It's one of those unwritten laws of the game that we have known for as long as we have watched thePhiladelphia Eagles
play football. Turnovers can change the complexion of an NFL game. That's exactly why defensive players are constantly encouraged to create them. However, a fine line exists between being aggressive and becoming so focused on making a splash play that the fundamentals begin to suffer.Vic Fangio wants his defense to avoid the latter as they prepare forMonday night's matchup with the Chicago Bears. Philadelphia's defensive coordinator acknowledged on Wednesday, while speaking with the media, that players can sometimes become too eager to make a turnover and make mistakes.
He wants them to remember that pursuing the football cannot
come at the expense of making the more important, needed play in front of them.
"We’re due. We’re due... [Guys may be pressing] a little bit. We have to tackle and not miss tackles because we’re trying to go for the ball. That bugs me.”
Fangio's concern isn't difficult to understand. An attempted strip that doesn't work is one thing. A missed tackle that turns an ordinary play into an explosive one is something else entirely. For that reason, his message goes beyond turnovers. He wants the Eagles' defense to create turnovers, but not at the expense of sound tackling, discipline, and situational awareness.
Later in the discussion, he was asked whether he had noticed defenders trying to force the ball out rather than simply making the tackle. His response reinforced the point.
“I think that can be a problem at times. I don’t think it’s an epidemic at this point, but we need to make sure that doesn’t happen.”
That emphasis on fundamentals also connects directly to one of the Eagles' most glaring situational mistakes recently. Asked about the long Tennessee Titans run on third-and-22, Fangio didn't blame an exotic wrinkle or claim the defense was beaten. He said the Eagles failed to recognize the situation and execute accordingly.
“We didn’t play it well. First off, we didn’t play the situation well. It was obvious they were going to run the ball. We call the front that we usually call when there could be a run, and our guys just didn’t transition into realizing the situation at the time and we need to get lower in the secondary and make a tackle.”
That is essentially the same warning in a different form. Philadelphia's defenders have to recognize what the game is asking them to do and execute that assignment before worrying about making the spectacular play. The takeaways should come when they come. Coach Fangio remains confident the Eagles will eventually create more turnovers. That confidence allows the Eagles to take a patient approach.
They don't need to manufacture takeaways, particularly against a Chicago Bears offense that can challenge a defense with movement, creativity, and multiple ways to create space. The message heading into Monday night is simple: Make the tackle, play the situation correctly, and let the turnovers come naturally. Everything else will take care of itself.
This article originally appeared on Eagles Wire: Vic Fangio warns Eagles to tackle before chasing turnovers vs. Bears
