Eagles-Ravens Film Review: Running out of words to describe Jalen Carter’s dominance

Wow, what an incredible performance. This Baltimore Ravens offense is exceptional, but the Philadelphia Eagles made them look average at times. Even when the Eagles gave up points, it felt like fantastic play by the Ravens’ offense rather than poor play from the Eagles. Let’s get into it. (Previously: Eagles-Ravens offensive film review.)

Defense

I spoke a lot last week about the huge loss of Brandon Graham because it limits the Eagles’ versatility. Well, it did. But Vic Fangio adjusted. The Eagles used a number of different fronts this week, and it was awesome to see them figure out what was working and what wasn’t on the fly. The Eagles did use Zack Baun as an EDGE at times and kicked Jalyx Hunt and Josh Sweat inside but it didn’t go too well. So, the Eagles went old school and played more base personnel! We have barely seen any base since Cooper DeJean entered the lineup because base personnel (5-2-4) means DeJean is off the field. Fangio didn’t care this week and wanted to stop the run on early downs, so he played a lot more base. The Eagles played 16 snaps of the base this week, which is the highest amount they have had since DeJean entered the starting lineup. It’s no surprise at all that Jordan Davis had his best game when the Eagles played more odd (3 DT’s) fronts because he excels as a nose tackle with two defensive linemen either side of him.

Does anyone remember what I said last week? If not, here you go…

The Eagles’ route distribution was good the majority of the time, but there were a few shaky plays. I try to comment on things I think could be an issue moving forward, so I thought I’d just mention this. I do not like the Eagles’ dime package, and it doesn’t seem to work with Avonte Maddox on the field. I hope the Eagles try something else because I can see this being an issue on an important 3rd and long over the next few weeks.

I don’t need to say anything else. Avonte Maddox played two snaps this week. One included the worst coverage bust of the game (and a holding penalty); on the other, he allowed Nelson Agholor to get free on the other snap. That’s not good.

I’m running out of words to describe Jalen Carter’s play. He’s a complete freak. I’ve said the same thing all season. It’s rare to see a player his size look that athletic. This play looks like Aaron Donald. Jalen Carter weighed 20 pounds heavier than Donald at the combine. I’ll remind you all of the title of my off-season film review…

I thought it might take him a few years to get DPOY recognition. Could he get some votes this year? I don’t think it’s impossible.

I came away from this game so impressed with the Ravens’ offense. Lamar Jackson made some absolutely incredible throws. The Eagles beat a fantastic offense. They didn’t stop an average team with a rookie quarterback. This was an elite offense that did not make things easy for the Eagles. Lamar missed some throws, but this Eagles’ defense played really well. This was a serious team that they beat.

I did include this play because I thought Fangio adjusted the first few drives. The Ravens were having a lot of success throwing routes behind the second level of the Eagles’ defense, in between the linebackers and safeties. If you look at the clip below and then some of the clips later, the Eagles’ second level dropped a little deeper, gave up more checkdowns, and rallied to the football. They took away that touch throw from Lamar in the second half.

I just included this one to highlight how good this Ravens’ offense can be. Sometimes, as a defense, there isn’t a lot you can do. You can pick holes in every play and point out weaknesses, such as the pass rush, but come on. This a joke of a play. My goodness.

Back to Jordan Davis. As I said earlier, this was his best game of the season in run defense. It was pretty incredible to see the Ravens leave Davis one-on-one so frequently and double Jalen Carter and Milton Williams. Every performance requires context, and I think it’s fair to point out that Davis looked better as part of a 5-man front than I think he does as part of a 4. It’s something to think about if the Eagles come up against a team like the Lions in the playoffs, who run the ball exceptionally well.

I said earlier that I’ve run out of words to describe Jalen Carter. I feel the same way about Zack Baun. What else can you say about him? He has been lights out every week except for one game against the Falcons. This isn’t a nice story about a backup turning into a good starter. He’s an all-pro. He’s top 5 at his position right now. Sadly, for the Eagles, the time to get a discount has probably passed. He’s going to get paid, and he deserves it. I am praying the Eagles are the team that commits to him. I’ve struggled through bad linebacker play for about a decade watching the All22. I want to watch Baun excel for years to come. Get it done, Howie. I can understand the risk of paying a player after just one great season, but as long as Vic Fangio is the Eagles’ defensive coordinator, I feel very good about Zack Baun as a linebacker.

The Eagles route distribution and communication in the secondary has been a joy this past month. There are so many outstanding reps from this game. But once again, how can you look past Jalen Carter? It was cool to see Carter and Lamar battling it out. It felt like watching two superstars competing; both knew how good each other was. Few defensive tackles (or defenders in general) can tackle Lamar in the open field. Carter is a superstar who makes the entire defense tick. I haven’t even spoken about his snap counts recently, but his usage is absurd. He struggled with his conditioning last year, so he must have done some serious work during the off-season. He deserves huge credit for what he is doing right now. He’s playing at an incredibly high level.

Get the contract out…

The Eagles have blitzed their linebackers so well over the past month. Both Baun and Nakobe Dean are excellent blitzes. Fangio has done an incredible job using personnel over the past month. I’m enjoying watching this defense so much. There are lots of defensive coordinators who run the Fangio’ defense. But there’s only one Vic Fangio. You can have the plays in the playbook, but knowing when to call them and how to adjust is a skill.

There are too many players on this defense to highlight each week. I haven’t even spoken about Quinyon Mitchell yet! If he could track these plays and take the ball away, he would be in consideration for Defensive Rookie of the Year (he should be already, but 0 interceptions will be held against him, sadly), and he was fantastic in this game. Zay Flowers is a brilliant route runner, but Quinyon covered him well throughout the game. I highlighted this play because it’s cool to see both the young defensive backs making a play.

This is the adjustment I was talking about earlier. The Eagles’ second level of the defense started getting a lot of depth and preventing these Hi-Lo throws from going over their heads. Instead, they got depth and rallied extremely fast to the football. Look at how fast and physical this defense is. They hit hard in this game.

Speaking of hitting hard, wow. Who else jumped up out of their chair watching this live? (I wonder how many of you did it at 6:30 AM UK time, though?!). This was easily the coolest play of the game, and it was awesome to see the sideline react to it. This was another example of the Eagles getting a lot of depth and rallying towards the football. If you get too much depth, you can become passive and give up many easy checkdowns. When the Eagles got depth, they were so quick to rally to the football. They didn’t give up easy yards. This Eagles’ defense isn’t passive in the slightest. They are the polar opposite of some of the ‘Fangio style’ defenses we have seen around the league in recent years (think of the Brandon Staley-led Chargers). It’s awesome to see.

How cool is it to see the Eagles’ backup safety make a play like this? This is a sign of how good your coaching is. I was worried when I saw Reed Blankenship exit but Tristin McCollum had a great game.

Also, check out Cooper DeJean, who pointed out the route concept to McCollum and told him where to go! How cool is that for a rookie?

What a win. What a defense. Long may it continue.