Latest / Inside the Birds: A Philadelphia Eagles Podcast / The DiCecco Daily: Takeaways From Vic Fangio's Comments On Kenny Moore, Other Coordinator Comments

Transcript

The DiCecco Daily: Takeaways From Vic Fangio's Comments On Kenny Moore, Other Coordinator Comments · Inside the Birds: A Philadelphia Eagles Podcast

• 0:10
  Speaker 1: Hello everyone and welcome into another episode of DiCecco Daily.
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: It's Andrew DiCecco, Eagles beat reporter for InsideTheBirds.com.
• 0:17
  Speaker 2: And we are off and running. Week three is upon us.
• 0:21
  Speaker 1: Wednesday was coordinator day down at the Jefferson Health Training Complex.
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: So we heard from defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, offensive coordinator
• 0:30
  Speaker 1: Sean Mannion, and special teams coordinator Michael Clay. And I'll
• 0:34
  Speaker 1: bring for you some of the notable takeaways that I
• 0:37
  Speaker 1: had from those interviews. And we'll start with Vic Fangio,
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: who said he was asked right off the bat about
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: defensive back Kenny Moore, who is reportedly signing to the
• 0:50
  Speaker 1: practice squad. And Kenny Moore has been in the league
• 0:52
  Speaker 1: for a while, nine years. He was a pro bowler,
• 0:56
  Speaker 1: I should say, in 2021. But when Vic was asked
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: about him, Why is he here and how much do
• 1:02
  Speaker 1: you know about his game?
• 1:04
  Speaker 2: Vic said, I don't know a whole lot about it,
• 1:06
  Speaker 2: to be honest with you.
• 1:07
  Speaker 1: I don't even know. I don't know if that's finalized yet.
• 1:10
  Speaker 1: Haven't heard from Howie one way or another. Then later on,
• 1:14
  Speaker 1: when he was asked about Kenny Moore and do you
• 1:19
  Speaker 1: envision him playing more safety as he's played nickel mostly
• 1:23
  Speaker 1: in his career? He said, not sure yet. I've never
• 1:25
  Speaker 1: laid eyes on him, never watched him play.
• 1:28
  Speaker 2: So we'll see. Vic Fangio said something similar if you
• 1:31
  Speaker 2: think back.
• 1:32
  Speaker 1: To last summer when asked about a Dory Jackson that
• 1:35
  Speaker 1: he hadn't done a lot of work on him, didn't
• 1:37
  Speaker 1: really watch him a ton, and he's going to be
• 1:41
  Speaker 1: candid about that. But when the signing does become finalized,
• 1:46
  Speaker 1: assuming it does, that's a player that, as I outlined
• 1:50
  Speaker 1: in Tuesday's podcast, all my days are sort of out
• 1:55
  Speaker 1: of order here because the week everything is sort of
• 1:58
  Speaker 1: pushed back a day or pushed up a day, I
• 2:00
  Speaker 1: should say, because of the Monday night game, he is
• 2:05
  Speaker 1: going to be very instrumental in terms of providing optionality
• 2:10
  Speaker 1: on the back end. He can play nickelback. He can
• 2:12
  Speaker 1: play safety. I don't think it can be overstated that
• 2:17
  Speaker 1: he's going to have to learn the defense and the
• 2:21
  Speaker 1: specifics about it. Vic Fangio, as we saw with Ja'Cory
• 2:25
  Speaker 1: and Bennett, for example, when he got here, it took
• 2:27
  Speaker 1: him a little bit of time to learn, and obviously
• 2:29
  Speaker 1: they're two different positions, but that's just sort of for
• 2:32
  Speaker 1: comparison's sake here, and it may take a little bit
• 2:37
  Speaker 1: of time, but he is a veteran.
• 2:39
  Speaker 2: He's been through a lot of games, played in 123 games,
• 2:42
  Speaker 2: 111 starts, gives you... veteran leadership.
• 2:46
  Speaker 1: I should also note that he was a four-time captain
• 2:49
  Speaker 1: for the Colts, so maybe that mentorship can help younger
• 2:53
  Speaker 1: players like Quinion Mitchell, particularly Cooper DeJean, and Drew Makuba,
• 2:58
  Speaker 1: and some of those guys who are emerging standouts for
• 3:03
  Speaker 1: the Eagles, mostly Quinion Mitchell and Cooper DeJean, but I
• 3:07
  Speaker 1: think Vic being sort of transparent there and saying, look,
• 3:10
  Speaker 1: I don't know a whole lot about him. He's going
• 3:12
  Speaker 1: to have to figure it out once Kenny Moore is
• 3:15
  Speaker 1: signed and on the practice squad. And that's where sort
• 3:18
  Speaker 1: of the preparation and the crash course, if you will, begins.
• 3:23
  Speaker 1: But that's really where you're going to see Vic really
• 3:27
  Speaker 1: lean into watching his film and things of that nature.
• 3:30
  Speaker 1: But he also spoke about where later in that game
• 3:35
  Speaker 1: you saw some of the tackling issues and things like that.
• 3:40
  Speaker 1: And I personally chalked it up to fatigue because I
• 3:43
  Speaker 1: noticed it particularly later in the game. And when you're
• 3:45
  Speaker 1: dealing with those kinds of excessive temperatures, sometimes not that
• 3:49
  Speaker 1: you lose focus, but it's just the fatigue that sets in.
• 3:53
  Speaker 1: And all of a sudden your fundamentals aren't as strong
• 3:55
  Speaker 1: as they normally are. And he said, yeah, we miss more,
• 3:58
  Speaker 1: a little bit more than we normally do. Missed a
• 4:00
  Speaker 1: couple of critical ones there. We've just got to close
• 4:03
  Speaker 1: space a little bit better and we've got to do
• 4:05
  Speaker 1: it better. He spoke about the Bears game from last season.
• 4:11
  Speaker 1: If you remember, running backs Kyle Menungai and DeAndre Swift
• 4:15
  Speaker 1: had a field day running against this Eagles defense, which
• 4:18
  Speaker 1: was really uncharacteristic. They were gashed in the run game,
• 4:21
  Speaker 1: and he was asked about what you take away from
• 4:24
  Speaker 1: that game, and he said, we've got to play it better, obviously.
• 4:27
  Speaker 1: They are one of the better running teams in the league.
• 4:29
  Speaker 1: They've got a really great O-line, great backs. Their scheme
• 4:32
  Speaker 1: is good. We're going to have to play it a
• 4:34
  Speaker 1: whole lot better. This was one about the lack of takeaways.
• 4:41
  Speaker 1: The Eagles don't have any takeaways through two games. Vic said,
• 4:45
  Speaker 1: we're due.
• 4:46
  Speaker 2: We're due. And the follow-up was, is there any reason?
• 4:50
  Speaker 2: He said, I don't think so. Here's a big one.
• 4:57
  Speaker 2: Because of the Kenny Moore signing....
• 5:01
  Speaker 1: It's easy to drop conclusions, what that might mean for
• 5:05
  Speaker 1: Cooper DeGene. Would the Eagles consider moving him full-time to safety?
• 5:09
  Speaker 1: And Vic Fangio said no. So Vic has made it clear,
• 5:15
  Speaker 1: and now there's different pieces, so it complicates things a
• 5:17
  Speaker 1: little bit.
• 5:18
  Speaker 2: But.
• 5:19
  Speaker 1: last season and the year before, he's made it known,
• 5:23
  Speaker 1: I should say, that he really likes Cooper as the nickel. Now,
• 5:26
  Speaker 1: the Eagles' safety play through two games has been a
• 5:30
  Speaker 1: little volatile, and so putting someone like Cooper there, because
• 5:34
  Speaker 1: I thought that that could be a logical solution to
• 5:37
  Speaker 1: stabilize things, it doesn't sound like that's going to be
• 5:40
  Speaker 1: on the table listening to Vic Fangio, but... I really
• 5:43
  Speaker 1: do like what Cooper Dejean brings to the safety position.
• 5:46
  Speaker 1: And it's hard not to imagine what a safety tandem
• 5:49
  Speaker 1: would look like with Cooper Dejean and Drew McCuba. I
• 5:52
  Speaker 1: think that gives you sort of a well-rounded tandem there.
• 5:55
  Speaker 1: But as Vic said, no. Are you expecting Jonathan Grenard
• 6:03
  Speaker 1: back this week? Better chance than last week, Vic said.
• 6:06
  Speaker 1: We'll see how he does in practice. With Grenard, and
• 6:11
  Speaker 1: I chronicled this last week in my podcast, when he spoke,
• 6:15
  Speaker 1: it sounded like he was awfully close to returning. Now,
• 6:18
  Speaker 1: that's not going to be his decision, of course, but
• 6:21
  Speaker 1: I think that there should be some optimism there. The
• 6:25
  Speaker 1: further removed you are from... the 53-man roster being established
• 6:30
  Speaker 1: because he wasn't placed on any list. So that suggests
• 6:33
  Speaker 1: that the Eagles believe that he can make it back
• 6:35
  Speaker 1: before that week four because if you're on injured reserve,
• 6:38
  Speaker 1: you have to miss four games. So if he does play,
• 6:42
  Speaker 1: it'll probably be a pitch count. I think that's pretty
• 6:44
  Speaker 1: safe to say. And that will be one of the
• 6:48
  Speaker 1: focuses of the week when we're out there on the
• 6:51
  Speaker 1: practice field is keeping an eye on what his status is,
• 6:55
  Speaker 1: and you're looking for that full.
• 6:57
  Speaker 2: He's been limited to this point.
• 6:58
  Speaker 1: What you're looking for is full, and that will sort
• 7:02
  Speaker 1: of give you the answers to the test. And Vic
• 7:07
  Speaker 1: actually added to this. He said he's definitely not ready
• 7:10
  Speaker 1: for a full workload. This was a different question. He's
• 7:13
  Speaker 1: not only coming off inactivity, he's coming off an injury.
• 7:15
  Speaker 1: His injury for a good bit, the first, I don't know,
• 7:18
  Speaker 1: four to six, seven weeks, He really couldn't do a
• 7:21
  Speaker 1: whole lot of conditioning-wise either. So yeah, he's nowhere near
• 7:25
  Speaker 1: ready for a full load. We talked about the safety
• 7:34
  Speaker 1: play and how it was a little shaky, and more
• 7:37
  Speaker 1: so against the Titans than it was against the Commanders, certainly.
• 7:40
  Speaker 1: But Vic Fangio said, I thought Drew played an okay-to-good game.
• 7:46
  Speaker 1: Marcus had some plays that he would like to have back,
• 7:48
  Speaker 1: both against the pass and the run, and he'll bounce back.
• 7:55
  Speaker 1: Any chance you'll see a little more of Michael Carter
• 7:58
  Speaker 1: moving forward?
• 7:59
  Speaker 2: He said, yeah, there's a chance of that.
• 8:06
  Speaker 1: And then later, with Michael Carter, if he does play more,
• 8:11
  Speaker 1: would that be at safety?
• 8:13
  Speaker 2: Is that part of the plan? Fangio said that's possible, too.
• 8:17
  Speaker 1: Yep.
• 8:19
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I know with Kenny Moore.
• 8:20
  Speaker 1: Coming on, I know that he's the new name and
• 8:23
  Speaker 1: he's also played a lot of football. And so maybe,
• 8:29
  Speaker 1: you know, he's able to elbow his way into the conversation.
• 8:34
  Speaker 2: But let's not forget that Michael Carter is here.
• 8:37
  Speaker 1: Michael Carter has a similar background as Kenny Moore, but
• 8:41
  Speaker 1: he's now retired. close to not quite a year learning
• 8:47
  Speaker 1: this defense. And he had a really good training camp.
• 8:50
  Speaker 1: I would say made some plays. I think he had
• 8:51
  Speaker 1: three interceptions. So I would imagine that before Kenny Moore
• 8:55
  Speaker 1: gets a nod and we're still a little bit further,
• 8:59
  Speaker 1: far away from that, I would imagine, or a little
• 9:02
  Speaker 1: ways away, Michael Carter should garner some consideration. I would
• 9:06
  Speaker 1: imagine because of his familiarity with the defense and, his ranginess,
• 9:11
  Speaker 1: the ability to allow the defense to be multiple and
• 9:14
  Speaker 1: give Fangio some optionality.
• 9:16
  Speaker 2: So, let's not look past Michael Carter here in this
• 9:19
  Speaker 2: safety conversation.
• 9:20
  Speaker 1: I like what I saw from him quite a bit,
• 9:23
  Speaker 1: and certainly not, but if I were making the call,
• 9:28
  Speaker 1: I would probably have started Michael Carter just because it
• 9:31
  Speaker 1: elevates the ceiling for the defense relative to where you
• 9:34
  Speaker 1: would be if you had Marcus Epps back there, but
• 9:38
  Speaker 1: There's a reason why Vic Fangio is doing this and
• 9:40
  Speaker 1: has done it as successfully as he has for as
• 9:43
  Speaker 1: long as he has. So we'll see how that safety
• 9:47
  Speaker 1: position really shapes in the coming weeks. We also heard
• 9:53
  Speaker 1: from Sean Mannion. And Sean Mannion, I think, for his
• 9:56
  Speaker 1: second game, I thought he did something. really good things
• 10:01
  Speaker 1: I I do and it's going to only get better
• 10:03
  Speaker 1: from here as he gets a better feel for his
• 10:07
  Speaker 1: personnel for the flow of the game and the sequencing
• 10:10
  Speaker 1: and all that but I think you have to tip
• 10:13
  Speaker 1: your cap to the job that he's done for being
• 10:16
  Speaker 1: a first-time play caller when it looked as if the
• 10:21
  Speaker 1: Titans were able to, we're going to maybe pull off
• 10:25
  Speaker 1: an upset or make it challenging for the Eagles to
• 10:28
  Speaker 1: come back. Well, you first have to give credit to
• 10:30
  Speaker 1: quarterback J one Hertz, but you also have to give
• 10:33
  Speaker 1: credit for, to Sean Mannion for being able to.
• 10:39
  Speaker 2: Sort of draw up plays.
• 10:41
  Speaker 1: And have them and know how to, and know when
• 10:44
  Speaker 1: to call them and, be aggressive when needed, not abandon
• 10:49
  Speaker 1: the running game.
• 10:50
  Speaker 2: I thought that that was key, even though it wasn't working.
• 10:53
  Speaker 2: He didn't abandon the running game.
• 10:54
  Speaker 1: They tried to commit to it and provide some of
• 10:56
  Speaker 1: that balance so that the defense had to play them
• 10:59
  Speaker 1: a little bit more honestly. But this is a really
• 11:03
  Speaker 1: good answer because he was asked, why do you think
• 11:05
  Speaker 1: Jalen Hurts looks so comfortable in this offense so early?
• 11:09
  Speaker 1: Sean Mannion said, yeah, I think he's naturally got a
• 11:11
  Speaker 1: lot of poise, especially under the spotlight.
• 11:13
  Speaker 2: He's performed at a high level.
• 11:15
  Speaker 1: Going back to college, he's played in high-pressure moments, and
• 11:17
  Speaker 1: I think he saw it come to light in the
• 11:19
  Speaker 1: two-minute drill yesterday. He was comfortable, he was in command,
• 11:23
  Speaker 1: and he executed well. I think the biggest thing is
• 11:25
  Speaker 1: the way he's attacked the fundamentals. Going back to the spring,
• 11:28
  Speaker 1: some of the things we've asked him to do that
• 11:30
  Speaker 1: are a little different for him, really starting back in April,
• 11:33
  Speaker 1: he dove in headfirst and has really attacked it each day.
• 11:36
  Speaker 1: You can tell he's the last one on the practice
• 11:37
  Speaker 1: field working on his footwork, working on his progressions and
• 11:40
  Speaker 1: things like that. It's no accident that he's become comfortable quickly.
• 11:46
  Speaker 1: Of course, another big storyline this week, and hopefully we'll
• 11:49
  Speaker 1: get to speak to this player tomorrow, Zach Ertz, the
• 11:54
  Speaker 1: Eagles legend who returns for another run here. And he
• 11:59
  Speaker 1: was asked what we have to do to get Zach
• 12:01
  Speaker 1: Ertz game ready. And he said, we'll use this practice
• 12:04
  Speaker 1: week and see what it looks like moving forward with
• 12:06
  Speaker 1: his role with us and excited to add him. I
• 12:09
  Speaker 1: know we're a little dinged up with the position. Unfortunately,
• 12:12
  Speaker 1: Dallas went out in the game two days ago. But
• 12:15
  Speaker 1: Zach has a lot of history at the organization and
• 12:17
  Speaker 1: excited to bring him in and use the week to
• 12:19
  Speaker 1: see what his role may or may not look like.
• 12:27
  Speaker 1: Talking about Zach Ertz, we'll stay on this subject. He
• 12:30
  Speaker 1: was asked, you had a vision for how he can
• 12:32
  Speaker 1: come in and help. What are some ways you think
• 12:36
  Speaker 1: he can help the offense? And he said, well, obviously
• 12:39
  Speaker 1: he's a very, very comfortable pass catcher. He's had a
• 12:42
  Speaker 1: really strong track record in that area. And again, I
• 12:44
  Speaker 1: think when you look at the tight end group in particular,
• 12:47
  Speaker 1: it's about kind of the composite of everyone's skill sets together.
• 12:51
  Speaker 1: It's what makes that position specifically unique, is you have
• 12:54
  Speaker 1: complementary skill sets, and how do they play off one another?
• 12:58
  Speaker 1: How do they play off the different position groups that
• 13:00
  Speaker 1: are on the field at the same time? So again,
• 13:02
  Speaker 1: we'll use the week to evaluate and see what Zach's
• 13:05
  Speaker 1: role looks like. We're excited to have him here, and
• 13:07
  Speaker 1: it's pretty cool.
• 13:08
  Speaker 2: It's funny, I was catching up with him.
• 13:10
  Speaker 1: I actually played against him in high school, and then
• 13:13
  Speaker 1: we were catching up, and it's cool because he's had
• 13:15
  Speaker 1: such a strong track record.
• 13:16
  Speaker 2: In the league.
• 13:17
  Speaker 1: And now to add him in kind of at a
• 13:20
  Speaker 1: point mid-year when we're a little dinged up will be fun.
• 13:25
  Speaker 1: It'll be good to have a week of practice to
• 13:27
  Speaker 1: see what his role looks like. Sean Manning also spoke
• 13:32
  Speaker 1: about the tight end group in general, and he.
• 13:36
  Speaker 2: Said, we feel good about the group. We feel good
• 13:38
  Speaker 2: about the group.
• 13:39
  Speaker 1: That's a prerequisite for the position is to be a
• 13:41
  Speaker 1: two-way player, and we feel comfortable with what we have there. So,
• 13:45
  Speaker 1: gave that position an endorsement, and you probably would expect
• 13:49
  Speaker 1: him to do so, but the players beyond Dallas Goddard
• 13:53
  Speaker 1: are on this roster for a reason, and.
• 13:57
  Speaker 1: You have two blocking-centric tight ends in Muntz and EJ Jenkins.
• 14:01
  Speaker 1: And again, a wrench was thrown into things when Eli
• 14:05
  Speaker 1: Stowers was placed on injured reserve, also, you know, compounded
• 14:09
  Speaker 1: by the fact that He didn't have a particularly strong
• 14:12
  Speaker 1: training camp. There were signs of growing pains, which accompany
• 14:16
  Speaker 1: a lot of rookies. He's not alone in that. I
• 14:18
  Speaker 1: think he needs to increase his play strength and fill
• 14:21
  Speaker 1: out his frame a little bit more because right now
• 14:24
  Speaker 1: he looks more like a plus-size wide receiver. But the
• 14:27
  Speaker 1: Eagles are still bullish on him, and this is one
• 14:30
  Speaker 1: of those prospects that it might take a little bit
• 14:34
  Speaker 1: of time, and this will put the Eagles development team
• 14:37
  Speaker 1: in Not to the test, because they've done a lot,
• 14:41
  Speaker 1: but it'll be their next challenge, I guess you could say,
• 14:47
  Speaker 1: to get him up to speed as quickly as they can.
• 14:50
  Speaker 1: But there's no secret to success. And progress isn't linear,
• 14:56
  Speaker 1: as I always say. So there's no exact timetable when
• 15:00
  Speaker 1: he will be ready.
• 15:01
  Speaker 3: Fall is the season where everyone gets busier, more calls,
• 15:05
  Speaker 3: more customers, more chances for something to slip through the cracks,
• 15:08
  Speaker 3: and staying ahead means having the right system, not just
• 15:12
  Speaker 3: working harder. That's why today's episode is brought to you
• 15:15
  Speaker 3: by Quo, spelled Q-U-O, the business phone system built so
• 15:20
  Speaker 3: you never miss a call. Quo is the number one
• 15:24
  Speaker 3: rated business phone system on G2, trusted by over 90,000
• 15:29
  Speaker 3: businesses who rely on it to stay reachable, and look
• 15:32
  Speaker 3: professional every day. Money is on the line. Always say
• 15:36
  Speaker 3: hello with Quo. Try Quo for free, plus get 20%
• 15:40
  Speaker 3: off your first six months when you go to Quo.com
• 15:43
  Speaker 3: slash birds. That's Q-U-O dot com. Football is finally back
• 15:49
  Speaker 3: and PrizePix is bringing out their best offer yet. New
• 15:52
  Speaker 3: users who sign up will get $ 150 in lineups if
• 15:55
  Speaker 3: you win your.
• 15:56
  Speaker 4: First $ 5 lineup.
• 15:58
  Speaker 2: That's right.
• 15:59
  Speaker 3: If you win your first $ 5 lineup, you get $ 150
• 16:02
  Speaker 3: in lineups. And now PrizePix is available nationwide. So what
• 16:07
  Speaker 3: are you waiting for? Lock in for kickoff. Everyone and
• 16:10
  Speaker 3: everything is on PrizePix. Okay, so what you on in
• 16:14
  Speaker 3: this football season? I'll tell you what I'm all in
• 16:16
  Speaker 3: on the bears offense.
• 16:19
  Speaker 4: All right. You've already heard their head coach say.
• 16:21
  Speaker 3: He wants to score the most points in NFL history
• 16:25
  Speaker 3: and they have.
• 16:26
  Speaker 4: The personnel to do it. Go over, check out Luther burden,
• 16:29
  Speaker 4: wide receiver, Luther burdens, receiving yards for the season.
• 16:32
  Speaker 3: I pick more on his receiving yards and I'm not
• 16:35
  Speaker 3: even sweating it.
• 16:36
  Speaker 4: You can thank me later. He's going to be the
• 16:38
  Speaker 4: guy on that Bears offense. Trust me on that.
• 16:41
  Speaker 3: PrizePix is going crazy with the deals to start the
• 16:43
  Speaker 3: football season, giving users a new promo every day during
• 16:48
  Speaker 3: Stacked September. Make sure to sign up now for guaranteed
• 16:52
  Speaker 3: picks every Sunday, along with profit boosts and daily discounts
• 16:55
  Speaker 3: throughout the month.
• 16:56
  Speaker 4: Plus, the app is simple to use.
• 16:58
  Speaker 3: You just pick two to six players, then pick more
• 17:01
  Speaker 3: or less on their projected stats, like pass yards or
• 17:04
  Speaker 3: rush yards and fantasy score. It's the best way to
• 17:07
  Speaker 3: get more locked in on game day.
• 17:09
  Speaker 4: That's super fun. You can make all the picks you
• 17:12
  Speaker 4: want across any sport all in the same app.
• 17:15
  Speaker 3: Download the app today and use code BIRDS to get $ 150.
• 17:20
  Speaker 4: Instantly in lineups if you win your first $ 5 lineup.
• 17:23
  Speaker 2: Remember.
• 17:24
  Speaker 4: Download the app today.
• 17:25
  Speaker 3: Use code BIRDS to get $ 150 instantly in lineups if
• 17:28
  Speaker 3: you win your.
• 17:29
  Speaker 4: First $ 5 lineup. Prize picks run your game.
• 17:35
  Speaker 1: So that was kind of threw a wrench into the
• 17:38
  Speaker 1: whole plan at that position. But the two players that
• 17:42
  Speaker 1: he has there, for what they are asked to do,
• 17:44
  Speaker 1: Johnny Munt and E.J. Jenkins, I think they've done a
• 17:47
  Speaker 1: good job through two games as physical point-of-attack blockers. They
• 17:52
  Speaker 1: sort of set the tone there.
• 17:54
  Speaker 2: They've helped on special teams.
• 17:56
  Speaker 1: And that's really what their role was expected to be
• 17:59
  Speaker 1: going into the season. They're now cast into a more
• 18:02
  Speaker 1: prominent role, but that's due to unforeseen circumstances, certainly this
• 18:07
  Speaker 1: early in the season. Speaking about first down versus third
• 18:14
  Speaker 1: down and how it's been a little bit of a
• 18:17
  Speaker 1: push-pull there. Third down, I think you're number one in
• 18:20
  Speaker 1: the league. What have you seen from your viewpoint there?
• 18:23
  Speaker 1: He said, yeah, I think there's always going to be
• 18:25
  Speaker 1: things to clean up each week. We're attacking that as
• 18:27
  Speaker 1: a staff, doing everything we can to put our players
• 18:29
  Speaker 1: in the best position possible to succeed. I think when
• 18:32
  Speaker 1: you look at week one, we weren't able to stay
• 18:34
  Speaker 1: on schedule. We kind of put ourselves behind the chains.
• 18:37
  Speaker 1: It impacted our ability to marry the run and pass
• 18:39
  Speaker 1: and do some of those things. We were better in
• 18:42
  Speaker 1: that regard week two against Tennessee. We were much better
• 18:44
  Speaker 1: at staying on schedule. I think we're really close on
• 18:47
  Speaker 1: a few of our things on first and second down,
• 18:49
  Speaker 1: just some fundamental things to clean up, some corrections to make. Again,
• 18:54
  Speaker 1: we're always looking as a staff to put everyone in
• 18:56
  Speaker 1: the best position, best possible situation to succeed. So not
• 19:00
  Speaker 1: to make it coach speak or anything like that, but
• 19:02
  Speaker 1: I do think we're really close there. I think staying
• 19:05
  Speaker 1: on schedule really helped us improve from week one or
• 19:09
  Speaker 1: week two in that regard. But yeah, the success on
• 19:12
  Speaker 1: third down has been exciting to watch. We want to
• 19:14
  Speaker 1: keep leaning into that. I think the more you can
• 19:16
  Speaker 1: stay in those manageable situations, it makes it easier on yourself.
• 19:20
  Speaker 1: So really the first and second down offense and third
• 19:22
  Speaker 1: down offense really play off one another in that way,
• 19:25
  Speaker 1: but we'll keep attacking each day and trying to build
• 19:27
  Speaker 1: the best plan possible for the.
• 19:29
  Speaker 2: Bears this week.
• 19:34
  Speaker 1: The screen passes and their lack of success. He spoke
• 19:38
  Speaker 1: about that. He said, I think we're close on a
• 19:41
  Speaker 1: few of them. I think there are some fundamental things
• 19:43
  Speaker 1: to clean up a little bit. I think we had
• 19:45
  Speaker 1: a couple that were fundamental-based, a couple that were just execution-based,
• 19:49
  Speaker 1: but the screen game is going to be a big
• 19:51
  Speaker 1: part of what we do and called a couple of
• 19:52
  Speaker 1: them that were close and a couple that I think will,
• 19:56
  Speaker 1: across the season, be more productive plays moving forward. I
• 20:02
  Speaker 1: asked Sean Mannion about the game-winning touchdowns. possibly lost in
• 20:10
  Speaker 1: this was the blitz pickup of running back Will Shipley,
• 20:15
  Speaker 1: who took on the linebacker and bought Jalen Hurts a
• 20:18
  Speaker 1: little bit of time to be able to fit the
• 20:20
  Speaker 1: football in there to Darius Cooper. And what I've noticed
• 20:24
  Speaker 1: is Will has been taking on a little bit.
• 20:26
  Speaker 2: More of a role through two games.
• 20:29
  Speaker 1: Now, this is apart from the fact that Saquon Barkley
• 20:33
  Speaker 1: missed time. I did notice that obviously in third down
• 20:36
  Speaker 1: he's in, but he has taken a step forward in
• 20:39
  Speaker 1: terms of pass protection. And so that was a critical play.
• 20:43
  Speaker 1: And I think that's really important because Saquon isn't the
• 20:50
  Speaker 1: most adept when it comes to pass protection. I think
• 20:52
  Speaker 1: Tank has done some good things as well, but I've
• 20:55
  Speaker 1: really noticed with Will sort of, uh, a notable development
• 21:02
  Speaker 1: in that area of his game. And Sean said, yeah,
• 21:05
  Speaker 1: he's done an outstanding job. Really all of our backs.
• 21:07
  Speaker 1: We feel great about all of them. They all have
• 21:09
  Speaker 1: a skillset that we're excited about. I think the third
• 21:12
  Speaker 1: down protection stuff is something that can sometimes be overlooked, right?
• 21:16
  Speaker 1: It doesn't show up in the stat sheet. But in
• 21:18
  Speaker 1: those high-pressure moments, it's a two-minute drive. The defense knows
• 21:21
  Speaker 1: you're more than likely going to throw.
• 21:23
  Speaker 2: It's critical.
• 21:24
  Speaker 1: It's critical that you have backs in there who can
• 21:26
  Speaker 1: block a linebacker or give the quarterback time to get
• 21:28
  Speaker 1: that ball to coop there in the end zone. So, yeah,
• 21:32
  Speaker 1: he's done a tremendous job with that. He's done a
• 21:34
  Speaker 1: great job in the run game as well going to
• 21:36
  Speaker 1: the preseason. He ran the ball super effectively. We feel
• 21:40
  Speaker 1: good about all the backs on our roster, and they
• 21:42
  Speaker 1: did a great job. I know Saquon kind of got
• 21:45
  Speaker 1: knocked out of the game there, tried to give it
• 21:47
  Speaker 1: a go and couldn't finish, but him and Tank both
• 21:49
  Speaker 1: stepped up big time. It was, what, 190 degrees or
• 21:52
  Speaker 1: something crazy, and it's a tough condition, and they really
• 21:55
  Speaker 1: carried a heavy load for us and brought us through
• 21:57
  Speaker 1: the end of the game and did a great job.
• 22:02
  Speaker 1: Speaking specifically about Will, because Tank is the number two
• 22:04
  Speaker 1: running back, and I thought Tank... made the most of
• 22:07
  Speaker 1: his opportunities. There wasn't a lot of room to run.
• 22:10
  Speaker 1: There's a reason why Will plays. And I think it's
• 22:14
  Speaker 1: important to note, you listened to Sean Mannion's answer right there.
• 22:18
  Speaker 1: And a lot of it comes down to situational football
• 22:23
  Speaker 1: when he's in, if you notice. And he can catch
• 22:26
  Speaker 1: the football well. But to me, again, I go back
• 22:30
  Speaker 1: to the pass protection, the development in Will's game when
• 22:35
  Speaker 1: it comes to that area. He ran really tough and
• 22:38
  Speaker 1: physical in the preseason, but to get on the field
• 22:41
  Speaker 1: and be in for situational moments, it's the pass protection
• 22:46
  Speaker 1: and the confidence that a coach has in a player
• 22:49
  Speaker 1: that I sort of made note of. And this was
• 22:52
  Speaker 1: the second consecutive week that I did that. And you
• 22:55
  Speaker 1: listen to his answer there. There's a reason why He's
• 22:58
  Speaker 1: been in games, and I'm more so really talking about
• 23:02
  Speaker 1: the Commanders game in particular because there's a reason why
• 23:05
  Speaker 1: he saw, and Tank saw, an uptick in usage in
• 23:08
  Speaker 1: the Titans game. There's no Saquon Barkley. So there you
• 23:11
  Speaker 1: have it. There's sort of the Cliff Notes version of
• 23:15
  Speaker 1: some of my biggest takeaways, and I gave you the
• 23:18
  Speaker 1: context of the question earlier.
• 23:21
  Speaker 2: So you can hear.
• 23:23
  Speaker 1: Some of the notable takeaways from that press conference and
• 23:27
  Speaker 1: answers to questions that I'm sure you all had. And
• 23:30
  Speaker 1: in case you didn't get a chance to catch it,
• 23:32
  Speaker 1: I always enjoy coordinator day and hearing their.
• 23:34
  Speaker 2: Perspectives on things.
• 23:38
  Speaker 1: There was one really interesting one here that I want
• 23:41
  Speaker 1: to get to that Michael Clay had to say, and
• 23:45
  Speaker 1: it had to do with Zach Ertz, because you heard
• 23:49
  Speaker 1: the connection that Sean Mannion has with Zach Ertz. But
• 23:55
  Speaker 1: there's another connection that Michael Clay has, and this one
• 23:58
  Speaker 1: I thought was pretty funny. On the staff, Michael Clay
• 24:04
  Speaker 1: is one of the coaches who was here for the
• 24:11
  Speaker 1: first iteration of Zach Ertz in 2021 when Michael Clay
• 24:14
  Speaker 1: got there. And he spoke about what he recalled from
• 24:17
  Speaker 1: a younger Zach Ertz. And he said, shoot, I've known
• 24:20
  Speaker 1: Zach further back than that. I think we played against
• 24:23
  Speaker 1: each other in high school basketball, and I've always been
• 24:25
  Speaker 1: around Zach. I've had really good friends that went to
• 24:27
  Speaker 1: Stanford with Zach. Zach is a true professional, a great player. Obviously,
• 24:31
  Speaker 1: he's had his roots here in Philadelphia.
• 24:33
  Speaker 2: He's done a lot of great things and won a
• 24:34
  Speaker 2: Super Bowl.
• 24:35
  Speaker 1: It's hard not to want a great player in the
• 24:40
  Speaker 1: sense of who Zach Ertz is, but even a better person.
• 24:43
  Speaker 1: I saw him Monday or Tuesday morning. I was in
• 24:45
  Speaker 1: the sauna. He was the first one in, and it's
• 24:47
  Speaker 1: cool to see a familiar face again. This was the
• 24:51
  Speaker 1: funny part here, because he spoke a little bit about
• 24:55
  Speaker 1: Zach Hertz, the basketball player, in the next answer. And
• 24:59
  Speaker 1: he said Zach was darn good at Monta Vista Danville.
• 25:03
  Speaker 1: They were a good team. He may not have been
• 25:05
  Speaker 1: the best player on their team. They had a point guard, Barber,
• 25:07
  Speaker 1: I think was his last name, that was a baller,
• 25:11
  Speaker 1: but they were a very good basketball team. And Michael
• 25:14
  Speaker 1: Clay said, oh, they killed us when asked who won. So, yeah,
• 25:19
  Speaker 1: a lot of really good takeaways from the coordinators. And
• 25:22
  Speaker 1: as I like to do, I like to give you guys,
• 25:24
  Speaker 1: you know, the context, the answer. And I sort of
• 25:28
  Speaker 1: give a little bit of my my thoughts on it
• 25:32
  Speaker 1: and maybe expand a little bit more. But there you
• 25:35
  Speaker 1: have it. That is the start of the week for
• 25:37
  Speaker 1: the Philadelphia Eagles. They are back on the practice field tomorrow,
• 25:40
  Speaker 1: which is Thursday. And that Might be the day where
• 25:44
  Speaker 1: we get to hear from Zach Ertz and who knows,
• 25:46
  Speaker 1: maybe even Kenny Moore. Stay tuned for more coverage on
• 25:50
  Speaker 1: DiCecco Daily and, of course, InsideTheBirds.com. That's going to do
• 25:54
  Speaker 1: it for this episode of DiCecco Daily. I'm Andrew DiCecco,
• 25:57
  Speaker 1: and I'll catch you all on the next one.