It’s been a long NFL season, but the postseason is here. Now, you probably didn’t get to study the entire playoff field in-depth during the regular season. No worries. We’ve put together guides that will help you become an instant expert on all 12 teams making up the field.
These guides will tell you how each team uses its personnel on both sides of the ball, what its strategic tendencies are and how efficient the team is based on several advanced metrics.
In this guide, we’ll be looking at the Philadelphia Eagles, who won a lackluster NFC East with a 9-7 record. Let’s get to know them…
EAGLES OFFENSE
We examined why the Eagles wanted to use so much 12 personnel — they have two good tight ends — and why that grouping’s failings were hurting the Eagles through Week 13 (because those tight ends weren’t playing well.) It’s unclear whether Zach Ertz will be able to play against the Seahawks but expect the Eagles to lean heavily on the two-tight end set anyway: 70 percent of Philly’s plays over the last four weeks of the season came from that formation (by far the most in the league), and the team doesn’t have enough healthy talent at WR to stray from it now.
Much has been made of Carson Wentz’s impressive end to the season, and rightfully so:
Carson Wentz in December:
145/219, 1,509 yards, 10 touchdowns, 1 INT, passer rating of 99.29.
WITH PRACTICE SQUAD PLAYERS!
— Dave Zangaro (@DZangaroNBCS) December 30, 2019
But Doug Pederson deserves credit, too, as he’s opted to have Wentz throw more screen passes (he led the league, by a wide margin, in yards on screen passes over the team’s 4-game winning streak) and given him increased check-down options, especially in the middle of the field. Wentz’s play has undoubtedly improved and the narrative that he’s carrying the Eagles isn’t wrong — it’s just that he’s doing it through an offense that has been simplified to deal with a severe loss of talent.
Miles Sanders and Boston Scott have emerged as formidable options, and Jordan Howard is slowly making his way back from a stinger that cost him six games. The Eagles did lose right guard Brandon Brooks to a shoulder injury, though, and Lane Johnson has been dealing with an ankle injury but cold return.
EAGLES DEFENSE
Malcolm Jenkins continues to be one of the most dynamic defensive players in the NFL and the Eagles shift him around the field accordingly. His versatility in coverage and near the line means Philly can get out of base more often and feature more diverse coverages.
The Eagles defense, scorched time after time early in the season, has steadied a bit in the second half. Defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz has four perfectly average corners that he has deployed with startling efficiency lately, in part because he’s mixed up coverages more frequently. Schwartz remains mostly reticent to blitz but has increasingly pushed linebackers to the line to try to flummox blocking schemes with the appearance of an extra rusher or two.
Jalen Mills and Sidney Jones and Avonte Maddox and Rasul Douglas — those are the Eagles corners — have all, at times, struggled mightily in downfield coverage. Or just any coverage, really. There’s simply not a lock-down corner in the bunch, so confounding QBs pre-snap and pressuring them with a four-man rush has been key. Fletcher Cox has squelched opponent running attacks and caved pockets, while Derek Barnett has blossomed into a true threat on the edge.
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