July 01, 2015
The summer trash talk continues! A few days after Giants punter Steve Weatherford ripped Chip Kelly, Tim Tebow, Mark Sanchez and Sam Bradford, another division rival is ripping the Eagles. That would be old friend DeSean Jackson, who started chirping on his new reality show on BET.
Back in April, we reported on what Jackson's show would be about (via Variety):
DESEAN JACKSON: HOME TEAM — Washington Redskins wide receiver DeSean Jackson is at the top of his game as one of the most talked about and watched players in the NFL today. That means eyes are always on him— waiting for him to score touchdowns and waiting for him to drop the ball off the field. Even though he has the money and the fame, DeSean’s life is actually run by a core group of women including his “momager” Gayle, his sister and assistant A’Dreea, his publicist Denise and his new girlfriend, Kayla. Produced by Rogue Atlas Productions in association with Lionsgate Television. Eli Frankel, Ryan Holcomb, Elise Duran, Desean Jackson and Byron Jackson serve as executive producers. Jay Fragus and Lawrence Bell serve as co-executive producers.
I didn't actually watch the premier, but Kyle Phillippi of About.com did, and here were some of the money quotes:
• "I was at the top of the top... then I got released."
• "It was a smear campaign."
• "I call myself a Cowboy killer, and a Giant killer. Now I'm an Eagles killer."
• "When I was released by the Eagles, I felt they tried to paint a picture that definitely wasn't true. It was a slap in the face coming off one of my best seasons in the NFL."
• "It's like the Eagles tried to blow me up. That's cold."
Jackson was indeed an Eagle killer last season. In the first game, he had 5 catches for 117 yards, including an 81 yard TD catch and run that tied the score late in the third quarter. In the second game he had 4 catches for 126 yards, including 55- and 51-yard receptions that eventually led to TD scoring drives. Here's what those plays looked like:
Jackson had more than a quarter of the Eagles' NFL record 99 plays of 20+ yards in 2013, with 25. In fact, on drives in which Jackson had a 20+ yard reception, the Eagles eventually scored 17 TDs, seven FGs, and missed two FG attempts, for a total of 141 points. The Eagles scored 30.3 percent of their total points in 2013 on drives in which Jackson made an explosive play.
In 2014, Jackson led the NFL with 13 receptions of 40+ yards for the Redskins, the same number as the Eagles' entire team.
There are certainly other reasons the Eagles' offense struggled in 2014, like bad QB play and a banged up OL. Still, while the not-so-quantifiable merit of getting DeSean Jackson out of the locker room may have improved the team's #culture, they sure as hell missed his big-play ability on the field.
Follow Jimmy on Twitter: @JimmyKempski
