A Gift From the Eagles
Posted: December 19th, 2023 | Author: Tommy Lawlor | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 3 Comments »Happy Holidays from the Philadelphia Eagles. They got you a gift and you didn’t even ask for one. I’m sure some of you are questioning if I got hold of some spoiled egg nog or I’m suffering from PTSD after last night’s brutal loss. What gift did the Eagles give us?
Freedom.
When your team is going through a magical season, there is all kinds of pressure. A loss can be devastating. An injury can be soul-crushing. The goal is to win the Super Bowl. Anything short is disappointing.
The loss to Seattle took away pressure and expectations. The Eagles gave you freedom. If they win, great. If they lose, the season is already blown. There’s nothing to lose sleep over. If the team does win out and takes the division, that’s great. Enjoy it. If they win a playoff game, that’s great. Enjoy it.
This team isn’t winning the Super Bowl. There is just something that isn’t clicking this year. Don’t obsess on trying to figure it out. There are a lot of different contributing factors. There is coaching. Execution by the players. Roster construction. Health. Regression. Age. Brutal schedule. Selfishness. Just accept the issue for now. We can dissect it in the offseason, but even that might be a tough exercise.
The NFC Championship Game losses in the Reid era were tough. Brutally tough. Every year you thought “This is finally our year.” And then poof, another kick in the nads in January. The Eagles loss in Seattle means you won’t get your hopes up this year. Just watch the games and try to enjoy them.
Freedom.
*****
For those of you desperate for an optimistic spin, the best I can offer is 2008. The Eagles had an 0-2-1 streak at midseason to fall to 5-5-1. The last loss in that stretch was a 36-13 debacle in Baltimore. Things felt pretty hopeless. There was a lot of chatter about that being the end of McNabb/Reid. Big Red rallied his guys and they blew out Arizona the following week. That started a 4-1 stretch run that got the team into the postseason.
The Eagles won games in Minnesota and at the Giants. That got them to the NFC title game, where they fell to Arizona 32-25.
That team felt lost before their winning streak. This team has three weeks to right the ship. I feel like the problems aren’t going to get solved in that time frame, but strange things do happen in sports.
*****
Here is some info on the race for the NFC East.
*IF* #Eagles & Dallas both win out, whoever wins the below strength of victory tally wins NFC East: Eagles need MIN+TB+KC+BUF+ARI total wins to beat NYJ+LAC+CAR+SEA+DET total wins.
Current win totals and remaining schedules shown below. Games in green are "head to head" games. pic.twitter.com/u8Ljtv8Rau— Deniz Selman (@denizselman33) December 19, 2023
*****
I still believe in Nick Sirianni and Jalen Hurts. Things just go sideways some years. Both men need to take a long hard look at how things have gone wrong this year and make changes moving forward.
Things might have come too easy last year. That obviously hasn’t been the case this season.
Sirianni and Hurts need to quit obsessing on explosive plays. Just focus on moving the chains for now. The offense looked good when they mixed runs and short/medium throws. Going vertical led to punts and interceptions. Those plays just aren’t working well right now.
Focus on the OL. Do what it takes to get them back to playing at an elite level. And feed the ball to the RBs. That doesn’t have to be standard runs. You can throw it to them. Use them on jet sweeps. Be creative. But get the RBs touches. That’s how you win in December and January.
*****
I was encouraged to see young guys stepping up on Monday night. Kelee Ringo played his best game as a pro. He showed good ability. That’s huge for next season. Start him the rest of the year. Let him learn on the job.
Sydney Brown is catching some flak for his missed tackles. They were an issue. No question about it. But I loved the energy and physicality he brought to the defense. We’ve seen veteran DBs missing tackles. Brown is showing good ability. He just has stuff to work on. By the way…you know who else had tackling issues early on? Some guy named Dawk. Young guys are allowed to make some mistakes as they learn.
https://twitter.com/PhillyFanHND/status/1737274045991924019
Nolan Smith had some good moments. Moro Ojomo got playing time. Eli Ricks had some good snaps.
The Eagles desperately need some young players to step up so they can find answers for next year. This will be a much different roster in 2024.
_
[…] Un regalo de las águilas – Iggles BlitzFelices fiestas de parte de los Philadelphia Eagles. Te dieron un regalo y ni siquiera lo pediste. Estoy seguro de que algunos de ustedes se preguntan si conseguí algo de ponche de huevo en mal estado o si sufro de trastorno de estrés postraumático después de la brutal pérdida de anoche. ¿Qué regalo nos hicieron las Águilas? Libertad. Cuando tu equipo está pasando por una temporada mágica, hay todo tipo de presiones. Una pérdida puede ser devastadora. Una lesión puede ser desgarradora. El objetivo es ganar el Super Bowl. Todo lo breve es decepcionante. La derrota ante Seattle le quitó presión y expectativas. Las Águilas te dieron libertad. Si ganan, genial. Si pierden, la temporada ya está arruinada. No hay nada por lo que perder el sueño. Si el equipo gana y se lleva la división, sería genial. Disfrútala. Si ganan un partido de playoffs, es genial. Disfrútala. Este equipo no va a ganar el Super Bowl. Simplemente hay algo que no está funcionando este año. No te obsesiones en intentar resolverlo. Hay muchos factores contribuyentes diferentes. Hay entrenamiento. Ejecución por parte de los jugadores. Construcción de planteles. Salud. Regresión. Edad. Horario brutal. Egoísmo. Simplemente acepte el problema por ahora. Podemos analizarlo en el receso de temporada, pero incluso eso podría ser un ejercicio difícil. El Campeonato de la NFC Las derrotas en juegos en la era Reid fueron duras. Brutalmente duro. Cada año pensabas “Este es finalmente nuestro año”. Y luego puf, otra patada en el trasero en enero. La derrota de los Eagles en Seattle significa que no tendrás muchas esperanzas este año. Simplemente mira los juegos e intenta disfrutarlos. Libertad. […]
[…] A Gift From the Eagles – Iggles BlitzHappy Holidays from the Philadelphia Eagles. They got you a gift and you didn’t even ask for one. I’m sure some of you are questioning if I got hold of some spoiled egg nog or I’m suffering from PTSD after last night’s brutal loss. What gift did the Eagles give us? Freedom. When your team is going through a magical season, there is all kinds of pressure. A loss can be devastating. An injury can be soul-crushing. The goal is to win the Super Bowl. Anything short is disappointing. The loss to Seattle took away pressure and expectations. The Eagles gave you freedom. If they win, great. If they lose, the season is already blown. There’s nothing to lose sleep over. If the team does win out and takes the division, that’s great. Enjoy it. If they win a playoff game, that’s great. Enjoy it. This team isn’t winning the Super Bowl. There is just something that isn’t clicking this year. Don’t obsess on trying to figure it out. There are a lot of different contributing factors. There is coaching. Execution by the players. Roster construction. Health. Regression. Age. Brutal schedule. Selfishness. Just accept the issue for now. We can dissect it in the offseason, but even that might be a tough exercise. The NFC Championship Game losses in the Reid era were tough. Brutally tough. Every year you thought “This is finally our year.” And then poof, another kick in the nads in January. The Eagles loss in Seattle means you won’t get your hopes up this year. Just watch the games and try to enjoy them. Freedom. […]
[…] A Gift From the Eagles – Iggles BlitzHappy Holidays from the Philadelphia Eagles. They got you a gift and you didn’t even ask for one. I’m sure some of you are questioning if I got hold of some spoiled egg nog or I’m suffering from PTSD after last night’s brutal loss. What gift did the Eagles give us? Freedom. When your team is going through a magical season, there is all kinds of pressure. A loss can be devastating. An injury can be soul-crushing. The goal is to win the Super Bowl. Anything short is disappointing. The loss to Seattle took away pressure and expectations. The Eagles gave you freedom. If they win, great. If they lose, the season is already blown. There’s nothing to lose sleep over. If the team does win out and takes the division, that’s great. Enjoy it. If they win a playoff game, that’s great. Enjoy it. This team isn’t winning the Super Bowl. There is just something that isn’t clicking this year. Don’t obsess on trying to figure it out. There are a lot of different contributing factors. There is coaching. Execution by the players. Roster construction. Health. Regression. Age. Brutal schedule. Selfishness. Just accept the issue for now. We can dissect it in the offseason, but even that might be a tough exercise. The NFC Championship Game losses in the Reid era were tough. Brutally tough. Every year you thought “This is finally our year.” And then poof, another kick in the nads in January. The Eagles loss in Seattle means you won’t get your hopes up this year. Just watch the games and try to enjoy them. Freedom. […]