The Linc

Let’s get to the Philadelphia Eagles links …

2024 NFL midseason report: Every team’s best player, biggest surprise – PFF
Biggest surprise: ILB Zack Baun. The Eagles hadn’t found much resolve to their inside linebacker problem over the last few seasons, but Baun has looked like a terrific answer. The former Saint ranks second among qualifying Eagles defenders with an 81.6 overall grade. Baun’s 90.1 coverage grade is the second-best among all linebackers. […] Highest-graded player: WR A.J. Brown (90.2). Brown missed three games due to a hamstring injury, but there’s been no slowing him down when on the field. His 90.4 receiving grade is second to only Collins, and his 129.9 passer rating when targeted is sixth.

Handing out Eagles awards at the (near) halfway point of the 2024 season – NBCSP
Defensive MVP. Dave: Zack Baun. Another free agent pickup that has worked out extremely well. When the Eagles signed Baun, most thought it was to be a situational pass rusher in Vic Fangio’s system. But Fangio saw Baun as a potential starting inside linebacker and the veteran defensive coordinator nailed it. Through eight games, Baun has played just about every snap on defense and leads the team in tackles with 79 (52 solo). He also has 2 sacks, 3 TFLs, 2 QB hits, 2 PBUs and a forced fumble. Time to figure out how to extend this guy because he’s on a one-year deal.

Eagles-Jaguars Film Review: Another outstanding game from Jalen Hurts – BGN
The first touchdown of the game is a fantastic call. The Eagles used a lot of motion in this game, and this is one of the benefits. The motion brings the single-high safety down to cover Jahan Dotson. I can’t be sure, but I imagine Jalen Hurts is told to pick a side here, and he goes to the right, which is the right decision based on the Jaguars’ coverage. I am pretty sure Saquon Barkley is running a choice route here, which means he can go in, out, or vertically, depending on the coverage. Barkley correctly reads that there is no deep coverage due to the tight end running a post route, so he goes vertical. Hurts reads it perfectly, and delivers a great ball to the corner of the endzone. Barkley runs a great route and also makes a tough catch over his shoulder that a lot of running backs could not make. Is there anything Barkley can’t do?

NFC East Mixtape special: Eagles-Cowboys preview, Part 1 – YouTube
In this one-off special, Brandon Lee Gowton of Bleeding Green Nation and RJ Ochoa of Blogging The Boys reunite to discuss the state of the Philadelphia Eagles, the Dallas Cowboys, and the rest of the NFC East entering Week 10. Check out Part 2 for the second half of this episode.

Game Review – PHI 28, JAX 23 – Iggles Blitz
The rest of the DL played well. Jordan Davis had a couple of tackles and helped to limit the run. Milton Williams and Moro Ojomo didn’t make the stat sheet, but each had good moments. Ojomo is getting mixed into the nickel packages on a regular basis. If not for the offensive fireworks, this would be the Zack Baun game. He had 10 tackles, TFL, INT, and a PD. He also had a big hit on Trevor Lawrence when the QB scrambled up the middle. Great showing by the new ILB. Nakobe Dean only had 2 tackles, but broke up one pass and had the game-clinching INT. Watching Eagles ILBs pick off passes is…fun. CJGJ is having a disappointing season. He hasn’t made many plays and he’s struggled when put in man coverage. He had 4 tackles in the game. He got burned on a 2-pt conversion. He gave up a 22-yard reception to a practice squad receiver on the final drive of the game. Reed Blankenship had 5 tackles and played the run well.

2024 NFL midseason awards picks: Best players, rookies, coaches – ESPN
2. Quinyon Mitchell, CB, Eagles. Pick: No. 22. The biggest reason the Eagles have improved on defense has been the play of the two cornerbacks whom general manager Howie Roseman selected with his top two picks. Cooper DeJean spent the first month of the season on the bench before getting into the lineup in the slot, and his tackling and route recognition has been excellent. Mitchell has been a steady presence on the outside all season. Playing as the starting right cornerback, he has been peppered with targets that haven’t amounted to much. Opposing quarterbacks have posted a 51.4 QBR throwing to the left side of the field (the right side of the defense) against the Eagles this season, the third-lowest mark for any team. Passers have otherwise posted the ninth-best QBR throwing over the middle and towards the right side of the field. It’s a surprise Mitchell doesn’t have an interception already. He had a shot at a pick-six against Kirk Cousins in Week 2 and then again against Derek Carr the following week. He broke up a handful of speed outs to opposing receivers over the first month, and quarterbacks have learned their lesson. Passers’ ball placement needs to be absolutely perfect if they want to throw to the outside against Mitchell. Mitchell has had a rough moment or two. The Falcons were able to pick on him during their game-winning drive, picking up chunk plays on back-to-back gains to Darnell Mooney. Sterling Shepard beat him on a double-move for 30 yards in the Bucs game. Mitchell has improved as the season has gone along, though, and the 23-year-old might already be Philadelphia’s best cornerback.

NFL playoff predictions: Picking 8 division winners, 6 wild-card teams at midpoint of 2024 season – NFL.com
Off to the franchise’s best start in nearly 30 years, Washington (7-2) finds itself in pole position in the current NFC East standings. However, the overwhelming majority of our analysts see the hard-charging Eagles overtaking the Commanders by season’s end, with Washington relegated to the No. 5 seed. With both head-to-head matchups still to go, and similarly difficult second-half slates, this race has the potential to see-saw for the next two months. It’s worth noting that both teams rank bottom-three in SOS through the first nine weeks of the season, so how they each fare against tougher competition down the stretch might not only decide the division, but whether the runner-up is even able to clinch a wild-card spot.

Spadaro: Behold the beauty of the Eagles’ rushing attack – PE.com
The goal for the Philadelphia Eagles offense is to be as multi-platformed as possible – to be able to devastate defenses with an explosive air game and to wear them down on the ground. Pick your poison. We’ll chop it up any way you want. But there is a certain beauty to what the Eagles are doing in the running game right now. The Eagles have averaged 195.8 rushing yards per game and have scored eight ground touchdowns since Week 6, both best in the NFL. The offense has churned out 150-plus yards and two-plus touchdowns scored on the ground in three straight games for the seventh time in team history, the first since the 1953 season. Running back Saquon Barkley on Wednesday was named the NFC Offensive Player of the Week for the third time this season after his performance in a 28-23 win over Jacksonville, and his numbers speak to the versatility of the offense – he carried the football 27 times for 159 yards and a touchdown and added another 3 receptions for 40 yards, including a 20-yard catch for a touchdown. Barkley, as with the Eagles’ offense, won on the ground and in the air by moving the chains on some touches and by taking the top off the defense on others. That is the ideal attack mode the Eagles desire.

The Best NFL Bets for Week 10: Halfway There – The Ringer
Philadelphia Eagles (-7) at Dallas Cowboys. This NFC East rivalry has brought a ton of drama and competitive games over the years, but the injuries to Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb, combined with the Cowboys’ general malaise, have taken the sting out of this contest. The Cowboys are a really tough team to evaluate. We’ve seen them have success with Cooper Rush in the past, but those teams had capable run games, quality offensive line play, and a ball-hawking defense. The market didn’t take long on Monday to go from -6.5 to -7.5 for Philly, and I’m not surprised that some sharp money moved the line back to Dallas +7. I’d usually look to buy the team in their first game with the backup QB, but Dallas has the potential to waive the white flag on the season here. Without Lamb and Prescott, is there anything the Cowboys actually do well? Lamb was limited in practice on Wednesday so he could play, but what’s the incentive to play him if you’re Dallas? Verdict: Pass

Week 9 DVOA: Lions Keep Climbing – FTN Fantasy
[BLG Note: The Eagles are 9th in DVOA. The Cowboys are 25th.]

Commanders vs Steelers Wednesday Injury Report: Brian Robinson Jr returns to practice – Hogs Haven
The Washington Commanders enter their Week 10 matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers with several players dealing with injuries. Marshon Lattimore arrived at headquarters today, but didn’t practice with the team today. He was dealing with a hamstring injury, and GM Adam Peters said the team has his medical from the New Orleans Saints, and they will work him into practice when he is ready.

Report: Cowboys QB Dak Prescott hamstring partially torn, could be out longer than 4 weeks – Blogging The Boys
Slater notes that the injury in question generally takes more than four weeks to recover from so injured reserve (which would require Prescott to miss at minimum four games, for those unaware) seems logical; however, she added that sometimes it is possible for different recoveries to happen and that Prescott is currently trying to explore all options (in terms of a second opinion) before crossing that proverbial bridge. There are nine games left in the season for the Cowboys and even if the team were to win the next four that would only bring their record to 7-5. While that sounds incredible relative to where they are at the moment, consider that the Washington Commanders and Philadelphia Eagles both currently have six and seven wins, respectively. Winning the NFC East, and making the playoffs in general, is an uphill battle for this team at the moment.

Ex-coach, player take shots at stumbling New York Giants – Big Blue View
Martindale was asked about his future coaching the Michigan defense, and responded that it’s a lot better being at 5-4 Michigan than “some places that are 2-7.” The Giants also parted was with Martindale following 2023, though this was in a very public and very ugly divorce. By all reports there were hard feelings on both sides, and Martindale seems to be indulging in some schadenfreud. We had hints that things had gotten ugly behind the scenes after last year, and the comments of both Feliciano and Martindale give us another window into some lingering resentment from the way that went down.

Boston Scott working out with Saints – FantasyPros
Boston Scott has an upcoming workout with the Saints. The free agent running back is back to full health and is seeking a spot on a team.

Full list of Week 10 straight-up picks with confidence levels – SB Nation
The NFL playoff race is heating up and Week 10 is upon us. The week opens with a huge Thursday Night Football matchup between the Ravens and maybe now surging Bengals. The Chiefs host the Broncos with Denver looking to keep the AFC West race alive. The most surprisingly intriguing matchup is Steelers-Commanders, with both teams unexpectedly leading their respective divisions. Last week was relatively quiet, with the Panthers providing the most significant upset of the weekend. My weekly confidence picks came back to earth a bit with a 10-5 week. I missed out on all four of my upset picks as it was a much more chalky week.