Eagles Sign Leonard Weaver

The Eagles have gotten the deal done that we all thought they would - they signed fullback Leonard Weaver to a deal which will make him the highest paid fullback in the league. Weaver signed a 3 year deal worth $11 million, with $6.5 million guaranteed. Weaver can make another $700,000 in incentives. Weaver is coming off a fantastic season, one in which he went to the pro bowl. Weaver was a great free agent signing.

Eagles Fall Flat to Cowboys

The Eagles lost their final game of the season on Sunday in disappointing fashion 24-0 to the Dallas Cowboys. The Eagles were dominated in every facet of the game, and to be honest, the score could have been a lot worse.

The offensive line was terrible, the running game was non-existent because they didn't run the ball, McNabb was not very good, the receivers were bad, the defense was terrible, and the coaching was terrible. All of that combines for the disappointing loss. With the loss, the Eagles drop from what could have been the #2 seed and a first round bye to the #6 seed and a 2nd straight trip to Dallas to play the 3rd seeded and NFC East champion Cowboys.

I don't understand why the Eagles don't try to get the ball in their playmakers hands. I personally would like to see McCoy and Weaver touch the ball a lot more than they did this game. Running back is a position on the team where you usually have your most athletic, quickest players. These guys are weapons, and Reid did not use them on Sunday. Westbrook looked bad in my opinion, and they Eagles need to get back to what won games for them down the stretch - getting the ball in the hands of McCoy and Weaver a lot more.

Of course, it would also help if the Eagles weren't dominated up front on both sides of the football. The offensive line was bad from the start, and McNabb was under pressure most of the day. The Cowboys were getting pressure when they didn't even blitz. On the other side of the ball, the Eagles couldn't even get in the Cowboys backfield. Even on rushing plays, Marion Barber, and Felix Jones were getting past the line of scrimmage with ease. On passing plays, Tony Romo had all day, and he is too good to allow to sit back and throw all day with open lanes. The Eagles have been responsible for a lot of Romo's worst games of his career, so they know what happens when you get pressure on him. The Eagles did not blitz a lot, and that might have been because they did not want to show the Cowboys anything in the 2nd half, I'm not sure.

Costly mistakes also were key. McNabb missed DeSean Jackson on a fly route early in the game which would have made it a 7-7 game. Jeremy Maclin dropped a wide open pass that went through his hands on a 3rd down. McNabb fumbled a snap down at the Cowboys 10 yard line.

The Eagles will need to put that loss behind them, and get re-focused and come in with a different attitude if they do not want their offseason to start next weekend.

6 Eagles Make Pro Bowl

Six Philadelphia Eagles players were selected to the Pro Bowl, which may be the most since 2004-2005. The players selected were Leonard Weaver, DeSean Jackson, Jason Peters, Trent Cole, Asante Samuel, and David Akers. Most are also starters.

Since only 1 fullback is chosen, Leonard Weaver is the starter there. DeSean Jackson also is a starter, and will start opposite Larry Fitzgerald. Jason Peters will be the starting tackle, along with Bryant McKinnie. That is 3 starters on the offensive side of the football.

On defense, Asante Samuel will be starting at the one corner, opposite Charles Woodson. Trent Cole will back up Julius Peppers and Jared Allen at the defensive end spot. David Akers is the lone kicker.

Hopefully the Eagles actually send 0 players to the Pro Bowl. The Pro Bowl this season is the weekend before the Super Bowl, so both Super Bowl teams obviously will not be sending anyone to the Pro Bowl, so the alternates are important. Donovan McNabb is a 1st alternate at QB.

Also, 3 Pitt Panthers made the pro bowl - Larry Fitzgerald, and Darrelle Revis, who were basically locks before the season, and punter Andy Lee of the San Francisco 49ers.

Eagles Clinch Playoff Spot

The Eagles beat the 49ers on Sunday 27-13 to clinch a playoff spot. They still have work to do to win the NFC East, but no matter what happens, the Eagles will be in the playoffs this season.

The offense played well, and the defense, helped by 4 turnovers played a lot better than last weekend against the Giants. The Eagles took the opening kickoff and drove down the field for the touchdown, and led the rest of the game. The Eagles lead the league in points scored on opening drives. The drive was capped off by a 17 yard McNabb to Jackson reception for a touchdown. After that point, the Eagles capitalized on 3 Alex Smith interceptions in the first half to take a 20-3 halftime lead. The interceptions for the Eagles were by Quintin Mikell, Asante Samuel, and Tracy White. The 49ers did end up cutting the Eagles deficit to 20-13 going into the 4th quarter, but another long Eagles drive put the game away in the 4th quarter, capped off by a McCoy touchdown run.

Donovan McNabb continued to make plays, and was solid, despite throwing 2 INT's. McNabb ended the game 21-36 for 306 yards, 1 TD, 2 INT's, and a rushing touchdown. The Eagles did run the ball effectively. McCoy and Weaver combined for exactly 100 rushing yards on 26 carries. I still would have liked to see the Eagles run the ball more, because it seemed to be working. McCoy averaged 5.3 yards per carry on 9 carries, and had a touchdown. DeSean Jackson continued his excellent play thus far this season with another big game. Jackson had 6 catches for 140 yards, and a touchdown. I still am not 100% sold that Jackson is a #1 receiver, mostly due to his size, but he has been the team MVP in my opinion this season, and it's not even close.

It sounds weird to say, but I did feel like the Eagles missed Jeremy Maclin. Kevin Curtis was basically non-existent. He caught 1 pass, and dropped another. Reggie Brown only caught 1 pass also. It might not seem like a big deal right now because the Eagles are winning, but I really do feel like the Eagles lack of receiver depth could be a reason this team doesn't win it all this season. I know McNabb likes to hold onto the ball a lot, and doesn't force a lot of throws, but McNabb had a lot of time on a lot of drop-backs today, and simply didn't see anything he liked. A lot of people blame McNabb when he does this, but he doesn't seem to have these issues when the receivers are making plays. Bottom line, if a team decides to take DeSean Jackson out of the game, and make the other receivers beat them, I'm not sure the Eagles can do that.

On the defensive side of the football, the Eagles obviously played a lot better than they did against the Giants, but they still weren't great. The numbers look very good. 4 turnovers, only allowing 261 total yards, and 13 points, but they could have done better. Frank Gore rushed for 107 yards, becoming the first running back to run for over 100 against the Eagles this season. Gore is a really good running back, so I wasn't too upset by this, because he runs for 100 a lot of weeks.

The Eagles did clinch a playoff spot, but they still need to hope the Cowboys lose next weekend and need to win themselves to wrap up the NFC East. You don't want to have to go to Dallas the final weekend of the season needing a win to win the division. And if the Cowboys win next weekend no matter what the Eagles do, that final game is for the division. The Eagles can still get the #2 seed in the NFC depending on what the Vikings do tonight. Either way, still a good win for the Eagles, as they move to 10-4 on the year.

Eagles Win 4th Straight

The Eagles closed out their time in Giants stadium most likely, putting on an offensive show, and winning the game 45-38, in a much needed divisional matchup. The Eagles now sit alone atop the NFC East with a record of 9-4.

The Eagles came out of the gates strong, took the opening kickoff, and marched right downfield and scored a touchdown, and made it look easy. The Giants first possession didn't go so well for them, as Sheldon Brown scooped up a Brandon Jacobs fumble and returned it 60 yards for a touchdown. The Eagles were up 14-0 five minutes into the game. From that point on, it would be an offensive shootout for both teams. The Giants got the game to 14-10, and the Eagles then pushed it to 24-10. The Giants responded with a touchdown, and then the Eagles marched down the field right before halftime to score another touchdown, but missed the extra point to take a 30-17 lead.

In the 2nd half, the Giants continued to play strong on offense, and took a 31-30 lead in the 3rd quarter. It didn't last long, because literally the very next offensive play, McNabb found DeSean Jackson for a 60 yard touchdown. The Eagles then went on a very successful, long 91 yard drive throughout most of the 4th quarter, capped off by a 1 yard Leonard Weaver touchdown run to put the game away.

The Eagles offense played very well. McNabb continues his strong play, and ended the game 17-26 for 275 yards with 2 TDs and 1 INT. McNabb threw a couple very nice deep balls, bought some time on some other plays, and hit his check downs well. Mike Vick also continued his strong recent play, and threw a 32 yard dart to DeSean Jackson on the first drive, which set up the first touchdown of the game. Vick also ran the ball 3 times for 11 yards, including a touchdown. Not only does Vick look like he is getting better every week, the play calling that involves Vick has been a lot better. I will give credit to the Reid-Mornhinweg play calling combo when Vick has been in the game lately. By letter Vick throw a couple passes each game, it doesn't allow the defense to stack the box when Vick is in the game. Also, I like the use of the trick plays they have tried when Vick has been in there. 2 trick plays were used. The first one being a reverse to Vick in which he almost threw a touchdown pass to Reggie Brown. The 2nd one was a Vick handoff to McCoy, who pitched to McNabb, who looked to go deep back to Vick. Even though he didn't have anything deep, McNabb made the right read and dumped it short to Celek. So, not only is Vick getting better and better each week, and becoming more a weapon in the rushing and passing game, the play calling has made more sense as of late.

Donovan McNabb led 4 very important drives in this game. The Eagles took the opening kickoff and marched right down the field the score, which was very important to get a 7-0 lead. Then, right before halftime, the Eagles marched down the field and scored a touchdown with 10 seconds left in the half, which was also very important. Sometimes McNabb often gets criticized for is not playing well with 2 minutes and under in the half or game. The Eagles came into this game 2nd in the NFL in scoring with under 2 minutes left in the half and end of the game, and they continued to add to that total. The 3rd drive was the 1 play drive, which was the 60 yard pass to Jackson. The Giants had just taken a 31-30 lead and had all the momentum at that point. And the final and most important drive was a 91-yard drive which took up most of the 4th quarter, and was eventually the game winning drive.

The rushing attack wasn't as successful as it has been recently, but McCoy and Weaver both got their share of carries, and Weaver and Vick both has a touchdown run. The story on offense however was DeSean Jackson. Without Jackson's return from his concussion, the Eagles do not win that game. Jackson had 6 receptions for 178 yards, and a touchdown. He also had a huge 72 yard punt return for a touchdown. You see people who are fast, but Jackson is ridiculously fast. Brent Celek also played well and ended with 64 receiving yards and a touchdown.

However, I am not so optimistic as some other people are going forward... mostly now because of the defense. I hear people talking today about how they are now starting to get this feeling with this Eagles team that we could go far into the playoffs, and into the Super Bowl. Well, I think that if that Eagles team from yesterday played the Saints, the Saints would have scored 60+ points. The Eagles defense was horrible. It was one of the worst defensive performances I've ever seen to be honest. Sheldon Brown, Quintin Mikell, Sean Jones - all guys who I like and have praised, played horribly. Too many missed tackles, too many penalties still, too many blown coverages, and not enough pressure on Eli. The Giants put up 512 yards of total offense in the game. They ran the ball and threw the ball effectively.

I do think the Eagles defense is a proud defense, and Sean McDermott and the players on the defense will not be happy with this victory. I think they will treat this week of practice like they really almost lost this game for the team, and bounce back. However, if the defense continues to play the way they played on Sunday, this team is not going to the Super Bowl.

Eagles Rout Falcons

The Eagles took care of business on Sunday and got another much needed win against a banged up Falcons team in convincing style with a 34-7 victory. The Eagles came very close to getting their first shutout on the road since 1991, but the Falcons scored a touchdown on the last play of the game as time expired.

The Eagles were in control basically the whole game, and had Michael Vick and Kevin Kolb split the quarterback duties in the 4th quarter. The Eagles dominated the first half, but couldn't put the Falcons away. They got into the red zone 4 times in the first half, and only came away with 13 points on those 4 red zone possessions. Leonard Weaver had a great game both running and catching the football, and ended the game with 5 carries for 37 yards, and 2 receptions for 63 yards, and receiving touchdown. Jeremy Maclin led the receivers with 4 receptions for 83 yards.

The Eagles really spread the ball out in the rushing attack with McCoy getting 6 carries, Weaver getting 5, Michael Vick getting 4, Reggie Brown with 1, McNabb scrambling with 2, and Eldra Buckley in the game in the 4th quarter getting 8 carries. In total, the Eagles ran the ball 26 times for 103 yards. Also, even the offense didn't put the Falcons away in the 1st half, give them credit for opening the 2nd half with a touchdown drive to go up 20-0. Michael Vick even got some extended time in the 4th quarter and was able to run for and pass for a touchdown today.

The defense didn't really let the Falcons get much of anything, especially without starters Matt Ryan and Michael Turner. Chris Redman finished the game 23-44 for 235 yards, 1 TDs, and 2 INTs. Most of those yards from Redman came on the last possession of the game. The Falcons only were able to run the ball for 61 yards on 22 carries. The defense also had a goal line stand to close out the first half. If the Falcons had punched the ball in at that point, they would have only been down 13-7 to start the 2nd half. The defense had 2 sacks, 2 interceptions, one of which was returned for a touchdown by Sheldon Brown.

With Ryan and Turner out of the lineup for the Falcons, the Eagles had to take care of business this game, and they did just that. The Eagles move to 8-4 on the season, and depending on the outcome of the Giants-Cowboys game today, they could end up in a 1st place tie in the NFC East at the end of the day. Either way, the win was much needed with a trip to the Meadowlands next weekend to play the Giants.

The Eagles brass has to happy with this convincing victory so they can now expect us all to be happy when the announce the Andy Reid extension. I am happy with the Eagles victory, but will not be with the Reid extension.

Eagles Dodge Bullet, Beat Redskins

The Eagles just picked up a much needed win in a game that they very much needed to win, and a game that looked like they could easily let slip away. The Eagles outscored the Redskins 11-3 in the 4th quarter in order to win the game 27-24.

The Eagles started out the game shooting themselves in the foot and spotting the Redskins 7 points by attempting a failed onsides kick. The Eagles quickly bounced back, and put up a field goal and a touchdown reception by DeSean Jackson to take a 10-7. After a Redskins touchdown, 2 Asante Samuel interceptions led to 2 David Akers field goals and allowed the Eagles to take a 16-14 halftime lead.

The 3rd quarter was brutal for the Eagles, as they couldn't even get a first down. The Redskins scored a touchdown and kicked a field goal to take a 24-16 lead. McNabb however led the Eagles on a 90 yard drive capped off by an Eldra Buckley 1 yard touchdown run with 7:24 left on the clock. LeSean McCoy added the 2 point conversion to tie the game at 24. The defense held up, and the Eagles got the ball back, and drove down for the game winning 32 yard field goal with 1:48 remaining to give the Eagles the 27-24 win.

If you look at the balance, which will always be a problem under Andy Reid, the Eagles threw the ball 36 times, and called 27 runs. Shady McCoy and Leonard Weaver both ran the ball well. McCoy ended up with 17 carries for 76 yards, which is 4.5 yards a carry. Weaver carried 6 times for 44 yards, which is 7.3 yards per carry.

Donovan McNabb played well for the most part. He ended the game 21-35 for 260 yards with 1 TD, and 1 INT. McNabb, who is oft criticized for not being able to lead the team from behind in the 4th quarter, led 2 long drives in the 4th quarter - the game tying, and game winning drives. I'm sure the McNabb haters will find something to complain about though tomorrow. Maybe McNabb spend too much time on the field talking to Jason Campbell after the game.

The receivers dropped a lot of balls, included what seemed like about 5 for Celek. DeSean Jackson left the game in the 3rd quarter with concussion like symptoms. The defense really didn't seem to blitz a lot in my opinion, but unlike Andy Reid, I will actually trust that Sean McDermott knows what he is doing. This was only the 2nd time all season the Redskins scored above 20 points this season, so the defense did not play great, despite stepping it up at the end of the game.

Eagles Look to Bounce Back Against Bears

The Eagles travel to Donovan McNabb’s hometown this weekend to take on the Chicago Bears who currently stand at 4-5. The Eagles will try to bounce back after losing two straight games to the Cowboys and Chargers.

Traveling to Chicago isn’t exactly the ideal situation in trying to break a 2 game losing streak. Even though the Bears aren’t playing well, and Cutler has been flat out bad this year, it is never easy to play a road game in Chicago. McNabb does always seem to play well there though when he goes back home. The defense has to bounce back after a disappointing performance against the Chargers. The defense has had to battle through injuries as of late, and might even be without Sheldon Brown this weekend. Sheldon Brown has never missed a game in his career, and is one of the veteran leaders on defense. Due to injuries and suspensions, the Eagles are very thin in the secondary, and at the linebacker position. As of now, the Eagles have not brought in any help at the cornerback position.

On offense, the Eagles will obviously be without Brian Westbrook, which unfortunately, they are probably used to by now. Just like the cornerback position, as of right now, the Eagles have not brought in a running back to help out at the position. LeSean McCoy, rookie phenom, should get most of the carries. In Andy Reid’s offense, this means he will get about 5-7. When Westbrook has been out this year, the Eagles have also given Leonard Weaver a good amount of carries each game, which they should continue to do.

The Bears have struggled all around at points this season. Even in recent years, when the Bears have not been good, their defense was always good. This year their defense isn’t bad against the pass, but is 21st against the run. The Eagles have played teams who struggle stopping the run already this year, but have not yet taken advantage of it, and Andy Reid is to blame for that. I believe the Eagles need to run the ball effectively to win this game. The offensive line finally pass blocked well against San Diego… unfortunately, they couldn’t open up any hole against an average San Diego defensive line. The offensive line has also been an area on the Eagles that is banged up, and they have not done a great job getting a push on the defensive line for the running backs. The Bears have also struggled on offense, mostly because Cutler has been bad, and Matt Forte has regressed in his sophomore season.

The Eagles need this win badly, but it won’t be easy. If the defense can hold up, the offense should be able to put the points on the board to win… assuming Andy Reid doesn’t lose the game with his play calling.