Eagles' Jason Peters knows he can be better
Yeah, Jason Peters heard you. And he kinda agrees. Peters knows some Eagles fans were dismissive when the left tackle was named to the Pro Bowl last season. Like most of the Birds' offensive linemen, Peters had an inconsistent, up-and-down year.
BETHLEHEM - Yeah, Jason Peters heard you. And he kinda agrees.
Peters knows some Eagles fans were dismissive when the left tackle was named to the Pro Bowl last season. Like most of the Birds' offensive linemen, Peters had an inconsistent, up-and-down year. At times he was "the best left tackle in football" Birds coach Andy Reid had heralded after trading for Peters with Buffalo in April 2009. Other times he was way less than that, looking heavy-legged and less than well-conditioned.
Peters benefited from his reputation - he'd made the Pro Bowl the two previous seasons, for Buffalo, then signed a big-bucks deal here - and from the fact that it was a down year for the left tackle position in the NFC.
"From 1 to 10, I'd say I was about a 6.5, 7," Peters said yesterday. "I can do better. That's what I'm working on this camp, just getting my stuff down. Last year I was learning, trying to feel out Donovan [McNabb], what his steps were like."
Peters said he currently is trying to get a feel for setting up in front of Kevin Kolb, but for now, he thinks Kolb's drops are pretty similar to McNabb's.
"Last year I was learning. I was trying to get the technique and stuff down. This year, it's a little bit easier; I know the stuff and I've got the technique down. I'm still learning, a little bit, but it's easier this year," Peters said. "I gave up a couple of sacks last year; I'm going to try to correct that this year."
Offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg was asked if he wanted to see more consistency from Peters this year, despite last year's accolades.
"Well, you just said it. Great players play at a high level on a consistent basis, so that's what he's striving for," Mornhinweg said. "He certainly is one of the most talented men in this league, there's no question about that. Playing at a high level on a consistent basis is his challenge."
How does Peters (6-4, 328) achieve that?
"It's reps, reps, reps, reps," Mornhinweg said. (Apparently, reps are important.) "It's just the general teaching philosophy: reps, reps, reps, teach, correct, reteach, correct, re-teach, correct. And then pretty soon, maybe they're making one out of three right, and all of a sudden they're two out of three, and all of a sudden they're three out of three, and that's just how we go about our business.
"We play with the thought process that we are unafraid to make a mistake . . . We're prepared to play, so we play unafraid to make a mistake. Now, if we make mistakes, there will be some, then we have to have that mentality where we admit, we correct it, find a solution, correct it, and move on fast. There's another play, there's another game, there's another year coming up. So, those things are important. That mentality, on how you approach your craft there."
Peters, like the much more raw 2009 offensive-line acquisition, Stacy Andrews, hasn't been taking those tackle reps forever. Andrews was a thrower on the Ole Miss track team who played in all of five college football games before heading off to the NFL in Cincinnati in 2004. Peters was a tight end at Arkansas who signed with the Bills as an undrafted free agent at that position, also in 2004, made the team, then converted to tackle the next year after asking coaches how he might find his way onto the field in addition to special-teams work.
After becoming a star but not getting the contract he wanted from the Bills, Peters cashed in with a 6-year, $55 million Eagles deal. He didn't exactly show up at Lehigh a year ago lean and hungry.
"I was in shape last year, but not in the shape I'm in this year," Peters said, only partly conceding the point.
Peters was asked if he feels he needs to dominate this time around, for the Eagles' young offense to function.
"Any left tackle in the league, if they're not dominant, the offense isn't really going to click, the quarterback's going to be tentative," Peters said. "As long as [Kolb] knows I've got his back, he's going to do his thing."
During part of yesterday morning's practice, Peters was seen demonstrating something to undrafted rookie offensive tackle Austin Howard. Like Peters, Howard (6-7, 333) is a former tight end, having played that position for 2 1/2 seasons at Northern Iowa before converting, Howard said. (Both men also are former high school basketball stars; Howard even played a season for Northern Iowa.)
"A defensive end had beaten me outside, and he said, 'Austin, when that happens, you want to get in front of him. You want to lag your shoulder a little bit and stay [between the rusher and the quarterback] so he can't spin back inside,' " Howard said. "He's pretty quick; he probably could still play tight end."
Howard said Peters' main advice on converting from tight end to tackle has been to make use of his athleticism and to pay extra attention to technique, in order to compensate for not having such an extensive background at the spot.
In training camp, Peters and Trent Cole get to really battle, the way the first-team offense and defense almost never do once the season starts. Cole, also a Pro Bowl performer last season, said he enjoys jousting with Peters.
"He's a great left tackle," Cole said. "He's very quick, he's got great agility. He's one of the best in the league."
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