Lucky Win

Posted: September 16th, 2014 | Author: | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 401 Comments »

First, let’s be honest about the Eagles and Nick Foles. Both are erratic right now. The team is 2-0, but has hardly looked like anything special. They fell behind 17-0 last week and 20-6 this week. Coming from behind is impressive, but you want to quit falling behind teams. Really good teams have the ability to win games coming from behind and also win on those days when they don’t have their A-game. However, they do both things rarely because really good teams usually play really good football on a consistent basis.

This Eagles team is 2-0 and that’s great. They’ve shown the ability to win ugly. In the coming weeks, they need to play better. Penalties, dropped passes and poor tackling all hurt the team last night. Those are the kind of execution errors that must get cleaned up.

As for Foles, he threw for 337 yards and a TD, but did not play well. He was good enough to get the job done, but had another game where he didn’t see some open receivers and threw some off-target passes. I’ll need to write a full post on Foles since this is a lengthy subject, but don’t try to come to any conclusions about him right now. The guy is in a semi-funk. He doesn’t need to be benched. He’s not a bust. Foles is going through a rough time.

If this lasts for another month, then we’ve got something to discuss. He was better last night than in the opener. Hopefully he’ll be better next week than he was last night. You have to be patient with young QBs. There are going to be ups and downs.

I have to say that I am shocked by the play of Darren Sproles. In 3 years with the Saints, Sproles had 3 plays that went for 40 or more yards (runs or receptions). In 2 games with the Eagles, he has 3 such plays. Wow. Sean Payton is a great offensive mind. Drew Brees is a great QB. It sure seems like Chip Kelly and Darren Sproles are a perfect match for each other with that kind of production. I fully admit I didn’t think the Eagles would have interest in Sproles. I was dead wrong and thank god for that. Without him, the team isn’t anywhere close to 2-0.

The best part about Sproles is his strength / toughness. We all knew he was quick and elusive. And boy is he ever. But watch that TD run. Man, he is like a bowling ball the way he bounces off defenders. And then on the long screen pass…I thought the stiff arm was going to get him into the end zone. He kept the tackler off him for 5 to 10 yards before being dragged down at the 6-yard line.

We got a big scare on defense when Mychal Kendricks went out. There is hope on that front.

Casey Matthews was awful when he came in. I didn’t see enough of Emmanuel Acho to have an opinion on him. Before you start ripping the Eagles for their lack of depth, they had some but Najee Goode got hurt last week. Go look around the league. You won’t find many 3-4 teams that have 4 good ILBs.

If Kendricks is going to miss time, the Eagles will have to make a move. We’ll discuss that when it seems like we know what’s going to happen.

Fletcher Cox came up big again last night. He had 4 solo tackles, a TFL and a key FF. He’s playing at a Pro Bowl level right now. DeMeco Ryans was in on 10 tackles and had a big game as well. The defense had a rough night, but came up with 2 takeaways and made some key stops to keep the team in position to win.

Plenty of folks in the media and certainly all Colts supporters are making the point that Brandon Boykin got away with a penalty and that cost Indy the game. Faulty thinking. Even if the refs throw that flag, the game isn’t over. Whose to say the Colts don’t fumble on the next run play? Maybe Luck throws an INT on a play-action pass? His passes had been getting tipped all game long.

The Eagles did benefit from several calls last night. There’s no disputing that. I’m just glad the team took advantage of it. I’ve seen other teams get some favorable calls and do nothing with them.

It wasn’t a good night for STs. The coverage units were sloppy. The return game was pedestrian. Cody Parkey missed a 38-yard FG that could have been very costly. But the Football Gods decided to give Parkey a chance for redemption. He was able to kick the game-winner. Twice, actually. I wasn’t all that nervous after the timeout. His kick had been smooth and Chip Kelly said something to Parkey. I was guessing Chip asked him if they should call a timeout to let him clear his head. Whatever Parkey said, Kelly went back to the sideline and let his rookie kicker do his thing…which was to nail the winning kick. Clutch. And it must have been sweet considering the Colts were the team that Parkey was with this summer.

Flawed performance last night, but a huge win. The Eagles remain out in front in both the NFC East and the AFC South. Last year the Eagles started 1-3 and took forever to really climb out of that hole. Being 2-0 makes such a huge difference. Now if we can just get the team to play some good football.

_


401 Comments on “Lucky Win”

  1. 1 GEAGLE said at 8:38 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    The great comeback kid Andrew luck certainly wasn’t able to comeback against us.. Best defenders yesterday:
    1) Cox
    2) Demeco
    3) Cary
    4) Jenkins
    5) Boykin

    Don’t think people understand how hard it is to make your offense work to the tune of 30 points, when one of your offensive lineman, Gardner, were completely dominated all game. it’s amazing that our offense was able to overcome Gardner being dominated..

    We are a growing team… A team that’s learning how to find ways to win, no matter what…. That’s impressive.
    ,,,
    Strongly disagree with this entire article, but I’ll leave it at that

  2. 2 BreakinAnklez said at 11:46 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    I get taking the positive look at things but there are still causes for concern as Tommy mentioned.

    Too many plays left on the field, mental mistakes, dumb penalties by veteran players, drops, Foles is missing open receivers even when he has time to throw. The red zone offense is struggling.

    These are all problems that can and must be fixed if we want to be a serious threat. We can’t be making these mistakes against NFC West or in the playoffs.

    The team didn’t give up and kept fighting which is something we havnt seen in a LONG time. A win is a win regardless of how pretty it looks. But we could just as easily be 0-2.

  3. 3 GEAGLE said at 3:34 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    No shit there is plenty of cause for concern… But I didnt expect world beaters in September, but my expectation is that we would grow enough over the course of the season to be some bad mofo’s come playoff time…

    Plenty of good things happened last night, I refuse to be a negative fool the day after a win….that doesn’t mean that there isn’t plenty to improve on

  4. 4 Mr. Toledo said at 3:19 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    fucking joke you say? how many playoff games against seattle you think we are going to win with foles missing wide open targets and these receivers dropping passes. dont get me wrong im feeling great today after that win last night. but i dont read about the eagles everyday in hopes we can skim our way through the season. i wanna see pure execution on all cylinders and complete domination dammmmit!!!!

  5. 5 Rick H said at 6:56 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    1 win versus Seattle! Now go away and see what is on the disney channel.

  6. 6 sonofdman said at 7:57 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I would be very confused if they somehow won more than 1 playoff game against Seattle this season.

  7. 7 Rick H said at 6:53 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    When is Tommy becoming a head coach? Ridiculous article. Almost novice when explaining himself. I will take a running & passing game that is right at the top of the league. Yeah Tommy we should show concern for Foles when he has the second most passing yards in the league/beats the Colts last night that have been 13-3 at home over last 16 games (that would be a season).
    Foles had 6 drops and a receiver let the cornerback intercept the ball.
    Go back to scouting high school.

  8. 8 UWotM8 said at 8:10 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Did you even watch the game? Tommy is absolutely right. Foles was off once again. He missed wide open receivers, he had a few bad screen passes (which should be automatic), he threw behind Ertz on his one drop, he under threw Maclin (who had his man beat) which led to the INT, over threw Maclin another time he beat his man, and that’s just some of it. Yes his receivers weren’t helping him with all those drops, but Foles clearly erratic.

    Try watching a football game instead of just looking up stats if you don’t want to sound dumb next time.

  9. 9 Rick H said at 9:21 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I have watched more Eagles games then you or Tommy since 1960. I watched the game. When I encounter bias narrow minded limited football pretenders like yourself I only offer one thing. Learn the game & take you dribble to another fan base.

  10. 10 Stephen E. said at 1:09 PM on September 17th, 2014:

    * biased
    * your
    * drivel

  11. 11 Dragon_Eagle said at 8:43 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Tommy, despite not looking like a machine in 2 games, how many times last season did the Eagles just dominate? The Bears game, yes, other than that?

    I don’t see too many issues that aren’t correctable. The OL will improve with our backups getting more experience, and then Lane and Mathis coming back. Riley and Maclin missing most of pre-season – I think that’s showing. Tackling could stand some improvement. Ertz needs to be on the field more. And yes, Foles needs to play better.

    We saw improvement last year in the team as the season went on and I’m hopeful that is what we’ll see again. The coaching staff is made of good teachers. That matters.

    If they put it all together, the dominating wins will come and that is doable. I actually feel quite good about where we’re heading.

  12. 12 Bert's Bells said at 9:37 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    I’ve said it a few times, the Eagles haven’t played a solid 4 quarter game under Kelly. Once they start doing that -unstoppable.

  13. 13 ohitsdom said at 11:13 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Can’t talk about domination and forget to mention the Raiders game!

  14. 14 Stephen E. said at 1:12 PM on September 17th, 2014:

    The defense did not play the run well in that game. Fortunately, the offense scored so consistently that Oakland couldn’t afford to run the ball anymore.

  15. 15 GEAGLE said at 8:45 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Doesn’t sound like Kendrick will miss time, if he does, there is only ONE MOVE to make….trade for Bryce brother who the ravens have on the trade block, but since the injury doesn’t sound serious! I wouldn’t give up a pick for Brown at this point
    .
    Fletcher Cox was excellent yesterday.
    ..
    Cary showed why he is a big game corner, of course this fanbase won’t give him his respect, and no one mentions Bradley Fletcher when he has a rough night smh…
    ….
    Meco has a solid outing
    ….
    Think what we are going through now, it sucks, but I think it can be more valuable down the line, then if we were to just steam roll through these first two weeks…

    We found a way to go on the road, and beat a playoff team with a top ANNOINTED young QB, without playing our best game…. That’s exciting!! That’s a very good sign.

    It was NEVER about what we would be in September. This team is still growing, it’s about what they will grow into over the course of this season, and learning to overcome this adversity now, can be really valuable for us down the line, when we get into dog fights against playoff teams… Obviously we can’t continue to lose the first half, but this adversity can be very valuable to us down the road…

  16. 16 Andy124 said at 9:45 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    You said since the schedule came out that Foles would outplay Luck. I think a case can be made that he did.

  17. 17 GEAGLE said at 10:39 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Of course he did… There was no doubt…luck was throwing passes into the ground in the 4th quarter

    I’m telling you right now, he will beat the Niners and the Seahawks.. We will beat the top teams and lose a few trap games like texans! titans or crap like that

  18. 18 Avery Greene said at 10:50 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Im figuring (preseason predictions on the schedule) that we’d take an L to AZ and possibly Houston. But I don’t know about Houston anymore. I don’t think we lose trap games either, this team adjusts well and we’ve won not playing our best game twice in a row. Just imagine what happens when we get Johnson back on the o-line. Maybe SF because they have a better defense, but I don’t think they can score with us.

  19. 19 Buge Halls said at 8:12 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Houston? Really? If we beat the Colts, we breeze by Houston!

  20. 20 theycallmerob said at 12:45 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Ozzie and Harbaugh have made it very clear that he is, in fact, not on the trade block

  21. 21 RobNE said at 8:45 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    so then is Gardner going to start next week, or will they slide Kelly out and let the new pick up play guard (Smith?).

    I’m just going to enjoy the win today and not focus on any of the negatives from the game – plenty of time for that later. It’s somewhat illogical how much happier I am when my football team wins, and I’m not going to diminish that high today.

  22. 22 GEAGLE said at 8:46 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    I would say keep Gardner. He was dominated yesterday, but I expect him to be better after having gone through that…. Anyone who has ever played the game knows how impressive it is to see your offense grind out a win, while one of it’s lineman got dominated from beginning to end….extremely impressive to see the offense persevere from the ass kicking Gardner took last night

  23. 23 RogerPodacter said at 9:33 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    i’m worried about Orakpo/Kerrigan off the edge against Gardner… i need your unbridled enthusiasm to ease my anxiety. lol.

    i’m hoping they start the game off with some screens to draw in Orakpo or Kerrigan.

  24. 24 Hanibal said at 9:36 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Tobin or not Tobin, that is the question.

  25. 25 GEAGLE said at 10:38 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Dude, you don’t need to be worrying about the friggin redskins man… Secondary is putrid trash. Screen game will destroy them. They are a big power defense, perfect defense to wear down with tempo..you see our tempo, by the second half, teams defenses are too tired to get any pressure on FOles..

    I can promise you we aren’t going to lose to the skins.

    The way Cox is coming into his own, he might murder Cousins..
    ..
    Gardner got beat like a drum, but that’s expected in his first start… I’m sure he will be much better next week, and if they are getting pressure, Chip will calls plays that takes advantage of that pressure early on… And by the second half they will be too tired to pressure us..
    ..
    Plus we can easily just stick Brent Celek on gardners side and help out…. Who gives a shit about Orakpo when you have Jason peters? Kerrigan blew his nut last week….. Skins secondary is pathetic…much worse than Colts and even worse than the jags…

    Don’t be fooled by this division, our rivals can’t hang with us,,,
    ,…
    Giants will lose again, cuz they are horrible

    We will beat the skins, no doubt in my mind

    And the mighty Robert Quinn and the rams defense playing at home, good chance Romo gets knocked out of the game… We should have a two game lead on our division after sunday

  26. 26 bdbd20 said at 9:21 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    At this point, continuity is probably best.

    We did still put up 30 points with a bunch of drops. Gardner is not elite, but he did his job well enough to win the game.

  27. 27 Bert's Bells said at 9:39 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    He was toasted several times by a very weak pass rush. Orakpo is ten times the player the JAGs on the Colts are.

    Whichever backup is in there, lets hope Celek is on his side with help a lot of the game and we see more two back sets.

  28. 28 anon said at 9:46 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    bring the pass rush, screen plays….

  29. 29 Andy124 said at 9:46 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Guys are playing for Jacksonville and Indianapolis? Is that legal?

  30. 30 RogerPodacter said at 9:48 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    LOL that one took me a second to figure out.

  31. 31 bdbd20 said at 10:34 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    He was beaten, but he did hold his own quite a bit.

    He’ll be going against Kerrigan most of the time. Kerrigan is actually having a better career than Orakpo.

    Let’s not forget what Chip did to Kerrigan in pass coverage last year. Shady and Sproles are gonna have some fun on Sunday.

  32. 32 bdbd20 said at 8:49 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    It sure seemed like the offense was sloppy for a good while there. If Coop brings in that TD, things probably go much smoother.

    If Maclin is able to pull in that long pass late in the 1st half, things change. If Reggie Wayne doesn’t fall on that fumble, we may be talking about a blowout.

    I do wonder if Nick is not quite comfortable with the backups on the OL. Who knows what a young QB (on a rookie contract) is thinking.

    I think it’s pretty obvious that Ertz, Sproles, and Shady are unstoppable. Can’t wait to see what things look like with Lane.

  33. 33 RogerPodacter said at 9:06 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    i thought the OL was somewhat of a mess early in the game. Gardner was having a rough time early on especially.

  34. 34 bill said at 11:07 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Instead of the neverending nitpicking of Foles on all-22, I’d love to see someone take apart how they adjusted, because in the 2nd half, the line pass blocked significantly better, and it didn’t look like there was a turnstyle installed on the right end.

  35. 35 RobNE said at 8:49 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    oh please (Colts fans say refs cost them the game):

    http://www.stampedeblue.com/2014/9/16/6171553/the-officials-blew-it-tonight-in-the-colts-game

    you threw the ball. you were still up 7 after the interception with the Eagles way in their own territory. You got the ball back again after the Eagles scored. The refs may have missed a call, it happens all the time.

    plus, it was within 5 yards.

  36. 36 GEAGLE said at 8:52 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    They didn’t miss a call…Boykin said he flopped, and he even flopped earlier in the game against Cary… We had bracket coverage on TY and he was looking for the flop. Good no call. Fuck them

  37. 37 anon said at 8:59 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    he flopped and it was at 5yds. i’m ok with it.

  38. 38 daveH said at 9:39 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    cool insight that I dint see. I replayed it twice, it only looked like hand checks to me .. ok im partial, but Ray Lewis calling for flags is fundamentally just wrong! its embarrasing

  39. 39 Mac said at 10:03 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    He whined incessantly about flags (for and against) in Baltimore. Why change now?

  40. 40 daveH said at 9:37 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Cox got nailed on that fake Horse Collar call last game ..but damn Sproles got pulled down by a real horse collar 2 plays later and no call!
    .. also thought Maclin got rolled on ..are you allowed to fall intentionally to knock a receiver down? that wasn’t called.
    .thought everyone in the world HATED the flags on hand checks .. I only replayed tice but Boykin’s move didn’t looked like a hand check!! not an altering of the world’s rotation like the Ray Lewis was complaining about!
    ..
    Ray Lewis crying about a hand check is literally laffable! the f in guy was a crusher and he should be all about “let them play. no flags”
    I resepct the hell out of Andrew Luck for NOT blaming the refs. guy is too smart to fall for stupid reporters’ question.
    btw wtf is espn and every network going to drop 4 cheap asss microphones in the press room so we can freaking hear the fraking stupid questions!!!

  41. 41 Bert's Bells said at 9:43 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    I didn’t mind the Cox horsecollar call even though Fletcher -technically -destroyed the guy with a legal tackle.

    Dragging a guy down from behind like that is one of the few legitimately dangerous moves in football. Of all the ticky-tack penalties for physical play it’s one I think is worthwhile.

  42. 42 daveH said at 11:16 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    I agree comepletely! the refs just please tell everyone that they are calling ‘pulling someone down from behind against their own body” ..that twists a player against himself and only causes injury.
    BUT TELL US so we don’t have to F IN LIsten to Ray Lewis WHIE AOUT IT!

  43. 43 Mac said at 10:02 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Plus Hilton either fell down, or threw himself down in a soccer style flop.

  44. 44 Stephen E. said at 1:27 PM on September 17th, 2014:

    T.Y. Hilton flops down more often than Paris Hilton.

  45. 45 GEAGLE said at 8:55 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Last nights game, we wouldn’t have won last year. That was similar to the saints game for us, and you are seeing a young team, learn to win, even when things aren’t going our way…. Lucky? My ass,

  46. 46 MattE said at 9:01 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Good point. Lucky on 2 calls, not lucky in terms of putting up 2nd half points. The Colt’s literally ran 3 plays that burned us all night, the unbalanced line counter/power and that f*ckin spider 2 Y Banana at the goal line with someone slippin out of the backfield. Other than that i didn’t see Pagano outdoing Chip ultimately scheme wise.

  47. 47 GEAGLE said at 9:04 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Yup yup..good stuff.

    Heck, the colts feared us enough to abandon what they do and try to catch us off balance and attack us in ways we didn’t prepare for.. That’s a team that throws down field to it’s 3’WRs, or throws to the two TE’s… They feared us enough to scrap what they do, feeling the need to try and catch us off guard and try to run the ball… I can assure you our defense did not prepare for the way the colts attacked them. Yet we found a way to adjust as beat them anyway

  48. 48 MattE said at 9:44 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    That’s a good point about the Colt’s scrapping gameplans, when a team with a top-5 QB goes away from what they do well against a mid-level defense in order to keep our offense at bay….. that’s when you start making coaches try to outsmart the room against the Eagles as a TEAM. Good teams stick to their guns and continue to do what they do well and try to take away what the other team does well.

    I will say though that this game reminded me of the Saints game last year. Billy Davis went in expecting a top QB to throw, yet we get burned on the ground by mediocre RB’s. Over-estimating QB’s in my opinion, Billy seems to be adjusting well with Chip at halftime on the defensive side of the ball which is a good sign.

  49. 49 GEAGLE said at 10:29 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Absolutely.. Figure that team either throws out of 3 WR sets, and two TE sets… Coby Fleener caught 1 pass, Dwayne Allen didn’t have a catch..
    ..
    Hakim Nicks was shut down completely for negative yards on the night… TY had a quiet 60 yards and Wayne was held under controls..

    We didn’t at all prepare for what they thru at us, but our defense found a way to win anyway… That’s a damn good Sign of a young defense that’s growing

  50. 50 suthrneagle said at 4:21 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Good teams stick to their guns and continue to do what they do well and try to take away what the other team does well.

    good point. Reminds me of the packers of the 60`s. Smashmouth, run-you-over football, everybody knew it,but few could stop it.

  51. 51 sprawl said at 11:01 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    As I tweeted to one of the Indy writers when they said Pagano was going to try and slow the game down to control the clock—Chip Kelly loves it when his offense causes the other team to try and do something OFF NORMAL.

    If it’s not something the team is used to doing then they are at a competitive disadvantage. No matter how smart the coaches think they’re being, we are creatures of habit.

    You saw it last season when Chip kind of took his foot off the gas pedal late in some games and let some other teams try and make a game out of something that should’ve been over (I’m thinking both games against Washington)

  52. 52 MattE said at 8:55 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Anyone have major issue with the redzone playcalling in the 1st half? This outside toss BS needs to stop, and the screen game needs to come out a little earlier (what the hell was with those WR screen passes that Foles threw?)

  53. 53 GEAGLE said at 8:56 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Redzone play calling was very odd. I didn’t like it at all

  54. 54 Bert's Bells said at 9:44 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    I’m thinking it had a lot to do with the shaky O-Line.

  55. 55 RogerPodacter said at 9:45 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Chip Wagon covers on of those redzone outside tosses in the 1st half here:
    http://www.thechipwagon.com/eagles/2014/09/when-all-else-fails.html

    tl;dr
    the OL (Gardner) gave up pressure, forcing Foles to throw it outside before the play had a chance to develop. Colts had one guy to cover two receivers, but we had to throw the checkdown too early.

  56. 56 Ark87 said at 9:00 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Tired of grasping for reasons to be unhappy about the W, gonna let this one stew, if we lose next week against at least I know I have a reliable place to commiserate, until then I’ll be riding this buzz through Tuesday, i suggest the rest of you do the same. Losses will come, save the despair for those.

  57. 57 GEAGLE said at 9:12 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Cheers mate. Good for you!

  58. 58 P_P_K said at 11:28 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Thank you for draining the Negadelphian blood from your veins.

  59. 59 barneygoogle said at 9:03 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Sproles 30; Colts 27.
    Kelly was right–he fits this offense beautifully. Right now; 0-2 without him.
    Keep putting Kickapoo Joy Juice in his smoothies.

  60. 60 GEAGLE said at 9:06 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    “Baaarny google. Wit the goo goo googly eyes. Barney Google, wit the goo goo googly eyes”- Gyp Rossetti

    Jenkins and Sproles both making Howie and Chip look very smart, and Sproles and Jenkins making the 0-2 saints look dumb..
    ..,
    LOL @’sproles, he is too fast for our screen game.. He always runs into our OL blocking for him… Yous think we are seeing a dangerous Sproles? Wait til we get to see him run screens behind the quick and agile BANE JOHNSON!!

  61. 61 barneygoogle said at 9:40 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Yea, the guy we have at right tackle now looks like a SEPTA turnstile.
    Wait until the rookies start to play well–Matthews and Huff will juice up the offense too.

  62. 62 GEAGLE said at 9:08 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Stats do not reflect our pass rush last night. We forced luck to rush a lot of throws that were off… People talk about TY Hilton trying to flop the hold, but that play happened because Barwin rushed in, and cox looped around him for a stunt and closed in on Luck as he rushed that throw to TY

  63. 63 anon said at 9:09 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    pressure vs sacks

  64. 64 GEAGLE said at 9:11 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    In that case, pressure was better. We don’t get the INT if Cox gets there a split second earlier for the sack…
    ..
    Cox has forced a bunch of interceptions this year and last year… I can count ATleast 4 sacks he missed that led to INTs..

  65. 65 anon said at 9:18 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    cox is crushing it and i think we are more keyed into forcing bad throws than “sacks” necessarily.

  66. 66 GEAGLE said at 9:22 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Definitely… We want turnovers.
    ..
    You can see that we are being coached for turnovers.
    ..
    You can tell our guys practice aiming for QBs throwing arm..

    You can tell we are working on stripping ball carriers..

    We are growing a defense that will stop the run, and get take aways..and if our offense keeps taking care of the ball, we will win a lot of ball games winning the turnover battle

  67. 67 anon said at 9:27 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    yeah getting possession is huge.

  68. 68 mksp said at 9:08 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    If Nick can even play a “B” game this team can make some noise. Defense feels like it can be “good enough” if the offense plays to its potential.

    Need to get Lane back, settle down the OL.

    And Nick needs to start hitting guys on the numbers. The throws to Maclin and Ertz that he missed….those guys were wide open.

    Would help if Coop could catch a ball that hit him in the hands.

  69. 69 Andy124 said at 9:50 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Ever see a quarterback not miss some open guys?

  70. 70 bill said at 10:48 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    The one that he threw to Maclin on the fake bubble screen/out and up – that throw could be superimposed over a throw Rodgers made Sunday that Nelson made a great grab on.
    **disclaimer for those that don’t understand logic**
    A comparison between two throws is not a comparison between two quarterbacks. A critique of an analysis is not an assertion that the subjects analyzed are equivalent.
    *end disclaimer*
    Obviously, Nelson’s a better receiver, and Rodgers is currently in class by himself at QB. But, even Rodgers makes bad throws every game, but if all you’re looking at is the stats, you’ll miss it. The key is that overall, you make enough plays, especially when you’re slinging it over 30 times a game. Just on probabilities alone, you’re going to “leave more plays on the field” when you’re throwing that much, and especially when you’re making downfield throws a lot, like Foles did in the first half. All those downfield throws *might* have had something to do with how effective the screen game was late. Foles was certainly uneven again last night. But I saw enough to feel confident that he can be (and probably will be this year when all is said and done) a 3rd tier QB (Rodgers = 1st, Brady, Brees, Manning = 2nd, a whole lotta guys =3rd). That should be enough to win a SB, if you keep the rest of the team at a high level. And it probably means Foles gets a Kaep-like contract.

  71. 71 sonofdman said at 8:44 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I actually thought the Foles intentionally put that throw to Maclin’s back shoulder because the safety was coming over. I thought Maclin should have caught that ball.

  72. 72 GEAGLE said at 9:14 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Can’t wait to curb stomp the skins

  73. 73 Mark Sitko said at 9:16 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Why is everyone so quick to bash foles. Seems unlike you Tommy. How many bad decisions or throws did he make last night? I think he outplayed Luck but his Wrs were playing horribly. Why not go after them? I think it is simple analysis to see the offensive struggle in the first half this game and just say Foles is the problem. Last week…sure he missed some open guys. This week he made several impressive throws and Maclin/cooper/Matthews all let him down…no.

    Bottom line. Who had a better game? Luck or Foles. I say foles all day…and Luck is one of the best QBs in the league. So where is he love bro?

  74. 74 GEAGLE said at 9:18 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Well said… Negadelphians don’t just reside in philly… It’s just people trying to justify bullshit past predictions,, certain people aren’t ever going to give the kid his due…

    To watch that game, and think the QB was the problem, is just biased garbage if we are being honest

    News flash, if your RT gets dominated from start to finish, most QBs won’t play their best game… If our WR catch the catchable balls, nick would have looked sharp last night

  75. 75 anon said at 9:20 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Luck 20/34 172yds 3TDs 1INT 89.3 rating. Plus the 3 encroachment penalties he got.
    Foles 21/37 331yds 1TD 1INT 84.4 rating.

  76. 76 GEAGLE said at 9:23 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Factor in the bad drops and FOles would probably have been 28/37

  77. 77 anon said at 9:26 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    lots of drops, lots of bad throws lots of room for improvement. CK deserves sooooo much credit for this offense. it’s crazy.

  78. 78 GEAGLE said at 9:27 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Yea it’s pretty fuckin awesome to see us not have to play our best game and still be able to beat playoff teams on the road.
    ..
    When we start firing on all cylinders the NFL is in trouble!

  79. 79 anon said at 9:30 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    conditioning game is really playing out this year. we are so dominant late in games it’s great.

  80. 80 Mark Sitko said at 9:21 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    What open passes? Seriously. Be specific before you throw phrases like that around. Did you see the pressure he was dealing with due to our poor RT play? I was at the game and I did not notice any open guys he was missing…I did see luck miss MANY including an open crosses on his last 3 and 5 incomplete pass of the game. I think everyone is way too quick attacking foles. We loved mcnabb for years and there is no question foles is outplaying him for where he is at in his career.

  81. 81 anon said at 9:22 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    0 sacks. he had a couple of throws to Ertz that were behind him, screen passes in the ground, screen passes out in front of players, overthrows, etc.

  82. 82 Insomniac said at 10:25 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Shady was open for a checkdown that would have extended a crucial drive when we were behind. It ended up as 3 and out.

  83. 83 mksp said at 10:52 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Foles didn’t see Cooper on a crossing route on a 3rd down.

    He threw behind Maclin along the sideline after the fake bubble screen.

    Threw behind Ertz in the 4th Q (he was WIDE open) – I think that was the play before Shady’s 3rd and 15 run.

    Underthrew Maclin on the INT.

    The point is that our offensive play design is PHENOMENAL. Guys are getting open. Problem is that guys aren’t making contested catches, or just straight up dropping them (Coop), or that Nick is missing throws.

    Would love to see an Alshon Jeffrey / Brandon Marshall type receiver in this offense.

    Jordan Matthews is big, but just doesn’t have the hands / ball skills that those guys do.

  84. 84 Rick H said at 9:28 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Go root for Chicago so you can watch a QB like Cutler will makes you realize how much better Foles is right now. Fly into Ohare in a glider at the busiest time of the day & year.

  85. 85 mksp said at 1:29 AM on September 17th, 2014:

    Okay, this seems like a reasonable response, thanks.

  86. 86 daveH said at 9:21 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    F IN CASEY MATTHEWS IS DA MAN! he helped us put this one in the bag!

  87. 87 Mac said at 9:59 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    He helped us avoid being penalized for only having 10 players on the field.

  88. 88 daveH said at 11:17 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    perfectly said!! copied and saves and will drop your words on us all again soon ..er, actually hope he gets cut and I never get the chance

  89. 89 RogerPodacter said at 9:23 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    nick foles is currently the #2 passer in the NFL by yards.
    i…. did not expect that.

  90. 90 GEAGLE said at 9:24 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Since last year he is #2 in QBR behind Peyton

  91. 91 anon said at 9:25 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    sproles put up 152 yds receiving last night. you saw how he got those yards, the stat is deceiving…

  92. 92 RogerPodacter said at 9:28 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    no other QB in the league throws screen passes, right?
    yea, i get that his stats are inflated…due to some short throws. i’m not trying to make Foles out to be the best qb ever.

    my post is more about how our offense is racking up passing yards, even when our WRs are underperforming.

  93. 93 anon said at 9:31 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    agree with that. have no words about the scheme / production. I think the offensive players will start playing better, i think by game 8 we’re putting 50 on teams. great to see us come from behind against playoff calibur teams.

  94. 94 Tom33 said at 9:38 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    That’s my frustration. With even decent QB play plus competent WR play they would be putting up 50 pts a game already. This team is winning because of Ertz, Sproles and Kelly – not #9 right now. If the goal is to win more than the division, they have to get better play there. I don’t understand why some people get so offended when others point that out – clearly Foles is missing a lot of throws.

    Very happy with the win though – in the past the Eagles would lose these games.

  95. 95 Insomniac said at 10:14 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    You know what I didn’t expect? All of our WRs combined only make up like 40% of those yards. It would be less if Maclin didn’t have that 60 yard bomb from the Jaguars game.

  96. 96 CrackSammich said at 9:24 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Foles’ decision making seemed to be generally better tonight. He could have placed a lot of the passes better, to say the least, but his receivers weren’t helping him out by dropping everything they could. I choose to see that as encouraging, but winning erases a lot of doubt.

  97. 97 RogerPodacter said at 9:27 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    check out ChipWagon’s coverage of that failed red zone possession. looks like it was a problem with the OL forcing Foles to throw the ball before the play had a chance to develop.
    http://www.thechipwagon.com/eagles/2014/09/when-all-else-fails.html

  98. 98 Daniel Norman Richwine said at 9:28 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Chip Kelly and everyone is a better match. Write a post about how yet another player is going to have a career year with Chip. Write two, since Maclin looks good.
    I strongly suspect Foles is trying to do new things this year and it hasn’t clicked yet. Hopefully it will soon.

  99. 99 P_P_K said at 11:24 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    I’m with you. Foles is still a young qb without a full season under center. The guy shows promise. He’ll need time to develop.

  100. 100 bubqr said at 9:28 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Foles being in a funk is even worse when receivers are dropping balls left and right (at least 2 Matthews, 1/2 Cooper, 1 Maclin, 1 Ertz and 1 Celek). We’re seing more of the bad-hands Matthews than the sensational rookie we’ve heard about during Training Camp.

  101. 101 RogerPodacter said at 9:31 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Fletcher dropped a sure INT in the endzone too. wasn’t just the WRs…

    some of those passes were definitely on Foles. The one that Maclin had to go sky high for is probably more on Foles than Maclin. The INT i think was underthrown, but Maclin should have at least fought for it. some, like the Celek dropped TD were absolutely on the receiver.
    i loved that Gruden was trying to put the blame for Foles on that pass to Celek and the only complaint he had was that the pass was “too firm” O_o

  102. 102 GEAGLE said at 9:32 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Didn’t see a funk.. I saw a QB who was decisive, in control, didn’t hold the ball too long, didn’t take sacks… Sure he missed a few throws, but if his WR didn’t drop catchable balls he would have been 28/37 passing last night… If that’s a funk, we are a very lucky fanbase

  103. 103 bubqr said at 9:38 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    He had like 3 swing passes/WR screen very poorly thrown (which got me insane), Maclin open for approx. 3 open passes, 2 wide open (one which was in the EZ, one along the sideline on a fake WR screen where Maclin ends up OOB) and the INT.
    The 2 pressures by Walden were also poor pocket awareness, especially the one where he rolls out, towards his worse OLineman, vs a 3 man rush, when he has a MASSIVE pocket to step up into. Overall, that was an average game, with inflated yardage due to good RAC, but where he once again could have gotten a lot more.

  104. 104 GEAGLE said at 10:55 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    He absolutely had some bad passes, but half of his incompletions weren’t his fault… If WRs do their job last night. Nick would have been like 30/37 or 28/37

  105. 105 bill said at 11:12 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    I can remember two poorly thrown swing passes, but also two very well thrown that the receivers dropped (Matthews) or didn’t execute correctly (Maclin, who looped too much in his route and didn’t run through the ball like he’s supposed to).

  106. 106 FairOaks said at 10:15 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    He was much better than the first game… you are right that he was more decisive and did not hold the ball overly long. The zero sacks and zero fumbles thing was a major improvement over the first week. The INT was also OK to me; he gave his receiver a chance, but the DB made a great play. Maclin did have a bit of separation though and a more accurate throw would have given Maclin a much better chance. For the most part though… Foles has been very accurate on short to intermediate throws, and the inaccuracy only really started to show up on his deep throws. He was horrid in that regard his rookie year, much better but not great last year. Last night though, a ton of his other passes really were not accurate. Ertz had to make several catches where the ball was behind him, and didn’t make the catch on one which was behind him when he was wide open. So… the “funk” is probably that he still doesn’t look like the guy we saw most of last season, even if the worst problems of the first game have been corrected. The OL has been a pretty big part of that, but he had a lot of time in the pocket by the end of the game last night and last year would have shredded teams with that. He also missed some open receivers… Cooper was wide open on a cross one time and Foles held it the entire time, among a couple of others. It is nice to be leading the league in points and think our offense hasn’t played to nearly its potential. The TD pass to Maclin was nice (very frustrated at all the other red zone runs and not letting him pass until 3rd and goal from the 13) and the pass to Cooper in the end zone looked very nice until the pass interference held him up. But the inaccurate throws (while many were caught) seemed way too high compared with last year. Definite improvement from last week though. Better decisions on the throws he did make.

  107. 107 Avery Greene said at 1:01 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I think for some reason this year he’s playing a bit tight. He’s not as relaxed, but I think a couple more INTs and he’ll be fine. I think he’s too worried about the INT, but once he starts slinging and not caring better things will happen.

  108. 108 GermanEagle said at 9:30 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Guys

    I cannot tell you how much fun it is to celebrate an Eagles victory in an Eagles bar in the city of big blue. #2-0

  109. 109 anon said at 9:31 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    how was the bar last night? good atmosphere?

  110. 110 GermanEagle said at 9:34 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    I did choose to go to Shorty’s in Hell’s Kitchen again. The atmosphere was crazy as always. #neverchangeawinningbar 😉

  111. 111 Insomniac said at 10:02 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Amazing shirt. How are you liking America btw?

  112. 112 GermanEagle said at 10:46 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Thanks. America has been treating me very well. 🙂

  113. 113 GEAGLE said at 9:35 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    TD pass to Maclin was beautiful timing
    .
    Cody Parkley only let them return 1 kickoff

    Want to see the Eagles defense not give up 30 points in a game all year

  114. 114 bsuperfi said at 9:36 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    I think my biggest takeaway from the last two games is that this team has an insanely high ceiling. I was one of those during the offseason who thought the window would really open next year, but all the pieces are in place. It’s clear that the team has had some issues in all three phases, but it’s also shown the ability to be a top unit in each phase.

    It’s a long season, and teams develop over the course of 16 games. Teams and players get hot. Neo wasn’t the one until he was the one. If the team cleans up some cleanupable stuff by the bye, it’s domination. If not, some of the breaks could go the other way and we’re not as excited. At the worst, we’re still kind of into Foles but still unsure going into next season.

    Clearly, some more talent at key positions would help. Wr, edge rusher, and cb come to mind. But we have the talent to win big now, and we won against the colts in their sort of dome without playing our best. That’s pretty sweet.

  115. 115 bubqr said at 9:40 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    On offense, I agree, the potential is HUGE. Defense, I’m ready for another bottom third of the league ranking. The poor run defense, coupled with the non-existent pass rush vs a bad OL, does not reassure me much.

  116. 116 A Roy said at 9:56 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    The poor run defense was a schematic fail, not a talent fail. And they did (finally) correct it late in the game when it truly mattered. The D should end up ranked in the lower end of upper half after all is said and done….say 12th or 13th.

  117. 117 Mac said at 9:58 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Beat me to it… scheme allowed most of those runs. Also, I would say that Andrew Luck had a lot to do with the pressure not creating sacks. He was getting rid of the ball insanely fast. I thought the defense created plenty of pressure.

  118. 118 P_P_K said at 11:02 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Great post.

  119. 119 Mitchell said at 9:45 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    I think we need to remember how last year started. If we have the same trend this year, I’m not worried. Want to see all 22 analysis on Roles because it looked more on the end of receiversnthan Nick

  120. 120 EaglesTrolltheWorld said at 9:48 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    My thoughts on the game by sides of the ball.

    Offense:

    – Something seems to be off on Foles’ timing with his receivers. It was there Week 1 and also this time around. Balls thrown ahead and behind receivers. That’s not to say there weren’t catchable balls dropped, too.
    – I think some of Shady’s somewhat diminished performance is backup OL play. It’s clear we’re limited in the things we can do when Gardner’s getting dominated and the playcalling can’t be as creative–vanilla-ish may have been the preference against the Jags anyway.
    – Sproles it the mother-bleeping man. He took over last night. I know Doug Martin’s called (Muscle) Hamster, but Darren is so damn quick!
    – Peters made his job look so easy last night, i wouldn’t have been surprised to catch him yawning.
    – We need to take over the middle of the field like our personnel could really allow us to. Ertz, Sproles, Matthews, and Shady could dominate that part of the field.

    Defense:

    – Starting ILBs rocked it. Glad to hear Kendricks was just a spasm. Luck’s eyes must have lit up when he saw Matthews first off the bench. Is Acho really that bad that he comes after Matthews, or is Acho seen more as the speller for ‘Meco?
    – Why was the unbalanced line working so well against us with the Colts’ run game? Is it because our DL is relatively smaller, so an extra body would have to be committed to the power side, leaving the counter open? Other teams are able to defend such a formation when it’s repeated, so why weren’t we able to?
    – Last night really seemed like a chess match, schematically. The Colts were not anticipated to lean heavily on the run game, and they probably assumed we’d believe so, so they did the unexpected. The element of surprise only should last so long, though. The Colts were obviously quite content with Luck not having a huge day if it meant controlling the clock and moving the chains on the ground.

    All in all, I wasn’t discouraged by the first half of last night’s game. It was VERY different from the Jags first half. We left plenty of opportunities on the field and that’s correctable.

  121. 121 RogerPodacter said at 9:50 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    i think you are right with the backup ILBs – Acho goes in for ‘Meco and Matthews goes in for Kendricks.
    word is that Matthews got benched pretty quick and Acho went in there anyway. not sure how that played out.

  122. 122 EaglesTrolltheWorld said at 9:52 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    There were only a couple plays with Acho in instead. Nothing remarkable, but nothing as sloppy or as slow as the other C Matthews.

  123. 123 A Roy said at 9:54 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    By “other C Matthews” he means WRONG C Matthews. He was in long enough to be in the wrong hole twice and miss a huge tackle. Luckily, they gave him a short leash. Reaffirms this board’s conviction that he is horrible.

  124. 124 bill said at 10:31 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    RE: the chess match, the only thing I can think of is that Kelly and Davis were okay with the Colts trying to be a running team with Richardson. They want to limit big plays (at least that’s what they always say) and it seems that the best way to approach that in this game was to let Richardson get his, but stop Luck.
    Not sure I like that plan, overall, but given the outcome, I’m not going to complain (too much, for now 🙂 ).

  125. 125 GEAGLE said at 10:41 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    We didn’t prepare for the colts attack. They feared us so they completely scrapped what they did and tried to attack us in a way we would never have expected them to attack us, we adjusted and still beat them

  126. 126 bill said at 11:15 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Eh. They ran entirely too well on the D for it not to have been part of the plan. This D’s strength is run defense, and they were getting consistently gashed, but only once that I remember did it turn into a big play. I think they essentially conceded the 7-10 yard runs. Either that, or the front 7 had a REALLY bad game in that respect. I think the former is more likely.

  127. 127 A Roy said at 9:50 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    My takeaway is that we’re leading the league in scoring and are unhappy that it’s not by much more. The number one stat is W. A couple more accurate passes, a couple fewer drops, a couple less penalties, a couple better calls in the RZ and we crush a solid playoff team on the road. The Eagles don’t have to improve much to go deep in the playoffs.

  128. 128 anon said at 9:51 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    that’s what i’m saying at least.

  129. 129 Insomniac said at 10:00 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    We should be blowing out everyone but we choke on our on spit and make it harder. Not very assuring considering that I’d like a Super Bowl before Shady is out of his prime.

  130. 130 anon said at 10:06 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    only 2 games in plenty of time to get right. did you see ravens when they won and giants when they won?

  131. 131 Insomniac said at 10:08 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    I did. Luck is an amazing thing.

  132. 132 mtn_green said at 10:48 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    It’s such a heart attack to have birds losing by halftime. Can we ask chip to tell players 2nd half started at opening kickoff?

  133. 133 GEAGLE said at 9:50 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    INTERESTING!! Word is, we tried to sign Sproles after he left the chargers but Sproles wanted to reunite with Brees

  134. 134 GEAGLE said at 9:53 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Funny that the eagles are still the #1 ranked offense in the NFL, missing 2 key OLineman

  135. 135 RogerPodacter said at 10:26 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    we’re down 3 OL, not just 2 ; )
    Gruden was right all game – Gardner *is* our 3rd-string RT

  136. 136 mtn_green said at 10:46 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    First excitement to watch.
    Love that umpires are setting ball quicker this year.

  137. 137 Insomniac said at 9:57 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    I’m worried about Sproles. He’s 31 and will wear down as the season goes along. Next year’s draft features someone who has the same physical attributes but has a better skillset as a RB. Quality human being too.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81WM8AdWDUw

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-Bk-VlfphU

  138. 138 mtn_green said at 10:46 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Don’t worry about Sproles age, when you have McCoy. Ride Sproles and McCoy to SB.

  139. 139 GEAGLE said at 10:50 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Our sports science is super monitoring our guys bodies… Doubt we would have extended him immediately if he was in danger of running out of gas at the end of the year…. And once the OL gets it together, we will see a lot more shady

  140. 140 Insomniac said at 10:54 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    You better hope he doesn’t get injured then.

  141. 141 BC1968 said at 10:47 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Why are you worried about Sproles and thinking about next year already? We have a two back system right now that will keep Shady fresh down the stretch. Sproles will be fine.

  142. 142 Insomniac said at 10:51 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Have you seen how much we relied on him so far?

  143. 143 mksp said at 10:55 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Would love to get AA. I’d use a 2nd on him all day if he’s there.

    Good RBs next year. Gurley probably goes 1st round.

  144. 144 Insomniac said at 11:05 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Gurley will go first. Gordon could break into the last few spots of the first. Gurley reminds me of AP and Gordon is like Jamaal Charles without the polish.

    AA would fit so well here. Polk is done here if he doesn’t show anything this season so a RB will be needed for depth. I wouldn’t mind Duke Johnson either.

  145. 145 D3FB said at 12:08 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    The three running backs I’ve got that really fit the system so far are
    Abdullah: Gym rat, good vision. great lateral quickness, patient, he’s tiny, and lacks true home run speed, but great player
    Johnson: Home run threat on every play, but has some fumbling issues
    Mike Davis: Reminds me of a young Ray Rice (on the field) short powerful, breaks arm tackles and bounces off guys, not going to pull away from anybody in space, but solid speed for his size.

  146. 146 Insomniac said at 10:24 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Either one of those guys would make our team better. AA can fill in Sprole’s shoes and then some easily. Davis gives us a powerful runner that can catch. Duke is explosive and can be return kicks.

    Who do you think would be available for us?

  147. 147 D3FB said at 2:48 AM on September 17th, 2014:

    Wayyyy too early to peg value, especially at a devalued position. They all should fall into the second tier of backs though, so probably somewhere between the second and fourth rounds. Abdullah’s “stock” is going to drop when he runs a 4.5. Davis has been getting a little Clowney in the way he handles his injuries, is that something thats a personalitiy issue or is Spurrier an ass and not communicating well with medical staff? Johnson is from inner city Miami. Does he have any negative influences in life still present?

    These kinds of things could possibly push these guys down, but from a talent perspective all three could go top 100.

  148. 148 Mike Roman said at 9:57 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Dilfer was railing about those two bad calls as if they decided the entire game. Give me a break. The Eagles had 11 penalties, missed tackles, dropped passes, questionable RZ play calling, errant throws and a missed FG. The Colts gave up a 14 point second half lead and then went into a shell when they got the ball back with a chance to win the game. It drives me crazy when people harp on bad calls for the reason a team wins or loses when there is so much more to it than that.

    I was a little bit afraid that the Colts would find a way to run the ball against us yesterday. I’m sure when Davis game planned for them, he was far more concerned with stopping the passing game. It was a little disappointing to see Trent Richardson (at times) look like a Pro Bowler, but I’ll take that over giving up big plays in the passing game. Overall, the defense was about what I thought it would be this year. They’re making just enough plays when they need to but need to find more consistency.

    My brother texted me last night and said that Foles reminds him a little bit like Jay Cutler. I almost threw up but he made a good point. Foles seems to run hot and cold. Even though he did a better job of setting his feet, moving in the pocket, and getting rid of the ball, he was still off on a number of passes. I see a lot mention about the interception to Maclin to end the first half, but he overthrew Maclin in the end zone earlier in the game when Maclin had the defender beat by about 3 yards. All in all, I think this offense is going to have to move through the RBs and TEs because none of the WRs seem reliable at this point.

    I guess I needed to trust GEAGLE in the preseason about Fletcher Cox. He’s turned it up a notch in a big way. Now we’ve got Jenkins controlling the back end and Kendricks coming on … all we need is someone who can sack the QB and we’ll be fine.

    This team scares me and excites me at the same time. It’s fun to think what they could be if they put together 4 solid quarters of football. At the same time, they can’t keep winning games like this.

  149. 149 mtn_green said at 10:45 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    From the first Richardson carry I knew they were going to force a fumble eventually. His arms get all pumping crazy and the ball is flying up and down.

    Did Richardson fumble the first one that costs recovered?

  150. 150 RobNE said at 11:08 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    yes he did

  151. 151 Mike Roman said at 12:01 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    The words “we need a turnover” were barely out of my mouth when he coughed up the second one. I kind of had the feeling that he’d fumble again too.

  152. 152 Corry said at 9:57 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    I thought Nick played a decent game. His receivers didn’t help him out at all. Lots of dropped passes on very catchable balls. He’s still not seeing the whole field and receivers were running free, but I do feel encouraged that he was better.

    Also, Casey Matthews is awful. Like-why-are-you-in-the-NFL awful.

  153. 153 Insomniac said at 10:01 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Why is Matthews still here. We have a mediocre Matthews right now and an awful one that’s been here for WAY TOO LONG.

  154. 154 47_Ronin said at 11:40 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Hmmm, I agree with TL, Foles was ok enough to win and benefited mightily from getting some extra possessions via the TOs. I’m really scratching my head on how Foles missed Cooper on the 3rd down play in the 2nd half where he ran a shallow crossing route, Coop was wide open after his defender was picked. I believe he had to have been the 1st option on that play given the design.

  155. 155 GEAGLE said at 10:02 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Shit!!!! Redskins waive baccari Rambo… No fair!!! I was SOOO looking forward to watching us abuse him

  156. 156 anon said at 10:03 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    can we talk about how good CKs clock management is?

  157. 157 bill said at 10:25 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Was certainly noticeable last night. Hopefully, it’ll continue like this, but even if it is uneven, it’s significantly better than it was under Reid.

  158. 158 mtn_green said at 10:40 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Yes. Awesome. Great use of timeouts, I think he told Caroll not to run it out of endzone to save time.

  159. 159 CrackSammich said at 11:00 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Can’t blame Sproles for being good, but that drive that started with 4-5 minutes left, I was hoping they would kill the whole clock and take it to overtime. I can’t tell you how much I complained about giving Luck the ball with 3 minutes left.

  160. 160 RogerPodacter said at 11:35 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    HAHAHAH i was in the same boat!!!
    i was panicking hard. just another reason it was just like the saints game last year. “great, we tied it up, but their offense has been moving the ball pretty well and we gave them plenty of time to move down the field and get some points….”

  161. 161 GEAGLE said at 10:04 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Anyone know when chips press conference is?

  162. 162 Insomniac said at 10:07 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Brady is almost 40 dude..

  163. 163 anon said at 10:07 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    so that’s the standard? if TB played like that his whole career he wouln’t be who he is.

  164. 164 CrackSammich said at 10:58 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    I think I read that he’s meeting the press at 1.

  165. 165 ICDogg said at 11:06 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    PED policy is different than the policy that covers other banned substances.

  166. 166 Tom33 said at 10:07 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    After 2 games Eagles D is #1 in opponents 3rd down efficiency at 23%. After last year I find that almost impossible to believe. Last night the Colts were 4/12 and I think 2 of those were Graham and Cole jumping offside.

  167. 167 Corry said at 10:09 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    That’s really surprising to me because the Colts had some really long drives in terms of plays. They must be able to pick up first downs on 2 plays on most of those.

  168. 168 Insomniac said at 10:10 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    They kept running and it got them first downs before 3rd downs.

  169. 169 Tom33 said at 10:10 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Well, I think they were averaging about 7 yards/carry, so no 3rd downs there!

  170. 170 Mitchell said at 10:17 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Casey Matthews first play in was a blitz straight up the middle. What a waste of a defender. The lineman literally just stopped Matthews, there was literally no push.

  171. 171 MattE said at 10:19 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Imagine the holidays at the Matthews household… Casey sits at the kids table.

  172. 172 fran35 said at 10:43 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    With all of the Matthews clan football talent, we somehow wind up with the red headed stepchild.

  173. 173 GEAGLE said at 10:52 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    If I’m MR. Mathews, I demand a paternity test, and Mrs, Mathews, has some Explaining to do…. Wouldn’t be surprised if we drafted the one Mathews with his mail mans genes lol
    ..
    Maury Povich! YOU. ARE NOT THE FATHER!!

  174. 174 eagleyankfan said at 11:39 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    on one of his blitzes…it looked he ran up to the blocker and just stopped. Like he didn’t want contact. Meanwhile — DR runs right passed him to get pressure on the QB. Matthews is out of his league in the NFL.

  175. 175 RogerPodacter said at 11:51 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    i hate matthews as much as the rest of you, but the play you describe sounds a lot like Davis schemed the blitz so that Matthews would occupy a blocker allowing Ryans to come through free. judging by your description, it sounds like it worked.
    if i had a choice of having Ryans on a blocker with Matthews coming free or Matthews on a blocker with Ryans coming free, i’m taking the second one every day.

  176. 176 eagleyankfan said at 11:58 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    I do believe that was the plan too. Except he never engaged him, he just stopped. Didn’t engage him at all. which is probably why he was replaced….

  177. 177 RogerPodacter said at 12:02 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    ohhh. i missed that in your post… its still early. lol.
    but hey, if you have to put a guy like him in the game, might as well put him to good use!

  178. 178 eagleyankfan said at 12:53 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    it was a weird play to watch I guess. I wouldn’t mind seeing that play again. I can’t remember if the guy blocking him stopped too? It was just strange…lol.

  179. 179 Sean Stott said at 1:02 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    IDK…. His first play in the game, give him an easy assignment. Rather he does something straightforward like a-gap blitz than have to pick up Hilton on a crossing route.

    Although…. damn did he get juked out badly a few plays later.

  180. 180 EaglesTrolltheWorld said at 10:24 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Red zone playcalling. Why does it feel like we primarily know how to score when given lots of space and not within 20 yards of the endzone??

  181. 181 ICDogg said at 10:33 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Because you have to play more crisply in order to make plays in tight space. And we’re not doing that.

  182. 182 fran35 said at 10:42 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    I also think we were handing the ball off to Shady a ton in the red zone. And he is dancing WAY too much. Our blocking isnt great and he needs to understand that he needs to stop bouncing everything outside and trying to shake everyone down there. Just my observation, but I would like to see him take the 3 to 4 yards the defense is willing to give him sometimes.

  183. 183 suthrneagle said at 11:02 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Polk was active ,wonder why Kelly didn`t want to use a power runner.

  184. 184 47_Ronin said at 11:47 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Polk got blasted on a return that drew a yellow flag, I was wondering if he was hurt afterwards.

  185. 185 Cafone said at 11:55 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    They need to feed Ertz in the red zone.

  186. 186 ICDogg said at 10:29 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Depth at ILB is a problem we need to work on. For various reasons, there’s Knott that many available.

  187. 187 Insomniac said at 10:34 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    What’s Jonathan Vilma doing these days? He can’t be as bad as Matthews.

  188. 188 ICDogg said at 10:36 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Last note on Rotoworld is that he worked out for the Falcons back in June, but was not signed.

  189. 189 GEAGLE said at 10:46 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Work on it? How do you do that? You either trade for Aurthor brown! or you deal with what you have….we all know it’s going to be addressed this next offseason…don’t really see many solutions for addressing it now… Any other decent ILBs on the trading block that I don’t know of?

  190. 190 47_Ronin said at 11:33 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    I don’t know but I have gut feeling that the front office whiffed on ILB this past offseason, Christian Jones out of FSU went undrafted (supposedly for failing the combine urine test b/c it was diluted). Jones undoubtably better than Matthews (and rated one of the top ILB in the draft) did the Eagles make any effort to sign him to a UDFA contract?

  191. 191 Insomniac said at 11:36 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    He’s on the Bear’s roster now. There was probably more behind the scenes that irked us about him.

  192. 192 47_Ronin said at 11:45 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    I’m not going to give the FO any benefit of the doubt on this, Chip came from college and you can’t tell me he had a bunch former choir boys at OU. After Matthews was benched after one series that’s a pretty clear indication that he doesn’t need to be on the roster.

  193. 193 Insomniac said at 12:00 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    True but it’s Chip’s team and if he didn’t want him then Howie didn’t bother. Jones definitely had potential but he had to do something that raised flags for all 31 teams.

  194. 194 Avery Greene said at 12:52 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Not much else out there, and at least he shows up on special teams.

  195. 195 Sean Stott said at 1:00 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I wonder how Marcus Smith would look at ILB.

  196. 196 MFlick said at 10:38 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Could we move Kelly to RT and play Wade Smith at LG?

    That should give us some stability until Lance comes back from his suspension.

  197. 197 GEAGLE said at 10:44 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    No!!! You like wearing down defenses with our tempo so they are huffing and puffing and get no pressure on our QB in the second half? Then you can’t play Wade, who isn’t in eagles shape

  198. 198 Insomniac said at 11:54 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    They wouldn’t have signed him if he was in Andre Smith shape.

    or at least I hope they weren’t that desperate..

  199. 199 GEAGLE said at 3:26 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Today Chip said that we are sticking with Dennis and Gardner on Sunday, as I suspected

  200. 200 Mike Roman said at 12:02 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Move Chip to RT? 😉

  201. 201 76mustang said at 10:49 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Does anyone know the rules regarding this scenario: On a Colts punt in the first half, I watched the Indy gunner run the length of the field 2 yds. out of bounds along the Indy sideline with an Eagles defender stride for stride. Is the Eagles defender allowed to hit the gunner when he’s out of bounds? The punt was angled to that gunner’s side of the field and he eventually reentered the playing field and I believe was involved in the tackle. Is this a common practice that I’ve not noticed before? Seems like a brilliant bending of the rules if you’re allowed to get away with it…

  202. 202 Corry said at 10:51 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    The cover team player has to try to get back in bounds. The Eagles defender can keep forcing him out of bounds, but the gunner cannot go out of bounds freely and must try to force his way back in.

  203. 203 BC1968 said at 11:05 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Also, if the gunner goes out of bounds he’s not allowed to touch the ball first. Right?

  204. 204 D3FB said at 11:50 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    The gunner can not go out of bounds to run around a block. If he does he can’t touch the ball or be the first man down. If he is forced out by a blocker, he has to make his best efforts to get back in and the blocker may not block him while he is out of bounds or it is a personal foul.

    In reality alot of these guys let themselves get blocked out and run down the sidelines for 30 yards, the blockers are ok with it, they just keep pace and try to wall them off when the gunners get back in bounds.

  205. 205 RogerPodacter said at 11:54 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    thanks for this post. “If he does he can’t touch the ball or be the first man down.” what do you mean by ‘first man down’? i get that he can’t touch the ball… but is he not allowed to be the guy that forces the PR to fair catch? or is he not allowed to tackle the punt returner if he is the first one there?

  206. 206 D3FB said at 12:02 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I don’t think he’s allowed to tackle the punt returner.

  207. 207 RogerPodacter said at 12:13 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    oh wow. i did not know that. thanks for the info!

  208. 208 76mustang said at 12:12 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Thanks, this makes sense…

  209. 209 BC1968 said at 11:01 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Good article Tommy, right on point. BTW-If those calls went against us last night we’d all be crying like bitches, anyone who says otherwise is a liar.

  210. 210 NevadaEagle said at 11:11 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    There was an obvious miscommunication on the interception – TY had cut inside and fell backward towards the pass, Luck threw the ball to his outside shoulder.

    I know that if Foles had been intercepted with no call, I would be up in arms, but I’m willing to forgive the ref his transgression 😉

  211. 211 mtn_green said at 11:22 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    I loved when Colts had last drive and the TV producers pulled out the video of all of Luck’s fourth quarter come back wins, showed stats on the screen of all the come-back wins. Announcers are talking about ‘here he comes to win the game.’ then three and out. Awesome defense.

  212. 212 suthrneagle said at 11:29 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    they`ll do it again next game when it`s time for a come from behind win;won`t show this game`s downlight, as if it didn`t happen.

  213. 213 GEAGLE said at 7:43 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    See. I told you it was a fact FOles wouldn’t lose to the colts

  214. 214 P_P_K said at 12:22 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Luck is one of the golden boys of the NFL and media. It was a thing of beauty to have our D make that stand.

  215. 215 eagleyankfan said at 11:31 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    again — and again and again — ” but don’t try to come to any conclusions about him right now.” WE are the not the ones coming to conclusions about FOLES. YOU ARE. You’re the one that said he’s not capable of putting the team on his back for a win. The Foles supporters(if you will) are the ones saying — give the guy a freaking chance play and grow. I get it, you like to give back handed comments and then come out with an article saying for us to calm down.
    ……..
    Nobody(mean Foles supporters) are saying he’s is playing outstanding. Nobody here is saying he’s perfect. We are also NOT saying he stinks and should be benched or that he can’t carry this team. Get the difference? We are saying he needs to clean up his game and we believe he can and will only get better as time goes on….

  216. 216 Insomniac said at 11:34 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    We’re going to need you to quote exactly where you’re getting these impressions from.

  217. 217 eagleyankfan said at 11:35 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    go re-read his article from yesterday…or my comments from yesterday.

  218. 218 Insomniac said at 11:40 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    All i see is mindless rambling. Foles isn’t playing all that well right now. 2013 might have been his peak or it might not have. Tommy and a bunch of others are giving what they see right now and not the hypothetical perfect world bs that you want.

  219. 219 eagleyankfan said at 11:42 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Here’s the quote because you seem to have blinders on … “Foles needs help for the offense to function. He’s not the kind of QB who can carry a team.” That’s a direct quote — from T-Law. I’m not making that line up. It’s his words. how is THAT not coming to a conclusion???? Foles is NOT a finished product yet.

  220. 220 Insomniac said at 11:49 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    How much stock do you put on Chip’s play-calling compared to Nick’s ability? That’s all it comes to right now. Foles was bailed out by our RBs and defense last night, that’s a fact. I’ll give Foles credit for bringing out back in the Jaguars game though. Yea I know Nick isn’t a finished product but he’s as polarizing as Kaepernick right now. When both guys are on point, they’re pretty damn good but when they’re not..they’re damn bad.

  221. 221 anon said at 11:54 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    he wasn’t damned bad last night he was mediocre. CK makes the game easy foles just has to make throws.

    We’re a terrible team w/out CK.

  222. 222 Insomniac said at 11:55 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    I’m not speaking of last night. The Cowboys game last year was what I;m pointing at. Highs and lows you know?

  223. 223 eagleyankfan said at 11:56 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Amen to that. No question — 3 and 15 and a run play for a first down. Absolutely does some bailing out …

  224. 224 eagleyankfan said at 11:55 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    I agree with you 100%. There’s nothing there that I don’t agree with and that supports my point on Foles. Foles might just fit system very nicely and that’s all that matters. I take issues with definitive statements like he can’t carry the team. I’m not watching Foles blindly. I see his screw ups(missing people). Foles is still young and we have to expect that kind of play. We have to understand that Foles IS going to have more games like this. It’s going to happen. I also believe Foles will mature and be better over the years. That part remains to be seen — but I can hope.

  225. 225 Insomniac said at 1:05 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Just semantics man. Foles is polarizing right now. He still has a small sample size.

  226. 226 Andy124 said at 12:05 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Bailed out by our defense that gave up 27 points when Foles helped the offense to 30 points? What kind of sense does that make?

  227. 227 Insomniac said at 1:05 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    They got the ball back for us and showed up at the end. That’s plenty enough sense.

  228. 228 eagleyankfan said at 11:50 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    what perfect bs world do I want? Again — with the blinders. Take them off and look. My opinion is clear. I like Foles and I think he can lead this team. I’m not sitting here saying Foles is the greatest QB ever. I’m also not sitting here saying Foles can’t put the team on his back. If I was screaming he’s the greatest ever, you’d have a valid point.

  229. 229 Tom McAllister said at 11:35 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Your first paragraph is a weird interpretation of the line you quoted.

  230. 230 eagleyankfan said at 11:37 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    yes — angry typing does that. LOL. T-law is the one with “conclusions” on the guy based on his article yesterday and yet, he wants us not to jump to conclusions….

  231. 231 eagleyankfan said at 11:36 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    just wondering — anybody know who 2nd in the nfl in total passing yards :). It’s a quiz.

  232. 232 Cafone said at 11:50 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    I thought this guy was joking before, but it’s starting to seem like he’s serious now.

  233. 233 Michael Winter Cho said at 11:36 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Strangely, Football Outsiders had Foles ranked 2nd after Peyton for this week. I wonder what their numbers were seeing exactly.

  234. 234 eagleyankfan said at 11:37 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    maybe total yards after 2 games?

  235. 235 RogerPodacter said at 11:39 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    nope. total yards after 2 games, Foles is 2nd behind Matt Ryan, not Peyton.

  236. 236 eagleyankfan said at 11:41 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    point is — Foles should be ranked that high after his 1st 2 games….

  237. 237 Anders said at 1:31 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    good at converting 3rd down? Good passes in the RZ? that is normally what FO really value

  238. 238 BobSmith77 said at 11:39 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    No team has 4 good ILBs but when your 1st round pick isn’t even dressing for the 2nd game that is a real issue.

    Glossed over it in the broadcast last night but Gruden said it was the lack of Smith’s versatility. If Smith was playing well on coverage units (and they definitely could use the help) and contributing, he would be dressing.

    So far the offseason moves (Jenkins, Sproles) have paid off more than the ones that look shaky (Jackson, drafting Smith).

    Colts put together a pretty good game plan on how to attack this offense though including put 7 and 8 guys in the box, bringing a lot of pressure especially from CB/S blitzes, limit the Eagles ability to run effectively outside of the T on their stretch plays, and play press man on the Eagles WR on the outside. Saints had a similar game plan in the playoffs.

    Might question a few of Kelly’s calls that got a bit too exotic in the red zone but man he is just an impressive play-caller. With slightly better execution on offense in the red zone, this team puts up 30+ pts again.

    Limit McCoy and then he turns to Ertz and Sproles instead. I wonder though how long that circle route and the bubble screens that Sproles ran last night will continue to lead to big plays though. Curious if the Skins can take what the Saints/Jags/Colts have done well, continue to get a good pass rush, and use their decent secondary to put enough clamps on this offense to sneak out a win next week.

  239. 239 mtn_green said at 11:43 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    WA defense seems to be playing better than their talent would tell you.

  240. 240 RogerPodacter said at 11:48 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    If Smith was playing well on coverage units (and they definitely could use the help) and contributing, he would be dressing.
    i don’t understand this part…

    are we expecting him to contribute at ILB? i mean, we all want him to get on the field… but at OLB. i don’t want him to learn another position when i’m sure he’s already swimming trying to learn his first position…

    my dream scenario would involve him outplaying matthews on STs so they dress one more OLB instead of a ILB…
    but with Goode hurt, thats a difficult decision.

  241. 241 anon said at 11:50 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    special teams

  242. 242 Insomniac said at 11:51 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    When they send in Matthews instead of you..you should feel bad.

  243. 243 anon said at 11:56 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    nay meco is 45. plus blitzing is easy who will make a tackle?

  244. 244 Insomniac said at 11:58 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    Certainly not Matthews. You could have put in Earl Wolff and he would have had a better chance.

  245. 245 Cafone said at 12:16 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I was thinking Boykin, but yeah…At this point it seems to me that any one of our reserve DBs would do a better job at ILB than Casey Matthews. Or maybe Nolan Caroll. Maybe Matthews has much more bulk than those guys, but he’s never in the right spot to apply it anyway.

    I’d rather have Brandon Boykin’s 185 pounds hitting a guy than Matthew’s 245 missing him.

  246. 246 RogerPodacter said at 11:42 AM on September 16th, 2014:

    this is amazing. hail the boy king.

    http://www.bleedinggreennation.com/2014/9/16/6225045/brandon-boykin-message-to-eagles-haters

  247. 247 Cafone said at 12:05 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    My biggest concern at this point is the Eagles’ inability to get the Foles/Maclin connection going.

    If I hadn’t already been convinced that Riley Cooper isn’t very good and was being overrated by many Eagles’ fans, I’d probably be pretty worried that he only has 37 yards in two games.

    And I’m willing to give Jordan Matthews time, but he certainly seems to be displaying the very faults that caused him to slip down on draft boards.

  248. 248 Insomniac said at 12:07 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I posted about how there was already chemistry when Foles started a few games when Reid was still here..boy was I wrong. Maybe Maclin is just rusty..Cooper on the other hand has no excuse.

  249. 249 Cafone said at 12:10 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Obviously Maclin hasn’t been sensational or anything, but at this point I’d say Foles is at least as much to blame for their failure to hook up consistently. It seems to my untrained eye like Maclin has been open. Hopefully we get some good All-22 analysis from one of the Eagles writers soon to break down the issue.

  250. 250 RogerPodacter said at 12:13 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    yea i remember that Foles/Maclin had pretty good chemistry two years ago. i’m guessing that they just need more practice time together.
    Cooper was also injured this offseason, right? i’m really, really hoping the three of them just need to work together more to get that chemistry going…

  251. 251 Bert's Bells said at 12:37 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Cooper’s doesn’t need an excuse, he is who we thought he is.

  252. 252 76mustang said at 12:32 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Different route tree than under AR?

    On the swing screens, looked like Foles was leading Maclin to make it a forward pass while Maclin was still bowing the motion route – this is more a timing issue and should be easily correctable.

    Cooper played the most WR snaps and continues to be the best blocking WR. Coop and Mac missed a lot of TC.

    Not sure how well Musgrave and Foles are clicking – I like that Foles has battled and remained mentally tough in the comebacks, but not seen the progression in the basics. The missed pass that stood out to me was his step up in the pocket and throw behind a wide open Ertz. Is that bad mechanics, nerves, brain fart???

    Still not convinced special teams are fixed and that Fipps is the right man for the job – Colts punt coverage seemed stronger than Eagles, the one kick return was still brought out to the 27 and there appeared to be running lanes for the returner. Thankful we have Parkey kicking deeper, hope he can continue when the colder weather sets in.

  253. 253 Avery Greene said at 12:56 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    They really didn’t have anyone behind Huff. I think right now it’s not a liability (kick returns) and everything else is solid. Once Huff is back, we should be fine in that department (as long as he doesn’t take it out when he’s 10 yards deep).

  254. 254 Anders said at 1:28 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    “And I’m willing to give Jordan Matthews time, but he certainly seems to be displaying the very faults that caused him to slip down on draft boards.”

    As I have said, I want nothing more than Matthews to prove me wrong, but he better start using those giant hands.

  255. 255 mksp said at 4:12 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Dude has *zero* ball skills.

    Beginning to wonder if we’ll regret taking him over Cody Latimer.

  256. 256 D3FB said at 5:13 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Latimer was a healthy scratch this week. So according to fans logic he suxxxxx. BUST!

  257. 257 mksp said at 5:32 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Ha, true. DEN a little more loaded with weapons though.

  258. 258 D3FB said at 2:40 AM on September 17th, 2014:

    Ehhhhh. Welker was out. Both Thomas’s are studs. Sanders is good. Virgil Green and Tamme are the backup TE’s. Both are JAG’s. WR3 is career Journeyman Andre Caldwell. The only other WR on the roster was rookie UDFA Isiah Burse.

  259. 259 Anders said at 3:07 AM on September 17th, 2014:

    If Matthews can correct his dropsies (Ertz have done it), he is the perfect slot WR for the Eagles (I would hate him long term on the outside)

  260. 260 BobSmith77 said at 12:15 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Half time/Game scores since Foles became the FS starter last year and Kelly the head coach

    NYG: Came in for Vick
    TB: 14-17 (31-20)
    Dallas – Got hurt and was relieved by Barkley
    NYG: Barkely crap fest
    Oak: 28-13 (49-20)
    GB: 10-3 (27-13)
    DC: 17-0 (24-16)

    AZ: 17-7 (24-21)
    Detroit: 0-8 (34-20) – Fluke game due to the extreme weather conditions
    MN: 9-17 (30-48)
    Chi: 24-3 (54-11)
    Dal: 17-10 (24-22)

    NO: 7-6 (24-26)

    2014
    Jac.: 0-17 (34-17)
    Indy: 6-17 (30-27)

    12 game sample size (11 if you don’t include the Detroit game) which isn’t much but in those games:

    1. 10-2 in those games
    2. Had the lead in 7 of those games at Half and won 6 of them
    3. Were trailing at half in 5 of those games at Half and have won 4 of them
    4. Scored 385 pts in those 12 games (32.1 pts) vs allowed 261 pts (21.8 pts)
    5. Scored 151 pts in those 12 games in the 1st half (12.6 pts) vs allowed 118 pts (9,8 pts)
    6. Scored 234 pts in those 12 games in the 2nd half (19.5 pts) vs allowed 143 pts (11.9 pts)

    On the surface, it does appear the Eagles have been a much better team in the 2nd half under Foles and Kelly (very SSS). Need to benchmark this though to the overall league and to team with winning records over that same time span.

    Really love to see the number of YAC, RPC, and a few other stats though for 1st half vs 2nd half to see if there really is any difference between them for this team since then too.

  261. 261 Cafone said at 12:20 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Whenever you have questions or concerns about Bill Davis, just remember this: Our last defensive coordinator named Casey Matthews a week 1 starter at MLB in a 4-3 defense as a rookie.

  262. 262 anon said at 12:21 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    he was good in college…

  263. 263 CSA said at 12:29 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    So good that he was only a 4th round pick…

  264. 264 Sean Stott said at 12:55 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Boykin was a 4th round pick.

  265. 265 mtn_green said at 3:07 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Boykin had a broken leg for combine
    Can’t tell much from draft position.
    Vontaze Brufict was undrafted.

  266. 266 CSA said at 5:52 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Touche!

    Still, nobody should expect a 4th rounder to be an immediate starter. Boykin fell because he was coming off a major leg injury and didn’t go through the combine process. Typically 4-6 rounders are expected to be NFL backups and you hope to get lucky. Casey was perfectly healthy and nobody wanted him until the 4th round when we picked him.

  267. 267 Sean Stott said at 6:41 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I totally agree. Basically after the second round you’re gambling and hoping one or two picks can stick.

  268. 268 Michael Winter Cho said at 12:27 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Advanced Football Analytics did an interesting article on Foles and his interception rate. According to their comparisons, expecting 13-14 from him this year is not out of line, and since he seems to fumble at a high rate, he might actually end up being highly turnover prone. Add that to OL troubles, and the team might need to carry him.

  269. 269 anon said at 12:31 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    only one to yesterday but the pocket was pretty clean. we’ll see when we face a better pass rush.

  270. 270 eagleyankfan said at 12:45 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    hard to come up with numbers after 2 games and assume those are full season numbers.

  271. 271 Michael Winter Cho said at 1:25 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    That’s not how they came up with the predictions. I agree that it would be pretty stupid to extrapolate from 2 games!

  272. 272 eagleyankfan said at 1:34 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    oh ok…lol. I was wondering how they came up with numbers. I’d expect any qb to have at least 9 to 10 picks a season. Saying a few more isn’t really out of the question.

  273. 273 Sean Stott said at 1:04 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    His interception yesterday is not one that should be held against him. I thought it was a great decision, just a bit underthrown. I’d ask him to try that throw 10 times out of 10 at the end of a half, on that end of the field.

  274. 274 Michael Winter Cho said at 1:24 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I think the article was looking at his last year and pointing out that interception% is relatively random. Thus, there is little reason to believe Foles is incredibly good at avoiding interceptions, but it is more likely he had an outlier season. We will see.

  275. 275 Anders said at 1:27 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    The fact that his pass was underthrown puts it on him

  276. 276 Sean Stott said at 1:27 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Absolutely. But, let’s say that Foles thinks he can make that throw… even 30% of the time. You still take it as the situation allows for it.

  277. 277 eagleyankfan said at 1:32 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I agree it was underthrown. I also expect our wr to give a better fight to go after the ball.

  278. 278 NinjaP said at 3:53 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Any wide receiver that didn’t suck balls makes that an incomplete pass. I put that int on maclin being a pansy.

  279. 279 Tumtum said at 12:31 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I remember the last season we drew the AFC South and I thought it would be a blessing. Turned out anything but. Was weary this time, but they have now beat the top and the bottom of that division. One more and they get through it with a winning record.

  280. 280 Sean Stott said at 12:48 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Kickoff coverage was bad and there were TONS of drops.

    I don’t think Foles was nearly as bad as Tommy is saying. They failed to convert on a couple of red zone trips that made the score look more lopsided than the game really was, early on at least.

  281. 281 Sean Stott said at 12:53 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I saw a stat that the Eagles did much better against Luck in their base 3-4. It seems like when the team is in base, it naturally fares well against the run. There’s some weakness against the pass that is built-in, but I think you have to trust the DBs a bit more?

    On the flip side, when they blitz the house, especially against someone like Luck, he is able to either A.) pick them apart or B.) hand off the ball for a big rush. I’m more nervous on 3rd & 13 than I am on 3rd & 3. That’s gotta change…. my blood pressure can’t handle it.

  282. 282 RogerPodacter said at 2:15 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    we are actually doing VERY well on 3rd downs so far this year. something like 33% vs Colts and even lower % vs the Jags. very surprising!

  283. 283 GEAGLE said at 3:22 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    We are one of the top teams so far this year in getting off the field on 3rd down which is the #1 defensive improvement we needed to make this offseason.. In the clutch, this defense forced luck to go 3 and out on his last drive.. No comeback win for luck last night!

  284. 284 bwin29 said at 1:04 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Reminds me of 2012 a bit … very shaky 2-0 start. Made us sweat trying to beat a terrible team in Week 1 (Cleveland), then an up-and-down performance in Week 2 against a good team in a game they probably shouldn’t have won (Baltimore).

    I don’t think they’re gonna collapse after this like the 2012 team did, but man they have looked so bad for such a high % of both games.

  285. 285 Matt said at 2:09 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I was thinking that but the feelings I have are sooo different. Somehow I knew we were gonna collapse in 2012. Something just was really off about that team. This year it feels more like “just wait till we get going”.

  286. 286 bwin29 said at 3:18 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    This is about as subjective as it gets. It will be hard to get going unless Foles plays totally differently than he has until this point.

  287. 287 Matt said at 3:38 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Ehh… I was happy with Foles last night, I know a lot aren’t which is fair. But he was flawless on that game winning drive. Getting going in the first half is much less of an issue than choking in the clutch.

  288. 288 bwin29 said at 3:44 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    He was very good on the last two drives I agree. But he has left tons of yards on the field in both games. And they have had to make obvious in-game adjustments in both games to the playcalling to some degree to minimize the impact of his erratic ball placement.

  289. 289 Matt said at 4:53 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    In the Jax game yeah, but if Cooper and Celek reel in those TD catches we’re not having this conversation. Different ways to spin it, Foles wasn’t great last night, but neither was anyone on O except Ertz and Sproles

  290. 290 bwin29 said at 4:57 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    In general, he had so many guys running free/wide open in both games that his performance was maybe a lot worse than the numbers indicate, drops notwithstanding.

  291. 291 bwin29 said at 4:59 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    He did make a few really nice passes in yesterday’s game, especially down the stretch. Two of the long passes to Ertz were great, the TD to Maclin was a great throw, the drop by Cooper in the end zone was a great throw.

  292. 292 bwin29 said at 5:01 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Lots of his yardage was from screens and short throws that had lots of YAC. When he has been going downfield, tons of passes over guys’ heads and behind them. Also he was way off target on those WR screens with the pre-snap motion.

  293. 293 Matt said at 5:04 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Just curious, what were the wide open misses you saw last night? I think sproles was wide open on a red zone drive and Cooper was open downfield on another. Those were the “didn’t make the right read” plays. He threw behind Ertz bad when he was open, probably his worst throw of the game. And two throws to Maclin that he would probably like to have back. Those are the ones I saw, probably some other ones. Obviously some missed opportunities but it wasn’t comparable to the Jax game when someone was wide open every play.

  294. 294 bwin29 said at 5:08 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    There was a play on the first drive when Riley Cooper was wide open and he threw to Ertz instead who got rocked. Also on the 2nd drive Maclin was wide open on one play down the sideline and Foles way off (high and behind him). Also a throw to Matthews where he threw it in front of him after pre-snap motion. There was another of those WR screens where he was way off on the timing also, I forget who the receiver was.

  295. 295 bwin29 said at 5:09 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Ertz’ nice catch over the middle the ball was way too high even though he came down with it.

  296. 296 Matt said at 5:54 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    All good stuff. The WR screens were a couple others I forgot. Looking forward to the All-22’s this week to see how good/bad he actually was.

  297. 297 bwin29 said at 5:10 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Also that drop to Celek in the end zone should have been caught, but he really gunned it in there a la McNabb.

  298. 298 bwin29 said at 5:11 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    The one pass that he seems to be really good with are those mesh/wheel routes where he lobs it up high and soft and the guy runs under it downfield. Had a really nice one to Ertz like that.

  299. 299 anon said at 9:16 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    you’re arguing against missed plays but you name a handful of bad passes to open guys. doesn’t mean foles is a bad guy just needs to tighten it up.

  300. 300 Matt said at 12:29 AM on September 17th, 2014:

    My point was more that he was great when he needed to be to tie and to win the game. Which is more important to me than the not great rest of the game he played.

  301. 301 anon said at 9:14 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    if screens didn’t work it wouldnt even be close.

  302. 302 bwin29 said at 9:18 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Good thing the Eagles have probably the best screen personnel of any team in the league with Sproles and McCoy. It also works out well that those passes are tough to screw up for the QB (since Foles has been so erratic throwing downfield).

  303. 303 suthrneagle said at 9:21 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    `if ` doesn`t belong in conversations of past events

  304. 304 Maggie said at 7:50 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    As long as he improves with each game, we’ll all be happy.

  305. 305 jay ray said at 3:00 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Except this team can create a friggin’ turnover

  306. 306 bwin29 said at 3:17 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    They had 6 turnovers in those 2 games in 2012. This team has 3 turnovers in the first 2 games.

  307. 307 jay ray said at 3:37 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Oh, so we’re only looking at a 2 game sample size. Got it.

  308. 308 bwin29 said at 3:42 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Well my point is we didn’t know that the 2012 team wasn’t ultimately going to generate a lot more turnovers after that. After 2 games they were amongst the league leaders in that category.

  309. 309 anon said at 9:10 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    i remember the arizona game where it went off the rails and we just never got back together.

  310. 310 bwin29 said at 9:16 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Ugh that game was a disaster.

  311. 311 xeynon said at 1:06 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    The Eagles have been ragged at times and look like anything but a well-oiled machine at this point, that is true. The thing is, that is true of almost every other team in the league as well. It is rare for any team, let alone one starting two backup OL, to be clicking on all cylinders offensively at this point, and the Eagles are 2-0 with an eventual blowout over a bad team and a quality road win over a playoff-caliber opponent and averaging 32 points a game despite the hiccups. That’s a good sign.

    We know Foles, Cooper, McCoy, Celek and Maclin are all capable of playing better than they have so far. I think it’s far likelier that we’re looking at a small early-season sample of middling-to-poor play from them than that they’ve all forgotten how to play football. Andy’s teams always started slow too. I’d rather start slow and still be undefeated than dig a hole early in the year.

  312. 312 eagleyankfan said at 1:28 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    nicely said. Just throwing this out there — I harp on Allen all the time as our safety. Someone brings up to give Allen slack because since he’s been here, there’s been a huge turnover almost yearly on schemes/coaches over the last 3 years. I think there is merit to that argument. If there is some merit to that reasoning — would Foles fall under that same reasoning? I’m not making excuses for Foles, just thinking out loud. Foles is in his 3rd year and his 3rd QB coach. I can’t explain some of the mis-steps by Foles but wondering if that could be part of a reason. As the season progresses, I think we do see some of the poor play go away. Hoping they hit their stride later in the season.

  313. 313 Avery Greene said at 1:31 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I think he’s playing a bit tighter this year. Last year he was slinging the ball and looked really comfortable. This year he doesn’t look as comfortable – maybe the Oline missing starters or he’s thinking too much about last year. I think he’ll settle down after some more playing time and maybe a couple more INTs. I think he’ll be fine.

  314. 314 A Roy said at 3:55 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    My daughter was at the game and she had the same observation.

  315. 315 anon said at 9:09 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    lots of pressure to be the guy and to live up to 27/2 that everyone yelled about last year.

  316. 316 BobSmith77 said at 2:05 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Allen had a terrible night last night. Curious to see what Tommy writes when he watches the All-22 but I saw a few missed tackles from him and poor positioning and flow on the running plays to the weak side.

    Don’t need Allen to be a world beater. Just not a gaping hole.

  317. 317 BlindChow said at 1:13 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Kansas City fans are clamoring for Alex Henery. Apparently they’ve got a rookie kicker who misses easy field goals and has a noodle leg. Should someone tell them?

  318. 318 EagleEyeNebula said at 1:30 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    No way, you don’t want to ruin the surprise.

  319. 319 Avery Greene said at 1:36 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Maybe show them this….

    http://bloggingthebeast.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Noodleleg.png

  320. 320 BobSmith77 said at 2:04 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Eagles screwed that up in the offseason and really have had dumb luck so far although their rookie kicker missed an easy FG last night & didn’t get many touchbacks either.

  321. 321 Anders said at 2:24 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Parkey had 4 touchbacks on 6 KOs, so far he has 9 TBs on 13 KOs

  322. 322 GEAGLE said at 4:13 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    More than how he has performed, I like hearing how his team mates talk about him. Don’t think I ever heard our players speak of Alex with such confidence,, everyone from Grunts in the trenches to our star running back seem to like this kicker and have a lot of respect for him

    Can’t even stress how awesome it is to not be a nervous wreck everytime we have to kickoff or return a punt.. This kid on kickoffs and Sproles returning punts gives me a sense of security that’s been missing for too long….

    Btw, we saw some elite punting last night from both teams…two punters who are real weapons!!

  323. 323 Javi Echie said at 2:58 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    So what you’re saying is you’d rather have Henery over Parkey?. Let me get some of what you’re smoking dude.

  324. 324 Anders said at 2:18 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    http://online.wsj.com/articles/the-philadelphia-eagles-secret-coaches-professors-1410890601?tesla=y&mg=reno64-wsj

    Do the Eagles have the smartest coach in all of sports?

  325. 325 RogerPodacter said at 2:21 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    this is a great, great article. thank you!

  326. 326 mtn_green said at 3:02 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Thanks good read.

  327. 327 GEAGLE said at 3:19 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Last night FOles faced a blitz of 5 plus defenders 5 times, our young FRANCHISE QB completed all 5 passes for 155 yards against the blitz. 2 for 2 on the final drive.

    Had some rough moments, but when it mattered, he was pretty sharp. That TD pass to Maclin in a tight window was a thing of beauty. last drive, he comes out and completes a big pass down the left sideline to get the drive started that got us into FG range..

    As for your defense, it faced the best come from behind QB in the NFL today, and 3 and outed him on the last drive in HIS house!!!

    Fletcher Cox was dominant for the second game in a row

  328. 328 anon said at 9:07 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    he took 0 sacks credit to him and the line.

  329. 329 RogerPodacter said at 3:54 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    some Q & A with Giants OL Schwartz @ http://deadspin.com/im-giants-offensive-lineman-geoff-schwartz-ask-me-stuf-1635411037

    he played for Chip in Oregon so there are a few Chip-related questions in there as well. also, some good questions from people re: manningface. hahaha

  330. 330 GEAGLE said at 4:00 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Chip spoke about our OL today.. After watching the tape, he decided that we would stick with Dennis and Gardner on Sunday, which is the right move.
    ,..
    I don’t expect world beaters, but my expectation is a much better performance having gotten last night under their belt and with another week of practice.. Once shady gets it going we will really take off. SHAdy spoke on it today, saying it’s up to him to get it going so we can suck defenses in, and throw over the top..

    Chip was asked about Coop, and he cited déjà vu of last year when everyone complained about coop the first few weeks and then he went on to have a quality season..

    We are 2-0 and learning to win no matter what. I find it extremely exciting knowing that we haven’t even seen close to our guys best yet.
    FOles, Shady. Coop, Celek, Maclin, the offensive line will all get it together sooner or later and play to a higher level than we have seen so far..

    People also need to understand that this is still a growing team, it’s not a case of, it’s year two we should be world beaters from day one…. I never viewed this year like that…my thinking was we would start the season around the level we played down the stretch last year, and over the course of this year we would continue to grow, til we have a top offense and top 12 defense at the end of the year…. Of course we have to adjust the curve, now that we are playing with multiple backup lineman…

    We know how awesome this offense can be when we start clicking on all cylinders.. But it’s HUGE that we are learning to find ways to win even when we aren’t playing our best. Teams have to learn to win and overcome adversity..we won’t grow much from blowing out the bears 40-10… It sucks to not see us play our best, but from a team growth stand point, I think these past two weeks can be really good for our growth going forward.
    ..
    We have so much to Improve on. So many guys can and will play much better than they have played these past two games’ yet we are still able to go on the road and beat quality playoff teams… That’s extremely exciting.
    .
    The only reason an eagles fan should be upset right now is if they think they are seeing the best our players have to offer and don’t think our players can player better than they are playing… Ceiling is ridiculously high for this team.

    We are seeing ST improvement, Defensive improvement getting off the field on 3rd down….and we are seeing us put up top offensive numbers and our offense isn’t even close to playing it’s best ball. We are a top offense so far and our QB and star runningback aren’t even close to playing at their best yet…unless you think you are seeing the best FOles and shady have to offer,I don’t know how an eagles fan could not be pumped up for where we are right now….

    We just beat a top QB of a playoff team on the road, and we did it with our offense having an average nothing special outing….the potential of this team is scary, and we have the coaches and character that will realize it’s potential..

    Bet the saints wish they could go 2-0 without clicking on all cylinders yet… Bet the colts wish they could have found a way to win two games without playing even close to it’s potential yet…

    Eagles fans managed to find a way to reach a new all time low, down on a team that’s 2-0 LOL… Only in philly

  331. 331 OregonDucker said at 8:23 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Amen brother. Chip and the boys are just warming up.

  332. 332 GEAGLE said at 4:01 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Can’t get over that first Sproles TD run,,,

  333. 333 wee2424 said at 7:24 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Defintely makes the list of one of the coolest Eagles rushing touchdowns in recent memory. Lol my GF is a Floridian and while she likes football she doesnt really follow it. She kept cracking up over how small Sproles looks because he does sort of look a little funny on the feild. Opposing D’s dont think he is to funny though. Sort of looks like a toddler running with his legs being played in fast forward speed.

  334. 334 GEAGLE said at 7:40 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Marlon wayans in “little man”

  335. 335 GEAGLE said at 4:04 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    You know what funny about the TY Hilton Intercception? People want to complain that Boykin barley touched him, but TY extended his right arm fully pushing off Boykin.. It wasn’t a hard push off, but TY touched Boykin as hard as Boykin touched him(not hard at all)
    .,,
    I don’t think you could call pass INTerference on that play without also calling offensive interference. You aren’t allowed to touch a player after 5 yards. If you call it on Boykin, you would also have to call it on hilton

  336. 336 Anders said at 4:05 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    They was within 5 yards of the LOS

  337. 337 GEAGLE said at 4:06 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Even better reason not to blow a whistle… Tell it to ESPN who keeps acting I like the refs gave us the game

  338. 338 wee2424 said at 7:20 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    It was a good call by the refs to not throw the flag. When you first see it, it does look like holding, but after a few times of watching it you realize Boykins just played very good clean D. Something the media and Colts fans will never admit. By the way ESPN’s post game show is a joke. 3/4 of the postgame show felt as though thats all they talked about. Well that and the “horse collar” tackle that we even have to admit was bad. The way i see it though, that is football and the Colts got away with alot of holding.

  339. 339 Maggie said at 7:40 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    There were many missed calls on both teams for sure. Officiating continues to be inconsistent.

  340. 340 GEAGLE said at 7:57 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I shut the post game show off right away it was so bad. Refs didn’t decide the game, they Å‚et the two teams decide the game instead of awarding bullshit Penalties in crunch time..
    ..
    Everything evens out… Cox got called for a bullshit horse collar against the jags! and we got that call back last night..
    ..
    Difference in the game wasn’t the refs. Crunch time, our defense forced Luck to go 3 and out with the game on the line, and our QB took us right down field for a game winning field goal
    ..
    To call last night a lucky win is just trash… What a disrespectful thing to say about a team that clawed and scratched for 60 min to get a win against a top QB and playoff team on the road.
    .. Calling it Lucky is fucking absurd.. Doubt anyone would say the colts drastically outplayed the eagles so I’m not sure what could be lucky about it…the fact that didn’t play our best and still won speaks to the makeup of this team… Calling it luck is trash.. Sorry

  341. 341 GEAGLE said at 4:08 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I didn’t even notice Nate or Wolff last night… Can anyone speak on either of their performances? Did Wolff even get snaps?

    Pleased to see the defensive improvement getting off the field on 3rd down

  342. 342 Bert's Bells said at 4:11 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Allen missed a tackle on one of Richardson’s first quarter runs. Wolff had a ST penalty.

  343. 343 wee2424 said at 7:13 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Lol i guess in a way that is a good thing. If Allen got burnt you would have noticed him.

  344. 344 BrettConnolly said at 4:23 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    And going back to the Oakland game, the Eagles are 9-2 and have scored at least 24 points each game while averaging 421 yards of offense.

  345. 345 bwin29 said at 4:30 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Let’s not get too worked up about this 2-0 start.

    Tons of warts everywhere:
    1. Foles still hesitating/double clutching frequently, rolling right when pressured instead of stepping up into the pocket, not seeing open receivers, and erratic ball placement when he does make throws
    2. D Line really pushed around yesterday right off the snap on running plays (looked eerily like the Saints game last year)
    3. The WR group is below average
    4. No margin for additional injuries on the OL or at ILB
    5. Minimal pass rush unless blitzing

  346. 346 Maggie said at 7:39 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    You’re right. And I’ll bet the whole team, including the coaching staff probably saw even more goofs than we did. Why, I’ll bet they will even work to correct some of the mistakes before the next game. And, gee, no one EVER suggested before that the WRs are not elite. Then again, how many WRs, anywhere in the league are “average”? Who are the other wideouts in Detroit? Or allas? Or New York? I’ll bet Belichik and Payton are going to toss their entire offense any day now. Because they lost!

  347. 347 bwin29 said at 8:22 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I’m not really sure I understand what point you’re trying to make. My main concern is that I think most of these issues aren’t particularly correctable.

  348. 348 GEAGLE said at 4:33 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Interesting week of football coming up:

    Two of our Rivals face defensive lines that can really batter a QB and leave his body banged up for weeks:
    ..
    Tony Romo @ The Rams nasty Defensive Line
    ..
    Eli and his crappy offensive line against one man wrecking crew JJ Watt

    Excited for our first chance to smack a rival around. The Kirk Cousin loves will get squashed like a but by big Fletcher Cox who is playing like a dominant force!

    Denver broncos got dominated on a neutral site in the Super Bowl.. This week they have to prove that they are tough enough to not fold against the Seahawks defense @ Seattle. I wouldn’t care if this game was in Denver, but having this game In Seattle makes it extremely interesting, The chargers beat Seattle throwing to the TE. If Denver can beat them using their TE it will provide us with a nice blue print to unleash Ertz on them, who should have grown into a beast by the time we play them in December.
    ..
    San Fran @ Arizona is another game to keep an eye on.
    ..
    Curious to see how desperate teams like the saints do against Zimmers Vikings, and how the Colts and jaguars division game unfolds. Two winless teams in a division game should be a dog fight

    Also like to see how Green Bay looks on the road in Detroit.

  349. 349 Richard Jones said at 4:34 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Tommy, do you think the Eagles will have any interest in ILB Arthur Brown, who has been a healthy inactive for the Ravens? I know the Eagles had interest in him before the draft a few years ago.

  350. 350 GEAGLE said at 4:40 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    NOW, the NFL is starting to have a Real problem!! All the last stuff was just noise… For the first time we are seeing the NFLs major sponsors start to have a problem with the NFLs image… Until sponsorship dollars were threatened, expecting real change was just bullshit… Now that sponsors feathers are starting to get ruffled, it becomes interesting. I would be extremely worried if I’m Goodell now… Threaten sponsor dollars, and now the NFC owners will be more likely to turn on you and scapegoat you. Figure the NFL reforms all it’s behavioral policies, off with Goodells head and Sponsors should be convinced to move forward with the NFL…

    Goodell had leverage before… The money he made the owners doesn’t mean as much now that we are starting to talk about losing major sponsors.. Now things get interesting.
    ..
    Funny that the NFL tries to hire 5 woman real quick lol. Where were the woman executives before your ass was on the line?

  351. 351 anon said at 8:57 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    from a beer company? how much DV, duis, etc. are caused by booze? do they take a stand on any of that stuff? it’s easy for people to just make statements. i’d love to see AB pull it’s sponsorship of the NFL. mutually assured destruction.

  352. 352 Alistair Middlemiss said at 4:45 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I am slightly worried i watched a different game to everyone else. I saw a talented team make a series of execution mistakes, come through it and win a tough road game against a team that in the last 14-3 over the last 2 years at home in a game they ‘needed’ to win.

    I saw a QB who moved us up and down the field with a makeshift line with 2 brand new starters with no experience in this scheme or chemistry with the rest of the line.

    Was a fantastic win and a statement. It took the eagles half a season to get moving along nicely last year but we are 2-0, and outside of a tough road trip to the 49ers have a decent series of winnable games. Chip has a history of getting his teams to execute and i fully expect we will with time.

  353. 353 GEAGLE said at 4:50 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I saw the same game as you brother… Negadelphians managed to reach an all time low… I don’t know when Philly got these crazy expectations of flawless dominant 16-0 season from beginning to end,, fans seem to have forgotten that most games, adversity will present itself no matter how good we are..these players and Chip don’t even have 20 games together yet and it’s like fans have fast forwarded their expectations to what they should be seeing from the 2016 veteran eagles…

    We are learning to overcome adversity, find a way to win even when things aren’t peaches and cream. I’d bet Chip has this team peaking at the right time…fans and media will just be wrong, like they usually are, eventually they should get tired of being wrong 🙂

    I must have been watching the wrong games that you happened to see

  354. 354 Mitchell said at 4:55 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Amen!

  355. 355 tomw said at 5:51 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    The game I saw last night was like just many of the games I have watched over the years. Only this time it was the other team blowing the game.

  356. 356 GEAGLE said at 5:07 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    ***The Eagles were 2-47 trying to comeback under Andy Reid, and we are 3-5 so far under Chip Kelly***

  357. 357 BC1968 said at 5:26 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Tommy can you stop pointing out where this team has to get better? Jesus you’re making a lot of people cry. They are perfect, DEAL with it!

  358. 358 GEAGLE said at 5:35 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    ILB depth is so bad, that we might have to try to use Marcus smith as a backup ILB.
    ..
    I mean, I think it’s clear what Billy Davis thinks about Casey Mathews when he benched him after like 4 snaps lol

    Kendricks injury was originally reported as a calf spasms, but today he was sent to have an MRI. Chip spoke before meeting with the doctors today so he didn’t have any intel to offer on the injury(shocker)… No matter what, this isn’t going to be a Longterm problem, but even 1 game without Kendricks is too much.
    ..
    Anyone hear anything about the injury please pass it along

  359. 359 Sean Stott said at 6:43 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I’ve bitched about Kendricks for a while, but when he left the game, and you realize the dropoff you’re about to see… that’s when you know you have a solid player. Hope he gets better soon.

  360. 360 GEAGLE said at 7:39 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    That’s a future probowler you are talking about 😉

  361. 361 anon said at 8:03 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    it wasn’t bad but if you lose 2 guys it’s gonna be bad.

  362. 362 GEAGLE said at 8:04 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I wouldn’t fear playing the redskins without Kendrick.. If he has to miss a game, this week is probably as good as any

  363. 363 bridgecoach said at 9:11 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Down 17 week 1 – I didn’t panic. I just knew in my bones they were coming back.
    Down 20-6 week 2 – no worries.
    Casey Mathews enters the game at ILB – I start freaking out like someone just jinxed my team!
    When they benched CM after 4 painful plays – I wanted to sing Fly Eagles Fly – they saw how he was going to lose us this game and they righted the ship!

  364. 364 tomw said at 5:54 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I only stopped by here again today to see if, maybe, Casey Mathews had found a new home. No such luck.

  365. 365 A_T_G said at 6:08 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Great write up, as usual, but…

    “…he is like a bowling ball the way he bounces off defenders.”

    …you are not an avid bowler, are you?

  366. 366 suthrneagle said at 6:54 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    maybe he meant the way the defenders bounced off him, as he kept rolling onward.

  367. 367 GEAGLE said at 8:03 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Told you that FOles beating luck was a fact and not just my opinion 😉

  368. 368 wee2424 said at 7:36 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Kelce is like a bowling ball when he reaches second and third level of D.

  369. 369 wee2424 said at 7:34 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Just have to say it would be a crime if Kelce does not make Probowl this season. He is Huge to this offense. You normally dont see a center sprinting 30 yards downfeild at a high rate of speed while being 100% under control. I dont think there is another center in this league that can do some of the things he does. Man is something special and should not be taken for granted. Our O relies heavy on screen plays and without him screens would not be nearly as effective.

  370. 370 GEAGLE said at 8:06 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Imagine those screens when our fastest OL Lane Johnson comes back

  371. 371 wee2424 said at 8:24 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Couldnt happen soon enough. Just hope he isnt too rusty. At the same time a rusty Johnson is better then what we have now. Lol rusty johnson, sounds prety funny. Like a dirty sex move. Or a side effect from an STD. Sorry guys, my inner 5 year old came out on that one.

  372. 372 GEAGLE said at 8:02 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Crazy to think back to all the damage Sproles did last night and think that he only touched the ball 11 times… Crazy
    ..,
    All the fools who bashed Cox probably should admit to not knowing what the fuck they were talking about after all the “he doesn’t fit this scheme” talk… Kid has been dominant in THIS scheme
    ..
    Kendricks and Cox will be probowlers…any doubters left? Lol

  373. 373 anon said at 8:28 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    i said cox might be better suited for 1 gap 43, and wondered if he’d he leave if it’s about the money / stats. i still think that but agree he might be the man in this scheme too.

    kendricks looks like he’s putting in work, right on time for that contract negotiation.

  374. 374 Mitchell said at 8:48 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Lock Kendricks up for sure. I’m thinking about getting his jersey.

  375. 375 GermanEagle said at 9:02 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Speaking of jerseys: am I the only one who thinks Nike is taking the piss offering authentic gameday jersey for 300 bucks?! That is insane.

  376. 376 jpate said at 8:58 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    kendricks wants to be a pro-bowler. I never question his effort looks like now he is putting it together

  377. 377 anon said at 8:04 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I really hate ESPN, I hate everything about what they do.

  378. 378 GEAGLE said at 8:05 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Right… Crazy how an all sports channel could be so horrible. I’m theory, it should be the greatest thing in the world, but it’s just horrible.,
    ..,
    Unfortunately NFL network isn’t much better with that idiot former Giant always running his mouth

  379. 379 UWotM8 said at 8:14 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I’ll take that idiot former Giant over Heath Evans any day. That being said I’ll gladly take a clean shot to the nuts over either of them.

  380. 380 GEAGLE said at 8:24 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Watching NFL network right now lol. “A,football life” of mean Joe green is awesome!

  381. 381 anon said at 8:30 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    it’s djax on e:60 — i miss him.

  382. 382 GermanEagle said at 8:55 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I know it’s still early doors, but it looks like the Eagles are missing DeSean Jackson probably more than Chip Kelly would ever admit.

  383. 383 GEAGLE said at 8:55 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    When you hold Andrew Luck to only 5.1 yards per pass, less than 200 yards, 4th quarter INT, and a 3 and out with the game on the line,,,, that’s some quality defense right there… Amazing they were able to buckle down defensively without Kemdricks…giant step forward for this defense,,

    Has FOles stole Lucks title of mr. Comeback yet?

  384. 384 GermanEagle said at 9:00 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    You still couldn’t figure our how to correct your auto correct on your phone? It just happens that I read FLOLes every time you mention him.

  385. 385 Flyin said at 9:25 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Huh… I read FOles every time. It’s like his signature. Since he doesn’t have an avatar, it is easy to recognize whose post it is while scanning though comments.

  386. 386 bwin29 said at 9:12 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I don’t think their OC did Luck any favors. Very few pass plays on 1st and 2nd downs. Put him in lots of 3rd and longs.

  387. 387 bwin29 said at 9:12 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Eagles were blitzing on lots of his pass attempts as a result.

  388. 388 GEAGLE said at 8:58 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Anyone have any clue, even an estimate of when we are getting Tobin, Polk and huff back?
    ..
    Think this will prove to be a great opportunity for Dennis Kelly..

  389. 389 bwin29 said at 9:11 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Polk played yesterday.

  390. 390 Flyin said at 9:28 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I think it has been week to week for weeks.

    What was Huff’s shoulder injury classified as?

  391. 391 bwin29 said at 9:30 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    We were never given an official grade, but it was likely a grade 3 AC sprain. He should be back any day now.

  392. 392 Flyin said at 9:34 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Have you heard any grade put on DJax’s AC sprain, or possible return?

  393. 393 bwin29 said at 9:37 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    He was grade 1, which is basically a non-structural issue and just comes down to pain tolerance. He’ll most likely be active.

  394. 394 A Roy said at 9:41 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    He’ll play…but with tears in his eyes.

  395. 395 Flyin said at 10:05 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Thanks!

  396. 396 Mitchell said at 9:43 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Which OLB’s in college should I be watching this year?

  397. 397 Insomniac said at 10:03 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    Zach Hodges
    Vic Beasley
    Shaq Thompson

  398. 398 D3FB said at 2:31 AM on September 17th, 2014:

    I doubt Beasley fits the size dimensions Chip requires.

    Shaq Thompson is a beast but would project as an ILB for us.

  399. 399 scratcherk said at 9:45 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I thought Foles looked much better than game 1. Still a long way to go but at least it was progress. As long as he keeps getting better, I’m happy. We’re still talking about the #2 passer in the league right now and the #1 offense in the league.

    It’s hard to find a true elite QB. Foles is getting it done right now.

  400. 400 bwin29 said at 9:56 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    I feel like the yardage he has accrued is a direct product of the system. If you evaluate Foles’ throws on a play-by-play basis right now, he has been mediocre at best over the first two games. I’m not trying to be negative for negativity’s sake, but if he had been even average in terms of accuracy the past two games, his yardage would be significantly higher. Most of his completions have been to wide open receivers, and there have been a disproportionately high # of very short throws with lots of YAC as opposed to last year when he was throwing the mid and deep ball much better. He has had lots of misses over guys’ heads and behind guys. You can see Chip adjusting his playcalling as the game goes on to address Foles’ lack of pinpoint accuracy (by dialing up more screens and other simpler throws).

    The positive to take out of this is it seems like guys are running free down the field with regularity (moreso than last year). If Foles can play a bit closer to the 2013 version from here on out, there are lots more yards and points out there to be had. And the Eagles are already #1 in the league in yards and points despite all the mistakes (all the drops certainly haven’t helped him either).

  401. 401 Flyin said at 10:18 PM on September 16th, 2014:

    This team is a team.