SB LIX: KC must beware of 'Peanut Punch'
Eagles are +17 in turnovers using Charles Tillman's technique
Chiefs radar up in Super Bowl LIX: Beware the Peanut Punch
The pro football world has gone wild with analytics, but what will always remain one of the most consistent game deciders is turnovers.
Head coaches talk until they’re blue in the face about ball security and taking the ball away, for good reason.
While the focus on the Philadelphia Eagles centers around running back Saquon Barkley and quarterback Jalen Hurts, one thing can’t be ignored.
When the Eagles were 2-2 in their first four games of the season, they were minus-6 in turnover ratio with two takeaways and eight turnovers.
Since then, they are 15-1, including the playoffs, and have a remarkable plus-17 turnover ratio with 24 takeaways and only seven turnovers. In their three postseason victories, there have been no turnovers and 10 takeaways. They didn’t have a turnover in 12 of their 20 games.
In the regular season, they finished plus-11, the sixth-best in the NFL.
The Kansas City Chiefs haven’t been as prolific as the Eagles in takeaways, with 20 during the regular season compared to Philadelphia’s 26.
However, their turnover in the AFC Championship Game was the first since Week 11 in a loss to Buffalo. Similar to the Eagles, the Chiefs were minus-4 (8-12) in their first eight games and plus-10 (12-2) in their last 11. Kansas City has no turnovers in nine of their 19 games.
League-wide, it should be no surprise that 12 of the 14 playoff teams had at least a plus-6 ratio, while seven teams were at least plus-10 and all qualified for the playoffs. The Bills led the league at plus-24. The only two playoff teams below plus-6 were the Washington Commanders at plus-1 and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at minus-5.
What stands out about the Eagles is their penchant for forcing fumbles. Their 13 regular-season recoveries tied for fourth-best with the Chicago Bears, behind Buffalo and Pittsburgh with 16 and Green Bay with 14. The Eagles forced nine fumbles and recovered six in their three postseason games.
Notably, the Eagles were tied in the regular season with the Bears, the franchise that featured cornerback Charles (Peanut) Tillman for 12 of his 13 NFL seasons (2003-2015).
Tillman had 44 forced fumbles in his career thanks to his iconic “Peanut Punch.” That total is tied for sixth in NFL history, and of the 10 players all-time with at least 40, all except Tillman were pass rushers.
He led the NFL with 10 in 2012 with four coming in one Nov. 4 game against the Tennessee Titans.
The Eagles noticed. Head coach Nick Sirianni revealed that Pat Dolan, the team’s vice president of video technology “got me every ‘Peanut Punch’ that he forced a fumble with his entire career, and we watched that on a loop as coaches, and then we showed that to the players as well.”
Sirianni said, “The players going out there and being able to do it is incredible because you're taking chances at times, too. Because we've tackled well, too. I think sometimes you see in those scenarios that teams take chances there, but they don't make tackles. Well, we’ve been in the top 10 of missed tackle percentage in the NFL, which we take a lot of pride in. Again, goes back to our details.
“But the players, when they go out there and execute that on the defensive side of the ball, that's easier said than done. Just really proud of them of how they've been able to tackle well while also taking the football away. It's something we emphasize an awful lot. We've always done a good job of emphasizing it on offense.”
The improvement has been noticeable and Sirianni added, “I think this year we've taken another step and really emphasized it even more so this year as a defense. Every team meeting, we're looking at ball security, any mistake that's made in ball security. Every team meeting, we're looking at good strip attempts or missed strip attempt opportunities.
“So we emphasize the crap out of it because we know it's such a telling stat in this game. Our guys have done a nice job protecting it. Our defensive guys have done a good job taking it away, as well as our special-teams guys.”
He concluded, “You’ve got to have talented players to be able to do both, because it is a skill to be able to tackle and take the ball away. And I think the other thing it shows is the effort to the football.”
Surely, as the Chiefs prepare for this Super Bowl matchup, they will be cognizant of not being affected by the Peanut Punch.
After the Super Bowl, Howard Balzer will begin his 50th season covering pro football. The first Super Bowl he attended was 44 years ago, also in New Orleans, when the Eagles lost to the Raiders.
Great job on this Howard. As a Bears fan, it's been incredibly gratifying the last 5-10 years to see Charles's influence take football by storm, comprehensively: NFL, college, high school. We knew for years that we were watching a special player, but because his INT numbers were never astronomical, he was denied his rightful place in the Pro Bowl and on All Pro teams, starting earliest in 2005 and certainly by 2007. I love that everyone has caught up with Bears fans and knows now what they're watching with him!