Eagles News: “It really feels like someone new needs to be in charge of personnel”

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

Strange Days - Iggles Blitz
Eagles fans are ready for Sunday’s game to come and go so this season can be put in the books, but the usual excitement of the offseason isn’t there. There is a lot of frustration with the idea of Howie returning. If he created this mess, how in the world do you trust him to fix it? If he had the answers, wouldn’t Howie have made the right picks/moves last year and the year before? Ugh. It is possible that Jeff Lurie will bring in someone to help with personnel, but the team already tried that. They hired Joe Douglas and had him focus on the draft. He had a hand in the bad classes. Then Joe went to the Jets. They had a promising draft class this year. Something didn’t click in Philly. It really feels like someone new needs to be in charge of personnel. Not Howie’s right hand man. Not running the draft. Someone new in charge of personnel.

In order for the Eagles to get better, Jeffrey Lurie must embrace reality - BGN
It would be delusional to think that the man who has overseen some truly horrific drafts the last five seasons would be allowed to chart the course ahead with a top-10, and maybe even a top-5, pick under his arm. Roseman has made mistake after mistake since the Super Bowl and it’s impossible to find a reason anyone should be confident that he will have the answers moving forward. Does Lurie see that? Does he see that keeping Roseman while removing Pederson would be illogical? What rationale would he use for “running it back” in 2021? The pandemic? Clear eyes are required to fix what ails this football team. Jeffrey Lurie’s opinion is the only one that matters, and if he believes Roseman possess the qualities and expertise to lead the Birds back to the promised land, it will not based on evidence or results.

Eye on the Enemy #43: Eagles vs WFT Preview & Jeffrey Lurie Can’t Be Delusional - BGN Radio
On Episode 43 of Eye on the Enemy, host John Stolnis speaks to Brain Rabbe of Hogs Haven to preview this Sunday night’s match-up between the Eagles and Washington Football Team. Will Alex Smith play and can WFT win if he doesn’t? What is Washington going to do at QB long term? How good is the WFT defense? Washington fans desperately want a division title, no matter how they get it. Also, 6 reasons why all Eagles fans should want the team to lose, and how Jeffrey Lurie needs to not be delusional when assessing where his franchise is at the end of a long and stupid season.

Washington vs Philadelphia Week 17: Five Questions with Bleeding Green Nation - Hogs Haven
The Eagles are a tough team to figure out. They have consistently been one of the top-2 teams in the division for the last several years and were predicted by many to win the division this season, but have catastrophically imploded instead. After signing an extension that will keep him under contract through 2024 in the offseason, Carson Wentz has regressed to being one of the statistically worst QBs in the NFL. Despite winning a Super Bowl only 3 seasons ago, reports have surfaced that head coach Doug Pederson’s job may be in danger. And ever since Chip Kelly was fired, the Eagles have seemed to be one of the most injured teams in the NFL. This week they may be missing DT Fletcher Cox, RB Miles Sanders, TE Dallas Goedert, DE Derek Barnett, and LT Jordan Mailata to injury, among others. It may also be worth noting that the WFT were 4 point underdogs earlier in the week, when the QB situation was uncertain, but are now 3.5 point favorites on news Alex Smith seems likely to start. I asked Brandon Lee Gowton of Bleeding Green Nation five questions to better understand the state of the Eagles and what to look for in this game.

Eagles should either give Pederson back his offense or take it from him - NBCSP
Option No. 2 would be much more palatable to Pederson. And in a weird way there’s a little bit of a precedent for it. Think back to 2015 when Lurie handed over personnel control to Chip Kelly. He said he did it so he could maximize Chip and basically said he could then fire him if it didn’t work out. He put it all on Chip. So maybe the Eagles should be willing to give Pederson back control of his offense, let him be that only voice and tell him it’s all on him to fix it however he sees fit. And if he can’t do it, see ya later. It seemed like in 2020, the Eagles forced other offensive coaches on Pederson and told him to figure out how to make it work. On Friday, Pederson made it clear he wants his voice to be louder than everyone else’s. “Really, everybody has great ideas,” Pederson said. “That’s part of putting plans together. But at the end of the day I want to make sure there’s one voice, and that’s my voice, that’s heard offensively and nobody else’s. That’s the part that I’ve got to get across to the staff, and I have done that.”

Will the Washington game be Zach Ertz’s last with the Eagles? - Inquirer
Zach Ertz’s final game with the Eagles could come Sunday night against Washington. While the same could be said for about 75 percent of the roster, that Ertz is more likely to depart than return next offseason illustrates just how much has changed with the Eagles over the last year. The franchise isn’t typically in the habit of jettisoning foundational, homegrown players, especially those still seemingly in their prime years. But the downward trajectory of the team, the likely need for a significant overhaul, and salary cap limitations suggest that Ertz could be collateral damage. The potential end of Ertz’s eight-year run in Philadelphia doesn’t come as a complete surprise. The wheels were set in motion nearly a year ago when the tight end first publicly questioned his future, and further just before this season when he aired his dissatisfaction with his contract and questioned the Eagles’ commitment.

Eagles-Washington: What’s at stake? Week 17 draft scenarios, predictions, more - The Athletic
Berman: The “no-hats rule” is a catchy phrase and I applaud the spirit behind it — whenever you play, you play to win — but here’s the rub: The Eagles haven’t been that good when they’ve tried to win the past 15 games. What’s going to make Sunday different? The Eagles were better in Week 1. Washington was (presumably) worse. Washington won that day. The Eagles are missing their best weapons, most of their offensive line and key players on all three levels of defense. If they win, it will be either a colossal choke by Washington or the Eagles were playing the wrong players this season. It will be interesting to watch Hurts’ final start and perhaps Jalen Reagor can end the season on a good note, but there isn’t much that can be learned about the Eagles this week. Jeffrey Lurie will be spared from seeing what his stadium would look like (and sound like) on national television if fans were permitted to attend. I hope you didn’t bet on the Eagles earlier this week when they were favored. I hope you didn’t bet “over” on the Eagles’ win total this season. The Eagles drop their 11th game and a fascinating week and offseason commence once the clock expires. Washington 23, Eagles 16.

NFL Week 17 best bets: Picks for every game - ESPN+
Fortenbaugh: The toxicity that is 2019 first-round selection Dwayne Haskins has been removed from the equation, thus paving the way for Washington to resume its march toward an improbable divisional crown. Washington ranks third in opponent yards per play and hasn’t allowed a single foe to score more than 20 points in six straight games. That’s bad news for Eagles rookie quarterback Jalen Hurts, who now has three games’ worth of tape for Washington to study, a tape that shows a worrisome 54.7% completion rate and four turnovers in three starts. Pick: Washington -1.5.

Self-Scouting: Brandon Graham - PE.com
Greg Cosell analyzes Brandon Graham’s impact on the defense.

Grocery shopping: Five college prospects who could interest the Eagles in the 2021 NFL Draft - PhillyVoice
Max Duffy, P, Kentucky. Anyway, I’m not saying the Eagles should draft a punter (maybe with a 7?), but Duffy is one of the top two punter prospects in the country, and he’ll compete at the Senior Bowl in January. Meanwhile, Cameron Johnston (a) did not have a good season, and (b) his restricted free agent tender amount is projected to be $2,240,000 this offseason, which the Eagles should not pay.

Five things to watch when the Cowboys play the Giants in the regular-season finale - Blogging The Boys
Even if the Cowboys win, the celebration will have to wait as the attention will then turn to the Sunday night matchup between Washington and Philadelphia. After officially eliminating the Eagle from the playoffs last week, the Cowboys now need their help in beating Washington if Dallas is going win the NFC East and earn a home playoff game next weekend. Strangely, the Cowboys were in a similar situation last year. After the Eagles were the victors in a crucial Week 16 game, the Cowboys still had a slim shot to get in, but it required them to beat the Redskins as well as needing the Giants to come through with an upset over the Eagles in the regular-season finale. The Cowboys did their part with a 47-16 win, but the Eagles took care of business themselves and doubled up the Giants 34-17.

Giants-Cowboys final injury report: The end for Golden Tate? - Big Blue View
New York Giants wide receiver Golden Tate is questionable for Sunday’s critical game against the Dallas Cowboys with a calf injury. If Tate doesn’t play, that means we could already have seen the last of the 32-year-old as a Giant. Tate signed a four-year, $37.5 million contract ($22.95 million guaranteed) before the 2019 season. His time with the Giants has been neither as quiet nor as productive as the Giants had hoped.

...

Social Media Information:

BGN Facebook Page: Click here to like our page

BGN Twitter: Follow @BleedingGreen

BGN Instagram: Follow @BleedingGreenInsta

BGN Manager: Brandon Lee Gowton: Follow @BrandonGowton

BGN Radio Twitter: Follow @BGN_Radio

BGN Cameo: Click here for a personalized video message