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to me, one of the more bizarre elements in JC's hiring is that as on Oline coach, one might think that he at least has some well developed ideas about Dlines and what he wants to do there. yet that is the exactly the part of the D that they brought in a veteran coach to implement his own, radical system.

it just seems so weird to take the one part of the D that he might have some expertise in and then take it off his plate.

Yup. Outside of how absurd a qualification that would be (knowledge of offensive line play translating to a defensive coaching strength) for a defensive coordinator, it's literally the only thing he has going for him. It's just crazy.

Not that crazy, if you just need someone to mimic JJ's philosophy on the back end, while not letting Castillo worry about the front 4, which puts more pressure on the back end because they give up gaping running lanes and OH MY GOODNESS MY HEAD HURTS

Yup. Outside of how absurd a qualification that would be (knowledge of offensive line play translating to a defensive coaching strength) for a defensive coordinator, it's literally the only thing he has going for him.


Somebody here defended the hiring for this very reason. He knows offense so obviously he knows how to defend it. Can't remember who it was.

Reid made it a point to accentuate that, b/c JJ and JC's offices were next to each other, with JC saying "JJ would come up with a scheme, and I'd show him how to break down an OLine".

People knew this had failure written all over it b/c being a DC is more than just "Ask Madden"

Reid made it a point to accentuate that, b/c JJ and JC's offices were next to each other, with JC saying "JJ would come up with a scheme, and I'd show him how to break down an OLine".

right, and then in the next breath, reid says to JC, "you won't even really get a chance to build from those dubious skills because i'm giving you a Dline coach who's going to dictate what scheme you use - a gimmicky one that even most experienced defensive coaches are not very familiar with".

so he can't even work from a his one supposed point of strength and build from there. instead, he's asked to set up the D backwards and basically be in charge of scheming the linebackers and secondary - the part of the game that he likely knows the least about anyway, and retrofit it to a Dline philosophy that is foreign to him.

it's crazy.

I thought, and still think, it was a profoundly ridiculous hire. I can't believe they are sticking with it.

What choice do they have? They've painted themselves in a corner and managed to blow up the rest of the floor while they're at it.

Who do you use to replace him? Johnnie Lynn? Washburn? Shoot, they had Jauron here and didn't offer him a contract, when everyone knew he was using the DB job to stay active on a sideline for an opening.

They're stuck, and to change would admit failure in a plan they heralded as being "genius". And it will continue to fail on a historic scale.

Reid didn't put his coach in the best position to win.

why make it harder on yourself with complicated schemes?

it just seems so weird to take the one part of the D that he might have some expertise in and then take it off his plate.


flesh4fantasy makes 2 valid points. I think that is the essential problem with the entire organization. For example, despite proven CBs, nobody knows what to do because it is more important to be complicated and outsmart everyone. Same with offense; being complicated is more important than being successful. Same characteristics with the draft: trading backwards and forwards in every round, taking flyers on division III players rather than just drafting at their allotted position and selecting a player from a big-time program. Everything has to be complicated and the results are measurable. When Reid first arrived he said that you build a team from both lines and you win or lose at the line of scrimmage. He built lines good enough to get to the NFCC game every year then never replenished those lines. Now, his lines are weak and get pushed backwards on both sides. Because complicated is always better than lining up and playing football???

I, for one, do not believe they are trying to complicate things so much to outsmart everyone on defense. Maybe on offense, but no on defense.

I really believe that they just don't know what the coaches want them to do because they don't know what they are doing. It is haphazard. They have mixed coverage schemes after starting in with zone schemes.

In man-man, the CB's still aren't sure of who they are covering.

If Reid isn't fired, hiring a defensive coordinator has to be the top priority. JC can be relegated to enthusiasm coordinator.

All of the DBs have been burned repeatedly and most of the time it appears that they don't know their assignments. I don't know what the problem is; probably a combination of things. Is Castillo miscommunicating or are the players misunderstanding? Is Castillo making the wrong calls or are the players missing their assignments? Is the defense too complicated or is the defense too simple? Are they practicing what they will play in a game or is their practice different from their game situations? Is it possible that all of the players don't know what they are supposed to be doing or is Castillo unable to teach?

I don't think we will ever learn the answers and it is likely a combination of factors. No question that promoting Castillo was a huge mistake, and everybody said so, at the time. This defense is the worst I have seen from the Eagles in my memory. I can't remember an Eagles team that had a 4th Q lead in almost every game just to lose repeatedly in the 4th Q.

Reid will defend moving Castillo to DC until his death bed.

That move could however be the main reason he gets shit canned after this season is over.

He might have finally out smarted himself....

He might have finally out smarted himself....


Ironic ending to a long tenure, with plenty of accomplishments along the way. How many years until the Eagles induct him into their honor roll?

How many years until the Eagles induct him into their honor roll?


He is in no doubt and deserves it. His best years are behind him (no pun intended).

However, if they let him hang around and get embarrassed like yesterday for a few more years he won't be remembered as the best coach in Eagles history.

That's not saying very much at this point….

You make a good point and I never thought about that. The longer he stays the worse the memory. It is nice to see him leave as the winningest coach in Eagles history.

The right coach could take this talent deep in the playoffs in 2012 especially with all those good draft picks. The Eagles will have great draft position and the extra 2nd from AZ will be a good pick, too. They will likely have 3 of the top 48 picks. A fresh coach could identify the missing pieces and finish this team. I don't think there are too many missing pieces but the bottom third of the roster could be replaced with anybody.

Reid's deal is up after the 2013 season. My feeling is that they give him the '12 season to right the ship.

If he gets out to a quick start, 5-1 say, they extend him for another 3 years until 2016.

If he falters again, they'll "promote" him to the FO and Morningwheg to HC. They'll also bump someone like Zordich & Duce to the Coordinator jobs.

Either way, we're stuck with Reid's philosphy running the product on the field.

I just can't bring myself to care anymore. He's done what I didn't think was possible, he's killed my love for this team. Neither a win or a loss makes me feel anything anymore. All I feel is sadness and confusion over why I waste 3 hours a week watching "MBE".

The worst part is my youngest (5) is really getting into sports. He makes it a point to watch the games with me. I'd like to get excited or mad at the team, to show him that having a little passion is fun, but all he sees is Daddy just sit there and shake his head.

Just become a Packers fan and save your kid a lifetime of sports frustration. Unless Rodgers suffers a serious injury, they should keep him entertained for the next several years.

Of all things, he's gravitating towards the Bengals. Maybe his Mom dropped him on his head once too often.

Reid's deal is up after the 2013 season. My feeling is that they give him the '12 season to right the ship. If he gets out to a quick start, 5-1 say, they extend him for another 3 years until 2016. If he falters again, they'll "promote" him to the FO and Morningwheg to HC. They'll also bump someone like Zordich & Duce to the Coordinator jobs. Either way, we're stuck with Reid's philosphy running the product on the field.

While what you forecasted is the most likely scenario, I think we are watching the Andy Reid farewell tour. After the NYG kill them, anybody who hasn't already quit, will quit. Presuming they win 1 for the gipper, down the line, we're looking at 4-12 for the dream team that went all-in.

Thanks for making me laugh at the thought of Duce Staley as the next defensive coordinator. The obvious choice of Reid for an inhouse promotion to prove he is smarter than everybody else.

LesBowen Les Bowen
Juan: outwork people, eventually things will turn around. Andy Reid works 20, 21 hours a day. Sometimes 22 hours a day.

LesBowen Les Bowen
Juan: it's never over til ifs over. We're doing things that have been successful, we're fighting.

I read the quotes from Castillo's PC. That is some serious ass kissing. I feel sorry for Castillo, because he is a kind man and a hard worker. He was set up for failure and if he had ambitions of being a successful coordinator he should have asked Reid to help him get an OC job in 2005 immediately following SB-39. Back then the Eagles had one of the best OLs in the NFL and Castillo could have landed an OC job based on the SB appearance and 4 consecutive NFCCs. If he wanted to be a DC, he should have asked Reid to let him coach a defensive corps for a few years, first, especially under Jim Johnson. There has been enough coaching turnover over the years that Reid could have moved him anywhere.

One reason why I stopped listening to WIP:

I listen for 5 minutes during lunch, enough time to hear Ike Reese railing on suggesting than Nnamdi should've been on Fitz the entire game, saying the other defensive players shouldn't have to think and cater to one guy following someone else around.

This, despite the fact that the stats show Nnamdi did a very good job when he was covering Fitz.

Then, I get to hear a caller call in and say that Nnamdi can't tackle and can't cover. And Reese agreeing with him (not sure about the other guy), and that he's a waste. Turned it off at that point.

Brutal.

Next week Castillo is going to outwork everybody on the planet. Instead of 20, 21 or even 22 hours per day, Castillo will work 25 hours per day thereby outworking everybody. By outworking everybody, good things will happen eventually. For Christmas, Mrs. Castillo should buy her husband any motivational book or audio about "working smarter not harder."

It is a foregone conclusion that Castillo will be the first scapegoat. After the Mornhinweg/Washburn incident, combined with the degree of ridiculousness that his wide-gap technique is, I think Washburn is the reason nobody wanted the DC job and Reid was stuck with promoting Castillo. Regardless of whether or not Reid returns next season, I think Washburn will be fired as quickly as Castillo immediately after the regular season.

Presuming Lurie/Banner replace Reid, the new head coach will hire his own assistants and I don't think any of the current assistants will be retained. If Reid stays, he'll replace several assistants similar to the previous 2 years, also, so there will be turnover after the season, regardless of Reid's outcome.

Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk says Reid's future will depend on his willingness to part ways with Juan Castillo:

Per a league source, Reid’s future will hinge on his willingness to admit that it was a mistake to shift Juan Castillo from offensive line coach to defensive coordinator. If Reid concedes that he erred, and rectifies the blunder by firing Castillo, Reid will stay. If he refuses, Reid will be gone.

Castillo does not deserve to be a scapegoat. He was a good coach for years. Someone put him in a position to fail and that person should take the blame.

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