When the Philadelphia Eagles lost to Tampa Bay in the wild-card round last season, Jonathan Gannon’s defense gave up over 30 points and 350 yards of offense. While the defense has spent two years now struggling against some of the top quarterbacks in football, a big part of the reason for that is the defensive calls made by defensive coordinator, Jonathan Gannon.
To his credit, Jonathan Gannon has transformed the Eagles’ defense from what it used to be. Gone are the days when inept talent was mixed with poor coaching. Philadelphia’s unit is second in football in yards and first against the pass.
That could come in handy when taking on an improved Giants offense.
“We have a big-time challenge versus them, and we have to be connected and stay connected and do a good job with our fundamentals and tackling and being on the same page and communicating the right way, and really then basically it becomes knowing what they like to do, and then ultimately executions at a premium,” Jonathan Gannon told reporters Wednesday afternoon.
Jonathan Gannon vs Daniel Jones?
In New York’s 31-24 win over Minnesota, the Giants accumulated over 430 yards of offense. Quarterback Daniel Jones played the game of his life totaling close to 400 yards of offense on his own while throwing two touchdown passes.
Jones’ improved play has shifted the spotlight back to Jonathan Gannon and the notion he can’t play good quarterbacks well. The Giants’ quarterback is a good signal-caller, and it leaves the Eagles in a compromising position.
“He (Jones) played extremely well. Their offense was clicking on all cylinders. He made a lot of plays, a lot of throws. He used his legs at the right times to extend drives and get some first downs.” Gannon explained. “We know just like anybody we go against that the skill set of everybody that we’re playing against, how they use those guys and what we have to be aware of and what we have to have a plan for. Yeah, he played extremely well in that game, and it’s one of the major reasons why they’re playing us on Saturday night.”
Stopping Jones and runningback Saquon Barkley will be an important precursor if Philadelphia is to move on after Saturday night. It’s easier said than done as well. While Philly has beaten New York twice this season, the Giants are a much different team than they were in those two matchups.
With most of their starters back from injury, the notion of its hard to beat a team three times in a year has come back to rear its head. And that makes it even more of a challenge for Philadelphia.
“You can use the previous games as a tool but know that they’re going to have different things for us, and we’ll have some different things for them. It’s a new game, especially going into the playoffs it’s definitely a new game, a new season so we’ll be ready to go.”
There hasn’t been an Eagle coach under this much pressure in a very long time. For Jonathan Gannon to get back in the fanbase’s good graces, a strong showing on Saturday will go a long way to helping.
Photo by Andy Lewis/Icon Sportswire
