Eagles vs Patriots SBLII GDT

[childofpudding]

1 hour ago, BLick12 said:

The teams that have been most effective against us are the ones that use our aggressive against us.  A commitment to the run, play action, misdirection, end-arounds and screens are the best ways to attack this defense.  If the Pats lineup in 12 personnel, I think they are doing themselves a disservice.  I think they'll be far better spreading us out, utilizing a quick passing game (we give receivers way too much respect on the perimeter) with a healthy dose of Lewis and James White with both runs and short designed passes.  

I honestly, think the Eagles base defense might be a Nickle D this game.  Najee Goode is such a liability, that I think they'll do everything they can do keep him off the field. They may even roll Malcolm Jenkins down to play LB if the Pats do go with a lot of heavy formations.

Yes, I noticed a lot of soft coverage on the outside. If they do that against the Patriots, I think they're going to get eaten up. The Patriots have a pretty patient offense, and don't mind picking up 1st down after 1st down as they march down the field. I'd be surprised if the Eagles go with that. It feeds right into quick throws that pick up chunk yardage and negate the Eagles' great pass rush.

You may be right about the 12 personnel. I'm not sure to be honest. And yes, I definitely expect mostly 4-2 Nickel from their D with Jenkins or Robinson in the box on expected runs. I still think the Patriots might be able to catch them with Goode or Ellerbe out on the field, and exploit that, but the opportunities will be rare. Patriots might also run some no-huddle just to limit the Eagles' ability to rotate guys on the DL.

I'm also not sure about Lewis/Burkhead/White in the passing game. Eagles' D swarmed and tackled really well against MIN on throws out of the backfield.

[TheRealMcCoy]

Is it weird that I'm not really scared of this Patriots team?

Don't get me wrong. I'm not trying to imply this will be an easy game or that the Patriots can't win. It's just that I'm much more confident than nervous heading into this Sunday. 

I respect the hell out of Brady and Belichick. This Patriots team as a whole is probably a little underrated. Obviously this isn't the greatest New England team, but I feel like they really stepped it up in the 2nd half of the season as they basically encapsulated the moniker of a bend but don't break defense.

The biggest thing for me is how we outclass them in the trenches and that is really where any team needs to be strong to beat them.

Our offensive line is playing at a crazy high level right now and our defensive line is always generally very good.

The advantage I think our d-line has over say the Jaguars is the depth. Our linemen have played a lot less snaps than other teams cause we were 1st in time of possession and rotate guys a lot.

Just look at the snap counts (defensive only) for the Jags and Eagles top d-linemen:

Calais Campbell - 807 snaps

Yannick Ngakoue - 772 snaps

Malik Jackson - 768 snaps

Brandon Graham - 666 snaps

Fletcher Cox - 608 snaps

Timmy Jernigan - 492 snaps

In the 2nd half of games opposing defenses wear down and the Patriots take advantage.

I feel like that will be harder against an Eagles team with about as fresh of legs as you could expect at this point in the season.

As far as our offense against their defense. I didn't have a lot of faith in Foles coming into the playoffs, but he has got better as he has gone on. Playing pretty well in the 2nd half of the Falcons game and then having the best game of his career against the Vikings. We heard all week leading up to the NFCCG that Foles looked sharp in practice and sounded more confident from Philadelphia beat writers.

However, if the Patriots get enough pressure on him, then I think he can be rattled. New England uses a lot of stunts and that has notably given us trouble in the past (just look at the 49ers and Seahawks games), especially on the left side with Vaitai, so I'm worried about that and their disguised blitzes.

[TheRealMcCoy]

Also, just let me say that it is imperative for the Patriots that they don't put themselves in a hole like they did against the Falcons and Jaguars.

This Eagles team won't back off if they are up. They will absolutely go for the jugular and won't take their foot off until the clock hits zero.

[BLick12]

1 hour ago, childofpudding said:

Yes, I noticed a lot of soft coverage on the outside. If they do that against the Patriots, I think they're going to get eaten up. The Patriots have a pretty patient offense, and don't mind picking up 1st down after 1st down as they march down the field. I'd be surprised if the Eagles go with that. It feeds right into quick throws that pick up chunk yardage and negate the Eagles' great pass rush.

You may be right about the 12 personnel. I'm not sure to be honest. And yes, I definitely expect mostly 4-2 Nickel from their D with Jenkins or Robinson in the box on expected runs. I still think the Patriots might be able to catch them with Goode or Ellerbe out on the field, and exploit that, but the opportunities will be rare. Patriots might also run some no-huddle just to limit the Eagles' ability to rotate guys on the DL.

I'm also not sure about Lewis/Burkhead/White in the passing game. Eagles' D swarmed and tackled really well against MIN on throws out of the backfield.

We've got good speed at all levels of our defense, but as much as I love Bradham/Kendricks, they will have trouble accounting for both the run and guys like Lewis/White in the passing game.  Minnesota was most effective moving the ball by getting it into McKinnon's hands.  Those types of running backs have pretty consistently hurt us this year and last year under Schwartz.  I expect Gronk will draw a lot of attention from our safeties and LBs as well, which will free those guys a bit underneath.  

The Pats just have so many options to account for even without Edelman.  Belichick is an absolute master at maximizing a player's strengths and there are some great matchups for him against this defense. Having one of Hogan/Cooks on Mills is a dangerous gamble for the Eagles as well, as he's highly susceptible to double moves and doesn't have great distance speed.  

It has already been mentioned in this thread ad nauseam, but consistent pressure from our front 4 and a TOP controlling offense are really the only chances we have in this game.  

[BLick12]

8 minutes ago, TheRealMcCoy said:

Is it weird that I'm not really scared of this Patriots team?

Don't get me wrong. I'm not trying to imply this will be an easy game or that the Patriots can't win. It's just that I'm much more confident than nervous heading into this Sunday. 

I respect the hell out of Brady and Belichick. This Patriots team as a whole is probably a little underrated. Obviously this isn't the greatest New England team, but I feel like they really stepped it up in the 2nd half of the season as they basically encapsulated the moniker of a bend but don't break defense.

The biggest thing for me is how we outclass them in the trenches and that is really where any team needs to be strong to beat them.

Our offensive line is playing at a crazy high level right now and our defensive line is always generally very good.

The advantage I think our d-line has over say the Jaguars is the depth. Our linemen have played a lot less snaps than other teams cause we were 1st in time of possession and rotate guys a lot.

Just look at the snap counts (defensive only) for the Jags and Eagles top d-linemen:

Calais Campbell - 807 snaps

Yannick Ngakoue - 772 snaps

Malik Jackson - 768 snaps

Brandon Graham - 666 snaps

Fletcher Cox - 608 snaps

Timmy Jernigan - 492 snaps

In the 2nd half of games opposing defenses wear down and the Patriots take advantage.

I feel like that will be harder against an Eagles team with about as fresh of legs as you could expect at this point in the season.

As far as our offense against their defense. I didn't have a lot of faith in Foles coming into the playoffs, but he has got better as he has gone on. Playing pretty well in the 2nd half of the Falcons game and then having the best game of his career against the Vikings. We heard all week leading up to the NFCCG that Foles looked sharp in practice and sounded more confident from Philadelphia beat writers.

However, if the Patriots get enough pressure on him, then I think he can be rattled. New England uses a lot of stunts and that has notably given us trouble in the past (just look at the 49ers and Seahawks games), especially on the left side with Vaitai, so I'm worried about that and their disguised blitzes.

Snaps aside, we literally have 4 fresh lineman that we can have fill-in at a high level when needed. The Jags don't have that kind of depth. Chris Long might not be what he once was, but he's still a very solid DE.  

As for this game, I'm actually more confident against the Pats than I was going against either Atlanta or Minnesota.  But that is mostly because I've seen enough out of Doug Pederson to know that he'll make changes and can use Foles to his strengths. I also don't think the Pats d is anywhere as good as either Minnesota's or even Atlanta's.  With that said, this will undoubtedly be the best offense we face in the playoffs and you can be sure Belichick and Patricia will have enough time to prepare for this offense and give us some issues.  My biggest concern is if/when we'll see the true Nick Foles resurface.  He play phenomenal against Minnesota, but people are praising him a lot for an OK game against Atlanta.  If Keanu Neal intercepts that ball before the half, that's potentially a whole different ball game and a very different perception people have about Foles.

[TheRealMcCoy]

2 minutes ago, BLick12 said:

Snaps aside, we literally have 4 fresh lineman that we can have fill-in at a high level when needed. The Jags don't have that kind of depth. Chris Long might not be what he once was, but he's still a very solid DE.  

As for this game, I'm actually more confident against the Pats than I was going against either Atlanta or Minnesota.  But that is mostly because I've seen enough out of Doug Pederson to know that he'll make changes and can use Foles to his strengths. I also don't think the Pats d is anywhere as good as either Minnesota's or even Atlanta's.  With that said, this will undoubtedly be the best offense we face in the playoffs and you can be sure Belichick and Patricia will have enough time to prepare for this offense and give us some issues.  My biggest concern is if/when we'll see the true Nick Foles resurface.  He play phenomenal against Minnesota, but people are praising him a lot for an OK game against Atlanta.  If Keanu Neal intercepts that ball before the half, that's potentially a whole different ball game and a very different perception people have about Foles.

If I'm worried about anything its Brady playing uptempo.

And, none of those QBs that put up those stats against us in no huddle are Brady.

Hopefully we mix in enough press man to disrupt those quick to intermediate routes.

[BLick12]

2 minutes ago, TheRealMcCoy said:

If I'm worried about anything its Brady playing uptempo.

And, none of those QBs that put up those stats against us in no huddle are Brady.

Hopefully we mix in enough press man to disrupt those quick to intermediate routes.

Yep, you can be certain we will see a healthy dose of tempo. Belichick is going to harness his inner Chip Kelly for this one.

[TheRealMcCoy]

31 minutes ago, TheRealMcCoy said:

Also, just let me say that it is imperative for the Patriots that they don't put themselves in a hole like they did against the Falcons and Jaguars.

This Eagles team won't back off if they are up. They will absolutely go for the jugular and won't take their foot off until the clock hits zero.

Speaking of which I just found an article on this.

Quote

 

The game, however, is not played on paper -- and speaking to NJ Advance Media on Monday on radio row, CBS NFL analyst Pete Prisco explained what makes Pederson such a perfect coach for the big Super Bowl stage.

"The best thing about Doug Pederson is, he will not coach scared. There are too many coaches in this league who coach scared," Prisco said. "They are afraid to take chances. In the big stage they are going to curl up and play it the same way. Doug Pederson will not. He will go for it."

In just his two seasons in the NFL, Pederson has gained a reputation as one of the most aggressive coaches in the league. Pederson is not afraid to go for it on fourth downs and he loves to try to take shots down the field -- even with backup Nick Foles in the game. 

That coaching style, according to Prisco, could be an advantage against the Patriots. 

"If Jacksonville did not play scared on the second half, they might be here. They played scared. I don't think Doug Pederson will play scared. He is not going to get awed by the moment. He is not going to look across and see Bill Belichick over there and change the way he plays.  They will be aggressive. He will be aggressive."

 

Prisco did say he thinks the game will be "very close" but that "Brady will have a chance to win it in the end and he will get the points"...... pssssssh what a hater. 

[TheRealMcCoy]

Who was 47 years old when he took over as the Patriots HC in 2000?

Bill Belichick

Who was 47 years old when he was hired to be the Eagles HC in 2016?

Doug Pederson

Who won his first Super Bowl in his 2nd season as the underdog with a QB who was the back-up to start the season?

 Bill Belichick

Who is in his 2nd season with a team that is an underdog and has a QB that is the back-up?

[eagles18]

3 hours ago, ChazStandard said:

You do know that knowing the other teams signals isn't cheating, right? That it's just being good at football? That's what film rooms are for.

Kuechly is always being praised for knowing the offense's plays and audibles, because he's smart and he watches film. Not because he cheats.

so 10+ years later, they are being defended....? time really does heal all wounds

[Apparition]

Wonder how big my ignore list will get in the next 10 days...

[joeybrowner47]

Hey Vikings fan here.. I feel I need to get something off of my chest. I’ve been reading a lot about how us vikes fans are butthurt and salty about the loss.. while it totally sucks to lose to the eagles they thoroughly outplayed us and deserved to win. Congratulations to them on a great season! However what us Vikings fans just can’t stomach is the absolute classless way our fans were treated in philly. I had season tickets to the Vikings for many years and I never saw anything remotely close to that kind of behavior. I realize that every fan base is rabid for their team but aren’t we all Americans? Isn’t philly the city of brotherly love? As a nation we’re better than that! Vent over

[KManX89]

Un

1 hour ago, TheRealMcCoy said:

Who was 47 years old when he took over as the Patriots HC in 2000?

Bill Belichick

Who was 47 years old when he was hired to be the Eagles HC in 2016?

Doug Pederson

Who won his first Super Bowl in his 2nd season as the underdog with a QB who was the back-up to start the season?

 Bill Belichick

Who is in his 2nd season with a team that is an underdog and has a QB that is the back-up?

Unfortunately, you're gonna have to beat TWO teams on Sunday: 

'Nuf 'sed.

[Apparition]

1 minute ago, KManX89 said:

Un

Unfortunately, you're gonna have to beat TWO teams on Sunday: 

'Nuf 'sed.

 It's hilarious that you think this is in any way convincing.

[lancerman]

 

2 hours ago, TheRealMcCoy said:

Also, just let me say that it is imperative for the Patriots that they don't put themselves in a hole like they did against the Falcons and Jaguars.

This Eagles team won't back off if they are up. They will absolutely go for the jugular and won't take their foot off until the clock hits zero.

You do realize the Falcons most likely lost because they wouldn't play conservative and run the ball to chew up clock right? Like the Falcons were throwing the ball all day going for big time plays like the Julio play the whole second half. Right until the Patriots final possession. It always amuses me that the takeaway from that game is so wrong.