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Eagles News: LeGarrette Blount reacts to the Jay Ajayi trade

Philadelphia Eagles news and links for 11/2/17.

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NFL: San Francisco 49ers at Philadelphia Eagles Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

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Even with trade for Ajayi, Blount says Eagles stayed 'true to their word' - NBC Sports Philadelphia
On a one-year deal, this move could be bad for Blount in the long-term, especially because Ajayi is still cheap in 2018 on his rookie contract and is just 24 years old. But Blount has been a "tremendous team guy," according to Roseman. And Wentz said Blount seemed excited about the move. "You can never have enough depth," Blount said. "You can never have enough depth at any position. Obviously, [Ajayi is] somebody who can contribute to our team. He's somebody that can help us a lot."

Jay Ajayi: 6 things to know about the new Eagles running back - BGN
Ajayi is an amazing one-cut running back who can create after contact. He runs hard and has the speed to break away. He is not afraid of getting 20-plus touches a game, and would actually prefer that. He is the type of runner who is actually better later in the game once he has warmed up than he is at the start of the game. Miami always had success when he reached the 15-20 carries mark.

It's Jay Ajayi Nation - BGNRadio.com
John Barchard, James Seltzer and Brandon Gowton all react to the Jay Ajayi trade and how it will impact the run game. Plus they dive into how this team has been constructed this season, chat about the rest of the trade deadline, Zeke's suspension being held and a lot more on Ep. 274.

Eagles vs. Broncos: Five matchups to watch - PhillyVoice
Von Miller is in the conversation for the best defensive player in the NFL. He's only in his seventh season, and he already has 80.5 sacks. He's a five-time Pro Bowler, he was first team All-Pro three times, second team All-Pro twice, he was Defensive Rookie of the Year, and he carried the Broncos' defense to a Super Bowl, when he wrecked games against the Patriots in the AFC Championship Game and the Carolina Panthers in the Super Bowl. Miller may very well be the best player the Eagles face this season, and the Broncos are going to try to get him matched up on what is probably the Eagles' biggest question mark in Vaitai. In his first start against the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, Vaitai was competent in pass protection (though he did give up a bad sack to a tomato can), and was simply bad in the run game. The Eagles would be wise to locate #58 before every play, and if he's lined up opposite #72, they should give #72 some help.

Attitude Matters - Iggles Blitz
Jalen Mills is delusional. He thinks he is a combination of Deion Sanders, Darrelle Revis and Superman, but only better. He breaks up a pass. We see the finger wag. The receiver drops the ball. We see the finger wag. Mills is convinced he is responsible for everything good that happens and he won’t acknowledge things that went wrong. Good CBs need a short memory and his memory seems to be as short as it gets. Jim Schwartz could see Mills attitude right away last year. That helped Schwartz fall in love with him. Schwartz doesn’t want corners who hope to do well. He wants corners that think they can shut down anyone on Earth and do it with ease. Schwartz loves players that are confident and aggressive. That’s why he hated Eric Rowe.

Jay Ajayi trade shows Eagles seizing the moment - ESPN
Even internally, there were few who thought the Eagles would be in a position to seriously contend this early. Jeffrey Lurie told reporters at the owners meeting in March, "We're not one player away. We have lots of holes," adding that a string of successful drafts were needed to set up Wentz's prime years. Team brass believed it had a potential franchise quarterback in Wentz, but no one could have forecast his quick development. Just 24 games into his career, he's playing at an MVP level. That has accelerated this franchise's timeline.

A Look At Ajayi's Fit Into Team's Culture - PE.com
The obvious questions, now that Jay Ajayi is a Philadelphia Eagle and part of a very crowded running backs room ahead of a critical game against the visiting Denver Broncos on Sunday are these: How quickly can the Eagles get Ajayi ready to play and what will his role be once he’s ready? Very logical. So let’s examine that and the landscape that Ajayi is now part of with the Eagles ...

Jay Ajayi, wearing No. 36, excited about fresh start with the Eagles - Inquirer
“A whirlwind of emotions,” Ajayi said of his arrival. “Definitely enjoyed my time as a Dolphin. …Getting the news I’m going to be an Eagle, understanding what that comes with, understanding where this team is, and just wanting to be a part of this team and put my head down and get to work.” He’ll do that in a crowded backfield. Coach Doug Pederson is apparently taking a wait-and-see approach with Ajayi, withholding judgment until he sees how quickly Ajayi picks up the Eagles’ offense before determining Ajayi’s role. Pederson said veteran running back LeGarrette Blount’s role remains unchanged and didn’t even commit to playing Ajayi on Sunday against the Denver Broncos until he sees what happens during the practice week.

Doug Pederson on Jay Ajayi, team chemistry: 'We've established a culture' - PennLive
Eagles coach Doug Pederson on Wednesday brushed off concerns about the impact Ajayi's presence would have on team chemistry, though. Pederson said Ajayi will fit in well, calling him a "really good person." But the second-year coach also emphasized that locker room leaders will ensure the team sidesteps any significant schisms. "We've established a culture of how we do things around here," Pederson said, "and so I implore those guys to just embrace it, and to bring him in."

Financial incentives make for tricky dynamic between Blount, Ajayi - The Athletic
The Eagles are in a fascinating spot at the halfway point of their season. They've got the best record in football at 7-1, and all around the locker room, players have pointed to chemistry as a major reason for their success. But Blount finds himself in a tough situation. Not only is there the natural inclination to want to get the ball and be on the field, but there is a financial layer to how Ajayi's arrival will affect him. Blount signed a one-year, $1.25 million contract with $400,000 guaranteed this offseason. But the deal included significant incentives.

NFL win predictions for all 32 teams over the rest of the season - PFF
The Eagles have been arguably the league’s best team over the first half of the season, and the analytics projects them to be right there at the end of the year too. The big question mark is that they have had one of the easiest schedules in the league to date, and that is going to get marginally harder over the second half of the season, but they have bolstered their weaponry with the addition of former Dolphins RB Jay Ajayi.

NFL1000: Ranking the Top 100 NFL Players at Midseason - B/R
The difference in personnel and strategy has benefited Wentz enormously. He's already thrown 19 touchdown passes to his 16 last season, and he has just five interceptions to his 14 thrown in 2016. An efficient rushing attack has allowed Wentz to rely on play action more effectively, and as a runner himself, he has the size and speed to either make defenders miss or bowl right over them. But the most glaring improvement in Wentz's game this year is what he does with his route concepts and at the line of scrimmage. He's a full field-reader now, capable of looking safeties off his primary target and nailing pinpoint throws into tight windows. In and out of the pocket, he sees downfield well, evades pressure and resets his body to throw, and he has far more confidence in the targets around him. In only his second season, Wentz has become one of the league's better quarterbacks, and he's a primary reason his team has the best record in the NFL.

Crucial Catch: Eagles Beau Allen doing his part to raise awareness about breast cancer - NFL Player Engagement
Beau Allen laughs that maybe his mother, Susie Allen, should get Eagles season tickets. The past two years the Eagles and Allen honored his mother, along with other breast cancer survivors, before one of their home games. In 2016 it was against the Minnesota Vikings. Allen, usually the team’s No. 3 defensive tackle, started that day for an injured Bennie Logan and the Eagles defense dominated the Vikings in a 21-10 win. This season it was against the Arizona Cardinals. Allen again started, this time for an injured Fletcher Cox, and the Eagles defense dominated the Cardinals, in a 34-7 win. “Funny how that works out,’’ Allen said. “We might have to get her here more often.’’

Denver Broncos and Philadelphia Eagles injury report: Sanders and Davis return to practice - Mile High Report
As for the Broncos injury report, they’re actually looking rather healthy. Starters Todd Davis and Emmanuel Sanders returned to practice this week after sitting out Monday Night’s game. Sanders return would give the Broncos a much-needed weapon on the offensive side of the ball while Davis would give the Broncos another run stuffer to stop the Eagles rushing attack. One concerning injury from Monday Night’s game was to guard Ronald Leary. He suffered a biceps injury and those can be rather serious/season-ending injury. Thankfully for Leary and the Broncos, it appears he escape major injury and was a limited participant in today’s practice.

Which NFL teams are contenders and which are pretenders midway through 2017 season? - SB Nation
The Eagles have the best record in the NFL and it’s not a surprise why. Carson Wentz has vastly improved from year one to two. He actually has wide receivers who can catch the ball and a run game that can chew yards. They are also second in the NFL on third down, which shows how efficient the offense is on earlier downs and that allows the Eagles the ability to convert big on third down. However, the loss of left tackle Jason Peters is a tough one for the Eagles. There’s no replacing him and the Eagles will try giving the new LT, Halapoulivaati Vaitai, some help to compensate for the loss of Peters. So that would worry me. The Eagles have an attacking defense, and are excellent against the run. This forces teams to be one-dimensional and allow the Eagles to rush the passer. Hopefully Ronald Darby comes back soon to bolster that secondary.

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