We are back! It’s time for another Eagles season and I’ll be covering the offense and defense every single week, as always. Personally, I sort of hate preseason football because it’s so vanilla schematically, but it does give us a chance to look at some of the backups. Let’s get into it!
I think the obvious place to start this one is with defensive tackle Gabe Hall. You could see the burst and the length on show. He was consistently in the backfield and has clearly developed well from the practice squad. When I watched him last year post-draft, I was impressed with the traits despite the clear lack of production. This is what I said…
Hall is a light defensive tackle, and he projects as a 3 or 5 technique. I expect the Eagles will like him as a 3-technique in their 5-man fronts, where he can play alongside a bigger nose tackle. I look for traits and potential upside when it comes to UDFAs. Gabe Hall absolutely has that. He was frustratingly inconsistent in the games I watched and didn’t create a lot of pressure. I don’t know if fatigue was a problem but he seemed to lack explosiveness as the game continued. However, his arm length is evident on film and he can hold his own as a run defender.
The Eagles need Gabe Hall to contribute a little bit this year, so this was a very promising start! The arm length and movement traits really stood out.
Kelee Ringo has had a lot of attention for the touchdown he gave up (we will get to that later), but this earlier snap caught my eye more. This is his game. Press man and defending a deep vertical route outside the numbers. Yet, he still got beaten. To be fair to Ringo, the throw from Burrow to Chase is basically uncoverable in that spot but I wish he did a better job at the LOS, slowing Chase down, and I think he could have made it harder at the catch point too. His ball tracking, turns, and press technique all look shaky here. I would expect Jakorian Bennett to get a few reps with the 1’s over practice the next couple of weeks.
Back to Hall again, because he earned it this week! It wasn’t just the pass rush that stood out, but his gap discipline and run defense popped too. On this snap, you’ve got the safeties flying downhill and Hall just blowing past the right guard with ease. That combination of quickness and discipline is why he stood out.
Let’s talk Adoree’ Jackson. Jackson was someone I was cautious about him when the Eagles signed him, and this game was a reminder why. When I reviewed him, I said that his film is pretty clean and I would not be surprised if he starts a lot of games for the Eagles this year. I think he’s a fine player. However, I also said this …
The biggest issue I saw with him was on comeback routes. I feel he likes to give himself a bit more cushion to prevent balls from going over his head, which can result in comeback routes that cause him problems. As cornerbacks age, they can sometimes overcompensate for a lack of speed by standing too far off the receiver. This is something Jackson will need to be cautious of.“
It showed up again here. I get giving cushion against Ja’Marr Chase, which he did at times, but against Charlie Jones on 1st and 21 in the red zone? That’s too much space and it’s passive defense, which I never like. I never like just giving up 10 yards this easily and this snap wasn’t the only time Jackson played a little conservatively in this one.
I said last week in the OTSP Discord server that I’d pump the brakes on the Smael Mondon hype. This is not because I dislike the player. I had a 3rd round grade on him! Mondon is a fun watch and due to his explosive nature, I am not surprised that he is standing out in camp. However, you’ve still got to be able to handle the physical side. That was my feeling before the game, and then he went out and missed tackles on the opening drive, got stiff-armed, and was bowled over on the touchdown below. Mondon is a fascinating player, but he’s not someone I would rely on this year.
Here’s the Ringo touchdown. Yes, the missed tackle was bad. But honestly, this call was never happening in a regular-season Fangio defense. There is absolutely no chance. This felt like Fangio trying to push Ringo and get him to show him something he wasn’t expecting. It is the most predictable blitz in the world after the Bengals’ late shift, as Sydney Brown has to come down to cover the slot. Although I doubt the Eagles ever run this blitz in a real game, I do hope they are better prepared pre-snap if they do! Still, the tackling angle wasn’t great, and given the rest of Ringo’s night, this just added to an inconsistent showing. He is a lengthy press corner but you have to be concerned about the movement skills in space.
I refuse to talk about scheme in the preseason, but one thing that did catch my eye was the Eagles’ use of stunts. Ty Robinson’s sack came off one, and he’s got the twitch to be a real problem when you can scheme him clean due to his movement traits. He also closed well on plays and brought great energy on a few other plays. I thought Josh Uche had a nice rep here, fighting through a back’s block, too. Between Hall and Robinson, the Eagles might have two young DTs who will probably have to contribute this season. Robinson is the one expected to play more, but I would not sleep on Gabe Hall.
I’ll end with Jeremiah Trotter Jr., because he was exactly what I expected! He is just so reliable, clean, and smart. Mondon is a far superior athlete, but Trotter looked better than Mondon because he is just always in the right place at the right time. He didn’t over-run plays, trusted his eyes, and just played good football. This linebacker group still feels unsettled, as we are unsure what to expect from some of the others, but Trotter is a safe pair of hands. If the Eagles decide to start the season with Trotter playing more than expected, I wouldn’t be shocked at all.
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