Eagles Preseason Week 2: Quick Reactions About the Defense

This is just prolonging the pain of watching the Eagles get throttled by the Steelers, but here’s the very quick reactions about the way the guys on the defensive side of the ball played after breaking down the offense first.

Disclaimer: there will not be much good, and it will likely be short and sweet to keep my head from exploding.

— Trent Cole and Jason Babin are clearly the best starting combination for this defense, and I believe they will be the pair trotted out to start when the games begin to count. Cole is obviously entrenched as a starter, but Babin has been behind Juqua Parker on the depth chart despite consistently getting better pressure. Both guys were forcing Roethlisberger to step up into the pocket.

— Anthony Hargrove and Cullen Jenkins got the start as the duo in the middle of the line, and neither was overly impressive. Neither could get a ton of penetration against a bad Steelers line, and their inability to push the pocket made the efforts by Cole and Babin meaningless. Roethlisberger was forced to step up, and the philosophy of this defense is for the tackles to be there waiting for him. Hargrove accomplished that once, as did Jenkins, but Jenkins got Roethlisberger’s facemask so it doesn’t really count, does it?

— Casey Matthews is Mark Simoneau’s equivalent in the middle. He does not seem to have a firm grasp on the defense as guys seem consistently caught out of position, which falls on him, and he does not seem to be reacting well. He’s constantly winding up in the wrong hole and cannot take on a blocker. I’m sure he could improve with time, but the Eagles do not have time. If they are truly going all in this year, they will need another option at MIKE.

— Just to show I’m not picking on Matthews, I’ll point out Jamar Chaney was not very good either. He does not seem comfortable on the strong side and it still baffles me why they would move him at all. I’m definitely feeling a lot better about this team with Chaney back in the middle where he belongs.

— Moise Fokou is what he is. He seems to be getting more consistent, but unfortunately it’s consistently average.

— Always the gambler, Asante Samuel got burnt. He anticipated a slant, got caught looking at Roethlisberger, and could only watch as his many strutted wide open into the end zone. To his credit, had Nate Allen not jumped out like a moron and pressured Roethlisberger on the blitz like he should have, Roethlisberger likely does not have time to make that throw, is forced to throw the hot read and is likely on the wrong end of a Samuel interception.

— Per usual, not a ton of action toward Nnamdi Asomugha. It was good to see him get his nose dirty and make a few tackles, which has always been the one and only knock on his game.

— Dominique “Don’t Call Me DRC” Rodgers-Cromartie played all three cornerback spots, but continues to show he’s soft as a blitzer and in run support. The Eagles have three great cover corners, but having three corners who aren’t great tacklers could turn into a problem if the linebacker situation isn’t figured out and these guys are left in the open field with a running back, especially.

— He got beat for a touchdown, but I still think Joselio Hanson, based on past work, is the best option as the nickel corner with Rodgers-Cromartie as the primary backup at all three spots.

— Daniel Te’o-Nesheim has done nothing to show he deserves a roster spot over Philip Hunt, who has outperformed him in every conceivable fashion.

— After a great first game, Darryl Tapp was essentially non-existent. Unfortunately, I expect that to be a theme for the season.

— Cedric Thorton saw time with the second team and had some decent moments, especially against the run, but his best bet is likely landing on the practice squad, which is certainly possible with questions surrounding Mike Patterson.

— Derek Landri is not eligible for the practice squad and is sitting on the bubble. He will get every opportunity to make the team and personally, I’m a fan, but he could lose a numbers game.

— Nate Allen is struggling, and is likely holding back on how much his knee is hurting. He told the Philadelphia Inquirer’s Jeff McLane after the game his knee was “sore,” but McLane says he got the feeling it was a bit more than that. Allen doesn’t seem to be moving much slower, but he’s been erratic. He must be more consistent in the pass and run game.

— I love Kurt Coleman. He’s an instinctive player, a great tackler, and could turn into a real asset. He knows rookie Jaiquawn Jarrett is breathing down his neck and just itching to take his job, and he’s stepping up his game accordingly.

— Marlon Favorite has come out of nowhere and is giving Thorton a run for that spot on the practice squad, as the team will likely only stash one tackle and like to grab about half the guys on the squad from around the league.