – McCoy, Brown, Felix Jones
FB – J Casey
TE – Celek, Ertz, Harbor
WR – D-Jax, Maclin, Avant, Benn, Cooper & Russell Shepard
OL – Peters, Mathis, Kelce, Herremans, L Johnson as Starters
(Kelly, Barbee, Watkins,& Vandervelde as Reserves)
Defense (25)
DL (8) Cox, Saopaga,Thornton as Starters
Curry,Logan, Dixon, Geathers & Trent Cole as the designated pass-rusher
LB (7) Barwin, Graham, Ryan’s, Kendrick’s as Starters
Acho, J Phillips & Kruger as Back-ups
CB (5) – Fletcher, C Williams, Boykin, Marsh & Poyer
Safety (5) – K Phillips, N Allen, P Chung, E Wolff & Colt Anderson
That’s how I see it..
I could see Casey Matthews beating out Kruger due to his relationship with Chip Kelly and Kruger could end up on The Practice Squad .
Polk lost 15 lbs and felix jones looks fat i heard..
vinny curry now wieghs 280 also
Just got back from the lake and read that during the Friday OTAs the QBs went…..
Foles 22 of 29 (76%)
Barkley 9 of 13 (69%)
Vick 9 of 17 (53%)
Of course all Kelly did was call screens and short passes for Foles and Barkley, and all slow developing bombs for Vick, so I wouldn’t read too much into that……
Oh Vinnie you’re picking bogus stats again –
Those numbers are estimates – the other estimates by another site:
Foles: 21/28 – 75%
Vick: 9/15 – 60%
Barkley doesn’t matter – he was running with the 3s all day
That was Friday – but I guess in all your reading you missed this little gem from Tuesdays OTA’s –
“Michael Vick and Nick Foles both split time with the first-team, but it was evident that Vick had the better day, if for no other reason than he didn’t take the risks Foles did throwing the ball.
Foles attempted the first deep ball of the afternoon Period 8. Incomplete.
Over the middle in Period 10, almost picked off.
Foles went for the home run again in Period 14, but couldn’t connect. During Period 20 and 21 — the offense runs a four-down set to get 10 yards — Foles couldn’t convert on a third-and-one attempt.
n Period 21, Foles hit an open WR — not looking in his direction — in the back of the leg.
Vick looked comfortable within the offense, making quick decisions, a few of which were to run out of bounds without a receiving option. Barkley didn’t throw the ball too well either, but he was the only one of the three to, at least that I saw, run the option, once in Period 8 and again in Period 20.
Educated guess after one practice says Vick is the starter.”
In other words – some days Vick has a good day. Other days Foles has a good day. But then again it’s May – they are in shorts – and they are learning an all new system and playbook.
But thanks for “not reading too much into that.”
Keep your fingers crossed TS, cause that’s all you got.
“Vick looked comfortable within the offense, making quick decisions, a few of which were to run out of bounds without a receiving option.”
Wow….very detailed.
Not quite as detailed as this:
“There were a variety of reasons for Foles’ bigger workload. The biggest was his performance during some of the drills. On one possession where it was ruled that Vick was sacked on third down, the veteran only took three reps. Foles drove the second-team offense downfield immediately after and ran seven plays, compared to Vick’s three. It also unfolded where Foles’ turn came around during the final period of the practice. The second-year quarterback ran the final six plays of OTAs. Vick didn’t run any during the final period.”
Running OB and getting “sacked” (on a stopwatch) during 7 on 7s. Good early signs from your hero.
What will I be able to write about when he gets released before TC? Man…..it’ll be so boring in here….
““There were a variety of reasons for Foles’ bigger workload. The biggest was his performance during some of the drills. On one possession where it was ruled that Vick was sacked on third down, the veteran only took three reps. Foles drove the second-team offense downfield immediately after and ran seven plays, compared to Vick’s three. It also unfolded where Foles’ turn came around during the final period of the practice. The second-year quarterback ran the final six plays of OTAs. Vick didn’t run any during the final period.””
Oh how we missed the point –
That was from FRIDAYS OTA’s – FRIDAY…
Tuesdays OTA’s were as I wrote above:
““Michael Vick and Nick Foles both split time with the first-team, but it was evident that Vick had the better day, if for no other reason than he didn’t take the risks Foles did throwing the ball.
Foles attempted the first deep ball of the afternoon Period 8. Incomplete.
Over the middle in Period 10, almost picked off.
Foles went for the home run again in Period 14, but couldn’t connect. During Period 20 and 21 — the offense runs a four-down set to get 10 yards — Foles couldn’t convert on a third-and-one attempt.
n Period 21, Foles hit an open WR — not looking in his direction — in the back of the leg.
Vick looked comfortable within the offense, making quick decisions, a few of which were to run out of bounds without a receiving option. Barkley didn’t throw the ball too well either, but he was the only one of the three to, at least that I saw, run the option, once in Period 8 and again in Period 20.
Educated guess after one practice says Vick is the starter.”
But KEEP missing the point – notice I didn’t say anything about who was going to ultimately be the starting QB because it’s MAY and it’s OTA’s and they are in SHORTS and they are still LEARNING the playbook –
For every bad thing you want to write about Vick – I can find an article that says the same about Foles –
They have both looked good and bad during OTA’s and overall (according to most reports) the offense hasn’t looked so great during these practices b/c everyone is still just LEARNING the playbook.
But yeah…keep cherry picking that information – I guess incompletions and hitting receivers in the leg with the football is all signs of a great starting QB as well.
From what Ive heard is the eagles are building up Foles to trade him. The consensus around the league is that they are showing him off as barter product..