Zone Read: Eagles-Titans, the Day After
CAN SOMEONE PLEASE EXPLAIN…
1. Why Huff didn’t return another kickoff the rest of the game?
Kelly was asked that question after the game.
“Depending on what returns we were running, just depending on what [Dave] Fipp was calling,” he said. “One guy was running one return, one guy was running the other return.”
Chris Polk ended up returning the next two kickoffs.
It’s tough to figure out whether Kelly was telling the truth or not. If he was, it seems like a strange method. Why not get the guy who just took it 107 yards to the house back out there?
Huff continued to play on offense, so there didn’t appear to be an injury issue. For his part, Huff said he understood the plan and had no issue with it.
2. What Riley Cooper was doing on Mark Sanchez’s first interception?
Cooper was running a deep post, but let cornerback Brandon Ghee get in front of him for the pick near the end of the first quarter.
I asked Cooper what happened on the play.
“I should have flattened [the route] out,” he said. “He was playing inside leverage, and we tried to hit the post. He made a really good play on the ball. I should have come a little bit flatter across his face, but he [turned] and kind of cut me off going to the ball.”
In other words, Cooper did a poor job on his route.
“Coop and I just weren’t on the same page,” Sanchez said. “I was expecting something a little bit different, and I think he was too. That kind of stuff happens from time to time and those you can live with.”
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THE NUMBER THAT MATTERS: 23.5
That’s the number of combined sacks for the Eagles’ three primary outside linebackers Connor Barwin, Trent Cole and Brandon Graham. All of last year, those three combined for 16 sacks.
Barwin and Cole had two sacks apiece on Zach Mettenberger. Fletcher Cox added a fifth sack. The Eagles now have 38 sacks on the season.
“If I had to put one thing on any reason why my numbers are up from last year, I think without a doubt it’s the back end in their improvement as a group,” said Barwin, who now has 12.5 sacks on the season.
The Eagles transitioned from a 4-3 to a 3-4 last year. In the current defense, the outside linebackers are expected to be the guys who can get to the quarterback. OLBs coach Bill McGovern deserves a lot of credit for getting these guys to do just that.
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THE BEST OF 140
I know it’s a normal Sunday because the Eagles won but it feels like they lost.
— Arkansas Fred (@ArkansasFred) November 23, 2014
The life of an Eagles fan.
@SheilKapadia was that way with the Jets, too. Team never seemed intent on designing more plays to roll him out, tho.
— Football Perspective (@fbgchase) November 23, 2014
I noted on Twitter that Sanchez seems to be most accurate/comfortable on plays designed to get him outside the pocket. For example, he rolled to his right and fired a dart to James Casey for a 14-yard touchdown.
Chase follows the Jets (and the league) closely. Apparently this is nothing new, but I’d suspect we can expect to see a lot more plays like the Casey one in future weeks – especially in the red zone.
Maclin really has mastered the art of the sideline catch. Great body control.
— Tommy Lawlor (@lawlornfl) November 23, 2014
I said the exact same thing to McManus during the game.
That INT will go on Sanchez, but that is a junk quality route by Cooper. No finish.
— Louis Riddick (@LRiddickESPN) November 23, 2014
This was my initial thought as well when the play unfolded. Can’t say my opinion changed that much after talking to Cooper.
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