Eagles Fry Fish 17-7

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.

Westbrook To Holdout?

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.

Eagles Scalp Skins

Goal Line Stand Saved Season:

The Eagles defense had been on it's heels most of the game. The defensive line had gotten almost no pressure to this point, the secondary was brutal, and the linebackers were missing tackles.

The Redskins had a first and goal at the 2 yard line, after Donovan McNabb fumbled the ball a few play before. A Redskins score would put them up 9, and would have likely sealed the game.

The defense had enough. On six plays inside the five(a penalty in the middle) the Eagles defense rose to the occasion. They held the Redskins to a field goal, and gave the offense a chance to win the game.

This stand reminded me of Lito's interception against Carolina last year. A play that saved the Eagles season, and sparked the entire team. I only hope this has the same effect.

A Play To Remember:

After the goal line stand, the Eagles still had to score. Who do they turn to in situations like these? Brian Westbrook. Put the ball in Westbrook's hands, and let him do his magic.

On a perfectly executed screen play, McNabb tossed the ball to Brian over the heads of three defensive lineman. Then there were two devastating blocks by Shawn Andrews, and Jon Runyan. This got Westbrook into the clear, and he did the rest from there. A great cutback left, and Westbrook almost had a clear path to the end zone. As he dashed 50 yards or so, he made a cutback right to avoid the last possible tacklers, and scored.

This 57 yard amazing catch, and run was the play of the season for the Birds. It reminded me of the Tampa Bay play from last year, except this time there would be no miracle field goal. This time his great play will be remembered.

Westbrook had an awesome game. He rushed for 100 yards on 20 carries, he had 5 catches for 83 yards, and three total touch downs.

If the Eagles want to continue to win games, the formula is simple. Get the ball in Brian Westbrook's hands.

McNabb Showed Mobility:

Donovan looked like the Donovan of old. He was moving well in the pocket, he escaped, and run a few times. He even had some nice moves in the open field. It looks like the knee is starting to not be an issue. At least is wasn't on Sunday.

McNabb did not have a perfect game, as a few pass were nearly intercepted, but when you look at the final numbers he played well. He completed 20 of 28 passes for 251 yards, and 4 touch downs.

The offense scored 5 times, and looked a lot better than it has most of the season. The Eagles were successful in the red zone, and that was a great sign. The Birds need to build off this, and continue to make strides.

A Gutsy Call:

What a call by Andy Reid on 4th, and inches. The Eagles had fallen into a 3rd, and 21, and Donovan Fired a bullet to Jason Avant. They fell inches short of the first down, and as Andy Reid was standing there looking at the distance they needed, he decided to go for it.

Normally you always punt on 4th down at your own 39 yard line, but the Redskins offense had been moving all over the Eagles. Reid knew this, and could not afford to go down another score. He put faith in his guys that they could get the few inches, and they did.

The call was a QB sneak. Donovan Got behind Jammal Jackson, Todd Herremans, and Shawn Andrews, and just dove forward to get the first down. This eventually led to the Eagles scoring on a touch down pass to L.J. Smith.

The decision was huge, and Andy made the right one. This helped the offense gain confidence. Great job by Andy Reid.

FINALLY!:

Reggie Brown pointed to his wrist, to symbolize that it was about time he got in the end zone. Brown had a very slow start to the season, and there had been very high expectations from him. The past three games he has slowly become more involved, and yesterday he made a great adjustment to an under thrown McNabb pass. I'm not sure how the safety did not see the ball, but Reggie did, and was able to haul it in. It was great to see him score, and hopefully this will get the ball rolling.

Brown wasn't the only one to get their first touch down of the season. L.J. Smith found the end zone as well. L.J. has been banged up for most of the year recovering from his hernia surgery. He finally looks to be back to his old self. He made some nice grabs, and got a crucial touch down on third down in the red zone.

Smith did fumble once, which really hurt the team. It lead to Washington's first touchdown. I hate the way he holds the ball when he runs. He uses one arm, and does not even tuck it away. The ball is just resting on his forearm, and is not pressed against his body like it should be. L.J. has had the issue for a while now, and he needs to correct it already. Andy Reid should put him to fumble school, like Tom Coughlin did to Tiki Barber. Teach him a new way to carry the football, and make sure he sticks with it. You can not afford to have plays like that in the NFL.

Revenge Of James Thrash:

Yes that's right folks. It was not T.O. this time. It was James stinkin Trash. The same James Thrash who almost never made a play. The same guy who got punked by Carolina in the NFC Championship Game. He somehow managed to have a field day on the Eagles. Thrash had five receptions for 85 yards, and two touchdowns. That is right TWO touch downs. I think that is double the amount Thrash had for all of the 2003 season as a starter.

The Eagles secondary should be embarrassed for the game they had. Will James was abused once again. They really need to just cut him. He is becoming the weakest link on the team. Sheldon Brown even let Thrash get some catches. Lito Sheppard let 37 year old Keenan McCardell score a touch down.

They just had a really poor day collectively. The only one who made a play, was Quinton Mikell. He forced a fumble, and Joselio Hanson recovered.

I know I have ripped Hanson in the past, but he should be the nickle CB at this point. Will James is getting murdered out there. It is time to at least put somebody there who has some speed.

Has Joe Gibbs Lost It?:

I really respect the man, and understand he is already inducted into the hall of fame, but he did an awful job coaching this game.

The Redskins committed 11 penalties, including crucial third-down miscues, and again suffered from questionable clock management and play-calling. Coach Joe Gibbs had no timeouts left in the final crucial minutes, and a conservative call on a late third-and-goal virtually guaranteed the Eagles would have a chance to win.

I was very shocked at how poorly the Redskins managed the game.

Season Saved. For Now:

Just when I think the Birds are done, they pull me back in. This was not the most convincing victory, but the Eagles will take it. A win is a win. Get them anyway you can.

I really expected the Eagles to lose this game too. I had lost my faith in them, and they surprised me.

Next week the Eagles have to handle business against the 0-9 Miami Dolphins, because after that is a trip to New England.

Donovan Clears The Air Again

What seems to be a reoccurring theme, Donovan McNabb once again had to explain his comments from a recent press conference. This time he decided to do so on his Yardbarker blog:

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 media is really reaching with this story. After a bad game, they take one sentence from his entire press conference, and try to create controversy. They of course left out all the quotes where Donovan said that he could play better. Brian Westbrook even agreed with Donovan. This is what he said:

"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

Cowboys Embarrass Eagles 38-17

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.

Birds D Collapses In Final Minute

97 Friggin Yards:

The Eagles defense has been excellent this year. So when Sav Rocca pinned the Bears deep with a minute 52 seconds left, you would think they could be able to hold the Bears inept offense one last time.

Well if you saw this dreadful game, then you already know they didn't hold.

The Bears had no timeouts, and started off the drive by throwing short underneath passes. 11 yards to Clark, 9 to Peterson, 9 to Hester, and 9 more to Clark.

Then with the game on the line the Bears attack changed.

On a 3rd and 3 with only 49 ticks to go, Brian Griese Throws a strike to Bernard Berrian in stride. Berrian gets all the way to the Eagles 39 for a gain of 25 yards. The Bears quickly ran down the field, and spiked the ball. The next play was another big one for the Bears. Greise passed to Devin Hester for 21 more yards. Bears ran up to the 15 yard line, and spiked the ball again.

Then comes the dagger. Greise floated one up in the back of the end zone, and Muhsin Muhammad out jumped Sean Considine for the game winning touch down catch.

What a disaster. The Eagles were on their way to victory, and then in a blink of an eye they get sliced apart by Brian Griese.

I am still in shock. It is just unbelievable how this team finds ways to lose. One game it's the special teams, next it's the receivers, then the o-line breaks down, and now the defense breaks at the wrong time.

You would think you can get used to losing games like this being a Philadelphia sports fan, but you can't. It hurts just as bad every time. Another punch to the gut.

Redzone Woes:

The offense is not off the hook either in this game. They moved the ball well, but was again very poor in the redzone.

On the first drive of the game, the Eagles offense was methodically moving down the field. On a crucial 3rd and goal McNabb fired a bullet to Reggie Brown. Reggie dropped what would have been a touchdown. It was not the easiest catch, but that is a play Brown has to make.

There were two other possessions were McNabb just misfired on key plays. Both times missing tight end Matt Schobel badly. One would have been a touch down.

When they finally were able to get a red zone TD, McNabb celebrated like it was the first TD pass of his career. I guess it is big when you get your team has failed to score a touchdown in your last ten red zone trips.

These missed opportunities kept the Bears in the game. If you let a team hang around too long, they might get you. This Eagles were got. I have heard talk all week on how they are going to fix these mistakes, but they are still making them.

After the game Reid had this to say on the red zone inefficiency.

"We have to do better. When we have opportunities to catch the football and make throws and those types of things, we have to do them. We have to keep working as coaches on putting guys in better positions so that they can have success down there."

I'm tired of hearing we have to do better. Do better already!

Andy Reid should make the team come to work tomorrow. There should not be the usual two days off after this lousy performance. The mistakes need to be corrected now. Everybody is tired of hearing excuses.

At Least They Didn't Kick To Hester:

This was probably the most surprising thing to me. I know that Andy Reid tends to be very arrogant, and I was shocked that he would not kick it to Hester. It did give the Bears good field position, but it was the right decision. Hester did not have any returns in the game. Give a lot of credit to David Akers, Sav Rocca, and special teams coach Rory Segrest.

Every punt was a directional punt out of bounds, and every kickoff was a high short kick. They did what it took to not let the very dangerous Devin Hester get the ball.

Run the Ball Andy?:

When McNabb got hurt last year, Andy Reid changed the offense to feature Brian Westbrook. They ran the ball a lot, and it seemed to really be an efficient offense. Now that McNabb is back, Andy is up to his old pass happy ways.

With Donovan coming back from this injury, why does he insist on not running the ball more? It seems that as soon as Westbrook gets tackled for a loss, Reid abandons the run completely. Reporters constantly hammer him with these questions, but he always gives the standard "we have to do a better job there".

If he wants this team to win games, he has to revert back to a more run oriented scheme. It worked back in 2003 when the team struggled early, and it worked last season. Time to put plan B into effect, because this one is not working.

Lito Back. Still No BDawk:

It was great to see Lito back. He made some nice plays, and maybe misplayed a few, but it was still great to have him back. I am all for anything that gives Will James less playing time.

This stinger injury to Brian Dawkins must be an extremely. The Eagles are definitely treating it as such. Dawkins has now been out for over a month. Quintin Mikell has filled in admirably, but you would still like to see Dawk out there. He is a play maker, and this defense needs to make some more plays. Especially on the last drive of the game.

Big Hole Gets Bigger:

In case you haven't checked the standings, the Eagles are in last place in the NFC East. This loss drops the Birds to 2-4 on the year. To make matters worse, the Giants, Redskins, and Cowboys all won this week. This drops the Eagles three back of the Cowboys, and two back of the Redskins and Giants.

After last years miracle turn around, I hate to say a season is ever over, but things look very bleak for the Eagles. They have a lot of tough games left, and they have to really fix a lot of problems.

Is anybody looking forward to playing Dallas this year?

Eagles Fly Past the Jets 16-9

Ugly win, but the Birds will take it

Westbrook is Invaluable:

What a nice return for 36. He had 120 yards on 20 carries, and also chipped in with 36 receiving yards. He was consistently very good all game, and completely changed the Eagles offense. Even though the Eagles only managed to score one touchdown, they moved the ball very effectively.

With Westbrook, L.J. Smith, and Tra Thomas all returning, the offense seemed to be more normal, than it has been in the three losses. Brian's presence on the field, opens things up for the receivers, as defenses always have to account for him. He is such a threat to break a big play at any time in the game.

I was very worried about his abdominal injury, but it seemed to be ok today. It must not be as bad, as previously reported.

Lightning Strikes Again:

Kevin Curtis made the play of the game, when he took a quick slant 77 yards for a touchdown on the Eagles opening possession. It was 3rd down, and McNabb had a perfect strike to Curtis, who broke through 2 tackles, and sprinted to the end zone.

Give a lot of credit to Donovan to, for making the audible after reading the Jets defense.

It was a great play, and Curtis is showing that he is a quality starting NFL receiver.

What Can Brown Do For You?:

Not much so far this season, but Reggie Brown finally had a good game. He did not do anything spectacular, but he did play solid. He managed six catches for 89 yards. Many of those were third down catches, including his last big catch when the Jets desperately needed a stop. Hopefully as the offense gets healthy, Brown can continue to get involved more.

Bend Don't Break:

Overall the Eagles defense did a great job. They did give up some yards on the ground, but locked up the Jets in the red zone holding them to four FGs(1 missed). In the first half Thomas Jones was killing the Birds with cutback runs, but in the second half they fixed that.

Sheldon Brown was huge, as he was able to get a big interception off QB Chad Pennington, and Brown also batted down the crucial 4th, and 1 pass. WR Laverneous Coles was pretty much shut down, and give credit to Brown for his big game.

The defensive line is starting to get a nice rotation going, and they now added Lajaun Ramsey to the mix. I really think Ramsey was a great find by the front office, and he should be used more often. Trent Cole notched his team leading 6th sack of the year, and Jevon Kearse was also able to get a sack.

A few minor things that bugged me, are some missed tackles by Considine, Gocong, and James. Those three guys at times play well, and sometimes just look foolish.

The Eagles defense is not great, but they are playing very well. There is clearly a huge difference from last year to now. I think you have to credit the excellent play of the young DTs, and the linebacker overhaul. Many people ripped the Eagles for releasing Jeremiah Trotter, but now it is clear it was the right move. Omar Gaither has been playing very well, and deserves a lot of credit.

Akers Sucks In The Meadowlands:

The numbers don't lie. He has missed more FGs at Giants Stadium, than any where else in the NFL. He hooked two 41 yarders wide today(one might have been tipped).

I don't know if it is the wind, or the ugly New Yorkers, but Akers is not money there.

Normally I have complete confidence with Akers, but not today. Not in that windy stadium. I remember when he missed a chip shot FG there, that could have clinched home field in the playoffs years back. Maybe it is in his head?

I just hope that the Eagles season never comes down to a big kick up there.

Ugly Jets/Titans throwbacks:

Looks like the Rams uniforms a little. These are not as bad as the blue/yellow Eagles throwbacks, but these throwbacks make me wanna throw up.
Season Back On Track?:

Not yet. It is always important to gets Ws, but this is a bad Jets team the Eagles beat. They also did not do it very convincingly. The offense moved the ball well, but settled for too many FGs. The defense played very well, but there are still some mistakes being made.

Realistically the Eagles need to win about 3-4 in a row, before the ship is righted. With only 3 losses, they are clearly not out of it, but now they can't afford to lose many games from here on.

I was almost ready to give up on the team after the Giants loss, because I did not think Brian Westbrook would be able to come back from this injury. Well BWest is definitely back, and looking great, so now I still have some hope. They need to build off this win, and improve in some areas for next weeks match up with the Bears.

Westbrook, Smith and Sheppard Practice

Three up and three down.

Eagles running back Brian Westbrook, tight end L.J. Smith and cornerback Lito Sheppard practiced on Wednesday. Safety Brian Dawkins, left tackle William Thomas and left guard Todd Herremans did not.

Westbrook missed the Giants game after hurting his ribs a week earlier against Detroit. Wednesday’s practice was his first since the injury.

"I really haven’t had an opportunity to test it out fully so I’ll get out there and see how things go,” Westbrook said. "I’ve been making gradual progress since I’ve had the injury, so hopefully that will continue.”

Smith has been out since undergoing surgery on Sept. 21 to expedite the healing of his groin injury. He practiced on a limited basis.

"I didn’t do a complete practice, but I did some things,” Smith said.

Smith played the season’s first two games, making four receptions for 26 yards, but clearly was hindered by the injury. He will not play Sunday against the Jets unless he feels close to 100 percent.

"I’m not going to put myself in the situation I was in the first two games,” Smith said. "I was out there hobbling around and didn’t look good. So if I go out there, I’m definitely going to be able to contribute in a major way. I’m not going to go out there 50 percent, 65 percent – I’m going to go out there and play at a high level.”

Coach Andy Reid announced Wednesday morning that Thomas would attempt to practice and Sheppard would not. It turned out to be the other way around. Both are suffering from sprained MCLs.

Sheppard has been out since suffering his in the season opener against Green Bay. He participated in individual drills on Wednesday.

"I wanted to get out there and gauge it but just not overdo it,” Sheppard said. "We don’t want to have any setbacks. It was kind of the minimum, but I was definitely going through some stuff.”

It seems as though it will at least be another week before Sheppard plays. He said he didn’t work out at game speed.

"There’s always a chance [I could play],” Sheppard said. "I got out there and practiced today, but that’s too early to say right now. We’re just going to see how the rest of this week goes and go from there.”

Like Smith, Sheppard doesn’t want to play at half speed.

"Like I tell everybody, I can’t get out there and be half Lito,” Sheppard said. "When I’m out there, I want to be out there to help my team. That’s what we’re working on right now.”

Thomas injured his knee against the Lions and did not play against the Giants.

"I’m very disappointed,” Thomas said about being unable to practice. "We’ll see how it goes. We’re taking it day to day right now. It’s getting better. It’s definitely getting better.”

Reid said he will not hesitate to start Winston Justice again at left tackle if Thomas can’t play. Justice struggled mightily against the Giants in his first career start.

"I have no problem with that,” Reid said. "I told him to keep his head up and keep firing. He’ll be fine. He’s a good, young football player.”

The Eagles are being cautious with Dawkins, who hasn’t played since suffering a stinger Week 2 against Washington.

"When you’re dealing with nerves, you just don’t know how long those are going to take,” Reid said. "You literally take them day by day. They could take a long time. We’re just playing it by ear. We know he wants to be out there – it’s killing him not to be out there. We want to make sure that thing is right.”

Dawkins went through an intense warm-up before the Giants game but was inactive.

"It's frustrating, very frustrating," Dawkins said Tuesday night during a scheduled appearance at Manny Brown’s in Langhorne, Pa. "All I can do is do what the doctors tell me and hope I'm able to play soon. It's a slow process, and I don't know how long it will take. Hopefully, not too long. It kills you to not be out there with your teammates, especially when things aren't going well.”

Herremans, who has yet to miss a game, underwent arthroscopic knee surgery on Oct. 2 but is expected to play. If Herremans is unable to play, then second-year pro Max Jean-Gilles will start at left tackle.

"I’m presuming that Herremans is going to play in the game,” Reid said.

"His knee was bothering him, so we checked it. He had a cartilage tear in there, so they went in there and cleaned it out. He was back up on his feet that day. The main thing is to keep the swelling down. He feels pretty good right now.”

>>ComcastSportsnet

Giants Sack Eagles

Giant Loss Puts Birds In 1-3 Hole



Under Pressure:

"It's frustrating," said McNabb, who finished 15-of-31 for 138 yards. "For an offense that has had so much success over the previous years, for us to come out and play the way we played today is embarrassing."

Embarrassing? No. Embarrassing is when you accidentally let one rip when you are on a date. This was atrocious, mind boggling, horrific, and just disastrous.

The Eagles offense did not even have a chance today, as they were outplayed, out numbered, and flat out out coached.

The Giants sacked Donovan McNabb 12 times, tying an NFL record. Former Eagles linebackers coach Steve Spagnola called a brilliant game, and he kept heavy pressure coming all night. The Giants who have tremendous depth at defensive end, knew they would get a good pass rush from the edges, and blitzed the Eagles A gap constantly, to get after Donovan from all angles.

One of those great ends, Osi Umenyiora lead the way with six sacks, and was a Giant pain all game. Even when Donovan was not getting sacked, he was being chased, or forced out of the pocket. This lead to many of the sacks, rushed throws, and errant passes. The pass protection scheme definitely failed tonight, and the Eagles game plan was very poor. Early in the first quarter, on a 3rd down play, Reno Mahe was responsible for picking up Umenyiora blitzing from the linebacker position. That is a match up I hope I never see again, as Osi easily pushed Mahe away to get a sack.

The Eagles offensive line was supposed to be a strength of the team, but tonight it was a major weakness. You will not see many victories with pass protection this poor. Throughout the game, the Eagles used a shotgun spread formation, that had minimal pass protection, and this seemed to play right into the Giants blitzing defense. It seemed like the Eagles were getting beat by their own defensive scheme.

Another thing that the Birds offense tried, was switching to a no huddle offense. They have used this several times this year, and it has failed miserably. When you have an offense as complicated as the Eagles, it is very difficult to operate this way, because you are constantly changing personnel packages for different plays. Teams like the Colts can run it so efficiently, because they will use the same exact personnel, and the same exact formation for an entire drive. Using the no huddle has killed a lot of Eagles drives this year, and they need to just give up on it.

Justice Was Not Served:

The Eagles streak of 19 straight games with the offensive line intact, was broken Sunday. With Tra Thomas sidelined for the game, second year tackle Winston Justice got his first career start, and it is sure to be one he would like to forget about. To be blunt about his performance, he was just absolutely terrible.

To make matters worse, John Madden made sure to point out how bad 74 messing up. Then ripped the Eagles for not helping him out more in pass protection. If only Andy had listened to that advice, because Justice was responsible for four of the six sacks that Osi Umenyiora had. Osi ran around him, ran inside, and bull dozed him to get to McNabb. Everybody knew this would be a big test for him going into the game, but nobody expected he would get schooled this bad.

Justice also did poorly in run blocking. The Eagles had tremendous success running the ball to the left last week, and this week they were very inconsistent. Justice was not holding the point of attack, and a few runs got blown up for no gains.

As the game progressed Justice even seemed rattled, as he was repeatedly called for false starts, and possibly was lined up incorrectly one play. (could have been Brent Celek, one of them messed up

The only positive thing I can say for this lousy debut, is that things can only go up from here. It can't get any worse. Osi seemed to agree.

"It was like a video game out there," Umenyiora said. "Winston Justice is a very good football player. Tonight was just one of those nights. He'll learn from that experience."

Justice accepted responsibility.

"I am going to shoulder the loss for the team," he said. "I got out of my technique, tried to make adjustments and they just didn't work."

Strange Miscue Costs Birds:

With one minute, and fifty six seconds to go in the third quarter, McNabb took the snap from under center, and then it appeared that he just dropped the ball. Which was then recovered by New York linebacker Kawika Mitchell, and returned the ball seventeen yards for a score.

With a slow motion replay, you could see that as McNabb was about to hand the ball off to Correll Buckhalter, Thomas Tapeh accidentally bumped into the ball, and created the biggest play(mistake) of the game.

Andy Reid tried to challenge the play, but to no avail. The play would stand, and this would be a back breaker for the Eagles, as they were unable to comeback from a 16-0 deficit. The Picture I found, shows that Schobel contacted him, with his knee down. Way to go refs. After further review you blew it!

I am not sure if the mistake was on Donovan, or Tapeh, but with the way the Eagles offense was sputtering, I knew the game was over right there.

Injuries Keep Piling Up:

Now I know it is lame to use injuries as en excuse for an NFL loss, and I will not do that. However it is alarmingly scary at how many of the Eagles better players are injured.

None scarier than Brian Westbrook's torn abdominal muscle. When Michelle Tafoya described in detail how Brian's ribs would actually poke through the tear, It became clear to me that Westbrook's injury was very severe.

My guess is that Brian will be on the shelf for a long time, and not just a few games. There is no way he is going to be able to perform with this type of injury, and if he does, it will only get worse. The only realistic solution is probably going to require surgery, and a long rehab process. This could mean no Brian Westbrook for most of the remaining season.

As shown tonight Westbrook is sorely missed on this team, and without him they are just not the same team.

Other players out include Brian Dawkins(neck), Lito Sheppard(knee), L.J. Smith(sports hernia), and Tra Thomas(knee). Sheldon Brown suffered a stinger in the first quarter.

The Eagles desperately need these guys back soon, because the team is not performing without them. You will not see this offense be explosive with Brian Westbrook wearing a tee shirt.

Does Plax Own Sheldon?:

Don't get me wrong, I am a huge Sheldon Brown fan. He is one of my favorite players, and I even have his jersey. There just seems to be a huge mismatch problem with Brown covering Plaxico Burress.

He has beaten Sheldon Brown for a Touchdown as least once in each of the past three seasons. I feel like Brown is one of the most fundamentally sound corners in the game, but Plaxico just seems to have his number. His size, and speed make him extremely difficult to defend. On many of the plays Brown even has pretty good coverage on Burress, but Burress, just uses his size to out jump Brown.

Brown also seemed to be getting picked on after he suffered an injury early in the game. He did not have one of his better games, but I know Sheldon will put in the work to improve.

Will James Is Horrible:

Will James is the worst corner back on the Eagles roster, and he is the worst current starter on the team.

James once again got torched deep, and this time he was penalized for blatantly taking Amani Toomer to the ground. The penalty lead to a Giants field goal, but more importantly it once again showed the NFL that James is a bum.

Every QB in the league will pick on number 21, when they see him lined up on the field.

The Eagles would be better off sticking a traffic cone on the field, because at least maybe the receiver would accidentally trip over it. With Will James there is no maybe, he is going to get beat every game.

Rest Of The D Was Solid:

The Eagles did a pretty good job for the most part on defense. Offensively the Giants only scored ten points, and only gave up the one TD to Plaxico.

There are some areas that could still be improved, like some missed tackles, more pressure on the QB, the ability to cover the short pass, and they could work on stopping the bootleg some in practice.

One time NFL sack leader Trent Cole, did not get any sacks, and I expected a big game from him. Juqua Thomas did very little, and Darren Howard was invisible except for a tipped pass.

The one lone sack came from Jevon Kearse of all people. Imagine that. Kearse actually made several nice plays, and that was good to see.

The defensive tackles had another very solid game, and the Eagles defense went another game without allowing a hundred yard rusher. Besides an offsides penalty, Mike Patterson played very well.

Omar Gaither got his second career interception off Eli Manning in the second quarter, and returned it 49 yards the other way. Great play for Omar, but I thought he should have scored on it. He looked really slow running with the football, and Manning was able to get an angle on Gaither, and force him out of bounds.

The defense shows a lot of promise, but there is still work to be done. Rod Hood is also sorely missed. That could be the biggest mistake the front office made this off season.

Not So Special Teams:

This has to be the worst special teams play of any team under Andy Reid. There is no aspect of special teams, that the Eagles excel at, and they can rarely even play a game without a barrage of mistakes.

"Sure handed" Reno Mahe fumbled on a punt return, J.R. Reed dropped the ball on a kick return, the always dependable David Akers missed a field goal, and almost every "decent" return had a stupid penalty.

Sav Rocca had a terrible game, and I am wondering what happened to this great leg? This guy was pinning teams deep in the pre-season, and was thought to be a weapon. Well now he is getting terrible distance, and hang time, and killed the Eagles field position all game.

Former Eagle Jeff Feagles completely outplayed Sav, and showed that he is one the best in the game. Feagles is the best in the game, at directional/pouch punting, and he pinned the Eagles deep twice on consecutive possessions.

The Eagles kick/punt coverage teams still sucked. I don't know if it is Rory Segrest, or the players, but this special teams this year just flat out suck.

At Least The Phillies Beat New York:

If the Phillies had blown the division title, that was handed to them on a silver platter by the Muts, there might be some people ready to jump off the Walt Whitman Bridge today.

You know it is really bad when the Phils are having more success than the Birds.

Props to the Fightins for managing to get through all that adversity, and still win the NL East.

It's been 14 years since the Phillies last made the playoffs, and there is a great buzz in the city about it.

Doom And Gloom:

What a disastrous start to a season filled with so much promise. The only reason I have even the slightest bit of hope, is because of what the 2003 Eagles team overcame. However is Brian Westbrook is required to go under the knife, then you can be sure that the season is over for sure. Westbrook is the teams most dangerous weapon, and without him this teams' offense is mediocre at best.

Andy Reid better have some miracles up his sleeve, or else it will be time to look at college mock drafts soon.

Eagles Face Giant Task

Donovan McNabb quieted critics with a spectacular performance in leading the Philadelphia Eagles to their first win of the season last week. He'll look to follow it up against a New York Giants defense that lifted the team to its first victory of 2007.

The NFC East archrivals meet Sunday night at Giants Stadium in a matchup of clubs looking to put rough starts behind them.

McNabb has been limited to 19 games the last two seasons, missing the final six games of 2006 with a torn ACL and sitting out the last seven contests in '05 due to a sports hernia. The five-time Pro Bowl quarterback struggled in his first two games this season after returning from surgery on the torn knee ligament, throwing for one touchdown and one interception while completing just 54.4 percent of his passes.

McNabb bounced back from the two sub-par performances in electrifying fashion, going 21-of-26 for 381 yards and four touchdowns Sunday to lead Philadelphia (1-2) to a 56-21 victory over Detroit. McNabb recorded the third-best passing yardage total of his career and his most since Dec. 5, 2004 against Green Bay, when he threw for a career-high 464 yards.

"When you're a great quarterback, you're going to have days where things aren't working," coach Andy Reid said. "He knows that. He knows that if he keeps firing, good things will happen."

McNabb was also dogged last week by questions about his comments in an interview that black NFL quarterbacks face greater scrutiny than their white counterparts - inquiries that had him defensive and led to him walking off the podium during a media session Wednesday.

"That wasn't part of my mind-set," McNabb said of his tumultuous week. "With everything that happened, we still have to play football."

A healthy and focused McNabb has the Eagles optimistic they can move beyond their 0-2 start and compete for the division title. Philadelphia, though, may have to overcome a key injury this week, as top running back Brian Westbrook is day to day with an abdominal sprain.

Westbrook, however, sat out all but one of last week's practices with a knee injury and turned in an outstanding all-around effort against the Lions, rushing for 110 yards and two touchdowns on 14 carries, and making five catches for 111 yards and a TD.

"Right now he's pretty sore," Reid said Wednesday.

The Giants (1-2) are also dealing with injury concerns. Receiver Plaxico Burress, who missed two practices last week because of an ankle problem, left the team Wednesday to visit noted orthopedist Dr. Robert Anderson in Charlotte, N.C.

Burress had five catches for 86 yards and the go-ahead touchdown in New York's 24-17 win over Washington on Sunday. With five TD receptions, he's tied with New England's Randy Moss for the league lead.

"Hopefully (there will be) some further recommendation as to what can be done to relieve the issue," coach Tom Coughlin said. "Plaxico actually the other day said to us that he has to practice. He has got to practice. He is not practicing and he is coming into the games. To his credit he knows his assignments, but obviously he is not as sharp as he could be."

Burress' right ankle has been bothering him since he injured it in training camp, but his teammates aren't too concerned about him being ready Sunday.

"Plax, we call him 'Game Day,'" middle linebacker Antonio Pierce said. "On game day he shows up regardless of what anyone wants to say about him during the week. The guy has been in the league long enough, eight years, and he knows how to take care of himself."

The Giants badly want Burress on the field Sunday, but they may be able to rely on a resurgent defense that preserved the badly needed victory over the Redskins.

New York gave up 80 points and more than 600 yards in losing its first two games, but shut out Washington and allowed only 81 total yards in the second half in rallying from a 17-3 deficit at the break.

The Giants capped the effort by stopping the Redskins after Washington had first-and-goal at the 1 with 58 seconds left.

"Just the jubilation you feel when you're running off the field after making a big stop like that, in the division, on the road," defensive tackle Barry Cofield said. "I'll never forget it."

Cofield and the defense will look to carry over the effort against another division foe as the Giants hope to get a strong effort on both sides of the ball. Eli Manning threw for 232 yards against Washington, although he had two interceptions and one touchdown. The TD, however, came on a 33-yard pass to Burress that proved to be the winning score with 2:01 left.

Derrick Ward ran for 94 yards on 26 carries and had six catches for 26 yards, while Reuben Droughns scored on a pair of 1-yard touchdown runs - the Giants' first rushing TDs of the season.

The Eagles and Giants split last year's two meetings, with each team winning on the road.

>>FoxSports

Biggest thing to look for in this game, is the running game for both teams. Pain in the rear Tiki Barber is no longer an issue, but will Derrick Ward be a new problem?

Then there is Westbrook's injury. How bad is it? If he is limited, or misses the game, It would obviously be a huge blow to the Eagles offense.

Injuries, Honors For Westbrook

Brian Westbrook was named NFC Offensive Player of the Week on Wednesday. Unfortunately, the running back also topped the list of five starters who did not participate in the team's first practice of the week.

Head coach Andy Reid outlined his team's fluid injury situation during his late morning press conference. Tight end L.J. Smith has been ruled out for Sunday night's game as he continues his recovery from last Friday's groin surgery.

Meanwhile, Westbrook (abdominal strain), free safety Brian Dawkins (neck stinger), cornerback Lito Sheppard (knee) and left tackle William Thomas (knee) all remain day-to-day with their respective injuries, although Reid said they are all "improving."

Some more than others.

"It's not by big strides that he's getting better, but he is making improvement," Reid said of Westbrook. "It was important a day or two after the game that he wasn't regressing at all."

Westbrook missed all but one practice last week due to a knee strain, but that didn't limit his productivity against the Lions. He had 110 yards rushing, 111 more receiving and three touchdowns before leaving Sunday's game with what he termed as a "freak" injury.

"I made a move," Westbrook said. "I kind of twisted my body a little bit."

Westbrook missed one game in 2004 after suffering a cracked rib and chest contusion, but he says this injury is completely different.

"It's a muscle type deal. It's muscles in there that are strained," he said. "Ribs are one of those injuries where you really can't give it a rest, because every time you move, you feel it and you are using that muscle. I've never had this injury before.

"I'm doing everything to get in a position so I can play."

Although he is unable to practice, Westbrook says he's keeping up to speed in the classroom and maintaining his conditioning. Bottom line: he is preparing to play.

"It's just [about] getting to a point where you're comfortable enough to go out there and perform at a high level," Westbrook said. "Like I said before, every time you move, you use your ribs and the muscle between your ribs. So that's something I have to be concerned with. I'm trying to do everything possible to get there. Really, only time will tell. I'm preparing myself as if I am going to play."

Said Reid: "We'll just see how he feels through these next couple of days."

That wait-and-see approach seems to apply to the other injured players as well. A determination on their status for the game, Reid indicated, could come as late as pre-game Sunday.

"I want everybody that can play to play. If they can't, then they can't. It's pretty simple, whether you have a bye week or not," Reid said. "Those are just day-to-day situations. We'll just see how they progress here. They're living in the training room. So, they're getting plenty of treatment and we'll see how they do."

Thomas left Sunday's game in the third quarter with an MCL sprain, but Reid says it's not as severe as the one that has sidelined Sheppard the last two games.

"[It's] not quite the same. [It's] not quite as bad as what Lito had," Reid said.

Sheppard has done some conditioning work of late but has yet to participate in practice. Dawkins, meanwhile, remains sidelined because of a neck stinger he sustained last Monday night.

"Both of them are Pro Bowl players and we'd love to have them," Reid said of Dawkins and Sheppard. "But the guys that have replaced them and stepped in for them have done a nice job."

Reserves on both sides of the ball -- Quintin Mikell, William James, Joselio Hanson, Matt Schobel, Brent Celek and Winston Justice -- have filled in admirably when called upon in recent weeks and may be called upon heavily again Sunday night at the Meadowlands.

>>Home Page

Eagles Tame Lions

Birds Route Detroit 56-21

Eagles bounce back in a big way. With their backs against the wall, wearing the ugliest jerseys ever, the Eagles offense came to life. Except for a few bad play from Will James, and the Matador tackler, the Eagles defense was pretty solid.

McNabb Was Awesome:

A good mix of run, and pass was one reason the offense flourished, but the biggest key was that Donovan McNabb was outstanding. I really believe that taking the knee brace off, is the difference between the McNabb of last week, and the McNabb that threw for four TDs today. He was able to get full use of his knee, that gave him much better footwork, and resulted in very accurate passes. Donovan also seemed much quicker without the brace, and more like his old self. If he continues to play like this in coming weeks, everybody might forget that he even had a knee injury.

Donovan took a lot of heat this past week from fans, and the media nation wide. I think a lot of people are just impatient, and need to really shut up when it comes to Donovan McNabb. He is the best QB in Eagles franchise history, so cheer, and enjoy him while you can.

The Ultimate Weapon:

Brian Westbrook shows once again that he is such a big time play maker, as he gets 110 yards rushing, 111 yards receiving, and 3 touchdowns. The offensive line gets a lot of credit, for paving the way for Brian, but once he got in the open field, he shows why he is one of the best players in the NFL. Eluding tackles, and bowling through others, Brian just always seems to make guys miss tackles. I know this is the Detroit Lions defense, but he does this to every team.

Westbrook was snubbed from the Pro Bowl last year, but maybe this year he can get in.

Hat Trick:

That's right, three touchdowns for WR Kevin Curtis. Curtis had the biggest day of any Eagles receiver since TO. His biggest catch, was the first touchdown of the game where he put a great double move on the corner, and beat him for a 68 yard bomb.

That play started everything off, and the offense just opened up, as Curtis finished the game with 11 catches for 221 yards.

A lot of people ripped the signing of Kevin Curtis, and cried about the departure of Donte Stallworth. Well now I wonder how they feel about this move. Curtis just exploded today, and Stallworth has not done much in New England.

Sack Attack:

The Eagles brought heavy pressure on QB Jon Kitna, and surprisingly a lot of it came without blitzing. Trent Cole lead the way with a huge day, getting three sacks, and forcing a fumble. Cole is having a great season, and continues to get to the QB.

Jevon Kearse has done nothing over the last two games, but his backup Juqua Thomas had 2 sacks, and a forced fumble. Juqua has been a great pickup, and he also continues to get a ton of pressure on the QB.

Brodrick Bunkley had 2 sacks as well, and Quintin Mikell had a nice sack on a blitz. Mikell did an excellent job filling in for the injured Brian Dawkins, and he again proves how valuable he is to this team.

Sean Considine had a great interception, tip toeing in the back of the end zone, right before halftime. Great to see Sean make a big play.

Will James sucked again. He repeatedly got picked on, and exposed as a slow almost useless player to even have on the team. Shaun McDonald blew past him on the quick slant that lead to the Lions first TD. James also let Roy Williams catch the ball, and never even layed a finger on him, as he just kept on running to the end zone.

Joselio Hanson also had a shot at Williams, but of course he was unable to make the tackle. Hanson also dropped what should have been a interception for six the other way.

I am not sure which is worse, a corner who can't run, or a corner that can't tackle. I guess at this point, they should just bump Hanson up, because while James is like a traffic cone out there. Please get well soon Lito.

Jerseys Are Still Ugly:

There are a lot of superstitious people in the world, who think a teams jersey color could change the outcome of the game. For example, many people think the Eagles alternate black jersey is bad luck. Well I don't care that the Eagles blew out the Lions in these hideous rags.

I never want to see the Eagles wear this Jersey again!

The only people that the jersey looks good on is the Cheerleaders.

Are the Eagles really going to lose to the Lions?

Backs against the wall:

The Eagles are trying to avoid their first 0-3 start, since 1999. The team they face is the Detroit Lions. Usually that would be great news for a struggling team, but this may not be your typical woeful Lions team.

In 2003 the Eagles started 0-2, and were able to amazingly finish the year 12-4. Can this team duplicate that same magical run? Not likely if McNabb continues to struggle. He needs to forget the past two weeks, and step it up this week. The season is on the line. An 0-3 hole is too big to climb out of.

Not the same ole Lions:

This Lions team is 2-0, and is loaded with offensive talent. Especially at the WR position. Roy Williams is one of the leagues elite, and Calvin Johnson is quickly proving he belongs among that group too. Former Rams receiver Shaun McDonald is also a threat that has to be accounted for. Not having Lito Sheppard causes huge mismatch problems, as the Eagles will now have to rely on Will James, and Joselio Hanson much more than they should.

The Lions do not particulary run the ball well, but they do have a good group of backs. Tatum Bell has explosive speed, and TJ Duckett is a load between the tackles. If the Lions can sustain any kind of running attack, they will probably have the Eagles defense on their heels.

Starting QB Jon Kitna made a bold prediction in the pre-season, that the Lions would win ten games this year, and so far it is looking good. He is a solid veteran, and is a very tough guy. He left last weeks game against the Vikings with a concussion, but was able to return in the next quarter to lead his team to victory. He has a strong arm, and is very capable of hitting those big time receivers deep for big plays.

This offense will be a huge test for the Birds, and one I do not feel very confient that they will do well against.
Defensively the Lions are pretty average. However, Shaun Rogers, and Cory Redding are one of the best DT tandems in the league. Second year linebacker Ernie Sims is a tackling machine. DE Dewayne White is an undersized speed end, similar to Trent Cole. He was a very underrated pickup in this offseason, and he has made a bunch of plays for Detroit already. Linebacker Boss Bailey has not done much in his career, but after two games in 2007, he already has two sacks.

The Lions secondary no longer has Dre Bly, and Terrance Holt, but has played pretty well so far. If there was any group that the Eagles should attack, it is this one. People have been ripping the receivers a lot, and if they can't get open agains Detroit, the Eagles are in serious trouble.

McNabb takes off the brace:

McNabb practices without brace
Bob Kent, of PhiladelphiaEagles.com, reports Philadelphia Eagles QB Donovan McNabb (knee) participated in practice without a brace on his surgically repaired right knee Friday, Sept. 21.

>>KFFL

Maybe it is the knee brace, that is disrupting Donovan's footwork. If he can confidently play without it, I think you may see his accuracy dramatically improve. Keep an eye out early, to see if he is wearing it or not.

Time to run the ball Andy:

Enough of this 75% pass happy offense. To help McNabb out, and the offense out, the Eagles must run the ball much more. When they do hand off to Westbrook, he makes good things happen. This issue has been hammered in the media time, and time again, and now everybody should just pray that Andy will get the message. Run the ball Andy!

Ugly UCLA Jerseys:

These are probably the ugliest football jerseys i have ever seen. The design, color scheme, and helmet, are all terrible. Any other Eagles throwback jersey would have been a better choice. I personally would have liked to see the Kelly green. If the Eagles lose, I am partially blaming the ugly jerseys.

Injuries: B-West, B-Dawk Remain Sidelined

Thursday came and went without much of an update on Brian Westbrook. Dressed in his jersey and shorts and wearing an Eagles sideline hat, the running back watched practice much like he did on Wednesday.

"That's a day to day situation," offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg said earlier in the day. "We'll see."

The strained knee that Westbrook suffered in Monday night's game was scheduled to be looked at further by team physicians.

Westbrook's official designation for Sunday's game against the Lions will come Friday when head coach Andy Reid holds his final media briefing.

Correll Buckhalter has taken reps with the first-team offense, while Westbrook has undoubtedly gotten plenty of mental reps as a spectator.

Westbrook has accounted for 53 percent of the total net yards the offense has produced over the first two games.

Knee swelling limited Westbrook's practice reps early last season but he missed just one game -- the Monday night win over Green Bay -- and finished the season with a career-high 1,217 rushing yards.

Dawk, Smith, Lito Remain Sidelined

In addition to Westbrook, the team practiced Thursday without cornerback Lito Sheppard, free safety Brian Dawkins and tight end L.J. Smith.

Defensive coordinator Jim Johnson seemed optimistic about having at least one of those defensive starters in the lineup for Sunday.

"We anticipate he's going to be there Sunday," Johnson said of Dawkins. "We don't plan on Lito right now."

Dawkins suffered a neck stinger as a result of a hit he put on Redskins tight end Todd Yoder in the fourth quarter. On Wednesday, Dawkins said his neck was a "little stiff" and that he was not experiencing any headaches or dizziness. Johnson expects to have Dawkins back on the field Friday.

Sheppard remains sidelined with an MCL sprain suffered in the season opener.

Smith, meanwhile, continues to fight a nagging groin strain that has hampered the tight end since training camp. The injury has limited his productivity as evidenced by his numbers through two games -- four catches for 26 yards.

"L.J. is a tough guy. He's been playing hurt," said offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg. "Whoever is in there, we expect to play well."

Matt Schobel and rookie Brent Celek could see extended action this weekend depending on Smith's status.

Seven Added; Two Return

Seven players were added to the team's injury report Thursday although all of them participated fully in practice. Those players included kicker David Akers (quadricep), right guard Shawn Andrews (shoulder), receivers Hank Baskett (back), Kevin Curtis (quadricep) and Greg Lewis (hip), quarterback A.J. Feeley (hand) and defensive end Jevon Kearse (shoulder).

Meanwhile, strong safety Sean Considine and left tackle William Thomas were back on the field after sitting out Wednesday. Considine suffered a knee contusion Monday night, but returned to the game. Thomas exited Monday's game with back spasms, a condition he's battled on and off for the last five years.

Lions Injury Update

Starting tight end Dan Campbell missed practice for a second straight day due to an elbow injury. Backup running back T.J. Duckett (ankle) also missed practice again.

Starting defensive end Kalimba Edwards (ankle) sat out Thursday's practice. He was limited in Wednesday's workout.

Sarting nose tackle Shaun Rogers (knee) and running back Kevin Jones (foot), a former first-round pick, were both limited for a second straight day.

Added to Detroit's report were starting left tackle Jeff Backus (knee) and reserve linebacker Anthony Cannon (quad), both of whom did not practice Thursday.

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Eagles Lose Again. Mass Hysteria Ensues

Time to press the panic button?

I know many fans already have, and I can't blame them. The Eagles are 0-2, and this was supposed to be the "easy" part of the schedule. Last week the offensive woes were overlooked because of the two muffed punts. This week it was painfully clear that the offense has major problems, and the entire nation saw it.

Donovan is not Super Five anymore:

As the offense puttered down the field, like an 85 Buick with a bad transmission, It was painfully obvious that there is something majorly wrong with Donovan McNabb. He is very inaccurate with his throws, and as he admitted himself, the "explosion" is not there when he runs. McNabb sailed a few high, had a few behind, a few too far in front, and even mixed in a few worm burners. Some blame the receivers, but I am not buying it. Last year the Eagles offense was explosive with the same receivers minus Kevin Curtis. The receivers are not the problem, it is Donovan. Poor footwork seems to be the reason he can't make these throws, and that is a result of the bad knee. If this is the case, then you will not see the Donovan of old, for at least another full year. The problem with that is, this season could be a wash, and I don't think Eagles fans are willing to be that patient. If you listen to talk radio, people are already starting the "get him outta here" talk.

Playcalling:

All the talk of the Eagles being more dedicated to the run seems to be just talk. They started off the Greenbay with a balanced attack, and then in the second half, they completely got away from running the ball. that carried over into last night, as the Eagles called 51 passing plays, and only 18 run plays. That is a 73-27 pass/run ratio. That is completely mind boggling how bad that is. When Ron Jaworski said the Eagles are a great play action pass team, I laughed. How can any team respect the Birds play action? I also wonder if Andy Reid has been calling the plays again. This game has his finger prints all over it, and I am willing to bet he would be stubborn enough to take back the play calling. You need to have balance in the NFL to win, and I doubt that Reid will ever get it at this point.

Defense Misses Lito:

Will James is terrible. I don't care that he got an interception, on a bad pass by Jason Campbell, Will James was getting killed all game. He does not have the ability to stay with speed receivers. The Redskins picked on him all game long, and for the most part they abused Will James. In the 4th quarter, the Redskins took a shot downfield, and Santana Moss put a move on James that left him in the dust. James was 8 yards behind Moss, and lucked out when Campbell overthrew everybody. I am really missing Rod Hood a lot right now, and so are the Eagles.

Then there is this stiff Joselio Hanson. After the Redskins had 3 penalties in a row, near the end of the first half, how do you let Chris Cooley get behind you? To cover James thrash of all people? The Eagles all week long focused on defending Chirs Cooley, and Hanson blew it at a crucial time. I would also like to point out, that Hanson tackles like a girl. He waits for guys to come to him, and then tackles their legs from behind. As a defensive player, you need to attack the ball carrier. Fly to the football, wrap up, and drive your body through the offesnive player. From now on Joselio is going to be known as the Matador tackler.

He is not the only one who missed tackles though. Sheldon Brown, Sean Considine, and even Brian Dawkins missed tackles. This is something that drives me absoloutely crazy. The Eagles used to be a great tackling team back in 2002, and each year, it seems to get worse. Now it is to the point where you expect at least 4 or 5 missed tackles a game.

The defense overall did a lot of things well, but there are still some issues there. Brodrick Bunkley, Juqua Thomas, Omar Gaither, Mike Patterson, and Takeo Spikes all played very well. I just think after seeing how bad Will James looked, that teams are going to continue to exploit him all season long, and that could kill them.

Reno Returns:

Reno Mahe is back, and got a standing ovation when he went on the field for the first time. Very ironic that the same people who wanted him gone so badly, are now delighted to see him back. As expected Reno did not break anything big, but he made no mistakes. He also was sporting a new number(25), because his old number(34) was taken by practice squad FB Jason Davis.

More Injuries:

Free safety Brian Dawkins and running back Brian Westbrook are among four starters hurting a day after Monday night's loss to Washington, but head coach Andy Reid doesn't believe the injuries are serious enough to keep them out for Sunday's home game against Detroit.

Dawkins sustained a neck stinger as a result of a hit he put on Redskins tight end Todd Yoder in the fourth quarter. The Pro Bowl free safety was down for some time before being helped up and led down the tunnel. Dawkins underwent an MRI on Tuesday and Reid said "he'll be alright as the week goes on here."

Westbrook, who has 51 touches in the first two games, suffered a knee strain.

"He twisted his knee a little bit," Reid said of his prized running back.

Westbrook had 96 rushing yards and 66 receiving to lead the Eagles in both categories Monday night and the head coach believes as far as workload goes Westbrook is "right about where he needs to be."Meanwhile, L.J. Smith continues to fight a nagging groin strain that has hampered the tight end since training camp. The injury has certainly limited his productivity as evidenced by Smith's numbers through two games -- 26 yards on four receptions.

"He'll just keep working through this thing," Reid said.

Up front, left tackle William Thomas exited the game with back spasms, a condition he's battled on and off for the last five years."I think that's one thing we'll have to deal with," Reid said. "We dealt with it before."Back spasms cost Thomas one game back in 2003, but overall he has been a steady presence as Donovan McNabb's blindside bodyguard. Thomas has started 136 of 137 career games.

Second-year man Winston Justice replaced Thomas and "did a nice job," according to Reid.

Justice could get some extra work with the first-team offense this week as coaches may look to get Thomas some rest.

Back on defense, Pro Bowl cornerback Lito Sheppard is reportedly getting better with an MCL sprain he suffered in the season opener. Will James started in place of Sheppard on Monday night and James responded with his first interception as an Eagle.

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Can this season be salvaged?:

Is is possible to come back from 0-2, and make the playoffs? Yes it is. In fact the 2003 Eagles finished the season 12-4 after an 0-2 start, and went to the NFCCG. I don't think that this team is capable of doing the same thing, and the reason is obvious.

McNabb is not the same. With this knee hindering Donovan's throws, he may play poorly all season. Now that A.J. Feeley has a broken hand, the only other option right now is rookie Kevin Kolb. If you go to Kolb, you would really just be throwing in the towel. I think this team can play much better, but after what I have seen the past two games, they are clearly not a contender. even if Andy Reid shifted this offense to be more run oriented, they still would have problems with McNabb's erratic passes. It's going to take a miracle for things to turn around again like they did in 2003.