NFL Week 4 Instant Analysis: Philadelphia Eagles at New York Giants

September 30th, 2007 11:54 pm
by Pro Set

Philadelphia 3-16 NY Giants

It would be tempting to blame the injury problems of Philadelphia for the loss to NY Giants. RB Brian Westbrook was among those sorely missed. The truth is, however, that the Eagles were outplayed in a classic demonstration of why left tackles get paid so much money.

When Phildelphia had possession, I felt that they ran the ball well through RB Correll Buckhalter. I also felt that PHI followed up their rare first downs with too many subsequent 1st & 10 pass plays. The NBC coverage foussed heavily on the battles between RT Jon Runyan and LE Michael Strahan, and, on the other end, LT Winston Justice and RE Osi Umenyiora. It is trite to say that the Giants dominated the edge rush and forced QB Donovan McNabb into rushing his passes.

What nobody seemed to address, however, was that McNabb was not stepping up into the pocket and keeping his eyes downfield. He was taking five step drops and then getting hit. After the sheer volume of sacks that the Eagles conceded, I wanted to see McNabb hit his final drop step and step up, allowing his tackles to concentrate on stopping the inside move. Did anyone hear the name of DT Fred Robbins get mentioned? That means that there was less inside pressure on McNabb, but I guess that they did not have time to pressure him before he was sacked by the edge rushers.

There really is no point writing more than this. Since PHI could not protect the passer, the Eagles could not throw the ball. This meant that it was imperative for the Eagles to get the lead. On this reasoning, the game was decided in two plays.

First, with NYG moving forward late in the second quarter, LB Omar Gaither picked off a QB Eli Manning pass. After carrying the ball back to midfield, he ran out of bounds. I could not believe that he did not try to run over Manning. This was a terrible decision. The momentum of the turnover disappeared in a symphony of penalties and negative plays. How many truly great NFL defenders would run out of bounds when faced with a QB guarding the yardage to the endzone: not many.

Second, the FR TD return by LB Kawika Mitchell deserves mention. I still don’t know how a skill position player like Correll Buckhalter could not cover up that fumble. This Giants TD, occurring late in the 3rd quarter, drained the belief from the PHI players. If PHI had entered the final quarter, after conceding endless sacks and penalties, with only a ten point deficit, the NYG player might well have thought that the Eagles would prove impossible to extinguish: it’s happened before in this rivalry.

So, overall, the Eagles tried but failed in their (hopefully unintended) application of the Homer Simpson strategy. Stand up like a man, take as many punches as the other guy can possibly throw at you, and then push him over for the knock out victory. Having said that, Andy Reid had as many answers to the NYG pass rush as Moe Siszlak had to the power of Drederick Tatum. Was Andy Reid not once an NFL offensive lineman?

Finally, we only had to wait 90 seconds before John Madden mentioned exotic blitzes (see preview).

Posted in Analysis, Andy Reid, Brian Westbrook, Correll Buckhalter, Donovan McNabb, Eli Manning, Fred Robbins, John Madden, Jon Runyan, Kawika Mitchell, Michael Strahan, NFL, NFL Coaches, NFL Franchises/Teams, NFL on NBC, NY Giants, Osi Umenyiora, Philadelphia Eagles, Shaun Andrews, Week 4 Instant Analysis | No Comments »

NFL Week 4 Featured Preview: Philadelphia Eagles @ New York Giants

September 28th, 2007 11:07 pm
by Pro Set

Philadelphia (1-2) @ NY Giants (1-2) Sun 8:15pm ET on NBC

It will be hard for the loser of this match to win the division. Philadelphia comes in off an amazing display of offensive power against a Detroit Lions secondary that had clearly been studying film of the 2000 St Louis Rams defense: maybe Mike Martz brought it with him. NY Giants hits the halfway point of its divisional schedule here and will need a win to keep pace with Dallas.

NY Giants

QB Eli Manning was well supported last week by a dependable second half running game. RB Derrick Ward carried the ball effectively and exceeded expectations. The Giants cannot afford to spot the Eagles a 14-point lead like they did the Redskins. It follows that the Giants will need to run the ball with some success early in the match. The Giants should take heart from the way that the Redskins were able to run the ball against the Eagles. WSH was able to ground out long drives by good fundamental blocking. The power and strength of the PHI front seven is somewhat of a concern.

In the passing game, I’m sure that we’ll here at some point that Eli Manning will face some exotic blitzes from PHI defensive co-ordinator Jim Johnson. This is where the Giants have to make a decision. If WR Plaxico Burress is healthy enough, the Giants might be tempted to use a max protect scheme on 3rd down and try to hit Burress deep against single coverage. If Burress is still troubled by his ankle problem, then TE Jeremy Shockey has to be the hot receiver. If Shockey makes 3rd down catches that move the chains, the Eagles will be forced to back off the pressure. Eli Manning has a history of losing his mechanics and technique when pressured, so PHI will be loathe to sit back and just play coverage.

Philadelphia

After the surreal nature of last Sunday, QB Donovan McNabb might be expected to enter this game on top of the world. But I think that RB Brian Westbrook is more important. Westbrook has to be decisive and strong against an NYG front that suddenly clicked in the second half last Sunday. Westbrook cannot get greedy and bounce runs outside. I would like to see the Eagles line up and run consistently over the right side of the line, using the nastiest RG / RT combo in the NFC, being RG Shaun Andrews and RT Jon Runyan. I can’t see LB Kawika Mitchell and LB Antonio Pierce shedding those blocks too easily. Of course, if DT Fred Robbins and DT Barry Cofield can disrupt the central rushing lanes, the linebackers will be far more dangerous.

When the Eagles throw the ball, WR Reggie Brown and WR Kevin Curtis have to get open. The Giants secondary was torched by the Cowboys in Week 1, and the Redskins too hit some deep passes last Sunday. I expect the PHI line to provide good pass protection. I think that the Eagles have to try to drive the Giants into softer coverage with a couple of early deep balls on 1st & 10 or better. I have not been impressed with TE LJ Smith so far and I think that he needs to be a better broken play 3rd down receiver (much like WSH TE Chris Cooley). The Eagles also should make every effort to use Westbrook on screens and option patterns, since the linebackers will have to sit off him out of respect for his speed. If they don’t, PHI must be prepared to call the wheel route and let Westbrook go deep.

Conclusion

It’s hardly a big call to predict that this will be close. I think, unusually, that it will help the Eagles to be on the road. I think that they need to be a little more conservative on offense and let the Giants force the play. There is an injury doubt over PHI K David Akers, but he is expected to play. I like the Eagles in a close one, mainly due to the fact that Westbrook is a proven game-breaker in this series. Don’t be surprised to see some trick plays, and maybe even fake kicks. This one is too important for both teams to leave any page untried.

Prediction: Philadelphia

Posted in Antonio Pierce, Brian Westbrook, David Akers, Derrick Ward, Donovan McNabb, Eli Manning, Fred Robbins, Game, Jeremy Shockey, Kawika Mitchell, Kevin Curtis, LJ Smith, NFL, NFL Franchises/Teams, NFL Game Previews, NY Giants, Philadelphia Eagles, Reggie Brown | No Comments »