LB breakdown: Trotter's role, Jordan's return
The Eagles' linebacker situation has been in focus all year.
LB breakdown: Trotter's role, Jordan's return
Sheil Kapadia, Philly.com
The Eagles' linebacker situation has been in focus all year.
From the loss of Stewart Bradley in the preseason to the trade for Will Witherspoon to the addition of Jeremiah Trotter, the Birds have tried combination after combination to get things right.
On Sunday, Akeem Jordan returned after missing four games. But he was eased in to the lineup.
I re-watched the defensive snaps and took note of how Sean McDermott used his linebackers against the Giants.
Here is how much eacy guy played:
Will Witherspoon - 69 plays
Jeremiah Trotter - 41
Chris Gocong - 30
Tracy White - 20
Akeem Jordan - 16
Some important things to note when looking at those numbers.
After the Eagles took a 45-31 lead, they went with Witherspoon and White as the nickel linebackers the rest of the game, a span of 14 plays during the final six minutes of the fourth quarter.
Trotter was not on the field during that stretch, but he played 41 of the first 59 defensive snaps (nearly 70 percent).
White was the opposite. He played just six of the first 59 snaps and was barely part of the gameplan for the first three and a half quarters, but he was in there on the final 14.
The only break Witherspoon got was a four-play stretch in the third quarter when the Giants had the ball near the goal line, eventually scoring on a fourth-down Brandon Jacobs run. McDermott went with Trotter and Jordan during that series.
Speaking of Jordan, he was on the field for 12 other snaps. Five were at middle linebacker, and seven were in the nickel package with Witherspoon
The Eagles had three linebackers on the field for 30 snaps, and two linebackers for 43 snaps.
They used six different combinations:
Witherspoon, Trotter and Gocong - 25 plays
Witherspoon and White - 20
Witherspoon and Trotter - 12
Witherspoon and Jordan - 6
Witherspoon, Jordan and Gocong - 5
Jordan and Trotter - 4
So what does this all mean?
Well, it's going to be interesting to see how McDermott mixes and matches his linebackers down the stretch. As I described in Man Up, Trotter was really the only linebacker who you could say played well Sunday against the Giants.
How long will it take for Jordan to get healthy? Will he be able to get back to the same level he was at before the injury?
Trotter is playing his best football of the season, but will his role diminish in the final three games and postseason?
As has been the case all season, the linebackers are an area to watch going forward. We'll try to provide a similar breakdown the rest of the way to see which direction McDermott chooses to go.
Obviously, one thing that McDermott knows is that Witherspoon is the Eagles' best and most versatile LB. He can play any position, although he is probably best as a weak and nickel LB. In the middle, he reminds me of Curt Gouviea - much stronger in coverage than in run support. Jordan, when healthy, was a solid weak LB, and he can't play the other positions as well, which means that Witherspoon will be returned to the MLB position except on short yardage, which will be handled by Trotter. Gocong is performing poorly as a strong-side LB, but the Eagles don't have a useful replacement. White gets playing time due to his tackling skills and aggressiveness, but he isn't a traditional LB starter.- LB is the black hole of the eagles' D. Bradley was overated before he went down. The entire corps is a bunch of has beens and never-will-be players. Let's spend a 1st or 2nd round pick next year on a decent one. Please!!!!— dragoon6
Comment removed.- The LB's have been a work in progress for a couple of seasons now. It's a very heady position in JJ/McDermott's defense. It takes a while for young guys to grasp the concepts and play well and a bunch of young guys is what we have. The problems in NY looked more like a D-Line problem vs. a LB problem. Bunkley and Patterson didn't get control of the middle leaving a guard free to work on LB's. Is Bunkley hurt? What's up with Law's play? Should Dixon be getting more snaps? Why is Cole the only one putting any pressure on the QB? Lot's of questions and few answers. If we're going to write off the NY game off as just a "bad game" then the D must step up now and play consistantly from here on.— craig123
- PhillyTrue - only disagreement with your 2010 lineup is that Witherspoon does not have the size for strong side LB - need someone else in there - we had some bigger LBs earlier in the year but let them go when the season started - could be that Bradley moves to strong side— Tom Man
- Sheil two fantastic analysis of the defense two days in a row. For real Eagles fans, your postings on defense are must read.— Seed
- I agree with your points, phillytrue.— MG44
- every year its the same story, where the eagles are thin in some area that they haven't shored up in the off season and invariably comes back to baffle them during the season. they don't have any real depth at key positions, and they don't anticipate injuries that have come in groups this season throughout the nfl. gm andy reid doesn't get the job done that coach andy reid needs done, that is, keep the second and third teams stocked with good players who can step in and step up when needed.— trainrdt
- Cole is the man of the moment. He can get more out of few D-line players. He is stepping into that role, now he just need couple of other D-line players to step it up.— Seed
- Coach Reid needs to focus on D-line and run defense even if we win SB this year. With an error free QB like McNabb, we should be winning 3 SB like Aikman and Brady did; not just 1 SB in next 5-6 years.— Seed
Hey craig123, agree that the defensive shortcomings against the vaGiants had as much to do with DL as LBs. Couldn't get any real pressure for 3-1/2 quarters even when bringing 2-3 blitzers. BTW Laws was inactive. Babin seemed to get some pressure from limited opportunities, as he always does. Can't figure out why he doesn't get more playing time.— tornadoh- Hope Birds work a trade with Vikes for EJ Henderson, a true, Tough MLB. Not sure about Stu Bradley as a run stuffer. Rather have a veteran instead of depending on a draft pick. Besides, there are no good MLB's in the upcoming draft. Work out a trade and get some veteran LBs. Does anyone else miss Dawk? Leadership and toughness is needed in the secondary. Picks are OK, but I would rather see toughness. WRs are not afraid of the middle of current secondary.— philadelphiachild51
- Thank God Trot shows up with some energy. Without him this LB crew is flat.— starbird
Follow
Sheil on Twitter. And become
a fan of Moving the Chains on Facebook.
Download our NEW iPhone/Android app for even more Birds
coverage, including app-exclusive videos and analysis. Download it here.
