Heckert: Chris Gocong will play DE and LB this season.

03-23-2007, 04:53 AM

Eagles GM Tom Heckert was on the Jody Mac show today(3/16) and had a lot of interesting things to say about the Eagles. He talked about the Safety position, Jeremy Bloom and the kick return situation for next season, Free Agency, Salary Cap, the Draft, and most importantly Chris Gocong.
The interview started off with Heckert saying that they feel good about the DE position as stands right now. He said they have a solid 4 guys at that position and that Chris Gocong could play there next season, I will get to Gocong at the end of this.

They also feel good about the Safety situation. They feel if they needed to , they could start Mikell if Consindine or Dawkins was to get injured. I hope they don't feel strong enough not to take a S with their first round pick.

He talked about the kick return situation for the Eagles and said, Jeremy Bloom and Bethel Johnson will be returning kicks next season, and if they had to, they would put Kevin Curtis back there cause he has experience returning kicks.

He went on to talk about the salary cap and free agency. He said they feel good about how they've done so far, but that they are still actively looking at free agents. When asked about cap space, Heckert said they would be able to move bonuses around to free up cap room if they had to, and that they would do that if a player comes along that they would like to make a deal with.

As for the draft Heckert said Compensatory drafts picks will be announced at next weeks NFL team meetings, and they are not expecting any picks for this season. Free agents signed this off-season will count in next years picks. As for the draft class, he said he felt that DE's, S's, and CB's were the strongest positions in the draft this year. That says a lot about which direction they are headed.

As for Chris Gocong. They are feeling very confident in him right now. He said he feels Gocong will play both the LB and DE position throughout the season. They feel he will be a strong LB this season, but if not he will play DE. He went on to say Gocong is up to 265, and has been working really hard since week 8 of last season. He's been hitting the weight room a lot and is prepared for this season.

So, I'm still not completely sold on Gocong, but I'm feeling a little more optimistic.

Any thoughts on what Heckert talked about?

bsaza2358 · 03-23-2007, 10:19 AM

Good post. Thanks for the recap. I have suggested before that Gocong probably isn't cut out to be a full time SAM LB. He is a good attacker of the ball, and he has speed and pass rush moves. Why not take advantage and have him rush the passer and give him more snaps? I think it is a very smart move for the Eagles. Gocong is a tweener, so using him in special packages to utilize his strengths is the best way to go.

eaglesalltheway · 03-23-2007, 04:16 PM

I have been trying to convince you guys that Gocong will be a success at SAM, I know this doesn't prove it, but it does support what I have been trying to tell you.

Big Mike · 03-23-2007, 04:18 PM

i dont think we need a DE but i guess me may use him for depth purpses

eaglesalltheway · 03-23-2007, 04:28 PM

Ww would use him in passing situations as a DE, with our usual LB corp, except another LB would take away the vacant position and be the Nickel LB.

bsaza2358 · 03-23-2007, 04:30 PM

I would imagine that right now, our DE/LB rotation on a nickel package would be:

Cole, Howard, Patterson, Gocong

Gaither, McCoy

Lots of speed...

eaglesalltheway · 03-23-2007, 04:47 PM

And a lot of very good possibilities for our DBs.

cunningham06 · 03-23-2007, 04:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eaglesalltheway

I have been trying to convince you guys that Gocong will be a success at SAM, I know this doesn't prove it, but it does support what I have been trying to tell you.

No it doesn't, you said that he would be full-time SAM, I said I thought he was better off playing at DE, but that they would probably play him at joker.

eaglesalltheway · 03-23-2007, 05:51 PM

It doesn't really matter. I was talking about how most of you guys wanted to say that he would not be able to play SAM at all.

03-24-2007, 03:47 AM

Heckert specifically said in Nickel packages he could be used as LB. With ability to rush the QB or drop back into coverage on a blitz.

eaglesalltheway · 03-24-2007, 09:57 AM

I think you mean DE, not LB.

03-24-2007, 02:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eaglesalltheway

I think you mean DE, not LB.

You are correct...I did mean DE.

eaglesalltheway · 03-25-2007, 08:43 AM

Good, I was confused for a little bit.

Green Kool Aid · 03-25-2007, 01:07 PM

A situational SLB who primarily rushes the passer is the same as a situational DE who primarily rushes the passer. It just means Gocong will play in the 3-point stance, or he'll be standing. He's a pass rusher, and that's what he should be used as. Whether he's full time or not depends on how good he is. The question regarding Gocong is still the same: can he drop back in coverage?

eaglesalltheway · 03-25-2007, 01:28 PM

Let's hope he can, because I don't want Dhani in there for another year.

DowntownReggieBrown · 03-26-2007, 09:39 AM

so Gocong is pretty much going to be Terrell Suggs?

bsaza2358 · 03-26-2007, 09:52 AM

Gocong is going to be a package player to start with, and they'll increase his responsibilities as the season goes on. He won't be an every down player right away. His role could be similar to Terrell Suggs' in his rookie year.

eaglesalltheway · 03-26-2007, 02:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bsaza2358

Gocong is going to be a package player to start with, and they'll increase his responsibilities as the season goes on. He won't be an every down player right away. His role could be similar to Terrell Suggs' in his rookie year.

I see that as a very likely possibility. We will slowly rely less and less on Dhani (YES) and more and more on Gocong. Maybe Gocong will be starting mid-way through the season, and he will prove to the doubters that he will be a success in our defense as a SAM.

bsaza2358 · 03-26-2007, 03:09 PM

It would be very nice for Gocong to allow us to phase out older players and rely on yet another draft pick. I'm not holding my breath, though. Gocong has proven nothing in the pros yet. He is flat unproven.

eaglesalltheway · 03-26-2007, 05:09 PM

He is unproven, but I have heard nothing but good news from the FO since he came here in last year's draft.

bsaza2358 · 03-26-2007, 05:11 PM

I have heard nothing from the FO about Gocong, other than that he was being IR'd his rookie year. That was probably for the best, though. He wouldn't have played much, if at all. I expect CG to do well this season and to be an impact player.

eaglesalltheway · 03-26-2007, 05:22 PM

I also think he will be a great impact player this year. As for hearing nothing, when he first arrived, our FO was enamored (Pretty sure they used that exact word) with the intelligence of both Gocong and Gaither. The FO liked the athleticism that Gocong posessed, along with his football intelligence and playing speed, even though he only played in practices. After he went on IR, little was heard of him. But in the recent months, I have seen many reports that he is working hard in the weight room, bulking up, studying tape, and impressing the coaches and FO. It still remains to be seen if that all will translate into the game, but my gut has been telling me that this guy will do something special for the Eagles.

bsaza2358 · 03-26-2007, 05:23 PM

If you could post some links to these reports, that would be really good for the Eagles forum.

bsaza2358 · 03-26-2007, 05:25 PM

You seem to contradict yourself. You say he won't be an impact player, but you also say your gut is telling you that Gocong will do something special. I think we both expect the same thing: solid overall play and some big plays from the SAM LB spot. Gocong is that player who will deliver.

eaglesalltheway · 03-26-2007, 05:26 PM

The only one that has come out recently is the one that was about Heckert and how Gocong will play both DE and SAM, but the others are a few months old, and I doubt I would be able to find them, I will give it a try though. I remember reading one in the beginning of January about Gocong, but I doubt that is still up and I could find it. I will see if I can find it.