Q&A with Eagles fans: Carson Wentz, Doug Pederson, Josh Sweat, and Darius Slay

We talk with Eagles fans about what's wrong with Wentz, how Darius Slay has fared, how this season might go, and what to expect on Sunday.

Oct 04, 2020

Episode 4 of our Q&A series for all of the 49ers opponents - this time, it is the 2017 Super Bowl Champions, the Philadelphia Eagles. Hearing other fans perspectives is humbling and also the most accurate way to get a perspective on the team we face tomorrow. Our questions are both from the r/Eagles subreddit, and an Eagles discord that I have linked! The Eagles discord is the same community that used to be at Bleeding Green Nation! Special thanks to everyone who participated, not just the people cited in responses below! Loved seeing all the interaction.

r/Eagles members are denoted by the u/, vs. Eagles discord members who are denoted by the @.

Who’s one player flying under the radar that’s posed for a breakout season? Similarly, who is the most overrated player?

u/ItsLittleWolf

For overrated, I would probably put Jalen Mills in that category, went back to his old position and he’s been really bad so far. Okay in run support but has been terrible in coverage. You can even make a case for Nate Gerry being overrated because he has been ABYSMAL, I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone play the LB position worse for the Eagles that was a regular starter. For whatever reason Schwartz loves him at LB.
As for underrated I think Josh Sweat fits the mold, spent a couple seasons on the sidelines as a project and learning and his finally making his presence felt. He can get better in the run game but man in the pass game he’s been constantly getting by the person across from him, I’m really excited to see how he does the rest of the season with regular playing time.

@thebarryman

Josh Sweat is making the most of the chances he's gotten from Barnett's injury, creating pressure and making plays. Most overrated - Wentz. For all that's been written about his struggles, too much blame has been placed on the coaching staff. Even when he makes the completion, his ball placement is often poor and severely limits the ability for the play to develop after the catch, along with leading his receivers into hazardous situations. Many drives have sputtered not due to poor play calling or lack of production in the run game, but flat out misses time and again from Wentz.

Josh Sweat alert! The man that a lot of 49ers fans liked during the draft a couple years back, he has found his groove after recovering from injury and seems to be playing very well for the Eagles. Jalen Mills and Carson Wentz get a vote for overrated - not unexpected, though still jarring to see Carson Wentz on that list.

Strongest and weakest position group on the team?

@thebarryman

Weakest - linebacker. We don't have any players, just guys who run around on the field. Howie told the media he was getting tired of seeing the ball thrown over our heads when he traded for Darius Slay. Instead, we are now being picked apart to a slow death, over the middle of the field for 10-15 yards a pop. Strongest - hard to say given all the injuries we've incurred. Maybe outside corner? Slay has been a highlight in an otherwise bleak season.

u/32Bit*****

Normally I'd say our OL is our strongest group, even with one or two injuries, but we've just had too many injuries to the OL this season for me to feel confident saying that. That probably leaves our DL as our strongest right now since we're missing Dallas Goedert at TE.
The easy answer for weakest group is LB, but there's a strong case to be made for our WRs due to injury, as well as our safeties.

@ThePhoenixXM

Weakest position group has always been WR. All our good players are injured and we are down to like 2. Our strongest was TE but with Goedert fracturing a bone in his leg that becomes a weakness as our other TE Ertz wants more money that we don't have.

WR, LB, LB - it’s clear it is one of those two. Like I said, if you own Kittle in fantasy - might be time to start him. The good news for Philly - Dontae Johnson is the starting CB2, meaning their WRs won’t have to be very good to make an impact.

What do you feel are weaknesses with the 49ers, on offense or defense that can be exploited?

@WeBePlayinLike

Weaknesses in the 49ers to exploit? Would be the secondary but we don't have WRs and Carson Wentz isn't good right now.

u/LeedleLord9999

I would think the 49ers are going to be easy to exploit with a mix of constant runs and mixing in deep passes. The defense is thin. The Eagles won't be the team to do it though.

u/SnZ001

I expect that our DL might cause some problems up front against your interior guys. But, as you noted, our LBs are kinda hot garbage right now, so Mullens could potentially mitigate that by attacking them with some quick slants and intermediate crossers. Force man coverage from our LBs on Kittle, and he'll eviscerate them.

Shanahan might have a field day against this weakened Philly defense. Protection from the big guys up front will be key - can McGlinchey and the rest of the offensive lineman not named Trent Williams hold their own against the Fletcher Cox’s, the Brandon Grahams of the world? We find out tomorrow - but if they can’t, this game could get interesting.

Injuries and opt-outs have hit both of our teams so far - but is there a chance the Eagles can turn it around without so many players?

u/KoBxElucidator

If I were the Eagles, I honestly would not try to turn it around at this point. Tank for a better draft pick.

u/SnZ001

I don't ever want to start throwing around the T-word three weeks into a season. But the injuries have been bad. I mean, really bad. Like, even by stereotypical Philly team medical staff standards bad. And that was even before all of the WRs started getting hurt.

When injuries are worse than the 49ers - it is bad. Very bad. Philadelphia already was not a contender, the injuries made it worse. They lost a top 3 guard in the league in Brandon Brooks, WR1, WR2, WR3, and their young budding star OT in Andre Dillard. It’s bad. Tanking bad.

If you could pick one player from the 49ers to “steal”, who would it be and why? Factor in team needs.

u/32Bit*****

For us, I'd probably say Fred Warner or... any LB really. I'm not super familiar with your guys but I've heard good things, and it's our Achilles heel on defense right now and it's ruining everything.

@ThePhoenixXM

One player I want to "steal" from the Niners is of course your Gronk Kittle. He is one of the best TEs in football.

@thebarryman

Nick Mullens

@AngelsAreAliens

I'd take Sherman with one leg.

Shows you how much Mullens’ value is! In all seriousness, most of these are obvious. Kittle is weird with Ertz already being there, but from what I can discern, looks like Ertz’s play has both fallen off and he also wants a new contract. With Goedert waiting behind him, does not look like Ertz has much of a future in Philly.

Carson Wentz - What’s the problem, and is Jalen Hurts legitimately a possibility?

u/32Bit*****

Personally I think it's a problem with positional coaching, but there are infinite theories. Press Taylor, our passing game coordinator & QB coach, is sort of known for being a softie with Carson - and his mechanics, I believe, have regressed as a result. In 2017, when we had John DeFilippo as our QB coach, Carson looked as elite as they come before his injury. There were some sources saying that Carson didn't like DeFilippo because he was hard on him. With the contract Carson is on right now, as long as he remains healthy I wouldn't expect to see Hurts until at least after the bye, if things continue in this direction. I think once you bench your franchise QB, it's going to be really hard to repair that relationship and I don't think the FO is willing to throw the baby out with the bath water just yet.

u/rhinguin

No I don’t think Jalen Hurts is a legitimate possibility. At least yet.
Once you bench Carson it’s over - we can’t go back. He really has to prove that this regression is permanent before we consider moving on.

@ThePhoenixXM

Carson's problems have been accuracy, poor reads, and zero confidence. He is mentally shot. It doesn't help that your backup won the Super Bowl and then the team that signed you to a big contract then drafts a backup in the second round for no reason.

Clearly, the panic button with Jalen Hurts’ name on it is not being considered - but Wentz is beginning to warrant a move like that. Like u/rhinguin pointed out, once they bench him - it’s likely over for Wentz here (ala, Mariota in Tennessee.)

How has Darius Slay been so far - and is your defense still up to standards with no major injuries so far?

u/JellyBonesJones

With our defense getting minimal pressure and Jalen Mills struggling against the rush/pass, Slay is playing just as good as advertised. He’s doesn’t give up on plays and is very vocal from what we can see in the interviews and social media. He can shut down a top wide receiver while making good tackles on end around run plays. Our defense has the luxury of great coaching with Jim Schwartz but they do not have the personnel to keep them close against high speed offenses. Our linebackers couldn’t cover leftover potato salad but the defensive line still has Fletcher Cox and Barnett who needs a big year after getting criticized for last season. I think we had 8 sacks against the Bengals mostly from a 4 man rush if I’m not wrong.

@ThePhoenixXM

Slay has been our best corner by far not that we have any other good corner mind you. He has played well.

As expected, Darius Slay has been one of the key additions to this team - but he needs help. The rest of the Eagles secondary is abysmal. This Eagles team is obviously not the same as it was a year ago, but they will still be challenging with a good defensive line vs. our weakened offensive line.

What should people expect from the Eagles on Sunday, and for the rest of the season?

u/LeedleLord999

Expect the Eagles to roll over and die based on what y'all did to the Giants.

u/Burn-Account

Expect to have a free BYE.
Imagine last season’s Bengals. That is what the Eagles game is going to feel like.

@ThePhoenixXM

People should expect on National TV basically a repeat of the Niners last game against the Giants where you demolished them and I honestly don't see the Eagles winning more than 3 games.

Yeah. Philly fans are not very excited as you can tell. Personally? I think it will be closer than the Giants game - as injured as the Eagles are, they are still better.

Expect a pre-game article with every detail you need to know tomorrow morning in the early hours. Go Niners!

Leave a like and comment to support us if you like the article and our content, or if you have criticism, or simply for discussion. Check out our best content, including Part 1 and Part 2 of an in-depth look into Jimmy Garoppolo, where we look at what his issues were last season, and a in-depth look into the Kittle vs. Kelce argument.

For The Niners

Discussion about this post