Vikings at Eagles Playoff Depth Chart Preview
Jan 19, 2018 15:08:32 GMT -6
Reignman, Oracle Bone Diviner, and 1 more like this
Post by Danchat on Jan 19, 2018 15:08:32 GMT -6
The Vikings are back in the Championship round after somehow winning thanks to the Minneapolis Miracle! Now they take on the Eagles, who are only underdogs because Carson Wentz's ACL when kaput.
Injury Reports
My thoughts:
QB
PFF is not a fan of how Nick Foles has played. However, it's clear from last week's game against a good Atlanta defense that HC Doug Pederson knew how to work around Foles' shortcomings. Quick passes with run options attached and possible scramble plays is what Foles does best. When he sits back in the pocket and fires downfield... that's when he's a liability. He tossed some ugly passes but didn't make many bad decisions. The Eagles will be kicking plenty of FGs in this one.
HB
The Eagles are going to pound the ball on the ground using plenty of Ajayi and Blount and even Clement a few times. Ajayi is by far the most dangerous but he did lose a fumble last week - the run-pass option has a weakness for fumbles, especially on handoffs, so the Vikings should be going for the strip. The Eagles O-line is what makes Ajayi so good, as he struggled to do anything behind a miserable Miami O-line. Blount's a good up the middle runner but that's about it. Clement has been a good receiver but Kendricks should be able to handle him.
WR
Alshon Jeffery is the Eagles clear #1 receiver but he hasn't been as dominant as he was with the Bears. Rhodes will likely shadow him and should be able to keep him quiet, unlike Michael Thomas last week. Nelson Agholor has went from 1st round bust to X factor as Pederson has used his speed on several running plays. He's a dangerous deep threat too (reminds me of Ginn, actually). Torrey Smith used to be a good deep receiver but he hasn't been good since 2014. Mack Hollins has played well as a 4th round rookie who was projected to be undrafted out of college.
TE
The Eagles love to use TEs and they'll throw the ball to Zach Ertz on every passing play if they can. Ertz is a dangerous receiver but PFF grades him as a poor blocker. They will utilize Brent Celek as a blocker, so seeing him on the field will typically indicate a running play or helping out their young LT. Trey Burton is quietly playing very well - he'll leave in free agency and probably become a starting TE elsewhere. He's athletic and has good hands and has graded out as a better blocker than Ertz.
OL
The Eagles might have had the best O-line in the league but LT Jason Peters blew his ACL and MCL. Second year 6th rounder Halapoulivaati Vaitai (long enough for 'ya?) has been a liability in his stead but the Eagles have done a great job helping him and hiding him at times. Wisniewski is an average guard who can also play center well. Jason Kelce is probably the league's best center; he's a monster in the run blocking game. Brandon Brooks has also been a phenomenal guard who doesn't get enough credit. Lane Johnson might be the league's best RT. He'll erase Danielle Hunter in the pass rushing department. This O-line is scary good.
DL
The Eagles won 13 games because they won games in the trenches. Their D-line is comparable to the O-line because they have Fletcher Cox and Brandon Graham, two elite forces to be reckoned with. They also have tons of depth behind them - Graham played 72% of the snaps, Curry 62%, Long 51%, and Barnett 44%. They utilize more of a rotation than the Vikings do (Vikes rotate 6 players on the D-line, Eagles rotate 8) which favors them in the pass rushing game. Tim Jernigan is also a great run stopper. The Vikings running game is not going to get much against these guys.
LB
The Eagles had been trying to trade Mychal Kendricks (Eric's older brother) for the past two years, but then they came up with a better idea - play him! He was a previous average LB but something happened this season and he's been fantastic. Nigel Bradham also deserves some praise, though PFF states that he's a poor run stopper but a Great coverage LB. Jordan Hicks was their MLB but he's on the IR now. Dannell Ellerbe (questionable) will play about a third of the snaps; the Vikings might want to run formations that get him on the field as he's been a liability for several years now.
DB
The Eagles primary weakness on defense has been the CB position. Ronald Darby has missed most of the season with a MCL injury but he's healthy now. He's had a few up and down seasons in the NFL and he might not match up well against Diggs or Thielen. Jalen Mills took on Julio Jones last week and did get burned several times but held up well when they went to the endzone to Julio. Patrick Robinson has come the heck out of nowhere to become one of the best nickel corners in the NFL. Jim Schwartz has done a great job with this defense. McLeod is a solid starting safety but PFF states that he's a poor run stopper. Malcolm Jenkins is the leader of this secondary and he's a well-balanced player.
ST
Rookie kicker Jake Elliott hit 85% of his FGs but just 91% of his PATs. He missed a PAT last week. He has hit a 61 yard FG at home this season, so the Vikings should make sure that it doesn't come down to a clutch kick for him, because he could hit it.
-Conclusion-
This Eagles team is no joke. And we're on the road... if Wentz was playing, I would absolutely pick the Eagles to win. Foles is a major step down from Wentz and the Z-fense should work its magic against him - the primary problem is about scoring points on offense. The Vikings should try to emulate what the Giants did - abandon the run game at times and just pass, pass, and pass. Use screens, trick plays, and manufactured touches for Diggs and Thielen. Special teams, don't screw things up. (speaking of special teams, we haven't had a punt return TD from Sherels this season...
)
Any thoughts?
Injury Reports
Vikings Friday Injury Report
Out- Stephen
Doubtful-
Questionable- Alexander, Sendejo, Thielen
--
Eagles
Questionable - Ellerbe
Out- Stephen
Doubtful-
Questionable- Alexander, Sendejo, Thielen
--
Eagles
Questionable - Ellerbe
My thoughts:
QB
PFF is not a fan of how Nick Foles has played. However, it's clear from last week's game against a good Atlanta defense that HC Doug Pederson knew how to work around Foles' shortcomings. Quick passes with run options attached and possible scramble plays is what Foles does best. When he sits back in the pocket and fires downfield... that's when he's a liability. He tossed some ugly passes but didn't make many bad decisions. The Eagles will be kicking plenty of FGs in this one.
HB
The Eagles are going to pound the ball on the ground using plenty of Ajayi and Blount and even Clement a few times. Ajayi is by far the most dangerous but he did lose a fumble last week - the run-pass option has a weakness for fumbles, especially on handoffs, so the Vikings should be going for the strip. The Eagles O-line is what makes Ajayi so good, as he struggled to do anything behind a miserable Miami O-line. Blount's a good up the middle runner but that's about it. Clement has been a good receiver but Kendricks should be able to handle him.
WR
Alshon Jeffery is the Eagles clear #1 receiver but he hasn't been as dominant as he was with the Bears. Rhodes will likely shadow him and should be able to keep him quiet, unlike Michael Thomas last week. Nelson Agholor has went from 1st round bust to X factor as Pederson has used his speed on several running plays. He's a dangerous deep threat too (reminds me of Ginn, actually). Torrey Smith used to be a good deep receiver but he hasn't been good since 2014. Mack Hollins has played well as a 4th round rookie who was projected to be undrafted out of college.
TE
The Eagles love to use TEs and they'll throw the ball to Zach Ertz on every passing play if they can. Ertz is a dangerous receiver but PFF grades him as a poor blocker. They will utilize Brent Celek as a blocker, so seeing him on the field will typically indicate a running play or helping out their young LT. Trey Burton is quietly playing very well - he'll leave in free agency and probably become a starting TE elsewhere. He's athletic and has good hands and has graded out as a better blocker than Ertz.
OL
The Eagles might have had the best O-line in the league but LT Jason Peters blew his ACL and MCL. Second year 6th rounder Halapoulivaati Vaitai (long enough for 'ya?) has been a liability in his stead but the Eagles have done a great job helping him and hiding him at times. Wisniewski is an average guard who can also play center well. Jason Kelce is probably the league's best center; he's a monster in the run blocking game. Brandon Brooks has also been a phenomenal guard who doesn't get enough credit. Lane Johnson might be the league's best RT. He'll erase Danielle Hunter in the pass rushing department. This O-line is scary good.
DL
The Eagles won 13 games because they won games in the trenches. Their D-line is comparable to the O-line because they have Fletcher Cox and Brandon Graham, two elite forces to be reckoned with. They also have tons of depth behind them - Graham played 72% of the snaps, Curry 62%, Long 51%, and Barnett 44%. They utilize more of a rotation than the Vikings do (Vikes rotate 6 players on the D-line, Eagles rotate 8) which favors them in the pass rushing game. Tim Jernigan is also a great run stopper. The Vikings running game is not going to get much against these guys.
LB
The Eagles had been trying to trade Mychal Kendricks (Eric's older brother) for the past two years, but then they came up with a better idea - play him! He was a previous average LB but something happened this season and he's been fantastic. Nigel Bradham also deserves some praise, though PFF states that he's a poor run stopper but a Great coverage LB. Jordan Hicks was their MLB but he's on the IR now. Dannell Ellerbe (questionable) will play about a third of the snaps; the Vikings might want to run formations that get him on the field as he's been a liability for several years now.
DB
The Eagles primary weakness on defense has been the CB position. Ronald Darby has missed most of the season with a MCL injury but he's healthy now. He's had a few up and down seasons in the NFL and he might not match up well against Diggs or Thielen. Jalen Mills took on Julio Jones last week and did get burned several times but held up well when they went to the endzone to Julio. Patrick Robinson has come the heck out of nowhere to become one of the best nickel corners in the NFL. Jim Schwartz has done a great job with this defense. McLeod is a solid starting safety but PFF states that he's a poor run stopper. Malcolm Jenkins is the leader of this secondary and he's a well-balanced player.
ST
Rookie kicker Jake Elliott hit 85% of his FGs but just 91% of his PATs. He missed a PAT last week. He has hit a 61 yard FG at home this season, so the Vikings should make sure that it doesn't come down to a clutch kick for him, because he could hit it.
-Conclusion-
This Eagles team is no joke. And we're on the road... if Wentz was playing, I would absolutely pick the Eagles to win. Foles is a major step down from Wentz and the Z-fense should work its magic against him - the primary problem is about scoring points on offense. The Vikings should try to emulate what the Giants did - abandon the run game at times and just pass, pass, and pass. Use screens, trick plays, and manufactured touches for Diggs and Thielen. Special teams, don't screw things up. (speaking of special teams, we haven't had a punt return TD from Sherels this season...
)Any thoughts?
... and neither is this Chris guy.