Eagles news: Players respond positively to Pederson’s critique

Eagles leaders take issue with Pederson's comments - Inquirer

Pederson addressed the entire team Wednesday and said that player response to his comments was "great" and "positive."

"They're players and they understand," Pederson said. "I've been in that chair before, and so I get it. I think that's the great thing about having played the game, is you can relate to those guys and you know exactly what they're going through."

Two Eagles players said they felt that if there was any lingering resentment over Pederson's remarks it was resolved after Wednesday's practice, which many described as spirited.

Still, the true test of whether his comments produce the desired results won't come until Sunday when the Eagles host the Redskins. And then there are three more games to follow. The question then may not be whether players are giving 100 percent, but whether they're playing for their coach.

"I know that I've completely bought into Coach Pederson," Ertz said. "I know that whatever he said I'm going to do it without question because I respect the coach and person that he is. . . . I know a lot of guys love playing for Coach Pederson. We know he has our back."

Eagles' Pederson digs a deep hole for himself - Inquirer

Now, it's hard to fault honesty, except for one small detail: What Pederson said is about the dumbest thing any coach can ever say. It violated a number of rules, all of which can be found on the first page of the coaching manual. Red lights should have begun to flash in the NovaCare auditorium. Buzzers should have sounded, and the doors should have swung open. Emergency! Everybody to get from street!

Never, never, never, never. Not if they fell asleep on the field. Not if they forgot to come out for the second half. Not if they were texting in the huddle. No, no, no, no.

This is particularly true if you happen to be a first-year coach whose own credentials are still in doubt, and one who has zero control over who stays and who goes. If you really want to see a team quit, say out loud that some of them already have. And, by the way, as Pederson said while digging frantically toward the escape tunnel of accountability, if a team goes south, the blame belongs to the coach.

No, that was a blunder of the highest order, and it was also wrong. The Eagles haven't stopped trying. They have merely stopped believing, and when that happens, it is very difficult to keep putting your head in front of quickly moving objects on every single play. These aren't conscious decisions, but the result of a necessary focus that has become blurry and indistinct after repeated failure. They aren't quitting. They are just worn out from the season.

It's about that time for the Eagles to play the young guys - Philly Voice

Seumalo has already started one game this season at RG when Brandon Brooks was hospitalized with an illness, and he played well enough that you would have enough faith that he won't get Carson Wentz killed.

However, there is a short window of opportunity to get Seumalo another start, as Lane Johnson will be returning from his suspension Week 16. When he does, Johnson will likely move immediately back into his RT spot, which will mean that Allen Barbre will once again be back at LG. While it makes sense to me to replace Wisniewski with Seumalo, I would not replace Barbre, as Barbre has had a very good season playing multiple positions and deserves to play out the string.

Mel Kiper: If You Need A Cornerback, Go Get One - Philly Mag

“You could be looking at five first-round corners, you could be looking at four to five second-round corners, just talked about how much depth there is into the third, fourth round,” Kiper said. “There’s gonna be some good players that even drop a little further than that because of the talent at that spot. There’s some kids that might end up playing safety.

“There’s a lot of corners, so if you need one, this’ll be the year to get one.”

Kiper highlighted a couple of intriguing prospects to keep an eye out for, including Iowa’s Desmond King and USC’s Adoree’ Jackson, who has the ability to play in every phase of the game.

“With the ball skills he has and the ability to be a corner or a safety, he could go,” Kiper said. “And we have to see what his speed turns out to be. How fast is he? How explosive is he? I think that’s going to be important athletically and speed-wise if he can be a corner in the NFL. If he can, he can project inside with his tackling ability. I have a second round grade on Desmond King right now.

“With Adoree’, it’s sometimes his concentration, you think about consistency with technique and all those things. And he struggles at times in coverage and allows some things to happen in coverage that a kid with his ability really shouldn’t. But then he makes the big play and it’s all forgotten. And he’s got the ability to maybe help you out on the offensive side, the return game he’s spectacular. He’s got so much ability that coaches and the coordinators are gonna look at him and say, ‘Hey, bring him in, we can obviously work with a kid with that kind of upside.’”