HappyDays

I'm on YouTube TV and every now and then the top of the screen has a line across it that makes everything look fuzzy and distorted. Had a bit of a jump scare early on when Ja'Marcus Ingram appeared to be sawed in half on the field.

I really want to know what goes through McDermott's mind when he tries to ice kickers in preseason. What reps are we trying to get here coach.

There are 1,000 LBs that can look good when their only job is to shoot gaps. Pass coverage is the skill that earns you a roster spot in the modern NFL. He has a long way to go to have the necessary mental processing to play at this level.

Gore is unfortunately just way way too slow. Wide open space gets swallowed up very quickly when he's plodding through it. I hope we bring Evans onto the PS though.

I've liked what I've seen from Ray Davis but a UDFA and a street FA signing are showing just as much or more as he has. This is why I didn't like drafting a RB that early.

McDermott was asked about Hardy at one of his recent pressers and said (paraphrased) that he was looking for better decision making. So no I think Hardy just made mental mistakes. Hopefully he's cleaned it up though. I like that he's cleanly fielded every single punt in preseason.

I just realized that was Xavier Legette dropping that layup. And he is in with the Panthers backups.

First time this preseason I've seen Hardy make the right decision to let it bounce into the endzone. Progress.

Cool that Bass made the kick but man that one was slicing hard to the right. And then he gifts them the 40 yard line.

Not sure that missed TD was 100% on DiNucci. He led it a bit too far but Shavers had so much space he easily should have tracked it and caught it. He slowed up and didn't get to the ball.

At least DiNucci is giving his guys a chance. Ball placement is all over the place but he is pulling the trigger.

Ingram is looking better than Elam out there

Just watching Andreessen there, he gave his man zero room to run through him and looked ready to shed off him if Bryce Young tried to turn the corner. Good physicality and awareness.

Really nice start for Andreessen. Had good pass coverage on the previous play and then made a run tackle that could have gone the distance if he didn't stop it.

Steve Tasker reporting Joe Andreessen will get the start again today. Not really a surprise but shows you his spot on the depth chart is pretty firm.

Word for word this would be true of almost any rookie prospect that wasn't a blue chip, no? Did anyone really expect Coleman to refine his game by the end of August in his rookie season? You take a prospect like him because you believe that his flaws are fixable, but not overnight. Separating/creating leverage in tight coverage from NFL boundary CBs is an art as much as it is a science and it's going to take him time to learn how to use his pure physical gifts to master that part of the game. Fans are of course right to have concerns about the WR room as a whole and about Coleman potentially getting more volume than he can handle right now, but having concerns about Coleman in general at this infant stage of his NFL career really isn't reasonable IMO.

Unfortunately Kirby, this regime clearly didn't see a high end WR as a desperate need. If they did and expected Coleman to immediately step in and be that guy, that is even worse. I don't see Coleman vs Hollins as the battle. If anything it was Coleman vs Hollins vs MVS for two spots, and MVS has emerged as the clear loser. I expect Coleman's usage to ramp up as the season goes along, which is the expectation for a 2nd round talent. Rashee Rice last year averaged just 34.6 YPG in his first 5 games, but 69.5 YPG in his final 11. Look for progress in October, not in August.

I don't think it has much to do with Coleman himself. It's been known since the draft that Hollins would get a significant amount of playing time. Until MVS was signed out of desperation, Hollins was the only player on the roster to have received a majority of his snaps outside in the NFL. I don't know if he is ahead of Coleman in the coaching staff's mind or vice versa, but both are going to get a lot of playing time outside because they are the only real options we have there. And yes it represents a massive failure of this regime to have a 2nd round rookie and a journeyman JAG as the primary outside receiving options in the prime of Allen's career. Much like this regime did when they drafted Allen, they have drafted a raw physical talent that was known to need a development track and are instead throwing him into the deep end of the pool because they've left themselves no other options. If Hollins ends up in front of Coleman on the opening depth chart, that isn't any more concerning than Nate Peterman opening the season ahead of Allen on the depth chart in 2018.

This is one thing I will disagree with. The staff has a much higher opinion of Mack Hollins than they should based on how they talk about him and how he has gotten nothing but 1st team reps since day one. When we signed him I remarked that it was a Trent Sherfield caliber signing but the team apparently brought him in to play a major role in the offense, for reasons that elude me. Having their rookie WR battle an established veteran was always the plan IMO, as it almost always has under this regime. I think it is to Keon's credit that he was able to work his way onto the starting offense from day one of OTAs. That is better than almost every 1st rounder we've drafted in the McBeane era. It sucks that he is being thrust into a larger role than his raw skillset says he should. I just hope the fanbase can be patient. Don't blame Keon for the failings of the front office if/when he doesn't immediately hit the ground running. He was always going to need time to refine his game. Of all the other WRs drafted this year, only the top 2 are expected to step in as basically their team's #1 outside WR from day one. Everyone else has established talent in front of them and will have time to develop their skills. For some reason this staff is treating Keon like Nabers and MHJ with the laughable competition they have on the roster, and that's not fair to him or to Allen for that matter.

More positive injury news:

Samuel's skill set is unique anyways, I don't agree that Dotson would be redundant. Samuel is going to be a gadget/weapon in our offense. I don't think we really have a traditional Z on our roster unless that's what we're calling Keon.

That's not true, I really liked the Curtis Samuel signing. He was one of the WRs I advocated for even before free agency started. But I still think we are thin at the position and would love to add good depth with upside if nothing else.

So that is fair. I see him as a Z, not just a strict slot, and to me he would be a possible upgrade at that position on our roster, and at the very least give us upside there. That being said I admit this all comes out of a sense of desperation about the position.

Dotson has more receiving yards over the past 2 seasons than anyone on our roster other than Samuel... Beggers can't be choosers.

I absolutely would have been in on that trade. It's crazy to me how little urgency we are showing at the WR position. The Eagles have a top 3 WR duo and they're willing to make this trade with their division rival. I really don't get it. Maybe the plan is to wait until the trade deadline and see if there's a legit #1 or #2 WR getting shipped out. Hopefully that's the plan.