Not So Bad

A few days ago, things were scary in the Eagles world. The team was 1-2 and losing on the road to the Packers, 10-0. They seemed to be miles behind the undefeated Cowboys and their red hot offense.

Amazing how things can change so quickly in September.

The Eagles pulled off the come-from-behind upset and beat Green Bay 34-27. Tonight Dallas lost to the FG-kicking Saints, 12-10.

DAL 3-1
PHI 2-2

Not so bad, huh?

The Eagles still have plenty of issues to deal with, but it does feel good to know they are still right in the middle of things. You never want to start too slowly. Then you find yourself playing catch-up for most, if not all, of the season.

Sunday’s results were mostly good for the Eagles. The Rams lost to the Bucs, 55-40. Jameis Winston played well, but Jared Goff’s sloppiness played a huge part in the loss. The Rams are now 3-1.

The Bears beat the Vikings, 16-6. They manhandled Minnesota. The Bears were missing multiple defensive starters, but they just overwhelmed the guys in purple. It was fun to watch Kirk “Don’t call me Kurt” Cousins constantly running for his life.

The Falcons and Lions also lost.

Jacksonville won. I mention this because of the Jalen Ramsey angle. I don’t know if the Jags winning helps or hurts the Eagles. The Jags won without Ramsey so that could convince them they don’t need a malcontent (or whatever label they might want to put on him). The flip side is that the Jags are now 2-2 and tied for the division lead. That could make them think they should keep Ramsey to help them make a playoff run.

Trying to figure out what Tom Coughlin is thinking is not easy. I’m sure Howie will talk to them, but I just don’t know how likely this is.

The Broncos falling to 0-4 could make them more likely to deal Chris Harris. Washington is 0-4 and might be willing to deal Josh Norman, but he’s struggled this year and might not be of interest. The point is to get better, not just to make changes.

There just aren’t many good options. The Eagles need the hurt guys to get healthy and the healthy guys to play better.

As I watched the Bears today, it made me so jealous of that defense. Those guys fly around the field and make play after play. Minnesota had 50 yards of offense in the middle of the 3rd quarter. That’s insane!

Of course, the opposite is true as well. Bears fans would watch the Eagles offense and be very jealous. Chicago averages 16.5 points per game. The Eagles have had plenty of offensive injuries and still average 27.5 points per game.

It can be easy to focus on what we don’t have. Sometimes you have to see the big picture and appreciate what you do have.

I do think the defense will improve, but they won’t be on the Bears level any time soon.

*****

We’ll find out in the next few days if Sam Darnold is going to play against the Eagles. He hasn’t been running yet, but reports say that could start tomorrow and it is possible he could play. I don’t have much experience in covering players dealing with Mono so I don’t know what to expect.

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