Eagles Preseason Week 1: Quick Reactions About the Offense

The Philadelphia Eagles took on the Baltimore Ravens in the first real football action we have seen since the Green Bay Packers defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Super Bowl all the way back in February, and there was a lot to take away from the game.

Everything is taken with a grain of salt since it is just the first preseason game after almost literally no offseason work, but there was still plenty the coaches and fans can take away from this first game, and we’ll break it down player by player — the notable ones, anyway.

Note: DeSean Jackson, Jeremy Maclin, and Steve Smith were notable guys who did not suit up, so obviously they will not be mentioned.

Just to keep things clean, we’ll start with the offensive players and then work our way into the defense in another post.

— We begin, of course, with starting quarterback Michael Vick. Vick saw only one drive, but he made the most of it going 4-for-6 with a touchdown pass to Brent Celek. The drive included a great pass on the run to Riley Cooper, who went over Ed Reed to make the catch. There wasn’t a lot to watch, but what we saw from Vick was impressive.

— LeSean McCoy carried the ball one time near the goal line and lost a yard. Nothing really to report here, but we all know what McCoy can do so this isn’t a big deal.

— Fullback Owen Schmitt carried the football. That’s almost worth its own post. Incredible. A note for those who are unaware: Schmitt had a grand total of zero carries last season and has carried the ball only a handful of times in his career. He is Jon Ritchie.

— Jason Avant reminds me of Cris Carter in that all this guy does is catch the football and make plays. He’s not flashy, he doesn’t talk, he’ll never pull a sharpie out of his sock, but the guy is something special and one of the most underrated receivers in the game today.

— Riley Cooper made a beautiful grab over Ed Reed, as mentioned before. It was his only reception of the game, but it went for 42 yards and most impressive was not coming up injured after his leg buckled underneath him. Cooper was also seen throwing some blocks downfield.

— He had only one reception, but Brent Celek made it count and got into the endzone to end the first-team offense’s night. He had Ray Lewis draped all over him, but made the catch in traffic right on the goal line, which is exactly what the Eagles will need from him this season. Celek also held his own pass-blocking, which will also be very important for him as he looks to build on a down year in 2010.

— I do not understand all the love for Ryan Harris. I was not impressed at all with him. His stance is far too wide, he stops his feet, he plays with his arms too far apart and gets absolutely no leverage, and got whooped by Terrell Suggs almost every time he pulled an inside move. Anyone who thinks this guy is better than Winston Justice needs to re-evaluate the tape, or their football knowledge.

— Danny Watkins was decent — not bad, but not great either. He seemed to stop his feet too soon in pass protection and there were a few times his guy got by him because of it. It’s no reason to be alarmed as I expect him to progress quickly. Remember, Watkins missed the first few days of training camp, so he was probably doing far too much thinking and not enough reacting.

— Jamaal Jackson was unspectacular, but that’s the norm with him. He’s a solid guy whose biggest contribution is making the line calls and getting everyone in position. I expect him to be the starter Week 1, despite the media sensationalizing a competition that really doesn’t exist.

— Todd Herremans and Jason Peters, like Jackson and Watkins were just solid. There’s something to build on moving forward.

— How about Chad Hall? This guy just will not go away and it will be a damn shame if there isn’t a roster spot for him. He’s a little guy who doesn’t look like he belongs on an NFL field, but he gives it everything he has and he produces (five receptions for 82 yards). It’s impossible not to root for him.

— Ronnie Brown is going to be a great change of pace for McCoy. He’s a bigger guy at 230 pounds so he can bruise, and he’s got fantastic field vision. The second-team offensive line really let him down a few times, but he turned what should have been a four-yard loss into a gain of one or two, and that’s huge in the long run. The offense also doesn’t lose any receiving skills out of the backfield with him giving McCoy a breather. This could be a great under-the-radar pickup.

— As one of my five guys to watch, I was eager to see Vince Young run the second team. Brown saw a ton of carries while Young was in the game, which probably means Young is even further behind the offense than we think. He had one great play where he evaded the pressure and made a terrific downfield pass to (who else?) Hall, but other than that he didn’t pass much. He ran for a first down as the pocket broke down around him, but Young clearly has a long way to go in learning the offense.

— The only guys who stuck out to me on the second-team offensive line were Jason Kelce and Austin Howard, and for all the wrong reasons. Like Harris, I do not understand the love for Kelce. He showed some flashes, but his footwork just is not there and unless he makes incredible strides over the next three weeks, Jackson is a shoe-in as the center. Kelce is not in danger of being cut, but Howard will find his way out the door if he’s not exponentially better the next three weeks.

— Wide receiver Rod Harper impressed me. He showed some strong hands and a good sense of where he was on the field. He did a great job at getting in front of linebackers or finding the soft spot in the zone. He has almost no chance of making this roster, but could be a practice squad candidate if a receiver-needy franchise doesn’t scoop him up and stash him away first.

— Donald Lee could push Clay Harbor as the backup to Celek. However, I think in the end Harbor’s youth and the fact that he’s a fourth-round pick will give him a strong advantage, and will likely mean Lee doesn’t make it past the final cuts absent a simply miraculous showcasing in the final three games of the preseason. Lee will likely be a backup elsewhere, even though Harbor must take a step forward this season if he wants to remain on the roster.

— Evan Mathis and rookie Julian Vandervelde were absolutely atrocious. Take your pick on who was worse. Both saw time with the second-and third-team lines and couldn’t block the Ravens’ camp bodies. Mathis, at one point, broke the cardinal rule for linemen and turned around to chase tail, running into Young in the process and almost preventing him from rushing for the first down. Vandervelde was like a lost puppy all night long and clearly needs more time with Howard Mudd if he wants to stay with the team.

— Mike Kafka, the ugly interception aside, looked pretty good. There was one play where the Ravens’ corner showed blitz about a second before the snap, and Kafka was able to notice it, read it, and make the hot read to Hall, who was astute enough to run the hot route and get his quarterback out of trouble. Should something happen to Vick early in the year, it would not surprise me to see Kafka get the call over Young.

— I want to see more of Dion Lewis. The kid has great speed, good awareness and vision, and incredible burst, and showed a grit and toughness usually not associated with a “scat back.” But the most impressive thing Lewis did came on Kafka’s ugly interception, when he read the blitz, stepped in front of Kafka and took the blitzer’s legs out from under him. That was a veteran move and surely a welcome sight for the coaches.

— Should something happen to Jackson, I want Mike McGlynn at center. Not Kelce.

Overall, the offensive line concerns me. I’m not so much concerned about the starters since I believe Justice will easily beat out Harris for the starting spot, but the backups are a bit more questionable.

I’ve already mentioned Harris, whom I believe is flawed from his very first step. It’s hard to get on Kelce too much because it was his first preseason game as a rookie, but I definitely want to see McGlynn in there at this point should anything happen to Jackson, Watkins, or Herremans as I’m also not a fan of Mathis.

Harris might be able to fill in for a game or two at right tackle, but left tackle could be shaky. King Dunlap should be alright for a game or two, but he did not have a good night and the coaching staff seems to be losing confidence. Howard is certainly not the answer should something happen to Peters.

There isn’t a whole lot to be said about the coaches since the only real gameplan for the preseason is to see how your guys react. Hugh Douglas and Brian Baldinger were making a big deal about how often the Eagles were running the ball, but if they weren’t morons they’d realize that has absolutely no bearing on what will happen in the regular season.

The first-team offense moved well, even without DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin, against a very good Ravens defense so that is definitely a good sign, but the backups along the line have a ways to go should they ever have to step up and fill in.