Philadelphia Eagles Gameplan (1 Viewer)

[Jeff Pasquino]

OK, enough about the Patriots and that they are a 3+ TD favorite. I get it.

The Eagles aren't going to not go to New England and play for 60 minutes. That's not what any pro team does.

So - if you are Andy Reid or Jim Johnson, what is your game plan?

Do you run Westbrook 30 times and C-Buck 10 more to try and control the clock / time of possession and keep NE's # of drives to a bare minimum? Or do you throw early and often like the game vs. Detroit and look to put up several crooked numbers to keep pace?

On defense, what's the plan? Throw everything and the kitchen sink at Brady? Zone blitz, or corners? Double-team on Moss, and if so with who? Sheldon Brown and Brian Dawkins? Or do you put Lito on him or Welker?

Do you play nickel / dime all the time, and if so which LB is out? Gocong could be out with Gaither and Takeo able to cover, but what else do they try? Less down lineman and keep 3 LBs on the field, possibly a 3-3-5?

Bottom line - what is your best plan on offense and on defense to try and compete?

 

[Fodasme69]

OK, enough about the Patriots and that they are a 3+ TD favorite. I get it.The Eagles aren't going to not go to New England and play for 60 minutes. That's not what any pro team does.So - if you are Andy Reid or Jim Johnson, what is your game plan?Do you run Westbrook 30 times and C-Buck 10 more to try and control the clock / time of possession and keep NE's # of drives to a bare minimum? Or do you throw early and often like the game vs. Detroit and look to put up several crooked numbers to keep pace?On defense, what's the plan? Throw everything and the kitchen sink at Brady? Zone blitz, or corners? Double-team on Moss, and if so with who? Sheldon Brown and Brian Dawkins? Or do you put Lito on him or Welker? Do you play nickel / dime all the time, and if so which LB is out? Gocong could be out with Gaither and Takeo able to cover, but what else do they try? Less down lineman and keep 3 LBs on the field, possibly a 3-3-5?Bottom line - what is your best plan on offense and on defense to try and compete?

Yes and it still won't be enough

 

[Phlash]

They have probably less than a 5% chance of winning this game, but they do have a chance. Obviously, the stars will need to align, but this is how I think they do it.

Safety and corner covering Moss every play. Have a guy in the flat on Donte Stallworths side and a safety covering the seam as to prevent a deep throw to him. Have a linebacker in zone where Welker could be running over the middle. Put a linebacker on Watson and send the rest in to blitz and just pray.

 

[Game Time]

They have a great O-Line.. USE IT! Have to run the ball 35 + times to have a chance.. They can't go toe to toe with the POts offense.... On defense.... They better somehow get pressure from the front four.... I think the Pats will eat them up if they blitz......

 

[oneohh]

They have probably less than a 5% chance of winning this game, but they do have a chance. Obviously, the stars will need to align, but this is how I think they do it.Safety and corner covering Moss every play. Have a guy in the flat on Donte Stallworths side and a safety covering the seam as to prevent a deep throw to him. Have a linebacker in zone where Welker could be running over the middle. Put a linebacker on Watson and send the rest in to blitz and just pray.

Oh is that all you need to do? Man, who knew it was so simple? 11 teams have wasted their time for 3 or 4 months because they haven't contacted you. You might want to post your number along with these little tid-bits of genius you are throwing out there - I'd hate for you to miss an oportunity.

 

[Jackal King]

They have probably less than a 5% chance of winning this game, but they do have a chance. Obviously, the stars will need to align, but this is how I think they do it.Safety and corner covering Moss every play. Have a guy in the flat on Donte Stallworths side and a safety covering the seam as to prevent a deep throw to him. Have a linebacker in zone where Welker could be running over the middle. Put a linebacker on Watson and send the rest in to blitz and just pray.

Oh is that all you need to do? Man, who knew it was so simple? 11 teams have wasted their time for 3 or 4 months because they haven't contacted you. You might want to post your number along with these little tid-bits of genius you are throwing out there - I'd hate for you to miss an oportunity.

Brady knocked you out of the playoffs huh?Wow...that's some harsh reaction to an honest answer to the question asked.

 

[Jene Bramel]

They have probably less than a 5% chance of winning this game, but they do have a chance. Obviously, the stars will need to align, but this is how I think they do it.Safety and corner covering Moss every play. Have a guy in the flat on Donte Stallworths side and a safety covering the seam as to prevent a deep throw to him. Have a linebacker in zone where Welker could be running over the middle. Put a linebacker on Watson and send the rest in to blitz and just pray.

Oh is that all you need to do? Man, who knew it was so simple? 11 teams have wasted their time for 3 or 4 months because they haven't contacted you. You might want to post your number along with these little tid-bits of genius you are throwing out there - I'd hate for you to miss an oportunity.

Do not make another post like this or expect a vacation from the boards. There are better ways to make your point.

 

[RedRaiders]

They have probably less than a 5% chance of winning this game, but they do have a chance. Obviously, the stars will need to align, but this is how I think they do it.Safety and corner covering Moss every play. Have a guy in the flat on Donte Stallworths side and a safety covering the seam as to prevent a deep throw to him. Have a linebacker in zone where Welker could be running over the middle. Put a linebacker on Watson and send the rest in to blitz and just pray.

Oh is that all you need to do? Man, who knew it was so simple? 11 teams have wasted their time for 3 or 4 months because they haven't contacted you. You might want to post your number along with these little tid-bits of genius you are throwing out there - I'd hate for you to miss an oportunity.

Do not make another post like this or expect a vacation from the boards. There are better ways to make your point.

Why wait? Flush that guy out of here.

 

[Tau837]

They have probably less than a 5% chance of winning this game, but they do have a chance. Obviously, the stars will need to align, but this is how I think they do it.Safety and corner covering Moss every play. Have a guy in the flat on Donte Stallworths side and a safety covering the seam as to prevent a deep throw to him. Have a linebacker in zone where Welker could be running over the middle. Put a linebacker on Watson and send the rest in to blitz and just pray.

This is good. #1 goal on defense IMO should be to blanket Moss and remove his impact. Easier said than done, I know. If that means you get beat by Welker or Stallworth or Watson, so be it. To my knowledge, no one has fully committed to removing Moss, or if they did, then they just didn't execute.Agree with others that on offense it would be ideal to run heavily, although I'd also consider short passes to Westbrook just as good. Westbrook had 32 carries and 1 catch last week, and Buckhalter and Tapeh added another 4 touches... plus McNabb ran twice. That's 37 rushing attempts and 2 RB catches. I think they'll need that kind of approach on offense. The question is whether or not that approach can be successful enough to sustain offensive success without having to at some point switch to a passing attack.Is McNabb going to play?

 

[ooofffaaa]

punt

 

[switz]

One day, one team is going to make it their gameplan to take Brady out. I'm not advocating it, and I honestly don't think it will get the team a win (as Cassels will be just as good as Brady with those weapons), but it's going to happen. And as the Eagles have been known as a blitz happy defense, I could see them doing it. Sorta like the intentional elbow Wilfork put to Losman's knee... someone might do that to Brady if they can get close enough.

 

[RedRaiders]

The Eagles best shot is with Feeley at QB since Reid will run the ball 60%+

Control T.O.P - hope for a lucky bounce and a couple turnovers.

 

[Max Power]

I would have to think Westbrook would be a tough matchup for Colvin or A.Thomas. Keep getting him the ball on the edge and the Eagles might have a chance. If they leave the game on McNabb's shoulders, they will be in trouble.

I for some reason actually like Westbrook and LJ Smith vs the Pats LBs in this one.

As for the Eagles D

 

[Tau837]

They have probably less than a 5% chance of winning this game, but they do have a chance. Obviously, the stars will need to align, but this is how I think they do it.Safety and corner covering Moss every play. Have a guy in the flat on Donte Stallworths side and a safety covering the seam as to prevent a deep throw to him. Have a linebacker in zone where Welker could be running over the middle. Put a linebacker on Watson and send the rest in to blitz and just pray.

This is good. #1 goal on defense IMO should be to blanket Moss and remove his impact. Easier said than done, I know. If that means you get beat by Welker or Stallworth or Watson, so be it. To my knowledge, no one has fully committed to removing Moss, or if they did, then they just didn't execute.Agree with others that on offense it would be ideal to run heavily, although I'd also consider short passes to Westbrook just as good. Westbrook had 32 carries and 1 catch last week, and Buckhalter and Tapeh added another 4 touches... plus McNabb ran twice. That's 37 rushing attempts and 2 RB catches. I think they'll need that kind of approach on offense. The question is whether or not that approach can be successful enough to sustain offensive success without having to at some point switch to a passing attack.Is McNabb going to play?

I forgot to add that the defensive gameplan needs to be to go for big hits as often as possible, playing to the split second after the whistle (i.e., willing to possibly take a late hit penalty or two). Getting big hits on Brady may be difficult given his solid protection and the need to worry about covering all the receivers, but it is imperative to beat up on the WRs and Watson as much as possible. I'm not advocating cheap shots, I'm saying they need to play this game with the mindset that they are laying a big hit on someone on every pass play. And they should also try to be physical with the WRs off the line wherever they are playing double coverage and have some backside protection.

 

[Spike]

Attack both Brady and Moss.

For Brady, single cover all WRs (including TEs) and send the rest.

For Moss, have a LB at the line of scrimmage just to nail him and then pass rush with the rest of the team.

This isn't designed to work early but to beat Brady and Moss up for later.

 

[Jene Bramel]

I don't know if it's possible to slow the NE offense. I had a long post in the can arguing that the Packers had the right kind of defense to slow the Patriots and give them a game but it just had too many holes (poor nickel backers and terrible safeties in particular) so I scrapped it. I still think the 2007 Colts have the best defense to stop the Pats attack -- the improvement in the DT rush, the OLB play and the overall secondary play is significant. The loss of Freeney may tip the balance back toward the Pats though. There may be some hope to keep Simeon Rice on ice until the PIT and/or NE playoff games to hopefully get him healthy enough to play a Freeney-like role.

Your defense must have these three things to have any chance of success against NE current spread offense:

1. A pass rush -- both from inside and outside.

Edge rush is nice, but Brady's pocket presence is so good that he'll sidestep away and kill you anyway. You really need a tackle to collapse the pocket from more than one direction.

2. Corners that can play physical man coverage.

That may not help much against Moss, but there are too many weapons in this spread offense to get away with a vanilla zone concept unless you have elite recovery speed and zone instincts. You'll have to jam Moss, Welker, Stallworth, etal to throw the passing rhythm off and buy your pass rush some time. And one corner isn't enough. The Pats are so good in the slot and with a healthy Watson that your third and fourth corners or safeties have to be above average too.

3. Safeties that can play both ways.

Moss can't be covered one-on-one this year with any consistency. A safety who can be rolled to that side who is able to effectively make run-pass reads and quick enough to wait until the last minute to play a route is almost a necessity. These guys are extremely rare right now.

That's just the pass defense. That doesn't even scratch the surface of how to beat the Pats defense or stop their potentially very good running game out of the spread.

What should Philly do?

If I were the Eagles I think I'd force the Pats to protect Brady at all costs. What do you have to lose? Dawkins, Spikes, Gocong and the corners have been effective pass rushers in the past. I think I'd send six continuously and hope Brown/Sheppard/etal can keep the hot routes in front of them and tackle well in the open field. Make it difficult for the Pats to get into a rhythm with their spread WR sets. It may not work against this vet OL, but it's painfully obvious that a zone concept with no pass rush will not. Johnson has done this with some success in the past, but he's been burned (cough Plaxico Burress) plenty often too. I don't know how you do it -- a 3-3-5 would be interesting with the backers in a zone blitz concept and a secondary blitzer from multiple angles. I don't think the Eagles have the bodies in the secondary to succeed in the dime and I'd rather have the athletic backers out there.

On offense, I think you have to prepare a gameplan that controls the clock if at all possible. The WCO, even though it's a pass first style can still do this with an accurate QB. Max protect if you have to, but keep McNabb as comfy in the pocket as possible. I don't have any confidence that the Eagles can do this -- but if the OL, Westbrook and McNabb have good days it's possible that they can pull it off.

 

[Rounders]

They have probably less than a 5% chance of winning this game, but they do have a chance. Obviously, the stars will need to align, but this is how I think they do it.Safety and corner covering Moss every play. Have a guy in the flat on Donte Stallworths side and a safety covering the seam as to prevent a deep throw to him. Have a linebacker in zone where Welker could be running over the middle. Put a linebacker on Watson and send the rest in to blitz and just pray.

No offense this isn't Madden and you can't just line guys up in positions and have it work.I believe you need to beat the Patriots the same way you had to beat the 99 Rams. You need to get constant pressure with your front 4. Philly likes to blitz and I'm sure that Brady and company are preparing for the blitzes. This means lots of hot routes. I think that Welker will have a nice day because of this. If Philly can create pressure with their front 4 they might have a chance. On offense they have to control the clock and tempo of the game. Period. Ball control. Run the ball, short passes, keep the clock moving, etc.

 

[Jeff Pasquino]

I don't know if it's possible to slow the NE offense. I had a long post in the can arguing that the Packers had the right kind of defense to slow the Patriots and give them a game but it just had too many holes (poor nickel backers and terrible safeties in particular) so I scrapped it. I still think the 2007 Colts have the best defense to stop the Pats attack -- the improvement in the DT rush, the OLB play and the overall secondary play is significant. The loss of Freeney may tip the balance back toward the Pats though. There may be some hope to keep Simeon Rice on ice until the PIT and/or NE playoff games to hopefully get him healthy enough to play a Freeney-like role.Your defense must have these three things to have any chance of success against NE current spread offense:1. A pass rush -- both from inside and outside.Edge rush is nice, but Brady's pocket presence is so good that he'll sidestep away and kill you anyway. You really need a tackle to collapse the pocket from more than one direction.2. Corners that can play physical man coverage.That may not help much against Moss, but there are too many weapons in this spread offense to get away with a vanilla zone concept unless you have elite recovery speed and zone instincts. You'll have to jam Moss, Welker, Stallworth, etal to throw the passing rhythm off and buy your pass rush some time. And one corner isn't enough. The Pats are so good in the slot and with a healthy Watson that your third and fourth corners or safeties have to be above average too.3. Safeties that can play both ways.Moss can't be covered one-on-one this year with any consistency. A safety who can be rolled to that side who is able to effectively make run-pass reads and quick enough to wait until the last minute to play a route is almost a necessity. These guys are extremely rare right now.That's just the pass defense. That doesn't even scratch the surface of how to beat the Pats defense or stop their potentially very good running game out of the spread.What should Philly do? If I were the Eagles I think I'd force the Pats to protect Brady at all costs. What do you have to lose? Dawkins, Spikes, Gocong and the corners have been effective pass rushers in the past. I think I'd send six continuously and hope Brown/Sheppard/etal can keep the hot routes in front of them and tackle well in the open field. Make it difficult for the Pats to get into a rhythm with their spread WR sets. It may not work against this vet OL, but it's painfully obvious that a zone concept with no pass rush will not. Johnson has done this with some success in the past, but he's been burned (cough Plaxico Burress) plenty often too. I don't know how you do it -- a 3-3-5 would be interesting with the backers in a zone blitz concept and a secondary blitzer from multiple angles. I don't think the Eagles have the bodies in the secondary to succeed in the dime and I'd rather have the athletic backers out there. On offense, I think you have to prepare a gameplan that controls the clock if at all possible. The WCO, even though it's a pass first style can still do this with an accurate QB. Max protect if you have to, but keep McNabb as comfy in the pocket as possible. I don't have any confidence that the Eagles can do this -- but if the OL, Westbrook and McNabb have good days it's possible that they can pull it off.

Thanks for your thoughts Jene.Based on the description above, I think the only team that can really give the Pats a run for the money is Green Bay, mostly because of their secondary.The deep dark horse is if Denver can manage to win the West and play the Pats, but I'm not confident at all in them as an all-around team. I'd still take Green Bay over Denver as the best option to ***** their armor.

 

[Jeff Pasquino]

They have probably less than a 5% chance of winning this game, but they do have a chance. Obviously, the stars will need to align, but this is how I think they do it.Safety and corner covering Moss every play. Have a guy in the flat on Donte Stallworths side and a safety covering the seam as to prevent a deep throw to him. Have a linebacker in zone where Welker could be running over the middle. Put a linebacker on Watson and send the rest in to blitz and just pray.

No offense this isn't Madden and you can't just line guys up in positions and have it work.I believe you need to beat the Patriots the same way you had to beat the 99 Rams. You need to get constant pressure with your front 4. Philly likes to blitz and I'm sure that Brady and company are preparing for the blitzes. This means lots of hot routes. I think that Welker will have a nice day because of this. If Philly can create pressure with their front 4 they might have a chance. On offense they have to control the clock and tempo of the game. Period. Ball control. Run the ball, short passes, keep the clock moving, etc.

You can Zone Blitz if you DL are athletic enough to drop into coverage. That may even get you a turnover that could turn the tide. That allows you to still only rush 4 and have 7 in coverage, which is the big advantage to the Zone Blitz.This may require Kearse and/or the rookie DE from Notre Dame (Abiamiri) to play some extra time. Cole, Howard and Thomas must get a push and force Brady to make a mistake. Unlikely, but that's one of the hopes they have to have.If the DL is to be a difference maker, it will be Kearse and Cole that are the two that do it. I don't know if Kearse can raise himself up to that level again.

 

[parrot]

This is good. #1 goal on defense IMO should be to blanket Moss and remove his impact. Easier said than done, I know. If that means you get beat by Welker or Stallworth or Watson, so be it. To my knowledge, no one has fully committed to removing Moss, or if they did, then they just didn't execute.

Randy has actually had three very mediocre games yardage-wise. He had less than 60 yards against the Browns, Cowboys, and Redskins, though he did catch a TD against the Boys and Skins. The Browns and Cowboys were two of their closer games.

 

[Jene Bramel]

Based on the description above, I think the only team that can really give the Pats a run for the money is Green Bay, mostly because of their secondary.

I think Indy is the best matchup, despite the beating the Pats have given zone defenses this year. The back seven there can play the Tampa-2 to perfection when healthy and the safeties have the recovery speed to get from the deep middle to the sideline. Both are just as likely to hit Moss as get to the ball -- no Renaldo Hill like running around in position only to get out jumped.The Packers are interesting, but the nickel backs and safeties are too weak in coverage to pull it off. The offense and rest of the defense make it a discussion, however, I agree.

 

[jurb26]

I think they will zone blitz, cheating coverage to Moss on D. The hope will be to confuse not Brady, but his Oline to create pressure. Philly is a very good blitzing team. On O I think they will spend the entire week looking for ways (creative ways with fomation shifts and movement of personal/different packages) to get Westy the ball. Reid is no dummy. He is a very good coach. He knows that the 1st thing BB does is look at the other teams O and decide what it is they can not live w/o. For Philly that is Westy.

Quite honestly, I think this game can get ugly in a hurry... I know, I know what game hasn't. From games I've seen of Philly in the past and this year, they seem very confident and willing to roll the dice with their DBs in single coverage. Vs. NE, Brady and Moss/Co. this could back fire terribly.

 

[FavreCo]

Be dumber than Buffalo. Rush 1, drop 10 into coverage. Put as little pressure on Brady as humanly possible.

 

[Stabmug]

I'm no gameplan expert, but my gut says pressure the QB and jam the WR's at the line. When Philly finds itself in a heavy passing phase of their offense, it's usually this defense that shuts them down and gets everyone screaming for more running plays again.

Without a solid run game in NE, this would be a way to stop them, imo. Question is, what will it take to get the pressure on Brady and can you send it and not leave too many holes on the field?

The key is the hot routes are disrupted by the jam - so they won' be there... of course hot routes are only needed if you get the pressure.

It all comes down to execution:

- D Lineman getting pressure with the occassional LB blitz

- DB's bumping the WR's effectively to disrupt routes without losing general coverage ability

- LB's being able to read the offensive play - do I blitz? Is the TE coming off the line as a safty valve? What are those RB's doing?

None of the WR's I would say are physical types - Moss has size, but he can be muscled. Welker and Stallworth are fast and crafty - not physical types. If you can muscle them, maybe you can slow them down...

 

[jurb26]

I'm no gameplan expert, but my gut says pressure the QB and jam the WR's at the line. When Philly finds itself in a heavy passing phase of their offense, it's usually this defense that shuts them down and gets everyone screaming for more running plays again.

Without a solid run game in NE, this would be a way to stop them, imo. Question is, what will it take to get the pressure on Brady and can you send it and not leave too many holes on the field?

The key is the hot routes are disrupted by the jam - so they won' be there... of course hot routes are only needed if you get the pressure.

It all comes down to execution:

- D Lineman getting pressure with the occassional LB blitz

- DB's bumping the WR's effectively to disrupt routes without losing general coverage ability

- LB's being able to read the offensive play - do I blitz? Is the TE coming off the line as a safty valve? What are those RB's doing?

None of the WR's I would say are physical types - Moss has size, but he can be muscled. Welker and Stallworth are fast and crafty - not physical types. If you can muscle them, maybe you can slow them down...

I haven't watched the other WRs on NE vs jams much, but Moss is beating the jam this year better than he ever has in his career. Maybe that is just a result of the guys attempting it, maybe not. Philly has some of the better CBs in the NFL.

 

[tombonneau]

Without a solid run game in NE, this would be a way to stop them, imo.

For some reason there is a perception that NE can't run the ball. I suppose it's bc they are so good at passing. The fact is they have the #7 rushing offense and are averaging 4.1 ypc. Not mind-blowing #s obviously, as their offense revolves around Brady, but it is the definition of solid and is certainly not a weakness.

 

[Lehigh98]

Buddy Ball

 

[Jene Bramel]

Without a solid run game in NE, this would be a way to stop them, imo.

For some reason there is a perception that NE can't run the ball. I suppose it's bc they are so good at passing. The fact is they have the #7 rushing offense and are averaging 4.1 ypc. Not mind-blowing #s obviously, as their offense revolves around Brady, but it is the definition of solid and is certainly not a weakness.

Absolutely. The Pats have been unstoppable in the spread formation, so they run it from the first possession to the fourth quarter up six TDs. They could very well run the ball effectively from the spread or in the multiTE tight sets they used predominantly in 2006.

 

[pats3in4]

Cleveland had the best gameplan so far with rushing four (and getting a good rush) and playing man coverage with the corners. Moss had his least effective game and the rush had Brady out of sync at times, missing wide open guys. On offense, Cleveland mixed the run well with passes to Edwards (all game) and Winslow Jr. (2nd half), keeping the Pats D from teeing off on either the running or passing game.

Execution on both sides of the ball at key moments killed Cleveland. Anderson threw a horrible pick in the endzone with the Pats up 3-0. Stallworth caught a crossing route and avoided several tackles for a 30yd TD. Watson got behind the safety playing bump-and-run on 3rd down that gave the Pats the game-icing TD. To be fair, the Pats had to punt twice on 3rd down incompletions in which Stallworth and Evans dropped easy catches for 1st downs, so Cleveland did have some help.

If the Eagles can play the Pats like Cleveland did, but execute perfectly and then get a few key 3rd down drops by the Pats, they have a chance. I do think Cleveland is better than Philly, though. Joe Thomas played like a Pro Bowler vs. Rosevelt Colvin that day. How's Philly's LT position in comparison? Anderson, aside from that endzone pick, looked cool in the pocket and not intimidated by his first go-around against a BB defense. Will a banged up McNabb, Feeley or Kolb look as composed? Edwards toyed with Hobbs for the most part, making perfectly timed cuts in sync with Anderson's reads. Can Reggie Brown do the same? The one weapon Philly has that Cleveland doesn't (and no team does) is Westbrook, especially in the passing game where the only LB that has a chance to keep up with him is Adalius Thomas and he's slowed ever since he dinged his ankle. If Philly wants to pull off the upset, he'll have to be the key.

 

[TwinTurbo]

My gameplan would be tons of screen passes to Westbrook followed up by more touches for Westbrook. Take as much time off the clock using Westbrook to move the chains in the passing and running game. Then send Curtis and Brown deep a handful of times. On defense, blitz frequently. And finally, hit the NE WR as much as possible. Hit them during the play and hit them again after the play is over. Knock them down. Take a penalty. Just keep dishing out as much punishment as possible on the WR. I know Brady is what makes this team run, but the WR are the reason for the 21 point spreads. You got to dish out some old school hits on these guys to keep them out of their comfort zone.

 

[stevegamer]

Buddy Ball

This would likely work, as Mr. Brady would be a likely "bounty" recipient.Seriously:My offensive gameplan would revolve around a lot of running & using Westbrook in space to cause more mismatches than usual. That would mean a bit more Buckhalter running, but froicng the Pats to deal with Westy in the slot, & in bunch groupings plus the usual flares & screens, plus punt returns.Defensively, lay the lumber on those with the ball. Stallworth is fairly brittle, and the Eagles are familiar with him - so they shouldn't need to get too fancy on him - scheming against Moss, and daring Stallworth to beat you, while keeping Welker underneath may work.

 

[Tau837]

Just wanted to say this is an interesting thread so far, which has been rare enough lately for threads involving the Pats.

 

[pats3in4]

My gameplan would be tons of screen passes to Westbrook followed up by more touches for Westbrook. Take as much time off the clock using Westbrook to move the chains in the passing and running game. Then send Curtis and Brown deep a handful of times. On defense, blitz frequently. And finally, hit the NE WR as much as possible. Hit them during the play and hit them again after the play is over. Knock them down. Take a penalty. Just keep dishing out as much punishment as possible on the WR. I know Brady is what makes this team run, but the WR are the reason for the 21 point spreads. You got to dish out some old school hits on these guys to keep them out of their comfort zone.

As to the bolded part...no. Brady has absolutely destroyed the blitz because his OL, RBs and TEs are amazing at picking it up and those receivers eat up the CBs on the hot routes. Also, the Pats run plenty of screens to all eligible receivers (including TE screens) to keep the D honest.I do agree with hitting the WRs, but teams have tried it and the WRs have proven pretty resilient. Welker has had a bullseye since he's so small, everyone figures he won't withstand a game-long beating. Yet he keeps bouncing up after every hard hit. Moss was once thought as a guy who could be intimidated from running across the middle, but he's now perfected the cross-catch-and-dive for self-preservation. The main reason I still agree with hitting them, though, is it ensures there's a guy on them every step of the way. It will force Brady to be perfect on this throws instead of allowing him to pick soft spots in zone coverage.

 

[stevegamer]

Cleveland had the best gameplan so far with rushing four (and getting a good rush) and playing man coverage with the corners. Moss had his least effective game and the rush had Brady out of sync at times, missing wide open guys. On offense, Cleveland mixed the run well with passes to Edwards (all game) and Winslow Jr. (2nd half), keeping the Pats D from teeing off on either the running or passing game.Execution on both sides of the ball at key moments killed Cleveland. Anderson threw a horrible pick in the endzone with the Pats up 3-0. Stallworth caught a crossing route and avoided several tackles for a 30yd TD. Watson got behind the safety playing bump-and-run on 3rd down that gave the Pats the game-icing TD. To be fair, the Pats had to punt twice on 3rd down incompletions in which Stallworth and Evans dropped easy catches for 1st downs, so Cleveland did have some help.If the Eagles can play the Pats like Cleveland did, but execute perfectly and then get a few key 3rd down drops by the Pats, they have a chance. I do think Cleveland is better than Philly, though. Joe Thomas played like a Pro Bowler vs. Rosevelt Colvin that day. How's Philly's LT position in comparison? Anderson, aside from that endzone pick, looked cool in the pocket and not intimidated by his first go-around against a BB defense. Will a banged up McNabb, Feeley or Kolb look as composed? Edwards toyed with Hobbs for the most part, making perfectly timed cuts in sync with Anderson's reads. Can Reggie Brown do the same? The one weapon Philly has that Cleveland doesn't (and no team does) is Westbrook, especially in the passing game where the only LB that has a chance to keep up with him is Adalius Thomas and he's slowed ever since he dinged his ankle. If Philly wants to pull off the upset, he'll have to be the key.

Eagles' OL is strong - both tackles (Thomas & Runyan) have been to the Pro Bowl. That game against the Giants was a backup LT who got manhandled - Winston justice.

 

[BelichicksRevenge]

The Pats are impossible to defense unless you can get pressure with a 3 or 4 man front. Brady's passer rating actually increases against the Blitz. Last I read, he is completing 80 percent against the Blitz with a higher percentage for touchdowns. Blitzing is likely to leave either Welker or Watson 1 on 1 with a linebacker. Not too many linebackers can handle either one of those guys.

Even with that pressure, you need to jam the receivers and dedicate a corner to Moss.

I'm not sure a defense exists today that can put that pressure on Brady. Pressure up the middle is particularly effective against Brady who is adept at stepping up in the pocket to avoid the outside rush.

Cleveland and Washington made more of an effort to take Moss out of the game. they both suceeded to an extent with Moss but Ben Watson had a monster game against Cleveland and washington was destroyed by everyone except Moss.

 

[Jene Bramel]

I'm not sure a defense exists today that can put that pressure on Brady. Pressure up the middle is particularly effective against Brady who is adept at stepping up in the pocket to avoid the outside rush.

I think this is the key with the pass rush concept. Unless you can play superior zone coverage, you'll have to get pressure from multiple places. A four man rush will not be able to do that against this offensive line consistently. Brady's been good against the blitz, but it's been an equally painful death against most zone coverage schemes. I don't think you can sit back in a zone without a superior offense that can keep up. The Eagles don't have the four man line or the offense to keep up. They'll have to take chances.

 

[Jeff Pasquino]

Just wanted to say this is an interesting thread so far, which has been rare enough lately for threads involving the Pats.

I thought it might go somewhere. Glad to see it has.

 

[David Yudkin]

I've watched the Pats as much as anyone, and if I were scheming how to beat them here's how (not that I'm saying it's as easy as I'll describe it).

On defense, rush 4 linemen and double cover Moss. Buffalo did not double cover Moss and we saw how that turned out. Of the 5 remaining defenders, use 4 in coverage and blitz one guy from all different points on the field. 4 pass rushers normally won't get the job done, and disguising who the extra rusher will be key. Larger scale blitz packages won't work either, as short passes have proven to turn into big gains. At least try to make NE run the ball, as that will take time off of the clock and keep the score down.

On offense, establish the run to set up play action. The Pats will shadow Westbrook out of the backfield, so the Eagles need to be content to fake plays to Westbrook and take the short routes underneath to hopefully set up a deep ball. Hobbs has shown that he can be beat deep, but once the Pats switch to more of a prevent with a big lead it will be too late. I think part of the issue for offenses up against the Pats is that they try to throw patterns too far down the field and QBs don't have the time or the space to step up and throw deep routes. New England will normally let teams move the ball until FG range, after that it will get tough.

That being said, I'm not sure the Eagles have the personnel to pull all that off.

 

[greenline]

You need 7 guys in coverage against Brady.

You need pressure from the front 4. Does Philly have the DEs for this?

You need to never ever go 3 and out.

You need to control the clock.

You need to out coach Belichick.

Never turn the ball over.

Win the field position game.

Have a big special teams contribution.

 

[BustedKnuckles]

This is an interesting game plan from John Madden

Madden: Birds must come out throwing

By Bob Grotz, bgrotz@comcast.net

The New England Patriots aren’t yet the best team ever, as far as John Madden is concerned.

But the colorful TV analyst and Pro Football Hall of Fame coach has seen enough offense over the years to submit no team plays it better.

Madden, on a conference call Tuesday, offered gratuitous advice to the Eagles, who visit Foxboro, Mass., Sunday and the remaining opponents of the heavily favored Patriots (10-0).

“Play offensively like you’re down by 20 and play that way the whole game,” Madden said. “I think you have to play at a fast pace and you have to get the ball up the field. There can be nothing conservative in your game plan against the Patriots.”

Madden has given considerable thought to tactics that could be beneficial against the Patriots, who average 41.1 points and are beating teams by an average of 25.4 points. Madden concedes his plan still might not work because it’s so difficult disrupting the rhythm of quarterback Tom Brady, and wide receivers Randy Moss, Wes Welker and Donte’ Stallworth. The offensive line, Madden suspects, might be the best in football.

Calling the Patriots 56-10 win over the Buffalo Bills this past Sunday, however, left Madden shaking his head. When you play the Patriots you shouldn’t even consider kicking a field goal.

“Offensively you have to go for points,” Madden said. “You’re not going to play one of those games where you do ball control, you play good defense, use your special teams and play for good field position and all of those things. The decisions you’re going to make during the game have to help you score 40 points.

“I think that means a lot of throwing. I think that means a lot of throwing on first and second down because you have to get yardage in big chunks. That means getting first downs. That means when you get down there in the red zone — and I’m not a big guy for going for it on fourth down — but I think you have to go for it on fourth down because you have to get touchdowns instead of field goals. It has to be a very, very aggressive approach because offensively, they’re going to take a very, very aggressive approach to you.

“And,” Madden continued, “I don’t think it’s something you can wait until the fourth quarter to do. I think you have to start off right off the bat.”

In essence, to beat the best, play the same style as the best.

The Eagles (5-5), on paper, have a style that could keep them in the game. They’ve scored on 18 of 24 drives of 10 or more plays, which puts them among the leaders in both categories. The Patriots have scored on 24 of 28 marches of 10 or more plays, tops in the league in both areas.

On the other hand the Eagles average just 20.6 points. And quarterback Donovan McNabb has a swollen thumb on his throwing head and an ankle sprain to rehab along with his reconstructed right knee.

“I think Donovan McNabb is the type of guy that has played long enough that he’s seen everything and it will be a big disadvantage if he can’t play because you need that guy that has seen everything and can adjust during the game,” Madden said. “And that is very, very difficult for a backup quarterback.”

Defensively the Eagles almost certainly will double-team and mix up their coverage on Moss, who has caught 16 of Brady’s 38 touchdown passes.

Madden suggests bumping and doubling the receiver, and sticking with the double throughout the play.

“You go in and say, ‘look, Randy Moss is not going to beat me,’” Madden said. “Now, Wes Welker might do it. Donte’ Stallworth might do it. Laurence Maroney might do it. Ben Watson might do it. But Randy Moss is not going to do it. I would guess that that’s what the Eagles are doing right now.”

That said, Madden needs convincing that the Patriots are the greatest team of all time.

“It’s not the ‘85 Bears defense,” Madden said. “I’m not sure when you put everything together they’re the best team ever.”

At the same time, the Patriots are a team like few others.

“It always used to be you have to run the ball and stop the run, and as a coach I always believed that,” Madden said. “But right now when you play the Patriots you can’t. You have to be able to pass the ball and stop the pass.”

 

[Tau837]

My gameplan would be tons of screen passes to Westbrook followed up by more touches for Westbrook. Take as much time off the clock using Westbrook to move the chains in the passing and running game. Then send Curtis and Brown deep a handful of times. On defense, blitz frequently. And finally, hit the NE WR as much as possible. Hit them during the play and hit them again after the play is over. Knock them down. Take a penalty. Just keep dishing out as much punishment as possible on the WR. I know Brady is what makes this team run, but the WR are the reason for the 21 point spreads. You got to dish out some old school hits on these guys to keep them out of their comfort zone.

As to the bolded part...no. Brady has absolutely destroyed the blitz because his OL, RBs and TEs are amazing at picking it up and those receivers eat up the CBs on the hot routes. Also, the Pats run plenty of screens to all eligible receivers (including TE screens) to keep the D honest.I do agree with hitting the WRs, but teams have tried it and the WRs have proven pretty resilient. Welker has had a bullseye since he's so small, everyone figures he won't withstand a game-long beating. Yet he keeps bouncing up after every hard hit. Moss was once thought as a guy who could be intimidated from running across the middle, but he's now perfected the cross-catch-and-dive for self-preservation. The main reason I still agree with hitting them, though, is it ensures there's a guy on them every step of the way. It will force Brady to be perfect on this throws instead of allowing him to pick soft spots in zone coverage.

With regard to Brady and the blitz, here are his split QB ratings based on the rush:

CMP ATT YDS CMP% YPA LNG TD INT SACK RATBlitz		   75 95 993 78.9 10.45 35 10 0 7.0 145.3<4 on Def. Line 6 7 54 85.7 7.71 17 0 0 1.0 98.84 on Def. Line 166 217 2077 76.5 9.57 55 19 4 5.0 127.25 on Def. Line 54 82 684 65.9 8.34 69 9 0 3.0 128.36 on Def. Line 17 21 198 81.0 9.43 51 6 0 0.0 145.57+ on Def. Line 7 11 46 63.6 4.18 25 4 0 1.0 112.1

Nothing looks too promising...

 

[Darth Cheney]

Never punt, go for it on 4th down every time....play it like a school yard game. If you're going to go down....go down with all your guns blazing.

 

[coachjim]

OK, enough about the Patriots and that they are a 3+ TD favorite. I get it.The Eagles aren't going to not go to New England and play for 60 minutes. That's not what any pro team does.So - if you are Andy Reid or Jim Johnson, what is your game plan?Do you run Westbrook 30 times and C-Buck 10 more to try and control the clock / time of possession and keep NE's # of drives to a bare minimum? Or do you throw early and often like the game vs. Detroit and look to put up several crooked numbers to keep pace?On defense, what's the plan? Throw everything and the kitchen sink at Brady? Zone blitz, or corners? Double-team on Moss, and if so with who? Sheldon Brown and Brian Dawkins? Or do you put Lito on him or Welker? Do you play nickel / dime all the time, and if so which LB is out? Gocong could be out with Gaither and Takeo able to cover, but what else do they try? Less down lineman and keep 3 LBs on the field, possibly a 3-3-5?Bottom line - what is your best plan on offense and on defense to try and compete?

All of the above and they still get blown out by 21+ points. Against the Pats, with the way they now playing, there is no game plan that ANY team in the league can put in to beat them.

 

[Gr00vus]

I figure you start out playing most of your D near the line of scrimage and you send 5 or six guys at least into the backfield. You jam the receivers at the line to the best of your ability and you jump the short routes. Apply pressure, deny the quick slants and such. Yeah you can give up big plays like this, but they're scoring anyway, at least you get the ball back sooner. Maybe you get a turnover or two this way prior to the Pats making adjustments.

On offense you have to get yards on 1st down, have to. I think that means you'll need to pass on 1st down most of the time, not deep stuff, but high percentage things to get four to six yards on 1st down. Put Westbrook in the patterns from out of the backfield, possibly as a decoy to get the attention of the linebackers, and try getting the ball to L.J. Smith on the other side of the field. Send Curtis or Brown on deep routes every play to help draw a safety away from the underneath stuff. Then run on 2nd and maybe 3rd. It's important to try and wear the defense down a bit, sustain drives and hopefully have them tired out for the late 3rd and 4th quarter.

 

[Footballg]

Calling the Patriots 56-10 win over the Buffalo Bills this past Sunday, however, left Madden shaking his head. When you play the Patriots you shouldn’t even consider kicking a field goal.“Offensively you have to go for points,” Madden said. “You’re not going to play one of those games where you do ball control, you play good defense, use your special teams and play for good field position and all of those things. The decisions you’re going to make during the game have to help you score 40 points.“I think that means a lot of throwing. I think that means a lot of throwing on first and second down because you have to get yardage in big chunks. That means getting first downs. That means when you get down there in the red zone — and I’m not a big guy for going for it on fourth down — but I think you have to go for it on fourth down because you have to get touchdowns instead of field goals. It has to be a very, very aggressive approach because offensively, they’re going to take a very, very aggressive approach to you.

hahahaha....and now you see exactly the benefit of putting 56 points up on your opponent -- besides honing your craft, that is.If Madden was coaching Philly they would already be inside his head, f'ing with his game plan.He is totally psyched out by the bogeyman right now.I'd have to disagree with Madden -- as soon as you let the Pats dictate your game, you might as well not even come on the field.I'd agree that in certain spots, when it's smart, you might want to go for it on 4th instead of the field goal, but not all the time, and I'd probably advocate that in a lot of games.I think there was a game between the Jets and Indy last year where this exact same thing came up --- Indy had already put a scare into Mangina before they ever set foot on the field.If i remember, he passed up a field goal early in the game to go for it on 4th and didn't get it.Game turned out to be close and the field goal he passed up would have been huge.One thing the Pats are excellent at is mixing things up so they don't get too predictable.Madden is advocating just the opposite of this --- for people who think the Pats don't run, look at the first half of the Colts game and see how much they ran the ball. Running the ball helps you pass, and passing helps you run. As soon as you telegraph your plays the other team will hammer you. The Pats have this great offense, and one reason is that they DO run the ball, yet Madden advocates just the opposite --- throw on first and second every possession. Eagles do this and they are dead. If Madden were coaching this team, the Pats would have beaten 2 teams this past Sunday.

 

[Crusaderfan]

The only chance they have is to run the ball, run the ball, and run it some more. Get Westbrook 30 carries, Buckhalter 10-15 and even throw Hunt in there for a few. If it's me, unless I'm inside my own 35 or facing over 5 yds - I'm going for it on 4th down. Play like you have nothing to lose because they really don't.

 

[BustedKnuckles]

It`s like when Mike Tyson was at his best...everybody had a gameplan before they got in the ring but when that bell rang it was like''oh crap ,here he comes ,what do i do now???''...gameplan out the window and it`s survival time,run and hide. The team that exposes the Pats weaknesses and stands up to them phyically will have a chance(evander and buster figured out tyson....so you never know).

 

[Tau837]

Thinking out of the box... what would happen if a team with at least a decent offense went into a game planning to go for it on every 4th down? Granted, you could adjust if it was 4th & 10+ or depending on field position, but the point is, what if the Eagles went into this game thinking in general that they had 4 downs to get every first down rather than 3? How would it change their game plan?

 

[BigTex]

Run Westbrook, blitz often, play 15players 13 of which must be in the secondary.

 

[big0mar]

only way to stop the NE offense is with the cover-2 shell. put safeties up on the WRs and have them jam them. put the CBs back...

thats the only way