Eagles News: 3 Philadelphia players make midseason All-Pro team

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NFL All-Pro Team: Tyreek Hill, Micah Parsons stand out in our midseason staff vote - The Athletic
Lane Johnson, Philadelphia Eagles (14 votes). The 10th-year veteran and three-time Pro Bowl pick helps anchor what many regard as the best offensive line in football. According to Pro Football Focus, Johnson hasn’t surrendered a sack in 521 snaps logged this season. [...] Jason Kelce, Philadelphia Eagles (25 votes). It’s not just because of his fantastic beard or his sideline Batman Halloween costume. Kelce truly is the gold standard at center and is the heart and soul of one of the best O-lines in football, which is a major factor in Jalen Hurts’ effectiveness. Creed Humphrey of the Chiefs finished second, with 18 votes. [...] Darius Slay, Philadelphia Eagles (14 votes). The third cornerback spot came down to Slay, who has three interceptions, eight pass breakups and 25 tackles for the Eagles, and Jalen Ramsey. The Rams corner hasn’t been quite as dominant this season, but he does have nine pass breakups to go with an interception and 38 tackles. Slay had a few more votes than Ramsey (11), and his defense is playing better — ranked third against the pass and in total yards and fourth in points allowed.

Best NFL one-on-one matchups of second half: Who has the edge? - ESPN+
Lane Johnson, OT, Eagles vs. Micah Parsons, OLB, Cowboys. Why the matchup stands out: Parsons has the traits of a premier edge rusher and has logged eight sacks this season, while leading the NFL with 36 pressures and a pass rush win rate of 31.5%. He will be deployed on the edge in dropback situations against Johnson, who ranks third overall at the tackle position in pass block win rate (94.3%). The veteran tackle has shown the ability to redirect and recover in space, with the anchor to hold up against power moves. Who has the edge: I’m actually going with Johnson because of his blocking skill set and the anticipated schematic tendencies we see from the Eagles’ offense. In these two teams’ first matchup of the season, back in Week 6, Parsons registered just one pressure, despite a 40% pass rush win rate. Philadelphia used both run-pass options and boot concepts to limit his ability to get to the quarterback.

‘I don’t know how to be anybody else’: Darius Slay’s infectious personality brings the Eagles together - Inquirer
Madden doesn’t provide numbers for off-the-field intangibles, but if there was one for personality, Slay likely would receive that 99. It’s difficult to quantify the effect the veteran cornerback’s sense of humor has on the squad.The 8-0 Eagles have no-nonsense leaders (e.g. Jalen Hurts). They have passionate ones (Jason Kelce). And they have other characters as captains (Brandon Graham). But the happy-go-lucky Slay has a way, like no other, of keeping the locker room loose, and yet tight-knit at the same time. No one is spared from his jabs, from Hurts to the bottom of the depth chart.“He doesn’t know a stranger,” cornerback James Bradberry said. “He jokes with the O-line, D-line, receivers, special teams. He communicates with everybody across the team. Even though it’s a kid’s game, this game can get stressful. “There’s a thin line between being too serious and being too lackadaisical, and Slay cuts through that.”

How the Philadelphia Eagles are standing as the NFL’s lone unbeaten team - PFF
Pass Rush and Coverage. The Eagles’ defensive front has wreaked havoc in the passing game across the first nine weeks of the season. Haason Reddick is leading the charge with 27 total pressures, a top-25 mark at the position. Josh Sweat hasn’t been much of a slouch, either, as he’s accumulated 26 pressures. Veteran Brandon Graham has been an effective third option with his 21 total pressures and whopping 23.3% pass-rush win rate, the latter of which is a top-10 mark at the position. Starting cornerbacks Darius Slay Jr. and James Bradberry drive Philadelphia’s secondary. Slay has allowed a 36.2 passer rating (second-best) across 37 targets and has three interceptions through nine weeks of football. Bradberry has surrendered just a 41.8% catch rate (second-best) on 58 targets while forcing a league-high 12 incompletions. Bradberry also joins Slay in maintaining a suffocating passer rating into his coverage (41.5).

Darius Slay’s hilarious explanation for why he didn’t become a WR - NBCSP
“You saw me do it a little bit last year,” he said. “You never know. Might come out there, I might be the new … I ain’t gonna say Randy Moss because I ain’t 6-3, but I might be the new short version of Randy Moss. Fast, take the top of defenses like Moss, because I got hands like that.

Are the Eagles a one quarter wonder? - BGN
Johnson is out of his mind if he thinks this Cowboys team is the best he’s ever seen. But he might have a point about the Eagles. The Eagles do beat up teams in the 2nd quarter, they lead the league with 16.6 points per game in the 2nd quarter. 16 of their 28 offensive TDs have come in the 2nd quarter, and 4 of 10 field goal attempts have come in the 2nd quarter (two attempts, one of which was no good, were end of the half kicks). But is he right? The numbers not only don’t back up Johnson’s point but indicate that the opposite is true. The Eagles offense is more efficient in the 3rd quarter than in the 1st quarter.

Eagles-Commanders preview + Mid-season awards - BGN Radio
Brandon Lee Gowton and Jimmy Kempski discuss the latest Birds news, preview the Eagles vs. Commanders game, make their weekly NFL picks against the spread, and more. Interact with us on Twitter: @BrandonGowton, @JimmyKempski, @BGN_Radio, @BleedingGreen.

Bizarro Midseason Awards - Iggles Blitz
MVP – Jon Robinson. The Titans GM very generously traded his most dynamic offensive weapon to the Eagles back in April. Brown has been an amazing addition for the Eagles. I think the least we can do to say thank you is name Robinson MVP.

Spadaro: 6 storylines to follow Monday night vs. Commanders - PE.com
3. The matchups in the passing game are different. The Eagles have the utmost respect for the wide receiver corps here, led by Terry McLaurin (38 receptions, 609 yards, and 2 touchdowns), Curtis Samuel (45-455-3), and rookie Jahan Dotson (12-152-4 in four games before suffering a hamstring injury; he is expected back on Monday night). All three played in Week 3 and the Eagles did a great job limiting them until late in the second half. What’s different now is the matchup from the Eagles’ standpoint. Darius Slay and James Bradberry are the standouts on the outside at cornerback and they are healthy and ready for this challenge. However, Avonte Maddox will miss the game, so Josiah Scott is expected to make his third start (he started against Jacksonville and Arizona). Scott is experienced in the defense, having played 120 snaps to date. It’s going to be interesting to see what Washington does in terms of matchups and which receivers they run through the slot to perhaps avoid Slay and Bradberry.

All-32: McCaffrey Set for Big Day Against Chargers - Football Outsiders
Jason Kelce may still be the best center in football. Nobody else brings his speed and versatility in the run game, and he is as sharp as any at helping the quarterback sort out protections. He is a unicorn at the position. Though a likely future Hall of Famer, Kelce still isn’t perfect. Kelce’s lone weakness is that he is, well, weak. He doesn’t handle bullrushes very well, which is hardly a surprise for a sub-300 pounder, and he can get knocked around in the downhill run game if he doesn’t get proper guard help. Granted, these weaknesses are relative to the rest of his otherwise elite skill set and he isn’t a disaster in the strength department, but still. If any defensive interior can get after a center and bully him, it’s Washington’s. Jonathan Allen and Daron Payne continue to play as well as anyone in football. They are also the perfect duo to handle Kelce. Allen and Payne win for a lot of reasons, but power (as well as length in Allen’s case) is the crown jewel of their respective skill sets. They both aim to go through their opponent rather than around them. Both as pass-rushers and run defenders, Allen and Payne are going to give Kelce and the Eagles interior issues. Philly’s best option is probably to avoid them entirely and lean on RPOs, quick fade/go balls, and pulling runs to the perimeter. The Eagles have typically been good about playing away from an opposing defense’s strengths while spamming a couple of winning strategies, and this week is no different. In the off chance the Eagles offense stumbles, though, it will be because Allen and Payne demanded to be seen

Eagles’ Robert Quinn can achieve an NFL first he’d rather avoid while living in a hotel - Delaware Online
That means Quinn, along with possibly a few others who changed teams, can become the first player since the NFL went to a uniform schedule in 1933 to play 18 games in a season, according to CBSsports. “That’s not really a record I’m looking for ― 18 games and no bye week,” Quinn said. “Come on, man. You can borrow my pads if you want to do that. I mean, 18 weeks, no bye week, Year 12. It’s a heck of an adjustment, and in a new city.” Quinn is grateful to get this mini-break, though. “I sat on the couch, drinking sweet tea,” Quinn said. “That’s pretty much all I did. I didn’t do a whole lot.” He also used the time to learn the playbook while resting. The Eagles, who are 8-0, will play every week in their remaining nine games, all the way through Jan. 8. That could continue through the playoffs, and possibly through the Super Bowl in mid-February. “I think for me, I learn a whole lot better on the field,” Quinn added. “I can look over plays a million times, but I like to be on the field learning. That’s just me. I guess it gave me an extra day or two to kind of look over the playbook and make sure I’m up to par with everything.”

Washington fans only slightly buoyed by Snyder’s decision to sell as the NFC East leads in wins and expectations for end-of-season honors - Hogs Haven
It all adds up to a tough NFC East in 2022 that pretty much eliminates the Commanders from a shot at the division title (though that assessment could be revisited if Washington were to pull off an unlikely upset on Monday night). Ron Rivera’s team is not, however, out of contention for the final wildcard slot, though accomplishing that would probably require that all 4 NFC East teams qualify for the playoffs — something that has never before happened in NFL history. Still, it feels like 8 or 9 wins could be enough to get into the NFC playoffs as the 7th seed in January, and that’s not yet out of the question for the burgundy & gold. In the meantime, what’s happening off the field with investigations and ownership maneuvering seems, at times, to be a bit more interesting than what’s happening on the field; especially when Washington has the ball. The Commanders are 11-point underdogs on Monday Night Football, and the over/under is set at 43.5 points by DraftKings. The Eagles offense is averaging 28.1 points per game while the Commanders offense is averaging 17.7 for the season, so the under looks pretty good on that basis. Let’s hope that the Commanders defense has what it takes to dramatically slow the Philly offense, and that Taylor Heinicke can find a little magic dust somewhere in his bag of tricks. Bill-in-Bangkok prediction: Eagles 24, Commanders 19.

Report: Giants had contract talks with Saquon Barkley - Big Blue View
We don’t know the contract value that either side is targeting, though it seems likely that the two sides are far enough apart that they couldn’t get a deal done in a week. Rapoport and Garfolo mention in their report that Barkley’s camp is targeting the 4-year $64 million contract signed by Christian McCaffrey in 2020. The Giants would obviously like to secure Barkley’s services for a smaller price tag than the $16 million per year average that the Carolina Panthers gave McCaffrey.

Cowboys free agency rumors: Dallas reportedly on list of 5 teams Odell Beckham Jr. prefers - Blogging The Boys
The clear and obvious play here seems to be an NFC team. The NFC is by far the more wide-open conference and if there is any sort of interest in what the off-the-field benefits of each of these teams are, then there is no competition for the Cowboys. If trying to jump on board a Super Bowl team is the play by Beckham here, then Dallas has the best odds of the three NFC teams listed. FiveThirtyEight has Dallas with the third-highest odds to make the playoffs right now (higher than both Buffalo and Kansas City by the way, and the highest of all five teams in general) and the fourth-highest odds to win the Super Bowl (they do trail Buffalo and Kansas City in this capacity). The writing is on the wall here and really has been over the last few weeks. It all seems like it is going to come down to contract language which is where the Cowboys might have to bend.

Mount Union wins their conference championship on an incredible Hail Mary - SB Nation
Over the course of school history, the Mount Union Purple Raiders have built one of the winningest programs at any level of college football. Prior to this season they have won 826 games, the most of any program at the Division 3 level. They have won 13 Division 3 National Championships, and heading into this season the Purple Raiders had won 32 conference championships. They won their 33rd conference title in stunning fashion. Having secured a share of the Ohio Athletic Conference title with last week’s win over John Carroll to improve to 9-0, the Purple Raiders needed a win over Baldwin Wallace in the regular season finale to secure the OAC title outright, and clinch an automatic berth in the Division 3 playoffs. But the Purple Raiders — ranked second in Division 3 — found themselves trailing the Yellow Jackets 21-17, with just enough time for one more play, and the football near midfield. [BLG Note: Big day for Nick Sirianni’s alma mater.]

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