From Cruel to Sadistic

The Eagles game last night certainly left a sour taste in the mouths’ of fans still savoring the sweet Phillies wine of a NL East division title. It wasn’t just the loss to the hated Giants that was so distasteful, but the manner in which it happened.

Andy Reid’s preference for the pass has officially gone from a curious fetish to pathological sickness. The Inqy’s Phil Sheridan calls it an “addiction.” Asking McNabb to throw 29 times with a sports hernia in a game his team won by six touchdowns was cruel. As was making McNabb pass 46 times versus the Redskins in a game they never trailed by more than 10 points and was only the second back from his ACL surgery.

But last night’s offensive “game plan” was simply sadistic. There is no other way to explain or describe it. It was sadistic to Winston Justice who was humiliated on national TV and it was sadistic to inflict such continuing punishment on Donovan McNabb who was sacked at least once on every drive the Eagles had in the game. And that doesn’t even count the number of hits and hurries #5 endured.

But the biggest question – beyond why so many pass plays (33 compared to 23 rushes) were called when the Eagles were running all over the Giants (5.0 yard/carry) – was why in the name of Jerome Brown Andy Reid and his enabler Marty Mohrninweg provided no help to Justice on the pass plays that were called!! It was INEXPLICABLE.

Even I know enough that you can help a tackle out by lining up the TE on his side to help double team, or at the least chip the defensive end at the beginning of his route. And/or keep a running back in the backfield to help double team the end or at least provide some semblance of insurance if the pass rusher gets by the tackle so he doesn’t have an uninterrupted route to the QB.

Certainly the coaches were aware of this. On at least several plays Reno Mahe helped Jon Runyan pick-up Strahan on the rightside of the line. The unexplained question is why the Eagles’ brain trust thought it prudent to help a pro bowl tackle handle an over the hill pass rusher, but not his left side counterpart making his first NFL start. After the third sack it didn’t take a genius to realize that Justice needed some help, any help, with Umenyiora.

Correll Buckhalter ran for 103 yards on 17 carries, a 6.1 average. On nearly twice as many pass attempts (31), the Eagles gained just 138 yards. My five year-old can calculate which is the more efficient and successful option.

And when you add in that your starting tight end was hurt and your “#1” WR Reggie Brown is showing a Pinkston-like ability to get open, it becomes even more unclear as to why Reid and Mohrninweg were so wedded to the pass.

If any good came out of last night’s game, it may be this. The evidence is accumulating that McNabb is not so much “injury-prone” as Andy Reid’s offense is prone to make his QB injured. Maybe we should marvel at McNabb’s durability and wonder how McNabb has only had three serious injuries with the Eagles when you see the game- in and game-out punishment he takes in Andy Reid’s pass happy “offense.” That and we all have a new appreciation for the rock William “Tra” Thomas has been at left tackle for the past decade.