Sail On, Big 5

By now I'm sure you heard that Big 5 retired as an Eagle on Monday, and that the Eagles are going to retire his number when Andy Reid's Chiefs come to town on September 19. 

I know there's been a lot of controversy about Donnie Mac over the years. His critics called him a choker who could never win the big game.

Well, if you've followed this blog at all, you know I've always been a Donovan apologist. In his official retirement press conference, owner Jeff Lurie called him both a "franchise-changing QB" and "the greatest quarterback in the history of the Philadelphia Eagles." I agree wholeheartedly.

As Chef Spouse points out, the numbers don't lie. McNabb is the franchise leader in:

Regular season wins (92)
Playoff wins (9)
Passing yards (32,873)
Completions (2,801)

He's also one of only three players in NFL history to amass more than 35,000 passing yards and 3,000 rushing yards, joining John Elway and Fran Tarkenton.

And he brought us a lot of great moments and great memories: winning his first career start (against the Skins), rushing for 125 yards against same a year later, winning his first playoff start (against the Buccaneers), 4th-and-26, throwing for four touchdowns on a broken leg against the Cardinals, the epic scramble against Dallas (that finished with a DEEP completed pass), the 44-6 beat down against same (that shot of Tony Romo facedown on the turf after the 3,254,463rd sack he'd taken that day was Chef Spouse's desktop wallpaper for, like, three years),

And, of course, this:

Or you could just watch the video over at PhiladelphiaEagles.com

As I recently pointed out to Chef Spouse, it was a great decade to be an Eagles fan. And it is the ending of an era.

Thanks for everything, 5. 

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Rats Fleeing the Ship?

Eagles at Cowboys, Sunday, December 2, 2012

Only Jim Washburn got fired, so it's more like rats being thrown off a sinking ship. Of course, according to all the reports I'm reading, it was long overdue. Seems like Washburn was a complete asshole. Good riddance, but it's probably two years too late (yes, for those who are bad at math, that means I think he never should have been hired in the first place).

Stud of the week: Nick Foles, who had a good game. Finally. I don't know if he has what it takes to start in the NFL. Guess we'll be seeing his 2013 audition - for the Eagles or some other team - in the next month, particularly since Big Red named him the starting QB today. But he had a solid outing last night, and that's a start.

I also have to give a shout-out to my boy Jason Avant, back in the lineup after 3 weeks out with a bad hamstring, for making some typically excellent catches and even getting some YAC (not usually his strong suit). Alex Henery kicked his 4,537th field goal in a row (really 21, a team record. Damaris Johnson had a punt return TD. I think that might be the first of the 2012 season. We saw something heretofore unknown in the NFL: King Dunlap threw a few good blocks. Riley Cooper made another circus catch TD. Bryce Brown scored two TDs again and had I think 169 yards on the ground.

Actually, the entire offense played decently.
Well, other than when Bryce Brown fumbled and Morris Claiborne ran it back 50 yards for a TD.

Gotta learn how to hold onto the football, son.

And things are at such a sad pass that I didn't even yell at the TV when he did it. It was more like, "Well, I knew disaster was going to hit sooner or later." And sure enough, that was it. The Eagles, down 10 with under 4 minutes to play, never recovered, despite the Johnson return TD. 

Of course, they also scored 33 points, and it wasn't enough.

It's the D that killed us.

Well, that and Bryce Brown's fumble.

There aren't enough negative adjectives in all the languages in all the world (including the dead ones) to express how disgusted I am with the Eagles defense from last night. It's like they aren't even aware that they're playing defense in the NFL out there. I don't know what they do think they're doing, but whatever it is, it doesn't deserve to be on prime time TV. Or even cable access. At 2 am. It was a total, complete breakdown in all facets other than Brandon Graham's 1.5 sacks.

I am starting to come around to the position many of the Eagles bloggers have taken that this team lacks a culture of winning. Whether it's too many free agents who were middling to good players on bad teams, lack of locker room leadership, coaching issues, lack of focus, I don't know. But clearly, these guys don't know what to do to win. Hopefully it's something they can learn under a new regime, or it's probably fire sale time come January.

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2012 Week 13 Picks

And the agony that is the Philadelphia Eagles 2012 season continues. Who will they lose to this week? Only the Cowboys in Dallas.

Now none of us enjoys it when our team loses, but I hate losing to the Cowboys more than I hate ugly shoes and cheap booze. So a lot.

Will that matter a bit?

Nope.

At least it's our annual pre-big association technology conference football party, so I'll have lots of friends and colleagues around to distract me from Teh Suck that will go down starting around 8:21 pm Sunday night.

Even worse?

Losing divisional games is a special kind of hell, and that's exactly what the Eagles face over three of the next five weeks.

I should've known that winning all four pre-season games this year was a sign of impending doom.

In the rest of the matchups:

Saints at Falcons: Grudge match on Thursday Night Football! If you're not a Falcons or Saints fan, you might not realize, but this is a HUGE rivalry. Like Any NFC East Team Who's Not the Cowboys - Cowboys level rivalry. And both teams are hot right now. In other words, if you mostly haven't been bothering to watch Thursday Night Football, this is the week to take the plunge. Also, Falcons. Game should be close, but I gotta go with homefield here.

Jaguars at Bills: Bills. The Jags are Eagles-level bad this year.

Seahawks at Bears: The Bears hold a one game lead in the NFC North. The Seahawks are clinging to a current sixth seed. The Seahakws need the win big-time, but Cutler's back, the Bears are at home, and I just don't see it happening. Bears.

Colts at Lions: They're playing in Detroit, and the Lions have to be pissed after last week's "this time it REALLY IS entirely the fault of the head coach" loss. It's a little nuts, but I'm going with the 4-7 Lions over the 7-4 Colts as my upset pick.

Vikings at Packers: Packers. They don't lose at home in December to a dome team.

Panthers at Chiefs: Ugh. Worst Game of the Week. Other, of course, than Eagles at Cowboys. I've got the Chiefs by a nose because, again, homefield.

Patriots at Dolphins: Dolphins. SIKE! That was a nice win over the Seahawks last week, but come on! Pats.

Cardinals at Jets: Even records. Statistically, the Cards are a better team. But they haven't won since Kevin Kolb went down. Then again, when's the last time Ryan Lindley basically tackled himself and gave up a pick 6? I'm going Cards on the strength of their D and the Jets complete lack of a competent QB.

49ers at Rams: 49ers, and put me down as totally on the Kaepernick bandwagon!

Texans at Titans: Texans.

Buccaneers at Broncos: The Bucs are coming into this game hot, but Peyton Manning's hotter.  Well, at least his arm. Peyton himself is pretty goofy looking. Broncos.

Steelers at Ravens: If Big Ben doesn't play, the Steelers are toast, and dropping to 6-6 won't help their playoff chances any, either. If he does play, I think they take the Ravens. So my conditional pick is the Steelers (since right now, it looks like Ben will play Sunday), but I reserve the right to change my mind.

Browns at Raiders: I've got the Raiders. Both teams, of course, are terrible. But the Raiders are (say it with me, folks) at home.

Bengals at Chargers: I'm going Bengals, who are in the thick of fighting for a playoff spot, while the Chargers, like the Eagles are basically done for the year. In other news, Norv Turner will be one of the other casualties of Black Monday, mark my words.

Giants at Redskins: The Giants should win this one. But I'm an RG3 believer. Redskins. Also, much better way to end week 13 than week 12, NFL honchos.

Oh, and if you haven't been following the hilarious fake NFL Quarterback Facebook Smackdowns, what are you waiting for?

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Hear That?

It's the fat lady singing.

Eagles v. Cowboys, Sunday, November 11, 2012 

Stud of the week: Jeremy Maclin. Mac had a solid game, and made some clutch catches to try to help his rookie QB. He even came back into the game after getting pretty much obliterated by Charlie Peprah. Joe Buck was all, "he should've caught that." You want to hold him while I hit him, or vice versa? Shout out to Riley Cooper for the circus catch on that first drive, too.

The game started well. The Eagles opening drive was probably the best opening drive we've seen out of them this season. And remember, the Cowboys have a top 10 defense. I was feeling pretty positive.

OK, sure then the Cowboys proceeded to march downfield for a TD, taking the game to 7-7. But still, it gave me momentary hope.

And then! The Eagles had a SACK! A SACK!

Then they had ANOTHER one!

Could my typical Eagles fan pessimism be wrong, for once?

Of course not. Silly me.

Vick went down with a concussion, Foles came in and did...not much.

But wait!

Foles hit a WIDE OPEN Mac in the endzone for a TD. And then the Eagles got a field goal to go up by 7.

And I'm thinking: maybe everything is going to be OK. Maybe Vick has been the problem all along. Maybe all is not lost.

This was quickly followed by pretty much the worst 2:30 of football I've ever seen.

First the Cowboys score. Of course, it was clear they didn't actually score - Dez Bryant totally put the ball on the ground - but the PI call would've given them 1st and goal on the 1, so whatever.

Then the Eagles go 3 and out.

Then  Matt McBriar punts to Dwayne Harris, who benefits from a totally obvious and not called block in the back, to take it to the house.

Then on the next possession, Foles tosses a pick six.

OK, maybe I was right in the first place.

Thing is, Nick Foles played pretty well, particularly for a rookie who'd had no practice time with the first team offense.

Well, other than the fact that his pick six throw and fumble in the end zone were the Cowboys margin of victory.

I should say almost the Cowboys margin of victory. Let's not forget Alex Henery's missed PAT. When that happened, I burst into laughter. Because, really? A missed PAT?

And let's talk about King Dunlap for a second.  Wait, let's not. I'm pretty sure the Eagles would've been better off to just say, "Nah, we'll go with 10 guys on offense. It's cool."

And now the Eagles have signed Jake Scott. Does the phrase, "Rearranging deck chairs on the Hindenburg" ring any bells to you?

We got offered 3 different sets of tickets to Eagles/Redskins here in DC next week. We turned them all down. I'll still watch my boys lose, but I'd rather do it in the privacy of my own home. Sigh.

Confidential to the 49ers and Rams: yes, a game CAN end in a tie. And Akers should've remembered that.

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2011 Week 16 Recap

Eagles at Cowboys, Saturday, December 24, 2011

Happy holidays, y'all! Whatever you celebrate, and whoever you celebrate with, I hope you had a good time. I certainly did, watching the Eagles stomp the Cowboys for the second time this season.

Stud of the week: Alex Henery. On a day when David Akers set the single season field goal points record, Henery made his 14th straight and his first over 50 yards. I actually noted the Akers' record on Facebook and got "thank you" comments from a number of my 49ers-loving friends. I know, I know - who cares about a kicker? Well, I do. I was very fond of David Akers and very sorry to see him depart. I'm hoping that Henery can pick up where he left off. It seems unlikely that he'll be as good a final line of defense as our former Jiu-Jitsu trained kicker, although he did manage to slow down Dwayne Harris long enough for the cavalry to get there.

The Eagles blogging family has been fairly low-key about the win over the Cowboys. Sure, the Eagles were eliminated from the playoffs by shortly after kick off, and sure, maybe the Cowboys didn't really care to win the game, since it comes down to next week's matchup against the Giants regardless. But I'm proud of our guys for not giving up and going out strong.

OK, sure, the Dolphins and Jets will be watching the playoffs from their couches too - hell, I think the Cowboys will as well, because my money's on the Giants to win next week - but again, they haven't given up.

To quote BGN: "too little, too late." And they're right. The Eagles blew games they should've won back when it mattered, giving up an epic number of fourth quarter leads and not even managing to pull off a divisional title in a sadly diminished NFC East. And even though the D has played MUCH better of late, Juan Castillo's job may still be on the line, particularly if Spags gets fired in St. Louis (which seems pretty likely to me).

On the other hand, our boys beat Dallas in THEIR house on Christmas Eve, and almost pitched a shut out to boot. Would I have preferred a different ending to the season? Hell yeah, but the team will go 8-8 and hopefully have something to build on for next year after they get rid of the dead weight (like Vince "Dream Team" Young - may he be traded to Vikings, who do need a QB - and Steve Smith).

Around the rest of the NFL....

 Colts over Texans: Damn, y'all! Ask the Colts about how well it works to go into the playoffs cold.

Ravens over Browns: Um, duh.

Bills over Broncos: Apparently, the Tebow magic is wearing off. Next week comes down to who wants it more in the West, with the Chiefs taking on the Broncos and fighting to maybe remove the  "interim" from interim head coach Romeo Crennel's title, and the Chargers, who have nothing to play for as far as I can tell (Norv Turner's O-U-T), facing the Raiders. Love to see the Raiders take the division back.

Panther over Buccaneers: And Cam Newton broke the rookie single season yardage record! Go Cam! The Panthers definitely have something to build on for next year. That switch to Ron Rivera's working out pretty well, too.

Bengals over Cardinals: Surely you've seen The Play, right? Wow. Bengals could still get to the playoffs, by the way. Ginger Power!



Raiders over Chiefs: I shouldn't have given up on the Raiders. They're not dead yet!

Pats over Dolphins: But just barely and after having gotten down by 17 points to a 5-9 team. If defense truly does win championships, the Pats won't be going very far this year.

Giants over Jets: Back at the beginning of the season, I called the Jets to win the AFC East. To quote myself, I put my money on "a quarterback who can manage the game." Over at the HuffPo, one of the commentors gave me shit for calling Sanchez "a quarterback who can manage the game." And he's right. That was giving Sanchez WAY too much credit. He's a punk, and so is Rex Ryan who, as far as I'm concerned, should never say another word in public ever again. Ah well, the Giants will win the division next week, and even though, at least from my experience at the new Meadowlands, their fans are a bunch of violent assholes, it's still better than the Cowboys. Also, the officiating was terrible, and it was nearly all terrible in favor of the Giants. Sour grapes? Maybe.

Steelers over Rams: Speaking of shut outs and Spags losing his job...

Titans over Jags: The Titans could still squeak into the playoffs, but pretty much all the scenarios require a Jets win, so...they're dead.

Vikings over Redskins: OK, I did not watch the game, but could someone please tell me how this happened? For chrissakes, Adrian Peterson wrecked his knee in the second quarter, Christian Ponder went down, too, and the Vikes still managed to put up 33 points. Could someone tell me how that happened? Seriously? I thought the Skins' strong suit was their defense. Anyone?

Lions over Chargers: The Lions are going to the playoffs for the first time since pretty much the invention of the non-leather helmet! Talk about over-delivering on their "Team of Destiny" status! Go Lions! Hang on to that fifth seed, though - you do NOT want to play your first playoff game in a zillion years against the Saints in the Superdome, trust me. Also, which is the biggest disappointment this year: Chargers, Eagles, or Jets? Discuss.

49ers over Seahawks: And David Akers matched and broke Neil Rackers' single-season field goal record, and then topped himself. OK, there is a down side to this: that many field goals means the 49ers are having trouble getting in the end zone. Still, they're 12-3 and have clinched the division, so it's not hurting them that bad. At least not as long as they can count on David Akers' left leg. He'll probably get a Pro Bowl bid - at least he should - but maybe he'll be too busy prepping for the Super Bowl to go to Hawaii?

Packers over Bears: I'm the 9,456,732nd person to observe this, but Aaron Rodgers is having one hell of a season, and it's a good thing, because the Packers' D is no great shakes, either. Hm...if defense really DOES win championships, maybe that "49ers in the Super Bowl" thing isn't as crazy as it sounds...

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2011 Week 16 Picks

This week, the Eagles travel to Dallas to take on the Cowboys at home on Christmas Eve. In their last meeting this season, you may recall that the Eagles whupped up on the Cowboys to the tune of 34-7 at the Linc (one of the few home games the Eagles have won this season).

It's really hard to beat a divisional foe twice in the same season.

The Eagles may be heating up, but Dallas reeled off 4 wins after that whupping in week 8 before dropping their last two, to the Giants and the Cardinals, who inexplicably seem to have had the NFC East's number this year.

This really could go either way. Both teams can score points. Both teams can force turnovers. Both teams can commit turnovers. Both teams can show up big, or not at all, often from one quarter to the next. I'm hoping the Eagles show up, and the Cowboys pull their usual late-season meltdown. Bonus points if Tony Romo does something stupid enough that he starts to cry. That would be an EXCELLENT gift.

I think LeSean McCoy (who, you might have heard, got the most fan votes for the Pro Bowl of any back in the league, coming in 6th in overall voting behind only Rodgers, Brees, Brady, Welker and Calvin Johnson) is the key to this game. He crushed the Cowboys in week 8. Not only did he rack up a ton of yards, he more importantly crushed the confidence of the #1 rushing defense in the league (at the time). Well, Shady and turnovers, which have been the Eagles Achilles heel this year.

I'm throwing caution and good sense to the wind and picking what needs to happen for the Eagles to make the playoffs.

Eagles.

Don't let me down, guys.

As an aside, if it all goes to hell this weekend, know that it's my fault.

(Chef Spouse thinks THIS will be the year the Eagles win the Super Bowl. He's either delusional, cracking under the holiday stress, or he's been hitting the sauce on the sly.)

In the rest of the matchups:

Texans at Colts: Can the Texans win without Wade Phillips? I think so, but only because they're playing the Colts. Texans.

Browns at Ravens: The Ravens will bounce back from last week's loss to the Chargers. Trust.

Broncos at Bills: Broncos. See last week's observation that, in fact, the Bills just might lose all the rest of their games.

Buccaneers at Panthers: Panthers. The Bucs are in a tailspin, and the Panthers got swagger.

Cardinals at Bengals: Interesting matchup. Both teams are in the hunt. With the Bears and possibly the Giants faltering, the door's open for the Cardinals to take the #6 seed. Meanwhile, the Bengals are neck and neck with a Jets team that's on the ropes. Chef Spouse says Bengals, and playing at home, I think he may be right.

Raiders at Chiefs: Before last Sunday, I would've picked the Raiders definitely. Now I'm not so sure. Go Romeo Crennel! Hell, I'm calling the Chiefs in an upset.

Dolphins at Patriots: Sigh. Realistically, the Pats have this. But wouldn't it be awesome if the Fins were able to sneak a win? Not gonna happen.

Giants at Jets: Both teams are reeling, but my Eagles need the Jets to show up. Hey, they took last week off, so they should be nice and rested. Jets.

Rams at Steelers: Steelers. Even without Big Ben. If they can keep him on the bench. Maybe he'll get confused about the whole Christmas weekend Saturday/Sunday thing?

Jaguars at Titans: If the Titans hadn't lost to the Colts...of course, the Jags did win their week 1 meeting...and it's tough to beat a divisional rival twice in a season...and Matt Hasselbeck seems to be OK...I think I just talked myself into calling the Titans.

Vikings at Redskins: The Redskins have been playing up - or down - to their competition all season. But even they can't stoop this low. Redskins.

Chargers at Lions: The Chargers have a long way to go to secure a playoff spot, and all the Lions need is a win and they're secured a spot. And they're at home. Lions.

49ers at Seahawks: Regardless of how this game turns out, I'm rooting for David Akers to make three field goals. But I think the 49ers will win.

Bears at Packers: Packers, Josh McCown or no Josh McCown. Sole game on Christmas, too.

Falcons at Saints: The Falcons really need this game, but the Saints are nearly unbeatable at home. I don't expect that to change Monday. Saints.

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2011 Week 8 Recap

Eagles v. Cowboys, Sunday, October 30, 2011

Happy Halloween! Of course, this week's recap will be the annual trick-or-treat edition, as I write in my witch costume jumping up to answer the doorbell while waiting for MNF to start.

In attendance: Just Shoegal, Chef Spouse and me - SNF games are tough on people who have to go to work in the morning.

Menu: homemade butternut squash ravioli with butter sage sauce, salad, yummy treats from Shoegal

Stud: Shady McCoy, of course, who pretty much OWNS this category this year. I've already asked Santa to bring me his jersey for Christmas. Could he be any more awesome? I don't think so. To recap: 185 yards on the ground on 30 carries and two TDs, plus another 15 yards through the air. The second coming of BWest? You know it.

Since we're all thinking it, I'll go ahead and say it: "Where the HELL have these guys been for the past 6 weeks?" I'm glad they finally decided to show up, but seriously, I was expecting them in week 2, not week 8. Better late than never.

OK, sure, a bunch of new guys on the field and pretty much an entirely new coaching staff are going to take come time to gel. Seven weeks, to be precise.

Are the Eagles becoming a team that can run the ball and shut teams down on defense? Because that would be an interesting switch to the Andy Reid playbook. The thing I loved most last night was seeing the long drives sustained by nice runs and short passes over the middle. Dictionary west coast offense. Those were some BIG holes the offensive line was creating. Andy Reid could have run through those holes himself. Hell, he probably could've driven the team bus through them. What made it even sweeter is that the Cowboys came in with one of the top ranked run defenses in the league.

Clearly Rob Ryan game planned to take away DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin, and in that, he was pretty successful. Maclin and DJax had 3 catches each, for 54 and 31 yards respectively. The thing is, if you're going to put all your guys on those two, that leaves Jason "Hands" Avant, Brent Celek and Clay Harbor to run free in the middle of the field. Now throwing across the middle is not the easiest thing for the relatively short (at 6 feet on the nose) Mike Vick. Then again, the o-line gave him such a nice clean pocket all night long, he could drop back as far as he needed to.

And on D, it seems like I may owe Juan Castillo an apology. It wasn't showy - it wasn't like there were a zillion picks and sacks (1 and 4) - but the Cowboys were just totally out of sorts all night long. They only had 12 first downs, and, if I recall correctly, only THREE in the entire first half. The Eagles D was getting off the field and only made one mistake all night long (Kurt Coleman got a little over excited), allowing the only Cowboys' score, in scut time (aka "the entire 4th quarter").

Oh, and did I mention? No turnovers. THAT was a treat. Big time.

THIS is what we were expecting 6 weeks ago. Hopefully, the guys can keep it up. Because the team that played LAST night looks pretty damn unstoppable.

Around the rest of the league:

Ravens over Cardinals: The Cardinals jumped out to a treat of an early lead, but the Ravens had a trick for them, to the tune of 24 (?) unanswered points, to win the game.

Vikings over Panthers: Cam Newton sure is a treat (on the eyes, too), but those tricky Vikings forced two fumbles, got a great day out of Adrian Peterson, and, ultimately, got a treat of a field goal out of the aptly-named Ryan Longwell to sneak a 3 point win.

Texans over Jags: No tricks here, only another treat of a day from Arian Foster.

Giants over Dolphins: The Dolphins almost tricked the Giants into a trap game, but ultimately, the Giants pulled out a win. No treats here - sooner or later (probably sooner) Tony Sparano is going to be fired.

Rams over Saints: Raise your hand if you picked this one. (crickets) The Rams treated their fans to a fantastic end to a fantastic week. Not only did the Rams get their first win, it was over the mighty Saints not some sad-sack team like the Colts. It's a great week to be a sports fan in the S-T-L.

Titans over Colts: I wonder if the Colts are being tricky to Suck for Luck? It's a treat to see the AFC South up for grabs this year.

Bills over Redskins: OMG, someone needs to talk Redskins fans down off the ledge. The Bills are a treat this year, as was Ryan Fitzpatrick's contract extension, and they sure tricked Mike and Kyle Shanahan, shut out for the first time EVER. Guess "The System" isn't looking so tricky these days, is it, Shanny?

Lions over Broncos: Told you the Lions would pull it back together! Tim Tebow might not be quite the treat Broncos think he is, but the Lions D had a treat or two of their own ready to go, registering seven sacks.

Steelers over Pats: The Steelers, who looked pretty soft early on, seem to be returning to their usual tricky form. It was a real treat to watch them frustrate Tom Brady all afternoon. And that tricky Troy Polamalu managed a real treat of a play in punching the Brady fumble into the endzone for a safety.

Bengals over Seahawks: Andy Dalton looks a treat in Cincy, and the Seahawks...well, people in Seattle should wish this is a trick. Congratulations to Marvin Lewis, now the winningest coach in Bengals history

49ers over Browns:  Was Alex Smith just tricking us all this time, or did he just need Jim Harbaugh to treat us to some good play? Of course, Frank Gore's treat of 134 yards and a TD didn't hurt.

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Sunday Schedule: Sunday, October 30, 2011

It's COWBOYS week, y'all. OK, maybe it doesn't have quite the same zing as it used to - our Eagles are used to winning and to dominating the NFC East, and it's been a long time since the Cowboys have been good, but hey - they did knock our boys out of the playoffs in 2009. Which, by the way, is the only playoff game they've won since 1996. HA!

Anyway, it's a prime time matchup, which is awesome other than the whole getting up Monday morning thing.

It will be a full day of football as usual, of course, with the following up for the early games:

1 pm: likely Dolphins/Giants, and wow, the 1 pm games are likely to suck

4 pm: Redskins/Bills (I'll be ducking out for a dance practice, but Chef Spouse is around for the duration)

For the menu, Chef Spouse is thinking fresh pasta, since we have a bunch of winter squash from the CSA to cook down anyway. If I get my act together, I'll make us some baguettes, too, and we'll probably have salad. Bring something to go with.

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2011 Week 8 Picks

The Cowboys are coming to town!

OK, I know - the rivalry is not what it once was. The Eagles have mostly owned the NFC East for the past 10+ years, and the Cowboys have one precisely one playoff game since 1996. Yes, that win knocked the Eagles out of the playoffs in the first round for the first time under Andy Reid in 2009 and thank you for bringing up such a painful memory.

Anyway, at this point the Eagles are seriously shaky. Then again, so are the Cowboys. Actually, I'm starting to think the entire league is shaky, other than maybe the Packers and the Pats. The Cowboys never know which Tony Romo they're getting from one week to the next - hell, from one play to the next. Then again, Eagles fans have NO idea what team is going to show up from one quarter to the next. The team that puts up points with ease or the team that can't find the endzone with both hands, a map, a flashlight, a GPS, and a sherpa? The team that relentlessly pressures the QB and stuffs the run, or the team that lets themselves get gashed for yards practically every play, on the ground and in the air? I swear, the team is schizophrenic so far this year, and they're going to make their fans (aka "us") completely nuts if they don't cut this shit out.

On the other hand, even at 2-4, the Eagles are far from out of it in the NFC East. And although Andy has trouble closing, he definitely has a track record of getting the team to step up at critical times. Like now. When they need to win, a LOT, to stay in consideration for a post-season.

In the end, I have to go with the fact that Andy Reid owns the game after the bye week and pick the Eagles.

In the rest of the matchups:

Saints at Rams: Saints. This is your official freebie pick of the week.

Jaguars at Texans: Texans. I think. After watching the Jags dismantle the Ravens last week...yeah, but both teams were incredibly sloppy, only the Jags were slightly less so. And Arian Foster! OK, I'm sure. Texans.

Dolphins at Giants: Giants. OK, you get two freebies this week.

Cardinals at Ravens: Even after that mess on Monday Night Football - as one of my friends called it on Facebook: "unwatchable" - I don't see the Ravens dropping a home game to the Cards. No way. Ravens.

Colts at Titans: Titans. Hm, OK, THREE freebie picks.

Vikings at Panthers: This is an interesting matchup with two high draft pick rookie QBs facing off, but I have to go with experience (relatively speaking) and pick Cam and his Panthers.

Lions at Broncos: The Lions will get back on track this week. Or at least they better, because the NFC North is tough this year, and if they drop too many more games, they'll be out.

Redskins at Bills: Bills. And I'm not just picking against the Redskins because they're in my division. The Bills are actually pretty damn good this year. The Redskins, in what's become a continuing theme for them, are not.

Bengals at Seahawks: Bengals. Did you realize that the Bengals are 4-2? OK, they haven't exactly been playing the Packers, Saints, and Pats every week, but still. Guess they aren't missing Carson Palmer too much. Wonder if the Raiders can get a refund?

Pats at Steelers: This should be a helluva good game. I don't know if the Steelers can shut down the Pats high powered offense, and I also don't think they can keep up in a shoot-out. I could be wrong, but I don't think so. Pats.

Browns at 49ers: 49ers. Jim Harbaugh is working the Harbaugh magic out there in Frisco, I'm telling you!

Chargers at Chiefs: Chargers. Oy. Am I really picking the team that lost to the Jets over the team that beat the Raiders? I guess so. I hope Philip Rivers took some time to get his head straight this week.

On bye: Bears, Buccaneers, Falcons, Jets, Packers, Raiders

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Sunday Schedule: Sunday, September 11, 2011

After months of fear and uncertainty about whether we'd even HAVE a 2011 season, it's FINALLY here! Hallelujah!

The season kicks off with Saints at Packers on Thursday night, and I CAN HARDLY WAIT!

OK, for Sunday:

1 pm: Eagles at Rams

4 pm: Giants at Redskins

8 pm: Cowboys at Jets

Menu: Chef Spouse is going traditional with fajitas and 'ritas (and of course guacamole). If you're coming PLEASE let us know by Saturday so we buy enough food and please bring something to share (food or beverage).

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Sunday Schedule: Sunday, January 2, 2011

Happy New Year, football fans! In a year that we all thought would be about rebuilding, the Eagles won the NFC East (again) and are going to the playoffs as the #3 seed.  Time to celebrate, because they aren't going to beat the Cowboys on Sunday, what with the almost certain resting the starters and all that.

1 pm: Panthers/Falcons and Bucs/Saints

4 pm: Eagles/Cowboys, Giants/Redskins and Bears/Packers (No, we do not currently have the capacity to watch 3 games at once. But we'll figure it out.)

8 pm: Rams at Seahawks

Menu: I just asked Chef Spouse and (I quote) "I still haven't thought about Food Lab: Hors D'Oeuvres (our planned New Year's Eve afternoon activity). I have NO idea." But I'm planning to make some homemade pretzels, since I haven't done that yet this year. So maybe brats? It is traditional in my family to eat pork and sauerkraut on New Year's to ensure good luck. And January 2 is practically New Year's...

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2010 Week 17 Picks

Our game is meaningless - AR's going to rest the starters. It kills me, but the Cowboys will win this game. They have players fighting for their jobs, and an interim head coach fighting for his.

Dolphins at Pats: This game is meaningless for the Pats, but they're going to win anyway.

Bills at Jets: Bills. Rex Ryan has said Mark Sanchez is unlikely to play. Guess the Jets are happy with the seeding.

Bengals at Ravens: Ravens. The Ravens could actually still win the division if the Steelers lose (which they won't, but the Ravens have to go all out regardless, since they're both playing at 1).

Bucs at Saints: Saints need this one, and they'll get it.

Panthers at Falcons: Same as above.

Vikings at Lions: Another one of the meaningless games. Vikings. Think Leslie Frazier will be the head coach next year? Think Joe Webb will start at QB? This game might provide some clues.

Raiders at Chiefs: The Chiefs are also still playing for position, although it's only 3 versus 4, but I think they'll win.

Steelers at Browns: The Steelers need this win to win the division, and I think they'll get it.

Jags at Texans: The Jags need this win to stay in contention for the division. But David Garrard and MJD are both out, so it seems like the Jags are conceding surrender. Not that it really matters, because the division is the Colts' to lose, and they won't. Texans. Speaking of...

Titans at Colts: Colts. They're not gonna miss the playoffs for the first time this, uh, millennium.

Cards at 49ers: Good luck to...who is the 49ers interim coach anyway? Is this the most coaches that have ever been fired during the season? Because it seems like it might be. Anyway, I think the 49ers will win. Noth that it really matters.

Bears at Packers: The Bears are a good team. The Packers are a good team. The Bears do not need this game. The Packers do. You know what that means - Packers.

Chargers at Broncos: The Chargers will win, but it will be cold comfort, since they'll miss the playoffs this year.

Giants at Redskins: The math indicates that the Giants will win. And Chef Spouse thinks I'm crazy. But I think we broke the Giants on December 19. Redskins.

Rams at Seahawks: Rams. I love me some Spags, and this is the only way to save the West from the ignominy of being won by a team under .500.

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2010 Week 14 Recap

Eagles over Cowboys, Sunday, December 12, 2010

In attendance: Shoegal, Life-Long Eagles Fan Mom, You-Two-Calm-Down-or-I'm-Turning-Off-the-TV Dad, Chef Spouse, and a friend of mine from Florida. The YAPstars, sadly, blew us off. Too bad for them, because it was a GREAT game.

Menu: Chef Spouse made all kinds of yummy snacks, Shoegal brought cheese, Life-Long Eagles Fan Mom made brisket and mac&cheese. URP!

Stud of the Week: DeSean Jackson, who, as Chef Spouse observed and Cris Collinsworth confirmed, should NOT have been penalized for his TD celebration. Apparently, the Cowboys didn't like it. Well, stop him from scoring a 91 yard TD and you won't have to see it, donkeys!

But I want to see it again:



Revisiting the keys to the game I identified last week, which happened and which didn't?

Well, Dez Bryant was out. That's indisputable.

Did they get DeSean Jackson going? Um, yeah. 210 yards on 4 receptions and a TD.

Did they get LeSean McCoy going? Yes again. 149 yards on the ground, including masterfully executing virtually every play to run out the clock in the final 4:22 of the game.

Did the O-line protect Michael Vick? No. He gets hit, he pops up. He gets hit, he pops up. He gets hit out of bounds, he pops up. And then Andy Reid screams at the zebras. The funny thing is that Terry McAulay's crew is usually one of the better ones, in my opinion, because they're more likely to just let the guys play. And that was borderline - an Eagles fan (or coach) would've seen it as a penalty, but a Cowboys fan (or coach) probably wouldn't. But it's good to see Andy stepping up for his QB, particularly since every time Vick goes down, I worry that THIS is the time he's not going to pop back up.

Asante Samuel wasn't back, but Kitna's mostly a short yardage guy, so it probably wasn't that big a deal. And the D did great shutting down the Cowboys running game.

Michael Vick? Good game - 2 picks, but only 1 was his fault (and by the way Maclin, you need to catch that pass, buddy), 3 TDs (two passing, one rushing), Kitna had more yards on the ground, but I'm loving that any play can be a big play. I'm loving that the D can give up a lead in the third quarter, and the team can fight back. I'm loving the chemistry. I'm loving that if the special teams can get the offense at least to around the 40, they're getting at least 3 points out of it.

And speaking of, how about some love for Chef Spouse's boy David Akers with that 50 yard field goal that turned out to be the margin of victory?

And did you see the postgame Vick and Jackson interview with Andrea Kramer? DJax was jumping around like a 5 year old who'd had too much sugar. It was hilarious.

Not so good?

The Eagles red zone D is bad. Like, historically bad. And they're terrible in the 3rd quarter. The offense is coming up clutch, and when they enter the fourth quarter down, I actually have hope. But it's better not to be down.

Speaking of down, Jon Kitna should NEVER be able to pick up a 4th and 8 on his feet. That is shameful. So were penalties that extended Dallas drives - Dimitri Patterson, I'm looking at you - and backed us up at critical times. Jorrick Calvin, you're a rookie, so I'm not going to bust your chops about the running around in the endzone. Your heart was in the right place, even if you didn't know what you were doing. But that punch? Unacceptable.

Speaking of unacceptable, what was with Collinsworth (who I normally love) kissing the Cowboys' asses all game? Newsflash: the Cowboys think they're the center of the goddamn universe, but in reality they are not the sun around which the entire NFL revolves. Teams, even NFC East teams, occasionally do stuff for reasons that have NOTHING to do with the Cowboys. Shocking, I know.

You know what else is unacceptable?  Stewart Bradley dislocated his elbow and Brandon Graham tore his ACL. We can't be losing any more players here, people!

And now the Eagles/Vikings matchup on Dec 26 has been flexed to prime time. The Eagles have killed in ratings in this year as well as on the field, and so far, the team is loving the night games, 5-0.

There's been a lot of tweeting about playoff scenarios, a surprising amount of them incorrect. Here's the deal: if the Eagles beat the Giants AND win one of their last two games, they will win the NFC East regardless of what else the Giants do. If the Bears win out, the Eagles will be the #3 seed regardless. If the Eagles win out and the Bears drop either the Jets or Packers game (possible if not likely), the Eagles will sneak into the #2 seed. Don't speculate - get the facts at the NFL site. They do a good job of keeping the playoff picture section up to date.

Around the rest of the NFL...

Colts over Titans. Barely. The Colts were way up until the 4th quarter, and almost gave up the game. That's not the way it usually goes. The way it usually goes is that the Colts are down by 13 at the 2 minute warning and win anyway. I had actually stopped watching the game and gone to bed at the end of the third quarter, because it looked like it was over. Not this year.

Bills over Browns. Browns are out of the playoffs now. I mean, it would've required the Steelers, Ravens, and Bengals to just up and quit for them to get there, but now they're officially out. The Bills have been officially out since August.

Falcons over Panthers. Duh.

Lions over Packers. Raise your hand if you called this one. If you recall, I said that the key to the Packers season, given all the injuries they've sustained, was to keep Aaron Rodgers and Clay Matthews vertical. Well, now they're down to 50%, with the Pats, Giants, and Bears coming up. Yikes.

Jaguars over Raiders. The Raiders managed to tie up the game and then let the Jags score in 2 plays - a great kick off return, and an even better run by MoJo. You tie the game and then let the opponent score in 20 seconds? Not gonna win a whole lot of games that way.

Steelers over Bengals. If this was a Steelers blog, the stud of the week would be Troy Polamalu. Just sayin'.

Bucs over Redskins. There was an article in the WaPo Sunday magazine focusing on Billy Cundiff and talking about how tough it is to be an NFL kicker. Well, if you're kicking like Graham Gano anyway. Thank God we have David Akers, aka Mr. Reliable. Wanna bet Gano is playing for the Panthers (or the CFL) by Thursday? Bleeding Green Nation put it best: "Redskins lose in the most hilarious fashion of the season."

Saints over Rams. Again, duh.

49ers over Seahawks. I "like" Brian Westbrook on Facebook. Aside from "liking" his sexy shirtless profile picture, I also "like" his current comment: "Had a great day at the office yesterday." Yes, sir, you did. 110 combined yards and a TD. I'm telling you, the West is going to be won by a 7-9 team.

Cardinals over Broncos. Guess the New Head Coach Magic has been all used up for this season.

Pats over Bears. Ex-Navy Cheesehead is still recovering from getting his new ankle, so he wasn't able to make it out again yesterday. But he did email about being worried about the Pats. I find that charmingly optimistic, considering that the Eagles first have to get into the playoffs (likely but far from certain at this point), then WIN the NFC, then we can worry about the Pats. But if we have a repeat of Super Bowl 39 including the outcome, I'm going to start taking hostages.

Dolphins over Jets. First of all, people were complaining about DeSean Jackson having no class for his Nestea plunge. Two words for you: Sal Alosi. Also, what is wrong with the Jets? Standings-wise they're still right in it. But they got their butts whupped by the Pats and then couldn't put the Dolphins away in what was a very sloppy game. And they have the Steelers up next. Things are looking a little shaky for Gang Green.

Chargers over Chiefs. A Chargers shutout of the Chiefs is more like what we're used to seeing. But the Chargers' slow start may doom them this year.

I was supposed to be able to recap Giants at Vikings during Ravens at Texans, until this happened:



If the Giants could manage to lose this game (which is looking pretty unlikely here at halftime), that would be awesome. If they could manage to get snowed in in Detroit, further shortening their week, that would be even more awesome.

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2010 Week 14 Picks

I know Kitna's the QB now, but still...good times.

It's Dallas week, and much as I wish the Eagles could've played them at least once earlier in the season - you remember, when they sucked? - at least we'll enjoy an exciting end to the season, with 3 divisional games in the next 4 weeks.

Keys to the game:

Dez Bryant is out. Thank God, because our kick off and punt return coverage has not been brilliant this year.

Get DeSean Jackson going. He had a great year against the Cowboys as a rookie in 2008. Last year? Shut down. Marty Mornhinweg can't let that happen, particularly not with Jason Avant and Brent Celek suffering from the dropsies lately.

LeSean McCoy. Run the screen ALL day long. Shady is shifty, and the big Cowboys defenders will have trouble staying with him.

DeMarcus Ware. The O-line has to keep him off Michael Vick.

Asante Samuel. The Eagles need him back in the lineup, not least of which because it reduces the amount of field the rest of the D has to cover.

Michael Vick. A win over Dallas, particularly given the debacles last year, gives him the chance to really become the emotional leader of the fan base.

Also? Life-Long Eagles Fan Mom and You-Two-Calm-Down-or-I'm-Turning-Off-the-TV Dad are coming to town to watch the game with us.

Want the playoffs, fellas? We need this win. Eagles. Who've actually been pretty clutch this year.

In the rest of the picks:

Colts at Titans. Earlier today, I posted a poll to RootZoo asking which team people think is in more trouble: the Colts, due to their impending inability to field a full 53 man team, or the Titans, because, well, where do I start? So far, most people are going with the Titans. So am I. Which means Colts, who have to win out to go to the playoffs this year.

Falcons at Panthers. Falcons. I can't even think of anything funny to write about the ass-whupping that's about to commence.

Buccaneers at Redskins. You did hear that the Redskins have finally had it with Fat Albert, right? I know he's a loafing pain in the ass, but I'm not sure how this makes the team better.  Bucs. I hope to hell the Skins exercise the clause in DMac's contract that lets them cut him so he can go to Arizona and have some fun throwing to Fitz before he retires and goes into broadcasting. They owe him after this mess of a season.

Packers at Lions. Next year, or the year after at the latest, will be the Lions year. Maybe. Until then? Packers.

Bengals at Steelers. Soccer was the big sport at my high school, and in my sophomore (or maybe junior) year, one of my friends, a big guy who played halfback, broke his nose while in a game. After that, he had to wear the same sort of shield Big Ben will wear Sunday. It only made him more terrifying. Steelers.

Raiders at Jaguars. I'm going out on a limb and picking the Raiders.

Giants at Vikings. Any chance the Vikes do us a huge favor and beat the Giants? Yeah, I don't think so either. Giants.

Browns at Bills. Bills. They have to win some games, right? Homefield and all.

Patriots at Bears. Another wild pick? Da Bears. Da Pats have to be due a let down after the hurting they put on the Jets Monday.

Seahawks at 49ers. Alex Smith is going back under center, which is not good. I'm picking the 49ers anyway, though, and reminding Mike Singletary that there's this guy on his team by the name of Brian Westbrook who's one of the most talented backs to ever play the game. So given the QB situation, Mike, you might want to think about RUNNING the BALL.

Rams at Saints. Saints. And by the way, I'm still pissed that a team that's at .500 is leading a division.

Dolphins at Jets. Speaking of the MNF beatdown, the Jets will bounce back and beat the Dolphins. Also, did you hear that Chad Pennington is talking about retiring? He's heading for something like his fourth go-round with the same shoulder surgery. Chad, the universe is trying to tell you something. Don't ignore it until your arm falls off.

Chiefs at Chargers.  Chargers. Matt Cassel had an emergency appendectomy and likely won't play Sunday. This could spell doom for the surprising Chiefs - not just Sunday, on the season as a whole.

Broncos at Cardinals. Changing coaches has worked well for the Vikes and the Cowboys. I expect the Broncos to follow suit. Broncos.

Ravens at Texans. Oh Texans, I may have promoted you from Team of Destiny too soon. The Colts are struggling, and there is a huge window of opportunity this year. Unfortunately, you don't seem capable of taking advantage of it. Ravens.

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Sunday Schedule: Sunday, December 12, 2010

It's Dallas week, y'all! And while I wish the Eagles could've played them at least once back in the early part of the season when they sucked, at least we'll have an exciting end to the regular season, with 3 divisional games in 4 weeks.

Life-Long Eagles Fan Mom and You-Two-Calm-Down-or-I'm-Turning-Off-the-TV Dad will be in town this weekend. And the YAPstars are coming in force. And we'll see the triumphant return of Ex-Navy Cheesehead and his new bionic ankle. It's gonna be epic.

1 pm: Giants/Vikings (c'mon Vikes, do us a solid and beat the Gints)

4 pm: Pats/Bears

SNF: Eagles/Cowboys. It's ON!

Menu?  Life-Long Eagles Mom's bringing mac-n-cheese and brisket. Chef Spouse plans to make a bunch of pre-game snacks. Do bring something, because we are going to be feeding a lot of people. At the moment, we have no dessert, and we could probably use something healthy like some vegetables. And of course, booze is always appreciated, although we are pretty set with beer at this point.

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2009 Divisional Weekend Preview

It's hard to be as excited about the games now that we're out of it. On the other hand, I'll experience far fewer yelling-induced headaches this weekend. So that's good. Anyway, on to the picks....

Ravens/Colts - I think the Ravens left it all on field last week. And it was totally worth it. But the Peytonator takes no prisoners. Well, until the Colts play the Chargers. But that's not happening this week, so, much as I wish it was otherwise, I think the Colts are going to win this one.

Jets/Chargers - Speaking of the Chargers, it's been nice seeing you, Jets. Hope you enjoyed that playoff win last week, because your season is now O-V-E-R. Shame, because Rex Ryan's one entertaining mo-fo. Norv makes funnier faces, but Rex gives better press conference than anyone since Dennis Green. Anyway, Chargers.

Cowboys/Vikings - It PAINS me to be rooting for Brett Favre. I'll just concentrate on Adrian Peterson and Jared Allen. Who will hopefully make Tony Romo cry. I'm worried that the damn Cowboys are going to win ANOTHER playoff game, but I'm hoping the Vikings can accomplish what we couldn't last week and END THIS TRAVESTY. C'mon Vikings! I'm wearing every purple thing I own on Sunday for you!

Cardinals/Saints - Remember how I said in the Wildcard Weekend recap that I think the Saints are stick-a-fork-in-them done? And how I'm rooting for them anyway? GEAUX SAINTS!

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2009 Wildcard Weekend Recap

Eagles at Cowboys, Saturday, January 9, 2010

In attendance: Shoegal, Chef Spouse, Prototypical Eagles Fan (feel better, Ex-Navy Cheesehead!) And Limin' ABD stopped by unexpectedly on Sunday!

Menu: Popeyes.

Stud of the week: no stud of the week this week. But I am going to nominate a Stud of the Year: Donovan McNabb. McNabb has not had an easy tenure in Philly. Just to refresh your memory: booed by idiots who wanted Ricky Williams on draft day, he was pressed into service as a starter mid-way through his rookie year.

In his first year as a full-time starter, 2000, he led us into the NFC Wildcard. 2001 resulted in our first of 4 back-to-back trips to the NFC Championship Game. In 2002, he famously threw for 4 TDs on a broken leg. He missed 6 games, but came back for the playoffs and another NFC Championship Game appearance.

In 2004, he finally got the #1 wideout he'd been begging for, and we went to the Super Bowl, where we lost to Belichick's Cheaters.

McNabb then went through some wilderness years, falling prey to a sports hernia in 2005 (in the infamous Year When Everyone Got Hurt and TO Reverted to Form) and a torn ACL in 2006. Everyone, including me, was sure the window had closed. Big5 came back in 2007, starting games at least 3 months before he even should have been back on the practice field. By 2008, he was back in playoff form, taking us, once again, to the NFC Championship Game. And this year, with the youngest roster not in the division, not in the NFC, but in the entire NFL, he led us back to the playoffs.

The whole time, he's had to put up with unremitting bullshit from a cadre of vocal and stupid Philly "fans" and the often disturbingly uninformed Philly sports media. And he's kept smiling, kept answering the same asinine questions over and over with patience and good humor, and, mostly, kept winning. All while being acknowledged as one of the classiest players in the NFL.

And, for those who are all "cut Don and start Vick and/or Kevin Kolb," I need to remind you that he has the 3rd highest winning percentage of all active QBs (behind only Tom Brady and Peyton Manning, and I think our chances of trading for either of those guys are pretty slim - which is a good thing, because they'd never be able to withstand the Philly fan/media scrutiny). Don, I know it's not universal, but I love you and I appreciate all you've done for us.

I'm not planning to recap the game in any great detail. I think the Cowboys did a good job of identifying and taking advantage of our weaknesses: talented, inexperienced young skill players on offense (our "vets" - other than Westy, who I think might be done - are just-turned 23 DeSean Jackson and 24 year old Brent Celek), problems on the O line (losing our starting center so late in the regular season just killed us), not being able to come up with a satisfactory replacement for injured-during-the-preseason All-Pro MLB Stewart Bradley, no real safety to speak of, and rookie defensive coordinator Sean McDermott. Also, the Cowboys have the biggest O and D lines in football, and that creates problems for a team that's small and quick by design. And I think they're the only team in the playoffs with no key starters injured. At this time of year, that means a lot.

It's a shame that we had to end our season like this - two back-to-back losses to Dallas - and it's a shame that we handed them their first playoff win in 13 seasons while at the same time handing Big Red his first first round playoff loss ever. On the other hand, no team has EVER lost 7 consecutive playoff games. Not even the Lions.

And the future looks great. To refresh your memory, something like 19 players out of our 53 man roster didn't play in the NFC Championship Game with us last year. Of that 19, something like 9 of them are rookies, and something like 4-5 more are sophomores (feel free to correct me in the comments if my calculations are off). The ENTIRE team has turned over in the Reid/McNabb era other than McNabb (Akers came on in McNabb's sophomore year, and Trot started in 1998, but has been in and out). That window we all thought was closed? Feels WIDE open at this point - we have a bunch of really young, really talented offensive skill players who are only going to get better. We need to work on our O-line - which is fine, AR LOVES to draft linemen - and some of our defensive secondary guys are aging. We need a safety. But we have a veteran QB who can help teach them and lead them.

When Prototypical Eagles Fan showed up, I said that, while I was hoping we'd manage to pull off the upset, I didn't think this was our year. I think it's next year or possibly even 2011. I think Mike Vick will be gone - not because of anything he did or didn't do with the Eagles, but because he wants to start and there are plenty of teams for whom he'd be a major upgrade. I think Wolverine might be back. The Eagles weren't going to match $7 million for a single season, and for all those who are still crying about "The Eagles just let him walk away!" remember that he didn't even offer to let them try to keep him. But a lot of our guys, particularly on D, have gone elsewhere for a year or two to get paid and then come home over the years. I think Westy may be done, which is a shame because we got to see a few flashes of the old BWest last night, and I'd hate to think that he ended his career with that mess as his last game. But he's a 30 year old RB who sustained two serious concussions this year and is owed more than $7 million next. I think The Big Kid's done too.

So get ready for our typical offseason: few to no big free-agent moves and really smart draft picks. Unless the collective bargaining agreement goes to hell, taking the entire league with it. And the Donovan-watch. And the Westy-watch. And relax and enjoy rooting against the Cowboys, and, at least in my house, FOR the Saints (who, I think, are stick-a-fork-in-them done, so I'll be picking up another hopeless cause, which will at least feel familiar).

Saturday night, after watching a few eps of early season Roseanne (a show which has aged surprisingly well) for some laughs, Chef Spouse and I drank a toast with some of the FINE tequila Ex-Navy Cheesehead brought us a few weeks ago to a great year of football. To quote Chef Spouse: "If only we'd beat the Raiders...then we could've lost the NFC Championship Game, like we're supposed to."

Too Pollyanna for you? Check out Igglesblog for a bleaker view. Tommy calls it "rock bottom," which I think is a little extreme, but also implies "nowhere to go but up."

In the other matchups...I am really, really bad at picking games.

Jets over Bengals. Brought to you by the color green, the letter R and the number 2. Why 2? 2 turnovers, 2 missed field goals, and Marvin Lewis used up 2 challenges - both unsuccessfully - in the first quarter. All Mark Sanchez had to do was not lose the game, and that he did. Bummer for my boy OchoCinco, but the Jets will get their comeuppance in San Diego next week.

Ravens over Pats. I may never stop laughing. OK, 3 of the games were blowouts, but at least this one wasn't dull - watching the Pats get their asses handed to them is never boring. I think Joe Flacco completed like, 1 pass for about 3 yards, but it didn't matter - Ray Lewis and the D came to BALL. And in the end, that's all that mattered. Also it was fun to watch Tom Brady get hit, whine for penalties and be roundly ignored by the officiating crew that, according to the pre-game info, was tied for the lowest penalizing crew in the NFL. HA! Not so easy to win when the zebras don't call 15 yards on anybody who looks at you too long, there, is it, Rocks?

Cards over Packers. This game made up for the other 3 dogs. Well, other than the fact that one of them was us losing to the Cowboys, that is. Aaron Rodgers was 28/42 for 422 yards 4TDs and one pick, and he was hot, for sure. But Warner had 5 TD tosses and only 4 incompletions (and NO picks). Grandpa was on FIRE! That's how we do it in the P-H-X, Junior. You know, while we were watching the game, Chef Spouse was like: "Where were these Cardinals all season?" I have a theory - they know that, as long as they can win 8 games, they'll win their division, and they're pretty much guaranteed to win at least their 6 divisional games (although of course the 49ers swept them this year), so I think maybe they basically slack off all season and save it for the playoffs. Which is looking like it might be a good strategy. What do we have to do to get transferred to the NFC West?

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2009 Wildcard Weekend Picks

I think this is the first time in NFL history that the first weekend of the playoffs will feature 3 repeat matchups from the last weekend of the regular season. I'm not sure what that means, but there you have it.

Edited Friday, January 8 at 12:13 pm to add: Reader Mike Fearon shared the following link/information with me: http://www.bookofodds.com/Daily-Life-Activities/Sports/Articles/A0526-Wildcard-Rematch-es-What-are-the-odds. It's a fascinating article that actually gives the odds of this situation and compares it to the odds of other real-life occurrences to give some context. You should definitely check it out! Thanks, Mike!

Eagles/Cowboys - Well, there's been the usual Philly sports media tempest in a teapot about McNabb's recent comments. What did he say that was so horrible? Quoting Philly.com:

"On Sunday, McNabb was asked whether the Eagles showed their youth. He answered in part that he felt they did, "in situations where everyone began to look around to see who was going to make the play, rather than stepping up and making that play. That's something that comes with the territory, when you have a young group . . . all throughout the year, we've had guys step up and make big plays for us when their name's called, and today it just didn't happen."

The way I see it, the Eagles *did* look like a bunch of young guys who were playing in their first really big game last Sunday. Sure, Don needs to make a play, but somebody has to catch the damn ball, and the coaches need to call plays that put us in a position to be successful.

And, once again quoting Philly.com:

"It all starts with me," McNabb said yesterday.

"I have to raise my level of play," he said yesterday, but then he kept going with this:

"And everyone else has to, as well."

Followed by the editorial comment: "Ugh."

Really? Big5 saying that everyone needs to step it up Saturday if we hope to walk away with a win merits an "Ugh" from Sam Donnellon? I guess he thinks everyone else played great Sunday and Don was the only one doing anything wrong. I also guess he must've watched a different game than I watched.

Moral of the story? Don't read the Philly sports media.

I did promise blog fan Chris that I'd give some hope.

Here's hope point 1: it's damn near IMpossible (Freudian slip? I hope not!) to beat any team 3 times in the same season. Particularly a division opponent. Particularly two weeks in a row.

Here's hope point 2: Andy Reid has never lost his first game in the playoffs. Nor has Donovan McNabb.

Here's hope point 3: the Cowboys haven't won a playoff game since before I lived in DC. Wade Phillips and Tony Romo have never won a playoff game together.

Here's hope point 4: we don't have to worry that they've totally scoped our game plan because we didn't show them anything on Sunday.

Here's hope point 5: the entire NFL Total Access team called us to win. As I believe Marshall Faulk said, "The Eagles play best when their backs are against the wall. Which is why I picked them to lose last week, and why I'm picking them to win this week."

Here's hope point 6: after sneaking by us earlier and spanking us on Sunday, the Cowboys HAVE to be overconfident. Right?

OK, in all seriousness, I am very worried about this game. We were so flat last week it was scary. We can't play that badly two weeks in a row, right? Not with so much on the line, right? We can't be the team to end the Cowboys playoff drought, right?

I'm cautiously hopeful right now. And I think we'll know which way this is going to go within the first 10 minutes of the game. If it's not going our way, you might have to talk me down off the 14th Street bridge.

Packers/Cardinals: You know how it's hard to beat a team two weeks in a row? Not for the Packers. I don't think the Cards have the firepower on D to take down the Packers. Of course, I didn't buy the Cardinals hype last year, and look how that turned out. But I'm still calling the Packers.

Ravens/Patriots: The Pats are not looking so untouchable now that their defense is weak-ass and Tom Brady gets knocked down. At this time of the year, it tends to come down to guts, balls, and who's clutch. The Ravens win on two of those, and, I think, win this game.

Bengals/Jets: Have I mentioned how annoyed I am that the Jets got a gimme against the Colts in week 16, which is the only reason they were even in the running for the playoffs? Because I'm still really, really annoyed. I would love to see Ocho Cinco and the Bengals win a playoff game. They've only even *been* to the playoffs three times in the past 20 years. And they lost their first game one of those times. And it was the most recent visit (2005 season). I'm calling Bengals, but it's more hope than confidence. Also, picking all 4 wildcard teams seems nuts.

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Wildcard Weekend Schedule: January 9-10, 2010

Wildcard Weekend schedule:

Saturday, January 9
4:30 pm - Jets/Bengals
8 pm - Eagles/Cowboys

Sunday, January 10
1 pm - Ravens/Patriots
4:30 pm - Packers/Cardinals

Menu: Chef Spouse is feeling ambitious and planning to make big meals for both Saturday and Sunday. Saturday will be Popeye's fried chicken. Sunday, he's thinking about Chinese.

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2009 Week 17 Recap

Eagles at Cowboys, Sunday, January 3, 2010

In attendance: Chef Spouse, Shoegal, Ex-Navy Cheesehead. And sweet, sweet booze. Thank God.

Menu: ham, scalloped potatoes, veg casserole. And did I mention the booze?

Stud of the week: Am I allowed to pick no one? Life-Long Eagles Fan Mom pointed out that the only good thing the Philly sportscasters could say about the game was: "Sav Rocca wasn't bad." Oy. Also, Asante Samuel tipped a pass that Joselio Hanson came down with. We did nothing with it but waste a timeout lining up for a punt, but it was pretty much the only highlight of the game.

As You-Two-Calm-Down-or-I'm-Turning-Off-the-TV Dad pointed out, we should probably issue an APB for the Eagles. Who were those guys in the green jerseys yesterday, and what did they do with our team?

We literally could not do a single thing right. The line couldn't protect McNabb. When they did, receivers couldn't get open. When they did, McNabb couldn't get the ball to them. When he did, they couldn't catch it. When they did, they couldn't move the chains.

For chrissakes, Andy Reid decided to go for the 53 yard field goal rather than going for it on 4-2 on the Cowboys 35. And Akers MISSED.

Maclin ran the wrong route at least twice on key plays. "5 and Dime" turned into "keep the change" as McNabb did the impossible, overthrowing Peanut. Twice. We had ONE red zone possession. In the ENTIRE game. And a bad Nick Cole snap led to a fumble that poor O-line play didn't even allow Big5 time to pick up.

And why weren't we blitzing more? Our D let us get way too far behind in the first half. Then we dumped the run entirely and everyone tried to do too much every single offensive play in the second half. There was no "Catch ball --> secure ball --> try to get some YAC --> try to move the sticks." No, it became, "I HAVE TO SCORE A TD ALL BY MYSELF RIGHT NOW ON THIS PLAY NOWNOWNOW!" for everyone.

Did they not understand that we were supposed to WIN THIS week so we could REST NEXT week? Did the Cowboys training staff sneakily mix up our Gatorade with vodka rather than water? I'm not usually one to blame the coaches - it's the players who are on the field needing to, you know, MAKE PLAYS - but when the ENTIRE team shows up completely unready to play, that's on the coaches. Who have 6 days to pull their heads out of their asses and figure this thing out.

Now, instead of getting to chill while watching the Vikings beat the Cowboys over mai tais in the Akers' rumpus room, we have to go BACK to Dallas and do it ourselves.

At least we don't have to worry that the Cowboys have already seen all our good stuff, since they've seen NONE of our good stuff. Hell, we could complete a screen pass for 5 yards, and the Cowboys would be like, "Where did THAT come from?" Ah well, as Chef Spouse pointed out, at least none of our guys cried.

Around the rest of the NFL...

Bills over Colts. Told you. Also, how awesome was it to watch Blizzard Bowl 2010? Also, Peyton Manning's looked like he's snacking on ground glass on the sidelines the past two weeks. Sure, 16-0 was meaningless. RIIIIIIGHT. The Colts are going down in the first playoff game - as usual. You read it here first.

Panthers over Saints. OK, they didn't play their starters, and the Cowboys are tougher than we thought (thinking back to their first lost game). I still think the Saints peaked too early and will also lose their first playoff game. Which means it's really a bugger that we're not sitting at #2 and looking ahead to hosting the NFC Championship Game in an outdoor stadium in the northeast in January as God intended.

Browns over Jags. Man, it's too bad I skipped the office football pool this week - I was on a roll. Well, other than that whole Eagles/Cowboys debacle.

Texans over Pats. The big news from this game, other than the Texans having their first winning season EVER, is that the Pats have likely lost Wes Welker for the playoffs. Yeah, they weren't going to the show this year anyway.

Vikings over Giants. Life-Long Eagles Fan asked me today, "What do you think happened to the Giants this year?" Two things: no Plax and no Spags. And Bill Sheridan's already been fired.

49ers over Rams. "And with the #1 pick in the 2010 NFL draft, the St. Louse Rams choose..." Well, since they need EVERYTHING, really anyone would be a good choice. But if it were up to me, I'd take Ndamukong Suh.

Falcons over Bucs. The Falcons just pulled off their first back-to-back winning seasons EVER. Ponder that for a minute if you need something to talk you down off the ledge after 24-0.

Steelers over Dolphins. Well, it's a good thing the Dolphins are out of the playoffs because they are completely out of quarterbacks. Good timing, I guess.

Bears over Lions. Oh yeah, Jay Cutler can kick ass. When it doesn't matter. Whose decision was it to get him again? GM Jerry Angelo? Black Monday's usually for coaches, but....

Chiefs over Broncos. How the hell do you roll over for the CHIEFS at HOME with the playoffs on the line? Also, Brandon Marshall's probably gone.

Ravens over Raiders. When it became clear that there was no way we had any chance of getting our shit together, I tried to convince Chef Spouse to switch us over to this game, which was close and hard fought and also had playoff implications. I was unsuccessful and had to suffer through our ENTIRE game. What good is the Sunday Ticket if I can't use it to avoid having to watch a 3 hour train wreck?

Titans over Seahawks. The only interesting thing about this game is that Chris Johnson went over 2,000 yards for the season, becoming only the 6th player in history to do so.

Chargers over Redskins. Even without their starters. Ouch.

Packers over Cardinals. Yeesh.

Jets over Bengals. Another shut out leading to another wildcard weekend rematch. And even though the Bengals starters played, I'm still pissed that the Jets were even in consideration because the Colts took last week off. It's totally unfair. I hope the Bengals kill 'em next week.

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