Michael Vick has seized control back at the line of scrimmage.
Entering the year, he and Jason Kelce planned to share responsibilities pre-snap so Vick could focus on the other tasks at hand. While Vick had final say, it was the center that was calling out the bulk of the protections. Even when Kelce went down and the unproven Dallas Reynolds stepped in, the set-up stayed in place.
The intended results never came. In fact, instead of Vick feeling more focused in, he actually felt somewhat disengaged.
“Mike, when he’s forced to fix the protections like he was last year, I think he is more in tune to everything,” said Kelce. “That’s one of the things that we ran into problems with at camp was sometimes when you have the center doing a lot of that, the quarterback kind of goes on autopilot. I think that’s why Mike wanted to move back to that. He feels more mentally engaged and he feels like he’s more part of it, he has to focus on each and every play.”
Every Thursday we select a few of your Twitter questions and provide the long-form answers they deserve. For a chance to have your question published on Birds 24/7, send it to @Tim_McManus.
LeSean McCoy was absent from practice for a second straight day Thursday because of illness.
A source close to McCoy spoke with the running back earlier in the day and said McCoy is feeling better.
“There’s no way he isn’t playing,” said the source.
Through six games, the Eagles’ pass defense looked like a much-improved unit from the one that took the field in 2011.
That’s why when Andy Reid decided to fire Juan Castillo and promote Todd Bowles, it made sense on some levels. Bowles, after all, was the man in charge of the secondary. At the time, the Eagles led the league in opponents’ completion percentage (52.7) and were tied for the second-best mark in yards per attempt (6.2).
Results have not been so good in the last two games, as the Eagles have allowed five touchdowns and come up with no interceptions. Matt Ryan and Drew Brees did whatever they wanted, completing a staggering 76.8 of their passes while averaging 8.9 yards per attempt. So what’s been the problem?
Here’s the All-22 review of the Eagles’ offense, with a focus on why the team failed to score a touchdown on five trips inside the red zone against the Saints.
Lurie has granted Reid final say on football matters in the name of stability, but stability is already 30 miles down the road. This baby is about to get shaken up. Reid and the players’ peace-of-mind is secondary to the viability of this franchise moving forward.
Which brings us to the quarterback situation.
The defense allowed 21 points per game under Juan Castillo through the first six weeks of the season. Over the past two weeks under Todd Bowles, the edge has dulled and the unit has yielded 26 points per game. They gave up 763 yards of offense in that span and have not generated an interception.
Most Eagles players insist that the approach has not changed much at all since Andy Reid decided to make the switch at defensive coordinator. But their instant regression — particularly in the secondary — cannot be pure coincidence.
Turns out, the defense is working through some things as a result of the move to Bowles.
Rookie Fletcher Cox has been really good against the run, but he’s in a pass-rushing rut. Here’s the weekly breakdown of the defensive line.
I know many of you don’t care to re-live Monday night’s loss to the Saints, but here are a handful of plays that caught my eye when I watched the All-22 film of their defensive snaps.
The hits just keep on coming for the Eagles’ offensive line.
Julian Vandervelde told reporters Wednesday that he is being activated to the 53-man roster. And while the corresponding move has not been announced, Todd Herremans is expected to be placed on injured reserve.
Moments after enduring a pounding at the hands of the Saints, Michael Vick was informed of his brother’s Twitter tirade by the media. He was taken off-guard, he did not look happy and he assured everyone that it would be handled.
“We definitely had a serious heart-to-heart conversation,” said Vick Wednesday. “You’ll never see that again. Trust me.”
A couple minor notes regarding the safety position:
The Eagles re-signed rookie safety Phillip Thomas to the practice squad and released defensive tackle Frank Trotter. Thomas, an undrafted free agent out of Syracuse, spent the offseason with the team but did not make the final cut. The Eagles are thin at safety, and on Monday night were without the services of Nate Allen (hamstring). David Sims got the start against the Saints and had a spotty outing.
Meanwhile, former Eagle Jaiquawn Jarrett got his second tryout with the Lions, according to Adam Caplan. The second-round pick out of Temple was released by the Eagles on September 11. Jarrett has also reportedly worked out for the Jets since being cut.
From Andy Reid to Michael Vick to Jon Gruden to DeMeco Ryans, here’s the weekly roundup of what the national media are saying about the Eagles.
On this week’s show, Tim and Sheil discuss what Howie Roseman’s contract extension means for the future of the franchise, where Andy Reid goes from here and what the plans should be at quarterback the rest of the way.
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From Jeremy Maclin to offensive line depth to draft position, here are three Eagles numbers that matter.
