Eagles-Packers: What can be done to clean up things on special teams?

The Eagles demolished the Packers on the ground with 363 yards rushing and overcame leaky defense and special teams in a 40-33 victory at Lincoln Financial Field on Sunday night. Win, lose, or draw, here’s what we learned:

What can be done about the Eagles’ substandard special teams? If the suggestions have to do with wholesale personnel changes or firing coordinator Michael Clay, it’s not going to happen on a team with a 10-1 record that is currently occupying the No. 1 seed in the NFC. But minor tweaks can be made. The Eagles already replaced Britain Covey with Boston Scott on kick returns and, based on the eye test alone, it has been an upgrade.

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Covey could be on a short leash with several players returning from injury over the next several weeks. He was on the field for just two snaps against the Packers and fair-caught one punt and watched another get downed. But who else could return punts? DeVonta Smith has been utilized a few times, but do the Eagles want to further expose one of their key offensive players? Scott has been more of a kick returner during his career, but Covey’s 6.8 yards per return shouldn’t be that hard to improve upon.

As poor as the Eagles’ return game has been — they rank 30th on kicks and 27th on punts — their kick coverage unit has been abysmal. It ranks second to last in the NFL and allowed 38-, 52- and 53-yard returns to Green Bay’s Keisean Nixon. He entered the game ranked No. 2 in the NFL, so I’m not quite sure why Clay decided to not just have Jake Elliott boot the ball out of the back of the end zone to start.

The returns, ultimately, didn’t cost the Eagles the game. But something is awry in how the players are accounting for their lanes. Personnel could be part of the issue. The Eagles don’t have what could be described as a special teams ace in the mold of Colt Anderson or Chris Maragos. Maybe it’s time coach Nick Sirianni starts calling upon more starters to chip in. Howie Roseman is certainly scouring the waiver wire for such a talent. Maybe there’s a free agent on the street? But Clay should be able to coach up the hand he has been dealt.

Special teams haven’t been a complete abomination. Zech McPhearson has been a revelation as a gunner. Elliott’s game-clinching 54-yard field goal against the Packers was huge. He missed an extra point and hasn’t been relied upon as much as usual. The ankle injury that forced the Eagles to acquire Cameron Dicker, who kicked the game-winner against the Arizona Cardinals, could still be lingering. Yet Elliott has been the least of the special teams concerns. Even punter Arryn Siposs has settled down some after a slow start. But there have been far too many penalties, mistakes, and missed assignments for the special teams’ struggles to be casually tossed aside simply because the Eagles have only one loss. At some point — possibly when it matters most — it could cost them dearly.

The Birds suffered another blow to their defense when safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson left in the second quarter with a rib injury. It was unclear as of Monday morning how long he may be out, but Gardner-Johnson’s exit via cart suggested a return by Sunday’s game vs. the Titans could be a stretch. Rookie Reed Blankenship wasn’t overwhelmed when pressed into duty. He jumped a route from deep coverage to intercept Aaron Rodgers and made several stops in the open field. He made mistakes — an unnecessary roughness personal foul and taking a bad angle on Christian Watson’s 63-yard touchdown were the most prominent — which was to be expected. But greater tests will come if he’s to fill in for Gardner-Johnson for an extended period.

Blankenship got a small taste the week before after supplanting K’Von Wallace in the big dime package. But safety is where the Eagles are most inexperienced, and opposing offenses are likely to challenge Marcus Epps and company with Gardner-Johnson likely sidelined. Defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon was already light in the secondary with slot cornerback Avonte Maddox out with a hamstring injury. His replacement, Josiah Scott, has been inconsistent. He did do well to snatch and keep both feet inbounds on a Darius Slay-deflected pass for an interception. A week after allowing four catches for 82 yards on six targets vs. the Indianapolis Colts, Scott wasn’t under siege as much. But Epps was and allowed four catches for 118 yards and two touchdowns when targeted by Packers quarterbacks. (I’m not sure Epps deserves as much blame as Gannon does on the Watson score.) Maddox isn’t eligible to come off injured reserve for at least another week, so Gannon will likely just have to hold his breath and scheme up coverages to account for the undermanned personnel in the secondary.

On the potential good news side of the injury ledger, nose tackle Jordan Davis can come off IR this week. He didn’t appear to be limited by the high ankle sprain that has kept him out for the last month as he jogged in through the postgame tunnel toward the Eagles’ locker room. That may only be anecdotal evidence that Davis is ready to return, but recent indications suggest he’ll be back for Tennessee. The run defense initially fell short of sustaining the loss. Veteran Linval Joseph was brought aboard and immediately upgraded the unit vs. the Colts. But he appeared to take a step back a week later. Davis’ return will be welcomed with the Titans’ Derrick Henry and the New York Giants’ Saquon Barkley next on the slate. The Eagles had some shaky moments against the Packers’ rushing attack — some based on scheme and calls — but they need the 6-foot-6, 336-pound Davis back to help get the job done.

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The Eagles did better on offense to account for the absence of Dallas Goedert. It took a week because Sirianni and offensive coordinator Shane Steichen didn’t seem to know how to look without the tight end. But they wisely decreased their use of 12 and 13 personnel (two- and three-tight end sets) and went heavy with 11 (three receivers). A.J. Brown played the most snaps of the receivers (77 of 80), even though he was coming off an illness. Smith was in and out of the medical tent, so that may have been part of the reason that Brown had a higher percentage of snaps than normal. Quez Watkins benefited from more 11 personnel and played his highest percentage of snaps (66 of 80) this season. Sirianni seemed to want to exploit the Eagles’ speed advantage, and just before the half, split Watkins wide vs. Rasul Douglas. The Packers cornerback played off the line and Watkins caught a back-shoulder pass for a 30-yard touchdown.

Watkins has 11 catches for 171 yards and two scores in his last four games. In his first seven, he had only six catches for 88 yards and a touchdown. Watkins had the costly fumble against Washington two weeks back, but the Eagles have done well to get him involved with Goedert out and to give opposing defenses one more weapon to account for.

» READ MORE: The Eagles’ A.J. Brown just finished a rough week. He has another ahead of him, preparing to face his old team.

The Eagles guard left another game briefly only to return and finish. Dickerson has been dealing with a leg injury of some sort. He’s been limited at practice, but only as a “resting player” over the last month. His last injury designation was for an “ankle” ahead of the Dallas Cowboys game in mid-October. A game doesn’t seem to go by without Dickerson getting up slowly or needing a spell. He seemed to be particularly affected by quarterback sneaks on Sunday night, and understandably so. Sneaks can be punishing assignments for offensive linemen.

Dickerson hasn’t looked as dominant as he did early in the season, or even as he did in the second half of last season when the light bulb first went on for the then-rookie. But he remains a valuable commodity, especially as a space-clearer in the run game. Could he benefit from a week of rest? Well, that depends on how much pain he can absorb and if time off would even help. Dickerson’s extensive history of injuries has been well documented. But he has yet to miss an entire game since the Eagles drafted him in the second round. Of note has been Andre Dillard’s emergence as the reserve swing tackle-guard, which has saved a game-day roster spot. Guard Sua Opeta hasn’t been active for the last four games.

Offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland’s ability to get reserves ready and able to not only play, but to play multiple spots, can’t be taken for granted. Year in and year out, he has pulled off minor miracles whenever the O-line has been dealt the injury card. But it’s also time that Stoutland, also the running game coordinator, received national recognition for his acumen in run play design and execution. The Eagles don’t rush for a remarkable 363 yards — just 15 yards short of their 74-year-old franchise mark — without his input. He has embraced quarterback Jalen Hurts’ plus-one factor in the running game and has found new and inventive ways to break him and the Eagles running backs free.

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The Pro Football Writers’ assistant coach of the year award has always gone to an offensive or defensive coordinator and there are many candidates for the award this season. But Stoutland at least deserves consideration. His latest wrinkle involved rookie center Cam Jurgens as a tackle-eligible blocker near the goal line. Don’t be surprised to see Jurgens in more run sets. He’s too talented to not use in certain situations.

Another week, another early drive in which the four-man front got gashed vs. the run. Jonathan Gannon may have been matching personnel with the package, but offenses continue to exploit the Eagles’ lack of gap integrity in 4-2 spacing. The Packers rushed for 30 yards and a touchdown on two carries vs. the front on their first scoring series. Gannon, again, adjusted and mostly employed his 5-man fronts on obvious run downs. But it wasn’t quite enough as the Packers countered with outside zone runs and inside traps and counters.

Packers coach Matt LaFleur and Gannon then got into a cat-and-mouse game, with each seemingly challenging the other to alter his approach. LaFleur wanted to run the ball with Aaron Jones and A.J. Dillon, knowing his offense has been mostly ineffective when it has leaned on the pass. Gannon knew as much and countered with a large dose of heavy fronts. Joseph played a whopping 61% of the snaps (30 of 49), which may have had something to do with his struggles at nose tackle. But why did it again take Gannon a few series to adjust?

More balanced offenses will be able to check to pass plays vs. run looks with more effectiveness. That is one reason why Gannon leans on his 4-2 front, and when he wants an odd-man front but wants to have nickel personnel, the 5-1. But he has to be more consistent in how he marries his pass rush with his coverages. It was an odd performance from the defense. They had two interceptions, got off the field on six of seven third downs, and forced field goals on two of four red zone possessions. So why did the Eagles allow 33 points?

The offense’s first-half turnover on downs and a fumble didn’t help. Neither did the kickoff coverage. But mostly it was because the defense was wretched on first and second down. The Packers gained 223 of their 342 yards on just nine plays that occurred on early downs. The defense was lucky the offense was able to control a large chunk of the clock by running the ball. Gannon and his unit have been better than average for most weeks. But file this one under one of their lesser outings.

Just last week, I mentioned the possibility of Gannon finding a defensive package for rookie linebacker Nakobe Dean. It’s not like Kyzir White has been lighting it up. But it would be easier to make a case if Dean was standing out on special teams. … The Eagles eclipsed last season’s sack total of 30 last week and now have 35 through 11 games after stacking up three more vs. the Packers. Haason Reddick added to his team-high eight by splitting a sack with Brandon Graham. Josh Sweat added another. And Fletcher Cox recorded his fourth of the season — a half-sack more than his total from last year — and first since Week 3. … Center Jason Kelce set a franchise record for games played by an offensive lineman (170), eclipsing Hall of Famer Chuck Bednarik. The team mark for games played by any player is held by kicker David Akers (188). Kelce has also played and started in 133 consecutive regular-season games, 140 overall.