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Here we are. One final Eagles all22 offense piece before the playoffs. Working full-time and doing these weekly is not too easy, so I appreciate all the views and comments or I wouldn’t be able to do this! So thank you!
I’ll be honest, this will be shorter than normal because I’m not reading too much into this game for obvious reasons. But let’s get into it.
Passing Game
It was pretty clear the plan was to get the ball out of Jalen Hurts' hands quickly and not get him hit very often. This was a very heavy RPO game. While I get the comments about the Eagles not running enough, Hurts was throwing a lot of RPOs because the Giants were stacking the box so it wasn’t totally just on the coaches. But I wouldn’t have minded a few more traditional runs to help Hurts out a little bit more.
Eagles offense all22 v. Giants. #1 This was a very simple RPO offense. The Giants defense on this play was comically bad. The Eagles wanted to get the ball out of Hurts hands quickly for obvious reasons & AJ Brown is so fun after the catch! pic.twitter.com/4ycBRo87tC
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) January 10, 2023
I feel like Hurts has gotten away with some criticism this week because we were all just happy to see him out there. But he didn’t play well. He didn’t see the field well and left quite a few throws on the field. This is not like him this year so I am hoping he was told to get out of the pocket early and not take hits, rather than him bail because he was concerned about his shoulder. Either way, I would be lying if I said I wasn’t concerned at all, but I’m not reading too much into one game. Here, the Eagles run the ‘Drive’ concept (shallow cross with a deep in, creating a Hi-Lo read) and he should stay in the pocket because he has Goedert coming open in the middle of the field but he bails too early.
#2 I'm not overly concerned about Hurts but he didn't play very well. He seemed to bail from pockets and was avoiding hits, probably deliberately. Misses Goedert here who's coming open by bailing too early. Really nice Hi-Lo design with DeVonta coming across the formation too. pic.twitter.com/Ql2BlBdSWB
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) January 10, 2023
This was my favorite play of the day because it sums up the 2022 Eagles. Late safety rotation to MOFC = throw it to your superstar wide receiver! AJ Brown has been a beast at the catch point all season long. This may be a low % throw but it feels like Hurts and AJ Brown have been really effective together on this exact throw and catch.
#3 Giants blitz designs in this game were so good. They got free rushers constantly. It didn't matter here as Hurts reads the cover 3 invert and takes his favorite one-on-one matchup to AJ Brown who is elite at the catch point! pic.twitter.com/ubbPh4uiJU
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) January 10, 2023
This is another slightly concerning play. This is just simple dagger (a vertical route and a deep in route - known as the dagger) and DeVonta Smith is wide open. He just has to stay in the pocket and hit him. This is probably a combination of rust and being a little afraid of sitting in the pocket but still, you would like him to make that throw.
#7 Another poor Hurts miss. Pretty basic dagger concept and DeVonta wide open in the middle of the field. Felt like Hurts wasn't comfortable waiting in the pocket which is obviously something to monitor pic.twitter.com/uzk5vIu3s0
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) January 10, 2023
Another slight concern was the ease that the Giants managed to get a free rusher at Hurts. Early on in the game, they kept sending 6 rushers against 5 man protection so there was always going to be a free rusher. But later on, they started dropping men into coverage but still creating overloads. A lot of the designs were really good from the Giants (Wink Martindale is an expert) but I would have hoped to see a little bit more success against these blitzes from the Eagles. Hurts inability to run certainly didn’t help.
#8 Giants blitzed the Eagles empty stuff earlier and then kept dropping defenders later but still got free rushers through. Eagles didn't handle it particularly well & I expect future opponents may consider blitzing the Eagles empty sets or at least showing blitz pic.twitter.com/KO16NhjV5k
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) January 10, 2023
The Eagles’ offense didn’t seem to have a lot of answers against the Giants’ pressure looks later on, but it is possible the Eagles' offense didn’t want to reveal too much either, considering they were easily winning and they may have to play the Giants in the playoffs. Either way, some of the snaps against the blitz were not pretty.
#10 This was the good old bad Eagles offense vs the blitz. Giants bring 6v5 but Hurts ends up running straight into the free rusher. Assuming AJ Brown is the hot route then this throw is open if Hurts stays in the pocket pic.twitter.com/PzN4L1WvRM
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) January 10, 2023
Last one of the negatives, but this is not great for week 18. Again, it doesn’t really matter, but I would have just liked to have seen a more clean performance from the offense.
#12 Final one because I'm not too fussed about this game, but you'd like in week 18 for no errors to occur like this. Someone obviously ran the wrong route and whilst it doesn't matter in this game, it could make a big difference in the future. pic.twitter.com/eDcW3hKtwi
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) January 10, 2023
Of course, it wasn’t all bad, and Hurts had some fantastic throws. This was one of my favorites because it’s the kind of throw he’s made all season long. His timing and ball placement on these out routes has been outstanding.
#9 This was more of the Hurts from this year we are used to. Perfect timing and ball placement from the pocket on a 3rd and long. Lovely stuff! pic.twitter.com/6TLgokjwYr
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) January 10, 2023
Running Game
The Eagles' run game was fun in this game. They ran a lot of gap scheme runs and the lineman just dominated up front. As someone who just really likes watching an offensive line move in unison, this was a fun watch. This is just classic power from 12 personnel and I thought Goedert and Still were really good as run blockers in this game.
#4 Loved the Eagles OL in this game, especially in the gap scheme run game. Both tight ends were really good in particular. Sanders showed some good patience as a runner too but the Giants did a good job of preventing explosive plays. Lovely job running power here by the OL pic.twitter.com/WWzs9AA7Dw
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) January 10, 2023
It wasn’t just gap scheme, we saw some lovely inside and outside zone with all offensive linemen perfectly in sync in the run game. This is just great inside zone starting with two great double teams upfront (some may call this DUO but I don’t think it is - but who really cares...).
#5 TD was just standard IZ (I don't think it's duo despite the double teams) but & the Giant killer does what he does best! Scott ran really well all game, I have no idea what it is about the Giants but he played well! pic.twitter.com/2R3kGzhQLG
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) January 10, 2023
I am convinced that rookie year Sanders bounces this outside the tackle. The Eagles don’t run a great deal of outside zone and I think it’s because their running backs aren’t that good at it. But Sanders shows good patience here and waits for his blocks to develop well.
#6 We've seen power, inside zone & now some outside zone! Enjoyed Sanders not bouncing it outside and giving some time for his blocks to develop. pic.twitter.com/FUjmZyscZW
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) January 10, 2023
This is the best rep of the game from the offensive line as a whole. The timing from everyone is perfect and they create a huge hole. I was really glad to see more of Jack Stoll because he hasn’t played much of late and I would be happy to see more 12 personnel if it means less 11 personnel and Quez Watkins.
#11 As I said earlier, I thought both tight ends were excellent and this is a great block by Stoll who opens up a huge lane. The Eagles ran quite a lot from either under center or from the pistol which I always enjoy! pic.twitter.com/zhcLmiiqfl
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) January 10, 2023
Overall, I’m not reading too much into this game but it wasn’t the cleanest performance I have seen. I just hope Hurts’ injury doesn’t impact his confidence. One thing is for certain though, no matter how much it may hurt, the Eagles are going to use him as a runner in the playoffs. The offense is not the same without that element.
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