Eagles DC Vic Fangio has not been shy in voicing his displeasure with the shortage of reside observe reps in Nick Sirianni’s staff schedule, one thing he’s talked about because the spring. However because the protection is now crushing opponents weekly, we discovered that Fangio’s enter will need to have been obtained by Sirianni as a result of they’ve been having extra practices — moderately than walkthroughs — on Wednesdays this season.
Through the Inquirer’s EJ Smith:
Jordan Davis on the #Eagles protection bettering their tackling a lot mid-season:
“We’re in full pads in observe and that’s one thing that we embrace. As a result of, once you try this in observe, you don’t have any alternative within the sport, it’s important to be a bodily participant.”
Davis famous the staff has been holding precise practices as an alternative of walkthroughs extra on Wednesdays than they’ve in years previous.
“It takes what it takes. Clearly our physicality is on show and all people feels it.”
When the Eagles employed Vic Fangio to be the brand new defensive coordinator, they had been bringing in over 40 years of expertise and an old-school method. That method clashed a bit with the way in which Nick Sirianni runs issues — a younger head coach who prioritizes high quality over amount when it comes to observe reps on gamers’ our bodies —, however Fangio accepted it.
Nonetheless, going all the way in which again to coaching camp, Fangio spoke about the way it’s robust to put in issues with such a restricted variety of reps, and all through the season he’s continued to carry it up. In response to a query about Cooper DeJean’s mentality and coachability, Fangio was certain to focus on the restricted observe reps for these younger guys who want expertise.
“I feel the extra he performs and the extra skilled he turns into – you attempt to expose him to as a lot stuff as you’ll be able to in observe, however clearly with the low reps of observe, you don’t get that finished all the time.”
In mid-November, the DC once more talked a couple of lighter observe schedule when requested in regards to the rookie wall. Fangio admitted that he doesn’t assume a rookie wall actually exists anymore. He defined that it was once a bodily factor, however now the gamers’ our bodies aren’t getting as a lot work earlier than the beginning of the common season.
“Again within the day, you’d have two-a-days in coaching camp, and once you received a rookie you thought would play, you’d observe him rather a lot. He’d play rather a lot in preseason video games when there have been 4. Properly, that don’t occur anymore. So, I don’t purchase the rookie wall anymore. It’s not bodily. It may be psychological, or emotional, but it surely’s not bodily anymore, for my part.”
It’s apparent the Eagles made numerous adjustments popping out of the bye week, and maybe a heavier work load for an especially younger protection was a kind of changes. The group has been enjoying quick, bodily, and with a ton of power ever since. And if the change was because of Fangio’s suggestion, hats off to Sirianni who has seemingly embraced any enter that may assist the staff win.