‘Pleasantly Surprised’

Thanks to strong coaching and player development, the Philadelphia Eagles are sitting 8-2 and have firmly entrenched themselves as NFC contenders.

On the latest episode of “Inside The Birds,” Geoff Mosher and Adam Caplan discussed how the team is developing during their six game win streak. 

GETTY IMAGES: Philadelphia Eagles rookie Quinyon Mitchell has been a lockdown corner during the team’s six game winning streak.

Run Game

Geoff Mosher: “Through 10 games, they have run the ball 51% of the time, still the only team in the NFL to have more runs than passes and it’s working for them…Every team has imperfections, the Eagles have a really unique ability to be able to adjust on the fly or if something’s not working like the run game, they can stick to it and eventually in a tight game, all it takes is one or two (Saquon) Barkley runs to really change the game. I applaud them for not abandoning the run because it wasn’t working so well and figuring that with the way the defense is playing, they were eventually going to break one.”

Adam Caplan: “They are absolutely a running team, the numbers show it. (Jalen) Hurts is a part of that, he really wasn’t last year, he didn’t look right physically. The first half playcalls tell you what kind of team they are.”

Vic Fangio

Mosher: “I’m pleasantly surprised on how adaptable he is. He really doesn’t play that five-man front that often, only if the team they are playing is going to come out of 12 personnel and really thinks they are going to run because he has even responded to some 12 personnel with the traditional nickel.”

Caplan: “He’s playing to the personnel he was given, that is really good coaching.”

Jalen Carter

Mosher: “How about Jalen Carter playing all 66 snaps [against Washington]? To believe Jalen Carter could be effective on all snaps, and he was incredibly effective, was good coaching.”

Caplan: “That was stunning. Remember the conditioning, two coaches called him out, Vic and Clint Hurtt did in the offseason. Having the extra four days off, maybe they felt he could do it.”

Quinyon Mitchell

Mosher: “It was not a great start for Quinyon Mitchell, but gradually coming out of the bye, they asked him to do a little more play up and press, two things he did not do at Toledo, and he has responded well. He is obviously a quick learner, his football intelligence is through the roof, his confidence is always through the roof, and you’re starting to see the makings of a guy who can do more than just one thing and gives Vic optionality now on how he wants to play coverages on the backend. That’s tremendous.”

Caplan: “Via Next Gen Stats, the six games after that Bucs game, when the ball has actually gone at him, the passer rating is under 60, he has given up under 90 yards. It’s just incredible.”

Cooper DeJean

Caplan: “One of the most unique nickels we have seen. He has only given up 118 yards and they go after him a lot.”

– Benjamin Paul is a staff writer for InsideTheBirds.com.