Philadelphia Eagles: A Solutions Manual to the Current Eagles Woes

As a fan, it would be easy for me to blindly criticize the Philadelphia Eagles for falling short of expectations—but many of the Eagles' issues are simply key fundamental problems that can be corrected.

Before this year, the Eagles' lopsided run/pass ratio was often an issue—but play-calling has improved this year due to increased confidence in RB Shady McCoy.

Here, I provide a detailed list of the current issues plaguing the Eagles along with possible short- and long-term solutions.  Though some of the solutions may sound difficult—or impossible—to implement, I would nevertheless attempt them if I were the Eagles' GM.

Continuity

Let me first begin by saying that although Andy Reid has several flaws, I believe he is one of the best offensive minds in the game today.  Recent Super Bowl-winning teams have featured strong offensive head coaches with strong defensive coordinators—or vice versa.  

It's crucial to have both areas of the game covered.  I believe that the Eagles' current defensive woes stem from the coaching staff as much as the players.

The Eagles have recently hired several well-respected position coaches, but I believe these changes have created a lack of continuity.  With a shortened offseason due to the lockout, I am more than fine with moving forward with our current position coaches on the D-line and O-line.  

As for Juan Castillo, there is no question of his work ethic and intensity.  One would assume that such characteristics would lead to an improvement in the future—but if the Eagles' front office doesn't believe in Castillo, they should seek a better fit.  

I often wonder how the Eagles defense was ranked in the middle of the league last year when their only two good defensive players were Trent Cole and Asante Samuel.  Not to say that Sean McDermott was the answer, but I believe he may have been able to do more with the Eagles' current star-studded roster.

As for the players, I believe all of the free agents we brought in on defense are leaders and are worth their salaries.  Continuity has been an issue with them as well.

Short-term solution: Keep the roster and coaching staff intact and hope that a defensive improvement will occur, as it did with the Green Bay Packers.

Long-term solution: The Eagles' free agent frenzy was necessary to fill positions of need, but the team should continue to build through the draft and only bring in free agents as stop-gaps or to increase depth.  

As for coaches, I would like to keep Reid, as many of the mistakes that I see tend to be player mistakes.  Reid does have poor clock management, but my fear is that, in wanting a change, we may end up with a less successful head coach.  

I believe that Howard Mudd, Jim Washburn and Bobby April are top-notch, and I'd love to have them. As for Castillo, the Eagles should either ride out the storm and commit to him for another year—or cut ties and immediately hire someone with experience running a 4-3 wide nine (Jeff Fisher??)

Offense

The Eagles' offensive issues start with Michael Vick.  Vick doesn't have prototypical size, so the offensive line must block well to create passing lanes.  When they can't do that and Vick is rushed, balls get tipped/intercepted.

In addition, the Eagles are too much of a feast-or-famine type of offense with DeSean Jackson.  I actually like the type of all-around receiver that Jeremy Maclin is developing into. 

LeSean McCoy's improvement has made the offense more consistent, but the Eagles need a legitimate red zone threat and a capable player who can move the chains.  

I love Jason Avant but he is just a hands guy.  He has no ability to separate—thus, he rarely has the opportunity to make catches.

Brent Celek is a good blocker and receiver, but he has nowhere near the athleticism of top tight ends such as Tony Gonzalez and Jermichael Finley.

The offensive line is improving, believe it or not.  If Evan Mathis hadn't gone down with turf toe, I really think the Eagles would have won the Bears game.  

Four of five offensive line spots are now solidified: Jason Peters at left tackle, Jason Kelce at center, Danny Watkins at right guard and Todd Herremans at right tackle.  I would prefer to keep Herremans at right tackle, as he is crucial in allowing McCoy to run to the right.  Plus, tackles are expensive and hard to draft, while guards and centers are cheaper and often fall in the draft.

Short-term solutions: We are tied to Michael Vick for a few years, so we should draft a prototypical big, smart and athletic QB and groom him under Vick for two-three years—hopefully he'll be 6'4" or taller.

Also, we should franchise/trade Jackson for picks and use those picks for taller recievers.  This year's draft is littered with tall, athletic receivers.  

As for tight end and offensive line, we can continue with the players we have and still be successful, in my opinion.  I believe that more time will yield better results for the offensive line.

Long-term solution: Let our prototypical-sized QB take over.  Jeremy Maclin can be our future Greg Jennings, but we also need a large, fast WR moving forward—someone similar to Vincent Jackson or Hakeem Nicks.  

We also need a small, quick WR who can replace the aging Avant.  This would give us a young offense with Maclin, McCoy and two new receivers.  A possible alternative is to keep DeSean Jackson and draft a pass-catching tight end who can shore up the middle of the field.

Defense

Issues: I believe that Nnamdi Asomugha, when used in man-to-man coverage to shut down an entire side of the field, allows a defensive coordinator to call more exotic blitzes—like Rex Ryan does. 

Asomugha is best in man-to-man situations, which is the way he played in Oakland.  It is often said that Asomugha can play only right cornerback and that teams often move their best receivers to the left side. 

If that's the case, we should keep Asomugha on the right to cover the opponent's second receiver and a safety and cornerback can blanket the receiver on the left.  This would allow the front seven and one safety to fill the box and stop the run/blitz.  

I believe Asante Samuel is a top five corner, but this is not the right scheme for him and he should be traded.  DRC can replace Samuel—he's extremely quick, but he's a poor tackler and is often undisciplined.

I like our current safeties—Kurt Coleman, Nate Allen and Jaiquawn Jarrett—but none of them are elite and we might need to add depth going forward.

I believe the only good Eagles linebacker is Jamar Chaney.  I really love Brian Rolle's upside but he doesn't have the ideal height to cover tight ends.  Fokou is a backup and should not be starting.

Our defensive line is littered with talent but is a bit on the old side.  I believe this group is strong enough to stop the run or rush the passer, but we may want to replace Mike Patterson, as he lacks pass-rushing ability.

Short-term solutions: Draft another cornerback to replace Samuel, in case DRC doesn't work out.  Add depth to the safety position.  Add one elite player and one solid starter in the draft to improve the linebacking crew. Add depth at defensive tackle.

Additionally, we should continue to run blitz our linebackers to fill gaps in the wide nine.  This works amazingly well, but I feel as if Castillo does not want to blitz because Washburn believes he can generate pressure with his front four.  

Having the defensive ends playing wide and run blitzing all but one linebacker on every play may be predictable, but with our personnel, it could also be unstoppable.

Long-term solutions: Continue to build on defense, as depth is an issue.  The safety and linebacker positions lack elite players, so I would address those holes in the next two drafts.  

Additionally, Washburn's wide nine scheme is a force when both defensive tackles are menacing (imagine Suh and Fairley together).  Pairing Cullen Jenkins with a young, dominating tackle could make a world of difference for this team.