The Eagles main objective this offseason on offense was painfully obvious — add as much speed as possible.
Through the first week of camp, it seems they might have found the right players with the right speed. Jalen Reagor, John Hightower, Quez Watkins — all of them have had strong starts to camp. Expecting any rookie to contribute right away is risky, but all three certainly look the part of players ready to get snaps on offense this season and add a dimension to the offense that wasn't there last year.
As a result, both quarterback Carson Wentz and the team seem to be making it a priority to be more of a big-play, explosive offense this season.
"My personal goal and I think everybody's goal is to create more explosive plays. Last year we had a ton of really long sustained drives, and that is incredible. I look for those things to still happen. But to have some of those explosive plays down the field, those catch-and-run plays," Wentz said. "I think coaches have done a really good job of building that and putting us in the position for those explosive plays. We have the right pieces in place for that. So I'd love to see some more first-and-second down explosive plays down the field. Whether that is short throws where guys can catch and run, or big plays down the field, that will really just help open up our offense for everything else we can do."
But while it is still early, the new speed on the Eagles' offense has not resulted in many big plays or deep attempts in training camp, despite the team's clear desire to make it a priority
Instead, the Eagles' offense looks a lot like it did last season.
Through the six practices so far that have been open to the media, there isn't a single deep true deep attempt down stands out. Quarterback Carson Wentz had one deepish pass to Hightower, a touchdown that was about 30-yards, and traveled about 20-yards in the air. Jalen Hurts had a deep pass to Hightower as well, but that was the third-team offense.
Outside of those two plays, however, the first-team offense has not been able to complete the kind of deep, game-changing play they are hoping to add to their offense this season. In the six practices, only one deep attempt — an incomplete pass to DeSean Jackson — comes to mind.
In fact, so far in camp, four-of-the-top-five players in targets are either tight ends or running backs. The other is Greg Ward, who has been targeted exclusively within 10-or-so yards from the line of scrimmage.
While training camp practices sometimes lend themselves to check downs, it is noteworthy that at the end training camp last year, four-of-the-top-five players in targets on the team were wide receivers. The other was, understandably, Zach Ertz.
So why aren't the Eagles throwing it deep?
The first reason is likely the play of the offensive line, which seems to be struggling against the Eagles' defensive line. Wentz has not had a ton of time in the pocket, and instead has had to roll out fairly frequently. It is hard to complete deep passes that take time to develop if the offensive line can't keep a clean pocket. The Eagles can add all the speed they want, but if Wentz doesn't have time in the pocket, it won't matter.
The second could be the fact Jackson has been in-and-out of team reps. While he has definitely taken enough reps for there to have been more deep attempts, he has been on the sideline for a decent portion of the first-team offense reps. When Jackson is playing 80-90% of the offensive snaps, chances are the shots down the field will increase. While you would like to see the other speed receivers get some chances down the field, especially if deep shots are going to be a part of the offense, not having Jackson could be a reason why the offense hasn't looked very different.
Or, if you enjoy a good conspiracy theory, perhaps the Eagles don't want to air it out and show the changes to their offense until the media isn't allowed in.
Overall, however, the Eagles' lack of deep shots are surprising — and for all of the new speed they have added, the 2020 offense so far looks a lot like the one we all saw in 2019.
You can reach Eliot Shorr-Parks on Twitter at @EliotShorrParks or email him at esp@94wip.com!
