Inside the Iggles has joined up with Fan-sided, and has a brand new site. From now on all posts for ITI will be at http://insidetheiggles.com/.
The blog has a great new look, and I hope everybody likes it.
If you are currently linked to ITI, I would just ask that you please update to the new URL.
I hope to see everybody at http://insidetheiggles.com/.
McNabb Hurt Again:
After throwing two early interceptions, Donovan McNabb got knocked out of the game by a take down from a blitzing Dolphins corner. McNabb sprained his right ankle, almost exactly one year away from when he tore his ACL in the same leg. X-rays were negative, but Donovan sat out the rest of the game. Right now his status for next week is uncertain.
Feeley Gets Revenge:
A.J. Feeley stepped in for the injured McNabb, and threw the third Eagles interception of the game. After that mistake Feeley settled down. He completed 13 of 19 passes, for 116 yards, and 1 touch down. Feeley did a good job of spreading the ball around, hitting eight different receivers.
A.J. was traded to Miami in 2004 for a second round pick(ended up being Reggie Brown), and was once considered the franchise QB. Feeley struggled in Miami, and was traded away to San Diego. After a brief stint there Feeley was released in 2006, and the Eagles quickly brought him back to Philadelphia. Now Feeley got his chance to stick it to his former team, and succeeded in defeating them. Dolphins fans must really hate him.
Another Huge Goal Line Stand:
For the second week in a row, the Eagles defense was put to the test. The Dolphins had a first-and-goal from the one yard line, and things looked bad for Philadelphia.
On first down they ran Jesse Chatman up the middle, but the Eagles defense burst through the line, and tackled him for a 1 yard loss. On second down John Beck dropped back, and made a pretty nice pass, but Takeo Spikes was able to break it up. The Dolphins chose to run again on third down, and the Eagles gang tackle Jesse Chatman.
After a timeout, Dolphins head coach Cam Cameron decided to go for it on 4th-and-goal down 10 points late in the fourth quarter. The play was an outside toss to Chatman, and DE Juqua Thomas was all over it. Chatman danced backwards, and was tackled for a 13 yard loss.
The Eagles took over on downs, and this great defensive series basically sealed the game.
Career Day For B-West:
Brian Westbrook is just amazing. He continues to show how valuable he is to the team every week. Andy Reid fed Westbrook the ball early, and often. So much so, that he rushed for 148 yards, a career best. Westbrook broke a few big runs, and is simply just the best player on the team. I don't know where this team would be without Westbrook.
Kearse Deactivated:
The news had come out earlier in the week, that Juqua Thomas would be starting over Kearse, but I really did not think they would not play Kearse at all. He may be a little banged up, but it seems he has completely fallen out of favor with the coaching staff. It will be interesting to see if Kearse plays next week against New England.
Starting in his place, Juqua Thomas has done a nice job. He really has become a great pick up for the Eagles. Thomas was on the streets looking for a job a few years ago, and now is a starter. Ironically it was Jevon Kearse who convinced the Eagles to try out Thomas, as Juqua was an old friend of his back in Tennessee.
Stupid Penalties By Smith:
On the Eagles first possession, Andy Reid called a flea-flicker play, that was perfectly executed for a touch down to Reggie Brown. Except the play was called back by a stupid holding penalty on L.J. Smith. Smith had help outside from Brent Celek, and there was no reason to grab onto Jason Taylor's jersey. The drive then ended in a McNabb interception.
Later in the game Smith made another bonehead play. A.J. Feeley fired a touch down pass to wide receiver Jason Avant, and after the play L.J. was called for a 15 yard personal foul penalty. Luckily the penalty was after the play, and enforced on the kickoff, but it still hurt the team. The Dolphins then got great field position, and were almost able to score on that drive.
If L.J. wants more money, he needs to stop killing this team with stupid mistakes. A big fumble last week, and this week he makes 2 stupid penalties. That is just unacceptable.
Special Teams Still Suck:
The special teams coverage teams showed that they still suck today. Early in the second quarter, speedy return man Tedd Ginn made one man miss, got some good blocks, and out ran the punter for an 87 yard punt return touch down. It was Ginn's first return TD of his short career.
The special teams has been terrible at covering kickoffs, and punts most of the season. I don't get how it has gotten so bad, because they used to be great at it(a few years ago). Now I see why Dawkins went out to cover the kickoff against Washington. Even he knows they suck.
Storylines already promising to punctuate the Eagles' offseason are Donovan McNabb's fate in Philadelphia, Andy Reid's ongoing crisis at home and the impending free agency of tight end L.J. Smith.
Brian Westbrook's contract situation could be another side story -- or perhaps even more attention-catching than the other three.
In his weekly press conference, Westbrook hinted Wednesday that his contract might need some reworking, lest the Eagles want another ugly holdout situation come training camp.
Westbrook danced around the question of whether or not the five-year, $25-million pact he signed in 2005 that included a signing bonus of $6 million remains fair market value.
"The contract I signed back then, it made sense for me at that point," Westbrook said. "Right now, I try not to get into contract numbers and contract talk right now. We're focusing on trying to win football games. For this team, we don't want anything to distract us from doing that."
The Eagles play winless Miami on Sunday afternoon at Lincoln Financial Field.
Westbrook held out of training camp in 2005 before the Eagles negotiated an extension.
Helping Westbrook is his age (28) and ascent into the prime of his career. The Eagles haven't batted an eyelash at showing the door to players over 30 seeking contract extensions.
But they have extended contracts of peak performers early in their careers. Four years remained on McNabb's contract when the Eagles awarded him a 12-year extension in 2002. Last year, the Eagles locked up Trent Cole, Mike Patterson, Reggie Brown and three offensive linemen with long-term contracts. Of the six, four were in their second year with the team.
Since signing a contract in 2005, Westbrook has emerged as one of the league's top all-around backs, and his durability is less of a question mark. He went over the 1,000-yard rushing mark last season for the first time, totaling 1,917 offensive yards and 11 touchdowns, both career highs, while playing 15 games and both postseason games.
Westbrook is on pace to eclipse those marks this season. His 1,219 yards from scrimmage are second-best in the NFL, along with his 6.1 yards-per-touch average. His three touchdowns against the Redskins on Sunday gave him nine for the season.
But the short life span of NFL running backs almost guarantees that Westbrook's only shot to land a windfall similar to LaDainian Tomlinson's eight-year, $60 million contract with San Diego or Larry Johnson's six-year, $45-million deal with Kansas City has already passed.
"I think any player -- offense, defense, any position -- looks at the contract and tries to maximize the money they get, because you never know what's going to happen in the future," Westbrook said. "You never know what's going to transpire. There's nothing guaranteed in the NFL except for your signing bonus, so you try to maximize that as much you can."
>>TheNewsJournal
Looks like another bargain contract for the Eagles is going to blow up in their face. Please don't pull a T.O. Westbrook. Everybody knows you are better than that.
ITI is adding this podcast player on the sidebar of the BANG! Cartoon Radio Hour. The player looks like this:
Eagles Team signs Fontenot to practice squad
Tue, 13 Nov 2007 13:05:28 -0800
The Philadelphia Eagles announced they have signed free-agent CB Therrian Fontenot (Browns) to the practice squad Tuesday, Nov. 13. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
>>KFFL
He spent the first three years of his career as a backup to Jevon Kearse in Tennessee. For most of the past two-and-a-half seasons, he's been Kearse's backup in Philadelphia.
Now, Juqua Thomas replaces Kearse as the starter at left defensive end. Defensive coordinator Jim Johnson made the announcement at his press conference Thursday.
"Trent (Cole) is playing at a high caliber, no question about it. J.T. is playing very well. Those two right now they're two of our better ends in the pass rush. It's as simple as that and they're getting more time than (Darren) Howard and Jevon. No secret. J.T. is getting good pressure and so is Trent," Johnson said.
For all intents and purposes, the 29-year-old Thomas has been the unofficial starter for weeks. The Redskins opened in a two tight-end set last week, a formation which called for rookie Victor Abiamiri to start in only his second NFL game. However, Thomas took most of the snaps. He's totaled four sacks this season and since 2006 he is second among all undrafted players with 11.5 sacks (Chicago's Adewale Ogunleye, 16.5), according to Stats Inc.
"It's going to be a big challenge," said Thomas.
Kearse started the first eight games of the season. The three-time Pro Bowl end battled back from a left knee injury which sidelined him for all but two games last year. However, he is not 100 percent healthy. Kearse has had to have his knee drained twice this season, the last time was prior to the Dallas game.
"It's football. That's how it was when I came in. That's how it will be when I'm gone. It's a part of the game," Kearse said after Thursday's practice.
Thomas originally signed with the Titans as a rookie free agent in 2001. He accumulated five sacks over four years as the backup to Kearse, Carlos Hall and Kevin Carter. Thomas joined the Eagles during training camp in 2005 and had a phenomenal 10-tackle performance in the season finale. Thomas re-upped for one more season and had a career-high six sacks with another 1.5 in the two playoff games. On the first day of free agency in 2007, Thomas was re-signed by the Eagles to a five-year deal.
Johnson added that Howard, who has primarily played as a defensive tackle in the nickel package, is strictly a right defensive end and should see more snaps this week as Cole's backup. Howard made two big stops during the goal line stand in the fourth quarter of last Sunday's win that held the Redskins to a field goal and allowed the Eagles the opportunity to come back and win.
>>HomePage
The Eagles needed Sunday's win over Washington desperately, and when a team is desperate, crazy things happen.
Crazy things like a six-time Pro Bowl safety covering kickoffs.
After Brian Westbrook's incredible 57-yard touchdown potentially saved Philadelphia's season, Brian Dawkins didn't want to see the kickoff coverage unit cough up the lead. That's why when they took the field to kick the ball back to the Redskins, Dawkins was with them - for, according to his memory - the first time in seven or eight years.
"That was just something that was a spur of the moment type thing; something that I wanted to do to help out," Dawkins said. "If I made the play, great; if I didn't, then hopefully I'd be out there to help the guys out and hopefully not allow a big play to happen."
Dawkins said that after deciding he was going to cover the kick, there was no way he was staying on the sideline.
"I just felt like it was something I had to do and wanted to do. I didn't really ask to go in, I said that I was going in," Dawkins said. "That's not a slight of the coaches or like I'm bullying anybody, but that's just the way I felt. I wanted to be out there, so that's what happened."
What if one of the coaches had tried to keep him on the sideline?
"Honestly, I probably would have snuck out there," he said.
>>PhiladelphiaEagles.com
Looks like L.J. Smith is still unhappy about not having a new contract. He has not held out, but he has voiced his displeasure several times with his contract situation. Today he gave his latest thoughts about it:
If you think tight end L.J. Smith will re-sign with the Eagles after the season, you might want to think again.
“Am I optimistic about being here again? No. I’m not optimistic about it,” said Smith, who is eligible to be a free agent after the season. “Right now I’m looking at possibly being on another team.”
Asked if there have been discussions regarding a new deal, Smith said there has been “nothing significant.”
After spending much of the season recovering from a sports hernia/groin injury, Smith scored his first touchdown of the season Sunday. His goals for the rest of the season?
“I think No. 1 finish up healthy. And secondly perform well when I’m out there,” he said.
“It’s really important for me personally, I’m going to help the team obviously – but for me personally it’s very important for me to finish up strong.”
>>ComcastSportsNet
Coach Cam Cameron has decided to make a quarterback change for Sunday's visit to Philadelphia and give rookie John Beck his first career start in place of Cleo Lemon, said a source close to the team.
Cameron notified the quarterbacks of his decision this morning. The determination to start Beck seemed to signify a change of heart since he met with his quarterbacks on Tuesday.
A source said Lemon left the meeting thinking he would be making his fifth consecutive start, while Cameron made it clear that Beck should be ready for his first game action if Lemon and 0-9 Dolphins were to struggle.
Lemon also left the meeting aware that Beck will become the starter at some point because the team needs to evaluate him this season.
Later Tuesday, Cameron telephoned Lemon and told him he wanted to give his decision some more thought. Cameron told Lemon Wednesday Beck would handle all of the snaps with the first-team offense this week. Beck has shared snaps equally with Lemon in practice recently.
Beck primarily ran the scout team even after veteran Trent Green suffered a season-ending concussion Oct. 7 at Houston. Cameron accelerated the learning process for Beck, the 40th selection in April's draft, during the recent bye week, after Miami's Oct. 28 loss to the New York Giants in London.
Lemon is 0-4 as a starter for the Dolphins. But the past two defeats have been by three points, including Sunday's 13-10 loss to Buffalo on a last-minute field goal.
In the third period, fans wanted to see the rookie quarterback — many chanted, "We want Beck!" — but Lemon responded by leading the Dolphins on a franchise-record, 18-play touchdown drive that covered 80 yards and ate up almost 10 minutes.
Lemon, however, finished with his lowest passer rating this season, 66.9, as he completed 16 of 29 passes for only 131 yards. He was 3- of-8 for 25 yards in the final period and couldn't move the Dolphins 20 yards into field-goal range in the final minute.
Lemon also was tackled for a safety in the third quarter that cut Miami's lead to 3-2.
The Dolphins drafted Beck hoping he could become the club's long-term starter.
Cameron, who worked with NFL quarterbacks for eight seasons before becoming a head coach, might want to play Beck simply to see if he can handle the job. Armed with that knowledge, the Dolphins could decide how to use their first-round draft pick, which now projects to be the first overall.
>>PalmBeachPost
The only question is ... What took so long? Defensive backs coach John Harbaugh walked over to Joselio Hanson at halftime Sunday and told him he was going into the game at nickel cornerback, replacing the struggling William James.
Hanson responded with a solid second half, as the Eagles rallied from nine points down to beat the Redskins, 33-25.
James got beat twice for 31-yard catches by James Thrash, the former Eagle who had just 74 receiving yards in his 16 previous games over two seasons.
"He just told me, "Let's go,' so I went in and did what I always do — play the best I can,” Hanson said. "I always study and prepare like I'm going to start, so I was ready. I'm always ready to play.”
James wears No. 21 worn previously by Pro Bowl corners Eric Allen and Bobby Taylor, but he doesn't play like them.
It's rare for defensive coordinator Jim Johnson to bench somebody mid-game, but the way things were going, he had no choice.
How much of a difference did Hanson make? In the first half, the Redskins averaged 8.7 yards per pass attempt. In the second, they averaged 5.0.
"They just threw the ball downfield better than I thought they would (on James),” Johnson said. "We gave up some big plays downfield.”
We did? Or James did?
"I think he had one of those bad days,” Johnson said. "We'll see what happens next week. He competes hard. He let (Thrash) get outside and that was the biggest thing. We knew they were going to do that. Will knew that, too. He's an aggressive player. We've still got to get (pass) pressure. It comes down to pressure, too.”
Hanson certainly didn't do anything to warrant less playing time.
"I felt good out there,” said Hanson, who was the nickel in the four games Lito Sheppard missed earlier this year, when James started. "I feel like I can play with anybody in the league. Will's a good player, but when I'm out there, I'm always confident I can do a good job.”
>>Burlington Times
It was three plays to save a season. Yes, even if the Eagles had lost in Washington this weekend they would have had a chance to make the playoffs, but realistically, every member of the defense knew what was at stake.
With its back against its own end zone – and the wall – and the Redskins only seven yards away from all but putting the game out of reach, the Eagles defense had to make a stand.
Three plays to save a season.
Eventually, three plays turned to six. Six snaps from inside the 10-yard line. Six times the Redskins attacked the goal line, trying to put the game – and maybe the Eagles – away. Six times, the defense stood firm, setting up Philadelphia's dramatic 33-25 win on Sunday.
"When all of the odds are against you and you are still fighting, that's character. You develop that when nobody is looking," linebacker Takeo Spikes said. "When you look back at the film you'll see a whole lot of guys doing the little things right and that was the emphasis this week. Doing the little things."
When the Redskins got the ball back after a Donovan McNabb fumble with 8:03 remaining and two point lead, the Eagles defense hadn't been doing too many of the little things right.
Washington had physically imposed its will upon the Eagles for much of the afternoon, and when Clinton Portis gashed the defense twice to set up 1st and 10 from the Philadelphia 7-yard line, he moved past the 100-yard mark.
The Redskins were counting on him to get seven more, but the Eagles defense simply wouldn't allow it.
"I was proud of our goal line defense. I thought they did a heck of a job. You don't like being down there but if you are down there you really have to get it after them," head coach Andy Reid said.
First and goal from the seven. The Redskins tried a toss left to Portis that was strung out by defensive tackle Mike Patterson, gaining only one yard.
Second and goal from the 6-yard line. Portis bulls his way off of right tackle Todd Wade, but meets defensive end Trent Cole and defensive tackle Brodrick Bunkley after only a gain of 1 yard.
Third-and-goal from the 5-yard line. The Redskins tried their one and only pass of the entire series, and drew a defensive holding call which gave them a first down.
With a new set of downs and the ball on the 3-yard line, the Eagles defense had to do it all over again – with the pressure of a nasty running attack, a two-point deficit, a rapidly declining clock and a potential 3-6 record resting squarely on its shoulders.
"Everyone knew it. You could tell in guys' eyes," Bunkley said. "Even when they got the first down we knew that we could get back on the ball and make something happen and we did."
First and goal from the 3-yard line. Portis went off of left tackle Chris Samuels but is pulled down by Spikes and Darren Howard after only a gain of a yard. Timeout Eagles.
Second and goal from the 2-yard line. Howard and Jevon Kearse met Portis in the backfield for a loss of one. Timeout Eagles.
Third and goal from the 3-yard. A false start penalty on Chris Cooley was followed by a draw play that was snuffed out three yards short of the end zone by Spikes and cornerback Joselio Hanson. Third and final Eagles timeout.
Spikes said that he thought the timeouts, while called to leave as much time as possible for Donovan McNabb and the offense, actually helped the defense immensely.
"When you have a defense backed up against the goal you never want to give them a chance to breathe; get a chance to get together," he said. "We did, so we were able to kind of talk to each other and realize what was at hand."
What was at hand was a defining moment of the season so far. The Redskins settled for a 21-yard Shaun Suisham field goal. Two Brian Westbrook touchdowns later and the Eagles returned home to Philadelphia with a win, and hopefully much more.
"I hope that goal line stand will snowball for us," Spikes said. "I'm not just saying defensively but team-wise."
In the end, they could quite literally turn out to be, six plays to save a season.
>>HomePage
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Like What you see? Sign up for FREE to check out the archives. You will laugh your ass off for hours. There are even some very funny Cartoons about the Eagles.
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This is an awesome site that everybody should check out.
"CHOO CHOO"
Not sure what this is all about, but he sure does look gay.
>>DeadSkins.com
I was surprised to hear that people were saying that I am not taking blame for us being 3-5. I did say in my press conference earlier today (http://www.philadelphiaeagles.com/news/Story.asp?story_id=14381) that "I'm definitely not the whole reason why we lost these games" and "I'm not fully [to] blame for everything that goes on around here."
But I also said, "There are a lot of mistakes I've made. [Whether] it's throws I want back, [bad] decisions, whatever it may be, there are mistakes that I've made in every game- a lot of things that you're not used to doing, a lot of things that you know you can do better. Everybody makes mistakes. But, in this situation, there's no room for error, and that goes for each individual person. There's no room for error."
I wish it were easy to find out what is going wrong – then it would be easier to fix. Have I made mistakes? Yes. Do I expect more from myself? Absolutely yes. This is truly frustrating for me because I am giving all I have in practice, in film study, and in the games. I share a passion with Eagles fans to see this team win each week. It hasn't happened as often as we'd like thus far. I haven't given up on myself, our my teammates. And I certainly haven't given up on this season.
"The tough part about being a quarterback is that a lot of times you're going to get a lot of the praise when the guys are doing well. A lot of the situation is that you did a great job and you're going to get a lot of praise, some undue, but you're still going to get a lot of praise. When things are going badly, you're going to get a lot of people talking badly about you as well. In Donovan's situation, everything that goes wrong on this team is not Donovan's fault. Everything from the fumbles, to the interceptions, to the sacks, those are not all Donovan's fault, not all of them, not totally. Because it's a team sport, one man can't make a football team. He has some blame on some of those things, running backs have some blame, tight ends, wide receivers, offensive line has some blame, as well. Because he's a marquee guy and he's almost the face of the organization, he takes a lot of the blame for things."
I did not see this quote anywhere in the stories posted. I guess it would not be much a of a story, if they decided to put all the information in it. The fact is Donovan did not say anything wrong, and people need to stop worrying about what he says, and worry about how he plays.
If you did not see the full press conference, then check it out right here. Donovan McNabb's PC 10/07/07
Bloggers who would like their blog to be reviewed, should check out Our Blog Review. Get an honest opinion about your blog, and at the same time promote your blog to others on this site.
>>Our Blog Review
The Vikings have settled on a veteran quarterback, but it’s not St. Paul native Chris Weinke.
Former Eagles quarterback Koy Detmer, who along with Weinke worked out for the Vikings today at Winter Park, agreed to a contract. Detmer will serve as veteran insurance if Tarvaris Jackson and Kelly Holcomb are unable to go because of injuries.
If that’s the case Brooks Bollinger will get the start. Jackson suffered a concussion Sunday against San Diego and is still undergoing tests. Holcomb, meanwhile, is recovering from a neck injury.
Detmer is familiar with the Vikings system, having played under coach Brad Childress when Childress was the offensvie coordinator with the Eagles.
Detmer, 34, spent 10 seasons with Philadelphia after playing college football at Colorado. Detmer mainly served as Donovan McNabb’s backup and as a holder for kicker David Akers during his time with the Eagles.
>>AccessVikings
How Koy has survived in the NFL all these years is beyond me.
The deadline for NFL teams to sign players and have a portion of their salary count against this year's cap is today at 4 p.m. Unlike previous years, however, the Eagles will not be taking advantage of that rule for a number of reasons.
One is that 19 of their 21 starters are signed beyond this season. The only two potential free agents after this season are tight end L.J. Smith and fullback Thomas Tapeh, and it is possible that neither player will be in an Eagles uniform a year from now.
Negotiations with Smith had not progressed for some time and had no chance of being renewed once the tight end required two groin surgeries and missed three of the team's first seven games. As for Tapeh, negotiations never began with the fullback.
Typically, the Eagles have targeted young players they feel are on the rise to tie up to long-term deals before this deadline. A year ago at this time, they signed defensive end Trent Cole and defensive tackle Mike Patterson to extensions through 2013 and 2015, respectively.
The Eagles might have considered doing that this year with second-year middle linebacker Omar Gaither, but team president Joe Banner said the new collective bargaining agreement does not allow teams to extend the contracts of second-year players.
The Eagles have three second-year starters, all on defense, but one of them is 2006 first-round pick Brodrick Bunkley, who is already signed through 2011. Gaither and starting strong-side linebacker Chris Gocong are signed through 2009.
Strong safety Sean Considine, who is in his first full season as a starter, is signed only through next season, but there are a few reasons the Eagles are not in a hurry to extend his deal. Quintin Mikell could replace Considine as the starting strong safety in the future. Eagles coach Andy Reid said Considine played sparingly in the second half last night because he suffered a shoulder injury.
Mikell, who signed a four-year contract in the off-season, impressed the Eagles' decision-makers during his five starts in place of injured free safety Brian Dawkins and has a chance to become a starter at some point in the future.
>>thePhiladelphiaInquirer
That deadline has past, and the Eagles signed nobody. According to BJ's Eagles Salary Cap page(very accurate) the Eagles are $12,499,220 under the cap. I guess after that Dallas debacle nobody deserves to get paid.
I know Banner must hate the new CBA rule that prevents you from extending a players contract in their second season. I am sure they had a low ball offer all ready for Omar Gaither. He probably would have taken it, considering the uncertainty in the NFL, and the fact that he was a late round draft pick.
Did the NFL do this, to stop teams like the Eagles from signing players before they reach their true market value? It sure does put a big wrench into how the Birds like to do business.
The Eagles wont win a Super Bowl this season, but they will win the salary cap award yet again. I believe this is fives years in a row now, time to start calling the Eagles a dynasty!
I guess that is the goal of the gold standard.
T.O. Gets His Revenge:
Eagles vs T.O. round 2 was a huge victory for WR Terrell Owens. T.O. stuck it to the Eagles by catching 10 passes for 174 yards, including a 45 yard touch down. He was a difference maker, and the Eagles secondary was pathetic trying to stop him.
Last year the Eagles shut down Owens in his return to the Linc, but this time T.O. gets his. As much as it pains me to say it, T.O. was the player of the game.
Defense?:
Did the defense even show up? Dallas scored 38 points, finished the game with a total of 434 yards, and went 8-12 on third down. The Eagles defense was constantly on it's heels. They did not just bend, they were completely broken down.
The worst part is they are not making many big plays. The defense had no sacks, no fumbles, and no answer for the Cowboys attack. The only big play made by the defense was a Lito Sheppard interception. Lito of course also left the game with a knee injury, and did not return.
Tony Romo signed a huge contract recently, and he proved he deserved it. He had an awesome game completing 20 of 25 pass attempts, for 324 yards, and 3 TDs. The Eagles defense never even layed a finger on him. There was no pressure from anybody all game, and Romo calmly hit his receivers.
The defense has been the best thing about this team. Other than the 97 yard debacle against the Bears, they had played great all season. Last night they stunk. They were completely embarrassing, and did nothing to even slow the Cowboys down. If the score was not so one sided, it could probably have even been worse
McNabb Was Bad:
Donovan had one of his worst games ever against the Cowboys. Through out his career, he has been a Cowboys killer. That was far from the case Sunday night.
On the first offensive play of the game, Donovan dropped back to pass. It appeared that nobody was open, Donovan held the ball way too long, and fumbled the ball while being hit from behind. McNabb has to throw that ball away. If the play is not there, then get rid of the football. That play basically summed up how the entire game went for the Eagles. It was disastrous.
Donovan also had two interceptions in the game. One was one of the worst passes I have ever seen. I have no idea what he saw, or what he thought he saw, but I saw a receiver double covered. For a guy who does not like to take very many risks, it is very puzzling as to why he thought he could fit a ball between these two. Again I go back to this. If the play is not there, find your check down, or throw it away. Do not try to make something out of nothing. More times than not, it will be a mistake.
Fourteen of Donovan's 27 completions went to Brian Westbrook. Westbrook is a better receiver than most RBs, but you can not make him 50% of the pass offense. You need to spread the ball around, and let other guys make plays. There were some other plays to be made, but Five missed them. He either did not see them, or had an errant throw.
The offensive line did have some breakdowns, and at times there may have been no open receivers, but the bottom line is Donovan has to be better.
Fans Were Weak:
Not that it really matters, but the fans were not there for this game. The first thing I noticed is the place was full of Cowboys fans. Every section had at least a few of them. A lot of people must have given up on the season, and sold their tickets online.
The crowd was still pumped until McNabb fumbled. Then it seemed like everybody was sitting on their hands. I went to smoke during halftime, and saw lots of people exiting the stadium. I know the Eagles were getting beat bad, but how do you leave any game at halftime? That blew my mind.
By the 4th quarter, the place was basically empty. Lots of Cowboys fans stayed, and very few Eagles fans were scattered throughout the stadium. Me, and my friend were the only two people left in our section with ten minutes left to go in the game.
I hear all the time from other fans, especially older fans, how great Eagles fans are, and how they always show up to every game, and I always believed that these were some of the best fans in the country.
When I stood up to scream on third down, people looked at me like I was crazy. The only time the fans ever got loud, was to boo Owens. Outside of that you would think the game was played in California. It was pathetic.
Season Is Over:
Well I think it has finally sunk in. The Eagles are just an average at best football team. They are in last place, and have already lost three division games. The division is well out of reach right now with 3 teams to climb, and the Cowboys at 7-1.
They did not just play bad to the Cowboys, they went up against a better team. The Cowboys beat the Eagles in every facet of the game, and you saw a superior team beat the Eagles.
Even if the Eagles were to make the playoffs(doubtful), they would stand no chance against the Cowboys, Patriots, Colts, and other top teams. So realistically speaking this season is over.
I can hear the calls for Kevin Kolb already getting louder. The rest of this football year is probably going to suck.
Terrell Owens came out firing Friday and didn't stop until he ensured he would receive another rude reception in Philadelphia.
Two days after saying his feud with Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb was a thing of the past, the Dallas Cowboys receiver took repeated shots on his weekly radio show at McNabb and his former team.
"It's so evident that ever since I left nothing's been going right there," said Owens, ignoring the fact Philadelphia won the NFC East title last season. "I'm not saying I'm the sole reason, but when I was there we were very successful. Now it seems like everything's snowballing."
Owens played two seasons for the Eagles, helping them reach the Super Bowl in 2004. But Philadelphia cut him after the 2005 season, a campaign in which he tore apart the team's locker room with his contract demands and continual sniping at McNabb.
The Eagles stumbled out of the gate this season and will take a 3-4 record into Sunday's game with the 6-1 Cowboys. Despite his team's struggles, McNabb said recently the road to the division crown still goes through Philadelphia, even though a loss to Dallas would give the Eagles an 0-3 mark within the division.
"That's wishful thinking," Owens said on 790 The Ticket in Miami. "He has to be the only one thinking that way. The road to the Super Bowl has to come through Dallas, Texas. We'll have to see how things come out, but it doesn't seem like things are faring too well up there in Philly."
In addition to their poor play, the Eagles are also dealing with coach Andy Reid's messy personal life. On Friday, Reid said he planned to coach the team for the long term despite being chastised by a judge who likened the coach's home to a "drug emporium."
Reid's two sons received jail sentences Thursday for offenses that included a road-rage incident that involved flashing a gun at a fellow driver.
"I can't say I feel sorry for them," Owens said of the Eagles. "Obviously, with coach Reid's situation, I wish him well. Hopefully, he can get his kids and his family situation back in order. But other than that, I'm happy to be in the situation I'm in."
Eagles fans burned Owens' jersey in the parking lot at Lincoln Financial Field before the team's game with Dallas last season. The Eagles swept the Cowboys last season.
>>Express News
So much for the "more mature" T.O. His bi-polar must have kicked in again, because he has basically done a complete 180 from what he was saying a few days ago. He even stooped low enough to take a shot at Andy Reid for his family crisis. I never wish injury on another player, but with this jerk I make an exception. I hope Dawkins stretches him like Michael Irvin.
I really hate how the media is pounding this story so hard. I turn on WIP, and get disgusted by morons who question Andy Reid's parenting ability. Where do people get off criticizing a man's family? If you want to question his coaching ability, or personnel decisions, that's fine, but leave his family alone. There is no reason to comment on it.
Everybody goes through issues in life, and has their share of difficult times. The difference is when average person has problems, they are not broad casted on national television, printed in local newspapers, and debated on talk radio.
I feel terrible for Andy, and really wish the media would back off. Everybody should respect his privacy, and stop making this issue worse.
The majority of the media is nothing but a bunch of story hungry creeps, who make a living off others misery. Ratings are all that is important to media scum, and it makes me sick.
This is my message to everybody. Fans, and media included.
Leave Andy's Family ALONE! Either show your support, or STFU!
It started innocently. Donovan McNabb said earlier in the week that>>DallasNews.com
anyone's plans to win the NFC East have to go through Philadelphia. And most
Cowboys agreed with the quarterback, based on the five division titles the
Eagles have won in the last six years.
Until, that is, Thursday.
"Right now, they are in no position to talk about everything going
through Philly," Cowboys safety Roy Williams said of the 3-4 Eagles.
"Some teams went to Philly and beat them. No one is worried about 'You have to go through Philly.'
Terrell Owens was asked about the Philadelphia fans in a press conference Wednesday, and this is what he responded with:
"Those boos, they ain't really boos,'' he said, then smiled, playing to reporters prodding him to talk about Eagles fans. "There's a lot of love in those boos. They ain't got no choice but to boo me, because I'm on the other side. I guarantee you if I were to get traded to the Eagles right now, they'd love me. I loved it when I was there. Those are some great fans. When you're there, they love you. When you're on the opposite side, they're going to pretend they hate you.''
