In the Nest
By William Campbell
JR Reed introduced himself Friday night.
By slashing through a generous hole in Baltimore’s kickoff coverage and motoring past a pack of sprawling defenders into the end zone, the Eagles rookie burst unabashed into the collective consciousness of Eagles fans everywhere.
This kid wants to play, wants to make an impact, and wants you to remember his name.
Herbert Lee Reed Jr. hails from Tampa, Fla., and is one of Dottie Reed’s four children. He goes by JR because he doesn’t get along with dad. The estrangement is so acute that he even had "JR" inscribed on his college diploma.
That, plus JR sounds a lot cooler than Herbert Lee, don’t you think?
While his 88-yard touchdown energized the crowd and fired up his teammates, it wasn’t exactly virgin territory for the first-year safety from the University of South Florida.
A big-play artist in college, Reed led the nation in kickoff returns last year with a 31.7-yard average and scored touchdowns on kickoff returns, interceptions and fumble recoveries.
His return skills were a key factor in the Birds picking him in the fourth round of the draft, and he all but solidified his spot as the Birds’ top kickoff returner this season with that big runback Friday.
But while returning kickoffs comes naturally to Reed, and though it will probably be his primary in-game duty this season, it’s not what he’s asked to work on most in practice each day.
As a safety in defensive coordinator Jim Johnson’s complex defense, the rookie must not only learn the defense itself, but must also become a master at making the right calls. This, he has found, doesn’t come quite as easily.
When an opposing offense lines up, the defense (after the base formation has been signaled in from the coaches) must immediately align itself in response to how the offense sets up. At this point the safeties make calls to communicate to the rest of the defense.
"When you make the calls, the linebackers and the corners adjust," says Reed. "When the offense comes out you have to give (your teammates) a call so they know where to line up and who to cover, and what gaps they’re going to have in run responsibility; and then if they motion or shift on offense, you have to give them another call so they can shift again. You have to be the person who controls what they do; if they mess up, it’s your fault."
Making the right calls is what Reed is struggling with most these days. "At least twice a week you get overwhelmed," he confessed to me after practice the other day.
Reed wants to continue succeeding in the return game, but he also wants to eventually make his mark on defense. While it’s definitely a learning process for him, No. 30 is making strides.
"He’s doing a nice job. He’s getting all of the calls down and getting a whole run on the defense. He’s working hard. He’s a sharp kid, very intense; we like what we see so far," says head coach Andy Reid.
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One of the most enjoyable moments for me at last week’s Eagles-Ravens exhibition occurred prior to the game. Former Eagle Bob Brown met with a small cadre of media deep in the bowels of the Linc to talk about his recent induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and provided a rare glimpse into what the NFL was like back in the old days.
Most fans may not remember Brown, but he played here from 1964 through ’68, was traded to Los Angeles, where he played two seasons, and then wrapped it up with three years in Oakland.
For the uninitiated, consider for a moment some of Brown’s accomplishments: He earned All-America honors as a guard at Nebraska and was voted college football’s Lineman of the Year in 1963. The Eagles chose him with the second overall pick in the 1964 draft and he immediately stepped in as a starting tackle for rookie coach Joe Kuharich.
Before his 10-year career ended, he was All-NFL nine times, was the NFL offensive lineman three times, and played in six Pro Bowls. oo
Contact William Campbell at wlcampbell@cleanweb.net