Eagles News: Doug Pederson says Philadelphia’s virtual offseason program is “going probably better than I hoped for”

Let’s get to the Philadelphia Eagles links ...

Doug Pederson Exclusive: Inside the virtual program - PE.com
It’s the “new normal” of a Monday morning for Eagles Head Coach Doug Pederson as the team begins its fourth week of a virtual offseason program. He says the program is “going probably better than I hoped for” with players scattered across the country tuned in via the Microsoft Teams platform, virtually connected to the Eagles’ strength and conditioning program for one half of the four-days-per-week program and connected to their position coaches for the other half. [...] “Once the 2019 season ended, I hit the reset button, and I thought about what my new messaging points are going to be moving forward for the coming season,” Pederson said in an exclusive interview. You can hear the entire interview in the most recent episode of the Eagles Insider Podcast, presented by Lincoln Financial Group. “Quite honestly, it kind of fits in line with where we are with this pandemic and sort of self-quarantined at home and working from home, virtual workouts, virtual meetings, things of this nature. The two messaging points are this: One is the word ‘trust.’ And I think the word ‘trust’ really fits where we are right now. Our guys and our coaches, our trainers, our strength and conditioning staff, we need to trust each other through this process.

NFL salary cap expert explains why the Eagles’ 2021 situation isn’t as dire as it might appear - BGN
TL;DR — With the combination of 1) rollover money, 2) a couple cuts (and/or trades), and 3) some contract extensions/restructures, it’s hardly going to be impossible for the Eagles to get under the cap.

From the Bleachers #23: Growing Up Philly w/Casey Pitochelli of Rare Vntg - BGN Radio
Shamus Clancy is joined by Casey Pitochelli of the premium vintage sportswear clothing shop Rare Vntg to talk about Shamus’ quest to find a Doug Pederson Eagles jersey, The Last Dance, Bring It Home for Jerome and much more! Sign up for Shamus’ newsletter right here: https://www.patreon.com/shamus_clancy. Powered by SB Nation and Bleeding Green Nation.

10 players the Eagles can least afford to lose to injury - PhillyVoice
1) QB Carson Wentz. Wentz had seemingly put some of his injury concerns to bed during the 2019 season, until Jadeveon Clowney speared him in the head in the playoffs, causing a concussion and ending the Eagles’ playoff run before it ever got started. So the injury talk is back. Still, Wentz is one of the 5-10 best quarterbacks in the NFL, at a minimum, and clearly remains the most important player on the team, even with the odd selection of Jalen Hurts in the second round.

How Jalen Reagor shed weight and shocked everyone at his individual pro day - NBCSP
The good news for Reagor is that his speed in the pro day was more like what the Eagles saw on film. The GPS tracking numbers showed Reagor was much faster than a 4.47 player on the field. In fact, a report from CBS Sports said Reagor reached a speed of 20.80 mph in 2019, second to only Ruggs among the players in the study. For the Eagles, the combine performance never really worried them as much as you might expect. They trusted what they saw on tape. The pro day simply backed that up. “We talk a lot about this RIFD data, and so you get the GPS numbers on these guys,” Roseman said on draft night. “So you can see how they’re running in games and their speed in games. He’s running at a really high level. He’s been really fast in those games. Then obviously he did test super explosive when you look at the vertical and the broad and stuff like that. You see the explosiveness on tape, and then you had it in the testing.”

Back on trial: Is the Eagles defense better than it was a year ago? - The Athletic
Darius Slay may be, as you said, the best corner the Eagles have had under Schwartz, but there’s no guarantee he’ll be the kind of scheme-changing player they paid for. At 29, he is coming off a down season, and plays a position where a small physical drop-off can make a big difference. Is it a good bet that someone who couldn’t get along with Matt Patricia is worth acquiring? Absolutely. But that doesn’t mean things will work out precisely as the Eagles hope. The selling point here is that Slay will be capable of shadowing and limiting No. 1 wide receivers. Anything less than that will be a disappointment, and even if that proves true, how much does it matter if the other outside cornerback is picked on by opposing offenses? It’s possible that if you were to rank last year’s projected corners and this year’s projected corners, Slay would be at the top of the list and Maddox, as an outside corner, would be at the bottom. So how much is really gained? And depth-wise, most objective onlookers still harbored hopes for Sidney Jones and Rasul Douglas a year ago. That’s probably not the case anymore.

Four Downs: NFC East - Football Outsiders
Notable Undrafted Free Agents: The Eagles’ investments in Darren Sproles, Boston Scott, and now Jalen Hurts in the second round demonstrate their willingness to get creative with players who do not match the modern NFL mold for their positions. They continued that trend with their UDFA signings. Khalil Tate was a college quarterback who showcased his athleticism with 2,285 rushing yards at Arizona. He’ll try to transition to receiver for his professional team. Adrian Killins follows the Sproles-Scott lineage at 5-foot-8 and 165 pounds with tremendous speed. He didn’t have a chance to run at the combine or a pro day, but Killins has reportedly run the 40-yard dash in an astonishing 4.26 seconds. Defensive tackle Raequan Williams and linebacker Dante Olson are not as radical fits at their positions, but they both produced better in college than their measurements would suggest. Olson averaged more than 13 combined tackles per game in his final two seasons at Montana and could be the answer the Eagles need at middle linebacker if his instincts continue to counterbalance his lack of athleticism.

NFL 2020 team tiers: Who’s a Lombardi contender? Who’s rebuilding? Here’s where every franchise ranks - CBS Sports
Tier 1: Lombardi contenders (8 teams). Philadelphia Eagles – They have won recently and the supporting cast around Carson Wentz is legit. [...] Tier 2: Best of the rest (9 teams). Dallas Cowboys – If only they had a defense. [...] Tier 5: Is this rock bottom? (5 teams). New York Giants – DeAndre Baker situation just the latest in a long line of ugly situations for this once storied franchise. They have been stuck in reverse for years now and not sure when that stops. Rough time to hire a novice coach. Washington Redskins – Another new set of coaches for their young QB and perhaps the worst offensive talent in the NFL. No history of any sustained success under this owner. Some analysts tabbing them for 1st overall pick in 2020.

The NFL’s Search for the Next Taysom Hill Is Fundamentally Flawed - The Ringer
However, the Hill comp is somehow also used for virtually any athletic quarterback. When the Eagles picked Jalen Hurts in the second round of this year’s draft, it was repeatedly said that Hurts was a Taysom Hill type. Both Hurts and Hill had exactly 1,047 passing attempts in college, but Hill had roughly 50 percent of Hurts’s touchdown total (Hill had 43 touchdown passes; Hurts had 80) while throwing roughly 50 percent more picks (Hill had 31 interceptions; Hurts had 20). Neither their talents, production, nor draft value are comparable—but hey, they’re both fast! [...] There are a few Taysom Hill types in the most recent draft class. My personal favorite is Arizona quarterback Khalil Tate, who signed with the Eagles after going undrafted. Tate had a stunning sophomore season as a runner, with three 200-yard rushing games, but suffered from injuries and struggled when his college coaching staff tried to convert him into a pocket passer.

Eagles expert discusses Khalil Tate’s signing, conversion to WR and chances of making roster - Arizona Desert Swarm
It wasn’t much of a surprise when Khalil Tate failed to have his name called during the 2020 NFL Draft last month, not the way his Arizona Wildcats career finished compared to how it looked at its high point. Still, someone was going to take a flier on the talented athlete, and the Philadelphia Eagles were the ones to ink Tate to a rookie free agent deal. But when announcing that signing they listed the former quarterback as a wide receiver, adding further intrigue to a career that has never been dull. To better understand what Tate is facing with the Eagles, we reached out to Brandon Gowton of SB Nation sister site Bleeding Green Nation for his insight.

The definitive ranking of the top cheesesteaks in Philadelphia - Broad Street Hockey
6. Woodrow’s Sandwich Shop. Woodrow’s is one of the new kids on the block and has already gained a cult following. I’m not going to lie, you won’t find a better cheesesteak on actual South Street. The roll is outstanding and the truffle wiz is SUPERB. The most unique thing about the sandwich is without a doubt the cherry pepper mayo. I didn’t think it would work in a cheesesteak, but it blends just right with the rich wiz and sweet caramelized onions. To top it all off their fries are dope and the best you’ll find anywhere on this list. Looking for something different on your visit to Philly and/or South Street? Skip Jims and Ishkabibbles ... Woodrow’s is your new king.

Forecasting each game on the Cowboys 2020 schedule and coming up with a final record - Blogging The Boys
@ PHI - Give the benefit from playing in prime time to the team that has shown they know how to get up for a big game. These teams know each other well enough that there won’t be a ton of surprises. Will a healthy Desean Jackson and speedy Jalen Reagor cause the Cowboys new-look secondary some problems? With a little home cooking, they do just enough. - L

DeAndre Baker case: What has happened, what it means, what might be coming next - Big Blue View
The possible prison time he faces — Baker faces eight counts, four for armed robbery and four for aggravated assault with a firearm. Florida law includes a 10-year sentence for a first-degree felony conviction. Does that mean Baker is facing 80 years in prison if convicted of all charges? “Generally, charges like that if they stick and he’s convicted the sentences will run concurrently rather than consecutively,” Wallach said. “So instead of serving 10 years times five convictions equal 50 years he’ll serve the maximum if he was convicted of the highest count. “But whether it’s concurrent or consecutive if he’s convicted you’re never going to see him on a football field again.”

NFL trying to make changes to facemasks to protect players - DraftKings Nation
The NFL is working on plans for the coming season amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, and now it could involve an equipment change. NFLPA medical director Thom Mayer told ESPN’s Adam Schefter that the NFL is working with Oakley to test protoypes of modified facemasks that could contain surgical or N95 material. The league and players association are discussing the many issues in play for a contact sport like football. Mayer said Oakley is looking at designs that could potentially cover a player’s entire facemask.

Scottie Pippen’s beef with Charles Barkley is what happens when you don’t listen to Michael Jordan - SB Nation
Michael Jordan had Scottie Pippen as his wingman on the dynastic Chicago Bulls, but away from the court, one of MJ’s closest friends was a rival: Charles Barkley. What did this mean for Pippen and Barkley? Not that much ... until Jordan was removed from the equation. In 1999, after the NBA lockout and Jordan’s second retirement, Pippen left the rebuilding Bulls for the Houston Rockets. There he joined Barkley and Hakeem Olajuwon to form a team of aging superstars in pursuit of one more ring. Or, in Barkley’s case ... a ring. His first ring.

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