Zone Read: Eagles-Texans, the Day After
SNAP COUNTS
I am currently writing this as my plane crosses over from Mississippi into Tennessee, and the Wifi isn’t great, so I’m having some trouble with formatting the tables for snap counts. Apologies for the different look this week. But here’s the offense:
Herremans left the game with an ankle injury, and he was already playing with a torn biceps. Andrew Gardner filled in for him at right guard and played 28 snaps.
With a run-heavy attack, Celek played 77 percent of the snaps and once again drew praise from Kelly after the game for his blocking. Zach Ertz was quiet and only played 29 percent of the snaps. He was open on an over route in the red zone in the second quarter, but Sanchez misfired.
Sproles touched the ball on seven of the 19 snaps he played. When he’s in the game, it’s not to be a spectator or decoy. He’s going to get the ball. Polk touched the ball on eight of the 14 snaps he played.
And the defense:
Earl Wolff filled in for Nate Allen and did not seem to distinguish himself. A week after playing a limited role, Kendricks played all but one snap. He should get used to that workload going forward.
Brandon Boykin played 53 percent of the snaps as the Texans went to 3- and 4-WR sets.
Brandon Graham played 20 snaps and had a sack.
***
GUESSING THE LINE: EAGLES (-5)
This one isn’t a guess as I accidentally saw the line already posted on Twitter.
The Panthers played Thursday night and get some extra time to prepare for the Monday night matchup. But they have not been good. Carolina is 3-5-1 and has a minus-59 point differential, third-worst in the NFC behind only Tampa and St. Louis. When Cam Newton is on, he’s tough, and Kelvin Benjamin is a difficult matchup when he can hold onto the ball. But the Panthers’ defense is not the same, and this line could go up in the coming days.