Philadelphia Eagles news and links for 12/13/17.

Let's get to the Philadelphia Eagles links ...

The case for and against Carson Wentz still winning MVP - NBC Sports Philadelphia
Prior to Monday Night Football, Bovada listed Tom Brady as the MVP favorite and Carson Wentz was no longer listed. Had the Patriots blown out the Dolphins as many expected, Brady would have surged into the MVP lead. But he didn't. The Patriots' offense couldn't get anything going, failing to convert a single third down for the first time since 1991. And even though Brady will probably play three more games this season than Carson Wentz, I still think Wentz can and will win MVP. There are a bunch of reasons why.

Nicky Franchise 2.0: Film Review - BGN
Who steps under the helm for Philadelphia’s playoff run? We break down recent Nick Foles film to find out!

Afternoon QB w/BLG: Time to See what Doug Pederson is Truly Made Of - BGNRadio.com
BLG breaks today’s episode down into three main parts: 1) Venting about Carson Wentz being hurt and not being happy about having to watch Nick Foles. 2) How the Eagles need to operate going forward, big test for Doug Pederson. 3) Quick look ahead to the Eagles-Giants game with three over/unders from Stephen Lee.

Win the Week - Iggles Blitz
Doug Pederson’s message all year has been to “Win the week”. All coaches preach something like this, but Doug seems to get this team to really buy into the message. That’s how this team avoids trap games and seems to overcome whatever is in front of them. It is imperative that Pederson stay on message and that the players stay focused. The Eagles can’t go win the Super Bowl this week. They’re just playing the Giants. The Eagles can help their chances by winning and securing a playoff bye. They could hurt themselves with a sloppy performance. That could hurt their bid for home field advantage. It could also erode their confidence, which is still pretty high. I love the movie Miller’s Crossing. There is a great line in there where Tom tells crime boss Leo, “You don’t hold elected office in this town. You run it because people think you do. They stop thinking it, you stop running it.”

The day after the day after: Without Wentz, I’m riding with Foles & co. - The Athletic
With Wentz done for the year, there’s now a strong temptation for fans to adopt that protective pessimism that attempts to replace the thrill of winning with the cold comfort of I-knew-it and I-told-you-so. Don’t. We’re Eagles fans. We already knew they weren’t going to win the Super Bowl, we just didn’t know why. Now we do, so it’s time to get on with the business of praying we’re wrong. It’s pointless to put guardrails on hope the exact moment we need it the most.

Will Nick Foles Be The Eagles’ Jeff Hostetler? Or Their Connor Cook? - FiveThirtyEight
With this in mind, Philly should probably channel any remaining optimism toward its defense, which ranks fifth in the league in points allowed this season. Since he took over the defensive playcalling in 2016, Jim Schwartz has quickly turned his unit into one of the top defenses in the NFL: The Eagles ranked 18th in defensive EPA the season before Schwartz took over and rank fourth in the league through 13 games this year. The D could be the team’s best hope of making a deep run in January.

Nick Foles Is No Carson Wentz, but He Gives the Eagles a Shot - The Ringer
It seems both reasonable and obvious that the Eagles offense is going to change, and not for the better. Foles is a major step down from Wentz, and that downgrade will shrink the playbook, stifle the team’s ability to create explosive plays through the air, and, almost surely, diminish their ability to score points. But Philly still has a strong run game to lean on, and the trade for Ajayi back in October could end up being the most crucial move the team made this year. Pederson should make Ajayi the foundation of the offense, throw in changeups with Blount and Clement, and limit what he asks Foles to do. The team’s defense and elite front four should help keep most games low scoring, and the top-tier special teams unit is always capable of making a game-changing play. In other words, the Eagles are certainly still contenders, and with an easy slate of defenses down the stretch (at the Giants, at home against the Raiders and Cowboys), the no. 1 seed and a first-round bye are still well within reach. The Eagles aren’t likely to win many games because of Foles, but they’re still balanced enough to compete with anyone.

Week 14 in the NFL: What we learned and didn't learn - ESPN
Wentz's injury is the latest gut punch in a season that has seen way too many fun stars suffer season-enders. But Pederson and offensive coordinator Frank Reich have shown enough to make you think they can scheme ways to put Foles in the best possible position to succeed. They have enough pass rush to control games on defense and enough running backs to control it when they have the ball. The question is whether Foles can extend drives with third-down plays the way Wentz did, and the answer is probably no, which lumps the Eagles in with the other favorites instead of making them the clear one.

With Carson Wentz down, Eagles need defense to reverse trend and lead the way - Daily News
But seriously, folks, Schwartz explained that a lot of the problems the past few weeks have had to do with tackling. At Seattle, getting Russell Wilson to the ground would have solved a lot of problems that developed on the back end. The Rams presented several challenges – chiefly Todd Gurley (13 carries, 96 yards, two touchdowns, plus three catches for another 39 yards) and Cooper Kupp (five catches, 118 yards and a touchdown). Rams QB Jared Goff likes to throw downfield and has been very good at it, but the only 20-plus-yard completion he managed against the Eagles was that short pass to Kupp on which both Malcolm Jenkins and Patrick Robinson whiffed, and Kupp scooted 64 yards.

Carson Wentz 2017: A Season For The Ages - PE.com
Carson Wentz is finished for the season as he was placed on the Injured Reserve list Tuesday and the conversation has moved on to Nick Foles and how he performs for the remainder of this playoff-bound season. That’s understandable. But let’s for a moment step back and appreciate what Wentz accomplished in 13 games (minus the fourth quarter of the Rams game on Sunday).

The best defenses to stream in fantasy in Week 15 - PFF
With Carson Wentz officially done for the season with a torn ACL, the Eagles are going to need to rely heavily on their defense down the stretch and into the playoffs. Fortunately, Philadelphia has a dominant defensive line that has accounted for 29.5 of the team’s 35 sacks and racked up seven forced fumbles with three fumbles recovered. That’s the fantasy production that owners crave at this time of the year. In this past four games the Eagles have 10 sacks with eight turnovers and a pair of defensive touchdowns. The Giants are continuing to play out the string with an underwhelming receiving corps due to injuries. Look for another big day from Brandon Graham (he returned a fumble for a score last week) and company as they take advantage of a struggling New York offense.

Philadelphia Eagles' Jim Schwartz talks Sidney Jones, doesn't know if he'll play this season - PennLive
"He's worked really, really hard to put himself in this position," Schwartz said. "He's had a big injury, he's been diligent, he's been consistent, he's kept a great attitude, and all that will serve him, but, you know, you just have to see how it is on the field, because we can't judge him based on any other rookie or any other veteran player. He's at a completely different spot."

City Council Honors Eagles Safety Malcolm Jenkins For Work Off The Field - CBS Philly
A special honor Tuesday night for Malcolm Jenkins. The Eagles safety was recognized for his work off the field. City Councilman Curtis Jones and Derek Green presented Jenkins with a resolution for his dedication to making social change.

Week 14 DVOA Ratings - Football Outsiders
This week, the Philadelphia Eagles and Los Angeles Rams played the best and closest of the recent DVOA Bowl games. The Eagles pulled out a 43-35 win (that was really a 37-35 win plus a meaningless touchdown returning the Rams' fumble on an end-game "zillions of laterals" attempt). So the team that wins the DVOA Bowl should be No. 1 in DVOA now, right? Nope.

Panthers fan pleads guilty to bloodying the face of another fan - Charlotte Observer
A Carolina Panthers fan who bloodied the face of another fan at the Panthers-Philadelphia Eagles game in October pleaded guilty to simple assault on Tuesday and must serve 10 days in jail, media outlets reported.

Sports stopped making sense in 2017 - SB Nation
This was indeed the year of the upside down. From NFL dominance to MLB bullpen management to the NCAA’s loose grip on reality to, gulp, the Ball family, we questioned everything we thought we knew about sports in 2017. Expectation vs. Reality is more than a just meme — it’s the sports world at a crossroads.

The Rights To Ricky Sanchez & BGN Radio present: We Were Right Before Christmas
Here we are, standing on the right side of history. It will be one night, and the two biggest Philly sports podcasts in the world, as Rights To Ricky Sanchez and BGN Radio perform separate podcasts, then come together for one big combo pod. Come and spread some holiday cheer with the guys and their special guests.

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