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Who were the “iron” men in the snap counts?


Who were the “iron” men in the snap counts?

Vic Fangio’s involvement with various personnel groups all summer long came to an end in the Eagles’ season-opening 34-29 victory over the Green Bay Packers in Brazil on Friday night, when he allowed several players to make the majority of the plays.

Here’s a closer look at the defense’s snap counts after the win:

Zack Baun, Reed Blankenship and Darius Slay. All three played 100 percent of the snaps, 67 of them. With these three players and maybe one more, that will likely be the norm for Fangio going forward.

Baun was fantastic with 15 tackles and two sacks, including the one that ended the game when he used what looked like a wrestling takedown to take Malik Willis to the ground as time expired.

The Packers didn’t want anything to do with Slay and stayed away from him, opting to test rookie Quinyon Mitchell in the passing game.

CJ Gardner Johnson. The safety would have played 100 percent of the snaps, but was taken off for one play to receive treatment. He played 66 snaps.

Nakobe Dean. The linebacker did some good and bad things but was on the field for 64 snaps. He had four tackles with a QB hit and a pass defensed. We’ll see if that role grows or shrinks when/if Devin White returns.

Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis. The conditioning of the two defensive tackles has been talked about all summer, but Carter played 51 snaps (76 percent), which feels like the right number. Davis played just 35 (52 percent).

Jalen Carter

September 6, 2024; Sao Paulo, BRA; Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love (10) is pressured by Philadelphia Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter (98) during the second half at Neo Quimica Arena. Mandatory Photo Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Brandon Graham. Fangio said there would be no pitch counts for the 36-year-old defensive end, and in this game he had him on the field for 32 snaps (48 percent). He had one tackle.

I’m Cooper DeJean. Fangio said the rookie isn’t where he needs to be after missing three weeks of training camp, and his playing time reflects that. He was on the field for just six snaps.

Ringo, this is Kelee. Mitchell (94 percent of snaps) delivered an excellent performance from the outside, so Ringo only got four snaps.

Bryce Huff. In his rookie debut, he was only on the field for 30 attacks (45 percent) and played a largely non-factor.

Now to the crime:

Line: All five starters went the full distance and Mekhi Becton looked right at home in his first start at right guard. Becton only allowed two quarterbacks to make pressure.

AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith. Smith played all 100 percent of the snaps (76), while Brown had 72 snaps. They combined for 12 catches and 203 yards, with Brown scoring a touchdown on a 67-yard catch-and-run.

running backs. Saquon Barkley played 61 snaps (80 percent) and, boy, did he make them count. Kenny Gainwell played 15 snaps (20 percent) and rookie Will Shipley played four (5 percent). Shipley played 17 special teams games.

Tight ends. Dallas Goedert played 62 snaps (82 percent), Grant Calcaterra played 36 (47 percent) and EJ Jenkins, who was promoted from the practice squad, played three. Goedert had four catches for 31 yards, Calcaterra had one for 11. Jenkins had seven reps on special teams.

I’m Johnny Wilson. The rookie receiver got a little taste of the action with 10 reps. He was only targeted once.

More NFL: Not a great moment for Eagles rookie cornerback: “I knew they would test me”

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