Latest / Inside the Birds: A Philadelphia Eagles Podcast / Inside The Birds Eagles Playoff Roundtable Special: Derrick Gunn Joins Caplan and Mosher

Transcript

Inside The Birds Eagles Playoff Roundtable Special: Derrick Gunn Joins Caplan and Mosher · Inside the Birds: A Philadelphia Eagles Podcast

0:09
Speaker 1: Hello, everybody, Welcome to a special edition of Inside the Birds.
0:14
Speaker 1: It's Jeff Mosher and Adam Kaplan and we have a
0:17
Speaker 1: special end of season roundtable discussion on the state of
0:21
Speaker 1: the Philadelphia Eagles as they head into the playoffs and
0:24
Speaker 1: to bring in a fresh perspective. That's what we wanted.
0:27
Speaker 1: Somebody who knows the game, what studies the game. We've
0:31
Speaker 1: been around the Eagles for a long time, and obviously
0:33
Speaker 1: somebody in the Inside the Birds family. And if you're listening,
0:36
Speaker 1: you can already hear him talking to that's d Gunn.
0:39
Speaker 1: Derek Gunn, host of course of Birds Weekly with Derek
0:42
Speaker 1: un and Ray Diddinger. Now Ray is off on his
0:45
Speaker 1: world travel, so we had a guest a guest this
0:48
Speaker 1: week with Derek Gunn, and I'm not even gonna reveal
0:50
Speaker 1: it because if people haven't seen it yet, I want
0:52
Speaker 1: him to be surprised. But de Gunn, welcome to our
0:54
Speaker 1: roundtable and excited to have you on with us.
0:57
Speaker 2: Thank you for having me, guys, there's been a long
0:59
Speaker 2: time since we've had a chance to chat it up
1:01
Speaker 2: and talk some football.
1:02
Speaker 1: Yeah, man, you made some noise this year.
1:04
Speaker 2: Man.
1:04
Speaker 1: Me and Adam had to like answer for you, But Nah,
1:08
Speaker 1: you're You're the best. You're a good journalist and we
1:11
Speaker 1: really appreciate having you on the platform and everything you
1:13
Speaker 1: and Ray have done this year. It's been a great
1:15
Speaker 1: addition to the family.
1:17
Speaker 3: Yeah.
1:17
Speaker 2: Likewise, man, I've known you guys a long time. I've
1:20
Speaker 2: respected your work for a long time, and you know,
1:23
Speaker 2: I'm honored and you know and humbled that you guys
1:26
Speaker 2: asked me to be a part of your network this
1:28
Speaker 2: football season. And you know, I love Ray Dindre. I've
1:31
Speaker 2: known Ray for well over twenty years, and you know
1:34
Speaker 2: when you approached Ray and I and asked us to
1:36
Speaker 2: do this, it was like a slam dunk for me,
1:38
Speaker 2: and Ray said the same thing. And we've had a
1:40
Speaker 2: lot of fun with it. It's been a lot of
1:42
Speaker 2: highs and lows, a lot of trials and tribulations this season.
1:44
Speaker 2: But here we are talking about Eagles playoff football.
1:48
Speaker 1: You know Adam from episode one, and we'll get into
1:51
Speaker 1: the Eagles in a second. But what Ray and d
1:54
Speaker 1: Gunn bring is not just insight. But you know, I
1:58
Speaker 1: don't want to say centuries and make fun of but
2:00
Speaker 1: decades of covering it short, I was gonna come on,
2:04
Speaker 1: come one no goodbine from the first episode when Jalen
2:09
Speaker 1: Carter got kicked out for spitting right and Ray told
2:13
Speaker 1: this amazing story about who was it it was the
2:16
Speaker 1: Steel Me and Joe Green and what it was like
2:18
Speaker 1: for him when he entered the league and his anger
2:20
Speaker 1: management and Ray having a front seat to that and
2:23
Speaker 1: remembering interviewing him. Just those kind of stories and anecdotes
2:27
Speaker 1: were just really an amazing part of all year long.
2:30
Speaker 1: But we got some big fish to fry here. We
2:32
Speaker 1: got the Eagles versus the Niners in the playoffs, a
2:36
Speaker 1: three to six matchup at the Link on Sunday going
2:39
Speaker 1: to be unseasonably especially for now, a little bit warmer
2:42
Speaker 1: tempers are saying fifties, maybe a little rain earlier in
2:45
Speaker 1: the day, but hopefully a good, nice clean condition for
2:49
Speaker 1: this game. It is a very interesting matchup, especially given
2:52
Speaker 1: the recent playoff history between both teams, and I gotta
2:57
Speaker 1: say before we really get into that matchup, it's been
3:01
Speaker 1: a really interesting year for both teams. I think for
3:03
Speaker 1: Eagles fans are almost a little disappointed in the big
3:07
Speaker 1: picture with how the Eagles got to where they are,
3:11
Speaker 1: you know, especially with all the offensive doldrums, the Niners.
3:14
Speaker 1: I don't think anybody thought that they'd go into Week
3:17
Speaker 1: eighteen with a chance to be the number one seed
3:19
Speaker 1: in the NFC. So that makes this matchup really interesting.
3:24
Speaker 1: So good, I'll start with you just when you look
3:28
Speaker 1: at this game, this matchup, where are you at with
3:31
Speaker 1: this with the Eagles right now?
3:34
Speaker 2: You know what? For me, it starts with the guys
3:37
Speaker 2: who will be moving the chess pieces, And you guys
3:39
Speaker 2: have been incredible brain trust. Here You've got Shanahan, who
3:45
Speaker 2: I think is one of the best offensive mines in
3:47
Speaker 2: a game, you know, his offense going against Vic Fangio's defense.
3:53
Speaker 2: And then you got Robert Salah, who I think is
3:55
Speaker 2: one of the best defensive minds, going up against Nick
3:58
Speaker 2: Siriani's last Kevin BTT. You know, you're right about the
4:03
Speaker 2: fact that I don't think anybody really thought the forty
4:05
Speaker 2: nine ers, even when they got on a roll, had
4:07
Speaker 2: a chance to play for that divisional title. But I
4:12
Speaker 2: think injuries finally caught up. This is a team that's
4:14
Speaker 2: been decimated by injuries, you know, and the two biggest
4:18
Speaker 2: names in that defense, Fred Warner and Nick Bosea are
4:20
Speaker 2: both out, you know, And this is not as this
4:23
Speaker 2: has not been as stout of a forty nine Ers
4:25
Speaker 2: defense as we've been accustomed to sing in recent years.
4:29
Speaker 2: And then you have this Eagles offense, which is one
4:31
Speaker 2: of the biggest enigmas in all of the National Football
4:34
Speaker 2: League all season long. You know, when you look at
4:36
Speaker 2: the offensive personnel they have, and most of them were
4:39
Speaker 2: carryovers from the Super Bowl triumph minus mackay Becton. The
4:46
Speaker 2: way they've gone about their offense, play calling, execution, the penalties,
4:54
Speaker 2: so on and so forth, everything they have basically kept
4:56
Speaker 2: most opponents in games because of their lack of discipline
5:00
Speaker 2: and lack of focus. You know, So I think still
5:05
Speaker 2: when you look at this game on paper, the Eagles
5:08
Speaker 2: have the superior roster, but obviously just looking at a
5:11
Speaker 2: roster doesn't play the game that that organization. What the
5:15
Speaker 2: forty nine Ers were able to do with that organization
5:18
Speaker 2: this year, with the way players were dropping like flies,
5:20
Speaker 2: as nothing short of incredible. And so, you know, as
5:24
Speaker 2: we all do, we will discuss this matchup all week.
5:27
Speaker 2: We will him in Hull, we will go back and forth,
5:30
Speaker 2: we will change our minds about certain things, and of
5:33
Speaker 2: course certain things will unravel later in the week. Who's healthy,
5:36
Speaker 2: who's not things like that. So, you know, Jeffer, as
5:39
Speaker 2: we sit here right now, I'm still tossing and turning
5:43
Speaker 2: in terms of how I feel about this matchup one
5:46
Speaker 2: way or the other.
5:47
Speaker 1: You know, Adam. In the past, there have been some
5:50
Speaker 1: first round games for the Eagles where it just felt
5:52
Speaker 1: like a slam dunk. You know, a couple of years ago,
5:53
Speaker 1: they go to Super Bowl to have to play the Giants.
5:55
Speaker 1: I think in the first well it was the second
5:57
Speaker 1: my first game, second round Giants and upset the Vikings.
6:01
Speaker 1: Last year, I think we all felt pretty confident that
6:04
Speaker 1: even though they were playing a pretty good Packers team,
6:06
Speaker 1: that the Eagles would have the upper hand. They were
6:08
Speaker 1: running the ball so well. The Packers were dealing with
6:11
Speaker 1: some injuries at the time too. This one feels like
6:14
Speaker 1: in between, right. I mean, I think the Eagles are
6:16
Speaker 1: the better team. Like Derek gun said, I know they
6:18
Speaker 1: are the better roster, the more talented. Yeah, they're more talented,
6:21
Speaker 1: their favored to win, But I don't since this is
6:26
Speaker 1: the slam dunk that other first round games have been for.
6:29
Speaker 3: Them, no doubt.
6:30
Speaker 4: And the big thing is the offensive line. Quite frankly,
6:32
Speaker 4: I'm stunned at the regression this season. We said this
6:35
Speaker 4: many times on Inside the Birds and all of our platforms.
6:38
Speaker 4: There's really no way to know that this would have
6:40
Speaker 4: happened because in training camp, Andrew and I were talking
6:43
Speaker 4: about it. Last week We're hosting the BCB Show, and
6:46
Speaker 4: I asked him, I said, did you notice anything the
6:48
Speaker 4: training came because not really. Now obviously we don't have
6:51
Speaker 4: access to practice tape, so we can't really tell. But
6:55
Speaker 4: if you go left to right, now Lane obviously has
6:58
Speaker 4: been hurt. And Lane was quite elite like we normally
7:01
Speaker 4: see him, but clearly still really good. But if you
7:04
Speaker 4: go left to right, my lot is regressed. That's not
7:05
Speaker 4: debatable that tape shows this. Okay, left guard, Dickerson's not himself.
7:09
Speaker 4: We all know this, multiple knee procedures. You look at
7:13
Speaker 4: his weight, you're concerned. Jurgens should have been the anti
7:17
Speaker 4: pro bowler. Sorry, Cam gradulates forgetting there. He shouldn't have been.
7:22
Speaker 4: He just struggled most of the season. Stein's been just average.
7:27
Speaker 4: We just talked about Lane. So from a protection standpoint,
7:31
Speaker 4: I get it that the Niners don't rush the passer, well,
7:34
Speaker 4: they're just not good at it. But the gunn talked
7:37
Speaker 4: about it. Sala is a smart mine by scheme. They
7:41
Speaker 4: do pretty, they do what they can. They're very beatable.
7:45
Speaker 4: But the problem that I continue to have with this
7:49
Speaker 4: coaching staff is offensively and this includes stout because this
7:53
Speaker 4: line's regressed, doubts elite, but had had a great year
7:55
Speaker 4: if you look at the performance, I don't know what
7:57
Speaker 4: they're going to do offensive I don't know what to expect.
7:59
Speaker 4: I know what the matchup they could take advantage of
8:01
Speaker 4: a lot on the back end. They're not great upfront
8:04
Speaker 4: the Niners, but will the staff take advantage of it?
8:06
Speaker 3: I can't answer that.
8:07
Speaker 1: I think it's all about the trenches for the Eagles,
8:10
Speaker 1: and it always is, and usually in playoff games. And
8:12
Speaker 1: you're right, because there have been times this year where
8:16
Speaker 1: we have felt, based on reputation, that the Eagles should
8:20
Speaker 1: go into a game and be able to run the
8:22
Speaker 1: ball or have great pass protection and really assert themselves
8:25
Speaker 1: in the trenches. And it seemed like week after week
8:28
Speaker 1: we were waiting for that. We'd find an opponent right
8:30
Speaker 1: with a bad offensive line like the Chargers, right and say, hey,
8:33
Speaker 1: this is a no doubt about it. You know, you
8:35
Speaker 1: got to own up front and the Eagles offense couldn't
8:39
Speaker 1: do enough, which are surprising, and it all started in
8:42
Speaker 1: the line. It's almost like you know the phrase the
8:45
Speaker 1: immovable object versus the irresistible force. Well, you have the
8:48
Speaker 1: movable object versus the resistible for us. You have an
8:51
Speaker 1: opportunity to move this ball against some defenses that aren't good,
8:54
Speaker 1: especially this forty nine ers defense, which can be can
8:58
Speaker 1: be pushed around with all the But can the Eagles
9:02
Speaker 1: do be the bully anymore? And we just have not
9:04
Speaker 1: seen them on offense up front be the bully. And
9:08
Speaker 1: that's where I think we get to this point of
9:10
Speaker 1: uncertainty about them.
9:11
Speaker 2: Well, when you look at this Eagles offense versus inferior
9:17
Speaker 2: defenses throughout the season, the Eagles offense, for whatever reason, consistently,
9:22
Speaker 2: except maybe for one game, that second game against the Giants,
9:25
Speaker 2: has played down to the level of the defense. You know,
9:28
Speaker 2: the Bears had a porust defense, Dallas had a porus defense.
9:32
Speaker 2: You know, they lost those games, you know, and they've
9:35
Speaker 2: done that consistently. The first game against the Giants, they
9:39
Speaker 2: got manhandled in the trenches by the Giants that first game.
9:43
Speaker 2: And here we are, you know, facing another inferior defense,
9:46
Speaker 2: but yet a much more potent offense. You know, And
9:49
Speaker 2: I think that ballast is the playing field in a
9:52
Speaker 2: lot of ways. You know Adam's talking about, you know,
9:54
Speaker 2: the offensive line from tackle to tackle. Well, Lane's missed
9:57
Speaker 2: what six seven weeks? You know, there's continuity. Cam Jurgens
10:00
Speaker 2: is playing, you know, his back is is my goodness,
10:03
Speaker 2: he's holding it together with.
10:05
Speaker 3: Super glue and rubber bands.
10:06
Speaker 2: You know. Dickerson, as you alluded to Adam, how many
10:09
Speaker 2: surgeries and procedures as he's had. Now the big one
10:11
Speaker 2: has been We've all noticed how how off Jordan my
10:16
Speaker 2: lot oft season has been this year. He hasn't appeared
10:19
Speaker 2: on anybody's injury report for the most of the season.
10:22
Speaker 2: He's banged up, you know, so from tackle to tackle
10:25
Speaker 2: they're banged Keep we keep watching and talking. Why is
10:28
Speaker 2: my lot of getting beat so much this season? Well
10:31
Speaker 2: now slowly being revealed because of all the little knicks
10:33
Speaker 2: and pains that have played them off season a long
10:36
Speaker 2: So I think because of all the injuries along that
10:38
Speaker 2: Eagles offensive line, it somewhat balances the playing field for
10:41
Speaker 2: the opposition.
10:43
Speaker 1: Something that we've been asked about from fans. And there's
10:46
Speaker 1: no answer where none of us are doctors, and I
10:48
Speaker 1: don't even know if doctors can absolutely, definitively make this
10:53
Speaker 1: conclusion medically. But it has been asked, has the wear
10:56
Speaker 1: and tear of the tush push and how often the
11:00
Speaker 1: Egles have run it practiced it in games, you know,
11:02
Speaker 1: not this year as much, but certainly in the past
11:04
Speaker 1: years taking its toll on the Eagles offensive line. I
11:07
Speaker 1: think that's a fair question. There's a lot of collisions there,
11:10
Speaker 1: and even though the play itself might be deemed safe,
11:14
Speaker 1: meaning there's nobody getting injured, the constant collision inclision and
11:17
Speaker 1: there were times the Eagles would run it with two
11:20
Speaker 1: yards and then get them you know, third down, fourth down,
11:22
Speaker 1: twice in a row goal line. A couple of times
11:24
Speaker 1: you got people leaping over a pile on top. I
11:26
Speaker 1: think it is a curiosity to me if that play
11:31
Speaker 1: and their short yardage success over the years in general
11:33
Speaker 1: in the trenches has taken some toll on the offensive line.
11:36
Speaker 1: But again, who's going to prove that? How do we know?
11:39
Speaker 1: It's just a good interesting thing to ponder. Who's been
11:43
Speaker 1: adam to you the most? And let's be a little
11:47
Speaker 1: positive here for the offensive who's been the surprising player
11:50
Speaker 1: on offense for you, if there has.
11:51
Speaker 3: Been a Tank, Bigsby came right to minus. Susie said it.
11:55
Speaker 3: You know, it's funny.
11:56
Speaker 4: Last year with the Jaguars, you know they were Peterson's
12:00
Speaker 4: staff was down on Trave's etn who's by the way,
12:03
Speaker 4: bounced back big time if it is what it is,
12:07
Speaker 4: and they started making a time share with Bigsby and
12:09
Speaker 4: it just didn't work out for Tank. He just he's
12:11
Speaker 4: not starting running back. He's the epitome of a change up.
12:15
Speaker 4: His style is so different from Barkley. It's like perfect
12:19
Speaker 4: he is. I I had not studied him this closely before.
12:23
Speaker 4: I love watching this guy play. And then he looks energized.
12:27
Speaker 4: He'd been a great story if you want to look
12:28
Speaker 4: at big time positives. And you know, we were saying
12:31
Speaker 4: it for many weeks, why won't they give him the
12:32
Speaker 4: ball more?
12:33
Speaker 3: I get it. It's got to go for Barkley. We're
12:34
Speaker 3: not arguing that you can't.
12:36
Speaker 4: Give him two carries here, two carries there on a
12:40
Speaker 4: third and three draw hand it on because you know
12:42
Speaker 4: he's gonna break everything outside. He doesn't want to run inside,
12:45
Speaker 4: you know, so I think, yeah, he's been a good positive.
12:47
Speaker 3: Fred Johnson's been okay.
12:50
Speaker 4: I think that's it hasn't been, you know, because you
12:52
Speaker 4: know when Lane doesn't play the records generally terrible. Right,
12:56
Speaker 4: hasn't been terrible. He's hung in there so offensively. Coming
13:00
Speaker 4: to mind would be Tank. I would say Tank would
13:02
Speaker 4: be the guy.
13:03
Speaker 1: Hey, it's Jeff Mosher. Quick question for you. If you
13:06
Speaker 1: could stop somebody from breaking into your home before they
13:08
Speaker 1: got inside, why wouldn't you. That's why I've got Simply Safe,
13:12
Speaker 1: the best home alarm system, so much better than those
13:15
Speaker 1: old school systems that go after somebody that's already in
13:19
Speaker 1: your place when it's way too late. Simply Safe is different, proactive,
13:23
Speaker 1: and you get a double layer of defense that stops
13:26
Speaker 1: crimes before they start. They've got AI powered cameras that
13:29
Speaker 1: spot potential threats outside, and then live agents step in.
13:33
Speaker 1: They talk to the person through the camera to let
13:35
Speaker 1: them know they're on video, and police will be dispatched
13:38
Speaker 1: if they don't leave. You can get Simply Safe with
13:41
Speaker 1: no long term contracts or hidden fees, and you can
13:43
Speaker 1: cancel at any time. They were named the best home
13:46
Speaker 1: security systems by US News and World Report for five
13:50
Speaker 1: years running. This is why I feel so safe when
13:53
Speaker 1: my wife and children are at home because I have
13:56
Speaker 1: Simply Safe. It is simply the best option out there
14:00
Speaker 1: for home alarm systems, and this month only take fifty
14:03
Speaker 1: percent off any new system. This is one of the
14:05
Speaker 1: best prices you'll see ever for simply Safe.
14:08
Speaker 3: Don't miss it.
14:09
Speaker 1: Hit simply safe dot com slash birds again. That's simply
14:13
Speaker 1: safe dot com slash birds and lock in your discount.
14:16
Speaker 1: There's no safe like simply Safe. Hey, I still like
14:19
Speaker 1: a good night out, but I'm not always in the
14:22
Speaker 1: mood to drink, and that's why I looked for a
14:24
Speaker 1: great alternative and I found one. It's called Souls Out
14:28
Speaker 1: of Office gummies. You get the same light, happy buzz,
14:32
Speaker 1: but you don't have the hangover. There's no sugar, and
14:35
Speaker 1: you don't get that awkward feeling the next morning. They
14:37
Speaker 1: help me unwind and ease into my evening without the
14:41
Speaker 1: alcohol or the next day. Fog. Soul is a wellness
14:44
Speaker 1: brand that believes feeling good should be fun and easy.
14:47
Speaker 1: Soul specializes in delicious, HEMP, thrived, THCHC, and CBD products
14:52
Speaker 1: designed to boost your mood and help you unwind. Their
14:55
Speaker 1: best selling out of office. Gummies were designed to provide
14:58
Speaker 1: a mild, relaxing buzz, boost your mood and enhance your
15:02
Speaker 1: creativity and relaxation. With five different strengths, you can tailor
15:06
Speaker 1: the dose to fit your vibe, from a gentle one
15:09
Speaker 1: point five milligram microdose to their newest fifteen milligram gummy
15:13
Speaker 1: for a more elevated experience. They've also got a variety
15:16
Speaker 1: of products specifically designed to help you get a better
15:20
Speaker 1: night's rest, including Soul's top selling Sleep gummy, a fan
15:25
Speaker 1: favorite for deep restorative sleep. So bring on the good
15:29
Speaker 1: vibes and treat yourself to Soul today. Right now, Soul
15:33
Speaker 1: is offering our audience thirty percent off your entire order,
15:38
Speaker 1: So go to get Soul dot com and use the
15:40
Speaker 1: code birds BRDS. That's Getsol dot com promo code birds
15:45
Speaker 1: for thirty percent off. Yeah you know, Gunner, Adam and
15:49
Speaker 1: I have talked about this a lot throughout the year.
15:50
Speaker 1: I'm curious on your perspective. We watch other NFL games. Obviously,
15:54
Speaker 1: I see some franchise running backs like Christian McCaffrey Vjon Robinson.
16:00
Speaker 1: They have backups who their coaches are not afraid to
16:03
Speaker 1: put their backups in for a series, Tyler Algier probably
16:07
Speaker 1: gets more soft than and for as good as Bijohn
16:10
Speaker 1: is right, We've seen Brian Robbinson come in and take
16:13
Speaker 1: a series or two just to take some mileage off McCaffrey.
16:17
Speaker 1: The Eagles refuse to go an entire drive or possession
16:21
Speaker 1: with Tank Bigsby just to give the different look be
16:25
Speaker 1: give give Saquon a little rest. I mean, Saquon Barkley
16:29
Speaker 1: is thirty second in the league in yards per carry
16:31
Speaker 1: average twenty second something like a very low, but he's
16:35
Speaker 1: top six and carries. I think it's this is one
16:39
Speaker 1: of my bigger people complain about play calling. I almost
16:42
Speaker 1: complain more about decision making. And I don't understand why
16:46
Speaker 1: you don't give Bigsby a series here and there been
16:50
Speaker 1: been screaming about that all season long.
16:52
Speaker 2: He's a hard runner, legs keep moving. I think he's
16:56
Speaker 2: much more effective when he's running to the edge, more
16:58
Speaker 2: so than between the tackles, as he's shown us in
17:01
Speaker 2: the limited amount of carries he's had this season. For
17:04
Speaker 2: the life of me, I don't understand it either. And
17:06
Speaker 2: when you look at and like you said, when you
17:08
Speaker 2: look at the teams that are in the playoffs. Now
17:09
Speaker 2: they have backs to complement their feature backs. And you're right,
17:13
Speaker 2: and for whatever reason, this brain trust offensively if you
17:16
Speaker 2: want to call him, that, refuses to give him more carries.
17:18
Speaker 2: They'd rather wear Barkley down. I mean, how many times
17:21
Speaker 2: do we have to watch Barkley get hit in the
17:24
Speaker 2: backfield before he gets the I mean you've got people
17:26
Speaker 2: meeting him in the backfield before he gets his hands
17:28
Speaker 2: in the football. So I think that in some way,
17:31
Speaker 2: shape or form, the Eagles are tipping their hands in
17:34
Speaker 2: terms of when they're going to run the ball, especially
17:35
Speaker 2: with Barkley, because you know, thirty percent of the time,
17:39
Speaker 2: you know Saquan's getting hit before he even gets to
17:41
Speaker 2: the line of scrimmage. I mean that's been heard of
17:44
Speaker 2: in the National Football League. You know four team is
17:46
Speaker 2: supposed to have a decent offensive line. I mean, let's
17:49
Speaker 2: face it, decent is the best way to describe his
17:52
Speaker 2: Eagles offensive line. And maybe it's the structure when they
17:56
Speaker 2: step to the line of scrimmage. Something they're giving away
17:59
Speaker 2: that is a lie. Defense is to hone in on
18:01
Speaker 2: Saquon the way they have that throughout the course of
18:04
Speaker 2: this season. But you got tank who's got fresh legs.
18:07
Speaker 2: You know that last game we just saw him play
18:09
Speaker 2: against Washington. I don't know why didn't run them more.
18:12
Speaker 2: What the didn't he run the ball in the second half?
18:14
Speaker 2: You know, I don't know why. I don't know why
18:16
Speaker 2: they don't run him more. You get him more acclimate
18:19
Speaker 2: it because I think they're gonna need him in the
18:22
Speaker 2: playoffs if they want to go deep in the playoffs.
18:25
Speaker 4: One thing I want to add to what you were
18:26
Speaker 4: saying is that with Jurgens in his back, he doesn't
18:30
Speaker 4: look right.
18:31
Speaker 3: How many whiffs has he had?
18:33
Speaker 1: Goods?
18:34
Speaker 4: And that's part of why when they run, you can't
18:36
Speaker 4: like run everything outside, you got to run something inside.
18:39
Speaker 4: And you're right, it's a stone wall like they cannot.
18:42
Speaker 4: Not only could they not get any positive yardage, the
18:45
Speaker 4: amount of zero negative runs inside. And I know people
18:48
Speaker 4: say you're telegraphing it whatever, you could say whatever you want,
18:51
Speaker 4: but Jurgens simply can't move. There's something wrong with him.
18:55
Speaker 4: His flexibility is down significantly. And this is what Jeff,
19:00
Speaker 4: I think you might have brought it up on our
19:03
Speaker 4: postgame show. The depth on the offensive line is nowhere
19:07
Speaker 4: near the quality of what it once was nope.
19:10
Speaker 1: I mean they used to. I mean, can you imagine
19:12
Speaker 1: right now we don't. They don't have to worry about it.
19:15
Speaker 1: There's only a limited number of games left. But you know,
19:18
Speaker 1: they win their first Super Bowl with Steph Wiznuski stepping
19:21
Speaker 1: in there starting basically an entire season. I can't imagine
19:25
Speaker 1: if and Big V had to come in for a
19:27
Speaker 1: for Jason Peters of all people, and they were able
19:30
Speaker 1: to win and they played at stable levels. If the
19:32
Speaker 1: Eagles lost two linemen through the playoff, let's say Lane
19:34
Speaker 1: Johnson doesn't play, and let's say they lose Landon Diggers,
19:38
Speaker 1: You've got to go ahead with Brett Toth in there,
19:40
Speaker 1: and and and Fred Johnson. He's played well, but not
19:43
Speaker 1: great like that's against playoff teams that that would be very,
19:47
Speaker 1: very difficult for this team. The last thing on the
19:50
Speaker 1: offense I want to say is and my surprise along
19:53
Speaker 1: with Bigsby, And I don't mean this pejoratively or damning
19:56
Speaker 1: with faint praise. I know some people might take it
19:58
Speaker 1: this way, but I don't. I think Jalen Hurts this
20:01
Speaker 1: year has made more high level NFL passes over the
20:06
Speaker 1: middle of the field through defenders threatening windows. I think
20:10
Speaker 1: he's made it taking a step forward as a passer.
20:12
Speaker 1: The offense itself hasn't, which is weird, right because usually
20:16
Speaker 1: when the quarterback progresses, the offense does. If anything, they've
20:20
Speaker 1: actually taken a step back, not only in running game,
20:23
Speaker 1: but third down they live in third and long, which
20:26
Speaker 1: goes back to not having a running game. But Jalen
20:28
Speaker 1: Hurts has made a number of high level passes and
20:31
Speaker 1: they've introduced some NFL level concept pass concepts that they
20:35
Speaker 1: haven't in the past. So I have to think that
20:39
Speaker 1: in order for this team to really get where they
20:40
Speaker 1: want to go winning a Super Bowl, that you're going
20:43
Speaker 1: to need to see five or six of those a
20:46
Speaker 1: game from Jalen Hurts. You can't ask your defense to
20:48
Speaker 1: win every single game through the playoffs and a super Bowl.
20:51
Speaker 1: At some point, they are going to have to let
20:53
Speaker 1: the ball rip and he's going to have to make
20:55
Speaker 1: those throws that we've seen him make throughout the course
20:58
Speaker 1: of the year for this team to get where he
21:00
Speaker 1: wants to be. Your thoughts at him.
21:02
Speaker 4: Yeah, I mean, honestly, when they throw, we know the
21:05
Speaker 4: offense will start with a run game in Barkley, but
21:08
Speaker 4: when if it's blocked, well, if he's protected, you're gonna
21:13
Speaker 4: have opportunities. I mean that Chicago game that the Niners played, ay,
21:17
Speaker 4: they have no pass rush. They didn't force a turnover.
21:20
Speaker 4: Caleb Williams. I know he's got an enormous arm strength,
21:23
Speaker 4: but they mostly could not get to him. And they're
21:26
Speaker 4: really their pass rush is poor because they're down three
21:29
Speaker 4: edge rushers. Really don't forget Mike kil Williams. Here's the
21:32
Speaker 4: first round pick he tours. Acl right, they're struggling. I mean,
21:36
Speaker 4: bryce off is all they really have, and there are
21:39
Speaker 4: opportunities there. They're not great at corner their solid safety,
21:42
Speaker 4: they're going to the point is when they throw, they're
21:45
Speaker 4: gonna be opportunities to be successful. And on your point,
21:47
Speaker 4: let it rip. Since that Charger game hurts, it's shown
21:50
Speaker 4: a willingness to let the ball go. That's what you want.
21:53
Speaker 4: Where he's not so risk averse, which could be annoying,
21:57
Speaker 4: and you know he's got the arm strength to make
21:58
Speaker 4: these throws. In the early call just to add to it,
22:01
Speaker 4: should be in the high forties. Win should be too bad.
22:03
Speaker 4: So when they drop back, there's gonna be some opportunities.
22:07
Speaker 1: All right, let's talk about this defense. I think the
22:10
Speaker 1: biggest surprise for me. You know, the defense gonna replaces
22:13
Speaker 1: half of its personnel. They lose so many guys. Milton
22:16
Speaker 1: Williams obviously in free agency, was a huge loss. Josh
22:19
Speaker 1: Sweat had a nice year in Arizona and Slay. You know,
22:22
Speaker 1: maybe in retrospect, Sleigh was not as good as we
22:26
Speaker 1: thought last year and it was just the pass rush
22:28
Speaker 1: and the surrounding environment because he clearly didn't have a
22:30
Speaker 1: great year with the Steelers. But whatever it was, last
22:33
Speaker 1: year's defense, especially at that linebacker level right was incredible,
22:38
Speaker 1: and we all thought the offense was gonna be fine
22:40
Speaker 1: this year because of everybody coming back in the defense
22:43
Speaker 1: would be under construction. It's sort of been the opposite.
22:45
Speaker 1: The defense has really come along over the second half.
22:49
Speaker 1: What is the key to this defense?
22:50
Speaker 2: In your mind, it starts into trenches Jorin Davis and
22:54
Speaker 2: Jalen Carter. I think that's where the mechanisms to be
22:59
Speaker 2: successful for this defense begin. You know, Jordan Davis I
23:03
Speaker 2: thought played extremely well when Jalen was out of there
23:06
Speaker 2: for a few games. You know, he really elevated his
23:08
Speaker 2: game and controlled the line of scrimmage was getting a
23:11
Speaker 2: lot of penetration, forcing quarterbacks to move off their spots,
23:14
Speaker 2: and with the addition of carter back, because Carter still
23:17
Speaker 2: has that chip on his shoulder that everybody looks at
23:19
Speaker 2: him as not a first round bus but has not
23:22
Speaker 2: lived up to expectation in a lot of ways, which
23:25
Speaker 2: I think when he's in.
23:26
Speaker 3: There, he's placed. Yeah, Davis, I'm sorry.
23:29
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, yes.
23:30
Speaker 2: I'm sorry. But I think it starts there with those
23:35
Speaker 2: two guys in terms of controlling the line of scrimmage
23:38
Speaker 2: and and forcing the forty nine ers to do some
23:40
Speaker 2: things they don't want to do. I think I think
23:44
Speaker 2: that the trench warfare rotation is excellent. I think the
23:47
Speaker 2: linebacking group is excellent. Uh. The only thing that concerns
23:51
Speaker 2: me is the back end of that defense. If one
23:52
Speaker 2: guy goes down after what we saw Sunday, if one
23:55
Speaker 2: guy goes down on the back end of that defense,
23:58
Speaker 2: that secondary is in a lot of trouble.
24:00
Speaker 4: Let me ask you a question, Derek, You've covered this
24:02
Speaker 4: team for a long time, many decades. You've seen some
24:07
Speaker 4: bad linebacker play. I'm kind of an awe of what
24:09
Speaker 4: I've seen the last couple of years. Are you blown
24:11
Speaker 4: away by this?
24:13
Speaker 2: There's no question about it. I think Nakobe Dean when
24:17
Speaker 2: he has played, has taken his game to another level.
24:21
Speaker 2: I think the linebackers, you know, Zach Bond, Zach Bond
24:24
Speaker 2: has had a number of quiet games this year, but
24:26
Speaker 2: he's still been very consistent in his overall play. You know,
24:29
Speaker 2: in twenty twenty four, all we talked about was Zach Bond.
24:32
Speaker 2: This Zach Bond that he you know, he takes his
24:34
Speaker 2: game to an all pro level. You know, there have
24:37
Speaker 2: been games when he's been relatively silent. But when I
24:40
Speaker 2: look at the linebacking play across the board for this team, man,
24:44
Speaker 2: you know, you talk about impressive the attack, they're sure tacklers,
24:48
Speaker 2: they don't make many mistakes. You know, they're good in
24:51
Speaker 2: coverage as well. And I think that you know, give
24:55
Speaker 2: how He credit for identifying certain pieces that they need,
24:59
Speaker 2: a certain thing that they wanted to do in terms
25:01
Speaker 2: of making that front seven stronger and more balanced and
25:05
Speaker 2: have a better rotation. And I think they've done that
25:07
Speaker 2: in a lot of ways. The big key to me
25:09
Speaker 2: is will na Kobe Dean be back. You know, I
25:11
Speaker 2: think he's huge in terms of trying to stop the
25:14
Speaker 2: run in the middle, middle of the trenches. I think
25:16
Speaker 2: too many teams have had success running on his Eagles
25:18
Speaker 2: defense in the middle of the field when he's not there.
25:21
Speaker 2: I think that that's been a glaring weakness in some cases.
25:25
Speaker 2: But I think it's imperative that he comes back and
25:27
Speaker 2: solidifies the middle of that d Yeah, and of course.
25:29
Speaker 1: The Niners have one of the most diverse and potent
25:33
Speaker 1: run games with their motion, with their full back, with
25:36
Speaker 1: their heavy upfront personnel. You know, they can dictate offensively
25:41
Speaker 1: what they want to do by getting runs. And McCaffrey
25:44
Speaker 1: does not need a whole lot of space. Yeah, he's
25:46
Speaker 1: a great creator, So that will be a big challenge
25:49
Speaker 1: for the Eagles up front. You do feel better about
25:53
Speaker 1: the situation now that Jalen Carter has had his procedures
25:56
Speaker 1: and had some rest. They should be able to They
26:00
Speaker 1: should be able to handle their own at the line
26:02
Speaker 1: of scrimmers. I agree. Tackling, which has been iffy at
26:05
Speaker 1: times for the Eagles at the second and third levels,
26:07
Speaker 1: is probably adam going to be a really big determiner
26:11
Speaker 1: of who wins this game. You will tackle well, I
26:13
Speaker 1: think they'll be fine.
26:14
Speaker 3: Yeah, it's funny.
26:16
Speaker 4: The Chicago game wasn't really tackling, was being out of
26:18
Speaker 4: gaps and getting manhandleda that that you don't expect. But
26:23
Speaker 4: I'll tell you what, I have such a high confidence level.
26:27
Speaker 4: And when we look at thirty two teams and you go, okay,
26:29
Speaker 4: comments level, what's your comments level in this coaching.
26:31
Speaker 3: Staff, Well, defensively they're elite.
26:34
Speaker 4: I mean, this is one of the best staffs you
26:35
Speaker 4: know in our time, only in our our what's our
26:38
Speaker 4: eighth season inside the Birds and the three of us
26:40
Speaker 4: covering this team locally, I don't remember a defensive staff.
26:44
Speaker 4: Maybe the Derek and Jeff you may remember better defense.
26:47
Speaker 4: I know Jim Johnson was great, but this defensive staff
26:50
Speaker 4: is phenomenal.
26:51
Speaker 1: Hey, Philly fans, game day is stressful enough. Parking, traffic,
26:55
Speaker 1: long lines, We've all been there. But when it comes
26:58
Speaker 1: to your cannabis, Camden Prothacarry makes it easy. This is
27:02
Speaker 1: the dispensary for sports fans, just minutes outside of Philly,
27:06
Speaker 1: with plenty of free parking. You'll be in and out fast,
27:09
Speaker 1: no hassle, no waiting, and they don't just care about convenience.
27:13
Speaker 1: Camedn Apothecary is all about the guest experience. Their staff
27:18
Speaker 1: makes sure you feel taken care of every time you
27:21
Speaker 1: walk in. Plus, they carry only the best quality cannabis
27:25
Speaker 1: at the fairest prices, so whether you're stocking up for
27:28
Speaker 1: the tailgate, the watch party, or celebrating a big win,
27:32
Speaker 1: you know you're getting the good stuff without overpaying. They
27:36
Speaker 1: even show love to the community with specials for fans, students,
27:40
Speaker 1: service members, and healthcare pros. Cam Den Apothecary top quality cannabis,
27:45
Speaker 1: great prices and an experience made for Philly fans twenty
27:49
Speaker 1: one and up Hey. One thing that always scares me
27:52
Speaker 1: is the latest financial scam. And with the holidays, it's
27:55
Speaker 1: all about finding the perfect gift. But this time of
27:57
Speaker 1: the year, not every deal is actually what it's You've
28:00
Speaker 1: got these scammers getting more creative to trick people into
28:03
Speaker 1: sharing their payment info through methods like fake shopping sites
28:06
Speaker 1: and giveaways. You know they're too good to be true. Luckily.
28:09
Speaker 1: Cash Apps twenty four to seven. Fraud monitoring helps detect
28:12
Speaker 1: an alert for unusual card activities should someone gain access
28:16
Speaker 1: to your car, so you can act fast as something
28:18
Speaker 1: seems off. You can also lock or unlock your cash
28:21
Speaker 1: app card instantly write in the app for extra control
28:24
Speaker 1: and peace of mind. Day one step ahead of these
28:26
Speaker 1: scammers this season, Keep your money secure with cash App.
28:29
Speaker 1: For a limited time only, new cash App customers can
28:32
Speaker 1: use our exclusive code to earn some additional cash for real.
28:36
Speaker 1: Just download cash App, use our exclusive referral code, secure
28:39
Speaker 1: ten in your profile, send five dollars to a friend
28:42
Speaker 1: within fourteen days, and you'll get ten dollars dropped right
28:45
Speaker 1: into your account. Terms apply, that's money, that's cash App.
28:48
Speaker 1: Cash app is a financial services platform, not a bank.
28:50
Speaker 1: Banking services provided by cash Ass Bank Partners, prepaid debit
28:53
Speaker 1: cards issued by Sutton Bank member FDIC promotions provided by
28:56
Speaker 1: cash App, a Block Incorporated brand. Visit cash dot appsh
29:00
Speaker 1: Eagle Slash Podcast for full disclosures. I mean, you could
29:02
Speaker 1: certainly put this up against you know when not only
29:05
Speaker 1: Jim Johnson, but his assistants were McDermott and speG, Noolo
29:08
Speaker 1: and Harbaugh. So that was pretty good. But yeah, since
29:12
Speaker 1: then though, you're right, I mean, it's it's been a
29:13
Speaker 1: long time in between.
29:15
Speaker 4: Parker, Bobby King, Jeremi Washburn's coming to his own as
29:19
Speaker 4: an edge rusher coach. Remember he's an offensive line coach.
29:21
Speaker 1: Sure Hurt.
29:23
Speaker 4: Clint Hurt's phenomenal. We talked about him when he came
29:26
Speaker 4: in here. He's he's one of the best, and vick
29:29
Speaker 4: Is will go down in one of the best assistant
29:32
Speaker 4: coaches in Egles history.
29:34
Speaker 3: It's done getting better than this.
29:36
Speaker 4: That's why I don't I know it's hard because if
29:39
Speaker 4: you watch, folks who watch this week, we did it.
29:41
Speaker 3: We're gonna do it.
29:42
Speaker 4: Inside the tape, breakdown a little bit on the motion
29:47
Speaker 4: and scheme for the forty nine ers. You gotta be
29:50
Speaker 4: on they say your piece and q's you got to
29:51
Speaker 4: understand your keys because they can't win. They don't win
29:55
Speaker 4: offensively getting open on their own. They have to be
29:57
Speaker 4: schemed open cous could do that anyway. They're not very
30:00
Speaker 4: an offense that they used to be. Other than McCaffrey.
30:03
Speaker 4: Garsol's beat up like he's got a new injury. By
30:05
Speaker 4: the way, he's got three. So to answer your question
30:08
Speaker 4: right now, my convents level is super high on defense.
30:11
Speaker 4: We got issues on offense. We just outlined this now, well,
30:15
Speaker 4: defensively is there. I'll throw it back to you, guys,
30:18
Speaker 4: is there anything you're concerned about other than Okay, Carter
30:21
Speaker 4: to the shoulders. Okay, but that that's not something they control.
30:24
Speaker 4: Is there something that you've seen this season other than
30:25
Speaker 4: Chicago game where you go, God, I'm really worried about this.
30:30
Speaker 3: No, you know.
30:31
Speaker 1: The only thing, Derek, I'll come to you after this
30:32
Speaker 1: The only thing that I think has surprised me. I mean,
30:36
Speaker 1: I know some of it is past rushed, so it's hard,
30:38
Speaker 1: but there are some really good schemers out there, and
30:40
Speaker 1: the egos have faced them. No one's really been able
30:44
Speaker 1: to go after a Dori Jackson the way you would
30:48
Speaker 1: think somebody would try to go after Adri Jackson. I
30:51
Speaker 1: feel like the Lions got him a few times early
30:53
Speaker 1: in that game, and then could you know, again, the
30:56
Speaker 1: pressure got to GoF he couldn't do it. But we
30:58
Speaker 1: have waited for that to happen and it just hasn't happened.
31:04
Speaker 2: Dorry Jackson has played much better the second half of
31:06
Speaker 2: the season than he did the first half of the season.
31:09
Speaker 2: But I do believe the forty nine ers are going
31:10
Speaker 2: to go after him. I think if they feel that
31:12
Speaker 2: there's a weak link on that defense, it's at Dory Jackson.
31:15
Speaker 2: So it's going to be interesting to see how many
31:17
Speaker 2: times they go at him and how he responds to
31:20
Speaker 2: that particular challenge. I think the key for me is
31:23
Speaker 2: you have to find a way to get brock Party
31:24
Speaker 2: on the ground. He's only been stacked eleven times this season.
31:27
Speaker 2: I mean, obviously he's only played nine games. But if
31:30
Speaker 2: you look at the overall quarterback situation for the forty
31:33
Speaker 2: nine Ers, mac Jones has run that offense just as
31:35
Speaker 2: well as brock Party has. They've only been sacked a
31:37
Speaker 2: total of twenty six times in the entire season. So
31:41
Speaker 2: if they get that rhythm offense going, that's where they
31:43
Speaker 2: spell a lot of problems for defenses. It obviously starts
31:46
Speaker 2: you got to control McCaffrey. He's had four hundred and
31:49
Speaker 2: thirteen touches, he's accounted for seventeen touchdowns. Seattle wrote a
31:54
Speaker 2: blueprint in terms of how to negate their offense. You
31:57
Speaker 2: control him, you take away a lot of that play action.
32:00
Speaker 2: I think the forty nine ers are still even though
32:02
Speaker 2: they don't have the offensive personnel they had a few
32:04
Speaker 2: years ago. I still think they're one of the best
32:07
Speaker 2: play action teams in then after the football League, there's
32:09
Speaker 2: no question about it. But it begins with stopping McCaffrey.
32:12
Speaker 2: And so that's the Eagles key, and if they get
32:15
Speaker 2: the play action going, I expect them to try to attack.
32:18
Speaker 2: Not only are Dorry Jackson, but they are so good
32:20
Speaker 2: at attacking the middle of the field with George Kettle.
32:22
Speaker 2: So the Eagles are gonna have to be on it.
32:24
Speaker 2: If there's ever a time that Eagles have to play discipline,
32:27
Speaker 2: not just physically but mentally as well, it's against this
32:30
Speaker 2: forty nine Ers offense.
32:31
Speaker 1: Yeah, you know, I was just thinking, because we're all
32:34
Speaker 1: here and we've covered the team for so long, we
32:36
Speaker 1: were talking about the linebackers, Adam. I mean, you know
32:40
Speaker 1: it's been full circle, right, I mean we remember Jeremiah
32:42
Speaker 1: Trotter and Carlos Emmons and even Simono could give you,
32:46
Speaker 1: Donnie Jones could give you. It was just like four
32:49
Speaker 1: or five seasons ago that Duke Riley and Nick Gary
32:53
Speaker 1: were like the starting one, right. That was like twenty twenty, Gary.
32:56
Speaker 3: Man the bane of the Eagles fans.
32:58
Speaker 1: Existence Yeah, that was the lowest of the low I
33:01
Speaker 1: mean that's why asked, Yeah to those guys, it wasn't
33:04
Speaker 1: their fault, but I mean there weren't They were not
33:06
Speaker 1: starting linebacker, not.
33:07
Speaker 4: Only that they have Trot Junior is a good player.
33:10
Speaker 4: They've got absolute Yes, that's the thing. You just don't
33:14
Speaker 4: know sometimes, And nobody knew about Bond how he did.
33:16
Speaker 4: He was decided to be a special team or in
33:18
Speaker 4: a maybe a backup edge rusher. Something's happened that you
33:21
Speaker 4: can't explain, and it was a good thing. He was
33:24
Speaker 4: an All Pro and earned it. It's just is lot. Look,
33:27
Speaker 4: Shadahan knows what he's looking at. Misdirection. It's really he's
33:31
Speaker 4: going to have something you haven't seen. This very unique
33:34
Speaker 4: motion that they've been running with us. Jack is so cool. Yep,
33:37
Speaker 4: love that. But they just have to they just have
33:39
Speaker 4: to play with discipline and they'll be fine. I but
33:43
Speaker 4: sending it back to you, Jeff. The opportunity will be
33:46
Speaker 4: there to score. Will they take advantage of it?
33:48
Speaker 3: An offense?
33:49
Speaker 1: I agree? I agree. I feel like this will be
33:50
Speaker 1: a low scoring affair. And as we finish off this
33:54
Speaker 1: great roundtable discussion. Usually, as we saw in the Pittsburgh
33:57
Speaker 1: Baltimore game, when it's a low score affair between two
34:01
Speaker 1: good teams, those kickers at the end of the game
34:04
Speaker 1: are going to come in mightily. In point, they're gonna
34:06
Speaker 1: be a big determining factor. Go ask who is the
34:10
Speaker 1: Steelers kicker? He's really good. Boswell right, Boswell misses the
34:15
Speaker 1: pat and he's probably ready to go into the locker
34:17
Speaker 1: room just like I can't. I mean, these guy's been
34:20
Speaker 1: a great kicker for a long time.
34:21
Speaker 3: Yeah.
34:21
Speaker 1: Then Tyler Loop obviously missed the rookie misses the field
34:24
Speaker 1: goal at the end for the Ravens. What is the
34:28
Speaker 1: confidence level after two pretty finals? He ended the season well,
34:32
Speaker 1: Jake Elliott made all of his kick He didn't have
34:34
Speaker 1: a ton of attempts, but the last two games against
34:36
Speaker 1: the Bills and Commanders he made his kicks. But we
34:39
Speaker 1: all know that he has not been Jake to make
34:42
Speaker 1: or mister automatic. Your confidence level, Derek about Jake Elliott
34:46
Speaker 1: in a big spot in the playoffs.
34:49
Speaker 2: Well, if you go back to twenty twenty four, he
34:51
Speaker 2: hit a stretch where he was missing kicks also, and
34:53
Speaker 2: all of a sudden, by the time he got to
34:55
Speaker 2: the latter end of the season and of course the playoffs,
34:57
Speaker 2: he was mister automatic again. And we'll start see it again.
35:00
Speaker 2: You know people, what since Week seven he had missed
35:03
Speaker 2: seven field goals and an extra point and you're wondering
35:06
Speaker 2: what the heck's going on with him. All of a sudden,
35:08
Speaker 2: he's right at the ship again, So I have confidence
35:11
Speaker 2: in him. Plus they're playing this game at home, you know,
35:13
Speaker 2: in front of that Rabbit Eagles crowd, So if it
35:17
Speaker 2: comes down to a kicking game, I feel pretty good
35:20
Speaker 2: about him lining up and taking care of business. Whereas
35:23
Speaker 2: you know, in the in the early second half of
35:27
Speaker 2: the season, man, you were crossing your fingers, you know,
35:30
Speaker 2: you know, saying a few saying a few prayers for
35:32
Speaker 2: him because you don't know what was gonna happen with him.
35:34
Speaker 2: But I think he's back where he needs to be
35:36
Speaker 2: mentally and technically with his kicking.
35:38
Speaker 1: Right now, Adam, where are you at?
35:41
Speaker 4: I have a mild concern, I do, because we've seen
35:46
Speaker 4: no one knows why he wasn't on the jury report,
35:48
Speaker 4: and last year I know there might have been he
35:50
Speaker 4: might have been dealing with something. Sometimes you're sure, maybe
35:53
Speaker 4: you got a muscle pul who knows. But this season,
35:56
Speaker 4: technically he was off, clearly off. As Dark said, they
35:59
Speaker 4: look like the right of the ship. But yeah, he's
36:02
Speaker 4: just not He's not quite what he used to be. Now,
36:04
Speaker 4: at least they have a punter who got absolutely robbed
36:08
Speaker 4: being a pro bowler. That brain man transaction from from
36:12
Speaker 4: a couple of years ago. What was a great dude
36:14
Speaker 4: he's been on with us on BCB. He's a stud
36:18
Speaker 4: and field position matters, folks, it really doesn't. He's great
36:21
Speaker 4: at doing it.
36:23
Speaker 1: I'll tell you where I'm at. I agree with what
36:26
Speaker 1: Degaon's saying about his history of making big kicks, the
36:30
Speaker 1: fact that he's seemingly straightened over the last two weeks.
36:32
Speaker 1: I would say in playoffs past, if he's lining up
36:35
Speaker 1: to kick either a tying or a winning kick, I'm
36:39
Speaker 1: one hundred percent he's making this kick. Like Adam just
36:41
Speaker 1: mentioned this year mildly concerned, I would pin it more
36:45
Speaker 1: like a sixty five to seventy five percent, which is.
36:48
Speaker 2: Still of little faith.
36:50
Speaker 1: Come on, hey man, you know I don't think you
36:53
Speaker 1: miss kicks accidentally, right, I mean, there's I'm sure it's
36:56
Speaker 1: in the back of his mind that he's missed some
36:58
Speaker 1: kicks consistently throughout the middle of the year, and so
37:01
Speaker 1: we'll say I almost have more faith in him nailing
37:04
Speaker 1: like a sixty yarder than maybe like Pa, like if
37:08
Speaker 1: they tie it, if they tie it, on a touchdown
37:10
Speaker 1: and need the pat to win it or.
37:11
Speaker 3: Something like that.
37:12
Speaker 1: You almost get a little dicey there, but I'm glad
37:16
Speaker 1: that I think it's good. The last two games he's
37:18
Speaker 1: seemingly straightened out. He is a guy who has a
37:20
Speaker 1: great reputation for making big kicks. I am confident he'd
37:24
Speaker 1: make it, but I'm a little less confident than if
37:27
Speaker 1: this were years past. But we will see. That's why
37:30
Speaker 1: they play the game. This has been an awesome roundtable,
37:33
Speaker 1: so good that if the Eagles win, I think we
37:34
Speaker 1: should do it again.
37:35
Speaker 3: As everybody.
37:36
Speaker 1: Yeah, all right, we locked in de gun Now you're
37:39
Speaker 1: in sounds good. I love it so for Derek Gunn
37:42
Speaker 1: and Adam Kaplan. I'm Jeff Mosher. You've been watching a
37:44
Speaker 1: special Inside the Birds postseason roundtable on Inside the Birds