Nick Sirianni’s input on offense, the improved defense, the trade deadline, and Reddit’s biggest Eagles questions
From the Eagles’ slow starts to the potential for a move at the trade deadline, we answer your biggest questions of the week.
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After each Eagles game this season, Inquirer columnist David Murphy will answer questions posed by Eagles fans on Reddit about what they saw on the field — and what it means moving forward — in a weekly mailbag of sorts.
Here are some of the best questions we received from r/Eagles this week, as well some answers, following the Eagles’ 28-3 win over the New York Giants on Sunday …
Q. Do the Eagles script their first 15 plays? Follow-up question: Does Nick have any input into the 15 plays?
David Murphy: The whole notion of scripting is probably a little overblown, definitely a little oversimplified. Each play call depends on down-and-distance and field position. Each of those things are determined by the result of the previous play(s). So in order to actually script “the first 15 plays,” a coach would have to know the result of each of those plays. Or, at least, the first 14.
» READ MORE: Eagles stats: Saquon Barkley’s top speed, defensive domination highlight blowout win over Giants
I’d venture to say every coach enters a game knowing how the first 15 plays will go if each of those 15 plays works and if the defense reacts how it is expected to react. But so much happens at the line of scrimmage these days that I think the classic notion of a straight 15-play script is probably dated. Maybe I’m being a little pedantic. Just think a better way of looking at it is the “script” consisting of a core group of 15-20 plays categorized by down, distance and field position.
In that sense, Nick Sirianni absolutely has input. He’s the head coach. He’s setting the agenda. He’s leading the conversation. He’s sharing his thoughts.
Q. Do the Eagles know that you can throw the ball in the middle of the field?
Murphy: This is a Jalen Hurts thing more than it is an “Eagles” thing. Hurts’ size and arm strength are limiting factors when it comes to seeing and attacking the middle of the field. And, at the end of the day, he’s the one who decides where the ball ends up going.
Q. Is the defense this good or is it fool’s gold?
Murphy: We’ll find out a lot more against the Bengals this week. The Eagles have played two straight games against offenses that were severely limited. The Giants had all kinds of offensive line problems. The Browns had Deshaun Watson. They’ve allowed 385-plus yards to the three best offenses they’ve played. Joe Burrow and the Bengals will be a chance to see how much they really have improved.
Q. When is the last time the Eagles defense went back-to-back weeks without allowing a TD? I can’t recall any stretch.
Murphy: Great question. The last time they’d done it was 2017, Weeks 11 and 12 against the Cowboys and Bears, per Pro-Football-Reference. They haven’t gone three straight weeks since the 1950′s.
» READ MORE: Eagles QB Jalen Hurts is finding balance between taking care of the football and hitting explosive plays
Q. Since all the Bulldogs feasted Sunday, has your apprehension from their draft picks subsided?
Murphy: I was never apprehensive about Jalen Carter. He’s a beast and that was clear from the moment they drafted him. Nakobe Dean has yet to show that he is a legitimate NFL starting linebacker. One of the lowest rated at the position by Pro Football Focus heading into last week. Kelee Ringo is a fourth cornerback. Jordan Davis is a solid-but-not-dominant defensive tackle. Nothing I saw last week changed my thoughts on any of that.
Q. If we make a trade, what position do we go for? We might need O-line depth or an upgrade at safety.
Murphy: I’d be surprised if they make a real difference-making trade. Offensive line depth would make a lot of sense. The Kevin Byard trade last year kind of highlights the difficulty of actually upgrading a position midseason.
Q. Side question: Not that we’re expecting anything now or recently, but what’s the status of Laekin Vakalahi? What’s his progress looking like?
Murphy: Like we saw with Jordan Mailata, progress for a player like Vakalahi is more of a year-by-year thing than a week-by-week thing. We don’t get to see practice, so I couldn’t even give you a firsthand approximation. Intriguing guy, for sure.