For two straight years, the Philadelphia Eagles have found themselves the best team in the NFC after seven weeks, now one seeds aren't given out in October, but it sure does help having a commanding lead in your conference at this stage of the year.
Many will look at the high-flying offense the Eagles have, and it would be wrong to say that wasn’t a reason for the success, but it is so easy to look past a big factor coming from their new defensive coordinator, Sean Desai.
Who is Sean Desai and what has he brought to the table?
Sean Desai was named the Eagles Defensive Coordinator back in late February, this was after losing both Offensive and Defensive Coordinators to Head Coaching jobs (Shane Steichen and Jonathan Gannon).
The Philly faithful did not want to see Steichen go, after he left for the Indianapolis job. However, they seemed glad that Gannon left for Arizona as his defense had no halftime adjustments in the Super Bowl, resulting in a 38-35 loss.
Desai had been the Defensive Coordinator for the Chicago Bears in 2021 and then Associate Head Coach/Defensive assistant in Seattle the year after. Even after being hired, the move seemed overshadowed by the Eagles decision to hire Matt Patricia, a former Super Bowl-winning defensive coordinator with the Patriots, onto their defensive staff.
This trend of being overlooked has certainly made Desai earn his reputation in the City of Brotherly Love on primetime versus the number one offense in the league.
Blueprint of the Lockdown of the Miami Dolphins Offense:
The Dolphins came into town as the number one passing and rushing attack in the NFL, and the Eagles needed to figure out a way to shut them down in a Sunday night primetime showdown.
The Eagles, a year before, had used many of the same coverages and fronts under Gannon, which was successful with the talent they had on their team.
After losing many pieces and having a banged-up secondary the entire year, Desai has had to utilize disguising coverages and different fronts to stop a rushing attack. What was very noticeable was the success of the Eagles' 5-2 defensive front vs the rushing attack.
What is a 5-2 front, and how did the Eagles take advantage of it?
Picture taken by Fran Duffy
A 5-2 front is when you have five defensive linemen on the line of scrimmage and two inside linebackers inside the tackle box. The Eagles, as shown above, have 6' 7 340 pound defensive tackle Jordan Davis commanding the Nose tackle, as well as two 3i techniques and wide 9s as the defensive line. The two inside backers, #17 Nakobe Dean and #52 Zach Cunningham, were inside the tackle box playing for any running play.
The Eagles stayed in this 5-2 front on almost every run down, holding the Dolphins rushing attack to just 45 yards the entire game,
Eagles Air Defense Strategy:
With Dolphins WR’s Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle tearing up the league for the past six weeks with short catch and run passes, Sean Desai made a move to confuse them and their QB Tua Tagovailoa.
According to Eagles Insider Fran Duffy, the Eagles played a league-low percentage in cover 2 coverage, but the Eagles ran the most cover 2 in week 7 compared to any other team.
Cover 2 vs the Dolphins quick passing game:
Picture taken by Fran Duffy
Cover 2 has the cornerbacks sitting in the flat to take away any short passes to the outside, with the safety then playing the deep coverage for any deep passes up the sideline.
The Eagles had not played any cover 2 all year, so Miami thought they could get the quick passes, but it became a trap coverage on the play shown above.
With a 3rd and short, Tua believed that the Cornerback would take the deep route, but he took away the short pass to the outside, forcing a huge 3rd down stop for Philadelphia.
Overview:
The Eagles hired a new type of coach than they had previously had at the Defensive Coordinator position.
With younger and less experienced talent, especially in the secondary, on Desai’s roster, his worth must not be overlooked.
The Philadelphia Eagles' road to back the Super Bowl does depend on the ability to score points. Still, the defensive changes have proven to be a fascinating, unsung hero to their amazing start.
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