Roobs 10 Observations
It’s all proper here in this weekend’s Roob’s 10 Eagles Observations!
1. I hold making an attempt to persuade myself, “This will be the yr we see the actual Sidney Jones.” And popping out of final yr, I actually believed Jones, going into Year 4, had a probability to essentially get his legs wholesome this spring after which present everybody in minicamps, OTAs, coaching camp and the preseason video games that he could maintain down the CB2 reverse Darius Slay. But if the curtailed offseason and preseason hurts anybody the most, it’s Jones. The Eagles have made it clear Avonte Maddox is the projected starter, and as lengthy Maddox stays wholesome I do not see how Sidney can win the job. Without any spring exercises or preseason video games? Can Jones do enough simply in a few weeks of coaching camp follow to beat out Maddox? I do not assume so.
2. Who has the very best 4th-quarter passer score amongst Eagles quarterbacks? Going again to 1994, as far again as the Pro Football Reference database logs quarter-by-quarter stats, here’s the stunning reply (minimal of 100 4th-quarter makes an attempt):
95.9 … Sam Bradford
88.4 … Michael Vick
84.5 … Carson Wentz
83.6 … Donovan McNabb
81.9 … Nick Foles
76.9 … Rodney Peele
76.7 … Mark Sanchez
70.3 … Ty Detmer
64.1 … Bobby Hoying
62.7 … Randall Cunningham
59.0 … Koy Detmer
(Remember, this solely contains Randall’s final two years with the Eagles)
3. As good as T.O. was in 2004, he was on his method to an even larger season in 2005 earlier than he imploded and acquired himself suspended. Owens was 47-for-763 with 6 TDs after seven video games, which put him on tempo for 107 catches and 1,744 yards with 13 TDs. The solely gamers in NFL historical past to achieve those plateaus in a season are Jerry Rice and Isaac Bruce. T.O.’s 93.5 yards per sport as an Eagle is 23 yards per sport greater than any other WR in franchise historical past. DeSean Jackson (69.7), Mike Quick (64.0), Irving Fryar (63.9) and Jeremy Maclin (63.6) are subsequent.
4. If the NFL does wind up lowering rosters from 90 to 75 due to the curtailed or eradicated preseason and for social distancing functions, the league wants to provide each group the chance to retain the rights of some or all of the gamers they’re pressured to launch. Maybe pay them a weekly diminished wage and let them take part in digital conferences and stay a part of the group with out really being at follow. It would be a disgrace to see the Eagles pressured to chop ties with promising children like Adrian Killians Jr., Grayland Arnold, Raequan Williams, Mike Warren, Sua Opeta or Deontay Burnett due to the present circumstances. The league and the NFLPA want to seek out a means to ensure that would not occur.
5. I simply remembered the Eagles paid Nelson Agholor $9.387 million final yr.
6. The Frankford Yellow Jackets received the 1926 NFL Championship, however by the early Thirties, they might have been the worst skilled sports activities group in Philadelphia historical past. They received solely 3 of their final 24 video games and scored 7 or fewer factors in 20 of those 24 video games.
7. What are the percentages that the Eagles’ two latest Hall of Famers — Brian Dawkins and Harold Carmichael — went to the identical highschool? Both graduated from Raines High in Jacksonville. Raines has produced quite a few other NFL gamers, together with Lito Sheppard, Shawn Jefferson and Ken Burrough, together with baseball’s Vince Coleman. Surprisingly, 16 excessive colleges produced a number of Hall of Famers, together with one — George Washington in L.A. — that produced three (James Lofton, Hugh McElhenny, Bill Walsh).
8. Carson Wentz’s 32 wins are Fifteenth-most in NFL historical past by a quarterback in his first 4 seasons. He’s additionally one of solely 5 of the highest 20 that did not win a playoff sport throughout those 4 years. The others are Matt Ryan, Andy Dalton, Steve Grogan, Peyton Manning and Carson Palmer. Ryan received one in his fifth season, Manning in his sixth and Palmer in his 14th. Dalton and Grogan by no means did win one. One of these years, Wentz will win one. Right?
9. Donovan McNabb had already received 4 playoff video games and reached two NFC Championship Games by the top of his fourth season.
10. Everyone appeared to get pleasure from final week’s excerpt from newspaper protection of the Eagles’ first sport in franchise historical past in 1933, so here’s an excerpt from the Inquirer story reporting the primary win in franchise historical past, 6-0 over the Reds later in 1933:
“Tall, slab-sided, loose-limbed Swede Hanson, the brand new Galloping Ghost of the industrial gridiron, raced during the last white stripe at present, as the Philadelphia Eagles achieved their first conquest of the season, 6-0. Hanson, lean and lank and lantern jawed, was the hero of this sport, as he has starred in all of the frays in which the Eagles have been a half. For two intervals, the Birds and their Red foes battered away on the line or sought the air however all in useless. In the third quarter, nonetheless, the Wraymen changed into a devastating horde.”
The story goes on to explain Hanson’s landing, the sport’s solely rating:
“It was fourth down now and the purpose line beckoning in tantalizing vogue straight forward. Then Hanson and (Reb) Russell outwtitted their foes. Reb got here tearing in as if to shoot off deal with. The Reds tumbled by way of upon the previous Purple hero, nonetheless, who was prepared for this emergency. As the gang tried to pile up, Russell flipped a lateral, straight and unerring, proper into Hanson’s arms. Like a flash, the Swede lighted out for the top, slipped previous two tackles and went over the road.”
Wraymen? Really? Remember, that group’s coach was Lud Wray. Guess I should begin calling the Eagles the Dougmen?