Game 6 Thoughts
the eagles keep the season alive with a come from behind win over a team they should have dominated. meh.
- special teams are killing this team, and it's not just the eagles inability to make field goals (or keep other teams from scoring TDs during your field goal attempts). it's the insanely bad luck the birds have had with other teams kicking 50+ and 60+ yard field goals against them. is there such a thing as field goal defense? if so, the birds have had historically bad field goal defense the last few seasons.
- defense played well at the end of the game, but got generally pushed around for most of it. blech. what happened to brodrick bunkley? he's the single biggest liability on defense right now. he's terrible and getting pushed around like a little girl. he is not the same player he was last season.
- mcnabb played pretty well, all things considered. he had a nice 2 minute drive at the end of the first half that he won't get credit for because of the block for TD. threw a couple of TDs, one on a nice fade to hank baskett. threw one pick that people seem to be blaming on LJ, but he had another one that patrick willis dropped, so i'm not absolving him.
- the eagles lead the league in drops. again. i really don't think you can discount the negative impact that mr. drop has on this offense. every good thing reggie brown does is more than negated by how inconsistently he catches the ball. i'd really, really, really, really like to see baskett ahead of him on the depth chart.
- kudos to correll buckhalter who had a heck of a game. he played a huge part in this win, but i think one play in particular highlights the difference between buck and westbrook. on the last play of the first quarter, the birds threw a screen to buckhalter to the right with herremans and max-jean leading the way. max-jean made a nice cut block and completely eliminated the defender. at this point buckhalter turned on the jets and accelerated past herremans, ultimately being tackled for a 25 yard gain. i believe westbrook would have gained significantly more yardage or possibly have scored on this play because he'd have slowed down and gotten behind todd instead of zooming past him. so a net positive play, but one that highlights some of buckhalter's shortcomings -- lack of patience and having only one gear.
- gcobb is reporting that the eagles are one of the teams interested in tony gonzalez. should we dare to dream?
- special teams are killing this team, and it's not just the eagles inability to make field goals (or keep other teams from scoring TDs during your field goal attempts). it's the insanely bad luck the birds have had with other teams kicking 50+ and 60+ yard field goals against them. is there such a thing as field goal defense? if so, the birds have had historically bad field goal defense the last few seasons.
- defense played well at the end of the game, but got generally pushed around for most of it. blech. what happened to brodrick bunkley? he's the single biggest liability on defense right now. he's terrible and getting pushed around like a little girl. he is not the same player he was last season.
- mcnabb played pretty well, all things considered. he had a nice 2 minute drive at the end of the first half that he won't get credit for because of the block for TD. threw a couple of TDs, one on a nice fade to hank baskett. threw one pick that people seem to be blaming on LJ, but he had another one that patrick willis dropped, so i'm not absolving him.
- the eagles lead the league in drops. again. i really don't think you can discount the negative impact that mr. drop has on this offense. every good thing reggie brown does is more than negated by how inconsistently he catches the ball. i'd really, really, really, really like to see baskett ahead of him on the depth chart.
- kudos to correll buckhalter who had a heck of a game. he played a huge part in this win, but i think one play in particular highlights the difference between buck and westbrook. on the last play of the first quarter, the birds threw a screen to buckhalter to the right with herremans and max-jean leading the way. max-jean made a nice cut block and completely eliminated the defender. at this point buckhalter turned on the jets and accelerated past herremans, ultimately being tackled for a 25 yard gain. i believe westbrook would have gained significantly more yardage or possibly have scored on this play because he'd have slowed down and gotten behind todd instead of zooming past him. so a net positive play, but one that highlights some of buckhalter's shortcomings -- lack of patience and having only one gear.
- gcobb is reporting that the eagles are one of the teams interested in tony gonzalez. should we dare to dream?
Labels: football
posted by The Mean Guy at 10:44 AM
21 Comments:
http://www.footballoutsiders.com/audibles/audibles-line-week-6-2008
Must read Tanier/Barnwell discussion of Eagles game. Have to say Tanier sways me much more towards the Fire Reid camp, than Bumble/Captain/TMG have. Not quite there yet, but . . .
phil, i'd argue that their discussion is the exact same one we've been having on scrapplelog for the last 3 seasons (except i'm always the one stuck playing the role of bill barnwell.
i don't see any points that we haven't discussed ad nauseum or any new line of thinking. bumble's definitely been ahead of the curve on anti-reid sentiments.
i agree 100% with most of what barnwell is saying -- basically that the issues everyone is complaining about are relatively minor -- however, i have issues with reid fundamental philosophy.
as long as the team is winning, i can set aside the fact that i don't find andy reid teams to be entertaining. when they are not winning, then the fact that andy reid teams are boring irritates me greatly.
I know it's all the exact same arguments. And Tanier didn't win me over. It's just that the way he laid out the case, pulled me a little closer. Frankly, I'd rather have te devil I know than the Linehan or Pettrino that I don't.
Hey MG -
It's subtle, and you're not there yet, but I see you coming around to a point I've tried to make with you for a decade. It's important to be entertained. I love to see wins as much as the next guy, but when you get right down to it, the important things in life don't change when your team doesn't win, at least if you have your priorities straight. I never enjoyed the Eagles more than when Buddy was in town and Randall was magic. We never won the Superbowl - and that sucked - but egad was it entertaining.
The Eagles just haven't been so entertaining during the Reid regime, especially for a team that has been so consistently good. If they don't win, they're painful to watch. I didn't feel that way before Reid came to town.
I don't want Ray Rhodes, Rich Kotite, or Marion Campbell. I get where Phil is coming from (and appreciate that he hasn't sighed in days), but football hasn't been as fun as it used to be. Coupled with endless TV commercials (my son sings the Viagra jingle), the product on and off the field is sinking my interest.
Maybe Andy will chuck the West Coast borefest, unleash Donovan, Brian and Jackson and have some fun this year. It wouldn't surprise me if this actually lead to a better record.
Ed Wade
Awesome discussion there, thanks Phil. I agree with TMG that most of the things they mention are issues we've dicscussed here repeatedly, which means we're not nuts and it lends some credence to all our bitching.
Captain
That was a funny discussion as they made the exact same point about Reid being way better than most coaches, but not the best.
If he would ever win a Super Bowl, his resume would look spectacular...of course nobobdy would bitch anymore if that were the case:)
Best sports weekend in recent history?
-Eagles win
-Phillies win
-Redskins lose to a terrible team
-C*wboys lose in heartbreaking fashion
-Giants lose to a bad team
-Jessica Simpson loses the services of her boyfriend's finger for four weeks.
While we'd all much rather have a better record, you have to say the NFC East is wide open again with 10 games to play. The question is whether 36 and 5 can get and stay healthy. Yes = playoffs.
I know Eskin's take on the trade Dallas pulled off today. What's the smart money (you guys here) saying about this deal?
I keep hearing that it's impossible to trade in the NFL, blah, blah, blah, but some teams find a way to do it. I'm not lobbying for a wide reciever per se, or giving away first round draft picks for old-timers, but couldn't we have picked up a decent FB or TE?
Happens in baseball all the time. I know football and baseball are different sports, and football requires cohesion, and the the West Coast Offense requires an advanced Physics degree, and all the basic stuff like that, but I don't get why teams don't try to identify weaknesses and fix them.
I think Phil is spot on. With 10 games left, this is still a contest. Why not try to make a run?
Ed Wade
I heard some sources say that all it would've taken to get Gonzalez was a 3rd rounder. Dallas paid a hefty price in my opinion for a very overrated WR who has 1-2 good games a year, but you know what, they went for broke, something the Birds never do. Lurie had the balls to say they were "all in" for an SB run before the year started...no they're not! If it's 1 third rounder for a hall off ame TE, you get that done! TE is your biggest weakness and you get nothing done while 2 division rivals add pieces the same day? You can't draft anyway and you just cut a 3rd rounder today, why not trade one for a proven commodity?
Sorrry guys, this race is over, O-V-E-R! They are the least talented team in the division and the shallowest at the positions where they have a speck of talent. They fail to adjust and the division has left them in the dust. At this point, I watch for hopes of entertainment like last Sunday's pick 6, but I have no expectation this team can win anything, they cannot.
Bumble
wow...bumble is at it again:)
Let's wait until he season plays out.
The Giants just lost to the Browns and have a hurt QB.
The Redskins just lost to the RAMS!!!
The Cowboys just lost to the Cardinals (ok, does not seem to be that bad) and their QB is out for a few weeks.
Yes, I would have loved Gonzales, but the other teams are flawed as well and the Cowboys have Wade Philipps as their head coach for christ sakes.
Don't forget that the Eagles have turned it on late in the season more than ones.
NFL teams don't trade much because the trade deadline comes too early (especially vs. baseball). There are few teams willing to say to their fans that they're giving up on the year when they're still trying to sell tickets for 10more games.
PFT "reported" earlier today (Wednesday) that a 3rd rounder wouldn't have gotten it done. Is a 32 year old Gonzo worth a 2? Maybe, but even then that's not an "all-in" by Lurie. There will be no pleasing some people. Eagles sign the biggest FA name of the off-season, yet people still say they didn't do enough because they failed to pick up a decent FB.
It's subtle, and you're not there yet, but I see you coming around to a point I've tried to make with you for a decade. It's important to be entertained. I love to see wins as much as the next guy, but when you get right down to it, the important things in life don't change when your team doesn't win, at least if you have your priorities straight. I never enjoyed the Eagles more than when Buddy was in town and Randall was magic. We never won the Superbowl - and that sucked - but egad was it entertaining.
i don't disagree with your point about entertainment being important, i just happen to like winning more than style or personality.
having an enjoyable team is good and definitely lessens the blow of losing, but for me, it doesn't replace the entertainment i get from seeing my team win.
i've been ok with the reid administration because they've won way more often than they've lost, but they haven't been winning consistently enough lately to have that overcome the fact that his team and his style are not entertaining.
Yeah, let's wait and see and watch every other team pass us by. Samuel has not been a significant upgrade over Lito and it generated a negative situation that was never dealt with. I refuse to believe that Lito's negativity has no impact on the team. I also find it erroneous to call him the number one FA. He is a good CB, he is not a game changer. He may have been the best of a bad free agent crop.
To answer your question Phil, yes you trade a 2 for a hall of fame TE who can catch and block. Without question, without concern, every day and twice on Sundays. that is clearly your largest gaping chasm (you can survive with Klecko at FB). Would I rather have Gonzo than Kolb? You betcha. Than Laws, seriously does that warrant a response? Than Jackson, no. However, they have 2 firsts which would more than make up for the loss of the 2nd. this was the year to make that trade.
I think what the Boyz did was stupid as Williams is a product of the media. Too heavy a price for a so-so guy. But as a fan, you have to like that they did SOMETHING! The Birds did nothing and when they had a great piece for a reasonable price, that is frustrating.
My point on talent in the division is that the Birds are clearly the least talented team. Against division teams, they can only win when Westbrook has huge games. Don cannot carry the team himself due to so-so weapons at WR and TE, but he and B Wes combined can pull some wins. That means B Wes needs to be healthy, which he never seems to be. Depth kicks in and RB depth is spotty and play makers do not litter the rest of the offense. At the end of the day, however, the difference between the Birds and the rest of the division are their deficient O and D lines. Despite several draft picks at each position, they get pushed around on both lines and that over every other reason is why I say they are the worst in the division. It is a long season, could they somehow finnaglke a 10-6 record, sure. Is it likely with their current constitution, no way.
Bumble
Samuel has not been a significant upgrade over Lito and it generated a negative situation that was never dealt with. He may have been the best of a bad free agent crop.
a) he is only a little bit better than lito, but his biggest selling point was his ability to stay on the field. something lito has been unable to do (note that lito is already hurt in part time duty).
b) if he's the best of a bad free agency crop, then why do people continue to rail on their offseason? bitching about clemons being a bust (which we're not even sure of yet) doesn't make sense unless there was someone better out there they could have added.
My point on talent in the division is that the Birds are clearly the least talented team.
i don't believe that to be true, especially after the games this weekend when the giants lost to a bad cleveland team, the redskins lost to the rams (THE RAMS), and the cowboys have lost 2 of 3.
It is a long season, could they somehow finnaglke a 10-6 record, sure.
if the eagles do "finnagle" a 10-6 season, to what would you attribute that success?
a) their horrible coach
b) their horrible talent
c) their horrible GM
d) their horrible ownership
Bumble, if the trade makes so much sense, then why didn't one of the other 30 teams step up for Gonzo? Not all of them have a Witten or Cooley already.
How is the CB with the most INTs over the past 3 years (and 1/3 of the team's total so far this year) not a potential game changer? How high is that bar?!?!
Phil what has he done in a Philly uniform thus far to warrant spending that much money on a position that was not an absolute need? On paper he is the top player, but I see no difference except the fact he plays every week, which I will admit is crucial.
Most teams have a good TE, but maybe the Chiefs played reindeer games and were never serious about trading him. Maybe this is all hypothetical.
TMG-let me be more specific, the Birds have the worst O and D lines in the division. Skill players come and go, but solid line play keeps Don clean and stops other teams. The Birds get pushed around on both lines too often by their own division. Skins and Dallas just pummeled them up front. Giants will do the same.
Don is the best QB in the division but it doesn't matter because he has to do it all under constant pressure whenever they play divisional games. As a former DL, that is my beef. Screw WR, screw TE (although Gonzo would've been huge), their lines aren't good enough.
Bumble
P.S. If they finnagle 10-6, I will bet dollars to donuts that Don carried them pretty much on his own. It won't be in game adjustments by Reid, it won't be LJ suddenly becoming a man. It'll be Don being Superman and O line blocking better, which probably means Andrews coming back. That is how they'll get to 10-6. Also if they play some divisional teams that get bange dup and are not at full strength.
Bumble
Who cares how they get to 10-6? Why not go ahead and try? In this league, anything is possible.
Bumble - how many times did you write off the Phillies this year? I'm pretty sure the first time was after about 20 games....
Ed Wade
I didn't write off the Phils until July this year. I said if they got out of April at .500, they had a shot, then they collapsed after the all star break and things looked bleak. had the Mets not let them hang around, we aren't have this debate. What the Phils are doing is amazing considering how terrible Rollins, Utley, and Howard have been in the playoffs. That's like the Eagles winning games with big plays coming from Jamal Jackson, Chris Gocong, and Sav Rocca as McNabb, Westbrook, and Cole sukc. It's improbable but fun as hell to watch.
Donovan McNabb passed Ron Jaworski on the club's all-time passing yards list. I LOVE him. Go, Eagles!Found some cool widgets at statbeast.com. Check it there.
Post a Comment
<< Home