Nolan Smith - Destined Since IMG Academy?!

Nolan Smith looks like he's been in the spotlight since high school and is very comfortable with that position. The Georgia native from Savannah moved to Bradenton, Fla to attend the IMG Academy to get his name out there in recruiting circles and as shown in the clip he made full use of the opportunity!

The IMG Academy, a nationally known and recognized powerhouse in football is an interesting case study in how profitable football is in the southern regions of the United States. Their website really promotes their status and visitors come away with this is where you come if you want to be put on the college recruitment wheel.  Check out the Campus tour for the Academy:

Smith, under IMG's vast resources and hands on training (see the facilities), propelled into the number 1 player at IMG and onward to Georgia where he continued his rise as a leader and Edge Rusher on the most dominant defense in college football.

The Philadelphia Eagles drafted Smith #30 overall in the 2023 NFL Draft and he looks like a future leader and presence for a rabid fan base.

It sure feels good to be a Philly fan these days!

Rookie Mini-Camp Is Here!

Coordinators And Winning

Philadelphia won a Super Bowl in 2017 and experienced an exodus of coaches from the team and the 2022 team is experencing the same thing as an organization. The difference between that team and this team going forward is the organization remembers what happened as the splintering began starting with the Quarterback. Carson Wentz never recovered from "not" winning the Super Bowl and that was compounded by the loss of Frank Reich as an Offensive Coordinator and John Defillipo as a Quarterback coach. Fast forward to today and after a Super Bowl runner up finish in 2022 fans will be introduced to new coordinators in the 2023 season and we will see if the organization has learned from the 2017 splintering. Fans should be encouraged by Jalen Hurts, who from all appearances appears to be a disciple of the Micheal Jordan/Kobe Bryant mindset. That mindset led him to make outstanding improvements to his game and from all accounts made the biggest one year leap ever seen by a Quarterback in the modern NFL era. The leap was recognized by the 101 group who named Jalen it's Offensive Player of the year!

Congrats to @JalenHurts on winning NFC Offensive Player of the Year at the 101 Awards 👏 #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/5O9eR0aJAs

— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) February 26, 2023

The team will need Jalen's Breed of One mindset which is similiar to Kobe's Mamba mindset as they replace both coordinators and free-agent players. I have confidence in that Breed of One mentality and saw that the head coach is even influenced by him. Here's a clip of how I hope Jalen's mindset is after this Super Bowl runner up finish.

Kobe’s mindset after being eliminated was to get right back in the gym to WORK

“I’ll push myself to exhaustion.”

Mamba Mentality 🎯pic.twitter.com/r2mRXnU8H0

— Jaycob Ammerman (@Jammer2233) October 20, 2020

I'm confident in the organization to get the right coordinators and coaches to keep winning and have steeled myself not to get impatient with the time it is taking to name the new coordinators.

Draft Season Is Upon Us

Ok no Lombardi, no parade and while it's hard we gotta move on to next year and the first task is player acquisition. Free Agency is up first in March and my top priorities would be CGJ and Javon Hargrave.  Both are key players if this organization is going to make another run at the Lombardi. I trust Howie to make competitive offers to keep these players in the Novacare Center.  They'll add in veterans as their pro personnel staff is competent and have unearthed some gems e.g. Boston Scott and Marcus Epps.

The Annual Draft is where the excitement really is and count me in as a goofy mock drafter who does too many mocks and here's my mock with 2 trade backs.  Howie always goes with blue chip trench players and I didnt stray from his formula with talented lineman.  I didnt forget about skill position players though and that's why I traded back to get more day 2 players.

Eagles Win Against A Depleted Saints Team

The Philadelphia Eagles for the first time in 5 games this season looked like they constructed and then executed a fundamental gameplan against a NFL team. Chip Kelly made some changes to his kinetic tempo offense and put together a plan of attack that looked like he spent a week studying tendencies, weaknesses, and players of the team he was facing that week. This is called improvement my NFL friends and humbling oneself rather than saying EXECUTION was the issue which to all who heard these words sounded like a code word for it's not my gameplans, it's the players.  Ok I got that off my chest and now let's talk about the game.  Sam Bradford still is rusty and it showed in the game as he missed two redzone throws that would have put the Eagles up 14-0 in the first quarter but instead they were interceptions that sucked the air out of the stadium. The good news was before those throws he was leading the team and moving the ball down the field which speaks to having a game plan as mentioned before. 

The Saints had problems though because of a strong defensive effort led by Fletcher Cox didn't present much offense beyond their early 7-0 lead in the first quarter.  The defense allowed Bradford and the offense to finally start cashing in on the movement and they led 10-7 going into halftime with Bradford throwing a 41 yard touchdown to Josh Huff and a field goal by Caleb Sturgis.  The third quarter showed the grit of Bradford as he began, through a balanced attack featuring DeMarco Murray, to pull the team ahead while Drew Brees had to deal with constant pressure from the Eagles defensive front and was sacked 5 times with one resulting in a fumble. Bradford and the defense buoyed the team and they exploded with touchdowns from Ryan Mathews, Brent Celek, and DeMarco Murray ending up with a 39-17 win.

It was a strong second half and that's been the usual case for the Eagles as they seem to still be getting used to playing with each other.  The star of the game was Fletcher Cox who finished with six tackles, 3 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, and 1 fumble recovery which is the stat line which he said after the game is the first of his career.  Next up for the Eagles are the New York Giants on Monday Night Football next week.

Eagles Beat The Jets And Secure Their First Win

The Philadelphia Eagles used stellar special teams and defense to beat the New York Jets 24-17 in week 3 action. Darren Sproles scored on a punt return to get the Eagles started and pushed the lead to 10-0 and the Eagles used that energy with Ryan Mathews hard running jumped out to a 24-7 lead at halftime.

 

The Eagles defense mobbed Ryan Fitzpatrick and caused 4 turnovers with an outstanding performance from Linebacker Jonathan Hicks who recovered a fumble and caught an interception. The rookie who filled in for a depleted linebacker corp really showed up and showed out in his first start totalling 10 tackles, 1 pass defense, and the aforementioned interception and fumble recovery. The Eagles needed every bit of their defense's contribution as the offense was stymied in the second half.

 

Sam Bradford continued to look uncomfortable in Chip Kelly's offense and failed to get the ball to receiver not named Jordan Matthews. The win nevertheless was the most important outcome and winning while not performing the best gives hope. The hope of course is that the offense can match the defense and string together a strong performance and start winning multiple games.

MetLife Stadium could be the start of something good but only time will tell.

Eagles Lose And It Looks Like A Lost Season

The Dallas Cowboys rolled into Lincoln Financial field and for the fourth time in a row defeated the Philadelphia Eagles on their home turf 20-10. The 20-10 score is not indicative of the kind of football played by both teams as Troy Aikman best said it, "This is bad football by two teams expected to contend for the NFC East title". The first half, which was marred by inept offense and penalties, concluded with the Cowboys leading 6-0 on two field goals.

 

The developing story of the season, though for Philadelphia, is how terrible the Eagles offensive line is as DeMarco Murray at one point had 8 carries for -15 yards. Sam Bradford when he had time watched his receivers drop passes which could have helped them develop a rhythm but that never happened. Jason Kelce, an emerging player, looked very average as the Dallas defensive line just physically whopped up on the line and caused confusion, mayhem, and chaos. Chip Kelly in the post game presser said rather clearly, "We couldn't block anybody and you're not going to win any games if you cant run the ball".

 

The defense played 40 minutes because of the offense's inability to run an offense and while they played heroically they wore down in the end as Terrance Williams late game touchdown sealed Dallas' victory. Byron Maxwell surrendered that touchdown but he and his teammates caused turnovers and generally kept the Eagles in the game. The Eagles now are 0-2 and a victory looks far away for this team. Their immediate concern should be sticking together and working harder because it quite frankly looked like they didn't practice on offense. The noise in the press and on talk radio will be loud and angry next week so the message has to be "Stick Together".

The season is fragile now and Chip Kelly is on the hot seat while everyone waits and watches for a response to these two bad games.

Eagles Credentialed For Big College Football Games

Per A College Football 24-7 Report, Eagle scouts were credentialed for several national college football games. Lets take a look at the games and maybe who they are interested in:

Georgia Tech vs Notre Dame:

Notre Dame has a blue chipper at Linebacker named Jaylon Smith who could be of interest as a rush linebacker.

Florida vs Kentucky:

Offensive lineman David Sharpe and Linebacker Antonio Morrison could be interesting esp since depth at these positions is low.

South Carolina vs Georgia

Several blue chippers in this game including Wr Pharoah Cooper, Linebacker Jordan Jenkins and OT Brandon Shell.

BYU vs UCLA

Myles Jack is a superior athlete and can play safety in the Eagles defense and instantly upgrade the backend.

H/t Chase Goodbread of College Football 24/7.

The Sad History of Bill Davis As A Defensive Coordinator

Bill Davis has become a buzz word around the Delaware Valley because to be frank his defenses leave a lot to be desired especially from a coverage standpoint.  The results last year really frustrated Eagle fans as the defense surrendered 90 plays of 20 yards or more. Simply math gives us five and half plays of 20 yards or more a game.  This will not win many games in the NFL and but for Chip Kelly's offense and tempo the team could have easily been 8-8 last season because a couple of games saw some lucky bounces.  Well let's dig a little bit into Bill Davis and look at his defensive philosophy.  

Davis started off with Pittsburgh Steelers under Bill Cowher as defensive statistical analysis coach and that means he studied games and looked for trends in formations, play-calling "tells", and helping with Linebackers.  He then went to the Carolina Panthers as a OLB coach for Dom Capers.  He studied under 2 pretty good defensive coaches and formed his defensive philosophy for attacking offenses and one would have thought that it would have translated as he became a defensive coordinator 13 years later with the San Francisco 49ers.  Bill Davis' defenses at San Francisco in 2005 and 2006 look like this though:

Year    |  Points Per Game         | Yards Per Game             | League Rank

2005               26.8                           391.2                               29th

2006               25.8                           344.2                               32nd

These numbers led to him getting fired but since the NFL is a good ole boys club he was hired as a Linebackers coach the very next year with the Arizona Cardinals in 2007.  Arizona was not the contending team it is today but they were a young team with emerging talent that they collected from drafting high due to losing.  The losing eventually gave Davis his chance again as a defensive coordinator with Arizona Cardinals. Here's his numbers with Arizona:

Year      |  Points Per Game      |  Yards Per Game            | League Rank

2009                20.3                        346.4                               14th

2010                27.1                        373.6                               30th

What about these numbers excite you about Bill Davis?  Three of the four years he was a defensive coordinator his teams finished 29th or lower in the league and one year his defense finished dead last! Lets now take a look at his Eagle numbers as a defensive coordinator:

Year    |  Points Per Game   | Yards Per Game                | League Rank

2013                                                                                         29th

2014                  25.0                     375.6                                28th

I didn't add the 2013 year's numbers because according to Davis it was an install year and everyone was still learning the defense but do you see a trend?  Of course you see the trend and it's all of these defenses rank 28th or lower in the league (except for the one outlier in 2009) . IT'S 32 TEAMS IN THE LEAGUE! The passing defense ranked 31st in the league last year and that is salt in the wound at this point but it magnifies my point.  THIS MUST CHANGE if this team is going to contend and ultimately this will be on Chip Kelly because the information is out there about how to attack and defeat Bill Davis and his defense.

Chip Kelly the failure of this defense will be on you not Bill Davis because you chose this.

Eagles Look To Rebound vs A Dangerous Dallas Team

Chip Kelly in his Tuesday and Wednesday pressers stressed penalties and technique as two areas that need to be cleaned up as they approach their game against the Cowboys. Kelly appeared calm as the Philly beat writers asked question after question about the team's preparation, fire, and readiness and he stood in as the questions came about his approach on the field goal attempt that Cody Parkey missed. Kelly backed his Pro Bowl placekicker and said the team must move on to the Dallas game. Oooooh yes it's Dallas week and a rival game, a division game, and the possibility of going 0-2 should be enough to get this team ready!

 

Speaking of readiness, everyone saw the lack of passrush and Marcus Smith is needed as a passrusher. Is he ready to rush the passer and help this team? Everyone is waiting to see because Vinny Curry is needed back on Dline duties.

 

Brian Baldinger, Herman Edwards, and Ron Jaworski all weighed in on Sports Talk radio and gave their insight and by their accounts the Dallas game is a must win and will go a long way in this season.

Eagles Lose To The Falcons 26 - 24....Over Reaction Tuesday

The Philadelphia Eagles game against the Atlanta Falcons was a great game for fans of the NFL as Chip Kelly's blitz style on offense and loose covering defense makes for an exciting brand of football, almost has an Arena League feel to it at times.  I have some observations of the game from the Eagles point of view with some interesting facts.  The Eagles are 1-4 in their last five regular season games and I see a blue print that defenses are using with Kelly's offense.  They are attacking the offensive line in the middle and this is where it seems to be weak. Jason Kelce, a fan favorite in Philly, made two bonehead mistakes by unnecessarily blocking men that had no chance of making the play and it negated two huge plays that could have shifted the game.  When he wasn't doing that he was getting run over in the run game and it's an identified weakness now. Andrew Gardener didn't do too well either as the Eagles decided to pass the ball 52 times and run it 16 times. There's some work to do on offense and defense as x plays (plays of 20 yds. or more) hurt the team and one 3rd down and 15 was especially painful as the team was clawing back into the game.  Julio Jones had his way with Byron Maxwell and lit the lamp for 9 catches, 141 yds. and 2 Tds.  It was an evening very similar to what was routinely seen last year.  Here's some other observations about the game again from the Eagles perspective

Chip Kelly Has To Decide what this team's identity is. If you bring Murray and Mathews here then use them in the run game which zaps the defensive lineman and  it gives Sam Bradford a chance to lather up and the receivers too. He looked like a rookie coach in the 1st half and he left his team looking confused on offense and defense.  Every play someone looked lost and that my friends is coaching.

The team will get better but now I'm looking at Kelly's calls and Bill Davis' defense with my magnifying glass because again they are 1-4 in it's last 5 games.

Ok, that's what's called Over reaction Tuesday after a Monday night loss.

DSPN Fantasy Football Primer Week 1

I have been playing Fantasy Football since '96 so I figured I can talk a little about Fantasy football because Ive been doing it for 18 years. Ok enough about me lets get to week 1. Here's two players who I think will surprise this week and this season and I have them stashed on all my teams:

Wr Tyler Lockett, Seattle Seahawks

His route running and playmaking ability just mesh with Russell Wilson and Russell will look for him as he consistently makes plays for him during the season.

Rb Lamar Miller, Miami Dolphins

He is excelling Bill Lazor's offense, which uses elements of Chip Kelly's offense, and looks like he will only get better. I have him as my #2 Rb and will ride or die with him.

Other players Im high on this year are Qb Sam Bradford,  and Wrs DeSean Jackson and Brandin Cooks.  I just so happen to be high on these guys in week 1 too as all have considerable upside and are great plays. Bradford will explode IMO against a weak Atlanta D, Jackson has played well with Cousins and is the number #1 long ball threat in pro football and averaged 20.6 ypc last year with a revolving door at quarterback. Cooks has Jackson like ability and Drew Brees as a quarterback and in a half season looked especially explosive. I look for him to continue what he started with Brees last season.

Those are my guys for week 1 in Fantasy, I will be back next Thursday for my plays in week 2.

On Your Mark, Chip Set, Eagles Go

The season starts with the Philadelphia Eagles at the Atlanta Falcons on Monday Night. The powers that be have decided to see what Chip's makeover is all about and put the Eagles on national Tv so everyone can see what that makeover looks like! Everyone is excited in Philly and high expectations have taken over the city with some touting dare I say it....SUPER BOWL WINNING expectations. Im expecting to see improvement but will take a wait and see approach starting with this Atlanta game. Lets take a look at the Atlanta game.

 

Here's some keys that I think will say alot about the season starting with this game.

 

• Sam Bradford's movement - I expect the Falcons to come after Sam as Dan Quinn, Atlanta's new coach, has an aggressive defensive philosophy. If Sam shows any mobility it dispels this myth that he lacks mobility and is a statue.

 

• Bill Davis' defense - This defense gave up 90 plays of 20 yards or more and at times in the secondary it looked like an episode of the Keystone cops and Davis took a lot of heat for it from the fans. The Eagles come into this game with wholesale changes in the secondary where only one starter returns from last year. They will be tested by the Falcons who have a good quarterback in Matt Ryan and a superstar receiver in Julio Jones.

 

• Complimentary football - Everyone will be looking at how Chip Kelly calls a football game with a lead in the second half if in fact, of course, they are leading in this game. The team looked tired at the end of last season and many blamed the pace of Kelly's offense and the defense wearing out.

 

Those are some things to look at as the Eagles and Falcons face off on Monday night. Here's my prediction.

 

Eagles 50 - 21!

Storylines Aplenty For The Eagles As They Face Off With The Ravens Saturday Night



Marcus Smith, last years disappointing 1st round draft pick, has suddenly been thrust in the spotlight due to him tweaking his hamstring in yesterday's joint practice. In fact yesterday he was trending on Twitter which I'm sure was news to him because of how little he has contributed to the Philadelphia Eagles' football team.  Nevertheless it does put the team in a spot because the depth at outside linebacker is extremely thin due to Travis Long's ACL tear earlier in camp. Vinny Curry is going to play in Smith's spot, although he's used to rushing the passer exclusively and the position is new to him.  The good news is it will only keep Smith out of 3 preseason games and he should be back for the start of the regular season.

Sam Bradford is slated to start but according to him "you never know what coach is going to do" but he's hopeful as the second preseason game approaches.  His health is of major concern to everyone as the season honestly hinges on his ability to stay healthy and it's why Head Coach Chip Kelly is thinking long and hard about whether getting Bradford some reps in a meaningless game matters. Most people and that includes me believe that he should at the very minimum get a quarter's worth of action to get over the jitters of playing in a live contest after a two year layoff.

DeMarco Murray has been coasting ,honestly,  in camp and Kelly is managing his reps with a keen eye especially after coming off a 400+ touches season last year with the Dallas Cowboys.  The media in Philly thinks DeMarco is hurt and Kelly isn't spilling the beans but as told to MMQB's Peter King, Kelly is very aware of the downward slope of backs after handling the ball 400+ times the season before and said "it matters how he was managed coming into the next season". 

These are the storylines coming into preseason game number 2 for the Philadelphia Eagles.

Eagles vs Colts PreSeason Game Observations

I know it's very early and it was the first Preseason Game but I'm take this opportunity to knock off the rust and start writing again.  Here's what I saw after watching the game a total of three times and noted some things.

1. Marcus Smith Is A Project - He needs a coach to keep their foot in his ass and to emphasize when you go out there you need to play like every play is a resume builder! Encouraging signs still looking for violence (in my Coach Azz voice)

2. Jalen Watkins May Be Chopped - He cant tackle and he looks queasy as a outside corner. Nickel job is going to Biggers if he continues to play well.

3. Najee Goode Looked Bad - I Liked Goode till I saw him Sunday, he didn't shoot through the gaps when he had to and waited for contact from a lineman instead of going for the ball carrier. He battling for a spot, better play better next game.

4. Taylor Hart Didn't Impress - He didn't get off blocks or stun his blocker and I always saw him going sideways or backwards, he has to improve to get in the rotation.

5. Bryan Braman May Be The Third OLB - I was impressed with his violence and will to be a game-changer. Need more angry players on Defense which was lacking last year.

6. John Moffitt Will Win RG Battle - He needs to knock the rust off after his 2 yr. layoff and will not start until game 3. Tobin and Gardener are backup types who offer depth, Moffitt was a starting player and looks like he fits he just needs to get back and comfortable.

7. Nelson Agholor And Miles Austin Will Play More Than Riley Cooper and Josh Huff - Huff needs to get the ball more in the pre-season and show something  or they will go with Austin who's at the very least reliable and I'm a Huff fan.

8. See you Earl Wolff, Get Comfortable Ed Reynolds - Wolff is injury prone and you cant make the club on the sidelines. Ed is ball hawking like he did at Stanford but what happens when the safety is asked to cover which we ask them to do in this Davis defense.

9. Raheem Mosert Is A Practice Squad Stash - I like what I saw with him, he's in a battle with Kenjon Barner but will lose because Barner offers a little more in Special teams.

10. Sam Bradford Watch - I'm waiting to see how he performs with these open receivers that Chip Kelly's offense seems to always produce.  Mark Sanchez is a backup period and we saw that. Matt Barkley played well but against 2nd and 3rd teams. Tim Tebow is a gadget dude and stays as a third stringer. Wonder how many games he's active though.

 

NFL Team Sites Review - Denver Broncos

Photo courtesy of Flickr

 

I must admit right up front that I'm a football junkie who cruises NFL team websites top to bottom to get as much information about them as I can to win all my sports bar arguments.  I also learn their blog site information to get a pulse from not just their websites but the people in their area who are a little more objective about the team even as fans of that team. The 49ers started out the cruise and now we travel to Denver to look at the mighty Broncos who are really popular in the west and because of their Super Bowls they have a national following.  We'll start the off the Broncos cruise by going to their NFL Home site to see how their represented.

The Broncos NFL Home site is a mess and doesn't load entirely when you enter.  That as a first impression is terrible because you're left to wonder what is trying to load instead of enjoying what else the page has to offer. They have some videos, some galleries, and the ticket center which is smack dab in the middle centered in the page.  It looks like a rookie setup and I'
m amazed this organization is represented like this.

Denver NFL Home page scores a 60 on a rating scale of 100 ------------------->NFL.com Denver Page

The SB Nation Page Mile High Report is pretty well done with loads of multimedia content. SB Nation does a real good job of mixing reporter content with fan posts and fan shots which gives a voice to the fan who of course pays all the bills.

Denver Mile High Report blog scores a 90 on a rating scale of 100 ------------------>Mile High Report

Fansided offers the Predominantly Orange blog as a voice of the fan with editorials, team news, rumors, and opinion. The Fansided Network, which is a subsidiary of Sports Illustrated, does a really good job of putting links together to form a view of a team from various sources in addition to the aforementioned editorials, news, and opinions. 

The Predominantly Orange blog scores a 90 on a rating scale of 100 ------------Predominantly Orange

We'll close out this review and cruise with the juggernaut media leader ESPN who offers a team page through their NFL Nation link.  Jeff Legwold is the Broncos' reporter who covers the team and he does a pretty good job of reporting what's happening with the team.  ESPN has done a great job of hiring a beat reporter that has already established a base and supporting them with their resources.

Denver ESPN NFL Nation scores a 93 on a rating scale of 100-----------------------Denver NFL Nation

HBO Ballers Review

Photo courtesy of Flickr

 

The anticipated HBO pilot Ballers aired Sunday night starring Dwayne Johnson used the glitz and glamour of  Miami and of course, the cache of the NFL.  The concept is the life NFL Ballers lead off the field and how hectic it is with balancing financials and lifestyles with athletics. The opening scene jumps you in with a star athlete speeding in his Bentley with his love crazed "girlfriend" who tells him she loves him so much she would kill herself and shortly afterward kills the both of them when she loses her mind over his infidelity right there in the car and starts to fight him making him crash at high speed. The next scene is the funeral and the news from the grieving wife that the star athlete left his family unsecured and penniless. This is where Dwayne Johnson's character, who is a newly retired former NFL player but connected, comes in and gets the brainchild through some prodding to "broker" and handle his connected baller friend's financials.

 

Spencer is that dude who's there for his ballers and we see already that John David Washington, who's the hothead baller, needs him to work his magic and get him out of a mess and back into the NFL on a team.  The plot lines are already formed as Spencer is "kinged" using his connections and it makes him a trusted information man and connector and from the looks of his circle they will need him to look out for them. 

 

It's a good start for the show and I'm looking forward to watching if HBO picks up the season.  I'd give it two thumbs up!

NFL Team Sites Review - San Francisco 49ers

Photo courtesy of Flickr

I must admit right up front that I'm a football junkie who cruises NFL team websites top to bottom to get as much information about them as I can to win all my sports bar arguments.  I also learn their blog site information to get a pulse from not just their websites but the people in their area who are a little more objective about the team even as fans of that team.  We'll start off this 32 team review and cruise with the 49ers and as you enter the team site on NFL.COM the first thing you notice is the mixing of noir and red on the photos which brings out that 49er red really nice. The site has a good mix of video and photos which are fan favorites and will curb some of the fanatics appetites until Training Camp starts back up.  The site also has a great mix of headlines, articles, and galleries to click into which makes this almost more than a team site and makes it into a 49ers content meeting space.  The producers of this site are doing a fantastic job and I leave out of the site impressed every time I visit.

49ers nfl.com site grades out as 95 on a 100 scale --------------------------------> 49ERS NFL Team site

The next stop on the 49er review is SB Nation and I was introduced to these blogs two years ago and I have been going back ever since. The 49ers site on SB Nation is called Niners Nation and they do a pretty good job of keeping fans up to date with stories, videos, and fanposts surrounding the 49ers that give it a unique flavor.

Niners Nation blog site grades out as 90 on a 100 scale ------------------------------------> Niners Nation

Bleacher Report is a good follow as well as they have 23,084 following them on Facebook which indicates a few things to me and it's they have work to do and how competitive it is to get views because the 49ers are a national team with 5 Super Bowls in their cabinet.  They have a lot of content on their page but it's not well organized and it's a lot of white space on the page. This is not a knock on the writers and contributors as they have plenty of updated features and content but the site looks disorganized when compared to their competitors.

Bleacher Report media site grades out as a 80 on a 100 scale --------------> 49ers Bleacher Report Site

Fansided, which is a Sports Illustrated subsidiary, keeps 49ers fans updated with their Niner Noise page which is a mix of editorials, news, and web links to information about the 49ers.  It's a well put together page with great information about the team.

FanSided media site grades out as a 90 on a 100 scale ----------------------------------------->Niner Noise

We'll close out this review and cruise with the juggernaut media leader ESPN who offers a team page through their NFL Nation link.  Paul Gutierrez is the 49er reporter who covers the team and through the sheer size of their network and the resources they just cover the team from top to bottom and add content through writing and reporting that dominates the others on this page.

ESPN NFL Nation 49er team site grades out as a 96 on a 100 scale ------------> 49er NFL Nation Site

Mini Camp Is Over, Training Camp Awaits

Players, prospects, coaches and scouts have all just finished mini camp which honestly is the start of the new football year for 2015. The scouts and coaches worked hard adding prospects to the roster and mini camp was the time to add them in with the players and see how they process instructions and perform. What amazed me was the business of football during this time with writers clamoring for stories and Philly's media is renowned for chomping for stories. Here's some of the storylines we've seen so far at the start of the 2015:

• Can Sam Bradford stay healthy and flourish in Chip Kelly's offense.
• Is this year's version of the Eagles a rebuild (5 new starters of offense, 5 new starters on defense) or a reload?
• Can Nelson Agholor and Eric Rowe contribute as 2015 high round draft picks?
• Will Marcus Smith erase last year's unremarkable year as the team's 1st round draft pick?
• Is Chip Kelly a genius or a clown? 

The last question is really why everyone is captivated by Kelly as they are intrigued with his unique methods of football management. It's the only way you can explain the 101 reporters showing up for Kelly's opening Organized Training Activities press conference. The national media can't get enough of Kelly and while he appears disinterested, something tells me his ego loves it. As an Eagle fan I'm kind of in the middle because I appreciate that the team is getting coverage but honestly I just want to win and if Kelly wants to flip the roster and he's confident that the team can jell then I'm onboard. Time will tell but training camp is next up and I want to see how this rebuild or reload comes together!

What storylines do you expect or are hopeful of coming out of training camp?

Physical, Tough, Blue Collar Football

I saw this coaching clinic excerpt from Chip Kelly, provided here by Matt Lombardo, where he talked about his running back getting into the line and getting yards because we play blue collar football and we dont want the back tinkle footing it to try for a homerun. I like that approach for Philadelphia which is as blue collar as it gets. I must admit that at first I was "shook" with all the changes as Kelly literally replaced proven players like DeSean, Mike Vick, LeSean, and Maclin and not all the players brought in were proven replacements. The players he brought in all had common traits though and that's they are hard nosed physical players. Jordan Matthews, Josh Huff, Ryan Mathews, and the hardest of them all DeMarco Murray all play a physical brand of football and that's a style of football that's radically different from past years in Philadelphia. 

 

DeMarco Murray, who I didn't start looking at until Michael Irvin said on 97.5 the Fan that the Eagles were favorites because of DeMarco, is downright physical and nasty as a running back. I watched Dallas' games from the 2014 season and just wanted to view DeMarco (in my head from Chip's viewpoint) and I honestly came away saying Chip is going for a hard nosed team starting in the run game.  I wont call out players but I can see where Chip said I have to deconstruct this thing if we're going to really compete for a Super Bowl while I'm here because we're not going to compete with the top teams with this finesse brand of players that Andy Reid built in his time here.

Andy Reid, who liked to outsmart you with a 1000 page playbook, built a small fast team that was a reflection of his philosophy and those teams could not compete with the physical teams in the tournament. There was still a faction of those types of players still on the team and the result was the same. The old saying is "insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results" and that's what the Front office was doing. It was the lets "hope" we get hot in the tournament and let's see what happens, problem is what's happened for this team is it cant get off the field defensively or get that clutch play offensively when everything is on the line. Are we insane or is it time for a new way?

We are bound to find out in 2015 and Im not insane!