Eagles Fans Finally Hear from Sean Mannion
And also Vic Fangio and Michael Clay as the Eagles coordinators speak to the media and Vic gets mad at the Phillies
It’s late May, and we are starving. For a moment, as the air thickens and the temperature skyrockets, the NFL season has unraveled. We’re left with nothing but rumors of who did and who didn’t attend A.J. Brown’s wedding to sustain ourselves. Nolan Smith got so bored that he decided to audition for Fast and the Furious 12: How Much Faster Can We Go.
Luckily, the Eagles know this. And to keep us fed with NFL news, the Birds made their coordinators available to the media today for the first time all offseason. Like a pie cooling on the windowsill in a Looney Tunes cartoon, we lifted our noses and slowly levitated towards the grumpy words of Vic Fangio.
What’s special about this media availability is that this is the first time Eagles fans are hearing from new offensive coordinator Sean Mannion (AKA The Prince Who Was Promised AKA Not Kevin Patullo). Mannion lent his voice to answer the offseason-old questions that Eagles fans have been lobbing into the Twitterverse somewhere on the feed between Mike Vrabel-Dianna Russini conspiracy theories and random ads for wigs for your Roomba (seriously, don’t go on Twitter). Mannion touched on his vision for the offense, what it’s like working with Jalen Hurts, why he decided to take the Eagles job, and more. Local reporters tossed questions at the new Eagles OC in Philly accents thicker than a Rita’s gelati.
But before “Boyz II Mann-ion” entered stage left, we heard from Vic Fangio, who spoke on Jonathan Greenard, Tariq Woolen, and Jihaad Campbell in between beautiful rants on the irrelevance of coaching titles and his disappointment with the Phillies because they fired Rob Thompson (this one’s for Topper). Vic has reached the age where he has no use for coachspeak and instead, like your uncle at Thanksgiving dinner, says literally whatever is on his mind at the moment.
Special Teams Coordinator Michael Clay (a man you forgot coached for the Eagles) also talked to the media. Clay touched on Jake Elliott’s confidence, Braden Mann’s extension, and Makai Lemon returning punts before casually mentioning that he intercepted Sean Mannion in college. So in between the coachspeak…kind of a wild ride?
But what did Vic say about almost retiring in the offseason? Did Michael Clay (a man who could literally tell me he coaches for the Eagles and I wouldn’t believe him) lowkey drop some wisdom about the principles of coaching? And did Sean Mannion knock it out of the park before unfortunately name-dropping Jared Goff, Kirk Cousins, Geno Smith, and Drew Lock as his quarterback influences? Let’s dive in.
What Did Vic Say? (Aside From Being Mad at the Phillies)
On almost retiring in the offseason
Nah I wasn’t close…I never got serious to where I would’ve done it…the doctors told me I’m reverse aging.
I like the group of guys we have. I like working with them. I still like the challenge of the job. Work for a good organization. It’s something you’ll always think about at the end of the year, but in the end, I didn’t come close to doing it. I really don’t foresee myself doing it. I’m good for two years, at least.
On the Eagles trading for Jonathan Greenard
Pressure on the quarterback is also important, and he’s been able to do that throughout his career. He’s strong on the edge versus the run game. So we’re excited to have him.
On the Eagles signing Tariq Woolen
I’m excited to have him. We looked at him during the middle of last season a little bit because they may have been interested in trading him. You know we didn’t decide to do it…When it came to free agent time, and I actually sat down and watched him thoroughly, I was excited for him.
He’s a rare guy, you don’t see a lot of corners in the league who are 6’ 4”. It’s hard to find guys at those heights who can move and mirror receivers. He can get in and out of breaks. He obviously has good downfield speed. His length is more of an asset than a detriment in his case….seems to be a great guy, he’s into being here.
*Translation: Holy shit I can’t believe we got this guy
Regarding the second safety spot
It’s open. I think Marcus will put up a good claim for it. In base, it’ll be Cooper. When we go to nickel, Coop comes up and plays nickel. We’re taking a good look at Michael Carter back there.
On safety Drew Mukuba and Michael Carter
Started off the season up and down, had some shaky plays. But I feel like the last 5 or 6 games prior to him getting hurt, he was coming on. And hopefully, he’ll be able to pick up from there.
On linebacker Jihaad Campbell and replacing Nakobe Dean
He’s not going to be able to take part in these OTAs until maybe later, maybe not. But he’ll be ready for training camp.
I think we’ll have guys who will step up. Zack did a good job of that. Obviously, Reed did a great job quarterbacking the secondary. I think Andrew will be able to step up his game there along those lines. And if (Marcus) Epps is the guy, he’ll definitely be able to do that also.
*Editor’s Note: It looks like Marcus Epps is most likely the favorite to start at that second safety spot barring a trade
On Uar Bernard
I had a similar experience when I was with the Niners. We have a guy by the name of Lawrence Okoye who was an Olympic discus thrower for England. Looked a lot like how Uar looks now. It never worked for him, but patience will need to be a virtue. Both on his part and ours.
On Jalen Carter
I think his shoulders are fine. He’s had a good offseason of lifting. He started that earlier than normal for him, and you can see the difference in that regard. So I think he’s in a better spot now than he was.
On Jalyx Hunt taking the next step
Just keep doing what he’s doing. He’s had a nice progression. I see him growing his game in all aspects. I think he can and will rush better. He’ll play the run better. Just the natural progression…
I think he’s ready to keep getting better and better.
Random Rant on Coaching Titles
These titles you guys see across the league. Pass game coordinators? Run game coordinators? There’s many more. Assistant head coach, associate head coach. This, that, and the other. You know what those titles mean? About as much as this bottle of water is gonna mean after I finish drinking it.
About Jeff Stoutland
He seems to be enjoying himself. He’s playing a lot of golf. I don’t know if he’s gotten any better, but he’s trying.
How About Michael Clay?
On Braden Mann
We’re very very happy that he’s back… coming out of college, Braden was that guy at Texas A&M.
On Jake Elliott’s confidence
Long career, still confident in him. You can go game by game, situation by situation…for Jake 10 years in the NFL, 10 years doing it in Philadelphia, big kicks, it’s hard to go against the confidence in that.
Jake is going to be his hardest critic of all time. It’s on me to help him keep his confidence up because a confident kicker is a dangerous kicker…for a lot of these players, when bad things happen, they fall into that pit hole of “am I good enough?” Obviously, you’re good enough because you play in the NFL.
For him to fall in love with the game again and keep that energy up and keep that confidence up is going to be big for Jake, and that’s where I come in.
*Editor’s note: It sounds like Jake is working on getting his confidence back after a tough year
On signing JT Gray
His tenacity, his understanding, with so many special teams snaps. He’ll bring something to the table that maybe us coaches don’t see in between the plays.
On Makai Lemon returning punts
I like Makai. He has that California feel. That California confidence…he’s out there in tackling drills…he’ll definitely be in the mix, just like a whole lot of people will be.
On Uar Bernard
Patience is key. He’s already got a lot on his plate playing a new sport. But that’s the beauty of coaching…you gotta try to coach them as hard as you possibly can without killing their confidence and seeing what they can do to help out the team.
What Did Sean Mannion Say?
On his early relationship with Jalen Hurts
I think it starts really with connecting with him on a personal level. Get to know him, get to know what his interests are, what makes him tick. Then once you start to get to know a guy on person level, then the football connection comes pretty easy…he’s been a pleasure to work with, and really, since I got the job, to be able to connect with him on a personal level and then a football level has been great.
What he wants the offense to look like
We talk about play style a lot. Being great teammates. When you turn on the tape, what does the Eagles offense look like? Those are the things that we really want to stand out.
Obviously, there’s things I believe in and schematically have a background in. But ultimately it’s going to be a blend…it’s all about maximizing things for the players…how do we put all of our players really in a position to succeed and maximize their strengths.
Regarding Jalen’s learning process
I think Jalen’s been outstanding in the meetings. And I think going through multiple coordinators and stuff, you can tell he’s a really capable learner. And that’s been really fun to work with on a daily basis.
What he loved about the Eagles’ job opportunity
I think the first thing is the Eagles have been an outstanding organization, just top to bottom. You know that from afar, just from the results on the field and the culture and the system of excellence that they’ve built here. And getting to talk to Nick and see the way he views the game, seeing the way he views building a program, and running an organization, and all the things that we really value here.
Tough, detailed, together. You can just tell it was a great fit and in perfect alignment with how I view the game as well…all of the things you know about the organization from afar become validated when you see behind the curtain.
His excitement about Makai Lemon
Really excited to bring him on board. I think the way he works at practice is really impressive. He’s a tremendous young talent. But even just out at practices, you can see he practices hard, he studies hard, he really takes a lot of pride in all the little details and that’s the sign of a true pro.
*Editor’s note: Lemon’s got the juice
On Run Game Coordinator/Tight Ends Coach Ryan Mahaffey
Ryan and I have obviously worked together, and I think some of the things that we’re bringing in, Ryan has a background in. And his background is unique. He’s been with the offensive line a lot of the time, he’s been with the receiving group…Ryan’s a very detailed guy, he understands the schematic elements, he knows how all the pieces fit…he’s a tremendous teacher, detail-oriented, he’s gonna be a great fit for that group.
On the new Offensive Line Coach Chris Kuper
I first was with Chris as a player when he was in Minnesota. You could just tell he’s a great teacher. Detailed, he played for a long time in the NFL. I think the way he’s gonna be able to connect with all of our players, especially a veteran group of guys…it’s gonna be a great fit for us. Great teacher, great communicator, really good at teaching the fundamentals, understands a wide variety of schemes and what we want to do…and ultimately I’m a believer that coaching is teaching at its truest sense and I pride myself on being a good teacher.
The change in offensive playcalling verbiage
It’s a blend. Obviously, there are things schematically that we’re bringing. There are things that the Eagles offense has really thrived with doing in years past. So in terms of verbiage and terminology, it’s what makes sense to keep, what with some of the new changes coming in needs to change, so that’s something we’ve looked at really from day one.
Jalen Hurts strengths
Jalen’s been awesome. He can really do anything we ask of him. He’s accurate. He’s a great athlete. He really attacks the fundamentals. That’s what’s been really fun to watch these last two weeks. He’s always coming, wanting more things to work on, wanting more things regarding fundamentals. Timing, understanding the scheme. He’s hungry for more, and those are the guys that are fun to work with…He has a great process in the meetings. He always asks really thought-provoking questions, he’s detailed, and attacks his fundamentals. He’s always the guy who stays after practice and is working on things. Those are the guys you love to work with.
*Editor’s note: How many of Jalen’s thought-provoking questions have been in quotes that sound like a mix of Socrates, Shakespeare, and Deion Sanders?
On the Eagles’ wide receivers
It’s a really exciting group. Smitty’s been awesome. It’s a really fun group…our offense is not about any one piece it’s about how we all fit together. The wide receiver group specifically has been a lot of fun. I think we have a lot of guys with complementary skill sets.
Mannion’s coaching Influences
It really starts with my dad. My dad was a long-time high school football coach. Been around the game my entire life. He’s a teacher. My mom’s a teacher. You can hear me talk about the teaching influence a lot when it comes to coaching. Just the drive, the work ethic, the relationships with the players, the commitment to the fundamentals, my dad was a huge influence for me there.
My college coach, Mike Riley…great leader of men, great communicator. Matt LaFleur, gave me my first job in this league, I’ll always be grateful for that. I learned a ton from him as a player, learned a ton from him as a coach. He’s a tremendous coach, tremendous leader, learned a ton from him.
Teaching the quarterback position
I think everything has a pre-determined timing and a rhythm to the play. Installing a scheme that has proper timing and proper rhythm in terms of how different elements in the concepts work with one another, making sure the timing of one route marries to the timing of another route, and then you train the quarterback to really understand that and listen to his feet. If your footwork is sound and your rhythms good, it’s gonna feel like the ball wants to come out. And if it’s not that’s when you move on.
Jalen running more
He is uniquely skilled in that way. That’ll be a part of it. But it won’t be the only part of it.
*Translation: “To answer your question, I don’t know yet, homie.”
What kind of playcaller he wants to be
I want to be someone who is versatile, who is always looking to attack defenses in different ways, who’s always looking to evolve. And ultimately always looking to maximize the talents of our players.
*Translation: “I’d like to be the opposite of Kevin Patullo”
On marrying the run and the pass game
That’s absolutely a huge part of what we want to do. We want to make sure that as many elements of our offense that they fit together, that they look the same. How do we build this wide array of things that kind of start off of a similar type of look.