Castillo: It Wasn't THAT Bad
Eagles defensive coordinator Juan Castillo met with reporters Sunday for the first time since his first-team defenders struggled badly in the preseason opener Thursday against the Steelers.
Castillo: It Wasn't THAT Bad
Les Bowen, Daily News Staff Writer
BETHLEHEM --- Eagles defensive coordinator Juan Castillo met with reporters Sunday for the first time since his first-team defenders struggled badly in the preseason opener Thursday against the Steelers.
Specifically, tackling and getting off the field on third-and-long proved to be a challenge, just as they were last season, which made it more alarming than the first few series of a preseaon opener might normally have been.
"There are some things we have to improve on," Castillo allowed. "Initially just the third-down package, you saw that we worked on third down [Saturday], really some of the scenarios we had in the game, trying to get some things in and work on some coverage things."
Same problems as last year? Castillo pointed out that the Eagles weren't doing a lot of those things during their 4-0 stretch run to end the season. (Which might indicate these are correctable problems, but also would seem to be pretty darn frustrating, implying the defense has to relearn last year's painful lessons.)
"We want to go ahead and start where we finished," Castillo said, kind of ignoring the fact that his defense did not, in fact, start the way it finished 2011. But in fairness, maybe he was saying his goal is to start the real season the way the defense finished last seaaon.
"There were some good things, there were some things we need to work on, and that's what we're doing," Castillo said.
The biggest red flag might have been the performance of second-year safety Jaiquawn Jarrett, who started and looked lost. Jarrett got mixed up in coverage and took poor tackling angles, two reasons he had a hard time getting on the field as a rookie. An offseason of tutoring was supposed to have corrected those problems.
"JJ played hard. He did some good things, and there were some things we'll correct, with a [practice] tackle circuit, with the angles, understanding where your leverage is. The way we want to tackle, we want to run through everything, but there will be some things we'll correct and we'll be OK."
Castillo said Jarrett "has had a good camp."
Jarrett, a 2011 second-round draft pick from Temple, said the film pretty much showed him what most of us saw live Thursday night.
"I took poor angles on tackles. I didn't play with the sense of urgency I needed to play with," Jarrett said Sunday. He said he needs to take another step before launching himself, to avoid missing so much.
Jarrett said the coverage mixup between himself and corner Nnamdi Asomugha on the first Steelers touchdown was completely Jarrett's fault.
The Eagles' wide-nine-aligned defensive line seemed to have unlearned last season's lesson about paying proper respect to the run as it tees off on the passsr. That was not the way Castillo saw it -- the back-to-back 14 and 33-yard Pittsburgh runs came off a draw play and an Eagles blitz, he said, with the Steelers experiencing little success otherwise.
LURIE RESPONSE
RE yesterday's Eagletarian post, in which Andy Reid's agent, Bob LaMonte, vigorously defended his client's record and deflected reporters' queries about a new Reid contract by declaring team chairman Jeffrey Lurie told him Andy would coach here as long as Lurie owns the team -- Lurie issued a statement in response:
"Bob is a great agent who we have an outstanding relationship with. As much respect as all of us have for Andy Reid, it is the nature of the profession that all coaches, executives and players are evaluated each year," Lurie said. "That's the way we have always operated. But our focus right now, and I know Andy feels the same way, is solely on the 2012 season."
MACLIN RETURNING?
WR Jeremy Maclin, who sat out Thursday's game after suffering a hamstring tweak in warmups, participated in Sunday's walkthrough and said he plans to practice this afteroon.
Maclin mentioned preparing for the next preseason game, at New England Aug. 20, as if it were the third game, which is the one starters usually use as their regular-season tuneup. This year the third game is just four days after the second game, and is at Cleveland, where the Birds open their regular season Sept. 9. The Eagles probably don't want to show the Browns too much in a preseason game.
Thanks for letting the cat out of the bag hindsight, now know who stole all those jock straps...
You've been in the Eagles locker room? Did the garbage cans need emptying? Wow, talk about delusion.
— tpizza- I admit, just one preseason game--but play like that and Castillo shrugging it all off? Not good. I think we've got another season of defensive ends running themselves 40 yards off every play in the Wide 9 and the secondary getting picked to pieces. I understand Castillo is sticking up for his players, but this is too much.
- cg25 left himself wide open for that on tpizza. Soon as I read it I knew you couldn't post a comment fast enough.— watsonmr
- WMR, hahaha, how could I NOT! Childs play.
Wasn't really gonna read many of the comments today. Slightly concerned about the Eagles performance Thursday but that seems to be an Eagle norm in preseason. If the Eagles crash again Reid is gone, if they don't I'll be a good year. Win/win? We'll see, it's only preseason.
— tpizza - lol @ it wasnt THAT bad.
except for on 3rd and long.— bloodymess - Thanks CG25 for trying to explain it to Brian. I still don't think he gets it though. All I know is, if somebody tried to tell me how to do my job but never did the job, I don't think I'd pay attention either. I will however, tell them to use "Motivational Posters." Brian8614 says they work.— Geno D
- i cannot believe that you people are so caught up in the FIRST PRESEASON GAME. who cares...ridiculous. there was a time 20 years ago when you barely knew what was going on in the preseason. but the media getting involved with all the minutia of the preseason, and the regular season and all of sports for that matter just lather's everyone up. some of you really need to get a life.— deatheater
- It's not just one preseason game. Don't we wish that it were? Perhaps you've forgotten. We went 4-8 last and one Stephen-Jackson-untouched TD-but-torn-hamstring away from 3-9 last season.
We got to 4-8 EXACTLY the same we lost the game to Pitt. Let's not re-write or forget history. - Other than that Mrs. Lincoln, what did you think of the play?— 2ndNlong
- Juan needs to go.— alwaysphil1
- I mustsay that I'm thrilledwith the agles talented draft, however Juan Castillo just annoys the hell out of me with his cliches. Last year it was "Work Hard", this year it's "Muscle Memory". How about "Get it right or get lost. Seriously if the defense can not perform well enough to get off of the field or stop the run by the end of the first quarter of the the season then Juan needs to do the honorable thing and fall on his sword (quit)!!!— Eaglehaslanded
- C'mon guys the Eagels didn't have an off.......... No excuses, Juan's Defense needs to step up or he should be gone. Those last 4 games they played very inferior teams that were also playing out the season. It is insulting for them to even reference it as some sort of accomplishment. This team underachieved last year and the fans know it
- Like I didn't know it was on a tour...sheez.
hey hindsight, YOU'VE GOT TO GET YOUR ACT TOGETHER AND START PUTTING YOUR COMMENTS IN A BETTER POSITION TO MAKE SENSE!!!!!
See, now I'm a motivational poster...hahahahaha...not bad if I say so myself.— tpizza - If the defense wasn't so wretched last season, the first team's ineptness against the Steeler's offense wouldn't be so upsetting. Even with new players, the eagles showed no spark or cohesion on defense. Their 3rd down defense was helpless and it was hard to watch. However, the first team offense was just as pathetic as the defense. Vick looked notyhing like the player that replaced Kevin Kolb and everything just looked out of sync. 8 and 8 is a sure thing if they don't improve.— Drumgoole
