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The DiCecco Daily: A Closer Look At The Eagles' Perilous RB Situation · Inside the Birds: A Philadelphia Eagles Podcast

• 0:09
  Speaker 1: Hey, what's going on everybody? Welcome in to another episode
• 0:12
  Speaker 1: of the Checo Daily. Andrew DiCecco, Eagles beat reporter for InsideTheBirds.com here.
• 0:18
  Speaker 1: And today's podcast, we're going to take a closer look
• 0:21
  Speaker 1: at the Eagles running back position.
• 0:22
  Speaker 2: They're really light there.
• 0:24
  Speaker 1: There's another injury and we got more information on that Monday.
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: But just to recap, the 19-17 loss in London for
• 0:32
  Speaker 1: the Philadelphia Eagles, dropping them to 2-3 on the season
• 0:36
  Speaker 1: with a big game against the Carolina Panthers upcoming. A
• 0:40
  Speaker 1: lot has been made about the final sequencing in that
• 0:44
  Speaker 1: game and giving it even more thought after the game,
• 0:48
  Speaker 1: watching it back and all that. First of all, when
• 0:52
  Speaker 1: I'm talking about the kick coverage, it looked like Arnold
• 0:54
  Speaker 1: Ebikedi lost containment there. EJ Jenkins was double teamed, so
• 0:59
  Speaker 1: it took him out of the picture. And it looked
• 1:01
  Speaker 1: like Smile Mondin, if he had taken maybe a little
• 1:04
  Speaker 1: bit of a better angle, may have had a chance.
• 1:06
  Speaker 2: But let's break things down. What led to that? And
• 1:12
  Speaker 2: it was.
• 1:12
  Speaker 1: Really the last sequence there. And it was the first
• 1:18
  Speaker 1: incompletion to Dontavian Wicks on first down.
• 1:22
  Speaker 2: Then the next play is completed to.
• 1:24
  Speaker 1: Makai Lemon, and Makai Lemon right there needs to find
• 1:27
  Speaker 1: a way to keep himself inbounds, take a knee, whatever
• 1:30
  Speaker 1: you have to do. Young player, he'll learn from that,
• 1:34
  Speaker 1: but that was a really critical point in the game,
• 1:37
  Speaker 1: and it saved the Jaguars a timeout there, and then
• 1:40
  Speaker 1: on the next play, it was a Damian Pierce run
• 1:44
  Speaker 1: that lost three yards. Now, to be clear, I understand
• 1:47
  Speaker 1: that the running game wasn't working for the Eagles, but
• 1:49
  Speaker 1: in that moment, personally, for me, I would have ran
• 1:54
  Speaker 1: it a couple of times and forced them into a
• 1:57
  Speaker 1: little bit of a bind there and just hope that
• 1:59
  Speaker 1: you can move.
• 2:01
  Speaker 2: It forward for a number of yards.
• 2:03
  Speaker 1: There's the other school of thought, though, where the running
• 2:06
  Speaker 1: game was anemic against the Jacksonville Jaguars, and there's no
• 2:11
  Speaker 1: guarantee that you are going to gain positive momentum forward
• 2:14
  Speaker 1: and set Jake Elliott up for a better kick. But
• 2:17
  Speaker 1: what I would have definitely made sure that I was
• 2:20
  Speaker 1: positioned to do was to make sure that Jake Elliott
• 2:23
  Speaker 1: was that whatever whenever that kick was, it was the
• 2:26
  Speaker 1: final play of the game. Have them kick it at
• 2:28
  Speaker 1: the buzzer and don't give Jacksonville an opportunity. And look,
• 2:33
  Speaker 1: the Eagles really focus and prioritize on situational football.
• 2:37
  Speaker 2: They value their.
• 2:39
  Speaker 1: Research that they put into it and just the diligence
• 2:42
  Speaker 1: that they place on it. And you see a little
• 2:44
  Speaker 1: bit of it in training camp. And that's something that
• 2:47
  Speaker 1: Nick Sirianni is really adamant about. So it's not something
• 2:50
  Speaker 1: like they make these decisions on a whim. It was
• 2:52
  Speaker 1: something that... It's part of their process, and you wish
• 2:56
  Speaker 1: that Nick Sirianni would have revealed a little bit more
• 3:00
  Speaker 1: to offer a little bit more of perspective into his
• 3:04
  Speaker 1: decision-making there just so we can learn and get a
• 3:07
  Speaker 1: better understanding. But nevertheless, it is something that organizationally and
• 3:12
  Speaker 1: Nick Sirianni in particular really fixates on. So to have
• 3:16
  Speaker 1: something like that happen in that moment, really over the
• 3:20
  Speaker 1: last 30 seconds or so, that has to be eating
• 3:24
  Speaker 1: away at Nick Sirianni. And when you see him at
• 3:25
  Speaker 1: the podium, he certainly looked just really embattled in that moment,
• 3:34
  Speaker 1: that it was really taking a toll on him, that loss.
• 3:37
  Speaker 2: But what I'll also say is that while that was.
• 3:42
  Speaker 1: the primary talking point and rightfully so it's the Eagles
• 3:45
  Speaker 1: lost the game in totality because of that really odd
• 3:51
  Speaker 1: sequencing in the latter stage of the game. But I
• 3:54
  Speaker 1: would also say that if they made more plays offensively
• 3:57
  Speaker 1: in the second half, which has been a common theme,
• 4:00
  Speaker 1: they're not in position to have to kick a game.
• 4:05
  Speaker 2: Winning field goal. And all of a sudden it's not
• 4:07
  Speaker 2: as magnified.
• 4:08
  Speaker 1: You gotta be more consistent in the second half because,
• 4:10
  Speaker 1: That offense from top to bottom has been just woeful
• 4:15
  Speaker 1: when it comes to generating any sort of consistency. They're
• 4:18
  Speaker 1: behind the sticks. They're struggling to find those first downs.
• 4:23
  Speaker 3: They.
• 4:25
  Speaker 1: It's sort of a stark contrast to what you see
• 4:27
  Speaker 1: in the first half, and it's kind of odd, but
• 4:30
  Speaker 1: it is a prevailing theme, and this is nothing new.
• 4:34
  Speaker 1: This was something that was problematic last season as well.
• 4:38
  Speaker 1: But going back to my original point here, while you
• 4:41
  Speaker 1: can say whatever you want about the game management and
• 4:47
  Speaker 1: the waning moments of that game. One thing you do
• 4:50
  Speaker 1: have to say regarding Nick Sirianni is, despite all of
• 4:53
  Speaker 1: the injuries, missing Devontae Smith, Saquon Barkley, you traded away
• 4:58
  Speaker 1: Cam Juergens, Lane Johnson retires, you don't have Jonathan Grenard,
• 5:05
  Speaker 1: you don't have Drew Kendall, your starting center, and to
• 5:08
  Speaker 1: go into London against a 3-1 at the time Jacksonville
• 5:11
  Speaker 1: football team that.
• 5:14
  Speaker 2: is a better team. They're more well-rounded.
• 5:17
  Speaker 1: Their strengths don't exactly align with what the Eagles do offensively.
• 5:21
  Speaker 1: I'm talking about they apply pressure and they play zone coverage.
• 5:25
  Speaker 1: And Liam Cohen is a pretty good offensive mind. Now,
• 5:29
  Speaker 1: I thought he had some coaching blunders in a big
• 5:31
  Speaker 1: way against the Eagles and Trevor Lawrence didn't play his best,
• 5:35
  Speaker 1: but that's a story for another day. But given all
• 5:38
  Speaker 1: of those things, it would have been not necessarily easy
• 5:42
  Speaker 1: for the.
• 5:42
  Speaker 2: Eagles to concede.
• 5:44
  Speaker 1: But it would have been easy to come out flat
• 5:46
  Speaker 1: and say it's just not their day. They're undermanned and
• 5:51
  Speaker 1: this is what they're going against. They're across the pond,
• 5:55
  Speaker 1: kind of pack it in and get ready for the
• 5:56
  Speaker 1: Panthers where you may have Devontae and Saquon.
• 6:00
  Speaker 2: But no, the Eagles came out focused and dialed in.
• 6:03
  Speaker 1: I like their approach offensively with Jalen Hurts being a
• 6:06
  Speaker 1: little bit more aggressive, getting the ball out quicker. And
• 6:09
  Speaker 1: I thought the young players, Willie Lampkin and Jake Majors,
• 6:13
  Speaker 1: stepping in there, they brought some energy to the line.
• 6:17
  Speaker 1: I thought that they held up better than anyone could
• 6:20
  Speaker 1: have expected in a really difficult spot. And it seemed
• 6:23
  Speaker 1: like they were all feeding off one another, especially the defense.
• 6:26
  Speaker 1: When you see Jalen Carter come out and have the
• 6:28
  Speaker 1: game that he had, Cooper DeJean have the game that
• 6:31
  Speaker 1: he had. Zach Vaughn in his return to the lineup
• 6:34
  Speaker 1: making plays all over the field it seemed like the
• 6:37
  Speaker 1: Eagles had some energy and they were playing loose they
• 6:40
  Speaker 1: were playing free so that's a testament to Nick Sirianni
• 6:43
  Speaker 1: and the preparation and his week-long messaging of locking arms
• 6:46
  Speaker 1: and staying together that's a message that clearly resonated with
• 6:50
  Speaker 1: the team when you see how they go out there
• 6:52
  Speaker 1: how they went out there and perform given those circumstances.
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• 9:12
  Speaker 1: That's certainly not to absolve the late game decision-making because
• 9:16
  Speaker 1: that was a critical factor into the Eagles dropping that game.
• 9:21
  Speaker 1: But you know, it's in all fairness, you gotta, you
• 9:24
  Speaker 1: gotta point that out as well. Then that's some of
• 9:26
  Speaker 1: the things that Nick Sirianni does really well to connect
• 9:28
  Speaker 1: the connection piece, the accountability piece. And he certainly took
• 9:32
  Speaker 1: accountability for, for everything that transpired in that game.
• 9:36
  Speaker 2: As he does every week.
• 9:39
  Speaker 1: The running back situation got a little bit more peculiar,
• 9:42
  Speaker 1: and Will Shipley is going to probably miss a few
• 9:45
  Speaker 1: weeks with plantar fascia, and that's something that he's been
• 9:50
  Speaker 1: really dealing with for a couple of weeks. He popped
• 9:53
  Speaker 1: up on the injury report with that. I think it
• 9:55
  Speaker 1: was after the Tennessee game first, and.
• 9:58
  Speaker 2: He was never.
• 9:59
  Speaker 1: I think he was mostly limited in whenever that was
• 10:03
  Speaker 1: popping up on the injury report. But it is something
• 10:06
  Speaker 1: that is notable. He left the game with a foot
• 10:08
  Speaker 1: injury and then he did not return. And then when
• 10:11
  Speaker 1: the news comes out today, it's that he suffered a
• 10:14
  Speaker 1: partial tear to his plantar fascia and And that was
• 10:19
  Speaker 1: from Tom Pellicero. So that's obviously horrible to hear for Will,
• 10:25
  Speaker 1: who finally gets an opportunity to go out there as
• 10:28
  Speaker 1: a lead back, scored his first regular season touchdown. Then
• 10:32
  Speaker 1: he has to leave the game with an injury and
• 10:34
  Speaker 1: he was playing through it. So that complicates things because
• 10:37
  Speaker 1: let's not forget Saquon Barkley is still on the shelf
• 10:41
  Speaker 1: with the hamstring injury. Tank Bigsby's on IR after having
• 10:44
  Speaker 1: core muscle surgery. And so that leaves the Eagles right
• 10:49
  Speaker 1: now with Saquon Barkley, who will have to wait and
• 10:52
  Speaker 1: see if he can go this week. Hamstrings can be tricky,
• 10:55
  Speaker 1: so you never know until you get through a couple
• 10:58
  Speaker 1: days of practice, the way things are trending. Then you
• 11:02
  Speaker 1: have Damian Pierce, 11 carries, 14 yards against the Jaguars.
• 11:06
  Speaker 1: They weren't able to generate much of a push up
• 11:08
  Speaker 1: front in the run game. But then it's Carson Steele.
• 11:11
  Speaker 1: You have Jaden Blue, who was a fifth-round pick in
• 11:14
  Speaker 1: 2025 of the Dallas Cowboys, on your practice squad.
• 11:17
  Speaker 2: And I'm kind of intrigued a little bit with.
• 11:19
  Speaker 1: Jaden Blue at 5'9, 198, blazing speed, had 38 carries
• 11:25
  Speaker 1: for the Cowboys as a rookie. All of a sudden,
• 11:27
  Speaker 1: depending on Saquon's health this week, you could have all
• 11:32
  Speaker 1: three of your practice squad running backs on the 53
• 11:34
  Speaker 1: participating in this game and Yeah, if you're the Eagles,
• 11:38
  Speaker 1: you're hoping that Will Shipley has a quick and speedy
• 11:43
  Speaker 1: recovery and really bounces back from this injury.
• 11:47
  Speaker 2: And Tank as well. And we'll see with Saquon.
• 11:51
  Speaker 1: And Devontae I saw working on a side field last
• 11:53
  Speaker 1: week doing some jogging. So that's always encouraging to see.
• 11:57
  Speaker 1: We'll have to wait for how things play out. But
• 12:00
  Speaker 1: the running back situation is really complicated. Because going into
• 12:05
  Speaker 1: the season, and I made a compelling case for this,
• 12:07
  Speaker 1: one of the strongest positions the Eagles have, Saquon, who
• 12:11
  Speaker 1: I still think is playing at a high level, I
• 12:15
  Speaker 1: don't really care what the numbers say, there's context required
• 12:19
  Speaker 1: to the struggles, and I don't think any of the
• 12:23
  Speaker 1: running backs have been able to find much running room,
• 12:25
  Speaker 1: but Then you have Tank Bigsby, who I think is
• 12:28
  Speaker 1: a very high-quality backup here in Philadelphia, and there's teams
• 12:31
  Speaker 1: in the league that I believe he can start for.
• 12:33
  Speaker 1: He brings a lot of juice. He put the ball
• 12:36
  Speaker 1: on the ground in the Chicago game, but he did
• 12:38
  Speaker 1: some good things and bounced back against the Rams. So, yeah,
• 12:43
  Speaker 1: I mean, I think they have a really good balance
• 12:45
  Speaker 1: there with Tank and Saquon and then Will. has really
• 12:49
  Speaker 1: progressed and it has become the Eagles' most efficient pass
• 12:52
  Speaker 1: protector and catches the ball really well, finally gets an
• 12:55
  Speaker 1: opportunity in the regular season in a game that wasn't
• 13:01
  Speaker 1: a Week 18 season finale and unfortunately for him comes
• 13:05
  Speaker 1: up injured with that foot. So that leaves the Eagles
• 13:09
  Speaker 1: in a bit of a bind as they look to
• 13:11
  Speaker 1: potentially have to patchwork this running back room.
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  Speaker 2: Up i'm.
• 15:06
  Speaker 1: Nick Sirianni on Monday mentioned that he's hopeful that they'll
• 15:09
  Speaker 1: get Saquon back this week. But again, it's a hamstring.
• 15:12
  Speaker 1: It's a soft tissue injury. So you never know. Those
• 15:15
  Speaker 1: things can be a little tricky. And then you'll have
• 15:18
  Speaker 1: Damian Pierce and Carson Steele if Saquon is available. If not,
• 15:22
  Speaker 1: then you're going to have to bring up Jaden Blue.
• 15:23
  Speaker 1: And he's a different type of running back. Really good speed,
• 15:27
  Speaker 1: short area quickness, can hit the home run, but he's
• 15:29
  Speaker 1: not a big guy. He's not going to push the pile,
• 15:32
  Speaker 1: and he's not someone that you ideally want to deploy
• 15:35
  Speaker 1: on inside zone power runs. So we'll see where things go,
• 15:39
  Speaker 1: but that's kind of the outlook that we have right
• 15:41
  Speaker 1: now going into this week with the Philadelphia Eagles. We'll
• 15:44
  Speaker 1: hear from the coordinators on Tuesday, so Vic Fangio, Sean Mannion,
• 15:48
  Speaker 1: and Michael Clay.
• 15:51
  Speaker 2: The Eagles special teams coordinator.
• 15:53
  Speaker 1: And maybe even by the time you hear this, the
• 15:56
  Speaker 1: Eagles will have signed defensive tackle Zion Wilson to the
• 16:00
  Speaker 1: practice squad.
• 16:01
  Speaker 2: That is something that is imminent and we'll see.
• 16:06
  Speaker 1: And that should be maybe Tuesday. I imagine by Tuesday morning.
• 16:11
  Speaker 1: So that'll be a new addition there. So that's going
• 16:14
  Speaker 1: to do it for this episode of the Checo daily.
• 16:17
  Speaker 1: I'm Andrew to Checo and I'll catch you all on
• 16:19
  Speaker 1: the next one.