Eagles vs. Cardinals: Breaking Down Philadelphia's Game Plan
When we last saw the Philadelphia Eagles, their tight ends were busy abusing the New York Giants defense to the tune of eight receptions for 118 yards and two touchdowns in a 27-0 victory. Such a performance was likely a sign of things to come in Arizona this Sunday, where the Eagles are set to collide with the Cardinals in a battle of 5-1 teams.
As it turns out, the first-place Cardinals are one of the worst teams in the NFL when it comes to defending tight ends, a trend that dates back to last season. In fact, all three Eagles touchdowns in their 24-21 win over Arizona in 2013 were scored by tight ends—two for Zach Ertz, one by Brent Celek.
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If Philadelphia is to come away victorious again in Week 8, it’s a safe bet tight ends will have something to do with it.
| Losses | 68% | 120 | 12 | 1 |
| Wins | 59% | 52 | 5 | 4 |
The Football Outsiders Almanac 2014 breaks down Arizona’s extreme difficulty with tight ends last season quite succinctly. Half of all touchdowns scored against the Cardinals defense in 2013 were by tight ends. The split was even more extreme in the club’s six losses, with two-thirds of all TDs directed to TEs.
The Cards have only dropped one game this season, but if their loss to the Broncos was any indication, the blueprint still works. Julius Thomas reached the end zone twice in Denver’s 41-20 win, part of a six-catch, 66-yard effort from the All-Pro.
| Antonio Gates (SD) | 1 | 6 | 82 | 0 |
| Larry Donnell (NYG) | 2 | 7 | 81 | 0 |
| Julius Thomas (DEN) | 5 | 6 | 66 | 2 |
| Jordan Reed (WAS) | 6 | 8 | 92 | 0 |
Arizona has only allowed a tight end to reach paydirt one more time this season, which is not to suggest the defense isn’t having similar troubles. Three other individuals have recorded at least six catches for 80 yards in a game.
That hole in the unit is alive and well.
It’s not something the Eagles offense has to go out of its way to exploit, either. Under Chip Kelly, this team makes heavy use of the tight ends anyway. The organization has invested significantly in the position since the head coach arrived almost two years ago. Ertz, Celek, James Casey—few squads can claim to go three deep at tight end like this.
Ertz in particular is the guy you would expect to do potentially serious damage. A popular choice to enjoy a breakout season entering 2014, the second-year player is tops among tight ends this season with seven receptions of 20 yards or more. He has seven touchdown catches over his last 15 regular season and playoff games.
If a defense has issues covering tight ends downfield or inside the red zone, Ertz will take advantage.
It’s a good thing the Cardinals have such an obvious weakness, because they don’t have many of them. Arizona boasts the top-ranked rushing defense in the NFL this season. Patrick Peterson is one of the best cornerbacks in pro football. That makes life difficult for Philly’s most productive weapons, running back LeSean McCoy and wide receiver Jeremy Maclin.
As long as the Eagles get the tight ends involved, though, the offense will be fine.
Get to Carson Palmer
Use of the tight ends isn’t the only facet of Philadelphia’s win over rival New York in Week 6 that might have served as a preview of the plan that could unfold in Arizona. The Eagles went after Eli Manning, sacking the Giants signal-caller six times and crippling the offense in the process.
It was the third week in a row the Birds managed to take down the opposing quarterback at least four times. Their pass rush appears to be for real.
Meanwhile, the Cardinals offensive line is far from the soundest around. The only thing that often keeps the unit looking respectable is Carson Palmer, and let’s be honest—much like Eli—he’ll make more than his fair share of mistakes when the pressure is on.
| 2014 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| 2013 | 16 | 22 | 3 | 41 |
| 2012 | 15 | 14 | 5 | 26 |
Palmer routinely finishes among the league leaders in interceptions. In 2013, his first season in Arizona, the 12-year veteran was tied for second with 22. He landed outside the top 10 just once since 2010.
So far, Palmer has done an outstanding job avoiding turnovers in 2014, with only two—an interception and a fumble—in three games. That being said, he was doing a nice job of protecting the football for a stretch last season, too.
Until the Eagles came around.
As much as Ertz and Celek having their way with the Cardinals defense hurt, the bigger problem was the fact that the Eagles were able to get pressure on the quarterback. In the two games before and the two games after their meeting with Philadelphia, Palmer didn’t commit a single turnover. Arizona won all four.
Against the Eagles, Palmer was picked off twice and lost a fumble. The Cardinals fell 24-21.
It’s not exceptionally difficult to get to Palmer, either. Last season, he was sacked 41 times, the eighth-highest total in the NFL. That was with one of the fastest release times in the league, ranked fifth, according to metrics site Pro Football Focus (subscription required). His offensive line is about as patchwork as they come.
Of course, we could sit here and talk about how important it is to pressure any quarterback, and we would never be wrong. It’s the key in almost any matchup.
| Larry Fitzgerald | 23 | 283 | 12.3 | 1 |
| Michael Floyd | 19 | 353 | 18.6 | 2 |
| John Brown | 14 | 197 | 11.6 | 3 |
However, it might be more important than usual this Sunday when Eagles cornerbacks Cary Williams and Bradley Fletcher are going one-on-one with Cardinals wide receivers Larry Fitzgerald and Michael Floyd. This is one of the biggest wideout tandems going today, as opposed to Williams and Fletcher, one of the most scrutinized corner duos.
The idea that the Eagles defensive backs are going to be able to cover Fitzgerald and Floyd downfield, even with help, is not one many observers are prepared to entertain. The front seven better make Palmer hurry.
Fortunately, there’s reason to believe the unit can. Philadelphia is eighth in the NFL with 19 sacks this season, 16 of those from the past three games alone. With fresh legs coming out of the bye, Connor Barwin, Trent Cole and company should be able to make Palmer’s life miserable—and deliver another win the process.
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