“Softest Defense They’ve Ever Had”

Following the Eagles’ disappointing, 33-22 loss in Las Vegas to the Raiders, Geoff Mosher and Adam Caplan discussed the coaching and personnel problems facing Nick Sirianni’s 2-5 team. On the latest Inside The Birds podcast, Mosher and Caplan examined offensive and defensive miscues, and why neither unit could execute against the Raiders.

ITB photo: Eagles DC Jonathan Gannon is under fire after another soft approach

Jonathan Gannon

Adam Caplan: “It was an embarrassment. Jonathan Gannon, we know that there were other teams that wanted him as their defensive coordinator, you sure as hell wouldn’t know it by the way he’s coached this season. Since Week 1 he’s progressively gotten worse to the point now, I highly doubt they’re thinking of replacing him or it’s Sirianni’s call. But I don’t know what this guy is doing, I mean this is the softest defense in my 21 years of covering this team, this is the softest defense they’ve ever had here. This is embarrassing.”

Geoff Mosher: “It’s bad, it’s definitely bad. Nick Sirianni did say after the game that he was going to chat with the defensive coordinator and he said that he felt that they were too passive on defense and that something had to change, so we’ll see. I think he said that Week 3 after the Dallas game, too, and then things changed for a little bit but just not enough.”

Jalen Hurts

Caplan: “This offense is predicated on timing. It’s a timing-based, old-school West coast offense, without calling it a west coast. It’s just a timing based offense and this is what they want and Hurts unfortunately this season for whatever reason has been unable to do it I don’t have an answer for you, we could just tell you what the tape looks like from the people we talk to and our own eyes and your own eyes, when you watch it. It’s painful watching this offense, they cannot sustain anything. First series I’m like, ‘Here we go,’ then after that…”

Trade Deadline

Caplan: “The personnel on defense is not being used correctly. I understand with the defense that the linebackers aren’t good enough. They’re also playing way too far back, that’s another issue that I think people around the league have when they are grading Eagles tape. Ryan Kerrigan, Josh Sweat, some guys we expected to hear their names but are not hearing them, that’s another problem. We’ll see what happens at the trade deadline, we talked a little bit about this in our pregame show. Now that the Eagles are 2-5 and have one more game until the trade deadline, I would expect some movement, I really would.”

Pass Rushers

Mosher: “I’m sure if you did data research on when sacks come, they usually come on 2nd-and-long and 3rd-and long. How often were the Raiders in second or third and long? So when they were passing they were doing a lot of three-step, five-stop [drop]. So it’s really not a guy like [Ryan] Kerrigan or [Josh] Sweat’s fault for not getting to the quarterback when you’re so far away from the ball.”

Caplan: “You got to move your linebackers up, you got to move your safeties up to take away those zone shots. You gotta adjust as a coach and Gannon is just not seeing it.”

– Justin Morganstein (@jmotweets_) is a staff writer for InsideTheBirds.com.

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