No comfort zones here! Jets have literally never beaten the Eagles & I can recall a couple losses to them that really stung. That said I like the way we match up against them..pretty much across the board. Biggest issue w/ the Jets in these situations is self inflicted wounds. Do they let a shattered,desperate team hang around w/ stupid mistakes? That's what Bowles needs to prevent. As for Owusu, he made acouple decent plays & will be glad to have him return in a couple weeks. Hopefully this is the debut of Devin Smith..Let's hope he's the real deal.Between he,Enunwa & Kerley we should be in at least so-so shape behind B Marsh.
If Decker and Owusu miss, we are missing our number 2 and 4. So we will be running with our 1st, 3rd and maybe 5th or 6th WR. That's where it tests the depth.
I would like to see Devin Smith get in there and run a go route and lets see what we have. As far as Decker, and Owusu's injuries ... we are lucky they are short term and we have a bye coming up, so both should be at or near 100% by week 6 (5th game) V. Washington. Kerley is buried on the depth chart, but we know he can get open. Time for Enunwa to step up.
Kurt, while I see the Eagles on defense trying to overload the box against the run and double Marshall, on offense I see them trying to get DeMarco Murray on track. And while that seems unlikely, the Colts did gash the Jets on the ground on a couple of drives and overrall matched the Jets in rushing (Colts: 24/95, 3.88 ; Jets 27/101, 3.74). In addition, I see Kelly looking to negate the Jets pocket pressure by getting the ball out of Bradford's hands quickly using short quick passes in space on the edge much the way they did against the Falcons in the 2nd half…a lot of dink and dunk directed at the slower Jet LBs. If that becomes the case then I could see Bowles "going small" with some nickle and dime coverage.
Well, everyone but the coaching staff knows Kerley can play so there's one receiver. And everyone is way more concerned about Decker's injury than they should be. It's a slight knee sprain, not a torn ACL.
Teams are gonna start loading up outside the flanks to take away Marshall &/or Decker.That's exactly what we saw against Indy except it didn't matter b/c of their DB situation & their complete lack of a pass rush. Playing all those 2 deep exotic zones will help teams defend Jets running game too given they are always "Face up" to the offense's intentions & can key on hand-offs.Jets need to find a reliable safety valve and/or zone buster for across the middle. Of course this whole concept could go flying out the window when Devin Smith enters the line-up. I don't think it's right to tout a 2nd rounder WR so early..especially when he hasn't played an NFL down, but he was supposively absolutely electrifying in OTA/Early TC.If he is legit..look out. Teams will have to spread their defense out thinner to account for basically the entire field. Eagles will try to get Demarco going. Issue is, he's a North-south runner in a east-west blocking scheme. Maybe they try afew gap blocked dives to try & jump start things. I don't think Eagles have the line to handle the Jets. Both against the run & the pass. If Bradford comes out w/ happy feet like he has the past 2 weeks it might be a very long day for the Eagles O. I think the Jets come out & try to establish the run.Or at least moreso than they did against Indy. Philly's front 7 has acouple athletes but no doubt you can really pound it against them.They'll surely load up the box..but will it matter?
Bowles answer to Michael Kays thought well I guess Kerley will see plenty of action, said we already have plenty of talent at that position!
Of maybe like a TE ("Cumberland the Invisible") running a seam? Amaro would've been nice addressing this as well. As for Demarco, I can see them trying to get him into one-on-one match ups via quick hitch passes out on the edge. As for pounding it against them, I'm a little wary at this point again because we don't seem to have a full compliment of receivers (allowing them to load the box), plus last week's rushing attack wasn't all that convincing. 2-o? I've seen this before - presently am in "twice bitten/twice shy" mode as well, lol. Just curious, but what's the line on the game?
the eagles o-line is their main issue. bradford gets no time and murray gets no holes. and their WRs aren't very good either. our d-line should be blowing up rins and in bradfords face all day. I think it should be an easy win. jets 17 eagles 3
Bowles does not gush over players. We have had enough gushing around here the past few years. It really does not mean he does not like Kerley
It seems like he doesn't like him. If not why is he basically benching the guy even though he has good contract. Not sure Kerley is going to be around, but if he does stay maybe he'll end up being a better all around player. Bowles wants production and is no nonsense.
Owusu was good for us. It's time for Kerley to step up and earn his job back. This might be Kerley's biggest game in a while.
Bowles likes bigger guys for sure. But he will use Kerley if Decker is out, and maybe if just Owusu is out. Kerley has no speed though. If Smith is ready he will play for Owusu, IMHO. But Bowles is not sure he will be familiar enough with the offense by Sunday. Bowles has high standards.
The quick hitting nature of the Eagles offense is what could give our defense problems. They love to run man beaters. Legal pick players, swing screens, wide receiver screens, etc. So that the blitz becomes a non factor because it's one step and throw. Murray is a horrible fit for this offense but if you're going to run every single play out of the shotgun the read option element helps out offenses like the Eagles a ton because it makes the backside defender respect it. Murray needs to be in a deep 1 back set where he gets an 8 yard start so he can then have time to choose his hole. A perfect example of forcing the player to adjust to the scheme rather than building the scheme around the player. Foles and Sanchez weren't amazing at it but the threat of tucking it once out of every day 8-9 runs keeps the defense honest. Everyone in the world knows they don't want Bradford every keeping it because of his knee problems so it kills what they're trying to do.
This element still bothers me. I understand wanting a player to learn the playbook but for christ sake if he's healthy let the guy run 6-7 flys and double moves on the outside and let Fitz tell him in the friggain huddle. He's too talented and too fast to be held out for playbook issues. Also in reference to running the ball against them I think it could be another tough day. They have a very talented front 7 and good athletes. Fletcher Cox is a star perhaps a notch below Wilk. The problem with the defense is they're always so gassed by the end of the third because of the uptempo offense. I understand we want to play ball control with this offense and defense but maybe run a hybrid uptempo a couple times get the offense to the line quick and let the clock tick. Don't let them substitute but still use the clock.
