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Eagles mailbag: How much will RB Trey Sermon help?
Eagles mailbag: How much will RB Trey Sermon help? originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
The Eagles open up their season in one week in Detroit and today is the last Sunday without an NFL football game for months.
It’s a beautiful time of year.
We answered a bunch of questions yesterday and still have plenty more in the mailbag:
The Eagles claimed Trey Sermon off waivers from the 49ers last week, making him the fourth running back on the roster. The 6-foot, 215-pound back was a third-round pick out of Ohio State (he also played at Oklahoma) but didn’t play much as a rookie and didn’t really stand out too much when he did. He had 41 carries for 167 yards and 1 touchdown.
I like the idea of the Eagles bringing in a talented young running back to see what he could be, but I don’t expect Sermon to have a big role early. And he’s not really a power back like Jordan Howard. Sermon averaged 1.9 yards after contact per rushing attempt in 2021, a lower average than Sanders’ 2.1.
Here’s what TheAthletic’s Dane Brugler wrote about Sermon last year during the pre-draft process:
“Overall, Sermon is inconsistent as an inside power runner, but his combination of vision, balance and cutting skills are intriguing traits for an outside zone scheme.”
I watched his carries from the 2021 season and came away underwhelmed but did see some flashes. But then I did a little reading about how Sermon worked on his explosiveness going into Year 2. That was a wise decision. Sermon worked out with Dalvin Cook this offseason.
“Being explosive,” Sermon said in August, via NBC Sports Bay Area. “I feel like that is one thing that I kind of lost last year, just being explosive out of that first cut. That’s been a really big emphasis for me this offseason and even still now in training camp. I’m still working on it and I’m very conscious of it.”
So the Eagles might have something in Sermon but it’s hard to see him having a big role from the jump, especially if Sanders is healthy.
First, let’s take a look at all the candidates for a contract extension — key players entering the final year of their contracts. The Eagles have quite a few: Fletcher Cox, Javon Hargrave, James Bradberry, Isaac Seumalo, Kyzir White, T.J. Edwards, Miles Sanders, C.J. Gardner-Johnson and Marcus Epps.
We’ve been waiting for that Hargrave extension all summer and it hasn’t come yet. It makes sense because not only is he a Pro Bowl player but he has the highest cap hit on the team in 2022. A little surprising it hasn’t happened yet. He’s still the most obvious one.
Gardner-Johnson is a good candidate because he’s already a really talented player and he’s still just 24. The Eagles might want to make sure his transition to safety and his acclimation into this defense goes smoothly first, but I wouldn’t wait too long. He’s likely going to get paid after this year.
But I’ll also give you a wild card pick: Kyzir White. Based on what I’ve seen during training camp, White is going to be a really solid addition. He thought he was going to get a long-term deal this past offseason and it didn’t happen. But late in camp, I chatted with White about coming here and he seems to love Philly already. He said he would love to stay here long-term and I believe him. Also, he plays the WILL spot and if Nakobe Dean ever really pushes for a starting gig, Dean seems better suited at the MIKE. I could see a White extension getting done during the season if the Eagles want to go that route.
“With all these weapons on defense, if our defense cant preform this season is it time to get rid of Gannon?”
There’s no question there’s pressure on Eagles defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon this season. Outside of Jalen Hurts, Gannon probably has more pressure on him than every other person in the NovaCare Complex. There aren’t any excuses this year.
Just think about all the talent Howie Roseman added to the defense this offseason: Haason Reddick, James Bradberry, White, Jordan Davis, Dean and now Gardner-Johnson. Not only has there been an influx of talent, the Eagles have added talent to give Gannon the scheme flexibility he wants.
This has the makings of a great defense but it’ll be up to Gannon to get everything out of them.
In a couple ways, it really feels like this could be Gannon’s last year in Philly. If the defense succeeds, there’s a good chance he’ll land a head coaching gig somewhere. And if the defense fails, there aren’t any excuses.
Based on the evidence, they believe in him to a certain extent. They certainly believe in Hurts as a worker, leader and person. They believe that he’ll maximize his potential and will reach his ceiling, whatever that is. And they obviously liked Hurts enough to use a second-round pick on him in 2020 and make him the starting quarterback for back-to-back seasons. They clearly believe in him enough to go for it this season; we’ve seen that from their roster moves.
But they also see the areas where Hurts needs to improve. We all see them. Even Hurts sees them. The Eagles aren’t tied to Hurts long-term right now, but that decision would probably have to come after this season. Hurts’ play will determine his future.
I took a closer look at all the Eagles’ options at the return spots last week. So you can read all that here.
But my best guess is that the Eagles bring up Britain Covey to handle those responsibilities.
Well, they were a playoff team in 2021. So even if Hurts doesn’t take a huge step forward, this is a much better roster than last year. So they could perhaps get into the playoffs and sneak by to win a game. But for them to make a real run, which I think they’re capable of, Hurts will need to be significantly better. Having A.J. Brown and a second year in the offense ought to help.
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LOS ANGELES (AP) — A jury in U.S. District Court ordered the NFL to pay nearly $4.8 billion in damages Thursday after ruling that the league violated antitrust laws in distributing out-of-market Sunday afternoon games on a premium subscription service.
The jury awarded $4.7 billion in damages to the residential class and $96 million in damages to the commercial class. Since damages can be tripled under federal antitrust laws, the NFL could end up being liable for $14.39 billion.
The lawsuit covered 2.4 million residential subscribers and 48,000 businesses in the United States who paid for the package of out-of-market games from the 2011 through 2022 seasons on DirecTV. The lawsuit claimed the league broke antitrust laws by selling its package of Sunday games at an inflated price. The subscribers also say the league restricted competition by offering “Sunday Ticket” only on a satellite provider.
The NFL said it would appeal the verdict. That appeal would go to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals and then possibly the Supreme Court.
Should the NFL end up paying damages, it could cost each of the 32 teams approximately $449.6 million.
“We are disappointed with the jury’s verdict today in the NFL Sunday Ticket class action lawsuit,” the league said in a statement. “We continue to believe that our media distribution strategy, which features all NFL games broadcast on free over-the-air television in the markets of the participating teams and national distribution of our most popular games, supplemented by many additional choices including RedZone, Sunday Ticket and NFL+, is by far the most fan friendly distribution model in all of sports and entertainment.
“We will certainly contest this decision as we believe that the class action claims in this case are baseless and without merit.”
The trial lasted three weeks and featured testimony from NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones.
“Justice was done. The verdict upholds protection for the consumers in our class. It was a great day for consumers,” plaintiffs attorney Bill Carmody said.
During his closing remarks, Carmody showed an April, 2017, NFL memo that showed the league was exploring a world without “Sunday Ticket” in 2017, where cable channels would air Sunday afternoon out-of-market games not shown on Fox or CBS.
The jury of five men and three women deliberated for nearly five hours before reaching its decision.
Judge Philip S. Gutierrez is scheduled to hear post-trial motions on July 31, including the NFL’s request to have him rule in favor of the league because the judge determined the plaintiffs did not prove their case.
Payment of damages, any changes to the “Sunday Ticket” package and/or the ways the NFL carries its Sunday afternoon games would be stayed until all appeals have been concluded.
The league maintained it had the right to sell “Sunday Ticket” under its antitrust exemption for broadcasting. The plaintiffs said that only covers over-the-air broadcasts and not pay TV.
Other professional sports leagues were also keeping an eye on this case since they also offer out-of-market packages. A major difference though is that MLB, the NBA and the NHL market their packages on multiple distributors and share in the revenue per subscriber instead of receiving an outright rights fee.
DirecTV had “Sunday Ticket” from its inception in 1994 through 2022. The league signed a seven-year deal with Google’s YouTube TV that began with the 2023 season.
The lawsuit was originally filed in 2015 by the Mucky Duck sports bar in San Francisco but was dismissed in 2017. Two years later, the 9th Circuit, which has jurisdiction over California and eight other states, reinstated the case. Gutierrez ruled last year the case could proceed as a class action.
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — The U.S. Olympic team is one of a handful that will supply air conditioners for their athletes at the Paris Games in a move that undercuts organizers’ plans to cut carbon emissions.
U.S. Olympic and Paralympic CEO Sarah Hirshland said Friday that while the U.S. team appreciates efforts aimed at sustainability, the federation would be supplying AC units for what is typically the largest contingent of athletes at the Summer Games.
“As you can imagine, this is a period of time in which consistency and predictability is critical for Team USA’s performance,” Hirshland said. “In our conversations with athletes, this was a very high priority and something that the athletes felt was a critical component in their performance capability.”
The Washington Post reported earlier this month that Germany, Australia, Italy, Canada and Britain were among the other countries with plans to bring air conditioners to France.
Olympic organizers have touted plans to cool rooms in the Athletes Village, which will house more than 15,000 Olympians and sports officials over the course of the games, using a system of cooling pipes underneath the floors.
The average high in Paris on Aug. 1 is 26 degrees Celsius (79 degrees Fahrenheit). The objective is to keep the rooms between 23-26 degrees (73-79 degrees Fahrenheit). The rooms will also be equipped with fans.
“I want the Paris Games to be exemplary from an environmental point of view,” Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo has said about the plans for the Olympics.
According to the International Energy Agency, fewer than 1 in 10 households in Europe has air conditioning, and the numbers in Paris are lower than that. The study said that of the 1.6 billion AC units in use across the globe in 2016, more than half were in China (570 million) and the United States (375 million). The entire European Union had around 100 million.
The Olympics mark the most important stop on the athletic careers of the 10,500-plus athletes who will descend on Paris, which has led some high-profile countries to undercut environmental efforts for the sake of comfort.
“It’s a high-performance environment,” Australian Olympic Committee spokesman Strath Gordon explained to The Post.
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AP Summer Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The Carolina Hurricanes and Florida Panthers seemed determined to keep playing. And playing. And playing.
The teams opened their Eastern Conference final playoff series with Florida’s 3-2 victory in four overtimes early Friday, with the game ranking as the sixth-longest game in NHL history.
Matthew Tkachuk’s goal came at the 19:47 mark of the fourth OT to end this one, which marked the 15th four-overtime game in NHL history and the longest game in franchise history for each team.
The longest game in NHL history came on March 24, 1936, when the Detroit Red Wings beat the Montreal Maroons 1-0 in the sixth overtime on Mud Bruneteau’s goal at 116 minutes, 30 seconds of extra play.
Florida’s previous record for longest game was 104:31 in Game 4 of the 1996 Stanley Cup final against Colorado. Carolina’s previous record was 114:47 for Game 3 of the 2002 Stanley Cup final.
The only good news for the teams is they had an extended break before this series began. Carolina closed out New Jersey exactly a week earlier, while Florida eliminated Toronto a day later.
But this game ended roughly six hours after Thursday night’s puck drop, and the teams have a Game 2 in less than 48 hours.
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AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
