Color Me Shocked

Eagles 33, Redskins 27, Monday, September 9, 2013 

Going into the game, there was no reason to think the Eagles could win. Sure RGIII is coming off a major injury, but the Skins are the defending NFC East champions opening the season at home against a division rival that went 4-12 last year.

Meanwhile, the Eagles have a new head coach,  new offensive and defensive coordinators, a new special teams coach, a new offense, a new 3-4 defensive scheme (with players acquired during a 4-3 era), and a bunch of new players, particularly on defense. 

So no way the Eagles win this one, right?

Not exactly.

Stud of the week: there are PLENTY of candidates, believe me (or believe Bleeding Green Nation)

but I think I have to go with Mychal Kendricks, who was *so* all over the field it seemed like there might have been two of him. Or more.

All the talk on SportsCenter and the NFL Network today has been about how fast the Eagles were on offense (well,  that and Ndamukong Suh's $100K fine). How fast were they? They were so fast for the first 3 quarters that Jon Gruden didn't have time to run his mouth, for which we should all be grateful.

In the fourth quarter, the Eagles slowed down. Too much. And Chip Kelly knows it, based on today's interviews. So that's reassuring. Everyone still has something to learn.

In the meantime, Shady McCoy nearly had a career night and looked like he was a player in Madden most of the night, leaving the Redskins defense chasing his shadow and scratching their heads.

DeSean Jackson had a great night too, with over 100 yards and a TD.

Michael Vick looked solid and may have finally found the right offensive scheme. Two things that worried me: him clutching his groin after that 36 yard fourth quarter scramble and the fact that more than once, he was blocking for McCoy or Bryce Brown, which is ballsy and honorable and all that good stuff, and scares the shit out of me.

The defense looked much better than they were in the pre-season, at least until they started giving too much cushion in the fourth quarter. But they've actually learned to tackle! And all that blitzing felt like a return to the JJ years. Also, Patrick Chung really should have picked that final Leonard Hankerson TD. Gotta work on that, buddy.

Excitingly, we also saw outstanding special teams play. Donnie Jones punted well, and in many cases, the ball was coming down close to the goal line and the Eagles had a player behind the Redskins player to prevent the touchback and force either a fair catch or a catch and run. And when a Skins punt returner did run, everyone else was there to stop him cold. We even had a "do it again" 48-yarder from Alex Henery on a night when usually reliable Kai Forbath missed from 40.

Ultimately, the Eagles benefited from the element of surprise - and blazing speed - on a night when RGIII was rusty. Teams, and defensive coordinators, will figure this out eventually. And RGIII got better by the quarter. But for now, a victory feels awfully sweet.

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Thoughts on Pre-Season Game 1

Friday, August 9, 2013

Eagles 22 - Patriots 31

Regardless of who you're rooting for in the QB competition, both Vick and Foles looked sharp in their first outings of the 2013 season. Vick opened with a quick "looks like the Eagles we know & love" TD drive that featured a long pass to my boy Jason Avant and a beautiful TD to DeSean (-->) that gives me hope that we'll see the return of 2009 DeSean rather than 2011 DeSean.

Foles got off to a rough start with the strip sack, but came back strong with efficient TD drive of his own, capped off with a nice short pass to Bryce Brown.

Matt Barkley, well, looks like a rookie. Nothing to see here (yet). Move along.

Of course new HC Chip Kelly didn't open up the playbook, but we did see quite a bit of his no huddle hand signal style. I'm wondering/hoping that that will be a major benefit in some of the noisier enemy stadiums later this season.

It's possible special teams won't be the typical disaster this year. Well, as long as Jon Dorenbos's concussion isn't too serious and he can play. Brent Celek should never attempt to long snap again as long as he lives, so help him God.

The defense. Oh my. Can we go back to talking about the offense? No? It was pretty sad. Tom Brady and all, but the Patriots have pretty much an entirely new offense other than Brady, and he tore up our secondary even with a bunch of nOObs. Ouch. Work in progress, work in progress, work in progress. I hope.

 

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They Won. #Shocked.

Eagles at Buccaneers, Sunday, December 9, 2012 

Holy shit. The Eagles actually won a game.

I know, I know, this does not help the team's draft position, and that's pretty much all that's on the line at this point.

But how nice was it to see Big Red and Howard Mudd hugging after the game. And not "bro-hugging" either, but a big old "I'm about to cry" clinch.

Stud of the week: Could it be anyone but Jason Avant? He had an amazing game. No TDs, but 7 catches for 133 yards, including an amazing one-handed circus catch. Just Google it - you'll have no trouble finding it. Shout out to Jeremy Maclin, too, for catching the game winner as time expired.

Good thing the receivers had a big day because, thanks to the Bucs' #1 ranked running defense, Nick Foles was the Birds' top rusher on the day.

Speaking of Foles, I'm still not sure he's The Guy, but I'll bet he gets a shot at the starting spot for 2013 at this point.  He played well, particularly when he needed to bring the Birds back from being down by 11 with 7 minutes left. And for once, burning the timeouts to save the clock worked, as the D, which had been up and down all day, was able to come up with a stop when they needed it, with about 3 minutes to go. And then Foles got sacked right before the 2 minute warning, and nobody panicked. Or gave up.

In the end, it doesn't change anything. The Eagles will finish at the bottom of the NFC East. Andy Reid will be fired in January. Mike Vick will not be an Eagle, and may not even be playing football. Same for King Dunlap. I'm sure someone will pick up Nnamdi Asomugha, but he won't be Philly anymore, either.

But on a day when the Bucs were honoring the team that, according to Chef Spouse's unending bile, stole the Eagles' Super Bowl from them (if I had a dollar for every time he's said "2002 was OUR YEAR!" I'd be a rich woman), it was nice to be able to savor a victory.

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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 6 Recap

Eagles v. Lions, Sunday, October 14, 2012

Stud of the week: Nnamdi Asomugha finally had the game we've all been waiting for. You know, the one where we all go "THAT's why the Eagles paid all that money for him!" He had a picka dn completely shut down Calvin Johnson, not an easy task. Well, that is until Juan Castillo inexplicably pulled Asmougha off Megatron. When did that happen? Remember how the team gave up a 10 point lead with 5 minutes to go? Yeah, about then.

Have you ever given yourself a rage headache? Because I was so pissed by the end of the game, after the Eagles won the toss, went three and out, and then were unable to even slow the Lions' waltz downfield for the field goal down a little, I had. I stomped into the kitchen and told Chef Spouse I was going for a walk. I returned about an hour later, able to watch both the Giants and Redskins win with some degree of equanimity.

What was Chef Spouse doing in the kitchen? Working on fish fumet and espagnole sauce, and avoiding my insane yelling at the TV.

There is SO MUCH blame to go around.

I blame the officials. There is no way that was a push-off worthy of calling back Brent Celek's TD near the end of the 3rd quarter. When it happened, I announced: "If the Eagles lose this game by fewer than 4 points, I'm blaming the officials." So there you have it.

I blame Michael Vick. He was great in the last few minutes before the half and during the third quarter. He made quick reads, ran through his progressions, made quick decisions, took what the Lions' D gave him, ran when he could, and got out of bounds without getting hit. Too bad he was getting the shit kicked out of him the rest of the game, which may have left him more than a little addled. Some of that was him - he CANNOT hold the ball so long - and some was the O-line. Regardless, someone should probably give him a concussion test, stat. And the turnovers! Oy vey iz mir!

I blame the lack of a run game. Shady had a terrible game. I don't know if that's because the O line couldn't make any holes for him (probably, since the Lions' defense spent pretty much the entire game in Mike Vick's lap), if it was because of bad playcalling so he got no touches, or if it was because of bad playcalling, insisting on running outside on the rare times the Birds actually ran the ball, when it was CLEARLY NOT working.

Maclin and Jackson had good games, but Jason Avant made a rare mental mistake and Brent Celek dropped a few balls he normally catches.

I blame the O-line. Did I mention that the Lions' D-line spent the entire game up in Mike Vick's grill? Because they did.

I blame the D-line. The names Jason Babin, Trent Cole and Cullen Jenkins should strike fear the in hearts of opposing QBs. Where were they yesterday? NO sacks? NONE?

I blame Juan Castillo. Aside from the Asomugha disaster mentioned above, here's the thing with blitzes. You must - and I cannot over-stress the importance of this - you MUST get there. If you don't, Matthew Stafford can feel free to pick any of the 4,873 Lions receivers running free in the secondary with no one to cover them.

In the past two games, the D has given up two fourth quarter leads. Now the Steelers game was one thing - the Eagles had gone up by 1 with well over 6 minutes left on the road. But losing a 10 point lead at home with just over 5 minutes? Of course, it would've helped if the offense could've burned a little time. You don't need to score - you just need to burn clock and change field position. Of course, that requires a run game. See above for the problems with that.

And this has me thinking: hello, it's 2011 all over again.

But there's one more group to blame: the fans at the Linc. The Eagles are up by 10 with just over 5 minutes to go. The team is on defense at home. The stadium should be going crazy. Matthew Stafford shouldn't be able to hear his own thoughts. And, unless there was something messed up with the sound on my TV - and I seriously doubt it - the stadium was nearly quiet. The defensive players were waving their arms on the field to try to hype the crowd and...nothing. Sure, the Lions aren't nearly as bad as their 1-3 record coming into the day made it seem. But if we're not with the team, how can we expect them to give their best?

I don't have it in me to recap the rest of the games this week. I'm still too bummed - and unless the Broncos pull off a miracle (always a possibility with Peyton Manning under center, but it's not looking good with the 4th quarter about to start), I'm 3-11 this week. Bleh.

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2011 Week 17 Recap

Eagles v. Redskins, Sunday, January 1, 2012

The game may have been "meaningless," but it sure was nice to end the season with a win. Actually, 4 wins.

Stud of the week: other guys posted bigger numbers, but I have to give it to pint-sized Chad Hall, who scored his first NFL TD on Sunday, and did it by plowing over Perry Riley and DeAngelo Hall, who had him dead to rights stopped at the 1. Chad Hall is never going to be a starter - in Philly or anywhere else - because he's really not that good. But he plays every snap he gets with his whole heart, and you have to love him for that.

I also have to give a shout out to Jason Avant, Mr. Third Down, nearly all of whose receptions this season went for first downs. And to Alex Henery, who, thanks to Dan Bailey's miss last night, set the record for rookie kicking accuracy and single-season kicking accuracy, passing even the great David Akers (who can apparently also thrown TDs, as you'd know if you saw the 49ers game).

This was definitely a day, even a month, of "if only."

If only...the Eagles had taken better care of the ball.

If only...the defense had started to gel a little sooner.

If only...Mike Vick hadn't gotten hurt.

If only...Vince Young was a competent backup.

If only...Alex Henery had gotten over his rookie jitters by week 4.

If only...the team could've figured out how to win at home before week 15.

If only...the offense had figured out how to score some points in the 4th quarter before December. Or even realized that scoring in the fourth quarter might be important.

So now we look ahead to an extra-long offseason. For the other teams, and from the crucible of the Eagles' experiences this season:

If someone says: "Hey! I have a great idea! Even though there's going to be virtually no offseason this year, let's convert our offensive line coach into our defensive coordinator!" just say no.

As if 13 years of watching the LOLskins wasn't enough, we now have definitive proof that you cannot buy a bunch of high-priced free agents and expect them to magically morph into a team. Really. REALLY.

Win at home. If all else fails, win at home.

It's not as if there weren't bright spots: LeSean McCoy had an amazing year, and there's no reason it won't be the first of many. Howard Mudd revamped the o-line into a top-10 group. The defense was a sack machine this year, led by a nearly record season for Jason Babin, and supported by another excellent (partial) season from my boy Trent Cole. And a four game winning streak is not a bad way to go out. But 8-8 is 8-8, even if the team did go 5-1 in the division.

Around the rest of the NFL...

Dolphins over Jets: Told you so. Apparently, Rex Ryan was crying in the locker room. It's funnier when it's Tony Romo, but still - comedy gold!

Patriots over Bills: For the first 15 minutes, it looked like maybe the Bills would do the impossible and beat the Pats twice in one season. And then there was the rest of the game. Better luck next year, Bills.

Titans over Texans: The Titans did what they could to take care of business, but it wasn't enough. All they did was knock themselves down about 7 positions in the draft. Whoops. Meanwhile, the Texans are going into their first trip to the playoffs ICE cold. Early exit in 4...3....2....

Jaguars over Colts: And the winners of the Andrew Luck Sweepstakes are the Colts! Wonder what's going to happen with Peyton? In the press, he's been all: "I'm a great teammate who can work with and support anyone." To which I respond: "Has he not been paying any attention at all to himself for the past 10 years?"

Bears over Vikings: I was sure the Vikes were going to pull off another win. Except no. 3-13 gives them a good draft position, which they're going to need.

Saints over Panthers: You know how the Saints are unbeatable at home? Sucks to be the Lions.

49ers over Rams: The 49ers secure the bye, and David Akers throws the pass for what turns out to be the margin of victory. Didn't see either of those things happening back in August.

Packers over Lions: It was freezing cold and snowing at Lambeau, and it was a shoot-out anyway. I was stunned that the Lions couldn't pull it off, and that they allowed a record day with Aaron Rodgers on the bench. If the Super Bowl does come down to the Packers and Patriots, we could see the first Super Bowl with over 100 points scored.

Ravens over Bengals: The Bengals secured a playoff spot anyway, but going in losing 3 of their last 5 is not promising.

Steelers over Browns: The Steelers are literally limping into the playoffs as the 5th seed. Yeah, I know, Packers 2010, but things don't look promising for them, either. In other news, the NFC East is playing the AFC North next year. You know, the AFC North that's supplying three of the AFC playoff teams this year. Great.

Chiefs over Broncos: And the Broncos got in anyway. Don't worry - they won't go far. Much as I'd love to see BDawk get a ring before he retires, it's really not going to happen.

Cardinals over Seahawks: I have literally nothing to say about this. Other than to point out to the Redskins that Kevin Kolb might b available for 2012.

Chargers over Raiders: Did the Raiders not realize that their season was on the line? Sheesh!

Falcons over Buccaneers: Did you know that a bunch of Falcons players, coaches, and fans were whining about the Saints "letting" Drew Brees go for the single-season passing yards record last week since they were already up by so much. A few things occur to me. One, after watching my own team blow multiple fourth quarter leads this year, I think if you can score, you should score. Two, he was going for a major record, not just doing it to be mean. Three, even if he was just doing it to be mean, if you don't like it, stop him. If you can't stop him, quit yer bellyachin. Four, "waah waah poor lil us!" does not bode well for your playoff chances, Falcons.

Giants over Cowboys: I know, I know. If the Cowboys had won, the Eagles would've gotten a better draft position. And neither team would've been likely to get very far in the playoffs. But it's ALWAYS a good day when the Cowboys lose.

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2011 Week 13 Recap

Eagles at Seahawks, Thursday, December 1, 2011

I hate  to say "I told you so," particularly on this one, but I told you so.

Prediction: debacle

Reality: debacle

Stud of the Week: Continuing as the only bright spot in the whole damn season, LeSean McCoy. Dear Santa: could I please have a #25 ladies jersey in black this year? 

Much like the 42-0 MNF mess in 2005, I confess that I didn't watch to the end. After Vince Young threw his FOURTH pick with about four minutes left in the game, I turned to Chef Spouse and said, "That's it. I'm out."

Where do I even start in recapping the game?

DeSean Jackson. Yes, the NFL Network clearly cut the shot where Vince Young was talking to Riley Cooper (I think) to make it look like he was talking to DJax, but the proof is in the pudding. Regardless of what was really going on Thursday night, his play all season demonstrates the fundamental truth of the fact that he's quit on the team.  And a word of advice: I know you love your buds from Cali, but laughing & talking with them while a team mate is lying injured on the ground is not cool.

Jason Babin. Tons of sacks, no stopping of the run. Great for you, not so great for the team. Hm - story of the whole season, come to think of it.

Asante Samuel: F off. Really.

Colt Anderson: Another bright spot in the season. Well, up until he tears his ACL in a meaningless game. And don't give me crap about how if only the Eagles had beat the Seahawks, they'd still be right in it. The back to back losses to the Bears and the Cardinals killed this season long before the Eagles flew out to Seattle last week.

Jason Avant: I just have to keep giving much love to a smart, serious receiver who continues to play his butt off.

One of my friends sent me a great article "Requiem for the Dream Team" that identified the five major issues with the Eagles this year. You should really read the entire article because the explanations offered are fantastic, but the five points are:

1. Serious line deficiencies, both O and D
2. Soft at linebacker and safety
3. Nnamdi Asomugha, MIA
4. Decline of Vick and Jackson
5. Bad luck

Yep. That about sums it up.

It's amazing I got through writing that without a shot of bourbon. Guess where I'm headed now?

I'll be at a conference next week, so I'll try to recap the rest of the games, but I can't promise anything.

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2011 Week 12 Recap

Eagles v. Patriots, Sunday, November 27, 2011

Here's something to be thankful for: this season is almost over. Five more games until we can all pack it in and just relax and enjoy the playoffs, with nothing at stake. Well, nothing except rooting against the Cowboys, who will probably win the NFC East this year.

Stud of the week: Jason Avant. Lots of guys quit out there once the Birds were down 24-13. Avant never quit. Oh, and that (-->) photo? Avant held on to that pass. I know about a million people have remarked on this today, but I'm the million and first: if we could only transplant Avant's heart and toughness into DJax's body, #10 might be worth that top 5 receiver paycheck he so desperately wants.

That was one hell of a first quarter, wasn't it? Gorgeous first drive that included a beautiful long completion to Riley Cooper and Shady McCoy getting his 11th rushing TD of the season. And then a quick out for the Pats, followed by another nice Eagles drive for 3.

And that was pretty much the last good thing that happened in the entire game.

DeSean Jackson had a horrible night, dropping not one but two TD passes. You know, while the Eagles still had a prayer of being competitive. Well, not after giving away 14 points. It was so bad, Andy Reid benched him in the fourth quarter. The smart money says he's NOT an Eagle next year.

Vince Young had a great night personally, putting up a career high 400 yards through the air. But he couldn't get his team in to the end zone, and even when he did, his guys didn't focus and catch the damn ball and help him out. The fact that many of the passes he threw led receivers right into bone-crushing hits may have had something to do with that. 53 individuals, no team.

No one in green could tackle at all. Every time I start thinking the Eagles are solving their basic skills problems, they pull crap like what we saw yesterday. And they couldn't get a stop in the red zone to save their lives - or at least their playoff lives, which was exactly what was on the line yesterday. And we all knew going into the game that Gronkowski and Hernandez were going to present HUGE problems, given how poorly this team has handled tight ends all year. Yeah, that turned out pretty much as expected, with the two combining for over 120 yards and a TD.

LeSean McCoy never got the damn ball. The Pats were shredding the Birds' defense, those guys needed a rest, and it was pass-pass-pass and out time and again. TOM BRADY had almost as many yards and carries as Shady. TOM BRADY. Who is not exactly Tim Tebow, y'all.

Hell, Jim Washburn and Marty Mornhinweg got into a fight on the sidelines. Yes, that's how bad things are - the coaches are fighting on the sidelines.

Sloppy play, boneheaded mistakes, dumb penalties, inability to execute basic skill plays. In other words, the 2011 season in a nutshell. A really, really ugly nutshell.

Around the rest of the NFL...

Packer over Lions: OK, so I was wrong about the Pack losing to the Lions. Chef Spouse thinks that the Raiders have the best shot among the Packers' remaining opponents at messing up 16-0. But we're both in agreement that if the Pack does go undefeated in the regular season, we want them to win the Super Bowl, not least of which because it might make annoying Pats fans STFU. Also, someone needs to talk to Ndamukong Suh about calming down, at least a little. He'll have plenty of time to chat while he's on suspension.

Cowboys over Dolphins: The Cowboys beat a 3-7 team by one point. They're so going to embarrass the East in the playoffs this year. Sigh.

Ravens over 49ers: Well, I was right about one thing - David Akers did provide all the 49ers points. Unfortunately, that only amounted to 6, which isn't enough to beat anyone, even a Ravens team that's not exactly a scoring juggernaut. On the other hand, when your QB spends the entire game on his ass, you are not going to win many games.

So I was 1-2 on the Thanksgiving games. And then I went on a winning streak, going (so far) 11-1 with the rest of my picks. C'mon Saints!

Falcons over Vikings: Unsurprising. Once Christian Ponder gets a little more experience and Adrian Peterson gets healthy again, the Vikings could have the beginnings of a winning team. Well, they would if they weren't in the same division as the Packers.

Bengals over Browns: The Bengals needed a big play to seal the win, and they got it. That must be nice. Also, the Browns might want to see about getting themselves a new long snapper.

Panthers over Colts: And the Suck for Luck train keeps rolling in Indy.

Texans over Jaguars: The Texans are running out of QBs. When you have to ask, "Who's their QB of last resort?" you know you're in trouble. Good thing they about have the South wrapped, because I'm not sure how many more games they're going to be able to win. Football fans, I give you Kellen Clemens. Uh oh.

Jets over Bills: Told you Rex wouldn't let them drop another game. And while 6-5 is a lot better than 4-7, Jets fans, I feel your pain on the "huge disappointment" front. The Jets may very well get knocked out of the playoffs by the Broncos or the Bengals. Don't worry - you can watch the games with the Eagles. I hear Trent Cole barbeques a mean brisket.

Cardinals over Rams: Add Patrick Peterson to the list of guys you should never kick to.

Titans over Bucs: I really like Raheem Morris and Josh Freeman, and wish them well. But they gotta quit turning the ball over. And hey! Chris Johnson's back!

Raiders over Bears: Carson Palmer seems to have acclimated. Good thing Janikowski was on, too. The Bears are in trouble. You heard it here first.

Redskins over Seahawks: This is the ONE game on Sunday I called wrong. Who knew the Redskins would pick this week to stop sucking (briefly). Ah Rex Grossman, how you enjoy torturing people with flashes of competence, wrapped up in a package with dumb intentional grounding penalties and picks. Schizophrenic much?

Broncos over Chargers: I have to give John Fox credit for running what amounts to a college offense in order to play to the strengths of his QB. Tebow won't last long as a pro unless he learns how to throw from the pocket - he'll get too beat up - but in the meantime, the Broncos are winning games. And Norv Turner joins AR on the list of coaches who well might be in BIG trouble. In speculating where DeSean Jackson could end up next year, I'm thinking Chargers. He needs to go somewhere where the QB has a big arm, which Philip Rivers certainly does, and the Chargers could use someone to compliment Vincent Jackson. And DJax is from Cali.

Steelers over Chiefs: This game was a lot closer than I thought it would be. Of course, if you can't get in the endzone at all, it's pretty hard to win games. Ladies and gents, I give you Tyler Palko.

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2011 Week 6 Recap

Eagles at Redskins, Sunday, October 16, 2011

In attendance: Shoegal, Chef Spouse - small group, thank goodness, since we didn't get home from a week in Seattle until after 10 pm Saturday night

Menu: 'cue from Inspire. Sadly, it was not. Inspired. Also sadly, the really good 'cue place in our neighborhood, Kenny's, isn't open on Sundays. And Steelers Transplant still lives in Tampa, which means we don't get his amazing 'cue either. No 'cue - what's a gal to do?

Stud of the week: Kurt Coleman, I'm looking at you! Kurt had a huge day, particularly given the fact that he wasn't even a starter until, I think, this week, replacing the truly awful Jarrad Page. Kurt hauled in three of Sexy Rexy's four picks, batted down some additional passes, and was in on about a million tackles. Way to ensure that starting position STAYS yours. Gotta give a shout-out to Brent Celek, too. Nice circus catch, buddy.

First, I have to get one thing off my chest:

WHY CAN'T THE EAGLES PLAY FOUR FREAKIN' QUARTERS OF COMPLETE FOOTBALL ON BOTH SIDES OF THE BALL?

Sigh.

A win's a win, and the Eagles desperately needed this one, but the fact that the offense scored all their points before the half and almost let the Redskins and their backup (new starting?) QB John Beck back in does not make me happy.

You know how, for the past four weeks, it's felt like the Eagles couldn't catch a break no matter what? Every batted pass resulted in a pick, guys who normally protect the rock gave it up, if the first level of the D missed a tackle there was NO ONE to clean it up, even the kicker was missing short field goals?

I guess someone paid a curandera to come smudge the locker room with sage or something, because damn, did the team's luck turn.

Of course, it also helped that Rex Grossman remembered that he's, well, Rex Grossman. You aren't going to turn the ball over that much and still win. Trust me - after the last four weeks, I know. Oh God, do I know.

Other things that helped:

The defense showed up ready to ball. I called the Skins to win this game in part because I wasn't seeing much in the way of results from all the defensive tweaking. I figured the team needed the two weeks of the upcoming bye in order to, oh, I don't know, scrap the entire defensive coaching staff and scheme and start over. Silly me. I still don't think Juan Castillo is going to work out long term as the DC, but at least the players seem to have remembered how to tackle and get to the ball and stop drives in the red zone and get the hell off the field on 3rd down. Maybe they were all threatened with being traded to the Rams. Whatever it was, it worked.

Shady McCoy had another huge game. Mike Shanahan's right: he IS the best back in the NFL.

Brent Celek remembered how to play football (see above).

Jeremy Maclin and Jason Avant remembered how to HOLD ON TO THE BALL.

To quote Bleeding Green Nation, Nnamdi Asomugha channeled Sheldon Brown, laid the wood we're used to seeing from a midnight green #24, and broke Chris Cooley's hand in the process. Not that I'm ever happy about injuries, but Cooley does run his mouth. A lot. A LOT.

The coaches actually planned the game relatively well. Yes, we all know Andy Reid is addicted to the big play. But this week, he must've been wearing some kind of patch or chewing some special gum, because he and Marty dialed up running plays and short drops with quick passes to keep Mike Vick from getting killed. And thank goodness, because Vince Young did not impress with his two plays from scrimmage.  (Oh, and by the way? Andy was right to challenge that spot at the end of the game, and the zebras were BLIND in calling Shady short. BLIND.) And they didn't get cute in the red zone, and look what happened: two TDs and two field goals.

Mike Vick didn't have a huge day, and you know what? That's fine by me. Last year's MNF show aside, if he throws for a jillion yards, it generally means that the Eagles are in BIG trouble.

A lot of the DC sports press today has been all about, "if only a few plays had gone the other way..." Yeah, tell me about it. In case you haven't noticed, the Eagles weren't blown out once in those four losses. So I feel you, Redskins fans, I do, but I'm glad YOU'RE the ones wailing about "if only!" this Monday.

In the end, the guys finally played like they cared. And, at least yesterday, that was enough.

Around the rest of the NFL...

Falcons over Panthers: Did you see Cam Newton bust out the Deion Sanders TD dance? Funny stuff. What's not funny is being 1-5 (so glad the Eagles are not in that camp today).

Bengals over Colts: How many ways are there to say, "The Colts suck without Peyton Manning"? Because I'd got 11 more weeks to go and I'm already running low on alternatives.

49ers over the Lions: OK, the Lions are for real, as I've been pointing out for the last five weeks. Apparently, the 49ers are, too. I've heard the 49ers are also really, really grateful for David Akers. You're welcome, and you can send the gifts of high-end small batch and single barrel bourbons to me. I'll be sure Howie Roseman gets them, I swear. Also, throw down between the coaches? LOVE!

Packers over Rams: Well, sure. Sam Bradford is hurt and AJ Feeley's their new starting QB. Spags, Feeley - it's like old home week.

Giants over Bills: Really, Bills? Really? After last week, you couldn't take care of the Giants for us? Thanks for nothing. My only hope is that none of the NFC East teams can play at all consistently this year, and the Giants ALWAYS fall apart in December.

Steelers over Jaguars: I'm pretty sure the Steelers should be really worried that they only beat the Jags by 4. They should also be really worried that Troy Polamalu might have a concussion.

Ravens over Texans: The Ravens are also for real. You know, just in case you weren't sure.

Raiders over Browns: Poor Jason Campbell just can't catch a break. He finally gets a little stability and starts winning some games, and the next thing you know: broken collarbone, Heal up quick, Jason. The West is wide open. Also, nice win on the day the team was honoring Al Davis. Who was a nut job, make no mistake, but also highly influential, both for the Raiders and the entire NFL.

Patriots over Cowboys: Pop quiz: you give the ball back to Tom Brady, Pats down by 3, with just over two minutes left. What do YOU think is going to happen, dumb ass? Sloppy game on both sides, but how does that game turn out any other way than it did? Seriously?

Buccaneers over Saints: The worst injury of the day was to Sean Payton, who took a major hit to the knee from one of his own players on the sidelines and couldn't even finish coaching the game (I think he had surgery today). Well, that and the injury to the Saints' pride in losing to the Bucs.

Bears over Vikings: First of all, say it with me, "Do NOT kick to Devin Hester. EVER." Jeez, people, get with the program! And McNabb got benched for Christian Ponder. Given the fact that his receivers dropped EVERYTHING, including passes that hit them between the numbers and on the hands, and the fact that the Vikings' O-line is TERRIBLE, I don't think that ass-whuppin' was Big 5's fault. I also think this might be the end of the line for him. NFL Network calling?

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2011 Week 5 Recap

Eagles at Bills, Sunday, October 9, 2011 

In attendance: just me and Chef Spouse. I'm on a business trip in Seattle, and his dad lives out here, so he came with.

Menu: room service

Stud of the Week: there isn't one. Seriously. No one.

The DirectTV Sunday Ticket To Go was experiencing some significant buffering issues during the game today. It could've been the fact that I was on hotel wireless. But I prefer to think that DirectTV was trying to protect me from witnessing what Bleeding Green Nation referred to as the "vortex of errors and futility that has ensnared the Eagles." 

If you had put some money on the Bills being 4-1 and the Eagles being 1-4 in week 5 a month ago, you'd probably be able to afford some REALLY good booze to help you dull the pain right now.

Those few seconds of hope I enjoyed when it looked like they might just pull off the comeback win were fun. I enjoyed them. They might be the last I get this season.

What else is there to write about this team? Can't tackle? Check. Like, epically, historically bad at tackling? Check. Offensive turnovers at critical times? Check. Dumb penalties that extend opponents' drives? Check. Lack of defensive take-aways? Check. Doing nothing with whatever takeaways they do get? Check. Ineffective in the red zone on both sides of the ball? Check. Inexplicable coaching decisions? Check, check, check.

"Why wasn't Mike Vick the stud? After all, he broke Randal Scramble's all time QB rushing record today." Well, sure - and he threw four picks (although they weren't all his fault). And let's not forget the brain fart at the end of the half that cost the Eagles three points.

"What about Jason Avant? He had a career day!" Yep, and two critical turnovers. Hands Avant had TWO turnovers. And both at the worst possible times.

Fellow Eagles Maniac and I were Facebooking during the game. I suggested it might be time to sacrifice a goat. She feels like the goat we should start with is Juan Castillo.

How can this team find so MANY different ways to lose?

In the battle between five hundred total yards of offense and five turnovers, five turnovers will always win out. Well, lose. You know what I mean.

I really don't know where the guys go from here. I'm pretty sure Juan Castillo has to go. If not now, then during the bye week. Actually, if the Eagles drop next week's game to the Redskins (which I fully expect them to do), Andy Reid might not have a job after the bye week.

It used to be that, when the Eagles needed someone to step up, he did. Whether it was a big defensive stop, or a takeaway, or a pick-6, or a 14 second McNabb scramble, or Brian Westbrook turning a sure tackle for a loss into a 40 yard gain, or even Freddie f-ing Mitchell catching a 4th and 26, somebody would always step up. Not anymore.

The Eagles have plenty of guys with great fantasy stats. What they don't have is a team. And I don't know how they fix that.

Around the rest of the NFL...

Saints over Panthers: But just barely and on a last-minute (literally in the final minute) TD. The Panthers are going to be really good in another year or two.

Raiders over Texans: If I had known Al Davis was going to up and die, I would've called this game differently. Hey, you think if someone whacks Jeff Lurie, the Eagles might win another game this season?

Chiefs over Colts: I called it! Also, at least there's one team that's worse off than the Eagles!  For the moment!

Bengals over Jaguars: I really need to actually WATCH a Bengals game at some point to check out young Mr.Dalton.

Vikings over Cardinals: Looks like the Vikings have finally figured out how to win games. Hand off to Adrian Peterson. And it took them FIVE WEEKS to remember that?

Seahawks over Giants: You know that thing I said above about how you can't win games if you keep giving the ball away to the other team? Yeah, that. And the Seahawks even lost Tavaris Jackson.

Steelers over Titans: Just when you think the Titans are getting good, they screw up. Just when you think the Steelers are dead, they spring back to life. I should've remembered both of these things in calling this game.

49ers over Bucs: HOLY CRAP. 48-3. And the Bucs are a pretty decent team this year. Frank Gore's clearly back, and maybe, just maybe, Alex Smith is actually turning into a QB.

Chargers over Broncos: Beginning of the Tebow era? Probably. He didn't win, but he did play well, in sharp contrast to Kyle Orton, and he's fun as hell to watch.

Pats over Jets: Their record is better, but the Jets are almost as big a disappointment this year as the Eagles. Almost.

Packers over Falcons: It was all (or nearly all) Falcons in the first half, but you just can't keep the Packers down. Damn, they look good.

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2011 Week 4 Recap

Eagles v. 49ers, Sunday, October 2, 2011

In attendance: Life-long Eagles Fan Mom, Chef Spouse, You-Two-Calm-Down-or-I'm-Turning-Off-the-TV Dad, and about 50 of their closest friends and our assorted relatives. (We were up in PA celebrating a milestone birthday for my pops and warming their newly renovated kitchen.)

Menu: all kinds of yummy goodness cooked by Life-long Eagles Fan Mom, birthday cake, and something else...what was it?...oh yeah: don't forget the tears, recriminations, and bile.

Stud of the Week: well, of course, it was Mike Vick, who had a career day for all the good it did. Given the way this season is going, I'm thinking of renaming this feature Goat of the Week, only there are WAY too many candidates.

It probably comes as no surprise to hear that many people who know me casually are aware that I love the NFL. One of the first questions I always get is about fantasy football. The thing is, I don't play fantasy football. Why? Because I'm much more interested in team chemistry and how players function as a team than in people's individual stats.

I'm sure you can see where this is going.

Week 4 passing leader: Mike Vick. Number 2 in receiving yards: DeSean Jackson. Jason Babin had three sacks. Jason Avant had at least one circus catch. Tight end Clay Harbor had a great day, too.

That does not a team make.

For years, we've all mocked lil' Danny Snyder and the LOLSkins for putting together a fantasy football team and thinking it was the same thing as a functioning football team. Now that the shoe's on the other foot, I think we can all say it's damned uncomfortable.

How does a team this talented blow their third second half lead in as many weeks? 

Even with the re-jiggered linebackers, the Eagles still can't stop the run. Worse? They have (purportedly) three of the top cornerbacks in the NFL and they can't stop the pass, either. Was it just me or did Asante Samuel quit on the play on the 49ers last TD? You know - the one that won the game? And I'm thinking about putting Nnamdi Asomugha's picture on the side of a milk carton because I have no idea where in the hell he's gone. 

While the defense deserves the heat they're taking, the offense isn't blameless. For the second? third? year running, this team is terrible in the red zone. What was Ronnie Brown thinking? Even worse, it appears to have been a designed play. DUMBEST. PLAY. EVER. Have the coaches turned the creation of plays over to a bunch of sugared-up Pop Warner 6 year olds? The team seriously has NO WAY to power it in from the one? NO WAY? That seems like a rather urgent problem to address.

How does the team put up nine MILLION yards of offense and only score THREE points in the ENTIRE SECOND HALF?

Watching Maclin's fumble right before the two minute warning was pretty much the equivalent of ripping out my still-beating heart, stomping on it, and then turning it over to a Cowboys fan, but honestly, prior to that when Alex Henery missed that second field goal, I knew in my gut the team was going down.

Speaking of missed field goals, it was a terrible day for both teams' kickers. Chef Spouse has a theory that The Linc was so confused at seeing Akers there in red and gold, the stadium itself was literally rejecting field goals. I do not know, but I do know that missing two field goals from inside the 40 is ridiculous.

You know how when you're watching a game, you'll sometimes get that feeling that a big comeback is starting? Your team is down, but you just know, you KNOW, that they're going to pull it out? Why does it feel like the Eagles are never that team? They're always the team that is come-back-ed upon.

What it comes down to is that the Eagles have a bunch of guys to whom they paid a bunch of money running around on the field wearing the same uniforms, but they aren't a team.

And then the Phillies lost, y'all. Damn. At least the Cowboys blew an even bigger lead than the Eagles - it should divert a little of the national media attention.

Around the rest of the NFL...

Bears over Panthers: Well, sure, but Cam Newton had another solid performance and the Panthers actually had a chance to win it. Also, special teams coaches? Write this down in pen: do NOT kick it to Devin Hester. Also, keep an eye on Matt Forte.

Bengals over Bills: Trap game. Letdown after the big win over the Pats last week. Ouch.

Titans over Browns: Looks like the Titans weren't as wrecked by the loss of Kenny Britt as I thought they would be.

Lions over Cowboys:  I'm not certain, but I think Tony Romo may have thrown more TDs for the Lions thean he did for the Cowboys.  To quote the SportsBlog Nation recaps: "Calvin Johnson will drink your milkshake." Yes, he will. He'll even have seconds. The Lions are 4-0 y'all. Team of Destiny! Also, Tony Romo doesn't need a coach - he needs a psychiatrist. 

Texans over Steelers: The final score makes the game look much closer than it actually was. Is it time to start asking how good Mike Tomlin is? Or did he Gruden his way to greatness?

Saints over Jags: Duh.

Chiefs over Vikings: Oh my God, I hate to see McNabb going down like this.

Redskins over Rams: Again, duh. How much do I hate that the Redskins are leading the NFC East? I live in DC. You guess.

Giants over Cardinals: Calls like the "Victor Cruz gave himself up" BS make me wonder if the games are fixed. Seriously.

Falcons over Seahawks: Barely. What was with the second half rallies this week? Man! On the one hand, it's not easy to win at Qwest Field. On the other hand, it's the Seahawks. THE SEAHAWKS.

Packers over Broncos: Again with the Duh. The Packers are scary good this year. Repeat? Maybe.

Pats over Raiders: Well, yes.

Chargers over Dolphins: Again, duh.

Ravens over Jets: It was either Al or Cris, but I think it was Al, who remarked that you had a better chance of scoring while on defense on Sunday night. He's not wrong.

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2010 Week 13 Recap

Eagles v. Texans, Thursday, December 2, 2010

In attendance: not even me! I had dance practice Thursday and had to record the game and watch it Friday night. Of course, I knew how it turned out before I watched it. My media blackout attempts were summarily killed by the Washington Post, which had the score on the front page of the Sports section Friday. Given how the game went down, this was probably a good thing, and no doubt saved me several heart attacks and much screaming and yelling.

Stud of the week: Michael Vick. Not only was his defense not able to hold a 14 point lead, going down by four at one point, and needing him to rally the team to a win, but he did it after getting repeatedly knocked on his ass. Much like a weeble, he kept popping back up. Thank God. Shady had a good game, too, going for 130 combined yards. Anyone else notice how much he's starting to run like BWest? Must be all those screens! Gotta give a shout out to Chef Spouse's boy David Akers, too, who set the franchise record for starts at 184 on Thursday, passing Wolverine, whose starts, let's be honest, were qualitatively different (no disrespect meant to Akers).

So, comments on the game. It's four days after, so the recaps have already hit everywhere but, um, here.

The big stories were:

Michael Vick is one tough mo-fo. Yes, he is. See above. Also, loved the whole "not in OUR house" 4th quarter come-back.

Andy Reid calls out the officials. Glad to see I'm not the only one who notices that some QBs (whose last name may be "Manning") draw 15 yard penalties if your arm glances off their helmet, while some QBs get blatantly face masked (see above, Vick, Michael) or their NOSES get BROKEN (Big Ben and the whole "my nose is now perpendicular to my face" thing on SNF) and...nothing.

Brent Celek and Jason Avant BOTH drop the same TD pass.  C'mon man!

The Vick throw in the 4th quarter when we needed to keep the clock moving. I don't think that was actually a planned throw. Watching it again, the flags were already in by the time Vick threw it away. Andy is not the master of clock management, but I don't think that was him.

And the big one: the defense. OK, the third quarter was not great. But the thing is, the Texans can totes score points. I'm not thrilled that the gave up 2 TDs, but I'm not that surprised, either. It's clear that the Eagles D misses Asante Samuel big time, not least of which because no coach in his right mind wants to throw near him, which allows the rest of the defense to cheat the coverage on his side, leaving them only having to deal with about 2/3 of the field. When they have to cover the WHOLE field, things aren't so good. But again, giving up 24 points to the Texans is not beyond the pale.

4 games left, resurgent Cowboys twice, resurgent Vikings once, and the Giants in their house. The Eagles can't ever do anything the easy way, can they? Go get 'em, boys. (Doing something to reduce penalties might help.)

Around the rest of the NFL...

Saints over Bengals. How do the Bengals go up on the Saints? How, after they've pulled off that feat, do they fall for the oldest trick in the book and jump offsides on the hard count on 4th and 2 at the end of the game? Oh Bungles, it sucks to be you.

Bears over Lions. Have you noticed that the Lions have been in every game this season? If they can just keep Matthew Stafford healthy, they're this close to being good.

Packers over 49ers. Well, yes. And how many tackles did Donald Driver break to put the Pack ahead for good? 4? 5? 137?

Chiefs over Broncos. With the Chargers surprising loss to the Raiders (more on that below), the Chiefs have probably pretty much wrapped up the West. Raise your hand if you saw THAT coming. Also, Josh McDaniels is out. Three head coaches out of 32 are already out. As Chef Spouse observed while cooking dinner tonight, the beheadings don't usually start until January, so they're really ahead of schedule this year.

Browns over Dolphins. Apparently, this was the most boring game since the Steelers beat the Dolphins 3-0 on MNF a few years back (the infamous "the ball actually got stuck in the field" game).

Vikings over Bills.  See, I told you the Vikes should give Tavaris Jackson a shot.

Giants over Redskins. Apparently, the Redskins dragon-style "we suck" suckitude-fu was stronger than DMac's tiger-style "Dear Giants: I own your asses" awesomeness-fu. Also, Fat Albert was apparently having a bad hair day and didn't feel like playing. Also, it would've been REALLY helpful if the Redskins could've pulled off the upset win. Also, perhaps they should fire EVERYONE (including the owner), burn FedEx field to the ground, salt the earth, and start over. Just a suggestion.

Jaguars over Titans. Did I mention that things are going all the way wrong in Tennessee? Because they are.

Raider over Chargers. Have you ever noticed that the second the commentators start making a big deal about something, whether it be "Mike Vick hasn't thrown a single pick all season" or "The Chargers haven't lost in December in FIVE YEARS," it immediately happens?

Rams over Cardinals. Whatever. Apparently, Ditka is also on record as agreeing with me that, if no team in a division finishes above .500, they should automatically lose their playoff spot. Preach, Ditka!

Cowboys over Colts. Well, that was unexpected. Two thoughts: number one, with almost no players left, Peyton Manning is clearly trying to do too much. Number two, maybe changing head coaches mid-season isn't such a bad move after all. At least then no one knows what to expect until they get some film on you. For the Eagles' sake, I hope 4 weeks worth of film on Jason Garrett will be enough.

Seahawks over Panthers. Yawn.

Falcons over Bucs. OK, everyone's now on the whole "Matty Ice is DREAMY" train. I have to point out that the 7-5 Bucs haven't beat any teams with winning records AND the NFC South features the truly awful Panthers. There's 10-2, and then there's 10-2.

Steelers over Ravens. Talk about a slug fest! I mean literally - Ben Roethlisberger's nose got broken. The Ravens dominated the game...up until the very end, when Troy Polamalu forced a Joe Flacco fumble that was recovered by LaMarr Woodley with about 3 minutes left, leading to the Steelers only TD of the evening.

On to Pats/Jets!

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2010 Week 12 Recap

Eagles at Bears, Sunday, November 28, 2010

In attendance: Shoegal, Fellow Eagles Maniac and her fiance, and The Bronx Bomber. Chef Spouse was on a plane.

Menu: my "Thanksgiving leftovers" idea didn't quite go off as planned. Everyone's relatives ate up all their leftovers. I had a little stuffing and some cranberries, but I ended up making a fresh turkey breast, potatoes, and brussels sprouts. Fellow Eagles Maniac contributed a pie and Shoegal brought the wine.

Stud of the week: David Akers. He was the only one who seems to have showed up to play, doing everything that was asked of him, including placing an on-side kick where someone could've gotten it. Notice I wrote "could've." As in, had this not been the "sometimes you're the bug" part of the equation. Brent Celek also gets props for that amazing 4th quarter TD catch while triple covered. That was nice to see, since the LAST time I saw Celek, he was on the back of a milk carton. Also a little love for LeSean McCoy who prevented a return TD on the pick at the end of the half, and to Jason Avant, who, all things considered, had a decent game.

Let's see - what all went wrong? The defense made Jay Cutler look like Peyton Manning. (Hm, Peyton Manning didn't look like Peyton Manning Sunday. Coincidence?) Guess Asante is the difference after all. Hurry up and get well, homes. Special teams reverted to the short-bus kind of special. The offense went 1 for 5 in the red zone, including Mike Vick's first pick of the season. Soldier "Field" was basically a marsh. DeSean Jackson IS on the back of a milk carton now. But that's only because Andy Reid has him locked in the basement, after apparently going postal on the whole team. "Red-faced and shaking"? Not quite what we've come to expect from Big Red. But I'm not so sorry to hear it.

Here's the thing:  the Eagles were not going to go 13-3. Even I'm not that much of a homer. And after two solid weeks of people kissing their asses, a little reality check was probably well-timed. Also, the guys didn't give up. Had that onside kick worked, you never know. But there are just days when your team can't seem to do anything right and the other team can't seem to do anything wrong. That's not to take anything away from the Bears - they game-planned well and executed their plan even better. It may be better to be lucky than good, but it's best to be both, and that was the Bears on Sunday.

Anyway, no time to waste crying over spilled milk - the Texans await in three days.

Around the rest of the NFL...

10 right so far this week, with the 49ers up on MNF possibly pushing me to 11.

Patriots over Lions: Why did I pick the Lions? Why is the sky blue? Why do cats always land on their feet? Why is Michael Irvin on national TV?

Saints over Cowboys: Roy Williams is taking all kinds of shit for getting stripped while fighting for unnecessary yards. Speaking of Asante Samuel...the thing is, he had a pretty decent game up to that point. But that was the game we ALL got to watch on Thanksgiving, and I couldn't have asked for more - close game, exciting, the Saints won, the Cowboys lost, clearly God is a Saints fan, amen.

Jets over Bengals: Wow. Could the Bengals look any worse? I didn't even bother to watch the end of the game. And could Rex Ryan be any more entertaining? I love footage of his press conferences.

Falcons over Packers: Hell of a game. The Falcons don't look quite so scary on the road, though. Then again, it looks like the NFC path to the Super Bowl might just go through Atlanta, so road wins might not matter for the dirty birds. And the Pack needs to find some kind of a ground game even without Ryan Grant, which is easier said than done.

Steelers over Bills: In OT. Because a rookie wideout dropped a perfect TD pass. On the bright side, the Bills might be able to score the first pick in the 2011 draft! But Steelers, really?

Browns over Panthers: Yawn.  Actually, it was a very close game. But no one cares.

Texans over Titans: This was not a close game. The wheels seem to be coming off the bus in Tennessee. Jeff Fisher needs to get a handle on his team immediately. And the Andre Johnson/Courtland Finnegan altercation was just ridiculous.

Giants over Jags: In a come-back win. Don't worry - they'll still have a late-season crumble like usual. This win was just delaying the inevitable.

Vikings over Redskins: When the game is won by Brett "Methuselah" Favre successfully rushing for 8 yards to allow the Vikings to run out the clock, you know your defense is in trouble. Also, Redskins wideouts are dropping passes left and right. You know DMac's gotta be like, "Not this again!"

Dolphins over Raiders: Just when I give up on the Dolphins and start believing in the Raiders, they both screw me. Jeez.

Chiefs over Seahawks: The NFC West is going to be won by a 7-9 team this year. You heard it here first. I'm pretty sure the NFL needs to put in some sort of "law of maximum suckitude" such that if no team in a division finishes above .500, they give it to a more deserving team and go with 3 wildcards.

Ravens over Bucs: Big-time showdown next week as the Ravens face the Steelers for the lead in the AFC North. Another big game next week? Jets/Pats. Now THAT's a MNF matchup!

Rams over Broncos: In other news, Josh McDaniels learned more than how to give terse press conferences all those years under Belichick - he also learned how to cheat. Not cool. And you know he's got to be laughing about the $50,000 fine, since that's like lunch money to a pro football coach.

Chargers over Colts: The Chargers are clearly gearing up for their annual end of season awesomeness. And Peyton Manning played like, well, Jay Cutler. Again, coincidence? Speaking of teams that need a run game.

Final note: good to see Brian Westbrook getting some carries on MNF, particularly since I have to assume this will be his final year in the NFL. Until he starts coaching running backs, of course.

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2010 Week 11 Recap

Eagles v. Giants, Sunday, November 21, 2010

In attendance: just me, Chef Spouse, and Shoegal. Sunday night games are tough, and Ex-Navy Cheesehead is recovering from getting a bionic ankle.

Menu: duck, chestnut soup, cauliflower and green beans, apple pie. Fall deliciousness.

Stud of the week: LeSean McCoy, who put the Eagles ahead for good with his 50 yard TD run on an almost-botched 4th-and-1 conversion attempt with about 4:30 left in the game. Shady had a good day, with over 100 yards, although most of them came on two big plays. I'm not complaining, though.

In some ways, this felt like the game where the Eagles couldn't do anything right. Well, except win. There was an awful lot of "YES!!! Wait! NOOOOOO!" in my living room last night. The receivers had the dropsiers, most notably with both DeSean Jackson and Jason Avant dropping TDs. Even Al Michaels pointed out that Avant is one of the most sure-handed wideouts in the NFL, so that was just bizarre.

The game also saw Michael Vick's first 2010 season turnover, although he still hasn't thrown any picks (knock wood).

Speaking of turnovers, Asante Samuel created one only to turn the ball over himself with a completely unnecessary run just after the Shady TD. Fortunately, as Shoegal observed, Eli Manning clearly doesn't know how to slide, either, leading to the Akers' field goal that iced the game with under 30 seconds left.

Speaking of, how often does Akers end up with a blocked kick? Of course, stats on SNF revealed that Akers has trouble against the Giants.  It occurs to me, though, that the Giants' field goal coverage is what every team should study against the Eagles, since Akers holds the all-time franchise record for points scored. Good tackle, Sav. I guess that's why you want an Aussie rules punter - he's not afraid to knock guys down if it comes to it.

And the Eagles almost killed themselves with dumb penalties. There were like 120 yards of Eagles penalties. That is not good. 

Of course, how many times did Trent Cole get obviously held and it's wasn't called? More than once, I saw a Giants lineman have him in a half-nelson (and to his credit, he just kept on driving his legs). I'm pretty sure that's not kosher.

Now, this game WOULD be a great example for other teams of how to defend Mike Vick...if it wasn't for the fact that the Eagles won anyway. The Giants certainly did a good job of limiting the big plays, and amazingly, this season, smart teams go ahead and let Mike Vick run, since he's changed his game so much that his arm is more dangerous than his legs.

A quick note:  I've been very impressed with Dimitri Patterson over the past two weeks. It's not hard for a corner to impress against the Redskins, but remember that the Giants have the #2 ranked offense. Maybe he's finally found a home with the Eagles. One team's (well, actually three teams' - Redskins, Vikings and Chiefs) trash is another team's treasure.

The thing to take away from this, though, is that too many times over the years it's felt like the Eagles couldn't win close ones. DMac was always great at putting up a ton of points, but he wasn't necessarily always clutch (although he was more clutch than a lot of people give him credit for). It was good to see the team overcome some mistakes that really could have been devastating to gut out a tough win over one of the best teams in the NFC.

Around the rest of the NFL...

9 and 6 with MNF in progress, and although there were a lot of combacks this week, my pick of the Chargers is looking pretty solid so far, which would put me at 10-6 on the week.

Bears over Dolphins: The Bears pitched a shut out. That's gotta hurt. Having no Chads and no Brandon Marshall may be too much for the Fins to overcome. Plenty of teams are struggling with injury (see below, Colts, The), but the Fins are pretty much in the "decimated" category.

Ravens over Panthers: Duh.

Bills over Bengals: Oh my God. The Bills scored 35 unanswered points. 35! The Bengals couldn't hold a 28-7 lead. That's just pathetic. To quote TO: "We are terrible." Yes, TO, you are.

Cowboys over Lions: And in predictable fashion, many Cowboys fans are calling Jason Garrett the second coming of Tom Landry and talking about the playoffs. Sorry kids, 9-7 won't get you in this year. Your only possible role in the next 6 weeks is to play spoiler.

Jaguars over Browns: MJD is looking good. I know everyone's already heard this one, but rumor is that tackling him is like trying to tackle a Coke machine. Looking at him bull ahead, I believe it.

Chiefs over Cardinals: Speaking of rumors, I heard that Fitz might leave the Cards? I think he only has one more year on his contract, and since the Cards don't have anyone who can get him the ball...I'd suggest Philly, but the Eagles are actually pretty loaded at receiver at the moment. Wow. Feels weird to type that. I'd love to see what Fitz, DJax, and Vick could do together, though. Talk about explosive offense.

Packers over Vikings: Rumors of Ellis Hobbs' death have been greatly exaggerated (although he is out for the rest of the season - again - with a neck injury) - rumors of Brad Childress's have not. He's the second head coaching head to roll this season. Brett Favre may be done, too. And frankly, I blame him for a lot of the mess in Minnesota. I know - Chilly's to blame, too, because he made the decision to bring Favre back. But NFL.com is right - in this situation, either the QB gets benched or the head coach gets fired. Did the Vikings make a mistake? Let's put it this way: I think it's time to go to Tavaris Jackson.

Jets over Texans: Hey! The Jets managed a win in regular time! It was the very end of regular time, but still. You know what worries me? Playoff games tend to come down to the wire, and the Jets are getting PLENTY of practice winning those games. That means trouble for whoever faces them come January, which could (cross fingers) include the Eagles at the Super Bowl? That might be too much to ask, but a girl can dream right?

Steelers over Raiders: Oh, The System, why did you tempt me into picking the Raiders? Also, on the whole Richard Seymour smacking Big Ben in the head, Roethlisberger's all "I didn't say anything." I call bullshit.

Redskins over Titans: Center Casey Rabach went down, and that seems to have been a good thing, since the replacement center quit stepping on McNabb and knocking him over. It's not good when your center is the sack leader. People keep talking about Randy Moss not contributing, but what I see is that he's fulfilling one of the key roles of a #1 wideout: drawing double and triple coverage so OTHER guys can get open. Not that that was enough Sunday. And how odd is it that the Titans beat every other NFC East team than the Redskins? Who, by the way, need a new kicker. Again. Well, actually, still.  Also, did you hear Vince Young threw a hissy fit when Jeff Fisher wouldn't let him and his busted thumb back in the game, reportedly throwing "part of his uniform" into the stands. I gotta figure that was a helmet, because most other uniform parts don't travel so well. Or maybe it was a shoe? You could probably fling a shoe for pretty good distance.

Saints over Seahawks: Of course. Even without Reggie Bush. But resting him one more week was a smart decision when the opponent is from the NFC West.

Bucs over 49ers: Another shut out and speaking of "the NFC West" and "stinks," case in point.

Falcons over Rams: The Falcons, at least as of last week, are still above the Eagles in the power rankings. Think that will continue to hold? They are one game up, but the Eagles did beat them back in week 6 and it was with K2 under center. I'm just sayin'.

Pats over Colts: Speaking of decimated by injury, the Colts have run through the active roster, the practice squad, the CFL, and most of the nearby colleges. I think they're starting to scout some Pop Warner prospects at this point.

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Training Camp Report

Chef Spouse and I made the pilgrimage to the Goodman Stadium at Lehigh University Friday, August 6, thus fulfilling both this year's New Year's resolution and a life-long dream.  And it truly felt like a pilgrimage - due to major storms in the DC area, it took me more than an hour and a half to cover the 9 miles between my office and my house, and things didn't get any better Friday, as we hit an hour of just sitting there (literally - we turned the car off) on the Northeast Extension due to an accident and then, when we approached Bethlehem, it became apparent that Chef Spouse had gotten directions *to Lehigh* rather than to the stadium.  I should've known we were in trouble when I asked him about directions that morning and he'd gotten directions to Lehigh, PA rather than to Bethlehem.  Important tip: ask more precise questions about whether or not Chef Spouse has directions to the ACTUAL destination next time.

If you want deep coverage of training camp, you've definitely come to the wrong place.  I love the Eagles, I love to write about the Eagles, but they don't know me from Adam (more on that below).  You want opinions from people with stuff like "credentials" and "access" and "this is their full time job"?  Check out Bleeding Green Nation and Iggles Blog (the new home of Tommy Lawlor).  I don't have that kind of time.  Or level of professionalism.

So here's what I saw (in between talking to Life-Long Eagles Fan Mom and You-Two-Calm-Down-or-I'm-Turning-Off-the-TV Dad, who came with us on Saturday.  I convinced Life-Long Eagles Fan Mom to ditch a bridal shower.  Why would you want to go to a bridal shower when there's football to be watched?):

Kolb is not...is not...I can't bear to say his name.  I am NOT talking about Donovan.  I'm still at "denial" in the stages of grief. The current Redskins ad campaign featuring McNabb? Clearly an elaborate practical joke.

Moving on, I did see some good connections between  Kolb and Celek on Friday.  On Saturday, he had some good completions with Peanut for like 60+ yards, some good hookups with Maclin for more like 30 yards, and some very nice short passes to Avant over the middle.

Speaking of Avant, I think he is going to have a break out year (and I'm not the only one), which is a good thing, since I only have a jersey for 1 active player (Trent Cole), so I need to pick another one up ASAP.  Avant's currently in the lead. Kolb likes the short pass (unlike his predecessor), and Avant is Mr. Hands at that distance.

I thought Vick looked bad.  I expected him to have improved his ability to complete passes in the off-season, and I was sorely mistaken.  Worse, rather than going through his reads, he kept taking off running.  Now, he did look faster than last year, but all I could think was:  "You're wearing the red jersey, donkey! Stop running!  No one is going to hit you!  Throw some passes for chrissakes!"

Number 3 QB Mike Kafka looked REALLY bad.  I'd be surprised if I saw him complete even a half dozen passes.  Yikes. 

The defense is kind of an unknown, although it was really good to see Stewart Bradley out there and his knee seems fine.  We picked up Marlin Jackson, and he didn't even manage to make it TO training camp.  Ernie Simms was the big off-season signing, and he looked good, at least in practice.  Asante Samuel still can't seem to tackle (then again, it was training camp).  And if you look at the current roster, there are a LOT of rookies.

It was interesting to see the kinds of drills they run:  blocking kicks using soccer balls, linebackers trying to cover skittering balls, the kickers throwing to simulate punt returns, etc.

So back to that whole "they don't know me from Adam" thing.  I mentioned that there are a LOT of rookies at training camp, and a lot of missing familiar faces. I was having the whole "I don't know who these guys ARE" experience.  And it hit me: I have a one-way relationship with the team. I know, late realization, but it really struck home when I was looking at all the new names on the backs of jerseys (54!...is Brandon Graham?!? Who the hell is that?!?).  Time to start stalking a whole new crowd.

I thought Andy looked a little thinner.  I have a theory:  he stress eats.  Which means he loses weight in the off-season, only to fall prey to the siren song of the Tastykakes once guys start screwing up or getting injured or both.

One thing that was really cool is that you can get pretty up close and person with the players, many of whom turn out to be really nice guys.  There are official autograph signings after the morning practices, and it's a lottery system and it's all regimented and it's only a few players and whatnot.  But a lot of the guys go to the edge of the field after both morning and afternoon practices and will sign anything you shove at them - or take pictures with you.  And they're kind of like normal people - I mean, they aren't like Godzilla to your screaming Japanese person - only amazingly ripped normal people.

I also got to meet up with long-time blog fan rocketman for a beer after Friday's practice, which was nice.  Even though he's really a 49ers fan.  But I forgive him.  (He lives nearby.)

My tips to have a Snarktacular Training Camp (aka, "What I'd do differently next time"):

• Go to Philly for flight night
• Spend the night with the 'rents (You might not have that option. On the other hand, Life-Long Eagles Fan Mom is REALLY nice.  She might let you stay.)
• Drive up from WEST CHESTER (rather than DC) Friday morning
• Stay over in Bethlehem Friday night and hit Musikfest
• Buy a team football
• Bring a Sharpie
• Don't worry about the "autograph rules"

Check out all the snaps on Flickr.

Next up?  First preseason game against the Jaguars...on Chef Spouse's 40th birthday.

And a final note - Brees is on the cover of Madden 11.  He's a dead man.  Want to start an over/under pool on whether he survives the preseason?

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2009 Week 16 Recap

Eagles v. Broncos, Sunday, December 27, 2009

In attendance: the regular crew - Chef Spouse, Shoegal, Ex-Navy Cheesehead

Menu: sauerbraten, which turned out OK if a little dry, Spaaten Octoberfest, red cabbage, homemade soft pretzels, pizzelles

Stud of the Week: David Akers, who made a totally clutch kick to win the game. Poo-poohing a 28 yard field goal? Shaun Suisham is now a Cowboy because he couldn't make a field goal from that distance. The Saints lost this week because their kicker couldn't make a field goal from about that distance. Big shout out to Jeremy Maclin, too, who made the clutch catch that set up the field goal. And to Jason Avant. He doesn't get a lot of balls thrown his way. But every catch he makes is important. He's so clutch that when you look up "clutch" in the dictionary, there's a picture of his cute, balding self.

We have an agreement Chez Snark: when things are going badly enough that I'm swearing like a sailor and/or hitting the tequila shots, I voluntarily remove myself to the kitchen so that the rest of the people here can continue to enjoy the game. Things got so bad, between the bad officiating and our bad play, that I had to take myself UPSTAIRS. Away from TVs. Away from the game. There was much slamming of doors. It wasn't pretty.

Philly.com says we can't complain about officiating. Really? Are you nuts? I can complain. Complaint #1: taking away the Patterson TD on the Broncos first series even though Kyle Orton clearly threw a lateral. Complaint #2: the RIDICULOUS unnecessary roughness penalty on Macho Harris that basically took away Asante Samuel's pick and handed the Broncos 7 points. So a 14 point swing (between the two plays) due to bad officiating.

Can we start the "I Hate Mike Carey's Zebra Team" club? I'll be president. Even Chef Spouse, normally someone who sees only the good in people, noted that they're nit-pickers who apply it inconsistently. Look, if you want to make sure the game stays close so that the network doesn't switch games (hello, Panthers/Giants) and deny people the glory of your Mr. Roboto officiating signals, at least own up to it.

Let's see - what else? DMac was hot - then cold - then hot, including a big-time 27-yard scramble. Westy didn't have a big day, but he played and didn't get another concussion, and Dawk got away with MURDER blanketing him on a big pass play on our first offensive possession. Celek had a big day. Peanut did not. Contrary to popular opinion, it *is* possible to overthrow him. Although it's not easy. Avant and Maclin, I discussed above. Up & down day on D. The Broncos were without Eddie Royal and then Brandon Stokley got himself ejected and Buck got himself hurt. And we still needed a clutch kick in the final seconds to win the game. I expected better.

Even more bad news? Jamal Jackson's out with a torn ACL. Great. Just before the playoffs. And he was, I think, the only constant on our offensive line this year. Well, until now.

One thing to remember: we're already in the playoffs (although it sure would be nice to win the NFC East and potentially move up to the #2 spot in the NFC). The Broncos were playing for their playoff lives. They had a lot more to lose, and got a major momentum swing with 14 points in about 27 seconds. And we hung tough and won. It wasn't pretty, it wasn't nice, it wasn't nearly as easy at it looked like it would be when it was 27-10. But we stuck it out and won.

Around the rest of the NFL...

Chargers over Titans. Well, I was right about that part. I was wrong about the "good game" part. In the 3rd quarter, we couldn't take it any more and switched over to TBS's 24 hours of "A Christmas Story." "You'll shoot your eye out!" You know who has the best winning streak in the NFL? Chargers at 10. You know who has the second best winning streak in the NFL? Eagles at 6!

Falcons over Bills. On Monday Night Countdown, they pointed out that, if they can beat Tampa next week, the Falcons have the chance to have their first back to back winning seasons in their 40 year + history. Ouch.

Bengals over Chiefs. By only a TD. Yeah, the Bengals may have won the AFC North this year, but guarantee they're going down early in the playoffs.

Browns over Raiders. Did you know that the Raiders made more appearances on "C'mon Man!" than any other team this year? Did you know that about 1/2 of their appearances were a result of two defenders running into each other and letting the opposing receiver run free? C'mon man, indeed.

Packers over Seahawks. What has happened to Matt Hasselbeck? Bet TJ Housh wishes he'd gone anywhere else. How does Jim Mora keep getting hired?

Texans over Dolphins. Told you! Not that the Texans are going to the playoffs this year - yes, I realize they're not officially out of it yet, but they're out of it. But neither are the Dolphins. Man, am I bad at pre-season picking the AFC divisions.

Steelers over Ravens. OK, the Ravens GAVE that game away. It should've been about 52-23 in the Ravens favor. I would've said they'd get into the playoffs and go far, but not after this game. Ed Reed was out, but they were penalized for over 100 yards and gave away two TDs. Sad. Speaking of sad...

Panthers over Giants. Did the Giants not understand that their playoff hopes depended on winning out? What a disaster. The game was being played on one of the local networks and they cut it off and switched to Saints/Bucs because it was so bad. You know, we lost our final game at the Vet. The Cowboys lost their final game at Texas Stadium. Anyone know about the Redskins and RFK? Seems like a pattern here.

Pats over Jags. Another team that's not going to make the playoffs. Also, the Pats are getting hot at the right time. Be afraid.

Bucs over Saints. WTF? Seriously. I think the Saints peaked too soon. Losing to the Cowboys, who are playing better this December than they have in a really long time, is one thing. But the Bucs are - now - 3-12. That's just painful. OK, divisional games can get wacky and whatnot. But the Saints still should've put the Bucs away. They were playing their starters for God's sake!

Cards over Rams. Speaking of putting away bad teams...did you know that all the Rams have to do to score the #1 pick is lose to the 49ers next week? Hell, for that, throw the game. Not that anyone would be able to distinguish that from the way the Rams usually play.

49ers over Lions. Well, sure, but neither team has anything to play for, so who cares?

Jets over Colts. OK, so there's been the big continuing debate about whether the Colts should risk injury in pursuit of the perfect season, or whether they should start resting people. Obviously, Jim Caldwell decided to rest people. And the Jets are still vying for a playoff spot, so not the Colts not giving their best effort is even doucheyer. And the Colts have been down this road before - wrapping up early, resting people, going down in the first round of the playoffs. Usually to the Chargers. That won't happen this year, since the Chargers have the #2 spot in the AFC, but I'll bet that the Colts go down early.

Cowboys over Redskins. Talk about a bad game. I went to bed at the end of the 3rd quarter. The Redskins are a freakin' disaster. I thought I'd seen the worst with that dumb swinging gate play against the Giants last week. Nope. The Skins didn't win a SINGLE divisional game this year. Good luck to you, Bruce Allen. You're going to need it. Also, the Cowboys have no idea how to psych up on the sidelines. Check it out:



You want to psych up? Learn from the Master, Grasshopper:



And on MNF, the Vikings are doing everything they can to give away the game. Let's see if the Bears can pick up what they're putting down, and help us move into the #2 spot.

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