Red zone continues to be a problem for Reid and Mohrninweg.
Also, look at that fourth down goal line run. Isn’t Alex Brown facemasking Bucky as he’s tackling him.
And how can you not challenge the spot on the Forte run?!
On the bright side, the Phils play on Wednesday.
Has a division’s standings been so upended in so little time.
The heretofore overrated 2-1 Redskins, who beat two lousy teams and looked completely discombobulated against the NY Giants in the season opener, go into Dallas and handle the Cowboys.
The Cowboys, until now viewed as the best team in the conference, have now lost one - and should have lost a second - home game to division rivals within the first four weeks of the season. That is not how the best team in the conference plays.
The Eagles blow 4 turnovers, 2 Akers’ misses, and four cracks at the endzone from inside the 2 yard line to lose to the mediocre Kyle Orton-led Bears to sink to .500.
Sunday morning, I would have ranked the NFC East thusly: Cowboys, Eagles, Giants, Redskins.
Sunday night, I have to rank them: Redskins, Giants, Cowboys, Eagles
A frustrated friend writes:
You should crush that weak ass Bears team. Kyle Orton orchestrates 3 first downs in the second half. 4 runs up the middle against the strength of the Bears team. Not on McNabb, but put this one on Andy Reid. Challenge two of those plays-first TD and the spot on the Forte play.
I can’t take it anymore.
Balester threw his second pitch to Howard knee high, just inside.
Howard unloaded -- one looping swing, one crack -- and the ball soared high toward center, into the swirling, spectral mist. Nobody even needed to see it land. Citizens Bank Park erupted. Center fielder Lastings Milledge chased Howard's 48th home run to the 398 sign in center, but it sailed into Philadelphia's bullpen. Several relievers already had their fists raised high. Philadelphia led 3-0, and by the middle of the next inning, it was 6-1 thanks to a Chase Utley bases-loaded, bases-clearing double."
Moving Art Rooney-Rocky Bleier-Joe Biden story. Further proof the Rooney’s are class acts.
A friend writes:
Well, Mets stole 1 tonight after blowing 1 last night. We gotta sweep the Nats. Game on.
From Major League Baseball:
If the Mets and Phillies finish tied with both teams assured of a playoff berth, the Mets win the NL East by virtue of their 11-7 record vs. the Phillies this season. Philadelphia's magic number to clinch at least the Wild Card is two. To clinch the division crown, the number is three.
Should the Phils, Mets, Brewers finish the regular season with identical records, the Phillies and Mets would play on Monday, Sept. 29, at Citizens Bank Park, with the winner being declared the NL East champions. The loser would host Milwaukee on Tuesday, Sept. 30, with the winner of that game advancing to the postseason as the NL Wild Card entry.
What did Jim Johnson see that prompted him to blitz, blitz, and blitz again the Steelers offense?
Was it Roethlisberger’s shoulder injury?
Was it some weakness on the offensive line?
Was it a confidence that his defensive backs could cover Ward, Holmes and Washington long enough for his safety and linebackers to get to the quarterback?
I’m guessing it was a combination of all three.
Does the weather help or hurt? Tonight's game could be canceled cause of the rain. Either they wait all night to play it or they move it to Monday. Mets would get a day of rest before their last series but last night's loss gnaws a little longer.
Doubt Cubs would play anyone of consequence if they had to play on Monday to decide mets playoff fate. Ends up with the same problem. Cubs will play nobody because of the weather. And certainly not their pitcher (Hardin).
They may postpone due to weather if it won't clear up. Will they have to wait ALL NIGHT, like they made the Phillies and Nats do on precisely this night 2 yrs ago, the Thurs night before the final weekend waiting till 11:30 pm to start that game.
The report I just heard was rain through Saturday. If it's raining steadily still at 12:00 with no let up anticipated they'll call it. They'll make up Monday if necessary. If that happened I'd be surprised if some of the Cubs just didn't stay in Chicago and not make trip (no reason to if Cubs) - this brings us back to the MLB doesn't want that to happen and trying to get game in.
Reportedly the Cubs are really unhappy already about the possibility of having to come back to NY on Monday for a make up game that doesn't affect them.
With rain forecast this afternoon through Saturday morning, the Mets are desperate not to have to play any double headers this weekend and further strain the bullpen. Phillies too, could be looking at a double header Saturday.
Interestingly, the Mets have already used up their allotment of day-night doubleheaders for the season so need a special exception to play another doubleheader (from the players union) otherwise a rained out game would have to be held on Monday or Tuesday (if they have to play cubs on Monday).
Finally, if the Mets have to play on Monday (vs. the Cubs) or on Monday or Tuesday vs. the Marlins that totally screws up the special farewell to Shea ceremonies they had for Sunday.
Fascinating
The most impressive part of the Eagles’ win yesterday?
· Roethlisberger getting sacked 9 times
· McNabb throwing 14 straight completions at one point
· Keeping the Steelers to 33 yards rushing.
· The entire Eagles starting backfield getting hurt and leaving the game (Westbrook, Hunt, McNabb) but still managing to win.
· Brian Dawkins flying through the air like Superman to strip Roethlisberger of the ball and recovering the fumble to basically seal the game.
Like I said, I’m having a hard time deciding which was the MOST impressive.
Honest to gosh true story.
I was watching the game with my kids and when they showed Dawkins diving to strip Roethlisberger of the ball and recovering the fumble in super slo-mo my daughter said, “daddy that man is flying.”
I replayed it on Tivo and my son says, “yeah, he looks like Superman.”
“That’s not Superman,” I said. “It’s Brian Dawkins.”
From Reid press conference.
MRI shows ankle “strain” but no ligament and/or tendon tears. He is day to day.
McNabb MRI shows “chest contusion.” Also day to day.
LJ Smith is injured and “being checked” but no detail on what/location of injury.
A sign of the economic times or crushing disappointment among a fan base for a team that was supposed to be a playoff contender but is 0-2 out of the gate? Seriously, the Vikings are in the biggest free fall of any team in the league (or at least among its fan base). You would think benching Jackson would have inspired the fans.
Before we move on to week 3, I wanted to raise an issue/ask a question that has not gotten any attention in the wake of the Eagles loss to the Cowboys (and is a personal crusade of mine).
To wit, why did the Eagles punt with 3:22 left to go in the game from their own 24 yard line facing 4th and 8 down by 4?
Andy Reid's classic conventional wisdom decision has gone unnoticed. And yet, the question remains.
The bottom line is that at that point in the game, the Eagles needed to do two things to win: they had to stop the Cowboys on their next possession and the Eagles had to score a touchdown (being down by 4).
What the Eagles did do was to punt to the Cowboys 21 yard line where they stuffed Marion Barber twice and forced an incomplete to Barber on third down, resulting in a Cowboys punt back to the Eagles where they started on their own 22 (after a Quinton Demps holding penalty) with 2:36 to go.
At that point,they had lost 2 yards in field postion, :46 seconds, and the rest of their timeouts. They still needed a touchdown to win.
But why did they punt initially? Had they gone for it on 4th and 8 and not converted they would have given the Cowboys the ball at, worst, on their own 24 yard line.
The Eagles would still have needed to force a 3 and out on the Cowboys. Though on 4th down from that field position, the Cowboys would have gone for the FG. Assuming the Cowboys got the figgie, they would have kicked off. And based on the 22.7 yards per kickoff return the Eagles had that game, they would have returned the ball to just about where they started with it on the last Cowboys punt.
Most importantly, the Eagles would still have needed to score a touchdown. Yes, the touchdown would not have won the game outright at that point - only tied it, but they would still have needed to score a touchdown to NOT LOSE.
All things considered, the Eagles probably should have gone for it on 4th and 8 from their own 24 yard line with 3:22 to play down by 4. If they convert, they keep the possession, build momentum, and preserve their timeouts. If they don't make the first, they are in the same boat as if they punted - they have to stop the Cowboys, burn their timeouts and still need the ball back and score a touchdown to stay alive. But they forfeited the chance to make a first down. Indeed, their 3rd down play (which was a short incomplete pass to Westbrook) should have reflected the "2 down territory" nature of the game situation/field position. (Perhaps a basic running play, draw, or a surprise long pass on that down).
The risk reward is very clear and once again Andy Reid's play calling and game managment are called into question even if he has escaped scrutiny from the mainstream/conventional wisdom media.
Here are the remaining games for the three teams:
Phillies: at Atlanta, at Florida, at Florida, at Florida, vs. Atlanta, vs. Atlanta, vs. Atlanta, OFF, vs. Washington, vs. Washington, vs. Washington.
Mets: at Washington, at Atlanta, at Atlanta, at Atlanta, vs. Cubs, vs. Cubs, vs. Cubs, vs. Cubs, vs. Florida, vs. Florida, vs. Florida
Brewers: at Cubs, at Cubs, at Cincinnati, at Cincinnati, OFF, vs. Pittsburgh, vs. Pittsburgh, vs. Pittsburgh, vs. Cubs, vs. Cubs, vs. Cubs
The Philly baseball beat writer thinks the Phillies have to go 7-3 over the last 10 games to definitely get in the playoffs. He even thinks 6-4 might do it since he doesn’t think BOTH the Mets and Brewers will go 6-4 since each has to play the Cubs (4 games for the Mets, 3 for the Brewers).
Interestingly, the Mets don’t have any more off days the rest of the way.
We played this game a couple of years ago with the Phils in the last week of the season. They crapped the bed against the lowly Nationals (remember the 2 am rain delayed game in Washington?), which really didn’t matter since the Dodgers essentially ran the table and went something like 9-1.
6-4 seems about right. That would make each teams’ magic 18, right? Any combination of Phillies wins and Mets/Brewers losses to get to 18 (and vice versa for Shuff).
Should be interesting. Too bad TBS stopped showing Braves-Phillies games.
A friend writes:
Tonight was painful on many levels, and ther will be plenty of folks who want to minimize this loss by saying, See, we stood toe to toe with them and showed that we're an elite team, we'll get them later this year at home.
Sure. True. But that's the attitude of a wild card team. By the end of the 1st half I saw a team on the field that was looking at trying to win a Super Bowl. That offense looked as good, if not better, than even in prime time TO/'04 year.
Ultimately, what that loss might have done is serve as a distinction between being a division winner (with possible home field throughout) and being a wild card team trying to win it all on the road. I'd have much preferred pulling out that win and then losing a winnable one to the Steelers at home.
Oh, ps, DeSeam Jackson needs to learn how to hold the football. He CAUGHT that pass at the 4 and fumbled it into the end zone for a TD recovered by us.
Is Andy Reid going to hold a press conference today?
The “upgrades” to the Eagles’ website stink. Less information and hard to navigate. Great.
Would B Dawk switch over to SS and move Mikell to free safety? Would Dawkins see that as a “demotion” or a move to best play to his current strengths?
And what of Sheldon Brown, who has been mentioned as likely candidate to switch to safety for about two years now? Would that be a way out of the Lito controversy? The Eagles nickel package could look like Brown and Mikell at the safeties and Lito, Samuel and Hanson as the corners.
Game last night. Among the casualties Shawn Andrews’ back, Roy Williams’ broken arm (when did he give up #31?) and Jason Witten’s separated shoulder.
No one really wants to discuss the declining performance of Brian Dawkins. Here’s hoping he bounces back, as he usually does, after a bad game or two. And as Rich Hoffman points out, TO and Jason Witten are two of the best in the league. (Let’s hope Stewart Bradley’s similarly bad pass defense can be blamed on the Cowboys talent.)
Still, it bears mentioning. If B. Dawk can only be a situational player this year, who would replace him? Rookie Quinton Demps? Sean Considine? (puh-leaze).
Would Quinin Mikell shift over to FS and Demps and/or Considine come into play strong safety?
Dawkins would really have to play even more poorly than last night before a Mikell-Considine tandem could realistically be considered an upgrade over Dawkins-Mikell.
Not only the highest rated Monday night game, but perhaps the highest rated cable telecast…ever?!
Steve young loves the 2008 eagles offense. Calls McNabb one of the top '2 or 3 quarterbacks' in the league.
Les Bowen touches on something that I was also thinking as I watched a replay of the game last night. To wit, on both of McNabb’s two long completions to DeSean Jackson, the speedy wideout was pretty well covered. =
Yet, McNabb just kind of heaved it up there and let Jackson make the play – which he did both times in making some very nice adjustments to make the catches with a defensive back right with him. They were both very un-McNabb-like throws…into coverage. There was even a third, I think, where he threw to Avant who was covered – or at least enough covered that McNabb traditionally hasn’t thrown it to such a receiver – but which Avant drew the interference call on.
A matter of trust with Jackson (a rookie?!). Or just the “new” McNabb letting it rip? In any case, it’s something we haven’t seen of McNabb since 2004 and you know who.
Will the trust continue? With Reggie Brown and Kevin Curtis? Stay tuned.
The Phillies have won all four coin flips, against the Mets, Brewers, Astros and Cardinals, to determine home field in possible tiebreakers.
The Fort Worth Star Telegram reports the glaringly obvious “news” that Brian Westbrook is one of the most valuable and versatile players in football. But the article still manages to surprise, by listing the running backs taken ahead of Westbrook back in 2004.
“He was drafted behind running backs such as William Green, T.J. Duckett, DeShaun Foster, Maurice Morris, Ladell Betts and Lamar Gordon.”
Westbrook is famous for being “only” a 3rd round pick, but when you put that into the context of the players he was passed over in favor of, I mean, wow.
Talent-wise and at this stage of their careers this might be considered a silly question. On the other hand, given the obvious size of Jamie Moyer’s heart and fight and desire it bears asking….
If the Phillies get into the playoffs, Moyer has to be considered the ace, the clutch pitcher, the warrior-who-will-pitch-till-the-Phillies-win-the-championship-or-his-arm-falls-off-whichever-comes-first over Brett Myers and Cole “4 days rest” Hamels, right?
Just a terribly, terribly disappointing loss to the Marlins yesterday afternoon that drops the Phillies 3 ½ back of the Mets and 4 ½ back of the wild card Brewers.
It’s looking very, very bleak. While it seems like there have been several “make or break” series but this four game set with the Brewers really is it.
Btw, have you looked at the Phillies and Mets schedules? We don’t play the anymore but both teams have essentially the same schedules/opponents from here on out.
We play 4 vs. the Brewers. They play 4 vs. the Cubs.
Otherwise, both the Phillies and the Mets each play Atlanta six times, the National three times, and the Marlins three times (great).
Some see shades of Randall Cunningham blowing out his knee and any hopes the Eagles had of going to the super bowl in 1991 in Tom Brady’s injury and the impact on the Patriots’ championship aspirations.
A disinterested opinion. The Eagles secondary is deep and talented and Lito should consider himself a starter (I’m pretty sure he already does, but more support for his opinion).
From the Newark Star-Ledger, “In a division like the NFC East -- with the Giants and Cowboys bringing premier passing games and the Redskins debuting a West Coast offense -- stocking up on cornerbacks might prove to be a good move. A third cornerback is more than a second-string position, especially after the Giants aired a model last season in which more than just two starting cornerbacks had critical roles.”
The Eagles’ season opener really couldn’t have gone any better. McNabb looked fantastic, the defense was tremendous, and DeSean Jackson had the best Eagles rookie debut since….well, I can’t even think of a comparable introduction.
Yes, the Rams are not a good team. But the Eagles are, and the Eagles did exactly what good teams do when playing bad teams. They beat them bad and they beat them early so the contest was never in doubt, the starters got some rest, and the backups got some valuable game experience in mop up work (that means, you, Kevin Kolb).
Other thoughts:
· What a gorgeous Sunday afternoon.
· Here’s what the Sports Guy had to say about DeSean Jackson before week 1: “DeSean Jackson has been hyped to the point that anything less than a punt return TD, seven catches, 120 receiving yards, one long TD catch and the greatest TD dance unveiled in 30 years since Billy "White Shoes" Johnson will have to be considered a major disappointment. DeSean, you better rock my world.”
Here are Jackson’s actual stats: 6 catches, 106 yards, a long of 47, 97 yards in punt returns (12.1 average) and a long of 60 that came thiiiis close to be a touchdown before being knocked out of bounds nine yards short of the goal line. Rock my world, indeed.
· Timmy Brown, Tommy McDonald, Pete Retzlaff were the last three Eagles to each have 100+ yards receiving in one game before Hank Baskett, Jackson, and Greg Lewis did it again yesterday. The first three, of course, are legendary Eagle names. The last three not so much. I wonder in forty years when the Eagle WR corps does it again if fans will be asking themselves, who the hell were Hank Baskett and Greg Lewis? (Based on yesterday, Eagle fans will be well familiar with hall of famer DeSean Jackson in 2048.
· Fantasy owners of Stephen Jackson, Tom Brady, and Randy Moss could not have been happy with the results of week 1.
· The parking lot tailgates were relatively calm and subdued yesterday, especially for a season/home opener.
Celebrating 50 Years of State Board Leadership
October 16-18, 2008
Washington, DC
Click Here for an Agenda or to Register
It’s official, Tom Brady is being placed on IR and is done for the season. We’ll see if the great Patriots juggernaut can continue to win without its franchise quarterback, like the Eagles have managed to do when McNabb has gone down. Ironic in some ways, given the criticism of Cassel’s play this preseason and concerns that he wasn’t a competent back up for Brady. Guess we’ll see who was right now.
In typical Belicheat fashion, the team only revealed that Brady needs surgery but not the exact details of his knee injury.
Both SI’s Paul Zimmerman and ESPN’s Gene Wojciechowski have picked the Birds to reach the Super Bowl...Clearly, the national football press likes what it sees with this Eagles teamg. Here's hoping they're right.
I’m right there with them. Put me in the happy optimists camp.
The Eagles went 8-8 last year with quarterback who basically played on one leg for most of the year and lost two games they would likely would have won if AJ Feeley hadn't thrown game-killing INTs in or near the redzone on last minute drives. Heck, they should have beat the Pats in NE and should have beat the Seahawks. They inexplicably gave the Bears game away on back breaking 95 yard drive that 9 times out of 10 Jim Johnson puts a stop to. And Akers doinked a game tying 60 yard FG against the Giants off the upright after Reid butchered time management in the last five minutes of the game.
And let's not even mention opening day's debacle in which the Eagles would have won the game if they had had a punt returner. That was on the road against the Packers, the best team in the NFC last year it turns out.
They also beat the Cowboys on the road late in the season in a game that meant home field advantage throughout the playoffs to Dallas.
In short, the Eagles could have easily been a 10-6 team (adding wins to the Seattle and Green Bay games) and very well could have been 11-5 (either a win vs. the Giants or Pats). Honestly, if they had made the playoffs last year is it not too hard to imagine them making the same run the Giants did?
And for arguments sake, I will give you that they had no business winning the Skins game in DC. So that brings you back to 10-6 and really at worst, 9-7.
Since then, the Eagles have upgraded in the defensive secondary with three pro bowl corners and now a solid strong safety in Quinton Mikell.
They've upgraded at D-Line by jettisoning Kearse and bringing in Clemons, Klecko and drafting Laws.
And they've probably upgraded at LB. Gaither is playing his natural position again and they've gotten much bigger in the middle with Stewart Bradley. Gocong looks like a legitimate starter last year and hopefully progresses again this season.
On offense, McNabb should now be fully recovered from a knee injury that everyone knows takes two years to completely heal.
The tight ends will be better now that LJ Smith is back to 100% and Celek has a year under his belt and they've upgraded at RB with Lorenzo Booker to add to the second best RB in all of football, Brian Westbrook.
The offensive line is still solid and probably deeper now that Jean-Gilles has gotten a lot more practice and reps.
The only question mark is the WR. Yes, the Curtis injury hurts but the emergence of DeSean Jackson is huge. No one was expecting him to contribute on offense this year. So anything he brings to the WR is a bonus. If they get Curtis back reasonably soon I think you have to say they probably upgraded WR in the offseason based on Jackson's contributions.
Oh yes, special teams has gotten better too with Jackson returning punts and Demps returning kicks.
Seriously, is there a single area where the team has gotten demonstrably worse since last year?
As for the opposition...who scares you?
Romo's Cowboys have yet to win a big playoff game and are still coached by that boob Wade Phillips. Eli Manning was one dropped Asante Samuel INT from being the goat and not the hero of the super bowl. They were a wild card team last year and still look to be on this year.
The Skins will be lucky to win 6 games with a new coach and offense, a really aging defense and might get humiliated on national tv tonight.
The Vikings defense is great but Tarvaris Jackson is barely serviceable. The Pack shot their wad last year. The Bears are staring Kyle Orton at QB and have no RB.
In the South, the Panthers, Saints, and Bucs will all be competitive but hardly dominant.
Same thing with Seattle in the west. The Cardinals will likely be better but Warner can be very shaky once he gets hit in the head, Edgerrin James is on fumes and, well, they're the Cardinals.
The Eagles should make the playoffs and have at least one home playoff game. After that and as the Giants showed last year, the rest of the conference is very beatable - even on the road.
I like our chances this year. I really do.
Should Chase Utley sit out tonight’s game vs. the Nationals to avoid any kind of retribution for last night’s home plate collision that may have injured Nats’ catcher Jose Flores for the rest of the season?
On the record, the Nats players are saying that Utley’s hit was a clean play. But even still, surely he will get thrown at tonight. Should Manuel keep him out of the lineup to completely avoid that possibility?
Earlier this year, Utley was the catalyst for escalating bean balls between the Nats and Phillies which went so far that Manuel had to dial back the retaliation and point out that the Phillies were playing for bigger things and should break off the retribution lest one of the Phils get hurt.
Indeed, at Monday’s game which I attended Nationals pitcher Tim Redding managed to hit two Phillies in the first five innings while no hitting the Phillies. Kendrick responded in kind, prompting a warning from the umpire to both benches.
Given all of this, I would expect the Nats to drill Utley at some point during tonight’s game, probably precipitating a bench clearing brawl.
Just like what Manuel said earlier this year, the Phillies have bigger fish to fry at this point in the season, you know, like catching the Mets, and not getting back at the last place team in the division.
Play Bruntlett.
A sample of the big names that were released by their teams over the weekend in the final round of roster cuts. And it says how bad the quarterback situations are in Chicago and Minnesota that Chris Simms is mentioned as a possible solution in both cases.
From the Sporting News: “Running back Rudi Johnson and right tackle Willie Anderson both were cut by the Cincinnati Bengals; quarterback Joey Harrington and tight end Marcus Pollard were cut by the Atlanta Falcons; wide receiver Ashley Lelie was cut by the San Francisco 49ers; and defensive end Jerome McDougle was cut by the Philadelphia Eagles.”
Might the Eagles want to take a look at Lelie? For free?
Espn ranks the NFL fan bases. Eagle fans come in at #4. But you have to question any analysis that places Redskin fans in any top 10.
Fox Sports lists the Cowboys-Eagles Week 17 contest as the #1 rated “games that will decide the season.” Click here for the top 10.
Congratulations for Quinton Demps on his kickoff return touchdown that not only cemented his place on the team and as the starting kick returner, but also solidified – in combination with DeSean Jackson’s punt return TD - special teams coach Rory Segrest’s increasingly shaky status on Andy Reid’s coaching staff.
Could Chris Clemons, the Eagles’ second highest profile free agent acquisition of the off season be cut?
It’s looking more and more like a possibility.
With Jim Johnson’s public praise of Dan Klecko it appears that he is poised to make the team as the Eagles’ fourth defensive tackle (along with Bunkley, Patterson, and rookie Laws). Assuming the Eagles keep 9 defensive linemen total, that leaves Trent Cole, Juqua Parker, Darren Howard making the team with the Abiamiri, Clemons, and McDougle left to fill out the last two spots.
Abiamiri, of course, won’t be cut but his injury complicates the Eagles’ roster in this area. They could keep him on the active roster and wait the 6-8 weeks till his wrist heals. They could put him on the PUP list, which would preclude them from activating till something like the 8th or 10th week of the season. Or they could put him on IR and lose him for the entire season.
Whatever the Eagles decide to do will obviously impact the final decisions on Clemons and McDougle. All indications are that McDougle had a very good camp and the coaches are favorably disposed to the former 1st round and star crossed defensive end.
And it is not without precedent that the Eagles wind up cutting one of their more high profile free agents. Remember when Jabar Gaffney was brought in to help shore up the receiving corps, only to be given his walking papers during training camp?
Clemons would be a more expensive mistake than Gaffney, as the Eagles would have to eat his $4 million signing bonus. Indeed, at this point that may be the only thing that keeps them from letting him go.
My best guess is that they essentially put off any final decisions about which of the 2 out of 3 to keep by placing Abiamiri on the physical unable to perform list, with the opportunity to activate him later this season. That would allow them to keep both Clemons and McDougle to start the season and give them plenty of games to finally see what Clemons looks like during practice and more importantly game conditions.
Still, it would not be a total shock to see them bid adieu to Clemons on the final roster cut down, though surely Clemons will land with another team in the very near future. Perhaps the Eagles could trade Clemons – they would still eat the signing bonus but at least they would be able to get some sort of draft pick value out of him. A trade would also keep Clemons out of the NFC East and any possibility of joining the Giants, who are so desperate for defensive end help after Umeniyora was lost for the season that they are actually considering bringing back retired Michael Strahan.
If this Pro Football Talk rule reference is accurate concerning the eligibility of Usain Bolt for the NFL – he just can’t be signed as a free agent but has to pass through one draft so that each team has a crack at him – it raises the question of the status of Eagles punter Sav Rocca, the former Australian Rules football star who the Eagles signed as a free agent.
Maybe at some point Rocca - all the way from Australia - had the presence of mind to declare himself for an NFL draft while he was tearing up the Australian football circuit. But it is doubtful.
My God, what will it take for congressional dems to kick someone out of the party for disloyalty?!?! For the second straight convention, a democratic senator (Lieberman) will speak in support of the republican nominee.
I understand the 51-49 senate situation, by jeez, Harry Reid et. al basically shrugging that Lieberman can speak to whoever he wants without any retribution or consequences just make them look pathetic and weak wussies. And why is it no Republican ever speaks in support of a Dem nominee?
Would it really be so bad if Reid kicked Lieberman out of the caucus and/or stripped him of his chairmanship? He should do it on the first day back in session. The R’s would burn 2 weeks in September organizing the chamber after the surprise move.
In some ways, it would hurt McConnell wouldn’t it? he’s in a tough reelection bid and the Dems could use parliamentary maneuvers to keep him in Washington rather than on the Kentucky campaign trail.
And a 50-50 senate would require Dick Cheney to emerge and appear on the senate floor to cast the deciding votes – what more could you ask to fire up Dems nationwide and give everyone the sense of what is at stake than Cheney tipping the Senate balance back to Republicans, courtesy of sanctimonious Joe Lieberman. Pathetic. Talk about rallying the base. And so long as the D’s have the House there is a firewall so nothing bad can be enacted (not that anything was going to pass anyway).
On another note, I came across this line in today’s New York Times story about Obama in PA. “political scientists tend to paint Pennsylvania in broad swaths: there is Philadelphia and its liberal-to centrist suburbs,….”
Doesn’t that sentence perfectly capture the damage Bush has done to his party? For 50 years Bucks, Chester, Delaware and Montgomery Counties have been the epitome of country club republicans. Now after 8 years of Bush-Cheney they are being described as “liberal to centrist” suburbs. Amazing.
Interesting article highlighting Curtis’ receiving accomplishments last year – given the Eagles non-emphasis on WR and also a reminder that….basically wide receiver is an after-thought in the Reid offense.
Writes Eric Karabell for ESPN.com, “The Eagles throw more than just about any other team in the NFL, so some might wonder how a second wide receiver can't become a key part of the offense. First of all, Brown wasn't bad in 2007. His season was strong enough to warrant No. 3 fantasy wide receiver status, with 61 catches for 780 yards. A look through team stats this decade indicates that it was the top season for a second Eagles wide receiver in the Reid-McNabb era. The last time a Philadelphia wide receiver not named Owens even topped 50 catches was 2002, when future Hall of Famers Todd Pinkston and James Thrash did it. Not only is it time for people to stop expecting a second Philly wide receiver to emerge, since it's such an unlikely event to start with, but we should look at what Curtis accomplished in 2007 as a terrific season totally out of line with this franchise for what, the past six seasons? What a year!”
Wait, I’m confused. Is Quintin Mikell the starter over Sean Considine at strong safety? Or is he the heir apparent to Brian Dawkins at free safety? Or is he both?
And where does the other “Q,” Quinton Demps fit into this safety lineup (besides kick returner)? Or does it depend on where Mikell eventually settles?
So many Qs, so many questions.
The 5 things Patriot fans will be looking closely at during the Eagles-Patriots game.
Inqy’s Bob Brookover gazes into his crystal ball to predict the Eagles’ final 53 man roster for the season.
The big uncertainties are at FB, offensive line, and defensive line.
Will Tony Hunt make the team as the fullback, since the Eagles are already full with 3 halfback slots gone (Westbrook, Bucky, and Booker)? Brookover says yes and so do I. Buh-bye Jason Davis, Jed Collins and Luke Lawton, though one of the first two might be kept on the practice squad as Hunt insurance.
Could Winston Justice be cut? Quite possibly. Amazing that 7th rounder King Dunlap appears poised to make the team after an indifferent senior season at Auburn that caused his draft stock to plummet gover the third year, second round pick Justice.
At defensive line, Brookover has the Eagles keeping nine players but only 3 ½ tackles (Bunkley, Patterson, Laws, and the ½ Darren Howard). That leaves six defensive ends on the roster: Abiamiri, Clemons, Cole, Parker, Howard, and McDougle.
Brookover says the final spot will come down to between McDougle and Dan Klecko. While I would love to see the former first round pick finally redeem himself, I think the numbers suggest that the Eagles have too many ends and not enough tackles. Will that be enough to tip the scales toward Klecko and not McDougle in the final consideration? We shall see. And don’t entirely dismiss the possibility that they could keep both players and that Chris Clemons could be the odd man out.
Terrible loss for the Phils last night in not getting the sweep and adding to the league’s worst team’s 12 game losing streak.
How can the Phillies put two men on with no outs in the 8th and not managed to score a run, nor score a run in the ninth after getting a leadoff single and a stolen base to put the tying run at second, again with no out.
Other thoughts:
Why did Manuel pinch hit for Durbin in the bottom of the 7th. There were already 2 out. Even in foresight, it would have been better to send Durbin back out to protect the lead in the 8th rather than have Jenkins pinch hit (he got a double) but was then stranded on second.
In the 8th, did Manuel even contemplate a double steal with Werth and Utley given that it would have been difficult for the third baseman to cover the bag since he was partly shifted over with Howard up?
Shouldn’t Victorino have tried to steal earlier in Bruntlett’s at bat? And what a terrible sacrifice bunt at bat that was for Bruntlett. Also, Victorino looked pretty out on his steal of second.
What a wasted opportunity.
If the eagles are looking to bolster their interior defensive line, former Bird Ian Scott is available now.
How pathetic is the Eagles WR corps?
Kevin Curtis has to undergo sports hernia surgery and it basically decimates position. Undrafted free agents Hank Baskett and Greg Lewis (how long will he continue to hang on with this team? Answer – for as long as the Eagles refuse to upgrade at his position) are the backup plan, along with underperforming Jason Avant (why can’t the Eagles draft wideouts from pass-happy college conferences and not from run happy leagues like the Big 10?) and DeSean Jackson – a player who EVERYONE would have been happy with by contributing on special teams during his rookie season but who now is expected to become the Eagles #2 WR by opening day. Amazing.
It is telling that Kevin Curtis was the Rams #3 WR, yet managed in just one year to ascend to become the Eagles #1.
Losing Curtis for at least a month and getting him back at probably 70% for the rest of the season is bad enough. Worse is a lineup that has Brown, Avant, Baskett and G. Lew as your veteran pass catchers. Seriously, until proven otherwise those guys just may be worse than the infamous quintet of Torrance Small, Charles Johnson, James Thrash and Todd Pinkston.
The good news is that history has shown the Eagles have shown a willingness and ability to make the personnel moves they need to make to shore up shaky units, a la Levon Kirkland, in August. So the good news is that the Eagles are not afraid to pull the trigger to bring another player in to upgrade a position. The bad news is that we’re talking wide receiver here which means, like linebacker, the Eagles are almost incapable of gauging talent so whoever they acquire (Anquan Boldin excepted) probably won’t be the answer and will more likely be nothing more than a # WR, just like the rest of the current stiffs on the active roster (Jackson excluded).
Wow. NFLPA executive director Gene Upshaw has died. Who knew he was battling pancreatic cancer? I would think this throws the collective bargaining agreements – the owners’ desire to open it up early and any possible re-negotiation – into turmoil.
Upshaw’s legacy is mixed. His leadership made the union stronger, but it is still the weak sister to the uber-powerful baseball union. Those weaknesses are directly attributable to his cozy – some say much too cozy – relationship with then-NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue.
Yes, salaries are up, but that’s because league revenues have skyrocketed, not because of anything Upshaw did. And salaries of marquee NFL players still lag well below middling MLB journeymen. Moreover, salaries are skewed toward a small minority of players and there is an imbalance in the pay given to highly drafted rookies. The union also has not been strong in defending its members from league jurisprudence to say nothing of being positively impotent in the face of more teams aggressively trying to recoup signing bonuses from players (see guaranteed contracts above, and Vick, Michael, Williams, Ricky, Arrington, LaVar, etc.)
And it is an inexplicable crime that NFL players still don’t have guaranteed contracts. And we haven’t even mentioned the ongoing scandal surrounding the retired players’ pension fund.
And yet, on the positive sign, it does appear that Upshaw negotiated a pretty good CBA this last time around, even though owners still have too much latitude to siphon off ancillary revenues that for accounting purposes are not included in cap calculations. The deal is supposedly so good for the players that the owners want to terminate it early (which I think is a huge mistake on their part).
Rich Hoffman turns in a terrific article on the current attitude of Eagles fans that proves once again that the city’s best sports columnist firmly has fingers on the pulse of the fan base.
He very accurately captured the feelings of many Eagles’ fans, myself included. I am excited about the upcoming season, but not to the extent I have been in the recent past.
I think the Eagles will do well this year and should make the playoffs But that extra thrill that was there in the pre-season, especially from 2002-04, just isn’t there now. Heck, I can still recall how pumped I was for the 2001 season confident that the Eagles were a team on the rise, the Cowboys a decaying dynasty, and how they were going to surprise a lot of people over the course of the season. And it sure was fun being proved right.
I’m not sure I would call it a malaise. Maybe spoiled would be a better description for the fans’ attitude now.
You know what you are getting with this team. Barring disastrous injuries, the Eagles will be an above average team and very competitive. As fans, we’ve been down this road before. At this point, I think it is really about the super bowl. This coach, this quarterback, and this team have accomplished everything but that. The real excitement will come when the playoff push starts in earnest come October/November. At least, I think so.
More interesting, I think, is the impact this lack of excitement has on the Lurie/Banner “plan,” the notorious blueprint for remaining a top tier team. Though it is still too early to judge based on one season’s TV ratings and training camp attendance, they should probably be getting concerned that their strategy may inadvertently impede further fan interest/excitement and opportunities to grow their business.
I wonder if the consistently excellent teams of this Eagles’ era – the Patriots, Steelers, Seahawks and Packers – are facing similar issues with their fan bases?
I’m not sure which was a bigger surprise: that Byron Leftwich is just now signing with a team or Takeo Spikes hadn’t been grabbed till now. Even more remarkable, the Steelers only got Leftwich cause backup Charlie Batch got hurt. I can’t believe all 32 teams thought their existing backups were better than Byron Leftwich. It’s stuff like this that gives lie to the NFL as the “most competitive” industry in America.
On Spikes - I remain mystified at the Eagles decision to cut Spikes loose. Yes, he made $5 million, but that is small change when you are talking about a championship contending team and a veteran player that gives you experience and flexibility to play all three of the linebacking positions – one of the perennial problem areas on this team under Reid. It just strikes me as penny-wise and pound foolish in the bigger scheme of things. Especially when you consider that the Eagles will likely, again, be well under the salary cap when everything is said and done on the 2008 season.
Who’s having the best Eagles’ training camp. Here’s one complete 1-80 ranking of all the players to this point.
A couple notable things:
· Jerome McDougle at 12?! Is it possible that this till-now first round bust could actually make the team, or is this the typical McDougle tease of promise that got him that made him a first round pick to begin with?
· Hank Baskett has had the best camp of anybody? Maybe so, when you are the guy tapped to practice red zone fade routes with the franchise QB.
· Correll Buckhalter #4. My gosh, Bucky is a survivor. But he’s always looked good in camp. Let’s see if he blows out a knee (again) in a meaningless preseason game.
· Speaking of which, Tony Hunt at 70? Yikes. Good thing for the big back that Ryan Moats still appears to be the odd man out in the backfield.
· Hey, look. The $57 million man Asante Samuel is ranked 76, just in front of three players who haven’t played in camp yet (not counting Abiamiri’s two days before breaking his wrist). Not what you want to see from your main free agent acquisition. I wonder if Jeff Lurie has any comment on Samuel’s training stats? You know, like yards per attempt? Or hamstrings strained.
· Familiar names that probably aren’t making the team: Montae Reagor (70), Michael Gasperson (71) (can someone put this perennial practice squader out of his misery?), Matt Schobel (69).
Also, note to the author of these rankings. Fans weren't making fun of the Feeley/Tatupu connection (#45) because of a Monday night blowout several years ago, but because Tatupu picked off Feeley in the red zone with less than 2:00 to go last year to seal the win for the Seahawks.
This unusual defensive alignment…or is it personnel package…”grouping” (?) is news to me.
Where have I been this pre-season. Of course, when you’re defensive line is loaded with D-Ends, having them serve as d-tackles on occasion kind of makes sense if for no other reason than from a numbers issue.
Here’s one guy that is very skeptical of Shawn Andrews’ depression.
Andrews may or may not be suffering from depression. But doesn’t his strange behavior (going back several years but most notably about the extent of his ankle injury last year) suggest some sort of mental instability – above, beyond, and more severe than just some “immaturity?”
The Packers trade of Brett Favre to the Jets has an usual condition. If the Jets re-trade him to the Vikings, the Jets owe the Packers 3 first round draft picks. I appreciate the Pack’s desire to keep Favre away from a division rival. But, um, there is another team in the NFC North with a ferocious defense and desperately in need of a QB upgrade besides the Norsemen. Curiously, no reporting (yet, though you would think it would tie in with the Viking news) about a similar condition on the Jets if they re-trade Favre to the Bears.
Is the Phillies season on the line in the next three weeks? Maybe, maybe not but we will find out a lot about the post-season prospects for this team. My friend PK writes:
There are the links to the current standings and the Phillies schedule for the rest of August.
Last time I wrote an analysis like this, it was 2 months ago and the Phillies were on the verge of a series with the Marlins and what followed after that was a 12-game stretch against really good baseball teams (including the Cards, Red Sox and Angels). I said we'd find out how good a team we were in that stretch, and we proceeded to go 4-12 overall. That set the tone for a bad July.
Now, once again we're on the verge of another critical series with the Marlins -- but what follows after that are 17 games against teams that collectively are 62 games below .500: Pittsburgh, Dodgers, Padres, Nats, Dodgers.
We head into this series against the Marlins with our pitching lineups set up about as nice we could ask, with Moyer getting the ball tomorrow night. After that Kyle "Lieutentant, did you order the Code Red" Kendrick is next, followed by Hamels.
We probably just need to take 1 of the 3 games, 2 of 3 would be incredible; 3 of 3, out of this world. But those next 17 games are against bad teams, with only 1 of those bad teams getting any better these days (the Dodgers with Manny). Over this 20-game stretch, 12-8 is minimum what we should hope for; 13-7 would be nice. This is the stretch of a season where you can build a little cushion for the final month and the vicious part of your schedule.
Because, once we get through these 20 games, we get 6 straight games with the Mets and Cubs.
We need to do some damage the next 3 weeks.
Good news for McNabb and the Eagles offense if TE Brent Celek can continue to build on and improve from his rookie season. As this story correctly notes, McNabb loves hooking up with his tight ends. Chad Lewis was McNabb’s sure handed, security blanket check down for years.
And a reliable Celek combined with LJ Smith would give the Eagles another offensive wrinkle (passing from double tight end formations, anyone?) to go with the matchup problems that Brian Westbrook creates.
As my friend Scott noted last year, what kind of gets lost in the focus on McNabb’s recovery from knee surgery was the absence of LJ Smith for extended stretches last year and the sports hernia that did impact his play when he was on the field. Like him or loathe him - and most fans loathe him when he fumbles one away – a healthy Smith was a significant factor in the Eagles offense. It’s the main reason the Eagles franchise tagged him even after his injury-filled and ultimately disappointing 2007 season. The fact that the Eagles weren’t willing to risk letting him leave when even when it appeared there would be few suitors for his services should tell you something. LJ simply makes the offense better.
A fully recovered McNabb, a healthy Smith looking to put up big numbers in a contract year, and a rising Brent Celek. All encouraging signs. Especially if Celek can become the tight end Matt Schobel should have been.
The Eagles are 20-1 and in some touts 25-1 to win the Super Bowl. No word on the odds to win the NFC Championship, but obviously must be less than that. I like those odds.
Sports books also put the over/under total number of Eagles’ wins this season at 8.5, though apparently, the oddsmakers can’t bring themselves to raise that total to 9 since the +8.5 pays out at -165 and under 8.5 is +135.
Foxsports pegs these 9 players as poised for breakout years. Alas, no Eagles on the list. Fortunately, only 3 of the 9 are NFC players and only one – Justin Tuck – plays in the division. The other NFC players are Greg Jennings (Packers) and Barrett Ruud (Bucs).
Devin Hester is exhibit 1A (behind exhibit 1, Brian Westbrook) as to the unfairness of the NFL’s salary cap and structure. And I tend to agree with Pro Football Talk’s advocacy for some sort of performance pay supplement to rookie contracts. But while Hester is an ideal example of the unfortunate vagaries of the salary cap, he is the worst example for performance pay.
First and foremost, he’s a punt returner. An electrifying, game-changing punt returner, but a punt returner nonetheless. So how much more performance pay could Hester earn – over fellow punt returners – that would accurately compensate him for his abilities. Hint: not enough. Why: cause he’s a punt returner. As game-changing as he is, how can you actually quantify his statistical worth accurately? Someone get Adam Schefter on the case.
Great. Westbrook showed up, but Shawn Andrews didn’t. That contract unhappiness came out of nowhere. Or is it just for “personal” reasons. Who knows, it’s not good.
A friend writes:
Last night (Wednesday night) was a real missed opportunity. The Tuesday night comeback was a huge deal in New York. The papers and the talk shows were all talking about last year collapse, yada, yada. And then Myers comes out and walks four people and gives up 2 runs on no hits right out of the gate. I think the Phillies really could have hammered a mental nail in last night, and they didn't. Bullpen has been great this year, but Madson's pitch to Reyes was reminiscent of a BottomFeeder park meatball. Still, the only thing I am really annoyed about is that the next batter didn't catch a fastball in the ear for Reyes' antics. LA and Wheels were going nuts watching his crap.
Hopefully, if we get a halfway decent outing out of Myers tonight, on national tv no less, than maybe the Phils can build on last night's 9th inning come from behind victory and really make it a season-turning point - for both them and the Mets.
Great article by John Smallwood about the prospects for the 2008 Eagles and the “preparations” they’ve made for a championship run.
How you see the article (and the Eagles this year) depends on whether you accept Smallwood’s premise that “The Eagles' championship
aspirations for 2008 lie almost exclusively on McNabb returning to the form he had in 2004 when the Birds went 13-3 and advanced to the Super Bowl.”
Are the Eagles, especially on offense, still counting on #5 to carry them all the way? And if so, what does that say (or not say) about Kevin Kolb?
Smallwood’s analysis: “The problems are that after his serious injuries, McNabb is not individually capable of being that player, and in lieu of that, the Eagles have not upgraded enough things around him to make up the difference. The debate about whether it is McNabb or the receivers is moot. What is clear is that at a time in his career when McNabb needs great receivers, he only has good ones.”
Could the coaches and front-office improved the situation? Probably.
Certainly the Eagles’ grip on the city has loosened in the past couple of years. But they are still the king of the Philadelphia sports scene, and will remain so. Still, it is interesting to think that like the NFC East, the Eagles have had their way with their intra-city rivals over the past decade because their opposition all fell on tough times. And like the NFC East, the Phillies and Flyers have rebuilt and are more of a challenge to the Eagles supremacy than earlier this decade.
Not sure why Packers’ fans are clamoring to have retired/not retired Brett Favre “reinstated” as the starting quarterback in Green Bay. Have they all completely forgotten the NFC Championship? When sainted #4 basically through the game away in OT with the worst playoff/OT INT since, well, since he threw up a similarly wounded duck right into the hands of Brian Dawkins in the Pack-Eagles divisional contest?
At some point, Green Bay has to make a clean break with Favre and get on with the business of the post-Brett era. And really, Favre’s annual waffling over whether to play another season is getting old. And that’s from a distant fan’s perspective. It must be absolutely hell for the Packers’ front office in trying to figure out personnel moves, offensive strategy/game planning, and salary cap management when the hall of fame and former franchise QB keeps them guessing as to whether he’ll play again each year.
Unfortunately for Favre, the two best teams he fits with right now – good defenses, underperforming offenses, currently terrible QBs – are the Bears and Vikings. It’s completely understandable and only prudent that the Pack not cut Favre loose and let him go to either of those two teams.
Could he play this year for someone else? Probably. Carolina? But could we all get past watching Favre in some other jersey besides the green and gold? And what if he’s not only not wearing Packer green, but isn’t wearing #4? Would Carolina kicker John Kasay be willing to part with #4? Kasay has been in the league two years longer than St. Brett.
Stay tuned.
The perennially maligned Pat Burrell gets some props for being the steady Eddie of the first half of the season. Some of these numbers are kind of surprising for a guy with a reputation as a whiff king and choke artist.
From the Inqy: “Burrell has remained one of the most consistent presences in the lineup. He leads the team with 93 starts, and his on- base percentage has been over .400 since the fourth game of the season. He is hitting .275, with 23 home runs and 57 RBI, and in moments like his eighth-inning at-bat against Chad Qualls, has shown a penchant for putting the team on his back at opportune times. Thirty-eight of his RBI have occurred in tied or one-run situations, and he is hitting .320 in "late-and-close" situations (plate appearances that occur in the seventh inning or later with the score tied or the tying run at least on deck).”
Professional sports owners have no shame. In Washington, the new owners of the Washington Nationals, the Lerner family, is withholding its rent payments to the city because their new stadium- which they’ve been using – is “substantially incomplete.” As if to add insult to injury, the Lerners are also seeking $100,000 per day in damages from the city.
That’s the thanks the city gets for building and paying for a $611 million state of the art baseball facility that was in time for opening day.
The Lerner’s largesse knows know bounds. This story reveals that they even wanted the city to pay for the team’s uniforms?!
One man (not me) ranks the NFL’s fan bases and concludes that the Eagles’ fans are the league’s best. Of course.
(typical Eagles fan (not Eagleseye))
In order:
10. Dallas Cowboys
9. Chicago Bears
8. Buffalo Bills
7. Denver Broncos
6. Pittsburgh Steelers
5. Green Bay Packers
4. Cleveland Browns
3. Oakland Raiders
2. Kansas City Chiefs
1. Philadelphia Eagles
In this television age, I didn't think it possible that a major professional sports team - in this case MLB's Washington Nationals - would have more fans personally attend the games than watch them on TV.
The Nationals, whose games are broadcast on either MASN or MASN2, are drawing a 0.39 average rating and an average of 9,000 households in the Washington market, according to the report.(Note "MASN" is the local sports channel available on most basic cable/satellite programming packages in the greater DC region).
"saw their local ratings spike during their late-season surge last season. The Capitals broadcasts drew a 0.78 rating and an average of 17,940 households on Comcast SportsNet and CSN+."In other words, the Nationals' TV ratings are HALF that of the city's hockey team. Does it get any worse than that as far as fan interest in baseball? Doubtful.
In fairness to McNabb, he has had reconstructive knee surgery. Though one would think a player so careful with his image would be sure not to park in a handicapped parking spot.
Terrific team profile of the Eagles in the nation’s newspaper. An insightful analysis by McNabb on the infamous “window of opportunity,” a great quote by Reid about his draft philosophy, a telling statistic about the offense (and Reid’s red zone play calling), and an encouraging stat about how McNabb closed out the season and perhaps foretelling his complete recovery in 2008 from his ACL injury.
Alas, a couple of minor quibbles. To wit, no in Philadelphia is expecting offensive contributions from Desean Jackson this year, or if they are it is as a bonus to what he can/should contribute on special teams. It pains me to say this, but Akers is not playing at a pro bowl level right now, though he has through most of his career. And finally, even if this team “stumbles out of the gate,” there won’t be any quick move toward Kolb and “youth movement.” If the Eagles have shown anything over the years is that NFL season is a looooong campaign, where anything can happen and no team is truly out of it until they are officially eliminated from the playoffs.
Almost raising a lot of money for charity. Interesting that Jay Fiedler, Jon Runyan, and Ron Jaworski participate in his golf tournament. Seriously, good for Mamula for doing something for someone other than himself.
