Post by EagleGene on Jul 31, 2006 13:53:34 GMT -5
Same Players, New Positions?
July 31, 2006
By ZACH BERMAN
From the outside, it looks like the byproduct of head coach Andy Reid and general manager Tom Heckert in lab coats in a back room tinkering with players' positions. In reality, it's just good player management, taking players and maximizing their abilities.
Four Eagles from last season's team - Jason Short, Matt Ware, Stephen Spach and Todd Herremens - are shifting positions this training camp, playing their old position along with a new position.
Herremans is the only one who's a starter, making the move from left tackle to left guard. The other three are counting on their versatility to help them make the roster. Short can shift from outside linebacker to defensive end, Spach from tight end to fullback and Ware from cornerback to safety.
The moves weren't made on a whim, though. If you look at the size of each player, they fit well in their new positions. Ware and Spach both played their new positions in college; Short tried defensive end while playing in NFL Europe.
That way, it's not like the players are learning new positions. Rather, they're just proving that the Eagles can utilize them.
"They came to me at the first mini-camp and said we're going to play you at D-end, get you used to it for some Joker stuff and the Okie package," Short said. "I have to learn new things technique-wise, things that these guys have been learning their whole lives. But I feel athletic enough to make it happen. It's just small things that have to come."
There are small things each have to pick up, although Short probably has the biggest adjustment. Whenever a defensive player goes from a two-point stance to a three-point stance, there's a big difference because of the initial burst. Short's experience on special teams is helping him learn the nuances of the three-point stance.
"I feel really comfortable coming out of three-point stance because of punt rush," Short said. "I just have to learn what to do afterwards. In special teams, you have a three-step up-and-under or four-step up-and-under, and this isn't exactly an up-and-under when going against O-tackles. These are 300-pound guys."
The transition might be easiest for Spach, who is actually seeing more time at fullback than tight end. Because of the Eagles' numbers at tight end - between L.J. Smith, Matt Schobel, Mike Bartrum and Andy Thorn - Spach's versatility could be his best hope for making the team.
He realizes this much, and doesn't consider himself a tight end nor a fullback. In the second-year veteran's eyes, he's both.
"I consider myself either," Spach said. "Right now, I'm playing mostly fullback but I'm doing it to get on the field. I'll play whatever they ask of me."
Ware's adjustment isn't as much physical as it is mental. Both secondary positions involve pass protection and some run stopping, although cornerbacks are often focused on one player while a safety must be cognizant of the whole field.
"It's a different mentality when I played corner," Ware said. "It's a lot of individual things. There's a physical side of that, but when you play safety, you have to support the run, you have to support the pass. There's a lot of keys at all the times. They're both fun and challenging."
Ware's move is probably the least surprising, too. When the Eagles drafted him out of UCLA in the third round of the 2004 draft, he was projected as a possible safety option down the road. Much of that is because of his size - at 6-2 and 220 pounds, Ware's frame is more ideal for a safety than a cornerback - but also because he has experience in high school and college at safety.
Ware thinks many of the skills are interchangeable, allowing him to be an every-down player at either position.
"It helps that I know corner and that I know safety," Ware said. "I guess I can swing either way in case of need. When you're my size, people think you're a safety. But when you can cover, it helps. I wouldn't have to come out on third down."
For all three players, the versatility is another way to distinguish themselves. Injuries happen in the NFL; there's no way around them. The advantage of versatile players is particularly apparent when the trainer's room becomes crowded and players can shift to wherever the numbers become low.
It also pays dividends toward the end of their careers. Regardless how long any of the players remain on the Eagles, players sometimes elongate their careers by switching to a different position.
It goes back to the intention of the alterations, maximizing the players' abilities.
"The more you can do," Spach said. "The better opportunities you have in the league and on this team."
July 31, 2006
By ZACH BERMAN
From the outside, it looks like the byproduct of head coach Andy Reid and general manager Tom Heckert in lab coats in a back room tinkering with players' positions. In reality, it's just good player management, taking players and maximizing their abilities.
Four Eagles from last season's team - Jason Short, Matt Ware, Stephen Spach and Todd Herremens - are shifting positions this training camp, playing their old position along with a new position.
Herremans is the only one who's a starter, making the move from left tackle to left guard. The other three are counting on their versatility to help them make the roster. Short can shift from outside linebacker to defensive end, Spach from tight end to fullback and Ware from cornerback to safety.
The moves weren't made on a whim, though. If you look at the size of each player, they fit well in their new positions. Ware and Spach both played their new positions in college; Short tried defensive end while playing in NFL Europe.
That way, it's not like the players are learning new positions. Rather, they're just proving that the Eagles can utilize them.
"They came to me at the first mini-camp and said we're going to play you at D-end, get you used to it for some Joker stuff and the Okie package," Short said. "I have to learn new things technique-wise, things that these guys have been learning their whole lives. But I feel athletic enough to make it happen. It's just small things that have to come."
There are small things each have to pick up, although Short probably has the biggest adjustment. Whenever a defensive player goes from a two-point stance to a three-point stance, there's a big difference because of the initial burst. Short's experience on special teams is helping him learn the nuances of the three-point stance.
"I feel really comfortable coming out of three-point stance because of punt rush," Short said. "I just have to learn what to do afterwards. In special teams, you have a three-step up-and-under or four-step up-and-under, and this isn't exactly an up-and-under when going against O-tackles. These are 300-pound guys."
The transition might be easiest for Spach, who is actually seeing more time at fullback than tight end. Because of the Eagles' numbers at tight end - between L.J. Smith, Matt Schobel, Mike Bartrum and Andy Thorn - Spach's versatility could be his best hope for making the team.
He realizes this much, and doesn't consider himself a tight end nor a fullback. In the second-year veteran's eyes, he's both.
"I consider myself either," Spach said. "Right now, I'm playing mostly fullback but I'm doing it to get on the field. I'll play whatever they ask of me."
Ware's adjustment isn't as much physical as it is mental. Both secondary positions involve pass protection and some run stopping, although cornerbacks are often focused on one player while a safety must be cognizant of the whole field.
"It's a different mentality when I played corner," Ware said. "It's a lot of individual things. There's a physical side of that, but when you play safety, you have to support the run, you have to support the pass. There's a lot of keys at all the times. They're both fun and challenging."
Ware's move is probably the least surprising, too. When the Eagles drafted him out of UCLA in the third round of the 2004 draft, he was projected as a possible safety option down the road. Much of that is because of his size - at 6-2 and 220 pounds, Ware's frame is more ideal for a safety than a cornerback - but also because he has experience in high school and college at safety.
Ware thinks many of the skills are interchangeable, allowing him to be an every-down player at either position.
"It helps that I know corner and that I know safety," Ware said. "I guess I can swing either way in case of need. When you're my size, people think you're a safety. But when you can cover, it helps. I wouldn't have to come out on third down."
For all three players, the versatility is another way to distinguish themselves. Injuries happen in the NFL; there's no way around them. The advantage of versatile players is particularly apparent when the trainer's room becomes crowded and players can shift to wherever the numbers become low.
It also pays dividends toward the end of their careers. Regardless how long any of the players remain on the Eagles, players sometimes elongate their careers by switching to a different position.
It goes back to the intention of the alterations, maximizing the players' abilities.
"The more you can do," Spach said. "The better opportunities you have in the league and on this team."
