Eagles Film Review: Takeaways from the Bengals game
Well, apologies, Eagles fans, but this one will be a little different! If you donāt follow me on Twitter, you may not know I have been in the United States for the past week! I managed to attend Ohio State vs. Nebraska, Bengals vs. the Eagles, and Steelers vs. Giants. Iāve had the most unbelievable time, but Iāve been unable to record videos as usual due to being away. I watched the All22 whilst on the plane home, but I would be lying if I was concentrating as much as I usually would! In my defense, I may have had a few too many drinks over the weekend…
I wonāt go into much detail on the trip here (check out my podcast next week if you want a holiday review), but I will say that I had the best time in Cincinnati watching the Eagles. It was easily one of the most fun days of my life. Firstly, the Eagles were absolutely awesome. Watching that kind of performance in person was incredibly satisfying. The fans were great and extremely loud. I sent this video to BLG and only later realized you could hear my drunken/slightly sore throat in the background, but itās too good not to share…
I love how you can hear different sections of the Eagles singing at different points. I also enjoyed seeing the Bengals fans leaving nice and early.
I was recognized a few times, which has blown my mind, considering Iād flown halfway across the world. If you did come up and say hello, I appreciate you! It also led to a few people I was chatting with out there shouting out excitedly, āJonnyās famous?!ā which was hilarious and made my day.
I also met up with BGNās own Alexis, which was wicked. By the way, the Eagles are undefeated when we are both in attendance…
As itās a little later in the week, Iāll give you a brief rundown of some of the things I saw from the All22 and watching the game live! As you can see from above, I had a fantastic view of the action. Although watching the All22 shows you everything, I think you get a different perspective from being at the game, so I will lean into that this week. Normal service will resume next week!
Shout out to my podcast partner, Shane Haff, for providing the clips for this week!
Offense
Everyone is going mad about the under center run gameāand rightly so! Watching live, I saw the Eagles’ offensive linemen frequently pushing the Bengalsā defensive line back. The Eagles’ use of motion in the run game makes a big difference, too. The Eagles are finally starting to get the under center outside zone game going, and this could really open up the offense over the second half of the season. The Eagles had 19 rushes for 0.40 EPA per play from under center this week. Itās working!
This is beautiful. The Bengals have to go to a 5 man front and they still can’t stop the run. Tyler Steen crosses the face of the NT to seal him off and turn Cam Jurgens lose to the 2nd level. pic.twitter.com/nRpwkcGLT5
ā Shane Haff (@ShaneHaffNFL) October 29, 2024
The Eagles used a lot of motion in this game, which was good to see. Those who donāt believe that Hurts can throw to the middle of the field, doesnāt like motion, and canāt play from under center must have hated this game!
The Eagles’ motion causes communication issues for the Bengals (how great is that to type?) and DeVonta Smith wins. He is so good on these choice routes. I would love to see the Eagles get him on them more often out of free releases. pic.twitter.com/FHG0I1gCl7
ā Shane Haff (@ShaneHaffNFL) October 29, 2024
I remember watching Saquon Barkley’s film with the Giants, and I always thought he tried to do too much. However, watching him live this week showed me how much he has matured as a runner. You rarely see him dancing in the backfield or looking indecisive. He hits the hole quickly, gets downhill fast, and can still make second-level defenders in the open field. When there isnāt something there, he doesnāt hang around and gets going quickly. This was my favorite runner because he realized he had to make something out of nothing and didnāt dance around at all.
The big takeaway this week was obviously Jalen Hurts’s play. Iāve been accused of being too positive in my defense of Hurts this year, but I think people have gone a little bit over the top with their criticism of him. Heās in a new scheme, and it will always take time. This was his best game of the season by a distance. Watching this deep touchdown live to DeVonta Smith was incredible. You could see Smith running deep, and Hurts needed protection to hold up. This is a perfect throw and catch. I was so happy for Smith, who bounced back after a tough week 7. Iāll throw a little controversial statement out there, but I watched DeVonta Smith on Sunday and Malik Nabers on Monday, and I was more impressed with Smith. I think we forget how good he is because AJ Brown is absurd.
Also, check out the use of play action… itās about time!
The Eagles go play action and get Jalen Hurts on the move to the right. The run action moves the safety and opens up the deep shot to DeVonta Smith. Smith does a fantastic job of initiating contact with the S around the 13 yard line, stacking him, and then making the catch. Watchā¦ pic.twitter.com/SQdoOwv712
ā Shane Haff (@ShaneHaffNFL) October 29, 2024
More play action…
The Eagles dial up another PA pass and hit AJ Brown on a deep out route. The Eagles have the 2nd best EPA/pass when utilizing PA right now, and that is without doing it much from under center. I can’t wait to see them flesh out that aspect of the offense in the coming weeks. pic.twitter.com/gFQ5KIr7uI
ā Shane Haff (@ShaneHaffNFL) October 29, 2024
Watching him live made it very clear to me that he was completely in control of the offense this week. He never looked hurried, unsure, or unsure of where to go. He had a couple of huge throws, but the 3rd and 16 throw stood out in particular. What I loved about this one was how quickly he eliminated his primary read to the right-hand side and came back to AJ Brown. I mentioned last week that he needed to be quicker in eliminating what wasnāt there, and he did this really well in this game.
I have no idea what the Bengals are doing here. It’s 3rd and 16. Why in the world would you leave AJ Brown this wide open? That’s just way too easy. pic.twitter.com/9vnDSSuSNa
ā Shane Haff (@ShaneHaffNFL) October 29, 2024
The other big thing that stood out was his mobility. I watched six quarterbacks live over three days (including two from college here), and Hurts was by far the most mobile. He was the only one who played a big role in the run game, and his mobility stood out on Sunday. He had a couple of important runs.
Jalen Hurts gets the edge on Myles Murphy and takes it in for a touchdown. Grant Calcaterra has a nice block on the perimeter at the goalline. pic.twitter.com/AWISaaIoNy
ā Shane Haff (@ShaneHaffNFL) October 29, 2024
Finally, on the offense, the offensive line was outstanding. Hurts had all day to throw back there at times. Iāve been pretty complimentary of Fred Johnson this year, so his performance didnāt completely shock me. However, I was surprised that he played as well as he did. The Eagles helped him out and used the tight ends to chip the EDGE rushers at times, but there were also times when he was just straight up one-on-one and won. Tyler Steen also looked excellent and Iām becoming more convinced each week that he should start over Mekhi Becton at right guard. Steen is really good on the move, which helps the Eagles in the outside zone game. Becton is better with gap scheme concepts where he can move defenders, but I think this Eaglesā offense might be better with Steen moving forward.
This is beautiful. The Bengals have to go to a 5 man front and they still can’t stop the run. Tyler Steen crosses the face of the NT to seal him off and turn Cam Jurgens lose to the 2nd level. pic.twitter.com/nRpwkcGLT5
ā Shane Haff (@ShaneHaffNFL) October 29, 2024
This felt like the game where the Eaglesā offense clicked. Let’s hope it continues!
Defense
It would not have been a pretty picture if you could have seen my face in the stands after the Bengalsā first drive. I know the Bengals converted 5/5 third downs, and the Eagles played the early downs well, but I did not enjoy that drive at all. I thought the Eagles were way too passive, and it was too easy for Joe Burrow to pick apart the defense. I was pretty shocked that the Eagles did nothing fancy to stop JaāMarr Chase. Chase ended up not having a great game, but I think that had more to do with the play of the Eagles cornerbacks than with Fangioās scheme. Whenever Chase was moved around in the slot (or the backfield), the Eagles didnāt really have a plan for him.
This is a really nice play by the Bengals. They go 12 personnel on 2nd and goal from the 2 and the Eagles answer with their heavy personnel (DeJean off the field for an extra DL, Thomas Booker and Jordan Davis on the field, etc.). Then through a variety of motions, they move fromā¦ pic.twitter.com/zA9IGhfP6X
ā Shane Haff (@ShaneHaffNFL) October 28, 2024
Tough assignment here for Cooper DeJean against Ja’Marr Chase with a free release and no help anywhere. Chase shakes him easily here and moves the chains. I’m not a fan of all the C1 blitzing the Eagles used. Sending 5 in a tricky way to overload a side is one thing, but liningā¦ pic.twitter.com/wRDeKwbi7D
ā Shane Haff (@ShaneHaffNFL) October 29, 2024
In particular, something that was obvious live was that the Bengals’ use of motion was catching the Eagles out. This led to some busted coverages as the Eagles struggled to distribute the Bengals routes due to the numbers of receivers on a certain side of the field changing at the last second. This is why Fangioās defense requires excellent communication and a lot of practice.
Bengals run a flood concept and nobody picks up the TE on the outbreaker. Looks like quarters to me which likely means CJGJ is responsible for this one, but can’t say for sure. Motion was causing a lot of issues for the Eagles early. pic.twitter.com/It6cE4OqYQ
ā Shane Haff (@ShaneHaffNFL) October 28, 2024
However, after the early few drives, the Eagles defense really got going. I thought the cornerbacks were outstanding, and Cooper DeJean has made a difference in coverage and in run support. We all know about this play, but letās see it again.
I spoke about the Eaglesā use of āWhipā last week, and we saw it again on Chauncey Gardner-Johnsonās interception. Whip is where the weak linebacker blitzes, and the opposite EDGE defender drops into coverage. It plays out as Cover 3, but the outside cornerbacks are in man-to-man coverage if the outside receiver runs a vertical route as Chase does against Isaiah Rodgers here. Rodgers played it perfectly, and CJGJ did a great job getting over from single-high safety early.
The Eagles spin their safeties at the snap and Joe Burrow takes his shot to Ja’Marr Chase working against Isaiah Rodgers who swats the ball and CJGJ catches it off the deflection.
I hope Eagles fans don’t take for granted how automatic AJ Brown is in these situations. pic.twitter.com/ZYWWqgTZnD
ā Shane Haff (@ShaneHaffNFL) October 29, 2024
Nolan Smith also stood out on the day as a pass rusher. He is finally starting to add a few counter moves to his arsenal and his development since the bye week has been great to see.
Some Georgia on Georgia crime as Nolan Smith beats Amarius Mims soundly on this play. The Eagles are in a C1 blitz and the coverage behind is really good as well. pic.twitter.com/BALhppz1Gf
ā Shane Haff (@ShaneHaffNFL) October 28, 2024
Finally, the biggest thing that stood out was the Eagles’ ability to stop the run without playing a 5-man front. Iāve called for the Eagles to use more 5-man fronts but stopping the run from a 4-man front is obviously better. The Eagles have stopped slanting their defensive linemen as much and their gap fits were outstanding on Sunday. However, the player who stood out more than anyone live was Zack Baun. The guy was everywhere. He was great against the run and when dropping into coverage. Iāve been saying this since week 2 now, but the Eagles need to extend his contract. Iām such a big fan of his.
The Eagles did make a huge stop against the run on 3rd and 1 late in the game and this did come from a heavy front. I promise you, I said to the people next to me that if the Bengals run at this Eaglesā front they wonāt get the 1st down. The Eagles are excellent with their 5/6-man fronts in short yardage.
Brandon Graham gets credit for this stop on 3rd and 1, but he isn’t able to do it without Nakobe Dean flying through the B gap like he was shot out of a cannon. pic.twitter.com/bJNMY9mCzF
ā Shane Haff (@ShaneHaffNFL) October 29, 2024
I’m sorry this is a little shorter than usual, but itās all Iāve got after an 8-hour flight! Iāll be back to normal next week!
Thank you for reading! Iād love to hear your thoughts, so feel free to comment below and ask any questions. If you enjoyed this piece, you can find more of my work and podcast here.
