Clay Harbor is a guy whose value to the Eagles this season can't really be measured by his meager numbers on the team's stat sheet. The second-year tight end out of Missouri State has just seven catches in eight games. But if you've been paying attention, he's a big reason why LeSean McCoy is leading the NFL in rushing.
Harbor's impressive development as a blocker prompted coach Andy Reid and offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg to dramatically increase the number of two-tight-end sets the Eagles have used this season, and those sets have helped McCoy pile up a league-best 825 rushing yards and nine touchdowns.
Last year, most of McCoy's 1,080 rushing yards came out of spread formations featuring three and four wide receivers, much as most of Brian Westbrook's rushing yards did when he was wearing Eagle green. This year, 406 of McCoy's 825 yards and seven of his nine TDs have come out of two-tight-end sets.
"It's a tribute to Clay playing really well," said the Eagles' other tight end, Brent Celek. "They just want to get him on the field because he's doing a good job."
Through eight games, 31.3 percent of the Eagles' offensive plays have been run out of two-tight-end sets (169 of 539). That's almost 20 percent more than in 2010.
"We always try to play to our strengths and attack our opponent's weaknesses," Mornhinweg said. "The [two] tight-end formation has certainly been a strength for us this year. I've been fortunate to have been around some good tight ends in my career. And these two are really, really good."
The key is the versatility that both Celek and Harbor bring to the table. Both are excellent receiving tight ends and both have developed into very good blockers, which means the Eagles can pass or throw out of the formation. In the last three games, Michael Vick has completed 19 of 27 passes for 307 yards out of two-tight-end sets.
"We've taken advantage of some matchup issues when we've thrown out of that formation," Harbor said. "We've gotten matched up against linebackers. It keeps defenses guessing when you've got two tight ends in the game and you can throw or you can run."
Harbor, a fourth-round pick of the Eagles last season, initially was a wide receiver in college. He runs a 4.5 in the 40 and has very good hands. Celek had 76 catches two seasons ago and had seven receptions in each of the last two games.
"We've used two tight ends because it's another option for the run and pass," offensive line coach Howard Mudd said. "Because both of our tight ends are athletic. You get in those two-tight-end formations with two guys like [Celek and Harbor] and you can do a lot of stuff."
Said Celek: "It can put some stress on a defense. If you have guys who can do both [block and catch], it's tough. Do you put your base package in there or your nickel package? It's something [defenses] have to decide."
Most of the time this season, defenses have stayed in their base defense against the Eagles' two-tight-end sets. But it hasn't done them much good as far as stopping McCoy. He's averaging 5.8 yards per carry on 70 rushing attempts out of two-tight-end formations.
The Eagles have historically had trouble running the ball against 3-4 defenses in the Andy Reid era. But not this year. In four games against defenses that played a 3-4, McCoy has rushed for 409 yards and averaged 5.2 yards per carry.
Harbor has been particularly effective on "wham" blocks, in which he comes across the formation and kicks out the defensive end or linebacker depending on the defensive alignment.
"Clay laid out [Julius] Peppers [with a wham block] last week," Mudd said. "It was a thing of beauty. I get as excited seeing somebody execute a good chop block as I do having McCoy run for 50 yards. Those are thrilling things to me."
"Big guys like Peppers and [the Cowboys' DeMarcus] Ware, those [wham] blocks work really well," Harbor said. "They're big, athletic guys who don't like you going at their legs."
VICK IN THE RED
The Eagles have struggled in the red zone this season. They are ranked 23rd in red-zone offense, converting only 45.9 percent of their trips inside the 20 (17 of 37) into touchdowns.
Michael Vick has completed only 21 of 41 passes in the red zone. More significantly, he has turned the ball over five times in the red zone, with three interceptions and two lost fumbles. His latest costly red-zone giveaway came in the second quarter of Monday night's 30-24 loss to the Bears when safety Major Wright picked off a pass intended for DeSean Jackson.
"When the field gets shrunk, the advantage goes to the defense against Vick," an NFC pro personnel man said. "Because the [throwing] windows become smaller, the ability to scramble becomes smaller, everything's more condensed. And the ability for him to hurt you becomes less. Then you're calling upon his decision-making, his defensive reads and his accuracy, which isn't the strength of his game."
Wide receiver Jeremy Maclin and tight end Brent Celek have been Vick's most dependable targets in the red zone. Maclin has seven catches for 50 yards and four touchdowns. Celek has four catches for 27 yards and two touchdowns. Jackson has only one red-zone catch - a 6-yard touchdown reception in Week 1. Hasn't caught a pass in the red zone in the last seven games.
FIGURING THE EAGLES
* The Eagles have used three- and four-wide-receiver sets 58.4 percent of the time this season (315 of 539 offensive plays). They've lined up in three-wide receiver formations 275 times, and four-wide receiver sets 40 times.
* One of the Eagles' problems offensively this season is that they are neither a quick-strike offense nor one that can consistently put together and finish double-digit drives. Through eight games last year, they had six touchdown drives of three plays or less. This year, they have only one - a two-play, 41-yard drive in the third quarter Monday night that featured LeSean McCoy's 33-yard scoring run. They've had 13 scoring drives of 10 plays or more this season, but only five of them have resulted in touchdowns.
* Four hundred, fifty-five of McCoy's league-high 825 rushing yards and six of his nine rushing touchdowns have come in the second half. He is averaging 6.7 yards per carry in the second half and 4.6 in the first half.
* The Eagles have scored on their first possession only once in eight games. They have only 14 first downs on their first possession and are averaging 4.6 yards per play. They scored a touchdown on their first possession in their 34-7 win over the Cowboys. The results of their seven other first possessions: five punts, two interceptions.
* The Eagles have given up 72 completions to opposing running backs and tight ends for 753 yards and seven touchdowns. Opposing wide receivers have 74 catches for 1,060 and 7 TDs.
* Opposing quarterbacks have an 87.9 third-down passer rating against the Eagles, which actually is higher than the overall opponent passer rating against them (86.3).
* Andy Reid has won five of six instant-replay challenges so far this season. In the previous 4 years, he was 7-for-22 on replay challenges.
2-MINUTE DRILL
FROM THE LIP:
* "He was a legendary coach who everyone held in such high regard. He was a very respectable, very honorable guy. That is what we were led to believe." - Former Penn State and current Jacksonville Jaguars LB Paul Posluszny on former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky
* "I call him the 'Energizer Bunny' because he never stops. It doesn't matter what you do to him, he just keeps coming and coming." - Jets CB Darrelle Revis on Patriots WR Wes Welker
* "Thank the Lord that I don't have to live with the roller coaster that you all make out of my life. That's big. My faith is something that keeps me grounded and that doesn't waver. My family is something that keeps me grounded and doesn't waver because they don't care if I win or lose or throw touchdowns or picks." - Broncos QB Tim Tebow on the media attention he receives
* "I think people that know football and understand the game appreciate Alex as a very talented quarterback. He's every bit the elite quarterback as there is playing in the game right now." - 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh on QB Alex Smith
* "I saw 4 [Brett Favre]. When [Tom] Brady was in the zone, it was something to see. But this is the best I've ever seen. Aaron is playing with so much confidence. He's got a cannon. It doesn't matter if it's 7 or 70 yards. The ball's there." - Chargers backup QB Billy Volek on the Packers' Aaron Rodgers
BY THE NUMBERS
* While it's certainly not impossible for the Eagles to make the playoffs, the odds aren't in their favor. Of the 60 teams that qualified for the playoffs since 2006, only one managed to get there after a 3-5 start. That was the 2008 Chargers. They won five of their last eight to win a god-awful AFC West with an 8-8 record and made it to the divisional round before being eliminated.
* Bodog book switched the Eagles' odds of winning the Super Bowl from 12-1 to 25-1 with Monday night's loss to the Bears. The Packers remain the favorite at 5-2. The Colts are the biggest longshot, at 1,500-1, followed by the Dolphins, Rams and Seahawks at 1,000-1.
* The Packers are the third defending Super Bowl champion to start the next season 8-0. The other two are the 1990 49ers and the 1998 Broncos.
* Drew Brees has thrown at least one touchdown pass in 36 consecutive games. That ties him with Brett Favre for the second-longest streak in NFL history. Johnny Unitas holds the record with a TD pass in 47 straight games.
* Through the first 9 weeks, 86 of 102 games, or 66.2 percent of them, have been within seven points in the fourth quarter.
* Wes Welker has 498 receptions with the Patriots in 69 games. He needs only two catches against the Jets tomorrow to become the fastest player to record 500 receptions with one team. Anquan Boldin currently holds the record. He caught 500 passes in 80 games with the Cardinals.
* Three of the Chiefs' four losses have been by a combined score of 120-13; the other was by three.
* Tom Brady already has 10 interceptions. He's never had more than 14 in a season.
* Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul's 9 1/2 sacks are the most by a Giant through eight games since Michael Strahan had 14 in 2001. Strahan went on to set the NFL single-season record for sacks that year with 22 1/2.
THAT'S SAYING THUMBTHING
THUMBS UP: To 49ers kicker David Akers, who is having the last laugh on the Eagles this season. While the Eagles are a backs-against-the-wall 3-5, Akers' team is 7-1 and leads the NFC West by five games. The 37-year-old five-time Pro Bowler, whom the Eagles opted not to re-sign, has converted 19 of 21 field goal attempts this season, including 4-for-4 from 50-plus yards. He also has 24 touchbacks on 48 kickoffs. "David has been damn near perfect, that's how impressive he's been," Niners coach Jim Harbaugh said. "I can't imagine there's any kicker that's bringing more to their team than David is this year. Look at the touchbacks. Look at the field goals. Look at the degree of difficulty on those field goals. He's dealt with wind here in Candlestick. He's kicked such a straight and true ball that the elements haven't been a factor. He's been rock-solid on pressure kicks. We felt like he was the best kicker in the game, and he's delivered on that."
THUMBS DOWN: To Vikings owner Zygi Wilf for the incredible chutzpah he's showing in his pursuit of a new publicly funded stadium. With the team's lease to the Metrodome up at the end of the season and Los Angeles sitting out there as leverage, the state's politicians finally have indicated a willingness to do something for the Vikings. Wilf has committed $400 million of his own money toward a new stadium, but only if it's built on a preferred site in suburban St. Paul rather than downtown Minneapolis. Why? Because Wilf intends to buy up the land around the suburban St. Paul site and build a mini-city, much like Patriot Place in Foxborough, Mass., complete with hotels, condos, restaurants and theaters. He has informed the politicos that if they insist on any other site, including downtown Minneapolis, his financial commitment will shrink substantially and Los Angeles will start to look a whole lot more appealing.
DOMO'S NFL RANKINGS
1 Packers 8-0 (1 last week)
2 Ravens 6-2 (4)
3 49ers 7-1 (5)
4 Saints 6-3 (6)
5 Jets 5-3 (9)
6 Steelers 6-3 (2)
7 Patriots 5-3 (3)
8 Lions 6-2 (8)
9 Bengals 5-3 (10)
10 Bears 5-3 (12)
11 Giants 6-2 (13)
12 Bills 5-3 (7)
13 Falcons 5-3 (14)
14 Texans 6-3 (15)
15 Raiders 5-4 (18)
16 Bucs 4-4 (16)
17 Eagles 3-5 (17)
18 Cowboys 4-4 (21)
14 Chargers 4-5 (11)
20 Titans 4-4 (19)
21 Chiefs 4-4 (20)
22 Browns 3-5 (22)
23 Redskins 3-5 (23)
24 Broncos 3-5 (30)
25 Vikings 2-6 (24)
26 Panthers 2-6 (25)
27 Jaguars 2-6 (26)
28 Cardinals 2-6 (28)
29 Rams 1-7 (27)
30 Seahawks 2-6 (29)
31 Dolphins 1-7 (31)
32 Colts 0-9 (32)