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.

Eagles-Cowboys Preview

The Eagles take on the Cowboys tomorrow, in what is one of the biggest regular season games in a while for both teams. Both teams are in the playoffs, but depending on what happens in this game and others, both teams could fall into as high as the #2 seed, or as low as the #6 seed.

The Eagles are in the better position sitting at 11-4 right now. The Eagles are in the #2 slot right now, and control their own destiny for that spot. If the Eagles win tomorrow, they are the #2 seed in the NFC, and get a first round bye. If they lose, the Cowboys win the NFC East, and the Eagles could end up dropping to as low as the #6 seed in the NFC playoffs, and possibly a 2nd straight trip to Dallas to play the Cowboys in the first round of the playoffs.

As for the game itself, both teams come in playing really good football. The Cowboys have won 2 straight and playing well, showing that they don't necessarily choke every December. The Eagles have won 6 straight, and their offense especially is clicking on all cylinders. On offense, the Eagles will need to really run the ball effectively, and give McNabb time to throw the ball. I think that is the key to the game for the Eagles... the offensive line needs to give McNabb time to throw the ball. If this happens, the offense can play as they want to, and McNabb will have time to find Jackson, Maclin, or Celek downfield.

On defense, I think the Eagles really need to get to Romo, and get pressure on him, and be in his face all game long. The Eagles first need to do a good job against the Cowboys rushing attack, and not let the Cowboys beat you on the ground. We also need to focus on shutting down Jason Witten. As we know, the Eagles struggle with opposing tight ends, and Witten is one of the best in the NFL, so that will be an important matchup for the Eagles.

It will be interesting to see what the Eagles game plan is, and how they come out of the gates. I think that getting a lead in this game is very important. We need to be able to play from ahead. The Eagles are the best first half team in the NFL, and best opening drive team in the NFL, so hopefully the Eagles will jump out to a quick lead.

Eagles Clinch First Round Bye With Win

The Eagles will clinch the #2 seed in the NFC and a first round bye if they beat the Cowboys on Sunday. You had to know that this Eagles-Cowboys matchup the final weekend of the season would be meaningful, and it is for both teams.

Because the Vikings lost last night, the Eagles and Vikings now have identical records. The Eagles hold the tiebreaker over the Vikings with the better conference record, and thus control their own destiny for that #2 seed. However, the Eagles can drop completely out of that spot, and drop to as low as the #6 seed if they lose to the Cowboys possibly. The Eagles have a lot to gain from a win this weekend, and unfortunately, they have a lot to lose. In fact, the Cowboys who sit at #6 in the NFC right now, could still end up with the #2 seed and a first round bye. If the Eagles, Vikings, and Cardinals lose, and Cowboys win, they take the #2 seed, and the Eagles will fall to the 5th or 6th seed.

If the Eagles lose to the Cowboys, and the Vikings and Cardinals both win, the Eagles would be the #5 seed, and would travel right back to Dallas for a first round playoff matchup. If the Eagles lose to the Cowboys, and the Vikings win, and the Cardinals lose, the Packers also jump the Eagles, and the Eagles drop to the #6 seed. In this scenario, the Eagles would also travel back to Dallas to play the Cowboys. There are also scenarios where the Eagles could lose, drop to the #5 or #6 seed and play the Vikings, if the Vikings lose their game, and Cardinals win.

So, a win would be huge for multiple reasons as you can see. You do not want to have to play in Dallas twice in a row, and in my opinion, you never want to play a divisional opponent for the 3rd time of the season in the playoffs. Should be a very interesting weekend.

Yes We Can

After the incredible turn of events on Sunday, I think it’s worthwhile to hit the pause button on Reid debates for a few days and just let the improbable outcome sink in. It’s likely that a similar pattern of dominoes falling in just the right way in a single December afternoon won’t happen again for decades, so we should take this rare opportunity to just enjoy it. One could justifiably point fingers at Reid for putting the team’s entire season in the unreliable hands of the Raiders, but in light of the Bird’s complete domination and utter humiliation of Romo & Company, let’s leave that for another day. For now, let’s just revel once again in playoff football Philly style! And, oh yeah, one more thing: How ‘Bout Them Cowboys….!

Eagles Need Win... And Help

The Eagles will play their 16th game of the season this Sunday, and the playoffs are on the line for both the Eagles, and their hated opponent, the Cowboys. Unfortunately for the Eagles, they not only need to win this game, they need help from some other teams. Here is what needs to happen to see the Eagles playing football in January--

1. The Eagles need to beat the Cowboys
2. The Raiders need to beat the Buccaneers
3. The Giants need to beat the Vikings OR the Texans need to beat the Bears

Seems unlikely, but hey, that's why they play the games. To win the game at hand, the Eagles will need a team effort from the offense, defense, and ohh yeah, the play calling. If the play calling is poor, the Eagles really do not have a chance to win this game. However, if Andy Reid actually calls a normal pass-run ratio, the Eagles will have a good chance to win this game. The Eagles defense has been great all season, however, the Cowboys were one of the few teams to put up a lot of points on this defense. If the Eagles can stop the run like they have been able to do lately, they should be able to get pressure on Romo, and hopefully force some turnovers.

On offense, as usual, Brian Westbrook will need to have a huge game, and he is the only consistent play maker. If McNabb throws 50 passes this game, they Eagles have no chance to win. Not only is that bad play calling, the Eagles do not have the personnel at wide receivers to get it done consistently in the passing game.

It is a shame for all us Eagles fans that the Eagles season has come down to this - a must-win game, and needing help.

Eagles Management Thinks Fans Are Stupid

Yesterday, the day of the NFL trading deadline, the Eagles stood pat, as most teams did. The problem is that there was a pro-bowl tight end who wanted to be traded, and the Eagles roster may as well not even have a tight end, as it is currently made up. L.J. Smith is horrible, and not even worth playing anymore. The Eagles also watched as the hated Cowboys traded for Roy Williams. They gave up some draft picks, but they targeted a player they wanted, and went for him, no matter what it took, they were going to get him, because he is a player who definitely makes the Cowboys better on the field.

I take you back to preseason, and the Eagles annual “state of the team” address. At that point, Eagles owner, Jeffrey Lurie stated that this team can win a Super Bowl, and this year we would put the “pedal to the metal” to make that happen. Well I’m not surprised that the Eagles management feels that this team is good enough to win a Super Bowl, I mean this team is so good that we didn’t even need to pick in the 1st round the past two seasons. Anthony Spencer? Nahh, let’s trade the pick to Dallas, and let them have him. Felix Jones? Don’t think so, he can’t help us, I mean we only run the ball 10 times a game, what do we need a backup running back for. And what do we need a first round draft pick for anyways….. we were 8-8 last season. But that 8-8 is deceiving they will tell you, as we won the last 3 meaningless games of the season, so things are looking promising.

Aside from the draft blunders, the Eagles signed Asante Samuel, and in the process made their own pro-bowl cornerback Lito Sheppard upset. That’s alright though, we have 2 first round picks next season, and Lito to dangle as trade bait. The Eagles, we thought, would definitely make a trade to acquire a much needed wide receiver. Larry Fitzgerald? Roy Williams? Even Randy Moss? Supposedly the Eagles inquired about all three elite receivers, but couldn’t get any of them. Of course, the Eagles draft picks are so incredibly important, we can’t possibly think of trading a draft pick. Those 2nd and 3rd round picks are reserved for picking players like Matt McCoy, and Tony Hunt, and the Division III player of the year who recorded 20 sacks playing against high school caliber teams.

Let’s go back to 2004-2005. Andy Reid had been the coach for about 5-6 seasons then, and was extremely successful. He dominated the NFC East when the NFC East was horrible. The Eagles never could get over the hump to the Super Bowl, but there was no arguing that the Eagles and Reid were doing their best to get us there. After the 2004 season, it was clear the Eagles needed a proven #1 receiver, and an elite defensive player. So, what did they do? The Eagles went out and got T.O. and Jevon Kearse, exactly what they needed to do. Both players helped the team greatly, and got the Eagles to the Super Bowl. We all know how that worked out, and ultimately, we all know now that Kearse, and T.O. are no longer with this team.

Fast forward to the present day, and the Eagles management is becoming a joke. From Lurie, to Reid, to Banner, and even Heckert, these guys just don’t seem to get it anymore. Reid continues to be arrogant coaching this team, and believes that his system will ultimately prevail. The Eagles don’t draft well, don’t like to pay players, and don’t value certain positions. However they still feel as if they are the gold standard, because they are always well under the cap and in good financial situation. The truth is, the Eagles are 28-28 since the Super Bowl, including the playoffs, all while seeing the Giants, Redskins, and Cowboys all make the playoffs in 2007-2008.

While other teams “go for it” and take gambles and sign big name players, the Eagles haven’t seriously contended since they went to the Super Bowl. Funny around that time also, the rest of the NFC East caught up to them. Reid has never adjusted.

So I guess we should be happy while we watch the other teams in our conference and our division win Super Bowls, but don’t worry….. we are $19.2 million under the cap.

Eagles fall in Tough Defeat at Dallas

Well this game had a little bit of everything, and unfortunately, the Eagles came out on the short end of this game. The Eagles lost a heartbreaker in Dallas to the Cowgirls 41-37. The Eagles played well, but also made plenty of mistakes. The Cowboys have multiple weapons on offense, and when one of them isn't playing well, the others usually are. On this night, the Eagles had a hard time containing Jason Witten, and keeping T.O. out of the end zone. Sean Considine jumped a route and T.O. ran right past him for a long TD. They said there was a communication issue on that play. The only communication issue I saw was someone telling Considine to go into the game. Dawkins was burned by T.O. on his 2nd TD, Bradley was burned by Barber on a receiving TD, both on single coverage. Dawkins, it pains me to say, was a step slow all night. The defense did do a good job against the run, but couldn't get any sacks on Romo. There were some pressures, but when the Eagles only rushed their front 4, Romo had all day. All of those mistakes aside, the Eagles had a 3 point lead with 9 minutes left at midfield, 1st and 10, and a botched handoff gave the Cowboys the ball to go down the field and take the lead for good.

Overall, this was definitely a disappointing game, but there was some stuff to build on. McNabb looked good, and DeSean Jackson, who still has 0 career TD's, looked good. Either way, the Eagles look like one of the elite teams in the NFC, and probably the entire NFL. It doesn't get any easier, the Eagles (1-1) come back with a short week to play the Steelers (2-0) at Lincoln Financial Field.

Let's Get Ready for Monday Night

Tony Simpson, I mean Romo led the Cowboys to a convincing victory at Cleveland, while the Eagles destroyed the hapless St. Louis Rams last week. The offensive and defensive lines will be the key to this game and it is imperative that both offensive lines give their QB time to throw the ball. Also how the QBs react when they are pushed out of the pocket will be a key to victory. The Eagles need to mix the run and pass well, and use a lot of screen passes when the Cowboys (Ware) rush the passer. The Cowboys throw the ball very effectively no matter what, if we can keep that even to their average, we need to shut down the rush game, and control the line and the clock. Eagles need to put pressure on Romo, he has shown that if you put pressure on him, he starts to play poorly and get flustered. Trent Cole should provide much needed pressure and Jim Johnson should blitz the young LBs to knock over Romo. Covering Jason Witten, with a combination of Omar Gaither, and a safety will be key to the Eagles stopping the Cowboys potent offense. The Eagles on the other hard, should try to get Westbrook out into space and create some big plays.

Either way, it should be a good game. And after the Eagles victory, in honor of DeSean Jackson abusing Pacman Jones up and down the field, Kotite's Corner will be going to the Philadelphia strip clubs to make it rain in honor of the player Pacman used to be before the Eagles came to Dallas. We would just like to make in known that any local Cowboys fans in the Philadelphia region are clear front-running idiots, and should leave our blue-collar, hard working town as soon as possible, for the swamp that is known as Dallas.