Posted: Monday, February 13, 2012, 5:34 PM | 53 comments |
 

Site: Eagles corners among NFL's worst tacklers
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Asante Samuel may actually be the Eagles' best tackling cornerback. (David Maialetti/Staff Photographer)

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Most people who watched the Eagles would agree that Asante Samuel was the team’s best cover corner in 2011, despite the high-profile additions of Nnamdi Asomugha and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie. That’s good for Samuel, but bad for two players who were supposed to come in and drastically improve the Eagles’ secondary.

But here’s what’s worse: according to Pro Football Focus, Samuel was the best tackler among the corners, and it’s not because he has suddenly become the cornerback version of Ray Lewis.

Instead, according to the site, Asomugha and Rodgers-Cromartie out-Asanted Asante, whiffing at tackles at a rate to make them two of the four worst tackling corners in the NFL last season. Samuel was the 11th worst.

So, to sum up, the Eagles start trio accounted for three of the worst 11 tackling cornerbacks in the league a year ago, according to PFF.

Asomugha ranked second worst among corners at tackling, missing once every 4.3 attempts, according to PFF. Only Washington’s Kevin Barnes was worse. DRC ranked fourth worst, missing once every 4.6 tries while Samuel missed once every 5.3 tackle attempts.

Asomugha’s tackling was the fifth worst in the four years the site has charted cornerback tackles, according to PFF. Samuel owns two of the only seasons that were more inept in terms of tackling.

Fans will certainly remember the image of the Giants Victor Cruz running away from Asomugha and Kurt Coleman week 3.

Now, “missed tackles” is obviously a subjective measure, so maybe you can quibble with the exact order, if you want. But the objective look at cornerbacks across the league confirms the general idea that the Eagles corners were bad at getting the other guys on the ground, (which we all saw), and provides a point of comparison, one that only makes their 2011 seasons look worse.

Interestingly, there were some other fairly big names among the “worst tackler” list, including Champ Bailey, Charles Woodson, Tramon Williams and Dunta Robinson. Among the best? Ex-Eagle Dimitri Patterson, who spent last season with the Browns.

(Credit to the folks at Bleeding Green Nation, who drew my attention to this when they posted on it Monday).
Posted by Jonathan Tamari @ 5:34 PM  Permalink | 53 comments
53
Comments   
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 5:54 PM, 02/13/2012
    Asomugha has been a good tackler throughout his career. I suspect the problem was he was thinking too much on the field having to learn new coverages and assignments that he lost focus on basic things like good technique for tackling.
    — soulman386
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 6:25 PM, 02/13/2012
    Those numbers are not accurate as I am sure it does not take into account Asante's constant running alongside plays and not even trying to get in and make an effort to tackle! He is far and away the biggest wuss CB in the league when it comes to tackling and if they went back and counted "run alongs" or possible tackles if an effort would have been made Asante would be far and away the leader! Hanging back and getting a number of pickoffs is fantastic but not at the expense of avoiding contact!
    — connorjr
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 6:41 PM, 02/13/2012
    Let Colt Anderson teach the cb's how to tackle. He tackles low, grabs the legs and down they go. Tackle high and the receivers run right through them. This isn't nuclear physics folks.
    — fanup
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 6:47 PM, 02/13/2012
    It's always funny when you get to the 4th quarter and the Eagles DBs have totally clean jerseys.
    — eaglescali
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 2:15 PM, 02/14/2012
    Actually, the other team has clean uniforms because they are never tackled. The Eagles lay down all over the field like astroturf. That should be their nickname. Castillio's Astroturf D.
    — ej610
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 6:58 PM, 02/13/2012
    Asante is a human turnstile, afraid to tackle anybody.
    — bravehearted
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 7:18 PM, 02/13/2012
    Maybe they weren't put in the position to make plays.
    — bc3030
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 7:30 PM, 02/13/2012
    We appreciate the article Jonathan but anybody that watches the Eagles has known about this since Week 2.

    And bc3030...excellent. :)
    — journalismIsDead
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 7:35 PM, 02/13/2012
    Dude, supercool players who are only interested in 2-second SportsCenter clips hit; they don't tackle. And they couldn't care less. Obviously, their coaches don't, either. Every single NFL game you see ball carriers gain additional umpteen yards because they were hit, not tackled. It's a disgrace!
    — Barbouze
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 7:39 PM, 02/13/2012
    Human turnstiles...in green. Times yours.
    — kelprod2
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 7:42 PM, 02/13/2012
    Samuel has improved. I've seen him make some big hits. Redskin's tough tight end what's-his-name got knocked out of the game by either of the two of three you mention. Deon wasn't such a great tackler. How many rings does he have? Hall of Fame? Cover guys are worth their weight in tackles. There are 9 or 10 other guys to tackle too who couldn't play cover. You can always find faults.
    — Lou Christine
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 7:43 PM, 02/13/2012
    Leave it to the Negadelphia Media to lead their website with 'Eagles Corners Can't Tackle'. 1.) We know that, and 2.) who cares about football til Training Camp? Talk about the Phils.
    — ThatsAViolation
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 7:46 PM, 02/13/2012
    Nnamdi has been a good tackler throughout his career? Actually he hasn't, he's historically one of the worst tacklers in the league. PFF is a completely unbiased website, which is why tons of people pay for their services, and they have Nnamdi ranked low every year.
    — jbruder02
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 7:47 PM, 02/13/2012
    Andy and Juan did a great job teaching them how to tackle during camp obviously stressing the "fundementals". Between the two of them, they know Defense.
    — CharlieGarner25
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 8:12 PM, 02/13/2012
    It is part of the master plan. That's why we have such a tremendous tackling safety in Nate Allen. (HTML deleted)
    — djack10


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About Jeff McLane and Jonathan Tamari






Jeff McLane (left) began covering the Eagles in April 2009 after covering college sports and Penn State football in particular. Before that he wrote about high school sports and before that he worked in the mailroom (not quite). Find Jeff on Facebook and follow him on Twitter for instant updates on the Eagles.

Jonathan Tamari (right) began covering the Eagles in April 2010. He previously covered New Jersey state government and politics, reporting and writing about elections, policy debates and the many personalities that drive the Garden State, from three recent governors to the many musicians bidding to write the state song. He has been at the Inquirer since June 2008. Follow him on Twitter at @JonathanTamari.

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