The Eagles are up in New England for joint practices ahead of their second preseason game. Defensive coordinator Vic Fangio spoke to reporters before taking the field, and he gave some insights into players performance in the first preseason game, and also gave an unfortunate update regarding Jonathan Greenard’s return from injury.
Here’s what else the DC had to say:
On Greenard and the EDGE group
When asked if there was concern that Greenard’s pec injury could keep him sidelined to start the regular season, he admitted that was a possibility.
” I don’t know when Greenard will be back. That injury he got in our weight room is going to take some time to heal.”
In the meantime, though, Fangio said he’s been happy with Jalyx Hunt and Nolan Smith, and also mentioned Arnold Ebiketie has been coming along. The DC said they are really looking for the third and fourth guy on the depth chart to solidify himself while they wait for Greenard to get back.
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Fangio also showed support, again, for DE A.J. Epenesa and his effort to learn how to drop back into coverage.
“Yeah, [Epenesa’s] been doing good and he played good in the preseason game. He had a great learning experience on that pass he got beat on. I’m really happy that happened because it was a preseason game. But not only for him, but all the outside backers/EDGE players. It’s a great learning experience on how to play that play, and he’s doing good. He’s picking up– We dropped those guys a little bit, not a lot. He’s really done well with it and I think he’ll continue to improve.”
On joint practices
“I love doing these things. I think these things are great. I wish we would do another one.
It’s great to go against a new team, new schemes, new players. You learn things. You’re going to get unscouted looks and plays, and you see how people react. These things are tremendous.”
Fangio later talked about how the Patriots have been a team to utilize a fullback, which isn’t something they get a chance to see much in Philly. He also pointed out that New England’s offense is more spread out compared to the Eagles, so everything they do this week will be valuable.
“Yeah, [Ty Robinson] came to life. He’s been on life support since he’s been here, but he came to life and hopefully that will continue.”
On other specific players
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Fangio explained that they played Jihaad Campbell because his snap count went down when Nakobe Dean came back last year, and the DC felt Campbell needed extra reps — a decision he felt was justified by the OLB’s uneven performance.
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As for Marcus Epps not playing in the first preseason game, Fangio said they wanted to see Michael Carter get a lot of reps at safety. He noted that Epps has played his whole career at safety, so this was a good opportunity to get Carter more reps there and totally evaluated.
“[Michael Carter] did fine. Mike’s had a good camp. I think it was [the Ravens] first touchdown pass in the game, he should have played better. But to me, it’s more just his newness on the job, particularly when he’s in a deep zone, it’s all new to him. We need to get him as many reps doing that as we can.”
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The DC was very complimentary of LB Jeremiah Trotter Jr. and his development. He said Trotter was reaping the benefits of being in the system for three years, and he’s matured over their time together.
“[Jeremiah Trotter] always knew what to do, but his processing is a whole lot faster and quicker. I mean, the most important quality you can have as an inside backer is instincts, play recognition. His is really showing more in this camp than it had before.”
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Fangio called DT Uar Bernard and OLB Joshua Weru their “exchange dudes,” and said the pair is doing fine but they’ve got a long way to go.
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The DC admitted that Kelee Ringo has been the focus of criticism, but Fangio gets a sense that Ringo could be coming into a stride. He also emphasized how big these next few days are for the third-year cornerback
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He said that S Maximus Pulley and CB Kapena Gushiken came alive in the first preseason game, and did some good things. Fangio said they are two good young prospects.
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The DC said that their ILB position is probably the deepest group on defense – he called Trotter and Smael Mondon two good quality players. Chance Campbell has been hurt for awhile but finally returned to practice on Wednesday.
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