Draft Grade Compilation

ESPN compilation of team draft grades from a variety of “experts.” General consensus among analysts, except for the  Eagles and Bills – the only two teams to get A’s and F’s.

Superstitious?

Are the Eagles trying to catch lightning twice? The first time they drafted a 6 foot, 210 lbs safety out of Clemson, they got a future Hall of Famer. We’ll see if the 5’11” 206 lbs. safety/cb they selected out of Clemson a decade later can follow in those very large footsteps. If Gaddis is half the player of B. Dawk, it will be a solid pick.

LB Picture Gets a Little Clearer

Takeo Spikes has been yapping since he was traded that he was going to be the weakside LB, replacing rookie standout Omar Gaither. Well, now we have the first indication from management that this will be the case.

 

From the Eagles website announcing the departure of Dhani Jones comes this depth chart elaboration of the LBs.

 

“On the weakside, the Eagles traded for Takeo Spikes in March who will enter the post-draft mini-camp as the starter. He will be backed up by 2006 draft pick Omar Gaither, who was the starter at the end of last season, and 2005 draft pick Matt McCoy. In the middle, Gaither will back up veteran Jeremiah Trotter. And on the strongside, Gocong, Bradley and 2006 rookie free agent Tank Daniels will mix it up for the No. 1 spot.”

 

Spikes, Trotter and Gocong. With Gaither presumably platooning with Trotter on passing downs.

 

Interesting. Ironic that the linebacker playing the best at the end of last year has been demoted and isn’t even a starter at this point.

My friend PK writes:

 

First off, the Eagles draft: taking a qb who is a 3-year project makes absolutely no sense. None.

 

Quite simply the Eagles are in a position where they actually need to make short-term moves, not long-term moves. We are in a position to win the Super Bowl. We have already had a run of sustained greatness, it's no longer about 11-, 12-, 13-win seasons. We must make moves that are designed to win the Super Bowl. Drafting a qb who simply won't ever get on the field in 2007 and 2008, well, that makes no sense. (Particularly once you realize he's not rated very well by other scouts.)

 

Of course, this was the perfect example of my long-standing theory of how NFL executives are only trying to do one thing on Draft Day: impress their fellow execs with their "smarts". These guys are the most conservative sports execs alive for 364 days of the year, then that one day -- Draft Day -- they go batsh!t insane trying to prove how smart they are, making all sorts of crazy trades. Dallas made 2 trades inside of an hour on Saturday.

 

Just silly.

Kolb Salad

This pick makes NO SENSE on every level. I understand trading down after EVERY safety you had been targeting was taken (amazing that it looked like the Eagles would get at least one of their options – Griffin, Merriweather, Nelson, etc. and then all of a sudden there was a run on them and they were all taken.)

 

But with a team with glaring defensive needs, I don’t understand not taking Michigan LB David Harris, or big multipurpose back Brian Leonard. Even darkhorse candidates like Dwayne Jarrett or CB Eric Wright would have been understandable.

 

A QB?!!?!?!

 

I’m a realist. The McNabb era will eventually come to an end. But it’s too early to take a QB – in years and rounds at this point. They just signed Feeley to a 3 year extension and they got Kelly Holcomb as a throw in with the Bills/Spikes trade. They’ve got veteran qbs in case McNabb’s knee rehab is delayed.

 

McNabb is signed through 2012.  Guess he’s not going to complete that contract with the Eagles.

 

Now I suppose that Kolb is insurance if McNabb turns out like Culpeper after his knee. So maybe it’s a smart pick in that regard. And I’m tired of people citing McNabb’s injuries as being “injury-prone.” It’s not like he pulls a hammy every four games (see Stallworth, Donte). Broken ankle, sports hernia, ACL. Maybe if Reid didn’t pass the ball 65% of the time, McNabb wouldn’t be at risk of so many injuries.

 

This is a team that was 3 points from the NFC championship. Why draft a project when you’re time to win would appear to be right now?

 

On the other hand, the Eagles/Reid track record in 2^nd round picks (Barry Gardner, Quinton Caver, Matt McCoy) is so bad that McNabb might be the QB by default through 2012.

Didn't Take Long

The Eagles just cut Dhani Jones. I guess Gocong and Stewart Bradley will battle it out for strongside LB –with Spikes perhaps in the mix.

 

Among the free agent signings, heavy on safeties and WRs.

Reid the Text

As of yesterday afternoon, Phil Sheridan reports, Andy Reid has not spoken to his franchise QB after leaving him a voice mail telling McNabb that the team was drafting a QB in the 2^nd round.

 

Over on ESPN, broadcaster Michael Smith said he had text messaged McNabb after the pick was announced for his reaction, which he then shared with the viewers.

 

Maybe instead of trading phone calls, Reid and McNabb can text message each other.

Bye, Bye, Bobby

The Phils learned that in the case of Bobby Abreu, trading him was addition by subtraction. Perhaps the Yankees are now thinking the same thing. For as hot as Abreu was for the Yanks in the second half of 2006, he was absolutely killing them in their recent 7 game losing streak. Despite hitting behind Jeter (.337) and in front of the hottest hitter on the planet, A-Rod, Abreu is 1 for his last 27.

Draft Disaster

Bewilderment, frustration, anger. Those were my immediate reactions to the Eagles pick of Kevin Kolb with the 36th pick overall - their first pick of the 2007 draft.

Up to that point, I was pretty pleased with the Eagles trading down after every single safety they had been reportedly interested in was taken just before their pick at #26.

I figured they would take Michigan LB David Harris, Rutgers RB Brian Leonard, maybe even USC WR Dwayne Jarrett, or even darkhorse candidate UNLV CB Eric Wright.

Never in a million years did I ever envision them takinga QB?!?!? with that pick.

It's an utterly wasted pick. This guy will be on the practice squad the entire year. The Eagles have needs. QB wasn't one of them. They are also a championship-caliber team right now. They were 3 points from the NFC Championship game. So why are they selecting a player with their highest pick that will contribute absolutely NOTHING this year?

Commentators have focused on the impact on McNabb. In my mind, this pick speaks volumes about Feeley. Why did they even bother signing him to a 3-year extension recently?

Reid also said he was the highest rated player and QB on their board. Higher than Stanton, Edwards, and Beck? Really? Please!!

This pick is bizarre and inexplicable. It's Matt McCoy and Jabar Gaffney all over again. Reid and the Eagles erroneous talent evaluation and trying to outthink themselves and be too cute by half.

(The only thing saving this draft from being a total, unmitigated disaster is the Eagles eventually trying to fill their needs by taking a strongside LB from Nebraska and Tony Hunt.)

All You Can Eat?!

I can’t decide if this is insane or the greatest invention in baseball since the Phillies frank. I am certain that it highlights how overpriced the concession fare is.

“The Los Angeles Dodgers are converting their right-field pavilion into all-you-can-eat bleachers. Takers will have access to as many hot dogs, peanuts, popcorn, nachos and soft drinks as they want. ‘Instead of paying cash, fans ask for whatever they want, and they get it. There are going to be some self-service parts, buffet-style, as well,’ said Dodgers executive vice president and chief operating officer Marty Greenspun. Around 3,000 seats right-field seats will be sold for $35 in advance and $40 on game day with the all-you-can-eat special. Left-field tickets, meanwhile, will sell for $10,” reports ESPN.

And here’s a review of the all-you-can eat pavilion.

Linebacker puzzle

This Les Bowen article on Chris Gocong highlights the absolute mess the Eagles LB corps is. Takeo Spikes continues to insist that he will be playing weakside LB, presumably replacing Omar Gaither who was the only encouraging bright spot of all the LBs last year.

 

There’s a lot of talk about Gaither moving back to middle LB and restoring the big picture plan where he eventually replaces Trotter as the starting MLB. Is anybody else concerned that the 235 lbs Gaither is, uh, a little small to play MLB?He’s 30 lbs. lighter than Trotter. Gaither at MLB makes an already small defensive front seven even smaller. Why is nobody talking about this? Does anyone else remember the Mark Simoneau experience?

 

And then there’s strong side where Dhani Jones is clearly not getting it done (and in the process has become the most hated Eagle starter). Seriously, everyone I know has a strong dislike for Jones these days.

 

Anyway, Gocong is supposed to replace him. Caution flags have to be waved here because of 1) Gocong’s neck injury last year 2) he’s making the transition to LB from DE and 3) Heckert is now suggesting that Gocong could be moved back to D-end. Hello, ND Kalu! The Eagles ruined what had been a promising Kalu by shifting him back and forth from defensive end and linebacker. It didn’t work out well for the Eagles, either. They didn’t get an effective Kalu at either position.

 

Spikes gives the Eagles some options at LB – moving to the middle on passing downs, for instance. Maybe even playing some strong side if Gocong doesn’t pan out. But where he plays most consistently is the key to the Eagels LB puzzle. Here’s betting its not weakside.

Biggest Andy Reid Draft Bust?

Which player has been the biggest draft bust of the Andy Reid era? The four players below are the primary contenders. By their very nature, a bust has to have been a high draft pick. So while Billy McMullen, Bobbie Williams, and Matt Ware never panned out, as 3^rd round picks they were mere disappointments for not being able to crack a starting lineup. Picks in the first two rounds, however, should become contributing starters (not mere role players), especially those picked in the first round. And more specifically, one would hope players picked in the top 15 would see at least one Pro Bowl.

Vote for who you think is the biggest Andy Reid draft bust in the comments section of this blog.

Meet the candidates (or add your own nominee):

Quinton Caver, LB, 2^nd round (55^th overall), 2001 – in my opinion, this pick had significant long-term repercussions on the defense. In theory, Caver could and should have replaced Trotter at MLB. He didn’t. And this pick was worse than the Gardner pick if for no other reason than the Eagles were already in damage-control mode after realizing, "holy crap, Gardner's never going to start for us." They took a second shot at getting Trotter's heir apparent and missed again, resulting in an increasingly desperate attempt to fill the gaping hole in the middle of their defense that developed when Trotter left (a hole never filled till Trotter returned to the team). Not sure what Caver’s problem was – intelligence? Discipline? He appeared to have physical ability but was never able to pull it all together. He gets points for still being in the league, and playing for KC and now Dallas.

Barry Gardner, LB, 2^nd round (35 overall), 1999 – undersized LB from Northwestern was neither big nor fast. His inability to fill the void left by Jeremiah Trotter left the Eagles annually scrambling and in search of stop-gap solutions such as the mammoth Levon Kirkland.

Freddie Mitchell, WR, 1^st round (25^th overall), 2001 – neither fast nor physical and with unsteady hands, Mitchell was a glorified possession receiver who talked like he was Randy Moss. Of course, he did haul in the pass that converted the 4^th and 26 vs. the Packers in the divisional playoffs. Oddly enough, he also caught the other most famous pass of Donovan McNabb's career -- the 14 second, 60 yard scramble against Dallas on MNF. Then again, his lack of development/ability forced us to endure more Todd Pinkston and James Thrash than is healthy for any fan. Maybe if he had gotten open more often, Trash and Stinkston wouldn’t have been manhandled in the Panthers championship game.

Jerome McDougle, DE, 1^st round (15^th overall), 2003 – Only the Eagles could pick the one edge rusher from a major Florida University (Miami, FSU, UFla) that wasn’t incredibly sleek and quick and strong. Moreover, McDougle’s been star-crossed since his start here. He endured serious hip, knee, and ankle injuries in the final preseason game of his rookie year that kept him off the field for half the season. Then, of course, he got shot leading up to another Eagles’ training camp. After recuperating from that, he developed appendicitis. He’s the only player on the team that could conceivably have an acme safe fall on his head. I would be surprised if he made the 2007 opening day roster. He loses additional points cause the Eagles traded up to get him. Fortunately, the emergence of Trent Cole and the opportunity the Eagles had to get LJ Smith in the 2^nd round (who they had projected as a 1^st rounder) helped avoid this pick/player from being a total disaster.

Bloody Schilling?

I’m a huge Curt Schilling fan from his days with the Phillies. There’s no better big-game pitcher playing in baseball. And now the issue of his bloody sock has been raised again.

C-Webb: C=con

“You have to love a league in which somebody making $20 million a year can stink to the degree that his team asks him, "Hey, what if we paid you 95 percent of your salary money to play somewhere else, is that something you'd be interested in?" ... and then that same player goes to a contender and miraculously becomes good again. Watching C-Webb in Detroit has been like watching the last scene in "The Usual Suspects" for three straight months; all that was missing was Billy King dropping a coffee mug in slow motion,” says the Sports Guy.

 

I really can’t believe more hasn’t been made out of this in Philadelphia or nationally. Such is the state of the NBA where guys get $30 million from teams just to go away so the team can eventually get out of salary cap hell. It’s definitely the dark side of guaranteed contracts. Contrast that with the NFL where LaVar Arrington returned millions of his signing bonus (i.e., the “guaranteed” part of his contract) so the Redskins would release him and he could sign with another team (the Giants, for less than what he would have made in DC.) Note also Skins safety Adam Archuleta considered a similar giveback to Dannyboy Snider to get out of his contract.

It was only a matter of time till the Eagles got swept up in the “throwback” jersey hullabaloo. The 75^th anniversary seems as good a time as any and on Sept. 23^rd the Eags will wear these blue and yellow jerseys vs. Detroit. Unlike the throwback jerseys worn by Detroit, Green Bay, San Diego, and Dallas – to name but four teams – the Eagles throwback unis have absolutely no relationship to the current color scheme, so we’ll see how well these things sell in the gift shop.

 

On that note, if any good can come out of this throwback exhibit on 9/23 it might be that it limits the Eagles to only wearing their “black” jerseys (how original) in only one other home game this year since league rules stipulate that “alternate” jerseys can only be used twice in a season.

Interesting take by Fox Sports on Eagles draft possibilities. What i found most intriguing was the analysis that the Eagles have an heir apparent for B. Dawk in Sean Considine who, Fox's Inside Slant suggests, is more suited for FS than strong safety. the other suggestion that perhaps the Eags would move Sheldon Brown ("give it to me, Sheldon") to safety and draft a corner is not something i have seen before but is interesting. Brown is a physical corner in the mode of Troy Vincent who recently made the move himself to safety to prolong his already stellar career. In fact, as a short-term solution would or should have the Eagles been interested in re-signing Vincent as a safety as insurance. he knows the defense and is a proven team leader.

Classic

Middle of the 8th inning, the Washington broadcast feed (MASN) shows the Philadelphia skyline (btw, on an earlier re-entry shot of City Hall I used the view as a "teachable moment" for my daughter and taught her that the name of the man-statue on top of city hall is named, "Billy Penn." My five year-old then explained to me that "city hall" must be called "hall" because of all the halls, which she knew, she explained because of all the windows on the building, suggesting rooms and, thus, halls. She's a freakin' genius I tell you, certainly smarter already than Charlie Manuel).

Anyway, the 8th inning shot shows the PSFS building with the text scroll on the very top of the building spelling out the.......the Eagles' fight song. Classic! The Phillies in a must win game/series vs. the Nationals and the Eagles to draft in 96 hours, and the focus is on the .... Eagles. Thank you Bill Giles! Your baseball acumen has turned the 5th largest city into a FOOTBALL TOWN.

You can bet that with the Phillies inimitable timing that if they were swept this series (or even lose it) the thousands of TVs in the Delaware Valley would be metaphorically switching to Eagles training camp and to hell with the May and June Phillies.

Speaking of which, congrats to the Phils for putting up a 3 spot in the 8th to break open a tie game. That is putting the hammer down on a weak team.

Now maybe this is sacrilege in the wake of the win, but with Utley on first and no outs in a tie game and the Nats so overplaying the Howard shift to the point where the 3B was playing SS, would it be totally out of the question for your clean up hitter and reigning NL MVP from dropping down a bunt down the 3B side to advance the runner. Does it matter that Howard has a gimpy knee? Does it matter that he is only hitting .211? Or is that just not done? Cause his "psyche" is so fragile that public acknowledgment that his best contribution to the team at the moment is a sac bunt is the best play? Let him swing away for a strikeout.

Relatedly, Nunez batting .143 pinch hit for the pitcher in the 7? to be fair, it was a nice bunt that advanced the runner, but if i were manager all my pitchers would be bunt proficient so i wouldn't have to waste position player on bunting to advance a runner.

BTW, i've had 4 sierra nevada's (thanks TD) and half a bottle of wine. so my posts tonight may be a little skewed.

Must Win? Yes!

Kind of silly to think that the Phillies might have a must win game tonight or a must win series this early in the season since we’re not even out of April, but….

 

The fact is the Phillies have dug themselves a deep hole in the first three weeks of the season by falling more than 6 games back.

 

Fortunately, the listing ship appears to be righting itself.

 

A sweep of the lowly Nationals would go a long, long way to helping avoid the disaster April was becoming for the Phillies. Win these 3 and suddenly the Phils are 10-11 for the month.

 

The Nats are the worst team in the league. If the Phils have any hope of winning the division or the wildcard then taking care of pitiful teams like this is a must. (which is why the extra inning loss last week in Washington was so disappointing).

 

Championship-caliber teams put the hammer down on teams like the Nationals. We’ll see if the Phils are up to the task. But there is not denying the importance of this series either way – if the Phils win it, or lose it.

King on Bonds- Irrational

Not to pick on King, but his Tuesday edition of MMQB includes perhaps the best example of the MSM’s bizarre and irrational reaction to Barry Bonds.

 

Aaron of Toronto asks King: "Will your boycott of an alleged steroid cheat extend to confirmed cheats such as Shawne Merriman?''

 

To which King responds, “No. Merriman was tested, caught, and suspended. Barry Bonds was not tested, not caught, not suspended ... for years.”

 

Being an NFL beat writer, King may not be aware that steroids were not actually illegal in MLB until the past 2 (3?) years. Thus, there would be no reason for Bonds to be tested. And if Bonds wasn’t tested, then he of course can’t be “caught.” And certainly not “caught” for something that wasn’t against the rules. So why is King holding it against Bonds that he wasn’t suspended when he wasn’t tested and wasn’t caught?

 

King’s attitude takes a bizarre turn when he seems to dismiss Shawne Merriman’s proven violation of the NFL steroid policy. Somehow, King is ok with Merriman cheating – in a sport and with a drug that is exponentially more important in football than baseball – since Merriman was “punished” with a four game suspension. Presumably, everything would be hunky-dory with Bonds in King’s view if Barry had sat out at least a handful of games as a form of punishment.

 

The anger Barry Bonds generates among fans and most obviously in the press is astounding. Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco, Sammy Sosa don’t seem to engender the same vitriol combined.

 

What is it about Bonds that gets everyone’s dander up? Is it that he is going to break Hank Aaron’s all-time home run record? That there is such deep suspicion that Barry used performance enhancing drugs and that he didn’t get caught? (and really, if that is the case, isn’t that anger misplaced and should instead be directed at MLB that looked the other way in what is now becoming known as the “steroids era?” Is it the media’s attempt at payback since Bonds is by all accounts an unpleasant personality and has treated the press with such open contempt? Is it because Bonds is black?

 

One other example of the media’s frenzied frustration with Bonds. Tom Loverro of the Washington Times has said he and others should boycott watching Bonds’ campaign to break Aaron’s record because, in essence, Bonds lied to a grand jury.

 

Since when did that become the standard for appreciating a player’s performance? More to the point, like King, Loverro fails to admit or acknowledge that Bonds has NEVER been charged with perjury. Maybe he will. But he hasn’t as of yet. So it is ridiculous to suggest that we should boycott Bonds for something that he has never been officially accused of (other than Loverro’s own conviction as judge and jury.).

Peter King Calls Accused Rapist "Seductive"

Quick, someone at Sports Illustrated please assign an editor to Peter King, pronto.

 

The lack of an editor or King’s own internal alarm system is the only way to explain how his MMQB column wound up describing an accused rapist “seductive.”  “I know Eric Wright is the most seductive player in this draft. Wright is a corner from UNLV. He transferred from USC after being accused of rape (the charges were later dropped)...” wrote King.

 

Next thing you know, King will be reporting that NFL scouts love the fact that Wright “lays the wood” in the secondary; “is quick to fill the whole;” easily overcomes “opposing stiff arms;” is “physically aggressive;” “is not to be denied.”

 

With regard to Wright, some say his off the field problems have scared some teams away, but he is intriguing or, as King notes, “seductive” because he is a hybrid CB/S. The Eagles are known to emphasize “character” players, but are willing to take a flyer on players with problem incidents if their due diligence indicates it’s not a chronic problem (see Winston Justice and gun on campus).

McCoy a Safety?

On the eve of the draft and with the Eagles projected to take a safety in the first or second round -- to groom as heir apparent to B. Dawk or as insurance/to press Sean Considine -- it is time once again to consider Matt McCoy.

Taken as a 2nd rounder by the Eagles 2 years ago, this SI site projected him as an undrafted free agent. But I come not to slam McCoy, hey is it his fault the Eagles totally, totally overvalued his abiliites (on a Mike Mamula-magnitude)?

No.

But it is interesting that at 5'11", 200 lbs. some draft experts thought he would play safety in the nfl since he's an undersized LB. (Surely the Eagles were gambling that he would turn into a Brian Urlacher type player, a quick LB/Safety hybrid that could morph into a fast hard-hitting pro LB.) I'm not sure how fast he is for the secondary, but if the Eagles are looking to shore up the safety position, maybe they should give McCoy a look. It's not like they'll miss him at LB.

On the other hand, before he left I was also in favor of a similar position reversal for S Michael Lewis. They could have traded positions. McCoy could have become a safety and Lewis an LB. (in fact, after Lewis lost the starting strong safety job, J. Johnson did seem to convert Lewis into a coverage LB in passing situations.)

Raising Rowand

Well, whaddya know. Ole Charlie Manuel managed to look at his stats sheet and come to the conclusion many fans - and this Eagleseye post -- arrived at two weeks ago. To wit, maybe the player with the highest batting average on the team (Rowand, .345) should be hitting higher in the batting order than the 7/8 spot he had been relegated to.

Voila, Rowand moves up to #2 and goes 1 for 4 with a run and an rbi in the Phils' 4-1 win vs. Cincy.

Bucky gets stuffed by the Nebraska State Supreme Court.

More Manuel

When your hitters are struggling to move runners and bring them home, as a Mgr, you need to do everything you can to manufacture runs and make good baseball decisions. When the 1st 2 guys at the bottom of your line up get on base, and you know you'll have a pinch hitter on deck, you MUST bunt to ensure you get at least 1 run (infield back), or even 2 with just a single (PH and then Rollins batting).

Then the other night against the Mets, top of the 8th, 5-4 game and you let Geary (pitched to 1 batter in 7th) lead off and HIT? Guess what happened in the bottom of the 8th w/ Geary in... 3 guys get on, bases juiced with 1 out. We end up losing 11-5. You let Geary hit??? Ever heard of a double switch Charlie? Even the announcers seemed confused on that one...

Granted the team sucks and is batting/ pitching horribly, but Manuel's basic decisions aren't helping any.

Why Isn't Rowand Batting Higher?

Aaron Rowand leads the Phils on base percentage (.456) and batting average (.348).

So why isn't Rowand batting higher than 6/7 in the order?

With your two big bats in bad slumps (and now Howard out with a strained quad), Rowand should bat 3rd and, dare I say, Burrell 4th - and Utley 5th and Howard sixth till those to get their stuff together.

But of course Manuel will stick with his book, even if it is child's play.

new position

Tom Gordon has now defined a new position in baseball. Enabler -
enabling other teams to win ballgames....this guy is past it. He plunks
the first batter he sees in the 9th...As a friend's wife mentioned while
watching the Gordon's 9th inning vs. the Nats, "he's in the wrong line
of work"

Charlie Manuel must be fired!!!

11 games into the season and it's tough to watch. If he lasts until the 20th game I may not attend another Phillies game all year, including "roof top Thursday's"... even if it's 80 degrees with cheap drinks and beautiful chicks.

Latest "Charlie of Mayberry" basic strategy mix up. Phils have 8 runners LOB after 5- the usual. Down 4-1, bottom of the 6, first 2 guys single (1st and 2nd), w/ no outs, and Ruiz coming to the plate (w/ Pitcher up next and having a PH). Instead of bunting the guys over, 2nd and 3rd, 1 out and having the PH come up... He elects to have Ruiz hit, ends up being an 0-2 count, and he grounds into you, guessed it, a double play, w/ a guy left on 3rd. Pinch hitter lines to left. 9 guys LOB after 6.

Beirut Champ

if you play the beer pong game, make sure you never play this guy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wFZevw1AHZs

 

Funny montage of NY Jets draft picks and the fans’ disappointment with the selections. Sometimes the fans do know more than the team executives (i.e., Sapp vs. Brady).

Kiteman

During his tenure as managing partner of the Phillies when he ran the team (into the ground), Bill Giles earned a well-deserved reputation for penury, ineptitude, and incompetence.

 

But having given up control of his beloved Phillies some time ago, he is trying to rehabilitate his image as a baseball elder and wise sage. Who are we to criticize him for trying to color his Phillies career with rose-tinted glasses? There’s certainly no denying he is likely the most influential Phillies leader of the last quarter of the 20^th century..which may say more about the Phillies lack of leadership than anything about Giles.

 

Still, I’ll give him his due as a baseball lifer and keeper of the Phillies’ flame (though I still don’t forgive him for his overly leveraged buyout of the team from the Carpenter’s that had the Giles’ ownership group crying “small market” for twenty years while owning the franchise in the 4^th largest city in the country).

 

Still, this story of the promotional stunt for the 1972 home opener will probably have you laughing as hard as I was.

 

Phillies fans of a certain age – like myself – will remember the “zany” stunts that seemed to be all the rage in the 1970s – or maybe it was just with baseball, or even specifically to the Phillies. And Kiteman is right up there in the Phillies’ list of “Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time” ideas, along with signing Lance Parrish, Larry Bowa as manager, and a multipurpose stadium that can host football AND baseball games.

 

More Eagles schedule

My friend PK has analyzed the Eagles schedule and offers this analysis:

 

Assuming no disasters -- No. 5 blowing another ACL, Andy reclaiming the play-calling and designing a no-huddle/70-pass-per-game-offense that kills the D -- I think that we're 7-4 heading into the home stretch. And that's being conservative.
If they don't start 3-0, Andy should be fired. Then they go to Meadowlands, a possible/probable loss. That's followed by a 2nd straight game, albeit with a break for the bye, at the Meadowlands, this time against the Jets. That game could be oddly significant in the season, the way that bizarre 62-yard field goal helped determine their seeding last season. Beat the NYJ, and 12-4 is possible, lose, and 9-7 becomes possible.

 

And check out this link recounting the final minute of the recent Kings-Nuggets basketball game. Decide for yourself if the fix was in and, if so, who was in on it.

 

http://www.theangryt.com/article.php?id_art=140

 

Fare Thee Well Bledsoe

Now that he’s announced his retirement, the debate over whether Drew Bledsoe is worthy of admission to the Hall of Fame will begin in earnest.

 

Indeed, that was the subject of this morning’s sports talk radio, and the judgment was decidedly mixed.

 

On the one hand, Bledsoe is ranked 7^th all-time in passing yards, led a team to a Super Bowl, was a top 5 QB in the mid to and won a ring with another Patriots team. (For those who discount the ring by pointing out that Brady was the starter, the Bledsoe camp counters that Bledsoe did start games in the first half of that season, and more importantly, came into the AFC championship game (vs. Steelers) after Brady went down with a  knee injury when Lee Flowers hit him low and won the game.) Regardless, I think the whole “won a championship” thing is wildly overrated in determining Hall credentials.

 

Then again, Bledsoe detractors suggest that he threw a TON of interceptions, never really had a truly stand out year, and never gave of that “winner” vibe. Personally, I think some of this is forgetfulness and a perception colored by his last couple of seasons: Bledsoe was a premier QB back in the day and he obviously struggled his last years in Buffalo and finally being so shaky that Parcells finally had to bench him for Romo.

 

But the most interesting thing to me about this entire debate, is the surprising amount of divisiveness Bledsoe’s name produces. People either like him, or more people hate him. I don’t understand where this animosity comes from. Bledsoe’s never been in trouble with the law, no TO antics on or off the field, no controversies, so what gives? Sure, he’s a bit of a diva, QB prima donna, but that can hardly be the reason for the anger towards him. I don’t get it.

 

The Phillies Way

9 games into the season, the Phillies are 5 games back.

 

That sentence succinctly sums up so much of the Phillies recent history.

 

But near term future prospects? We’ll see.

Eagles schedule

Schedules out. Monday night opener kind of stinks, especially to then
have short week back to back home games (from the fans perspective). We
then go a month without a home game. (9/23 - 10/21).

And those Seattle and Dallas home games in December would appear to be
prime games to be moved to Sunday night (great). - Tough stretch from NE
on, but thankfully we don't have a home game on that Sunday after
Tgiving.

Eagles Schedule

Sun., Sept. 9, at Green Bay, 1 p.m. (FOX)

Mon., Sept. 17, REDSKINS, 8:30 p.m. (ESPN)

Sun., Sept. 23, DETROIT, 1 p.m. (FOX)

Sun., Sept. 30, at Giants, 8:15 p.m. (NBC)

Sun., Oct. 7, Bye

Sun., Oct. 14, at Jets, 1 p.m. (FOX)

Sun., Oct. 21, CHICAGO, 4:15 p.m. (FOX)

Sun., Oct. 28, at Minnesota, 1 p.m. (FOX)

Sun., Nov. 4, DALLAS, 8:15 p.m. (NBC)

Sun., Nov. 11, at Washington, 1 p.m. (FOX)

Sun., Nov. 18, MIAMI, 1 p.m. (CBS)

Sun., Nov. 25, at New England, 8:15 p.m. (NBC)

Sun., Dec. 2, SEATTLE, 1 p.m. (FOX)

Sun., Dec. 9, GIANTS, 1 p.m., (FOX)

Sun., Dec. 16, at Dallas, 4:15 p.m. (FOX)

Sun., Dec. 23, at New Orleans, 1 p.m. (FOX)

Sun., Dec. 30, BUFFALO, 1 p.m. (CBS)

Pain & Suffering Index

Lucky us - 2 of the top 4 for Philadelphia – and 3 of the top 25.

 

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=schoenfield/070328&lpos=spotlight&lid=tab7pos2