Philadelphia Eagles have a nice plan for Andre Dillard

The Philadelphia Eagles have found a way to get one of their best young linemen, Andre Dillard, on the field.

September 10th was an eventful day for the Philadelphia Eagles. First, the news broke that Malik Jackson was lost for the season. Then, Philly Eagles wasted no time placing him on the IR and signing the veteran Akeem Spence to fill his roster spot. The Eagles also waived tight end Alex Ellis, leaving the Eagles with an open roster spot. Why would the Eagles waive their third tight end? What do they have in mind?

Initially, this was a curious move, one that made little sense, but upon closer inspection everything becomes clear.

The Eagles used Andre Dillard as the third tight end for four snaps against the Washington Redskins. It appears that they’re going with an idea head coach Doug Pederson mentioned months ago, one where Dillard is used as the third tight end. Jason Peters has been healthy, so he’s got the left tackle position covered, but using Dillard in three-tight end sets allows the Eagles to get both of them on the field.

Dillard was the 22nd-overall selection of the 2019 NFL Draft and is the future at left tackle. He showed tremendous talent in the preseason, and the Eagles want to get their most talented players on the field.

Here’s a quote.

"It’s definitely different than anything I’ve ever done in football before because I’ve never played tight end, I’ve always been a tackle. It was fun to experience something new along with experiencing my first NFL touchdown and win all at the same time. It was just all new stuff for me today."

In most cases, Dillard will line up on the outside and will block the same guys he’s used to seeing, defensive ends and outside linebackers. This creates unique mismatch opportunities for the Eagles to exploit.

Adding Dillard in certain situations allows the Eagles to go with a larger set and pounding the rock, forcing man coverage and safeties to move up. That exposes defenses to play action.

The only questions left are when will Dillard score his first touchdown, and what will the Eagles do with the open roster spot? We’ll have to wait and find that out together.