The challenge was always difficult.
Eagles quarterback Michael Vick has the highest yards per carry average in NFL history. Running back LeSean McCoy is averaging six yards per carry this season and making comparisons to Barry Sanders not seem so blasphemous. Wide receiver DeSean Jackson is one of the best deep threats in the league.
It was always tough for the Giants’ defense to stop players this fast, but now the plays move even faster.
Under first-year coach Chip Kelly, the Eagles attack every 21.57 seconds, taking the fewest time between snaps this season, according to Football Outsiders.
Facing an Eagles offense which has amassed the second-most total yards in the league (458.8 per game) and most yards per play (6.9), Giants defensive coordinator Perry Fewell said he isn’t worried about the unusually rapid pace since he started preparing for it when Kelly was hired.
“It was something that was new coming into the [NFL] and so obviously you wanted to go and prepare for something that was new and challenging,” Fewell said. “Because of the skill level. … Those skill levels are really good, so when you add that with the things that you’re doing now, it’s an offense that can move the football all over the field.”
Though Fewell has been watching tape of Kelly’s old Oregon offenses, Giants linebacker Spencer Paysinger has more familiarity with Kelly’s style, having seen it countless times while playing for the Ducks from 2007-10.
The 25-year-old believes the Giants have done a great job mimicking the tempo in practice, but with about half of the available players in practice a college team would have, Paysinger said there are certain logistical challenges to duplicating an accurate model.
“Here, you can’t really mimic that speed in practice because guys need their legs for Sunday, so you don’t want to bog them down, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday,” said Paysinger.
Therefore, mental preparation becomes more vital.
“You don’t want to have to think too much against this type of offense because that’s what they’re banking on, is you thinking too much, you getting a half step out of the gap and then they pop a good run,” Paysinger said. “It’s confusion with speed. You have to have those plain set of rules, no matter how fast they’re going, I know I’m right here and this is what I have to do.”
The Eagles lead the league in rushing with 198.3 yards per game, rank second with 9.2 yards per reception and are the first team in league history with more than 1,000 passing yards and 750 rushing yards in the first four games of a season.
Their balance creates drives that can be long and drives that can be quick, but the biggest concern for the Giants is making sure the two don’t overlap.
“I think that’s what the tempo is designed to do, it’s just a play here, a couple yards there, the tempo gets you tired, kind of frazzled, lack of communication, and then boom, they swing one big,” safety Ryan Mundy said. “That’s what they’re banking on, someone to make one mistake. Those guys are home-run hitters down there. With McCoy, Jackson and Vick, you know those guys can hit the home run from anywhere on the field.”
The Eagles average two minutes and 19 seconds per scoring drive, the quickest in the league, but despite all the yards and pace and big plays, the Eagles have been held to 24.8 points per game this season, with a 28th-ranked red-zone offense, scoring touchdowns on 41.67 percent of opportunities.
The yards are fine, if the yards only lead to field goals.
“I think it’s more the rhythm of the offense more than anything,” Terrell Thomas said. “Everything is high-tempo and now you get in the red zone, you don’t want to go high-pace, you want to slow it down. The depth that they have as far as yardage is not as big compared to the whole field so they’re kind of limited as far as plays. We could play a little tighter.”