Eagles All-22 movie review: Observations of the Panthers win
Hello BGN, it’s been a long time! However, I am back and will now have a movie after every game.
I’ll break the movie down on my Twitter account and then upload the tweets with some more analysis in this post. Obviously I can’t post everything so I’m going to focus each week on some things that stand out to me. I can see something multiple times on film, but only download one example because you don’t have to see everything so you’ll have to take my word for it if I say I’ve seen something multiple times.
I will break down attacking followed by defense each week and I will post the games in order so you can see how the game went. Sometimes I can focus on a specific area, I will see how each game goes. I just pick the most important games and highlight some of the players who stood out for me. As always, let me know your thoughts in the comments and I look forward to discussing the game with all of you. Let’s come to the cinema!
OFFENSE
For the first 4 workouts, the offense consisted mostly of RPOs, screen passes, RB swing passes, curl runs and the occasional run. It was a complete disaster. Nick Sirianni was to expect the Panthers to go out in the blitz and aggressively step onto the pitch with their defensive ends, but they did the opposite and the Eagles took way too long to adjust. Some calls had absolutely no chance of working.
The DE Panthers have been excellent against the Eagles’ screen play from the start. The Eagles obviously expected them to fly up high, but they did the opposite and continued to catch the RB from behind. Sirianni must have been surprised and should have changed things faster pic.twitter.com/9LGPyP1GE4
– Jonny Page (@ JonnyPage9) 12 October 2021
Something I have noticed with Jalen Hurts is his inability to read RPOs properly. I am convinced that he makes up his mind too early and that he fails to adapt to late movements.
There is a lot of talk about the run / pass ratio but there is a lot of RPO going on. Hurts throws normally but chooses to run here … assuming it’s an RPO he MUST throw the bubble screen here as they are clearly 3on2 at the top of the screen pic.twitter.com/p8NP2O0Ciy
– Jonny Page (@ JonnyPage9) 12 October 2021
Speaking of Hurts, it’s a tough game to make, but I’d love to see him work on stepping up the pocket without looking down.
3rd is a tough game for a QB but I’d like Hurts to step up here and hit Smith at the top of the screen. The pocket collapses, but sometimes you have to get up and go and not look down and try to run. It may take a while but I want to see some progress here. pic.twitter.com/uO3H8v2frD
– Jonny Page (@ JonnyPage9) 12 October 2021
On the positive side, he showed a good example of this later on, proving he can do it!
THIS! I said earlier that I wanted to see Hurts keep his eyes down and feel the pressure rather than scramble. It was by far the best game of the first half. More of that please (and more targets for Smith) pic.twitter.com/srVKhF010G
– Jonny Page (@ JonnyPage9) 12 October 2021
Let’s move on to another 2020 draft pick! Jalen Reagor doesn’t play with a lot of effort and, to be honest, he’s a bad road racer. There are things he can do with the ball in his hands, but I think the Eagles need to cut down on his snaps and target him as little as possible.
Concept of road 2 WR, Reagor seems so unnatural to me. He was the first read here. Can we try Watkins on these in the future? pic.twitter.com/b90AwhdgX3
– Jonny Page (@ JonnyPage9) 12 October 2021
Hurts had a few really bad hiccups that he’ll probably have nightmares about again. Sirianni finally adjusted towards the end of the first half and had some nice play calls.
Again, no need for the all22 to review this. Worse at second glance. Wide open, no pressure and he looks straight. Just incorrect. Nothing else to say. However, check out the speed of Watkins running … he can fly. pic.twitter.com/uRABjpExkc
– Jonny Page (@ JonnyPage9) 12 October 2021
* In the clip above, the sewing route is being run by DeVonta Smith, not Quez Watkins. I was shocked when someone reported it because to be honest I didn’t know Smith could fly like this. I also LOVE the little hand in the air when it knows it might open.
Again, another missed read in my opinion.
After a pretty gruesome start, Hurts Is deserve credit for not getting fully into the tank and making some nice plays at the end of the game. I thank Sirianni for adjusting so well when he realized the Panthers were sitting on short passes and limiting the YAC.
DEFENSE
It was a completely different defense than what we’ve seen before from Jonathan Gannon and it was really interesting to watch. The Eagles mixed up covers, disguised covers and even had linebackers depending on how the Panthers lined up. There were a lot of 5-man fronts in this game, which helped to limit some of the Panthers’ action deployments with Darnold. The Eagles immediately lined up for a safety and man blanket in midfield, which hasn’t happened much this year …
Eagles Panthers all22 Thread of Defense … The Eagles’ approach was immediately different against the Panthers. First defensive game, only higher with M2M coverage. Singleton playing the only LB with the 5 on the line makes a good play here. pic.twitter.com/7UHi2QGtb2
– Jonny Page (@ JonnyPage9) 12 October 2021
When the Panthers went to base, the Eagles responded by completely changing the LBs and playing TJ Edwards and Davion Taylor. It’s an interesting combination because Taylor is extremely athletic, but I thought Edwards had the best game of any Eagles linebacker.
The Eagles also liked going 5-2-4 with Edwards / Taylor against some formations. Here you can see Taylor sliding but he has the speed to react and cover the ground quickly. Will be interesting to see if his role becomes more important in the future. Also note that security arrives late. pic.twitter.com/tiDvkIH4jy
– Jonny Page (@ JonnyPage9) 12 October 2021
I don’t remember seeing Taylor lose a block and make a good tackle much before (including his college tape), so that’s a pretty good sign. pic.twitter.com/vjJ3haEVUh
– Jonny Page (@ JonnyPage9) 12 October 2021
The Eagles still played a lot of 2-highs, but they shuffled their coverage a lot more than they had before. They also moved Slay for the first time this season. I don’t have the numbers, but I guess Slay was in line in front of DJ Moore every time Moore was in line outside. I didn’t see him follow him into the lunge which was when Moore had most of his success.
This by Slay is a great team defense. Darnold goes for the old 2 hole cover shot. Slay handles the hi-lo well and doesn’t give Darnold an easy decision and the DL plants the pocket to force a pitch. This is Slay’s perfect C2 technique. pic.twitter.com/zZARr0Yh3t
– Jonny Page (@ JonnyPage9) 12 October 2021
Rupture: an Eagles blitz !!
I know Darnold is finishing this, but this piece doesn’t bother me at all. The Eagles disguising the covers early (which they haven’t done recently), drop security, and bring back a slot CB blitz that nails Darnold. Also check that Singleton blows up the RB on the blitz pic.twitter.com/GnaHbVEi5f
– Jonny Page (@ JonnyPage9) 12 October 2021
TJ Edwards playing in the base suits him because he is excellent at it.
Slay was also not the only Eagles cornerback to appear on Sunday. I thought Avonte Maddox and Steven Nelson played well.
Not quite sure about the cover here (some sort of C2 with a CB inside carrying anything down?) But it’s one hell of a Maddox game. Carrying receiver 2 along the seam with external leverage is a difficult game to achieve. pic.twitter.com/8vGXdMQpsw
– Jonny Page (@ JonnyPage9) 12 October 2021
Breaking: A shot from the Eagles along the defensive line! Gannon has clearly adjusted this week and started airing some things that we haven’t seen much on tape this year. The Eagles’ defensive line has done very well with stunts in recent years and they have had success with this game a few times.
I loved how similar Slay’s second interception and Nelson’s were. I was really impressed with both this week.
Technique almost identical to Slay earlier which is a sign of good coaching. Don’t turn around and run too early (as you shouldn’t be in C4 or quarter / quarter / half as it looks here), stay in phase then explode forward and play on the ball. It is very nice! pic.twitter.com/fbwQvaRNne
– Jonny Page (@ JonnyPage9) 12 October 2021
That will do the trick for this week. It certainly wasn’t the best game I have ever watched, but I was happy to see the defense show new looks and the attack adapt (albeit too slowly) throughout the game. Until next week.