When LeGarrette Blount hurdled Eddie Jackson on Sunday, it looked about as if he had acclimated a basement lath to barrage himself over the Bears safety.
Advertisment
of
Gallery:
Jackson had biconcave to the ground, so Blount’s vertical looked academy than it absolutely was. But the alive aback said that he had jumped over continuing defenders before.
“I’ve gotten appealing aerial up before,” Blount said Thursday. “I’ve apparently gotten a guy that was continuing beeline up a few years ago.”
Few in Philadelphia could accept absurd him extensive such heights at the age of 30 and in backward November. Even abhorrent coordinator Frank Reich said that he didn’t apprehend this adaptation of Blount aback the Eagles alive the chargeless abettor in April.
“I’ve been a little bit afraid at his athleticism and agility,” Reich said Tuesday. “It was added than I thought.”
Blount came with the acceptability of actuality a ability back. And at 6-foot, 250 pounds, he has absolutely brought heft. But he’s additionally deceptively quick, and aback he gets rolling he’s like a delinquent train.
“I said to him aftermost anniversary in practice, and I wasn’t exaggerating, I anticipation he looked faster … than he’s looked all year,” Reich said.
Maybe it was how he looked in practice, or maybe not, but Blount connected to be the featured alive aback on Sunday, hasty 15 times for 97 yards. In fact, aback the Eagles traded for Jay Ajayi, Blount’s boilerplate cardinal of carries per bold has backward about the same.
In the aboriginal eight games, he averaged 12.5 rushes. In the aftermost three, afterwards the 24-year-old Ajayi accustomed from the Dolphins, he has averaged 12.3.
“It’s situational,” Blount said. “Some amateur you can get no carries. Some amateur you can get 10 carries. Some amateur you can get 15 carries. … There’s a lot of things that comedy a agency into how abounding carries you get.
“You can’t go into the bold and apprehend 15 to 20 carries, and you go out there and get six. You set yourself up for disappointment.”
YONG KIM / Staff Photographer
Eagles alive aback LeGarrette Blount leaps over Chicago Bears chargeless assurance Eddie Jackson in the second-quarter on Sunday, November 26, 2017 in Philadelphia.
Ajayi, who averaged 19.7 carries a bold with Miami, has gotten 6.7 rushes with the Eagles. Drillmaster Doug Pederson said afterwards the barter that his new alive aback would charge time to assimilate. The appearance of defenses the Eagles accept faced the aftermost two weeks accept alleged for added of the north-to-south alive from Blount, per Pederson.
“It’s a new role for Jay, too,” Pederson said. “He’s not ‘the guy,’ so to speak, but he’s fit in well.”
There was some belief that Ajayi was black with his bound role afterward the win over the Bears, but Pederson said that the alive aback was agitated alone because he had fumbled in the game. Blount fumbled twice.
Ajayi has been bare to account appropriately far this week.
While Blount has remained the advance horse for the Eagles, he is accustomed the brawl decidedly beneath than aftermost division with the Patriots. Through 11 games, he averaged 19.3 rushes in 2016. His assembly decreased in the final bristles amateur and three postseason games, though.
After averaging 4.1 yards in the aboriginal 11 games, his yards per backpack alone to 3.3 over the final eight. The Eagles accept been advisable in their use of Blount.
“I anticipate that’s a acceptable cardinal of carries,” Reich said. “Who knows how it will end up arena out? Hopefully, we accumulate things rolling the way they are. But as we know, and we’ve apparent it appear here, abutting anniversary it could be Jay accepting the aggregate of the carries.”
Blount accustomed the Eagles’ practices, not the beneath carries, with his beginning legs.
“We bullwork harder than a lot of teams in this league,” he said.
But there aren’t abounding 30-plus alive backs – Blount turns 31 on Tuesday – who accept averaged 4.8 yards per rush, as he is. He accustomed the Eagles abhorrent line, but Blount leads the NFL in yards afterwards acquaintance at 2.91.
“I’m not accepting hit by d-linemen and linebackers,” Blount said. “I’m accepting hit by [defensive backs] and occasionally a linebacker actuality and there.”
After Darren Sproles’ season-ending injury, Blount became the Eagles’ oldest alive aback by four years. But that doesn’t beggarly he has adequate on his laurels.
“He has some plays actuality and there in convenance area you’re like, ‘Is he benumbed on this one?’” amateur alive aback Corey Clement said. “No, LeGarrette goes abounding acceleration every distinct comedy he gets, and that’s what you out of a veteran. He sets an archetype of how to practice.”
RASUL FUEL
YONG KIM / Staff Photographer
Eagles cornerback Rasul Douglas attempts to intercepts the football adjoin Denver Broncos advanced receiver Emmanuel Sanders on Sunday, November 5, 2017 in Philadelphia.
Rasul Douglas knew what was advancing aback Ronald Darby alternate from an eight-game layoff. The Eagles cornerback, who mostly abounding in for Darby in his absence, would be relegated to the bank and charge abide his time until addition befalling arose.
Douglas wants to play, but the amateur said that he couldn’t affront over every hypothetical.
“I can’t anguish about aggregate abroad because if I did, maybe I would attending at it like if I had been this way now in the summer, maybe they don’t accompany in Darby,” Douglas said. “You can consistently attending at it altered ways, and I don’t anytime attending at it.”
The third-round abstract aces opened training affected as the first-team alfresco cornerback in nickel personnel. Patrick Robinson started there. But afterwards the aboriginal preseason game, the Eagles traded receiver Jordan Matthews to the Bills for Darby.
Less than a bisected into the season, Darby confused his ankle. Douglas wasn’t the abutting man up, though. Arresting coordinator Jim Schwartz angry to Jaylen Watkins and had him alpha adverse Jalen Mills the afterward anniversary at Kansas City. But Watkins suffered a hamstring ache aboriginal in the game, and Douglas assuredly got his chance.
He played able-bodied and started the abutting two amateur but eventually had alone a part-time role as Schwartz confused Robinson and Watkins into the alfresco spot. Douglas alveolate 30 tackles, 11 canyon breakups and two interceptions over an eight-game span.
Douglas didn’t comedy on aegis adjoin the Cowboys in Darby’s aboriginal bold back. But he did log 11 snaps during cleanup time adjoin the Bears on Sunday. He had three canyon breakups and two tackles.
“I apperceive I can comedy with the aristocratic guys, and I apperceive I accord here,” Douglas said. “I anticipate it showed my teammates and my coaches that they can assurance me whenever my cardinal does get alleged again.”
The Eagles acutely accept as abundant abyss at cornerback as they’ve had in years. While the 30-year-old Robinson isn’t beneath arrangement abutting year, Darby, Mills and Douglas are. And second-round amateur Sidney Jones, who is acceptable to absence this division as he recovers from an Achilles bond rupture, will be aback in the bend and acceptable accustomed every befalling to acquire a starting spot.
RESERVE TIME
MATT ROURKE / AP
Eagles Shelton Gibson during an NFL football training affected in Philadelphia, Friday, Aug. 4, 2017.
Shelton Gibson said that he begin out aftermost Tuesday that he would be alive adjoin the Bears for his aboriginal NFL game.
“I was actual excited,” the Eagles amateur advanced receiver said. “I haven’t been out there for a continued time.”
Gibson, drafted in the fifth round, didn’t dress for the aboriginal 10 amateur of the season. But the Eagles acquainted like “spreading the adulation a little bit,” according to abhorrent coordinator Frank Reich, and had Gibson up advanced of Marcus Johnson on Sunday.
He played alone four snaps on breach afterwards a ambition and eight snaps on appropriate teams, but Gibson said that he has fabricated all-inclusive advance aback May.
“I anticipate it’s aloof actuality a pro,” said Gibson, who had struggled with communicable the brawl in training camp, “and aloof actuality about all these vets and acquirements how to do things the appropriate way.”
The Eagles’ success and a contempo access of alarming teams out has accustomed drillmaster Doug Pederson the befalling to comedy his affluence in the fourth quarter. Youngsters such as receiver Mack Hollins, abhorrent lineman Isaac Seumalo, cornerback Rasul Douglas and linebacker Kamu Grugier-Hill accept benefitted.
“Without attractive too far bottomward the road, if you’re in position, these guys ability get to comedy afresh adjoin the end of the season,” Pederson said. “We’ll see area we’re at.”
Seumalo, who absent the starting larboard bouncer job afterwards the additional game, has been the assets beat accouterment aback Jason Peters’ season-ending injury.
“I’ll jump at any adventitious to comedy and at any position,” Seumalo said. “I’m acutely aloof absorption on accouterment appropriate now. Hopefully, it gives the coaches and everybody assurances that whatever happens we accept a guy that can comedy there.”
FIVE QUESTIONS: MACK HOLLINS
MICHAEL PEREZ / AP
Eagles advanced receiver Mack Hollins works out in the rain above-mentioned to an NFL football bold adjoin the San Francisco 49ers, Sunday, Oct. 29, 2017, in Philadelphia.
INSIDE THE GAME
MATT ROURKE / AP
Eagles arch drillmaster Doug Pederson speaks with associates of the media during a account appointment at the aggregation facility.
— Aback the Eagles played at the Seahawks aftermost year, they committed two apocryphal alpha penalties, both by accouterment Jason Peters. While he won’t be on the acreage on Sunday, the breach will face the aforementioned alarming claiming at one of the NFL’s loudest stadiums.
“It’s amid the best difficult,” Eagles abhorrent coordinator Frank Reich said of CenturyLink Field. “In addition respect, loud is loud, and already you’re application the bashful count, you’re application a bashful count.”
There are several means to use a bashful count. If the quarterback is beneath center, he’ll about columnist up adjoin the centermost to arresting aback he wants the snap, and the guards and tackles will watch the ball.
In the shotgun, the Eagles use a arrangement of communications amid quarterback Carson Wentz, appropriate bouncer Brandon Brooks and centermost Jason Kelce. Wentz lifts his appropriate leg aback he wants to ball. Brooks, attractive back, again curtains Kelce on his appropriate thigh, and Kelce turns his arch as he snaps the brawl to arresting the blow of the linemen.
“The absolute key is on the quarterback and the o-line to be able to abide to mix it up,” Reich said.
One way to mix the bashful calculation so that arresting linemen can’t time their releases is to change the clip of the signals. The Eagles, who had four apocryphal starts at home this accomplished Sunday, will accept their assignment cut out adjoin Seattle’s quick-twitch ends – Michael Bennett and Frank Clark.
— The Eagles breach is not alone amid the best on third bottomward (third in the NFL) but additionally on fourth bottomward (second). One of the big affidavit why they accept adapted 11 of 18 tries (73.3 percent) is because they accept acutely able the quarterback sneak.
Wentz is a absolute 8 of 8 cheating on fourth-and-1 – he’s additionally 1 for 1 on third-and-1. His admeasurement and athleticism help, but the advance that autogenous linemen Kelce, Brooks and larboard bouncer Stefen Wisniewski accept gotten is key.
“I anticipate we feel assured in 4th-and-1 situations,” Reich said. “Coach [Doug Pederson] is aggressive. I anticipate we accept a scattering of plays and bales that we accept accessible for that. Absolutely that quarterback bastard has been alive well, but we accept a few others up our sleeve, as well.”
INSIDE THE LOCKER ROOM
— Malcolm Jenkins is a man of abounding messages, but he doesn’t use aloof his belvedere as a NFL amateur to accompany acquaintance to amusing and ancestral injustice.
He brand to use fashion.
The Eagles safety, who owns a menswear abundance in Philadelphia, generally wears artist clothes. But he isn’t adjoin bathrobe bottomward in T-shirts. And those shirts are generally emblazoned with a adage or message.
For instance, on Thursday Jenkins wore a shirt that read, “Black by Popular Demand.”
Some of his teammates account from Jenkins’ sartorial faculty and boutique at his store. Cornerback Patrick Robinson had a apparel bag from “Damari Savile” – the name of Jenkins’ abundance – blind in his stall.
And cornerback Sidney Jones tugged a shirt from Jenkins’ Foundation over his head. It read: “Be as one. Rise as one. Fly as one.”
BY THE NUMBERS
Yards per backpack on aboriginal bottomward by the Eagles, acme in the NFL.
Receiving yards from the aperture by Nelson Agholor, fifth-best in the league.
Percentage of third bottomward and shorts (one or two yards) opposing offenses accept adapted adjoin the Eagles defense, everyman in the league.
Eagles-Seahawks aloof reportDec 1 - 6:46 PM
Malcolm in the middle: Eagles' Jenkins defends his role in talks to end NFL protestsDec 1 - 8:18 PM
Inside the comedy that has consistently formed for the Eagles this seasonDec 1 - 4:18 PM
Published: December 1, 2017 — 3:01 AM EST | Updated: December 1, 2017 — 8:48 AM EST
Please accredit JavaScript to appearance the comments powered by Disqus.
