Regrading the Eagles vs. Rams: Film review shows Landon Dickerson’s dominance, Sean Desai’s brilliance

Regrading the Eagles’ 23-14 win over the Rams on Sunday upon reviewing the coaches’ film (original instant grades here):

The Eagles’ plan for Aaron Donald was essentially the same the first four times they saw the Rams defensive tackle: Get as many blockers on him as possible. And it worked once again. Donald was held to zero sacks and zero quarterback hits in 34 pass rush attempts. He finished with four tackles — just one solo — as a run defender. Credit goes to many, but offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland has been the lone consistent in the Eagles shutting Donald out from sacks in five games total. (Only the Jets, in two meetings, have also held him sack-less over his career.)

Center Jason Kelce didn’t play the first time Donald faced the Eagles in 2014. His consecutive-game streak — which will become a franchise record 145 on Sunday at the Jets — started three weeks after that game. But Kelce has been the maestro in the middle since. On Sunday, he slid protection toward the future Hall of Famer, often to the benefit of right guard Sua Opeta, who was filling in for the injured Cam Jurgens. But Donald lined up in multiple spots and tried various moves to get past the wall of blockers.

If Kelce was the O-line brains behind the operation, then Landon Dickerson (No. 69) was its brawn. The left guard had one of his best games. He had help, as well, when necessary vs. Donald (No. 99). Sometimes it came from Kelce. Sometimes it was left tackle Jordan Mailata (No. 68) providing an extra hand, as seen here.

Dickerson is 6-foot-6, 332 pounds of granite. He’s the Belaz 75710 of dump trucks. His size may make some underestimate his athleticism, though. He’s deceptively quick and nimble. Stoutland emphasized this point during Dickerson’s rookie season and after an unnamed scout said the Alabama product was “just a guy” before the draft. How else could he have handled this stunt by Donald and in the process nearly tip him over?

The Eagles struggled to get much going on the ground in the first half. But play caller Brian Johnson didn’t abandon the run and his patience paid off with running back D’Andre Swift (No. 0) gaining 63 of his 70 rushing yards after the break. Containing Donald in the run game was key, as well. Here are Dickerson and Mailata creating a seam — or a “vertical void,” as Stoutland likes to call it — for Swift. The tailback took care of the rest himself.

Defensive coordinator Sean Desai dipped deep into his personnel and bag of coverages to account for the Eagles’ deficiency at slot. All seven defensive backs lined up inside at some point vs. the Rams. Four different cornerbacks — Mario Goodrich, Eli Ricks, Bradley Roby and Darius Slay — took turns covering the slot receiver. The results weren’t promising early. Goodrich and Ricks split the first drive, with the former on the field on run downs and the latter on pass downs. But Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford took advantage of each through the air and hooked up with receiver Cooper Kupp for five catches for 56 yards on the Rams’ touchdown-scoring opening drive.

» READ MORE: How Sean Desai’s Eagles defense made adjustments and shut out Rams in second half of the Week 5 win

Roby, who was signed just last week, took the next series. Desai wanted to limit his playing time. He ended up playing 25 of 56 snaps. You could see some of the rust and the fact that he had just been tossed into a new scheme. But Roby (No. 33, bottom) showed how he understands leverage without a boundary.

He has 10 years of mileage on his 31-year-old body and began his NFL career as mostly an outside corner. But he moved inside in later years. Tackling was an issue with his previous team, the Saints. The Eagles like Goodrich (No. 31) in run support, so Desai may continue with a rotation that plays to various strengths. But Goodrich’s coverage was suspect enough against the Rams to suggest he won’t be out there much on pass-obvious downs.

Desai had Slay shadow Kupp for a few possessions, but that idea didn’t work either. The veteran had trouble keeping up with the All-Pro, and the move also created communication issues. The Eagles went back to their original usage plan, but Desai used a combination of bracket coverages to help the slots vs. Kupp and receiver Puka Nacua. The exotic looks also forced Stafford into some errant throws even though he had receivers open downfield on occasion.

Kupp had just three catches after the first drive as the Eagles shut out the Rams in the second half. The slot corners didn’t necessarily make a ton of plays, but they were sound enough in their coverages to execute the scheme. It was easily Desai’s finest moment in his first season as the team’s defensive coordinator.