Offenses are evolving quickly throughout the NFL. However, the league-leading 10-2 Philadelphia Eagles are falling far behind the trend. According to Seth Wader of ESPN, teams use motion more than ever, except for the Eagles, who boast the lowest motion (9.6) and snap motion percentage (24.8). Adding context to how quickly the league change has occurred, the Eagles’ motion rate would have led the entire NFL in 2017.
Motion isn’t the secret to success, as a lot depends on scheme and personnel. For instance, among the 10 highest-scoring offenses in the NFL, four are within the top 10 in snap-motion percentage, including the Miami Dolphins (2nd, 32.0), San Francisco 49ers (3rd, 29.3), Detroit Lions (6th, 27.3) and Baltimore Ravens (7th, 27.0). Meanwhile, roughly the same amount of teams reside in the bottom 10, including the Eagles (4th, 27.4), Buffalo Bills (5th, 27.3) and the highest-scoring team in the league, the Dallas Cowboys (1st, 32.3).
Entering Week 14, the Eagles rank fourth in points-per-game, eighth in yards-per-play (5.4) and ninth in yards-per-game (361.7). So, the offense’s lack of motion doesn’t seem to be much of an issue, right? Not so fast.
After a blowout loss to the 49ers, the Eagles’ reliance on Hurts, backed by a seemingly predictable offense, has apparently been exposed. The 49ers attacked Hurts and the Eagles differently than most teams, focusing more on containing the Philly QB instead of chasing him around. Void a ton of motion from the Eagles, the 49ers didn’t have to change much when it came to lining up their pass rush and it showed in a 42-19 thumping in Week 13.
