The Eagles were back on the practice field on Saturday, but before taking the field, new offensive coordinator Sean Mannion spoke to reporters — in just his second time speaking to Philly media since being hired. He explained his training camp expectations, why he’s enjoyed working with Jalen Hurts, and their approaches to installing a new offensive scheme.
Here’s what the OC had to say:
On Jalen Hurts
“He’s very uniquely talented in terms of that athletic ability, it’s something he’s been effective with throughout
his career. So, that’s part of what makes him such a special talent, but he does a lot of things well. I think he’s really operated through all facets of the offense comfortably, but the piece of him as an athlete in the running game that is unique. Those are elements we can lean in to, as well.”
Mannion had a lot of good things to say about working with Hurts since getting to Philadelphia, and noted that the QB has had a lot of success and played in a lot of games, so his goal to get a feel for what he likes. That includes finding Hurts’ comfort calls, what he feels super confident with in a 2nd-and-long situation, and those nuanced details will help the OC as a play-caller.
“It’s been a great partnership with Jalen [Hurts] since we got here. The back and forth has been outstanding, he asks really thought-provoking questions, and it’s been a lot of fun to work with him”
On training camp expectations
“The thing we want is great effort every day, and then compete. That was a big thing coming into this camp for us, was every day is high-level competition — you’re competing against yourself, competing for a role on the roster, and then competing against the defense every day is going to make us better and better.”
Mannion went on to explain that offensively, they’re looking at whether they have a tight pre-snap operation — something the OC admitted they struggled with in Day 1 of camp, but thought things were improved Day 2.
“And then just, assignment, alignment, execution — are we getting lined up properly? Are we not having mental errors? But, through the first two days of practice, it’s still early, I’m happy with the progress we’ve made, and we just gotta keep improving from there.”
The OC later said that the more veteran guys have been great and super willing to learn a new system. He noted that the biggest thing is that all of the guys are so hungry to learn and for individual periods when they’re working on technique.
“Those are the type of guys you get to work with every day. Again, from the offseason program, you know, you have a summer break, and coming back, I thought Day 1 and 2, there was some pre-snap stuff we need to fix, but their retention from the spring was outstanding. And it allows us to pick up right where we left off and kind of keep building from there.”
On the WR room
Mannion said that they have a very exciting group of players at wide receiver with such complimentary skillsets. They have a lot of flexibility with being able to put guys at different spots and move people around, which opens up a lot of opportunities.
On the new scheme
Mannion didn’t want to get too deep into what they’re planning to do schematically, but did say that guys like Saquon Barkley and Tank Bigsby are certainly capable of being utilized out of the backfield. He noted that the running backs sometimes have blocking duties, or other things based on what the defense is doing, but they are all capable pass catchers and good route runners that can be used based on protection needs.
When asked if he wants a true fullback in the offense, the OC explained their overall approach to these kind of schematic details.
“As multiple as we can be formationally, I think that’s always something we want to try to do. And especially train these guys to do multiple things throughout camp.”
Lane Johnson and Jordan Mailata had mentioned earlier in the week that the scheme is easier for them upfront, and Mannion said that the coaches are focused on making things as simple for them as possible — in addition to some things with the tight ends that provides more support than they’ve had previously.
“We want these guys to go out there, know exactly where to go, and play fast. So, throughout all of our teaching, we want to make as many things as black and white for them as possible, so we’re all on the same page and we’re off and running. At least we all know where we’re going, and we’re going with total assignment commitment to attack our aiming points, attack our targets, and that will ultimately allow us to play fast, play physical, have the play style that we want. But, we want to make everything as cut and dry, and black and white for the offensive line so they can fire off.“
Other notables
- The OC said he was really impressed with the recall and retention that everyone had coming back from summer break. He said that they were clearly studying during the time away.
- Mannion called the Eagles defense under DC Vic Fangio a “tremendous group” and it makes great competition for the offense every day going against an elite unit — the OC said it was a bit of a daily chess match.
- He talked about how much he enjoys spending time with all the different positions, and acknowledged he has to be a little more intentional with him time. Mannion said he finds extra time with the QBs, and sometimes OL, when the rest of the group is in special teams meetings.
