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Bradford's tendencies could make Eagles more predictable
By Brenden Peddigree
The Philadelphia Eagles offense has looked pedestrian in the first two games of 2015 compared to what it has looked like in years past. With six of the 11 starters being first-time number ones, the chemistry seems to be nonexistent and the offense has struggled to get its footing.
The most important piece of the offense is obviously quarterback Sam Bradford. Bradford’s tendencies of who he throws to trend toward two targets, and Eagles fans will not likely be surprised by the two.
The highest percentage of completions for Bradford has been to his running backs. The next highest has been to second-year receiver Jordan Matthews. Those two combined have accounted for 39 of Bradford’s 59 completions, a staggering 66 percent.
Given those numbers, it appears as though the notion that Bradford is nervous behind the Eagles offensive line could be correct. The former Heisman trophy winner appears to be looking toward his number one guy and if he doesn’t see him open, he’ll throw it to his safety valve, running backs DeMarco Murray, Ryan Mathews, or Darren Sproles. Otherwise, "Jordan Matthews has been a bright spot. He’s on pace for 128 catches for 1,456 yds & 16 TDs," per Matt Lombardo.
The remainder of Bradford’s completions have been split. Seven of his 59 completions have gone to his tight ends, with third-year man Zach Ertz owning the lowest completion percentage when targeted with just 40 percent (6/15). The remaining 13 completions have gone to the rest of the Eagles receiving corps; four for Nelson Agholor and Josh Huff, three for Riley Cooper and two for Miles Austin.
If the Eagles are hoping to turn their season around, the targets need to be more evenly spread. In 2014, three Eagles receivers and Ertz had over 85 targets. At the current pace, Eagles running backs are looking at 216 targets with just Matthews and Ertz expected to see well over 100 targets.
If opposing defenses start to notice these tendencies, and I promise you that they will, the Eagles already predictable offense could become predictable and easy. If defenses can key on Matthews and keep a defender in the flat to stop the running backs, Bradford will be forced to look elsewhere and rely on receivers who have not shown up much so far in 2015.
Another thing that the Eagles need to do is take more shots deep downfield. Just under 15 percent of Bradford’s passes have gone deep and he’s completed just 31 percent of them. Traditionally, a high completion percentage on deep passes is hard to find but it will keep the defenses honest.
Offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur said this week that the Eagles believe that all of their receivers have deep threat capabilities. Collectively, they have a 10.5 yards per catch average with the highest of the group belonging to Matthews at just 11.4 yards per catch. That could prove one of two things, either the Eagles receivers don’t have the deep threat capabilities or Bradford is missing them when they are deep. A 31 percent completion percentage could prove the latter.
The Eagles want to be a running team but they also need to be balanced. If they can straighten out the offensive line, the run game will improve and in turn, the pass game will benefit as well. In the meantime, Bradford needs to start spreading the ball around more while taking some shots downfield. If he doesn’t, opposing defenses will look at Chip Kelly’s offense and scoff.
The Eagles will be tested against Darrelle Revis, Antonio Cromartie and the rest of the New York Jets secondary on Sunday at one.
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