Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
On QB question, Pederson waffles way into Eagles’ week off
PHILADELPHIA » Doug Pederson fumbled the news conference Tuesday. After the happy New Year greeting, there were enough mixed messages about the quarterback position and who actually decides what at practices that you couldn’t help but realize how much clutter is in the head of the Eagles’ second-year coach.
Take the quarterback position, where Nick Foles’ last two starts in place of injured star Carson Wentz were flawed enough that some fans are rooting for Nate Sudfeld, the backup who has played just two quarters and change in the NFL, to get a look.
Pederson was incredulous when asked if Foles still was the starter, selling his outrage with a roll of the eyes.
Not long after that, Pederson put Foles on the hot seat when asked if he would consider bringing Sudfeld out of the bullpen should the starter struggle in the Eagles’ divisional opener one week from Saturday.
Instead of beating the question down, Pederson ran with it, which pretty much revealed his level of concern with Foles’ performance.
“It’s hard to say right now until I’m in that situation,” Pederson said. “Listen, it’s a one-game season. It’s hard to be in desperation mode but if you are in that mode, who knows? I do know this: It’s not
about one guy. It’s about 11 on offense, defense and special teams. A lot of contributing factors go into winning a game.”
The coach, by the way, is another of those contributing factors. He was all over the place Tuesday, much like his team has been since losing Carson Wentz to a knee injury. Even the national media wondered what was up with Coach Doug after the ‘who knows’ response Tuesday.
When NFL Network insider Ian Rappaport got hold of the news conference transcript, he tweeted that he texted Pederson for a clarification, and the coach responded, “My guy is Nick Foles, end of story.”
It wasn’t the end of that story. It was the beginning of another strange story for a coach who, after leading his team to a 13-3 record and the top seed in the NFC playoffs, sounds like he needs a little rest and relaxation before attempting another presser, much less figuring out how to beat the Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers or New Orleans Saints in two weeks.
Pederson said the Eagles, who make their first playoff appearance since 2013, would be practicing in pads at least once this week and probably once next week.
Except for Brandon Graham, Halapoulivaati Vaitai and Jay Ajayi, who will rehab and rest, this is the same Eagles team that
played so tired down the homestretch that it could barely beat bad teams.
Pederson said the practices in pads weren’t his idea, and that the players requested it through the leadership council.
“They just came to me and kind of asked if we could get back into pads,” Pederson said. “I didn’t ask questions. I said, ‘sure.’ I think they understand that there is a sense of physicality that we have to get back to. I’m not saying we’re not there because obviously football is a physical game. But I think there is a sense over the course of a few weeks when you’ve been in shells, pad level begins to rise and intensity sometimes can be minimized. So, you get back into pads and it sort of refocuses the guys a little bit. It’s not like
we’re going to tackle. It’s not a training camp type of practice.
“The fact of just having them on, banging around on one another but still protecting each other, I think can be a nice asset for us going into our first game.”
Stretched dangerously thin by injuries, all the Eagles need is another mishap involving a key player to put a fork in their season, and basically begin the hopeful chorus of, “it was a great season, just wait until the next one when Carson is healthy! Thanks everybody, for stopping by.”
It will be a quick exit for the Eagles if they don’t make Foles feel more comfortable. For weeks Pederson has said the Eagles wouldn’t change the offense to suit the skills of
Foles. Guess what? Foles has been so ineffective lately that Pederson is reviewing film of the vet’s past to figure out what Foles does best. Might not be a bad idea checking out where Foles likes the shotgun snaps, as well.
“I just wanted to go back and see the types of plays,” Pederson said. “The quick throw was there, the play-action pass, the shotgun stuff. Those are all things that are in our system. We might just have to dust a few more off and get that ready to go. And that’s kind of what this week is for, to get some of those thoughts and ideas down on paper and execute them at practice.”
The most sense Pederson made Tuesday was about detailing the sputtering run game. That will help.
Meanwhile defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz and quarterbacks coach John DeFilippo will likely take off to interview with the Arizona Cardinals this week. The Giants also are said to be interested in Schwartz.
“They put the Eagles first anyway and will continue to do that while they’re here,” Pederson said of the assistants. “It’s a little bit of a fine line but having an off week helps.”
Having an off week, at least theoretically, is supposed to help the head coach and his players, too. It sure was hard to feel that Tuesday.
Contact Bob Grotz at bgrotz@21stcenturymedia.com; follow him on Twitter @BobGrotz.