On Lane Johnson, EJ Manuel, and More

The Eagles stayed in their fourth overall spot on Thursday night and selected the offensive tackle from Oklahoma, Lane Johnson. Needless to say, I'm a big fan of the pick. ​As I've discussed on multiple occasions, the offensive line was a huge question mark given age, injuries, and general uncertainty on the right side. With one move, the Eagles have turned the line into a strength. If Johnson can start on the right side immediately, it moves Todd Herremans back to an easier position at guard and eliminates Danny Watkins from our collective memory. Johnson also injects youth and versatility onto the line. He has the potential to take over at left tackle from Jason Peters down the line.

One of the things that came across in Chip Kelly's press conference ​was that Johnson is still raw, but the Eagles have confidence in a player of his athletic ability. Check out how he scored in the combine versus other tackles via his Mockdraftable profile at right. Johnson is elite across the board, with the biggest detriment coming with his skinny frame of only 303 lbs. Fun fact, though, the Eagles apparently measured his wrists and ankles to determine that he can add up to another 20 lbs without problem (#SportScience). As Jimmy Kempski writes, the Eagles now have one of the most athletically gifted offensive lines in the NFL. Kelly must love that. Read more on Johnson from Tommy Lawlor.

Another intriguing aspect of the first round was drama surrounding quarterback. EJ Manuel was a surprise as the first QB selected, way up at #16 overall. Manuel himself suggested that the Eagles were ​one of just a few teams heavily interested. I'm not surprised by that, since he would be perfect for Kelly's offense. But it seems that the Bills, anxious to beat other teams, jumped on Manuel before anyone else had a shot. I wonder if the Eagles were prepared to go back into the bottom of the first round to get Manuel. They certainly could have hoped that Geno Smith and Ryan Nassib would have drawn more attention early. At this point I doubt that Smith would remain a target for the Eagles at 35, although you never say never.

​What I'm really looking for next on the Eagles draft board is some defense. While the team will (and should) certainly be open to tight ends with potential, the other side of the ball is what needs the most help. The Eagles have eight remaining picks, and could gather some more if they trade down at all. I tend to think at least six of those will be used to aid the defensive transition. Another safety, perhaps, like Johnathan Cyprien, or a big body like Jesse Williams or John Jenkins could be in order in the second round.

Photo from Getty.​

Confident Comeback

Jason Peters talked to the media yesterday for the first time since his season-ending injury last year. Sheil Kapadia brings us the money quotes:

Asked what kind of difference he could have made, Peters said, “A big difference. I’m a starter. I’m the number one offensive lineman in the league. So me being out there carries everybody else and makes them play their best. It was a big part, me not being out there, so I’m back now.”

“I’m going to do what I’ve been doing,” Peters said. “Any time I get an offensive line coach, I don’t forget what I learned from the last one. I just take what he gives me and add it on to my game. So it’s not that I’m going to throw away Howard Mudd’s stuff. I’m just going to add on what Coach Stoutland’s going to give me."

“Any player will tell you… you wouldn’t see Tom Brady change his game if he got a new coach. He’s going to be Tom Brady. So same thing I’m going to bring to the table this year. I’m going to play hard. Whatever scheme they give me, I’m going to do it 100 miles an hour.”

I've talked (briefly) with Peters in the locker room and listened to/read a number of quotes from him over the last few years. He's never been the most expressive player, but right now he appears enthusiastic, confident, and motivated. Hopefully this is a positive sign.

The Most Important Eagle of 2013

Speculation abounds about the player who will quarterback Chip Kelly's offense in 2013. Free agency awaits, as does the draft. Michael Vick anticipates the unlikely $3 million payout his contract guarantees if he's on the Eagles roster on February 6th. Then there's Nick Foles, who surely hopes Kelly can adapt an offense to his skills.

A lot of questions, few answers. And, honestly, I'm not sure how much it matters, at least this year. Long term, Kelly is going to need to find a dynamic, elite quarterback. That's a large part of winning in today's NFL. But short term, I have confidence that an offensive innovator can make do with any number of options, from a fresh rookie with legs to the immobile Foles. Historically, Kelly hasn't asked his quarterback to carry the offensive load and he has never had an NFL-caliber QB. Oregon ran the ball 65 percent of the time last year, and the quarterback only averaged about 8 carries per game. The QB isn't quite so important when you build your offense around play makers -- and LeSean McCoy, DeSean Jackson and company sure are weapons Kelly can focus on.

So if, despite the hype, the quarterback isn't the most important Eagle of 2013, who is? To me, the answer is simple: Jason Peters.

Peters, the 6'4", 340 lb offensive tackle whose 40-yard dash at the NFL combine was only .04 seconds slower than Jason Kelce's, is a player with obvious and immense talent. He's been to five Pro Bowls, including two with the Eagles since the team sent a first round pick and change to the Buffalo Bills for him. It's no coincidence that McCoy had his breakout season in 2011, when Peters was absolutely destroying would-be tacklers.

Of course, in what was to be only the first in a long string of disappointments last year, Peters ruptured his Achilles tendon in the offseason and never played a down in 2012. The rest of the offensive line collapsed without him. Whether it was King Dunlap or Demetress Bell taking his place, left tackle became a major weakness. Evan Mathis held strong at guard, but Jason Kelce tore his ACL in the second game. Danny Watkins continued to be awful, and Todd Herremans regressed at right tackle before also falling prey to injury.

I know those injuries weren't correlated, but going forward the Eagles are going to need rebound performances from everyone -- especially Peters. While they may not need (at least at first) an elite quarterback, the team needs a solid offensive line. Last year, Oregon averaged just under 50 points per game. Kelly's offense was held under 35 points only once, when Stanford's defensive front dominated the Oregon offensive line and limited the Ducks to just two touchdowns. The play makers need space to work. The quarterback needs time. That starts and ends with the offensive line -- and the line starts and ends with Peters.

There's a fair chance that the Eagles will pick an offensive tackle early in the draft, both for depth and long term plans. But the transition would go a lot easier if Peters proves he can once again shoulder the load. On Tuesday he turned 31 years old. In football years, that's nearing the end of his prime, with or without a career-threatening injury. Tra Thomas held his own until age 34. Jon Runyan lasted until age 35. If Peters can recover from his injury and last another three or four years, that would be huge. The team could build from an (aging) position of strength rather than scramble to find a replacement. A high draft pick could get some time to apprentice or step in at guard instead. And If Herremans needs to move back inside, the instability won't be devastating.

The Eagles defense, whether it transitions to the 3-4 or not, is going to take more time to rebuild. There are too many holes to execute any kind of quick turnaround on that side of the ball. But the offense, with a little bit of Kelly magic and an offensive line rebirth, could get a head start. And that depends on Peters.

Photo from Getty.

Game Rewind: Preseason Week One

​Jake Louden, blogger at Eagles Fan 4 Life and on Twitter @EaglesJake, made some great videos where he highlighted every play of a few key Eagles in last week's first preseason game. Let's go through them with some notes.

​Here's the first on​e, starting with King Dunlap:

​Overall, my impression of Dunlap is mixed, as he's playing mostly against second-teamers. In pass protection, he doesn't let up much of any pressure, although the Steelers rarely seem to put much energy into attacking.

His run blocking was suspect. Especially compared to Jason Peters rampaging through the second level, blowing up defenders, Dunlap looks passive ​out there. He rarely finished blocks to the whistle and often finds himself in the middle of the field just half-heartedly looking for a defender close enough to block. If Dunlap gets his long arms on someone, that person probably isn't getting by him, but too often he just seems to let guys go.

​Also, the rest of the second-team offensive line does not inspire confidence. Not that I'm expecting much from rookies like Dennis Kelly, but Julian Vandervelde? Yikes. He gets beat and/or knocked on his butt multiple times.

​A look back at DeMeco Ryans's combine numbers shows that he was never a particularly fast or strong guy. Today, he certainly doesn't look like the best athlete on the field. He's not a dominating presence in the middle. In fact, there are a number of times where I expected Ryans to get to the ball faster or get off a block that he's tied up on. 

Still, it's easy to see that he's going to be a major upgrade in the middle for the Eagles. Comparing Dunlap to Peters may not have helped, but Ryans gets points for looking so much better than Jamar Chaney. His biggest asset seems to be diagnosing plays quickly and knowing where he needs to get to. Ryans doesn't always make it there in time, but you can see he's knows what hole he's supposed to plug or which receiver is his responsibility. Those simple things will go a long way.

Finally, we get to the rookie Mychal Kendricks. ​On second viewing, Kendricks looked just as good to me as he did live. He's fast and can be a sure tackler in space. Not everything is clicking yet, but he looks a mile ahead of where Casey Matthews was a year ago. I hope he's soaking in the lessons from Ryans next to him. Kendricks's physical talent plus Ryans's veteran acumen could make a powerful combination.

Yikes: Jason Peters Injured His Achilles?

Geoff Mosher reporting up a storm on Twitter today, after King Dunlap returned to the Eagles on a one year deal:

I’m hearing that one BIG reason that the Eagles re-signed King Dunlap today is that Jason Peters may have an injury. Working to confirm…

I’m hearing its an Achilles injury. But again, working to confirm from more sources, so hang with me.

League source tells me Eagles had no dialogue with King as of last week re: contract and suddenly “a lot of dialogue” this week.

Also told by a different source that Peters sustained the injury during a workout.

Update: The Eagles confirmed Mosher’s story. Just a devastating blow to the team’s 2012 hopes.