When training camp begins for the Eagles next Monday, there will instantly be a different feel to the way camp is run under new head coach Doug Pederson.
Gone are the days of tackling drills, where Chip Kelly would have players avoid actual hitting in an effort to stay healthy for the start of the season. With Pederson, it’s going to be physical and hitting will be a necessary part of season preparation.
“It’s a physical game. It’s football. It’s tackle football. I think the only way you can properly fit offensively and defensively, you have to put the pads on and you have to hit,” Pederson said. “I’m not saying you go live every period because you don’t, but to run around in pants and shoulder pads in the heat — it’s going to be hot in September and it’s going to be hot in October. From your offensive and defensive lines, this is where games are won and lost. You’ve heard about how games are won in the trenches. Those guys have to know how to hit.”
Just because there’s a difference in Pederson’s definition of a physical environment at camp as opposed to Chip Kelly’s style, doesn’t mean there isn’t an element of care that goes into the amount of physical play and hitting at practices.
“The majority of the practices are ‘thud’ practices,” Pederson said. “They’re big bump-up-high, thud — we’re not taking anybody to the ground. Defense, you’re in position, you’ll tap off and let the ball carriers run. The point of contact stuff with the offense and defense, that’s where the contact comes in, but the majority of the team practices will be thud with the exception of live practices, with the exception of quarterbacks in those situations.”
Pederson’s focus on this style of practice comes from an understanding of what goes into simulating game action. The first-year head coach looks at all positions when it comes to the necessity of putting the pads on and preparing as if it were a game week.
“We can zone block all we want in shells, but we’re also going to trap, we’re going to power, we’re going to gap, we’re going to counter, the trappers have to trap, and it’s a physical game,” Pederson said. “The timing has to be done in pads. Quarterbacks have to throw in pads. They need to feel that pocket when the bullets are kind of flying around during training camp and it’s all part of the process of getting your guys prepared for the regular season.”
Pederson’s focus on bringing a more physical element to practice is something that was vocalized among the group that helped hire Pederson. In addition to the practice style and greater level of physicality, Pederson was able to decide whether camp returned to Lehigh or stayed in Philadelphia. The new coach chose to keep things in Philly.
“It was presented to me as my decision,” Pederson said. “After I was hired, we sat down and talked with Don Smolenski, Jeffrey Lurie and Howie [Roseman] and those guys, and they said, ‘Listen, we’ll do whatever you want to do. Here’s what we’ve done in the last three years.’ So, I sat down and looked at it and it’s not a bad situation. Why pack your office up and move?
“The one negative, if there is one, is the fact that it’s not necessarily open to the public. That’s probably the one downside, but having the two stadium practices this year helps with that, and I’m really looking forward to having it here this year.”
For now, while the Eagles and the new head coach wait for those practices to start, one thing Pederson and his staff can focus on is an emphasis on building relationships with the players on the team.
“I try almost every day when the players are in this building to walk down into the locker room, whether it’s after practice or before practice, just to walk through there,” Pederson said. “I implore my coaches to go through the dressing room. I want my coaches to feel free to go in there. Yes, that’s their domain, but the coaches need to be seen in there to build relationships.”
Everything, from the relationship building to the physical play on the field, starts in just one week.
Kevin Durso is an editor for Sports Talk Philly. Follow him on Twitter @Kevin_Durso.
