The Philadelphia Eagles have agreed to a four-year deal with their second-round draft choice, linebacker Mychal Kendricks. The youngster was the fastest linebacker at this year’s NFL Combine. He’s the first Eagles draft pick to sign a deal with the Birds.
The young backer will be battling veteran Jamar Chaney for the starting strongside linebacker position. I think he would be an outstanding weakside backer because he can run, get to the ball and make tackles.
He’s got great instincts and a nose for the football. Kendricks makes plays all over the field and has the ability to put a serious pounding on ball carriers. He gets his hands on footballs and can make plays in the run and passing game.
I think he’s a very good player, but I don’t like the idea of matching him up against the league’s tight ends, who stand 6’4′, 6’5″, and 6’6″.
He was the 2011 Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year at University of California.
Wow way to get it started early Eagles great job. Let’s get them all in and ready to go.
Garry – don’t MLBs and Wills cover TE’s too? And isn’t it true that London Fletcher can cover TE’s and he’s short?
I totally trust your linebacker knowledge for obvious reasons. But I feel like the height thing on him is shortsighted (pun intended).
Hopefully his speed will more than compensate for his supposed lack of height.
Does he have long arms and good leaping ability?
You know what he is a playmaker so where ever they put him he will make a difference. His speed and hitting ability will help us big time. I just wish they put him at will but he will be ok.
No Schiller – Fletcher and Sam Mills had ‘we don;t cover TEs’ written into their contracts.. didn’t you know if you just call a guy ‘the will’ he will never have to cover a TE?
Even though Kendricks has not played a down of football for us yet. I think we can all agree he is way better than what we had so hey man i am excited for the season.
pdiddy, i kinda agree but we still have to see what they have at ota’s and training camp.. This guy is good but unproven in league terms but iam happy the birds jumped all over this and locked this young kid up, I admire there tactics and forethought even if he doesnt work out, they still took a chance on him and thats what i like to see, them taking risks for the benefit of the team. Kudos to the birds for an awesome offseason, one of the best in recent memory.
I agree with Garry… I like his potential, but not against the TE’s in this league.. His one skill that comes thru in all the tape ive seen of him is his speed. His closing speed jumps out at you when you see him play. He goes gets pushed around a little and he isnt that big.. I hope Juan & Andy arent hard headed about this
BigE – to your two questions – Yes and Yes.
His speed is sick though at times he even look s like the fastest player on the field .. so at least we know he will be right theyre with the everytime..he will never get beat with speed.. only 2 tight ends are giants.. gronk and jimmy grahm
For those who don’t want them to play Kendricks at SAM. Who on the Eagles would you rather play at SAM, and if Kendricks plays at Will, are you happy with Rolle at SAM? If not, do you not consider Rolle to be our third best LB right now? I sure do. I say, Rolle, Ryans and Kendricks should start.
It’s easy to say “he’s not tall…yada yada yada…tight ends yada”…. but what’s the alternative you want? And don’t give me players not on the team.
Great points by everybody, I agree the with you guys but I just like his upside. He is fast and was a big hitter in college, I agree his size could hurt him at Sam but he could be a great Weakside Lb. I would love to see Ryans,Kendricks and Chaney(If healthy) on the field together. That’s wouldn’t be a bad corp of LB’s
What are we going to do about the bum ass Safeties?
Songs – depends on who “we” is. If you mean the team – well their either going to use who they have now, maybe give the undrafted rook a shot, or sign a FA.
If you mean the fans, again, depends on who. If you mean you – well you’re going to whine and bitch like an ignorant bratty kid. IF you mean fans with some sense and balance, probably a wait and see approach, understanding that many many factors go into how safeties play and many of those factors have been tipped toward favorable this offseason. But we all know you can’t grasp that kind of stuff – you know, time, experience, new coaching, a full offseason, more health, better players around them…. you know FACTS, CONTEXT…. sorry I know I’m going over your head here….
What are we going to do with that anal wart of a (ahem…) ‘fan’ Songs?
I like Rolle & Chaney as potential starters… Rolle is tenacious… Chaney was pretty decent linebacker before Juan showed up (Juan had that effect on a number of players)..
I just have reservations when I read reports about how the Eagles have a rookie penciled in on the strong side. I think they should slow down…. I’d love to just trust them… But they can be hardheaded from time to time..
LB Starters in Week 1
For Base Defense
WILL – Rolle (Back-up Kendricks)
MLB – Ryans (Back-up Kendricks)
SAM – Chaney (back up Matthews)
In Passing Downs
WILL – Clayton
MIke – Kendricks
SAM – Matthews
The Top 6 LB’s will see lots of action and snaps, I do think that Kendricks will contribute quite a bit as a Rookie and then become a Starter at 2013
A Jordan is the 7th LB on the 53 Man Roster and players M Fokou, M SImmons,G Lloyd don’t make the Final Roster..
In 2013 I could see Ryans shift over to SAM spot and Kendricks play in the MLB with Rolle remaining at the WILL Spot as the Eagles move away from Chaney who I still think is a very poor tackler
Paul how clueless are you? Ryans is a 3 down lb in the 4-3 defense. If your answer to that is last year, you’re blatantly ignoring consensus facts. And when lbs are shifted/subed/changed for passing downs, there aren’t 3 of them, its called a nickle package, you add a db and subtract an lb. You know that stuff. Did you forget your meds today AND hit your head real hard too?
Ryans is a good player, but he is not the player he is not the Pro-Bowl Player he was in 2008 & 2009 by most NFL Observors.. I believe he’ll start out as a 3 Down LB and then come off the field to make room for Kendricks as the Season rolls along Eagles from about the 5th Week on..
As Far as 3 LB’s in Nickel Pakages, it really depends on the Offensive Formations.. WIth more and more Double TE Sets run by a lot of teams (Ravens,Redskins,Saints,Pats,Lionsetc,etc. You will see 3 LB’s in on passing downs.. )
Definitely would like to see Kendricks at the WILL. I’d also like to see the Eagles do something like trade a conditional pick or one the current LBs for Stewart Bradley since they don’t have a true SAM LB on the roster or pick up a legitimate SAM LB during the cut down period.
I prefer the trade now to get someone route simply to eliminate the late start learning curve problem.
I am sorry – as the eagles do not flop their linebackers to the with the SAM and WILL lining up on opposite sides depending on the offensive formation – the Sam is actually the ROLB and the Will is the LOLB – could someone please explain to me the difference between a ‘true’ Sam and Will? BOTH OLBs are going to have to be able to cover the TE – BOTH OLBs are going to have to shed blocks, BOTH OLBs are going to have to slow up the TEs, BOTH OLBs are going to have to butt heads with lead FBs and pulling guards –
Please – for the love of god – STOP trying to pretend you know something by talking about ‘seeing’ him line up at Sam verse Will and not cover TEs etc. – BOTH OLBs have the EXACT same job description…
and Pman – nickle package means 5 defensive backs – the only way you can have 5 DBs and 3 LBs is if you rush 3 DL – which in most cases – teams will go with Dime package and call that a prevent – if you have 3 LBs becuase of the 2 TEs – that is not nickle
oops – reverse that the Will is the ROLB – Sam LOLB – I was thinking the Will lines up outside the LT behind Trent Cole
Anybody in for signing EJ Henderson, & playing him at SAM, then putting Kendricks at WILL?
BTW, per a LEGIT source, all of the Draftee’s will be signed within the next 7-10 days.
I think Navy’s point about SAM and WILL are accurate. The Eagles basically run a middle and 2 outside linebackers. I still get caught up in wanting a 250lb SAM and a 230lb playmaking WILL. Kendricks height is a concern, but everything else is appealing about him. Sean Lee made the comment this off season that he never wants to get over 240lb because this is a passing league. He has to cover ground. This is an inside linebacker in a 34 defense, that position used to be a 255+lb guy.
Navy; Wills and Sams do flop and have nothing to do with lining up left or right. Someone on the D will call the D and the offensive strength. O strength is determined by number of lineman on either side of the ball. So if TE lines up on right then the Sam (strong side LB) moves to the strength side and will have TE responsibility.
You’re right that the Will(week side LB) need to cover TE’s at times as in a balanced line with two TE’s. Or you may have a Mike cover a TE. Such as double TE and the RB lines up in the slot
There is a myriad of scenarios depending on personel, called D and offensive alignment but on average the Sam covers the TE.
Side note: I took two of boys to a football camp this past weekend. My 13 old plays LB and was coached by G. My 12 yr plays RB and was coached by Thomas Tapeh. The LB’s worked on pass coverage the hole weekend and it’s very complicated. They worked on Cover 1, 2, 3, 4. Each coverage has sub alignement. Each one has different responsiblities. Sometimes Man and sometimes zone. And all of it is affected by the offense. The LB position is one of the most complicated to play.
EJ Henderson has bum knees and is not much bigger than Kendricks..
He’s played the middle spot over his career, don’t view him as an upgrade at all
Some NFL News
Falcons released 9 Year Veteran FB Ovie Mughelli in a Salary Cap move as the Falcons Drafted FB B Smelley from Alabama in the Draft who will replace him. Mughelli is 6-1 250lbs and a blocking machine though he is not much of a runner and his Receving Skills are so-so…
Paul, that’s why I suggested him, bum knees, & out of position, makes him a perfect fit for the Philadelphia Medivacs & square peg in round hole Reid. He’s an Andy type, that would fit right in. LOL!
I would agree with Pman about EJ Henderson….his leg was destroyed, but more important, he is a MLB. Moving to the outside with a bad leg doesn’t sound like a good fit.
Personally I think that the Birds believe that they have the LB’s on this team already, and will not make a move. I do not entirely agree. I would like to see them sign a FA like Rocky McIntosh from the Redskins….the guys is 6′ 2″ and I believe that he is a better fit in our 4-3 system then the 3-4 system they are running in Washington.
Joe PA 89 – you are correct in your description of Will verse Sam – BUT – and this is a big but – the EAGLES do not flop the Sam and Will – our Sam’s ALWAYS line up as the LOLB – our will – always lines up at LOLB – they just get called Sam and Will – which leads to this whole discussion about the physical traits of a Sam verse Will and responsibilities –
and Joe Pa – if you have NFL rewnd and can tell me that the Eagles do in fact ‘call power’ and flop the LBs to weak and strong sides – please let me know –
becuase every time I hear the phrases Will and Sam WRT the egales LBs it is like nails on a chalkboard to me – and then when I hear people talking about trying an OLB out at will vice sam becuase of there size – its like going to s strip club with gay techno music and nothing but fat ugly chicks dancing naked, and then worse – when people talk about people playing strong side and weakside – its like the fat chick asking you for the dollar tip…..
Hope your kids had fun at that camp sounds like a blast – a real question – I learned cover 0 , 1 , 2 and 3 – can you briefly go over cover 1-4, maybe its just new terminalogy – the cover meant number of people deep – cover 0 and 1 were man – 2 and 3 zone –
Navy, You got it: Cover 1: Man with FS playing deep zone; Cover 2: Safeties playing deep zone; Cover 3:FS and Corners playing deep zone; Cover 4: Safties and Corners playing deep zone.
To be honest I’m assuming the Eagles move the Sam to the TE not really sure. To your point, everyone in the Pros runs so much spread that the line between Sam, Mike and Will is blurred.
My kids had a blast. G. is very nice. They got good instruction and more importantly they got to see that they are the bottom of the pack in talent.LOL! Told them afterwards that maybe one or two of the 400 kids would be able to play college ball, football is good but school is much more important.
David DeCastro owned Kendricks in the run game while at Stanford—- I am scared about Kendricks being too weak and tiny for NFL lineman.
eagles0 – fair enough, I hear you and I think that a lot of LBs struggle against the elite NFL lineman. BUT – how do lineman take on Kendricks with our DL in their faces?
JoePa – thanks – glad to hear the kids had a blast –
Eagles will do the same thing they did last year which is LB by committee. The starters should be:
Rolle Bc he is a flat out dog. He is not ideal but he gets after it ib a way the makes offensive player take note. I can see ball carriers annoyed by his presence on the field. Anybody knows that’s a plus to get otger players worried about you rather than the play itself.
Ryan’s O’s self explanatory
Kendrick’s unless he shows he can’t get it done
Now at the end of last year Juan got a better handle on his LB’s and what they can do. You saw Mathews blitzing more Clayton in covering on 3rd and long or 2nd and forever and they both did good jobs at that. Cheney filled in where needed bc he was the most consistent. Depending upon who makes the cut I expect more of the same. The Eagles have not given up on baby Thor Mathews and neither have I. As much as Clayton is not a good LB he can defiantly cover in the passing game. Cheney can play coverage pretty well for a MLB so expect to still see him in there at times.
I like what the Eagles are doing they are building a defensive identity some they haven’t had since JJ died and Dawkins left. It’s a start but having big fast guys in the middle of the Dline, fast ball Attacking D’ends, two dog outside LB’s a veteran cerebral MLB, big athletic CB, and young growing Saftey’s that can continue to play into their role on the field now with that veteran voice in the huddle they can focus more on just getting “their” assignments. Along with a defensive coordinator who has a better feel and hopefully now on the same page with his Dline coach. Go Birds!!!
We are about to go into another season with a serious apparent weakness at Safety again….
Everyone have noticed this issue accept the Eagles.
Last year we said the Safeties were ass along with the Linebackers before the season, and Andy’s answer was garbage ass Page which led to the Eagles falling back on the garbage already on the roster.
When will this organization learn?
They’ll lose because o these bums this year and address the Safety position next season after a wasted opportunity ….again.
Paste it!
@navyeaglefan…just so you know
Generally speaking the Tight End is going to be the “Hot Read” or a “Safety Throw” for a QB or a guy that should be a relatively comfortable throw for the QB. This basically means schemes involving the Tight End are going to try to avoid having the QB throwing across his body and for most QBs it’s gonna be the right side. Also, right handed QBs are going to tend to throw to the right more often then the left in general Thus the term “Strong Side.”
This is the part of the field the SAM LB is going to cover, generally speaking and usually a big part of his coverage assignment is going to be dealing with the TE. The WILL LB usually will draw the RB out in space for his coverage assignment component. They get swapped obviously, but you at least want to have someone that can match up height wise, speed wise and especially arm length wise to cover 6’4″-6’5″ TE.
I actualyl think the Eagles Safeties are ok..
The big question to me on how good this Eagle Defense will be this season is the play of CB Asmo & DRC.. If Asmo comes out smokin’ and plays like he did in his Raider Career and DRC steps up to cash in on a Contract Year, then the Eagles Secondary will be fine and the current Safeties will all improve and be sufficient.. Now is the CB’s play below average or poorly, then the Eagles Secondary will get exposed and the entire Defense will suffer
@songs I have the same questions about the safeties, but I do think the additional year, the players and coaches on the same page plus the players added along the D-Line will help mask the deficiencies in the secondary.
Butch – again bro – just like with Jo Pa above – your guys descriptions of ‘typical’ Sam and Will duties are spot on (except for the whole if the QB is right or left handed thing – I have never heard of what hand the QB is having anything to do with power – possibly with play tendency but if the QB is either handed, the backs are in the eye and the WRs are split – the TE to the left – the TE is the power side but I digress)… except….
the Eagles SAM always plays LOLB and the Eagles WILL always plays ROLB so when the big ass TE from the NY Giants or Ravens or Tony Gonzalez lines up to Eli Mannings/flaccos/ryans left – it will be our Will that is in front of him and when he lines up to Eli Mannings/flaccos/ryans right – our Sam will be the LB in front of him
so what I am saying boss is this – OUR LBs – the eagles linebackers, play ROLB and LOLB but have now been given slang names Sam and Will – I realize this is a totally anal retentive point – but then people come on here – INCLUDING Gcobb – talking about how our LOLB needs to have different size and skill set then our ROLB based upon covering TEs – both the LOLB and the ROLB will be expected to cover RBs in space, TEs on check downs etc.. so why should they have deifferent size, speed and coverage skills?
Make sense?
and again – if I am wrong – someone who watches NFL tix or NFL rewind correct me –
Strong side and weak side labels really are like a start to what you want in that position but at the NFL level it really doesn’t matter as much like it use to. Early 90’s yeah it still did bc of the way teams played and lined up, but the game has changed so much. Even in college it does not matter as much. Highschool is like the only place it’s still important lol. I think the label actually died with the end of Carlos Edmonds career lol. All the Pepper Johnsons are playing D end nowadays.
I’m examining how close the giants are to the Eagles within the season and get confused when comparing success.
Why are the Giants so much more Champion ready?
@navy….I would tend to agree that the birds OLB’s are more a “right side / left side” set up versus the traditional Sam and Will.
I cannot remember seeing the linebackers switch when the TE goes in motion, so regardless, if the offensive coordinator wants to have his TE isolated on one of our LB’s, it doesn’t take alot of effort to set it up.
Honestly, I believe that the LB’s will being playing better this year due to them having a veteran leader like Ryans. Attitudes can be infectious, and last year our LB’s were unsure and certainly did not play with any swagger like the best LB corps like the Ravens, or Saints or 49ers.
Thanks for the Pepper Johnson reference NuGreembol….made me rememer when Keith Byers de-cleated him going up the sideline….I can still see it from my seat in the Vet on the big screen…..OUCH!!!
thank you greenfan – I was starting to feel like I was in a twilight zone epsisode – you know the one where Capt Kirk sees the little troll out on the airplane wing..
very happy with how the LB situation is playing out and glad the team is getting the draft picks signed and ready to go (or do we thnk the new CBA)..
I will chime in Navy,
I say your wrong about your alignments of the SAM/WILL without any eveidence or data to back up my claim.. but no one here on GCOBB gets off that easy…
It’s the wy it is here on GCOBB.Com….
Hey, SOngs does that shit all the time so why not you!