Thoughts From Eagles-Colts

Eagles Give Strong Showing In Dress Rehearsal 

There were a great deal of positives to report from Indianapolis, as the Eagles turned in good efforts on both sides of the ball.

The Birds’ first-team offense had their best showing to date, consistently moving the football and making plays on their way to 17 points in the first half alone.

The offensive line, with another new starter in Stefan Wisniewski, did a good job protecting Sam Bradford, and allowed the veteran quarterback to facilitate the offense well. Bradford was sharp, completing 12 of 14 passes for 135 yards and a touchdown in the first half.

Bradford then led the team on a scoring drive to start the second half before leaving for the evening.

Dorial Green-Beckham played a number of snaps with the first team, and made his presence known. Green-Beckham made a fade route look easy, coming down with his first touchdown as an Eagle.

The only blemish from the starting offense came off of the clumsy hands of Nelson Agholor, who dropped what should have been an easy reception, and turned it into a turnover that led to an Indianapolis field goal.

Defense Looks Ready To Go

I don’t have a single bad thing to say about Jim Schwartz’s defense.

Schwartz’s unit has looked strong all preseason, and they look like they’re fired up and ready to go for the regular season.

Tonight, Schwartz’s group dominated against Andrew Luck and the first team offense of the Colts.

The defense rose to every challenge thrown their way.

After an early turnover in the first quarter, the red zone defense tightened up and forced the Colts to settle for a field goal. Later in the half, the stopped Indy on a fourth-and-one attempt. The pass rush generated constant pressure, and picked up three sacks in the first half alone.

To this point, we’ve yet to see any major weaknesses on the first-team defense. The defensive line looks strong and deep, with everyone from starters to reserves like Beau Allen making contributions. The secondary looks solid, and new additions Rodney McLeod and Leodis McKelvin look to be excellent additions.

This has been a fun group to watch so far, and I’m excited to see this defense get their first crack at regular season action in the coming weeks.

Quick Thoughts

Offense

• Stefan Wisniewski seemed to hold up well at left guard, starting in place of injured Isaac Seumalo. The offensive line depth has come along way from the disgraceful state that Chip Kelly decided to enter the season with a year ago.
• Josh Huff had one of his best performances as an Eagle tonight, playing with a sense of urgency in effort to keep his job. Huff caught two passes for 60 yards, including a 38-yard catch and run that set up the team’s first field goal. Huff also scored the club’s first touchdown on a redzone end-around run, a well-designed and executed play.
• Nelson Agholor looks more and more like a bust with each passing game. His drops are just flat out inexcusable.
• Rueben Randle didn’t make an appearance until the second half. He seems to be on the outside looking in at the wide receiver position.
• Paul Turner just keeps making plays.
• Trey Burton was involved with the offense throughout the night, something that I hope carries over to the regular season.
• We got a brief look at Wendell Smallwood before he left with a concussion.
• Kenjon Barner continues to look strong.

Defense

• C.J. Smith saw time with the first-team defense before Eric Rowe. I think there’s a decent chance the Eagles will try to trade Rowe before the final cuts.
• Rodney McLeod made two really nice plays. McLeod broke up a pass intended for Frank Gore on a third-and-goal in the first quarter that forced Indy to settle for three.
• Stephen Tulloch didn’t appear until late in the game.
• Bennie Logan, Beau Allen, and Connor Barwin all picked up sacks.
• Mychal Kendricks saw his first action of the preseason, and appeared to overrun a couple of plays.

Special Teams

• Cody Parkey missed an extra point, likely ending the kicking battle between him and Caleb Sturgis.
• Ed Reynolds missed a block, resulting in a blocked punt and Indy’s first touchdown.

Final Thoughts

I thought one thing that was apparent in the difference in approaches by Doug Pederson and Chip Kelly was on display tonight.

Throughout the Kelly era, we frequently would question the way certain players were used in the offense. Guys who seemingly flashed good ability were often ignored and forgotten, while others were used in ways that didn’t properly take advantage of the skillsets they brought to the table.

Pederson seems to be the opposite.

Whether it was using Green-Beckham’s size on a fade route, Trey Burton in three-tight end sets, or Josh Huff on a jet sweep, Pederson is showing that he may be able to find ways to work with what he’s given, and put players in a good position to succeed, a trait very important for successful head coaches.