The Ultimate Do-Over

Posted: September 11th, 2015 | Author: | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 266 Comments »

What do Roman Gabriel and Sam Bradford have in common? Both are big, talented pocket passers. Both went from the Rams to the Eagles.

And Gabriel is the last veteran QB the Eagles brought in and gave the starting job to.

Nick Foles was a draft pick.

Mike Vick was the #3 QB in 2009 and became the starter due to injury in 2010.

Jeff Garcia was brought in to backup McNabb.

Mike McMahon…ugh…was brought in to be a backup.

A.J. Feeley was a draft pick.

Donovan McNabb was a draft pick.

Doug Pederson was brought to Philly to keep the seat warm until McNabb was ready.

Koy Detmer and Bobby Hoying were draft picks.

Ty Detmer was brought in to challenge Rodney Peete.

Peete was brought in to backup Randall.

Ditto that for Bubby Brister. And Jim McMahon.

Randall Cunningham was drafted.

The Eagles traded for Jaworski, but he only had 3 career starts with the Rams when the Eagles acquired him.

You have to go all the way back to 1973. Gabriel came over from the Rams. He threw for 3,219 yards and 23 TDs. Both totals led the NFL. The team only went 5-8-1. but they weren’t exactly loaded with weapons. Gabriel did his part.

Fast forward to 2015. Bradford is here and he is The Man. There is a ton of pressure on him. And I’m sure Bradford couldn’t be happier. The last time he played in a regular season game, the Rams lost to the Panthers 30-15 and fell to 3-4. Bradford’s RB was Zac Stacy, who ran 17 times for 53 yards. His workhorse receiver was Tavon Austin, with 5 catches for 39 yards. Only one of his starting O-linemen is even in the league anymore.

Bradford was having a solid season when he got hurt, but they were in the same division as the Seahawks and Niners. Both of those teams were having great years. The Rams were an underdog.

Life is very different right now. The Eagles have the spotlight on them. A lot of national pundits are talking about the Birds as a Super Bowl contender. Some even picked them to win. Bradford has a potential Hall of Fame player at LT. He has a group of talented receivers with size and speed. He has a great set of RBs. Oh yeah, he also gets to play for one of the top offensive minds in the football world.

There is a lot of pressure on Bradford to produce. But for the first time since college, he finally has the right pieces in place to help him be a great QB…to lead a team to great things. There are no guarantees that Bradford will stay healthy or that the team will play up to its potential, but you can’t understand how good it must feel to be on a team with potential when you’ve spent your career surrounded with marginal talent.

To those whom much is given, much is expected.

Chip Kelly didn’t bring Bradford here to score 21 points and gain 300 yards. He didn’t bring Bradford here to get back to 10-6. Kelly has bigger things in mind.

And that is just fine with Bradford. He welcomes the challenge.

Monday night, Bradford gets  his chance to show the world the Rams were right to pick him number one overall, that Kelly was right to trade for him in the offseason.

One game doesn’t change everything. But it could be the start of something special.

* * * * *

Jeff McLane wrote a good piece on Chip Kelly and his evolution as a play-caller. You wouldn’t think an article with so many mentions of Dana Bible would have such a positive spin. Right?

For those who don’t remember, Bible took over as OC when Jon Gruden left to become coach of the Raiders. Bible was disastrously bad for the 1998 Eagles. Bible has had a very good career as a college coach. The ’98 Eagles were just the wrong team at the wrong time.

Bible had traveled up and down and all around the coaching ranks by the time he wound up at Boston College in 1999. The Philadelphia Eagles had just fired him after less than one year as offensive coordinator in coach Ray Rhodes’ doomed final season. He met Kelly at one of Boston College’s summer camps and they connected almost immediately.

Their friendship continues. Bible, 61, is retired and living in San Diego. He said they haven’t seen each other as often, but they still talk on occasion and the conversations always revolve around football, much as they did when they were both living in New England.

Kelly had just become New Hampshire’s offensive coordinator in 1999 and he was still formulating his offense. He still is. But he sought out Bible and other like-minded coaches as he tinkered with ideas.

They spoke often over the phone, but Bible remembered the meetings that took place in person and in a public setting. There would be a clinic or a camp and they’d end up grabbing a bite to eat afterward. No topic was off-limits and they eventually got to know each other’s families and inner circles, but football was the bond.

“There never was a time when we were together that there wasn’t some discussion, or somebody wasn’t drawing something up, or somebody was blocking some chair, or running some route in a restaurant,” Bible said. “It just never did.”

Bible said he still has cocktail napkins with plays he drew up with Kelly. He said he could still recall the odd stares they would get when they pulled all the chairs out from a table, lined them up, and started blocking them.

“Yeah, we would get looks,” Bible said. “First off, let me tell you, we weren’t at the most high-class places. We weren’t going to five-star restaurants. We were in there with the families, guys getting off work. But once they figured out we were a couple of coaches, because we could get pretty animated, they wouldn’t feel threatened and it was no big deal.”

Wouldn’t it be funny if Dana Bible and the nightmare 1998 season somehow helped the Eagles win a title or become a great team?

If the Eagles go 8-8 that year, Rhodes and Bible might not get fired. Maybe Kelly never meets Bible. And so on.

1998 was a miserable season for me. The Eagles lost 13 games. Even worse, they looked hopeless all too often. I was a miserable person to be around. It would be kinda cool if somehow all that negativity actually led to something special.

_


266 Comments on “The Ultimate Do-Over”

  1. 1 Michael Winter Cho said at 10:39 PM on September 11th, 2015:

    Darn, this is supposed to go in the last post, but football outsiders released their projections. They have Eagles at 13. Dallas at 14, Rams at 5. SEA, NE, DEN, GB top teams.

    I can see where they are coming from. Bradford has bad stats and Foles had pretty good ones. There’s no real quantitative reason to think either the D or the O should get better. Still, they were rolling fools in the preseason and I think it will continue.
    http://www.footballoutsiders.com/dvoa-ratings/2015/2015-dvoa-projections

  2. 2 MagRememberSeptember said at 12:42 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    What is a source of amazement is how an analyst will tell us all about the new players on a team, then make his predictions for that team based on the last season’s results.

  3. 3 Michael Winter Cho said at 1:10 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    That would, indeed, be crazy. Footballoutsiders (from my link) does account for those factors: “The biggest change is that the new system does a much better job of incorporating personnel changes. For offense, this variable is based on DYAR for non-quarterbacks, while for defense, this variable is based on the net change in Pro Football Reference’s Approximate Value stat over a replacement level set at 3 AV. Other factors include coaching experience, recent draft history, combined tenure on the offensive line, and certain players returning from injury (or, in the case of these preseason updates, certain players getting injured in the preseason).”

  4. 4 Media Mike said at 7:15 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    I started reading their chart and wanted to sort it by stats in each column…………….that might have helped.

  5. 5 RobNE said at 8:07 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    They finished by record at least higher than 13. I don’t see. How you look at their changes and think they are worse.

  6. 6 Michael Winter Cho said at 11:54 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    Well, Foles has better career stats than Bradford, that’s the big one. The schedule maybe is harder (the Eagles have the 3rd hardest one in the top 15). There is no quantitative evidence that the secondary will improve. We got rid of two pro-bowlish offensive players and replaced them with one. Finally, you can win 10 games but not statistically “deserve” to win them (in other words, the system thinks you got lucky). I haven’t dug that deep into the stats, but these are all possible reasons why the numbers don’t look good.

  7. 7 anon said at 12:51 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    “Well, Foles has better career stats than Bradford, that’s the big one” look at the DBs in that division vs our division. Criminal that they only gave him mediocre receivers vs legion of boom + ARZ + SF during the past 5 years.

  8. 8 RobNE said at 8:16 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    The rankings of our offense and ST are way low.

  9. 9 Weapon Y said at 11:03 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    Football stats aren’t like baseball stats. Baseball stats are usually pretty good at isolating the performance of one player, so the performance of his teammates doesn’t affect them. Football stats are so dependent on a ton of variables that it’s hard to make much of them. For a QB, the blocking of the OL, route-running of WRs, and mistakes of the defense can all skew a play when they had no bearing on his individual performance.

  10. 10 Michael Winter Cho said at 11:50 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    While I agree with your reservations, QBs seem to have more effect on the other players than vice-versa. For example, Peyton Manning. Sam Bradford’s stats in STL are a legitimate worry. But things look good so far.

  11. 11 KevinShinn said at 11:04 PM on September 11th, 2015:

    Whoa! Never realized Rams–>Eagles is very akin to Eagles–>Vikings! Starting with Norm Van Brocklin, no less.

  12. 12 TommyLawlor said at 11:05 PM on September 11th, 2015:

    It is crazy.

  13. 13 KevinShinn said at 12:17 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    For your, ah, pleasure? Randall Cunningham@Lambeau Field 1998:
    https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=rEVSE0D9C6E

  14. 14 laeagle said at 3:03 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    I remember that year. Back in the days when TVs weren’t so digital. You could adjust the tint on the TV so that the purple looked sort of green, and imagine that the horns were wings, and watch Randall throw to Cris Carter, who would catch one-handed…

  15. 15 KevinShinn said at 3:13 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Companyman to Carter on the fade, always a killer TD.

  16. 16 Media Mike said at 7:12 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    That amazing season of football from Cunningham had me cursing Buddy Ryan for being too foolish to ever put any structure around Cunningham why he was an Eagle.

    I stay in the pocket, read the field, and let my amazing arm kill you Randall Cunningham should have been developed in Kelly Green, not Viking Purple.

  17. 17 unhinged said at 9:07 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    Randall and Randy directed by Brian Billick. That duo’s dynamism propelled BB, who was lauded as an offensive schemer, to his HC position with Ravens where he presided over a historically great D and an offense that was basically only good for giving the D a rest.

  18. 18 Media Mike said at 9:10 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    And his greedy playcalling at the end of the first half of the NFC title game ruined what would have been one of the greatest Super Bowl matchups ever (Denver and Minnesota) and instead left us stuck with that vile bunch of street trash from Atlanta and their stupid hoodlum Dirty Bird dance…………….and a bad game.

  19. 19 Michael Winter Cho said at 11:49 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    Yeah, most QBs who play with Randy Moss tend to look good.

  20. 20 KevinShinn said at 3:11 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Yeah. Moss made Tom Brady, that’s for sure.

  21. 21 KevinShinn said at 3:16 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Blame Norman Braman. With the D built, Buddy was going to assemble an offensive line next.

  22. 22 Media Mike said at 3:23 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    You don’t need to twist my arm to blame Braman.

  23. 23 unhinged said at 11:11 PM on September 11th, 2015:

    Quick read on CSN:
    http://www.csnphilly.com/football-philadelphia-eagles/jeffrey-lurie-ive-moved-way-suspicion-patriots?p=ya5nbcs&ocid=yahoo

    Anybody not certain of Jeff Lurie’s perspective on Judge Berman’s decision, here’s a hint.

  24. 24 MagRememberSeptember said at 12:15 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    from a comment on 24/7:

    “Those were nice things Lurie said, but this what he’s really thinking:
    Screw those cheatin’ Patriots!
    Kraft is an a-hole!”

  25. 25 unhinged said at 12:43 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    Ya think? I was under the impression that they were pretty chummy, but yeah, clearly Lurie and probably 29 other owners were profoundly disappointed with that judge’s ruling.

  26. 26 MagRememberSeptember said at 12:12 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    Interesting piece from Viking Land. If anyone needs a do-over. Not necessarily with the Eagles, of course.

    http://www.dailynorseman.com/2015/8/31/9235495/this-franchise-took-a-talented-smart-player-and-it-broke-him

  27. 27 Avery Greene said at 4:58 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    It’s a sad situation for him, but a lot of the blame goes to the owner. Chip preaches that no one player is bigger than the team, in DC Snyder definitely made RG3 bigger than the team. Coaches would tell him to do one thing and Snyder would tell them he didn’t. RG3 had support, just the wrong kind.

    He needs to go to a team where the owner doesn’t mettle in how the coaches coach. So thankfully that takes out DC and Dallas. It also takes out the Browns, unless they find another way to communicate besides texting.

  28. 28 jpate said at 10:44 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    Blame goes more to him as well, not like Snyder just came down and said no he’s not running these plays out of the blue, someone (RG3) had to chirp in his ear.

  29. 29 CrackSammich said at 2:00 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    “Wouldn’t it be funny if Dana Bible and the nightmare 1998 season somehow helped the Eagles win a title or become a great team?”

    I’m a social worker, and even I am in awe of your ability to put a positive spin on that one. *applause*

  30. 30 SteveH said at 7:17 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    It sounds like Tommy could have used a social worker during that 1998 season lol.

  31. 31 Avery Greene said at 5:00 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    Rams -> Eagles: Jaworski went to the Superbowl.
    Superbowl confirmed.

    Gabriel who? This doesn’t fit my conspiracy theory, so I reject it’s usage.

  32. 32 SteveH said at 7:28 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    You know, this is completely off topic, but it’s 7:20 in the morning on a Saturday and I was woken up by some asshole in the parking lot gunning his bike back and forth, setting off car alarms, so it’s ramblin’ time.

    You know who I think gets passed over when we talk about favorite Eagles or Eagles greats? Jeremiah Trotter.

    Sure he isn’t a hall of famer, and other guys like Dawkins, Andre Waters, Seth Joyner, Reggie White, etc. certainly had more storied careers, but while he was here Trotter was a hell of a fun guy to have on the team, and was very effective in that era (I don’t think he would have been mobile enough to work in today’s NFL).

    It was a treat to have him do JJ’s A gap blitz, just destroying whatever poor lineman he was lined up against, and he was a great thumper, laying the wood, nice old school big tough strong linebacker who could just punish people.

    His axe chop celebration and the story behind it was cool too, really got you hyped up.

  33. 33 Media Mike said at 7:31 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    I liked Trotter from a hype standpoint, but his repeated insistence to run 100% to the wrong gap on running plays was a major hole in his game and led to way too many of those Tiki Barber 20+ yard runs.

  34. 34 Jernst said at 5:11 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Yea he was sort of the Asante Samuel of MLBs. He freelanced and guessed a lot. In his prime, he made the great play much more often than he got burned. But, man, when he missed his read you are absolutely correct, he’d shoot through the line like a missile only to watch the RB cut back into the gap he just vacated leaving a gaping hole to run through. Definitely frustrating. But, the good, I think, far outweighed the bad. Especially when we saw what it looked like after he left and we played defense with a 300 pound Levon Kirkland at MLB followed by a 220 Mark Simoneau. Ew…

    Plus, once JJ realized how to use him properly, ie don’t make him sit back and read the run play, and instead use him as a giant human battering ram to destroy the center of the offensive line, the gaping holes and missed gap assignment problems really went away for the most part.

  35. 35 A_T_G said at 8:16 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    I think version two, who played for a division rival and wasn’t used as effectively, and version three, the broken down remains, detract from the memory of version one.

  36. 36 SteveH said at 11:13 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    Hey, Version 3 had a few really good years before he broke down. I don’t think he was truly in decline until 2007. And there was actually a Version 4 briefly, if you remember.

  37. 37 A_T_G said at 11:27 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    I completely forgot about v4.

  38. 38 Jernst said at 5:06 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Me too!

  39. 39 Jernst said at 5:06 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Version 3 was really version 3a and 3b. He was a well deserving probowler in 2004 when he came back. And, hell, watching him demolish that Giants punter when Reid made him start the season on special teams is still one of the most vicious things I’ve ever seen another human being do to someone else without committing a crime.

    2005 is just a black spot in my memory, I refuse to ever remember anything from that year. But, he had a nice year in 2006 too, he was playing at a pretty high level at the beginning of that year, started to wear down a bit towards the end though as we entered the playoffs, and his age and lack of speed started to show, but it wasn’t really until 2007 that the wheels truly started to fall off.

    But, you’re absolutely right. If he had signed that franchise tender, worked out a new deal and stayed here for his entire career there’s no doubt in my mind that he’d be mentioned routinely with the all time great Eagle defenders.

  40. 40 GEAGLE said at 10:31 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    Trott is easily one of my alltime favorites…. Love that dude as much as I love Dawk

  41. 41 Michael Winter Cho said at 11:47 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    I loved Trotter too, he was right up there with Dawkins for me. There are some stats that claim no one in the NFL was even nearly as good as him at blowing up the line.

  42. 42 Jernst said at 5:01 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Do you know where I could find those stats, that’d be interesting to see.

  43. 43 Michael Winter Cho said at 11:44 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Trying to find them, it was probably FO.

  44. 44 Jernst said at 5:01 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    I loved Trotter, man! Such a shame is knee cartilage essentially turned to dust early in his career.

  45. 45 James Skip Carl said at 5:04 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    People always overlook Andre Waters, to me he was the Eagles best safety

  46. 46 Avery Greene said at 8:21 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    I’ve always been a fan of Trotter, the only reason I toot the Joyner horn more than any other is because I think he deserves to be in the HOF.

  47. 47 Ray888 said at 8:26 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    If Boykin needed a hug before Thursday’s game, image what he needs now that he apparently didn’t take any defensive snaps against the Pats. Izell Jenkins (aka Toast) could helped that secondary.

  48. 48 eagleyankfan said at 8:39 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    almost seems like something else was at play to not let Boykin in that game — how could he have been worse than what they fielded?

  49. 49 BlindChow said at 9:16 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    Steelers fans think either he hadn’t got the playbook/terminology down yet or he was in Tomlin’s doghouse.

    http://www.steelersdepot.com/2015/09/steelers-trade-acquisition-brandon-boykin-logs-zero-defensive-snaps-in-first-game/

    This blog post got 100+ comments about it…

  50. 50 eagleyankfan said at 9:21 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    doghouse would explain it for sure…

  51. 51 Jernst said at 4:59 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Doghouse is my guess. I can’t imagine that the Steelers D is that drastically different schematically than ours. Bill Davis is a Dick LeBeau disciple and a similar defensive coordinator is in place now in Pittsburgh. He’s had a month of training camp, he’s a veteran player at this point, so I’d find it hard to believe he wouldn’t know the coverages.

    But, I could definitely see him showing up to training camp thinking I’m finally out of Philadelphia where Chip was holding me back and I’m just gonna walk in here and start at CB without thinking he was going to have to earn it. Not that I have any reason to think Boykin is like that professionally, but that would make more sense to me than he doesn’t know the playbook yet.

  52. 52 Media Mike said at 9:38 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    Conspiracy! They don’t want to give up that 4th rounder.

  53. 53 BlindChow said at 9:39 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    Ha, some Steelers fans have suggested this, too…

  54. 54 GEAGLE said at 10:30 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    I’m sure they would rather win, then give a shit about the difference between a 4th or a 5th…

  55. 55 wee2424 said at 1:43 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    I’m pretty sure he was just joking around.

  56. 56 Jernst said at 4:53 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Yea, of course they’re not doing that. That would be insanely stupid. Why would anyone trade a 5th rounder for someone that they plan on sitting on the bench most the year so they don’t have to give up a 4th rounder. They’d just not trade for him in the first place and keep both picks.

  57. 57 Kelce's Beard said at 10:57 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    I wouldn’t either; they need rds 1-4 for DBs

  58. 58 cliff-Y U on a knee, 99?! said at 8:36 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    every NFL QB has massive pressure on them, but outside of another injury, wonder if Bradford feels less than normal. if i were him, i’d just put on tape of Vick, Foles and Sanchez, plus watch Sanchez lob softballs over 10 yds, take a look at boxscores and say ‘we’ll, alright!’. Kelly has the offense figured out, what he cant do is walk out onto field and complete passes. Bradford has every NFL throw in his arm, and he knows it. finally Kelly can spread teams horizontally and vertically. wonder how much of his playbook he was using or using effectively. outside of Sammy Toothpicks running, Kelly must have every play available.
    .
    i have absolutely no doubts the Eagles will score and score alot. all Bradford has to is stay upright and not throw to the wrong colored jersey an obscene amount of times. the defense will be better which means more possessions.
    .
    when Kelly was hired, i can remember telling people it’s going to be a very different attitude of how to win. we were used to JJ, they wont score 20, so just beg borrow and steal to 21. with Kelly it’s, we’re hanging least 35-40, can you keep up? looking at the whole of offense, and trusting Kelly has that side figured out (why i’m not terribly worried about OL, Kelly first belief is in OL, he’s not Reid forgetting he needs a punt returner), think he’s as confident as he’s ever been his style is going to unleashed on NFL.

  59. 59 Kelce's Beard said at 10:53 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    finally Kelly can spread teams horizontally and vertically. wonder how much of his playbook he was using or using effectively

    can’t wait to see a corner route in-game. and remember that back shoulder fade we heard so much about last summer?…

  60. 60 wee2424 said at 1:42 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    I feel like even with McNabb there was talk of the back shoulder fade. Has never happened. I’m 26 and from what I can remember we haven’t had a QB that has been able to throw it or willing to throw it. Have the Birds ever had a QB that has utilized it?

  61. 61 Jernst said at 4:51 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    McNabb was very good at hitting stationary targets that would sit down and square up to him against zone coverage. He had a rocket arm that could always get the ball there before the zone coverage could converge. Unfortunately, he had the touch and pin point accuracy of Mitch Williams.

    He saw mostly zone coverages in his first 5 years in the league since he was such a threat to run that defenses were scared to play man and turn their back on the QB, so he was able to do just fine and the Reid was able to get by with lesser WRs since it’s easier to find WRs that can find soft spots in zone coverage rather than the ones that have the physical talent to consistently beat man coverage.

    Then McNabb got fat and injured on top of just not wanting to run at all and he started seeing a lot more man to man. Unfortunately, he never adjusted, never learned to throw with accuracy to WRs who were in stride running across the field, never developed an arsenal of man-to-man beating passes like the fade, the back shoulder throw, the slant, ect.

    And, thus concludes the review of why I think McNabb declined so much as he got older and lost his athleticism.

  62. 62 James Skip Carl said at 5:12 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    That’s one of the best assessments I’ve heard of McNabb and it sounds right on point

  63. 63 wee2424 said at 1:11 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    Very good assessment. McNabb towards the end of his career seemed to become very arrogant. From the outside it almost seemed as though he didn’t have the want to get better. He just settled for what he was at the moment and not what he could be.

    Many people including myself have wondered and questioned how would McNabb and Kelly do together. I feel as though they would not have gotten along.

    With that being said I think if Kelly were the guy to draft him and not inherit him it would have been a huge difference. Kelly from day 1 would have pushed him and molded him. Reid didn’t seem the type to do that. A jump from Reid to Kelly would have been to big of a culture shock.for McNabb to handle.

  64. 64 Sb2bowl said at 2:16 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    Kinda sounds like a man who realized he blew his final chance in the NFL and is drinking his sorrows away…. That or his arrogance doesn’t allow him to realize that the law also applies to himself

  65. 65 wee2424 said at 7:32 PM on September 13th, 2015:

    My dad and grandfather were alcoholics. I myself struggled with an addiction issue during my younger years. Maybe I’m wrong but like you hinted on McNabb may very well have an alcohol problem. It’s not so much thinking that the law doesn’t apply to you as much as just thinking that you will not get caught or will not cause someone else harm. Unfortunately you do eventually get caught or even worse cause someone else harm. Or both. He has gotten caught twice which means that he has probably done it countless times.

  66. 66 Sb2bowl said at 9:38 PM on September 16th, 2015:

    Agreed, and you and I share similar stories; hence my opinion. I hope nothing but the best for #5 (and for you).

  67. 67 wee2424 said at 10:04 PM on September 16th, 2015:

    Appreciate that. Same to you.

  68. 68 eagleyankfan said at 8:36 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    Seems the offense has a chip(ha) on their shoulder. The more I think about it, the more I like the NA pick. More of a thank goodness we have him. The defense, I think, isn’t given their credit yet. Seems experts don’t see any upgrades over last years dreadful secondary. They’re in for a surprise I think. Unless J.Jones finds a weakness….

  69. 69 Media Mike said at 8:51 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    I just got back in from a run, I’m not entirely lucid, and I read NA as Nnamdi Asmoah and/or Nate Allen.

    But I like Nelson Agholor a lot as well.

    In the interest of honesty my preferred guy there was Perriman, but Agholor was the WR I liked the 2nd best at that point. Seeing as Perriman is still injured, I’ll be very happy to be wrong on that.

    And I agree, this team is going to hang some points on people as long as the guard situation doesn’t blow up in our face.

  70. 70 GEAGLE said at 10:39 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    Liked hearing chip rave about Archbishop Nelson the other day, talking about how he is a rookie we are definitely going to see contribute right away

  71. 71 RobNE said at 10:40 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    Down vote for exercising

  72. 72 wee2424 said at 1:34 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Maybe I’m wrong but what from what I have read or saw on TV the national “experts” have mentioned that our secondary should be better then last year with the overhaul we have done in the secondary.

    Watching the NE game the other night I found it entertaining how the announcers kept saying how bad Fletcher was getting burnt last year.

  73. 73 eagleyankfan said at 3:44 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    the fantasy experts expecting Julio jones to pick them apart..

  74. 74 Media Mike said at 3:48 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    He’ll have a big game, but most of that production should be garbage yards / TDs picked up late and once Ryan is into the upper 40s on pass attempts.

  75. 75 wee2424 said at 7:32 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    I don’t think that is so much of a reflection of our secondary not improving from last year but simply Julio Jones being Julio Jones. Jones has the ability to have good numbers against an elite secondary in which we are not.

    Any “expert” that I have heard speak about the Eagles secondary has stated they think there will be an improvement. It’s just that nobody knows how much of an improvement there will be.

  76. 76 Ark87 said at 9:21 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    whoa whoa whoa. The last 3 QBs we brought in to be the franchise that we didn’t draft spanning 40 years all came from the Rams? What are the odds on that!? That’s incredible

  77. 77 Eagle Talon said at 10:45 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    So the Eagles QB farm system is St. Louis and their LB farm system is Houston.

  78. 78 ACViking said at 2:49 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    That’s not exactly right. There are a couple of other QBs in the mix.

    In 1964, Norm Snead was acquired from Washington for Sonny Jurgensen. Snead — who started for the Birds from ’64-’70 — was supposed to be a “franchise” QB.

    Turned out Jurgensen was the franchise QB and a HOFer.

    And, right after the 1974 draft, the Eagles traded a 1st Rd pick to the Bengals for young QB Mike Boryla — whom the Bengals had just drafted in the 4th Rd.

    Boryla was going to be groomed to replace Gabriel — who’d been an Eagle for all of one season.

    Anyway, Boryla replaced Gabriel after 10 games of the ’74 season.

    Then Jaworski was acquired in ’77 to replace Boryla.

  79. 79 Ark87 said at 5:43 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Freaking Mike Boryla ruining my moment of Child-like wonder.

  80. 80 Buge Halls said at 7:03 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    I remember as a very young Eagles fan hearing them announce Boryla and thought they said “gorilla” and thought, “well they should win with a gorilla on the team”…young and dumb!

  81. 81 GEAGLE said at 10:37 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    Our offense was #3 in the NFL last year… We accomplished that with as bad OL injury luck as you can possibly have, and with FOles and Sanchez at QB who combined for only 200 passing yards less then the ANNOINTED one, andrew luck..
    .
    If our offense was #3 last year, we should be flat out scary as long as injuries DONT decimate us.. OL, run game and QB should all be better then the cast that performed as the #3 offense…..the defense should also be much much better then last year, specifically getting off the field on 3rd down..

  82. 82 BlindChow said at 10:40 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    They were #3 before adjusting for the sheer number of plays they ran.

  83. 83 Michael Winter Cho said at 11:45 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    Exactly, our O was dead average if you adjust for pace. If the O was as good as people that it was, we would have been fine last year.

  84. 84 anon said at 11:46 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    fantasy-wis that’s all that counts.

  85. 85 Mitchell said at 4:30 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    The play speed is what helps our offense be goos in the first place. I dont think that should be a knock on our production. Kelly plays quickly on purpose to score the points. Imo they go hand in hand.

  86. 86 Michael Winter Cho said at 11:43 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    If you are more efficient than the other team, a fast pace is in your favor because you have more chances to exert superiority. If you are less efficient, a slow pace gives you the best chance. If you are equally efficient, fast pace only helps if you have more depth.

  87. 87 BlindChow said at 1:02 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    That’s like saying a RB who has 1250 yards but only 3 ypc is better than one who has 1200 at 5 ypc.

    Is the former better? Does running more plays make him a better RB than one who gains yards far more efficiently? You are saying it does.

  88. 88 Mitchell said at 2:16 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    Well he got more yards, so in a way, yes. It’s all what you think of it though. If you are talking in absolutes then yes he is better because he got more yards. If you are talking efficiency then the other is better. It’s just a technique to use to gain more offense I guess.

  89. 89 BlindChow said at 8:21 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    So 3 ypc is better than 5 ypc, got it.

  90. 90 Mitchell said at 9:50 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    Hey! Mr. Sarcasm! 3 ypc isnt better than 5 but 1250 is better than 1200. Its how you look at it.

  91. 91 BlindChow said at 10:49 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    Fair enough. But when people hear “#3 offense,” my guess is most are thinking ypc and not just how many plays they ran.

  92. 92 Mitchell said at 12:07 PM on September 13th, 2015:

    That is a totally valid point and to an extent I agree.

  93. 93 wee2424 said at 1:30 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Our offense being #3 in the league last year is a very misconstrued fact. You have to factor in the amount of plays ran.

  94. 94 GEAGLE said at 10:54 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    Curious to see who Desmond Trufant matches up against, and what type of success Agholor, coop or Huff can have against the talented young corner.

    Cant wait to see the welcome to the NFL rookie, beating that JP is going to put on Vic Beasly… Vic needs like two years in the weight room before he should dare lining up n front of JP
    ..
    Falcons also have a sweet MIddle LB who demarco is going to run over
    ..
    But my favorite MIsmatches are our defenders vs their offense.
    BARWIN is going to devour that Pigeon RT
    Bennie the beats is going to dominate the center making his first start
    Cox dominates anyone you put in front of him
    BARWIN, Kiko, and Kendricks should make sure TE Jacob Tamme is irrelevant

    But Matt Ryan is 6-0 during season openers, so maybe they can put up a better fight then we think, but I need to see it to believe it

  95. 95 Anders said at 2:34 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Does Trufant moves around or only play one side? He will cover Cooper no problem but can’t cover huff or agholor because they are more quick

  96. 96 GEAGLE said at 5:29 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    One side I believe.
    ..
    Jordan Mathews is going to eat Jalen Collins alive in the slot

  97. 97 GEAGLE said at 11:09 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    I love that Mayweatner is fighting tonight and no one cares…

  98. 98 SteveH said at 11:11 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    I love that Mayweather got caught doping 3 times and it was never reported to the nevada state commission because of all kinds of bizarre backchannel deals.

    He also got caught getting extra IV’s of fluids before the Pacquiao fight (which could be anything from extra fast re-hydration to masking banned substances) which is against the rules.

    He also beats women. Lots of women.

    Mayweather is probably the most turd like of all the famous turd athletes in the world.

  99. 99 Insomniac said at 12:24 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    I was so hoping that Pacman would have destroyed him. Mayweather is a piece of shit.

  100. 100 Avery Greene said at 8:18 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Everyone outside of his mother or trainers, I think think everyone did.

  101. 101 unhinged said at 11:11 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    On the eve of what many of us hope will be a momentous season, yours truly invites you to whittle away the agonizing hours of anticipation by delving into a subject near and dear to many hearts: The Hypocritical Behemoth NCAA, aka The Crisis in Higher Education, aka The Plight of the “Student Athlete”.

    http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/12/opinion/joe-nocera-notre-dames-big-bluff.html?_r=0

    With concerns mounting about the very way football is played, and how that relates to CTE, early death, suicide and dementia, and with recent discussions about the “dumbing down of quarterbacks” and its negative impact on the intricacies and complexity of NFL offenses, perhaps the time is nigh for the NFL, in a decision of self-interest, to initiate a developmental league that can attempt to address these latter issues that loom large, and coincidentally mortally wound that elephant in the room that has consumed a whole culture’s appetite for intellectual, social enlightenment.

  102. 102 Media Mike said at 12:02 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Yes.

    Control your talent pool
    Pay these guys who aren’t really students anyway
    Coach them to play the game the right way

    An 8 team developmental league with 60 man rosters (every team gets 15 developmental guys) would be great for the NFL.

  103. 103 BobSmith77 said at 1:52 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Never happens. Just too much jobs and $$$ tied up in college football.

    Not sure who is more apathetic to the well-being of its players though – NCAA or the NFL. Tough debate.

  104. 104 Dragon_Eagle said at 2:11 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    The NCAA is worse, but not by choice. NFL has a players’ union that can force the NFL to care about well-being if only to protect their own financial interests. NCAA only pays great lip service. NFL would care less if allowed to do so.

  105. 105 unhinged said at 3:24 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    I have a lot more faith that the greedy billionaires will go to great lengths to protect their assets, when the alternative is a damaged league with diminished returns. The NCAA’s exploitation of young football talent has all of the moral legitimacy of reverse mortgages. Don’t look now, but President of University of ____ is building a library, buying a boat, collecting a multi-million dollar annual salary, expanding his University’s financial endowment, purchasing near campus real estate…and the upshot of all of the focus on multiplying the $$$ is an abdication of the educational imperative, and annihilation of the very meaning of what is to be in the education profession. I do empathize with the needs of plenty of young men to be compensated financially for their contributions, but the whole game is a huge disservice to our society’s right to first-class educational opportunity. In my view, the NCAA is to education what money is to our electoral politics. They grow and grow and grow, and we lose our democratic principles, our right to honorable representation, our right to a competitive, vigorous academic standard, to civility, discourse, intellectual integrity and ultimately our ideals. Over the time that is has taken the American middle class to shrink almost from view, the NCAA has become gargantuan, all on the backs of taxpaying public and eager kids who dream of striking the mother lode. It is an obscene spectacle that too few eyes are seeing for what it is.

  106. 106 Jernst said at 4:33 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    well said.

  107. 107 Jernst said at 4:32 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    My hatred for the NCAA runs just as deep as yours. And, something absolutely needs to be done about the blatant labor exploitation that those hypocritical greedy bastards are conducting.

    Unfortunately, I’m not sure if a developmental league for the NFL will ever happen, because it’s just not cost effective for them. There’d be an enormous cost to get it up and running and with the way fandom works, and as ingrained in the culture as college football is, I don’t see there being a huge market for a parallel league of college age football players. And, since the vast majority of college football players know they won’t make it in the NFL, I think they’d be a lot more likely to get the college education than forego that to play in the NFL minor leagues.

  108. 108 unhinged said at 8:09 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    The NFL imprimatur is still a valued symbol that adds tons of legitimacy to universities that otherwise have very little of interest to the outside public. The aware and astute individuals who happen to be franchise owners (can’t name any at the moment) cannot escape the train coming at them. The NFL can either be proactive or deny its way into becoming a moribund institution on the American business horizon. College football is contributing nothing constructive to the NFL’s future, and the NFL needs to be thinking long-term and acting now. You say you don’t see a market, but look at hockey and baseball. Those sports leave viable options for the aspiring professionals, and the not-quite-good-enoughs (wasn’t Goodenough a Flyer?) The athletes are the show, and if they are in a developmental league or a college program, the market will follow them. The universities will cry foul if their gravy train is re-routed, but it will be a day of reckoning for those dollar-whores. The exploitation of the players is just the tip of the iceberg. We are fast becoming a second-rate culture that wants winners and asks no questions. It’s a world of wonder for the connected who blow off generations looking for a ladder to climb. It may not happen tomorrow or next year, but the urgency is going to ramp up because the “issues” are not going away. A developmental league could instruct correct tackling and head positioning to protect the competitors. That will never be a priority for college programs. If the NFL deems it advisable to migrate toward leather helmets – which would mean a major transformation, the colleges will be nothing but an obstacle to such a critical shift. An NFL league could facilitate a gradual steady changeover aimed at maintaining strong competition with a renewed emphasis o the fundamentals that could eventually right the ship, AND leave the dollar-whores to their own devices.

  109. 109 SteveH said at 11:17 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    You know what’s funny but not at the same time? Boykin couldn’t get a shot on the outside despite the hot garbage we had out there last year.

    Now this year he can’t get on the field for a single snap despite the Steelers whole secondary being a steaming pile of poo.

    I’m sensing he’ll be out of the league soon at this pace.

  110. 110 A_T_G said at 11:30 AM on September 12th, 2015:

    When I heard he wasn’t moving up the depth chart, I thought that maybe he wasn’t that good and just had a magical season. While this is still possible, it doesn’t fit with the narrative Chip shared that they had been calling about him for a while. If they have been perusing, I think they will at least give him a shot. I think they are making sure he knows the system first.

  111. 111 Greg Richards said at 12:48 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    I’m thinking maybe he freelances and plays outside of the system. Obviously, if that was the case, it worked for him well in 2013. Still, coaches aren’t going to like it when you aren’t doing what they say and by freelancing hurting other players. We heard that regarding Evan Mathis/Jason Peters. I’m thinking maybe he’s doing the same thing in Pittsburgh and ticking off their coaches.

    That, or maybe he’s just slow picking up the Steelers’ scheme.

  112. 112 Jernst said at 4:25 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    He seemed to be very schematically and fundamentally sound here from my recollection. Of course, I wasn’t watching film of him with knowledge of his responsibilities on every play. But, someone like Asante you could tell free lanced all the time and it got him burned about as often as it got him an INT.

    Either way it’s still puzzling whats going on with him in Pittsburgh. And, really it’s either something like you say with him freelancing or not picking up the scheme quickly enough, or he’s just not as good as we all thought.

  113. 113 SteveH said at 2:26 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    I was being facetious about him being out of the league, it’s just humorous that he wanted to go somewhere else to be in a better situation and ended up in a worse situation lol.

  114. 114 A_T_G said at 2:30 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Yeah, I picked up on the sarcasm. And Greg could be on to something with the freelancing too. I guess we will know in a few months.

  115. 115 Michael Winter Cho said at 11:38 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    I actually think you mean ironic here, although I can understand why anyone would hesitate to use that word after Alanis.

  116. 116 Jernst said at 4:23 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    I think Boykin is a very talented nickel CB and perhaps we’re realizing that the coaches really did know what they were talking about by not putting him on the outside. Although, it’s still totally possible that he gets it together and ends up a fantastic starting CB.

    The thing that sticks out to me is that last year, he wasn’t playing very well. I saw a lot of slot receivers running away from him which I hadn’t ever remembered seeing in the past. He seemed slow. I had heard that he was battling a pulled hamstring early in the year and just assumed that he was hampered by that and just couldn’t really open up fully when sprinting. But, maybe you’re right…it’s possible that he had a fluke year and posted 7 INTs, but that wasn’t really indicative of his true talent level.

    How great would it be (not for Boykin of course), if he remains on the bench in Pittsburgh, ends up not getting any great offers in FA and ends up back here as our nickel. Essentially rented him to the Steelers for a year for a 5th round pick. Won’t ever happen in a million years though.

  117. 117 wee2424 said at 11:09 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Highly doubt he will be out of the league soon. That is an overeaction. He is young and a good slot CB. Also very good on ST in which numerous players have made a nice career for themselves doing just that. Furthermore there are plenty of 4th CBs that have stayed in the league for awhile just being a 4th CB.

  118. 118 Sb2bowl said at 2:23 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    Maybe Tomlin hates candy bars? What if he’s diabetic…? Boykin will never get a fair shot

  119. 119 Insomniac said at 12:30 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Should I start Kendall Wright or Kenny Stills this week?

  120. 120 Anders said at 2:30 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Stills of he is healthy

  121. 121 wee2424 said at 11:05 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Stills.

  122. 122 Nailed it! said at 12:34 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Ugh, watching Michigan is painful.

  123. 123 JoeBlow said at 12:53 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Can’t be worse than Penn State

  124. 124 Nailed it! said at 12:59 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Dude https://t.co/6CDvFGq9fB— Steve Palazzolo (@PFF_Steve) September 12, 2015

  125. 125 cliff-Y U on a knee, 99?! said at 12:54 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    suggest not turning on PSU. how can Franklin not find any decent OLine in PA? just hit the old coal towns, look for guys with last names ending in ‘ski.

  126. 126 Nailed it! said at 12:59 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    No, I can’t watch PSU. It’s just too bad.

  127. 127 cliff-Y U on a knee, 99?! said at 1:00 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    the kicker though is funny, at least. he’s one chubby bastard

  128. 128 Nailed it! said at 1:01 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    He is an absolute legend I will give you that.

  129. 129 cliff-Y U on a knee, 99?! said at 1:05 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    dont understand what happened to Hack. he’s regressed since freshman year. the next ball he throw where he doesnt ty and throw it throw the rec’rs chest will be his first.

  130. 130 Nailed it! said at 1:06 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    He has to be out of contention as a top 5 quaterback so far for next years draft. He has been bad.

  131. 131 wee2424 said at 11:04 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    He is the one thing that brings a smile to my face when I watch PSU play. Really a shame.

  132. 132 McNabbulousness said at 2:09 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    c’mon guys, penn state isn’t that bad…sigh*

    you know it’s bad when you have to break out your #11 lavar arrington jersey for good mojo against buffalo.

  133. 133 Nailed it! said at 2:13 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Eric Ebron or TylerEifert Standard ESPN scoring?

  134. 134 anon said at 2:21 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    gross – no clue, literally no one else available? i’d go eifert, just b/c maybe theres a chance, i don’t think they trust ebron

  135. 135 Nailed it! said at 2:26 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Charles Clay is out there but I do not really trust Tyrod. I really let my TE slip on draft day.

  136. 136 anon said at 2:37 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    they paid a lot of $ for clay, i don’t think WRs going to catch balls on that team DBs are just too good in that division (though i have sammy watkins — stupid). I’m going to see how this week shakes out but i’m keeping an eye on clay’s targets.

  137. 137 A_T_G said at 2:40 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Brent Celek sounds better than the two above, especially with Ertz recovering.

  138. 138 GEAGLE said at 5:26 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Take clay

  139. 139 wee2424 said at 11:03 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    He reminds me of a QB that will actually heavily rely on a TE for the easy throws and as a type of safety blanket. Sort of like Vick and Crumpler.

  140. 140 MattE said at 6:05 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Delanie walker

  141. 141 GEAGLE said at 8:48 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Pick up Jordan reed, he should put up numbers for two weeks until he gets hurt

  142. 142 A_T_G said at 2:38 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    DeAndre Hopkins vs KC, Issiah Crowell vs Jets, or Benny Cunningham vs. Seattle for my flex, no ppr.

    Running backs are usually safer picks, and both guys are slated to be the feature backs because of injury, but those tough match ups. Thoughts?

  143. 143 Media Mike said at 2:40 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Hopkins all day.

  144. 144 A_T_G said at 2:41 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    That is who I have in the line up. Yahoo predicts him as the lowest of the three, though.

  145. 145 Media Mike said at 2:42 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    He’s going to be a target monster. How is Crowell supposed to gain yards vs the Jets and how is Cunningham supposed to gain yards vs. Seattle?

  146. 146 Jesús M Hernández said at 7:11 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    From my experience the fantasy points predictions in nfl, ESPN or yahoo are very far from accurate. I’d go with Hopkins even if he is a Wr since I see more potential. For a 14 team league I’d say you made a pretty good draft. Good luck ATG

  147. 147 A_T_G said at 8:07 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Thanks. Like everyone before the season starts, I feel pretty good about my team. I have Foster on the bench as well, healing.

  148. 148 wee2424 said at 11:01 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Yeah I rarely go by projected points.

  149. 149 anon said at 2:42 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    hopkins could be good, they are basically going to run that offense through him. Big benny could be ok, but you’re really praying he gets a TD.

  150. 150 anon said at 2:59 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    from roto: Benny Cunningham has a chance to be the Rams’ every-down back in Week 1 versus the Seahawks. The matchup is as brutal as St. Louis’ offensive line, but Cunningham would be worth a look as a flex play based purely on projected volume.

  151. 151 Media Mike said at 3:00 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Agreed, but I doubt roto would rate Cunningham over Nuk Hopkins for the week.

  152. 152 anon said at 3:03 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    100%

  153. 153 Insomniac said at 3:29 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Hopkins

  154. 154 Greg Richards said at 5:49 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Crowell. Cleveland wants to be run-first and doesn’t have many RB options besides Crowell.

  155. 155 Anders said at 5:54 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Hopkins should be one of your starting wrs unless you have crazy wr depth

  156. 156 A_T_G said at 6:05 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    We have small teams this year because we have 14 people and didn’t want a 5-hour draft. We only start one QB, RB, WR, flex, K, D. My WRs are J. Mathews, and Hopkins (with Stevie Johnson on the side and Brandon Lafell waiting to hear if he will be back week 8).

    My lineup is Bradford, Peterson, Mathews, Hopkins, McManus, and STL D.

  157. 157 Nailed it! said at 3:05 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    LOL Auburn.

  158. 158 Nailed it! said at 3:06 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Boston College leading Howard 62-0 at half so both teams have agreed 3rd & 4th quarters will each only be 10 minutes long— Brett McMurphy (@McMurphyESPN) September 12, 2015

    Did not know you could do this.

  159. 159 GEAGLE said at 5:26 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Wtf

  160. 160 Nailed it! said at 5:34 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    I mean I have watched and read about allllllotttt of football but I have never heard of a mercy rule

  161. 161 GEAGLE said at 8:36 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Same

  162. 162 Will:↑↑↓↓←→←→BA said at 10:03 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    LOL I thought that only existed in Pee Wee

  163. 163 Greg Richards said at 5:28 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Eagles’ opponents might be asking for the same concession this season!

  164. 164 Nailed it! said at 5:35 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    I don’t think Chip would be so nice

  165. 165 wee2424 said at 10:59 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Chip would view it as time for his backups to get valuable reps.

  166. 166 wee2424 said at 10:59 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Lol I didn’t know you could either. Might as well gone the full mile and just end the game.

  167. 167 D3FB said at 6:44 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2013/09/23/college-football-lopsided-scores-shortened-games-louisville-miami/2855691/

    It happens every couple of years during those pay to get killed games. You hit a certain point where no one wants to be there and it’s just embarassing for both teams. The 3rd stringers aren’t really juiced so you end up with a glorified practice with a higher chance of injury.

  168. 168 McNabbulousness said at 3:12 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    watching psu, just noticed that psu now has those shitty nike flywire collars on their jerseys. does nike have to ruin all my football teams’ jerseys

  169. 169 Media Mike said at 3:13 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Seriously. Penn State has the greatest uniform in the history of organized sports, people shouldn’t ruin that.

  170. 170 McNabbulousness said at 3:14 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    i was mad when they put the nittany lion logo on the chest!

  171. 171 Media Mike said at 3:30 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    D2 football gripe.

    The refs at Mercyherst need to kill themselves. They totally jobbed West Chester out of a win. Refs missed a clear hold by the guard on West Chester’s DT on the TD run by the QB to put Mercyherst up 37-35 with a minute left.

    Then on the extra point, the holder botches the hold, throws a ball up for grabs, gets it picked off by a West Chester player who runs it back for a 2 point score to tie the game at 37 only to have that play called back by a block in the front that was called a block in the back by the ref.

    Seriously; insert gun into mouth and pull trigger refs…………you are the worst.

  172. 172 McNabbulousness said at 3:34 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    that sucks

  173. 173 Media Mike said at 3:41 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Indeed

  174. 174 James Skip Carl said at 5:26 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Good time for a nice high low hit on the reef

  175. 175 James Skip Carl said at 5:27 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Rrf

  176. 176 Greg Richards said at 5:27 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Bill Shuey must be pissed

  177. 177 truehaynes said at 4:07 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    For my flex I have the option of starting agholar or funchess. Kill me

  178. 178 HawaiianEagle said at 4:14 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Agh…

  179. 179 Media Mike said at 4:16 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Who is injured / out for you that you’re stuck doing that? Or are you in a 24 team league?

  180. 180 xmbk said at 5:24 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Hammy on Funchess. No contest.

  181. 181 laeagle said at 6:01 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Wow, so I guess Cam Newton is a bad play this week?

  182. 182 wee2424 said at 10:51 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    I think this very may well be his worst FF year.

  183. 183 wee2424 said at 10:50 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Agholor. Not good flex option to begin the year, but as the year developed Agholor may become a solid flex player for you.

  184. 184 Nailed it! said at 4:26 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Everyone needs to read these emails. Haha Tebow fans are the absolute best!

    http://www.phillyvoice.com/collection-emails-about-tim-tebow-crazy-people/

  185. 185 Media Mike said at 4:30 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Jimmy is funny.

  186. 186 BobSmith77 said at 9:31 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Glad Tebow is gone for the simple fact that we won’t have to listen to the Christian loons and Tebow followers anymore. Better and more productive discussion with a wall or tree.

  187. 187 McNabbulousness said at 5:10 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    hate watching the ohio state buckeyes right now and just have to say: of all the non-penn state college football jerseys out there, hawaii’s are the absolute best. those white jersey/white pants rainbow accented get-ups are awesome!

  188. 188 laeagle said at 6:00 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    OK, 2 fantasy questions:

    Mark Ingram against AZ defense? Other running options are Carlos Hyde and TJ Yeldon. So, 2 out of those 3.

    Cam Newton or Teddy Bridgewater?

    OK, bonus question: for the flex, Sproles or DJax?

  189. 189 Nailed it! said at 6:06 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Teddy, Yeldon, Ingram

  190. 190 A_T_G said at 6:06 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Ingram, Hyde, and Cam. (Or maybe Yelton, but Cam while he is healthy and the team is relevant).

  191. 191 Nailed it! said at 6:07 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Haha opposite of me I see

  192. 192 A_T_G said at 6:09 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Maybe Yelton, but I think Cam will be at his best to start the year.

  193. 193 Nailed it! said at 6:10 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    I would too but I have no idea who he will be throwing it to.

  194. 194 wee2424 said at 10:49 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    He may run more because of that.

  195. 195 wee2424 said at 10:48 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Yeah, before he gets dinged up which he always seems to do.

  196. 196 wee2424 said at 10:48 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Ingram, Hyde, Cam, Djax.

    Djax has more opportunity to put up good FF numbers then Sproles. Djax is a very strong flex option. As far as FF I wouldn’t even have Sproles on my team. He is a weak flex option.

  197. 197 Nailed it! said at 6:09 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    More details on Tyrone Crawford’s monster, 5-year, $45M extension. $25.7M in guarantees, $17.4M fully guaranteed. Cowboys do it a year early— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 12, 2015

    I did not even see this but are they serious? That is allot of money.

  198. 198 Insomniac said at 6:44 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Lets hope this is one of those extensions that kill them instead of helping them.

  199. 199 Duracell said at 6:51 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    He’s a player on the upswing, but that contract is paying for his ceiling. That said, with the cap expected to explode in the new couple of years, I doubt this will kill them even if he doesn’t reach that ceiling.

  200. 200 GEAGLE said at 8:35 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    He is their best defensive lineman, they view him as their secret weapon. He can play, one of the few cowboy defenders I respect. Andrew Gardner will have his hands full

  201. 201 johhnyblaze said at 6:10 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Just saw on Twitter we released wr Jeff maehl with injury settlement

  202. 202 johhnyblaze said at 6:12 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Just saw on Twitter we released jeff maehl with an injury settlement

  203. 203 BC1968 said at 10:41 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    How many times did you see it?

  204. 204 RC5000 said at 6:58 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    OT but Jim Kelly ‘s nephew Chad Kelly (JR) is new starting QB for Ole Miss. I was a Kelly fan even though his teams were chokers. He’s one of the best ever…

    Chad Kelly has a checkered career but has talent. He was kicked off his first high school team as freshman in Red Lion, PA and he was kicked off Clemson. Was QB at community college in Miss. last year Had an issue at a bar in Buffalo last year. Still 21 so he probably won’t declare. Listed at 6-2, 215.

    Bills legend Jim Kelly was pretty pumped when his nephew threw a TD for @OleMissFB. WATCH: http://es.pn/1FqczHm

    Ironically Kelly is ultra competitve but has had issues like Johnny
    ESPN Stats & Info ‏@ESPNStatsInfo 1h1 hour ago

    This long TD pass made Chad Kelly the 1st SEC QB to be responsible for 5 TD in a half since Johnny Manziel in 2012: http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=13638981

  205. 205 RC5000 said at 7:24 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Chad Kelly said he was gonna “grab his ak47 and spray the place” after being kicked out of a bar.

  206. 206 Media Mike said at 8:39 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    http://collegefootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/12/21/ole-miss-qb-signee-chad-kelly-arrested-in-scuffle-with-police/

    What a low-life. I wish he would have pulled this in one of the bars where I used to work. An arrest record would have been the least of his worries after he struck one of the staff members.

  207. 207 Mac said at 3:16 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    Kid is bad news. Possibly more spoiled and rotten than Manziel.

  208. 208 GEAGLE said at 8:40 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Chip couldn’t get OT jake fisher and DE Arik Armstead in the draft, but there are two ducks at those positions entering the next draft that are better then Armstead and fisher
    ..
    I’m a big Jake fisher fan, but he was only a big deal last year because the real Ducks LT got injured last August, Tyler Johnstone, if gets back to his pre injury form is better Tackle then Fisher
    ..
    Armstead is all measurable and potential but he is an under achiever, Oregon DE Defforest Buckner is the real deal.. If we can’t extend Thornton because Bennie and Cox will cost money, I assume chip adores Buckner, Tall, Long, High Charevhter and plays with a motor even Andy Reid would like lol

  209. 209 GEAGLE said at 8:42 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    My man, Roman Catholic alumni WR Will Fuller keeps dominating defense as Notre dames best weapon… Will fuller and Maurice Stovall, only two fighting Irish players I ever cared for

  210. 210 GEAGLE said at 8:45 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Do the Falcons start LSU rookie corner Jalen Collins in the slot? Think highly of his future but rookie corners suck, if they start him as their Nickel Jordan Mathews will eat him alive

  211. 211 wee2424 said at 9:13 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Would be nice if they did. I like Mathews going against any slot CB especially a rookie. Don’t know anything about him. Are they putting him in there because of size matchup or is he the best slot CB they have?

  212. 212 GEAGLE said at 9:19 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    He was the 6’1 corner from LSU, their 2nd round pick I believe… That team sucks, it has no depth, I assume they have to play all their top picks right away… For example, Vic Beasley has no business playing his first NFL game lined up across from JP but do they really have a choice? not a very talented defense, no depth… They have William more at safety, no idea how he has looked recently…. But I don’t care who it is, a rookie corner has no business trying to Check Pope Jordan.,, Jordan would eat Rowe alive tomorrow if he was on Atlanta instead of the LSU kid… Thinking tomorrow the Pope Jordan/Dahlsim Bradford will be the beginning of a Beeeaauuuutiful friendship

  213. 213 wee2424 said at 9:59 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Agree. Beasley will be a good player for them in the future but JP is going to manhandle him. You really couldn’t find a tougher opponent to go up against for your first game ever as a rookie.

    They don’t have a pass rush so Bradford should have all day to find open receivers.

    Their OL play in both pass protection and run blocking is poor. They don’t have a good run game whatsoever. Due to that and the points we will put up will force them to be pass happy. Ryan will be under heavy pressure all night.

    The only player they have that worries me is Julio. He is only one player however and we are much better prepared to face him then what we would have been last year. He will have his numbers but that is to be expected. Maxwell should trail him all night with either Thurmond or Jenkins up top. I would rather have Jenkins up top over him then Thurmond simply because Julio can be difficult to tackle and Jenkins is a better tackler and more physical then Thurmond.

    I really like our matchups all up and down the board. Can’t wait. Atlanta will need to pump as much crowd noise as they can because they need every advantage they can find.

    This will be Ryan’s first opening night loss he has had in the NFL.

  214. 214 GEAGLE said at 10:02 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    It should look like the ass whooping we handed to the Bears… If this matchup is close, it’s only do to whacky week 1’craziness, but this Atlanta team DOESNT have the horses to fuck with us.. julio is insignificant if that Pigeon OL that was thrown together a week ago can’t block our front 7

    If I have any concern its cause of week 1 whackyness.. If we played them any other time Id be thinking BLOW OUT

  215. 215 Avery Greene said at 8:48 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Oregon looks sloppy.

  216. 216 GEAGLE said at 9:13 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Their QB joined them a few weeks ago, playing MSU so early in the season is ROUGH!! Would have enjoyed this match up more towards the end of the year

  217. 217 Avery Greene said at 9:15 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    I was wondering why he didn’t look like he knew what he was doing.

  218. 218 GEAGLE said at 9:19 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    He transferred to Oregon no joke like 4 weeks ago

  219. 219 Jarock said at 4:16 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    Doesn’t speak too well of whoever else the Ducks had at QB.

  220. 220 Avery Greene said at 9:04 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Now Oregon remembered how to play.

  221. 221 Avery Greene said at 9:10 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    OMG I spoke too soon. terrible.

  222. 222 cliff-Y U on a knee, 99?! said at 9:50 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    tough to watch. looks like Kelly t’s JuJu has finally worn off

  223. 223 BobSmith77 said at 9:27 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Anyone else think Maxwell is going to get exposed a bit on Monday night vs Jones and that it will mark a trend of him not living up to his paycheck?

  224. 224 Will:↑↑↓↓←→←→BA said at 9:56 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Julio “exposes” everyone…. I expect him to get his but I don’t think Maxwell is going to get clowned all game either

  225. 225 BobSmith77 said at 1:16 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    I say Jones put up 100+ yards, 1 TD, and at least one 20+ yd plus play while primarily be covered by Maxwell.

    If he does what you think he should, say ~80 yards and keeping him out of the end zone. If Maxwell does that, he did his job.

  226. 226 Will:↑↑↓↓←→←→BA said at 1:23 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    Front 7 has to do their job too. Cant expect our CBs to cover for 4 seconds

  227. 227 anon said at 10:17 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    sounds almost absurd what these guys can do in 4 seconds, i’m barely off the couch in that period of time.

  228. 228 EagleNebula said at 11:21 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    You just need to train more. Get that case of PBR in the fridge and work on your commercial beer run times.

  229. 229 Michael Winter Cho said at 11:34 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Probably anything bad Maxwell does will get blown out of proportion because of people thinking he’s the savior.

  230. 230 BobSmith77 said at 1:11 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    He’s being paid to be a Vincent or Samuel though and it is a fair expectation to expect him to perform as a Top 10 or 12 CB.

    Expect he will be an upgrade and above average this year but not worth what the Eagles are paying him either.

  231. 231 D3FB said at 6:37 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    He’s a tier two corner. Yes we overpayed, that’s what you do in FA. He’s not going to be a Peterson, Revis, Haden, Sherman or Talib.

    But he’s more than capable of being right in there with the tier two guys like Jimmy Smith, Vontae Davis, Jason McCourty, Kareem Jackson, Sam Shields of the league.

    He’s going to get beat. He’s going to give up yards and TDs. So do the best of the best. I’m sure the first time he gives up a 15 yard dig people will lose their minds.

  232. 232 BobSmith77 said at 1:15 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    Not like Maxwell came here for any other reason than the money. He said so himself yesterday:

    “I was just going to whoever gave me the most money,” Maxwell said Friday.

    http://www.nj.com/eagles/index.ssf/2015/09/byron_maxwell_on_falcons_pursuing_him_in_free_agen.html

  233. 233 BlindChow said at 11:13 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    That’s a bad sign. All a WR has to do is drop a ten-spot as he’s running by and Maxwell will stop to pick it up…

  234. 234 BlindChow said at 1:04 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    I too am afraid of the Nnamdi Ccurse.

  235. 235 Greg Richards said at 8:36 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    Nnamdi was like 67 years old when we signed him.

  236. 236 xmbk said at 8:24 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    No.

  237. 237 GEAGLE said at 9:58 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    NO…. Only the miserable Negadelphians or pussy Murphy’s law scared fans worry about such a physically talented. Technica,ly sound, High Football IQ, Battle tested Stud corner like Maxwell

  238. 238 cliff-Y U on a knee, 99?! said at 9:49 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    is T Crawford worth 5yrs 45mw 25m guaranteed? last year he was platooning, now all off a sudden they want toget him locked in because of recent DL contracts.
    .
    know they are extremely high on him, like Fletcher Cox high

  239. 239 RC5000 said at 9:56 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    N Dame Star QB Malik Zaire out for year
    http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/13640029/notre-dame-fighting-irish-qb-malik-zaire-leaves-game-virginia-cavaliers-apparent-right-ankle-injury

  240. 240 Will:↑↑↓↓←→←→BA said at 9:56 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    It looked nasty

  241. 241 Michael Winter Cho said at 11:33 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Are you saying Chip will want him now?

  242. 242 GEAGLE said at 9:57 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    they have WR Will Fuller from Romancatholic. Just throw it up and let Fuller do the rest
    ..
    I did like Zaire more then the Oregon Qb

  243. 243 RC5000 said at 11:00 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Personally I’m not surprised at all but fyi on JPP.

    http://espn.go.com/new-york/nfl/story/_/id/13642283/some-new-york-giants-organization-fear-jason-pierre-paul-injuries-worse-thought

  244. 244 ICDogg said at 11:16 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Sounds like he had a blast

  245. 245 ICDogg said at 11:20 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Owls trying to hang on

  246. 246 RC5000 said at 11:31 PM on September 12th, 2015:

    Oregon impressive hanging in with 3:25 and 3 TOs. They still have a lot of weapons. No Pharoah Brown, no Devon Allen or much of him. He supposedly was ready or dressed but I don’t know if he got action. Oregon ball back with 3 TOs, 2:27 left.

  247. 247 Greg Richards said at 8:36 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    Man, those refs were idiots. The Oregon QB clearly had a 1st down. It should have been overturned on replay but refs never want to admit they got a spot wrong so they say the play “stands”. Total BS. I fell asleep and didn’t see what happened after that but seeing as MS didn’t score again and Oregon only lost by 3 I have to think not being awarded the 1st down there came into play.

  248. 248 Will:↑↑↓↓←→←→BA said at 1:14 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    Seriously! Monday Freaking Night!?

  249. 249 GEAGLE said at 10:11 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    Annoyed. Tired of these Monday night openers

  250. 250 EagleNebula said at 11:05 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    On the west coast it starts at 4pm on a Monday, I work till at least 6. Going to have to stream the radio broadcast and hope no one wants to talk to me. if it wasn’t a new job that I already had to take a few days off I would consider taking the day off…

  251. 251 Greg Richards said at 11:06 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    DVR and punch anyone who tries to talk to you about the game before you get home.

  252. 252 EagleNebula said at 11:11 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    I don’t have the will power. I can’t wait, the temptation to know what’s happening is far too great.

  253. 253 Greg Richards said at 11:15 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    Take the baseball bat to all electronic devices at your place of employment? You may get fired, but at least you won’t have this issue in the future.

  254. 254 EagleNebula said at 11:26 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    Hmm, do enough damage without getting thrown in jail for the season…

  255. 255 anon said at 10:02 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    ESPN Giants reporter Dan Graziano told Sirius XM NFL radio that some in the Giants organization believe Jason Pierre-Paul (hand) will miss the entire season.

  256. 256 Greg Richards said at 10:41 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    RIP Moses Malone.

  257. 257 SteveH said at 10:41 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    So my buddy had some spare tickets to the… Browns Jets game… Yeah…

  258. 258 Insomniac said at 10:44 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    RG3 practicing as a safety lol

  259. 259 Greg Richards said at 10:46 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    I’m going to laugh hysterically when he tears his ACL/MCL/PCL/Achilles/pinky toe tendon all without any contact and they end up being on the hook for his $16M+ guaranteed for injury only 2016 salary.

  260. 260 Michael Winter Cho said at 11:38 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    You… made that up, right?

  261. 261 FairOaks said at 11:56 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000528651/article/redskins-qb-rgiii-running-with-scout-team-defense-at-safety

    Every time I think that situation has hit bottom, the Redskins find a more powerful shovel.

  262. 262 Michael Winter Cho said at 12:04 PM on September 13th, 2015:

    Oh my… really, Chip couldn’t do better if he got his hands on that kid? Or maybe RGIII really is a punk who needs some old school coaching and that’s what they’re doing here.

  263. 263 Insomniac said at 12:22 PM on September 13th, 2015:

    http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000528651/article/robert-griffin-iii-practiced-with-scout-team-defense-at-safety

  264. 264 Greg Richards said at 10:53 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    I want Nick Foles to go off today and have Oakland game deja vu just for the entertainment of reading all the hot takes.

  265. 265 BlindChow said at 11:11 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    Not me. I want him to look just like he did last year.

    After all his post-game talk last year about knowing what needed to be fixed, then repeating the same mistakes the following week, I’d be annoyed if he actually started fixing them…

    If he couldn’t do it for us, he shouldn’t do it for them, dammit!

  266. 266 anon said at 11:20 AM on September 13th, 2015:

    lots of hot takes if he doesn’t get crumpled by SEA