17 posts tagged “donovan mcnabb”
A team that wins a lot of games, that is relevant year-in-and-year-out, that consistently makes the playoffs and contends for, but never wins a championship – rightfully said to underachieve on the biggest stages.
or
A team that has been generally irrelevant except for one season in which enough things came together for them to squeak into the playoffs and pull off (an over-achieving) Championship, only to return to irrelevance?
The last time we'd seen Jake Delhomme, he was almost single-handedly handing the Arizona Cardinals a berth in the NFC Championship Game. During that Divisional Round game, he threw five interceptions and fumbled once in a 33-13 loss.
Well, things were nearly as bad for him in his next game -- this year's season opener against the Eagles, in which he tossed 4 INTs and lost a fumble (the Panthers had 7 TOs overall) in a 38-10 rout that could not have sent the Carolina faithful home very happy.
Of course, it can't be all smiles and sunshine for Team Drama either. On a day when their defense dominated, their special teams scored and their offense looked sharp, in what seems to be an all-too-regular Rite of Fall, Donovan McNabb went down with a cracked rib.
Apparently, this is not the season-ending variety, but probably the 2-4 week type. You can imagine if #5 doesn't come back sharp (the Birdz have a bye in week 4) the calls for Michael Vick may get pretty loud. Fortunately for Donovan, neither Vick nor Kevin Kolb have looked all that sharp -- which bodes well for his retaining the #1 spot, though not-so-good for the Eagles next match up against the high-scoring Saints.
Well -- here it is, the beginning of another NFL season. Last night's Steelers-Titans game was pretty entertaining to watch, though certain of the Steelers faithful must have had their hearts in their throats at certain points, I imagine.
Going into the last several seasons, I used to think I knew where the Eagles would be. Whether they'd rightfully be the best team in their division and legitimate Super Bowl contender, or whether they'd be scrapping for a playoff spot.
This year -- I have no clue. Everyone of course is talking about the surprise addition of Michael Vick -- and I'm sure there will be a lot of words spent on Vick's impact (or lack of one) -- but let's face it, in absence of an injury to starting QB Donovan McNabb, this offense will rely on McNabb, Westbrook, Jackson, and perhaps newcomer WR Jeremy Maclin. More than what Vick will do, I really want to know that they'll be able convert 3rd-and-1 with some consistency.
Some in the media are saying this team will be an offensive juggernaut, and I fully expect they'll tag a few teams with 30+... but I've watched enough Reid-McNabb teams to know there will be baffling inconsistency and play calling and an inability to move the ball.
And I fear that they're going to need to move it, because while there have been improvements on offense, the defense has taken some hits. Most notably, the death of defensive coordinator Jim Johnson (who's replaced by disciple Sean McDermott) and the departure of longtime stalwart Brian Dawkins -- a free agent the Reid brain trust no longer thought was worth the money. There have been LB injuries in camp that makes me fear they won't be able to stop the run much better than last year.
The schedule is a mixed bag --- the NFC East will continue to feast on its own and there are tough games against Panthers, Saints, Chargers, and revitalized Bears. A blessing is the rest of the AFC West -- giving games against Chiefs, Broncos, Raiders in addition to a depleted Bucs.
I think they will likely go anywhere from 9-7 to 11-5 -- though if there's a defensive implosion it's not impossible to see 0.500 or worse. We'll just have to see as we get there!
One of the other things I missed getting to post about while I was on vacation occurred on the day we flew to the east coast. In a move shocking to many, the Philadelphia Eagles signed Michael Vick as their back-up QB. Certainly, I was surprised and the headlines were in a pretty large font as we disembarked at Philadelphia International Airport. And the following day, this shirt was already making its debut on the local scene.
Vick is due to play in his first pre-season game tonight in what I can only assume will be a media free-for-all. Several folks have asked me over the last couple of weeks how I feel about Vick playing on “my” team. From a team perspective, this is a lot more about Donovan McNabb (who wants a back-up that doesn’t want his job just yet) more than Vick. And I’m sure Andy Reid has all kinds of crazy formations in mind with them both on the field.
Anyway – that doesn’t really answer the question of should they have hired him…. well --- as sort of a law and order type of guy, I believe that Vick in pleading guilty and serving his time has every right to seek employment in the NFL now that his sentence is complete. In some ways, you can argue that his slate’s clean and there’s no reason not to root for him. And in others, you can say the guys a dirtball felon that willfully killed dogs and should never ever be able to bring in the big bucks from the NFL—and that hiring him somehow condones his crime.
In the end, I feel like he paid a fair price and should be allowed to play. He’s said and done all the right things with animal protection services since his release and so on the surface, I say give him a chance. Think of it like parole -- as long as he’s on the straight and narrow, he’s on the right track. I just don’t think I’ll be buying and wearing his jersey anytime soon.
Oh, and Penny says she respectfully disagrees and may have to root for the Redskins this year.
- Donovan McNabb's regurgitations in 3-D
- TO's unedited driveway press conference, complete with abdominal workout
- A primer on Andy Reid's famous one-liners after yet another devastating big-game loss
- Lorenzo Booker - Brian Westbrook's Heir Apparent
- Time management
- The 2-minute drill
- Winning the big game
- What to do 10 years into a 5 year plan
- How to run a balanced offense
- "Where Are They Now?" - Reno Mahe, Todd Pinkston, and Freddie Mitchell discuss why no other team but the Eagles would have them
- Tales From the Turnstile: The Winston Justice Story
- Three Yards and a Cloud of Dust: A Short History of Kick Returner Jeremy Bloom
Last week, during their road-win over the Minnesota Vikings, the Philadelphia Eagles struggled offensively in the first half (especially against a good run defense), but rode an Assante Samuel INT-derived TD and a strong defensive effort to a slim lead at halftime. In the second half, Donovan McNabb and the Eagles offense got into gear a little bit – throwing the ball more effectively to move the ball downfield. The defense kept up the pressure and Vikings QB Tavaris Jackson played a sub-par game – missing opportunities to help his team get back in the game.
Forward a week and make the following substitutions:
Giants for Vikings
Meadowlands for Metrodome
Eli Manning for Tavaris Jackson.
The arc of the game’s story was remarkably similar as the Eagles muscled their way to a 23-11 win in a Divisional Round NFL Playoff win against their NFC East rival, NY Giants. If it’s possible to say so, the Giants really lost their chance to control the game in the first half. The Giants D had effectively bottled up the Eagles (their only score off a 2-yd “drive” after Samuels' INT), while the G-men O had squandered several big-play opportunities and were unable to find the endzone – in large part due to Eli Manning’s inability to make precise throws in the swirling cold winds of the Meadowlands. I think that guy should play for a dome team. Really.
In the second half, the Eagles found a way to move the ball somewhat effectively without the use of Brian Westbrook, who the Giants kept from being a significant factor all day. In refreshing fashion, the Eagles converted several key 3rd-downs, with McNabb throwing darts to less-used-weapons, while their defense stymied the Giants on back-to-back drives with key 4th down stands.
And so, the Giants have to be left wondering what might have been if Plaxico hadn’t stuffed a loaded gun in his sweatpants, or if Eli had a stronger arm. The Eagles meanwhile head off to Arizona to face the even-more-improbably-in-the-NFC-Championship-Game Cardinals for the chance to go to the Super Bowl.
This year? Go figure.
So about a month ago, I stopped really writing about the Eagles. After a demoralizing loss to the Ravens, the Birdz were at 5-5-1. They’d benched Donovan McNabb after two really egregious performances. After “earning” a tie with the hapless Bengals, I wrote:
On Sunday November 16th, we are finally able to put this Eagles season to rest. The end came in the unexpected form of a 13-13 tie (yes, a tie) against the hapless (1-8) Cincinnati Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium.
I decided that for my sanity, I just had to let the season go. Too many “what ifs” is not good for the psyche. And so, I noted with pleasure that the Eagles crushed the NFC West Champion Cardinals on Thanksgiving night – McNabb back as starter and playing great.
I watched them grind out a tough win against the NFC East Champion NY Giants (who may have been distracted by their own version of T.O., Plaxico Burress shooting himself in the leg…). I watch with interest as they demolished the Browns on Monday night a few weeks ago. Improbably, they pretty much had their playoff destiny back in their hands and under control. Their next game was against the reeling Redskins.
The result: a colossal dud, where they scored 3 points. See? I shouldn’t have gotten excited right? They had the playoffs and redemption in their sites and they blinked.
So they entered this last game of the season needing a TON of help (some combo of losses by a couple of teams, including a very unlikely home loss by Tampa Bay to the awful Raiders) and facing the Dallas Cowboys – a soap opera of a team also fighting for its playoff life after a fairly disappointing season of their own.
Amazingly, the Raiders won, and the Bears lost and suddenly the Eagles weren’t playing Cowboy-spoiler, but they knew that if they won, they’d be in as a playoff team. A second chance to control their destiny.
The result: a colossal wipeout of the Cowboys – of a sort that still leaves you scratching your head (albeit happily). The Eagles broke open a 10-3 game with 17 points in the last two minutes of the first half – the result of a good drive and a couple of Cowboys turn-overs. They left little doubt about the game’s outcome by scoring 14 points in 3rd quarter before the offense ever took the field. The Cowboys were terrible, coughing up the ball 5 times and having maybe two good drives the whole game. The implosion from Jerry Jones should be fun to watch.
And so, most improbably, at 9-6-1 they find themselves a wild-card team and headed to Minnesota next week to play the NFC North Champion Vikings.
Clearly, I counted them out too early. I should have looked back to my first post on them this season, where I wrote:
Here’s my prediction for the season: End of Regular Season: 10-6, probably wild-card team
Hey, even I couldn’t have guessed that tie.
On Sunday November 16th, we are finally able to put this Eagles season to rest. The end came in the unexpected form of a 13-13 tie (yes, a tie) against the hapless (1-8) Cincinnati Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium.
As someone that has truly appreciated all that the Andy Reid-Donovan McNabb Era has brought to the team, I have to say that it’s probably time to move on. This team is predictable in its attack, consistently exhibits baffling clock management, and usually only seems to have its head in the game for portions of each contest.
Proponents will say that the Birdz haven’t lost a game this year by more than a touchdown --- that they were this close to being able to win each of those games, while their wins (with the exception of their 15-6 win over the Steelers have been by generous margins). What it means is that it’s a team that can’t win the close one.
At 5-4-1, I’m sure they’re not eliminated from playoff contention, but wow it sure seems like they ought to be.
*wow does that ever seem like a long time ago
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