Eagles VS Cowboys Game 2....The Destruction

Same situation but different scenarios for week 17. A week ago, the Philadelphia Eagles needed the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to lose to the San Diego Chargers in order to control their own destiny in the NFC playoff race, but the Eagles failed to live up to their end of the bargain, losing on the road to the Washington Redskins. This past Sunday, losses by either the Minnesota Vikings or the Chicago Bears (or even both of them) and then another loss by Tampa Bay would allow the Eagles another shot to get in. And when the Bears lost to the Houston Texans and the Buccaneers dropped their fourth straight game to the woeful Oakland Raiders, it made the Eagles and Dallas Cowboys game a “Win and Get In” situation.

And the Eagles didn’t ask for control…they took it away with force.

After an opening first quarter with the score at 3-3, the score was never close once after that point, as the Eagles posted 24 points in the second quarter and 17 in the third quarter on their way to a through 44-6 dismantling of the Cowboys, avenging a loss in week two on Monday Night Football in Irving. The funny thing is that the two touchdowns the team did score in the second half came from their defense with two fumble recoveries out of a total five forced turnovers.

At the end of the day, the Eagles qualified for the playoffs, entering in at the #6 spot with a 9-6-1 record and will face a team that the Eagles should know very well, that being Brad Childress and the NFC North champion Minnesota Vikings. The day and time for that match will be determined by Tuesday, from what we do know is that if the Eagles are going to do it, they are going to have to replicate the Pittsburgh Steelers of 2005 or the New York Giants of 2007 and win them all on the road.

Quarterbacks: Wow, I think someone needs to thumb through the record books for this season, because I can’t remember the last time Donovan McNabb had as few pass attempts as he did. Sure, McNabb had some scrambles and sneaks, but the defense was a big reason for that with their two touchdowns in the 3rd quarter. McNabb completed 12 of 21 passes (57%) for 175 yards and two touchdowns through the air, posting a 116.2 QB rating. And on the ground, McNabb scrambled three times for four yards, including a 1-yard touchdown keep to give us the lead, once and for all. And even on the sideline, there seemed to be no problems as expressed by the “Media” between him and anyone else. Later on, Kevin Kolb made the scene and, luckily, was not implored to throw the ball, but he did get on the board with two kneel downs to end the game.
McNabb Grade: A (95%)

Running Backs & Full Backs: There were a total 23 carries between our top two runners, Brian Westbrook and Correll Buckhalter, but it was the latter who got less carries but did more with his attempts. In fact, Buckhalter was the versatile one this game, not Westbrook, as Buckhalter jammed for 63 yards on ten carries, including a run good for 33-yards because apparently the “Great” Dallas defense must have been taking tackling lessons from Cleveland and Denver. Buckhalter also caught three passes for 59 yards and a touchdown from four yards out, totaling 122 yards on 13 touches (9.4 yards per) and a touchdown. Westbrook had 13 carries for 50 yards and two receptions for 12 yards, totaling 15 touches for 62 yards and a VERY questionable fumble. Kyle Eckel posted eight carries for 22 yards rushing, most of which came in the fourth quarter.
Unit Grade: A (95%)

Wide Receivers: Due to the lack of pass attempts, and on top of that the running backs hauling in five of the 12 receptions, passes were hard to come by for these guys. In fact, it was so hard that only three guys here caught a pass, as DeSean Jackson, who had four drops a week ago in Landover, had two receptions for 46 yards, including 34-yards on a nice inside route. Reggie Brown and Kevin Curtis, the latter of whom missed the Redskins game, both had one reception.
Unit Grade: B (83%)

Tight End: Yeah, notice the “S” is missing off of that one, because we only had one tight end making a statement, and no, it wasn’t the overpaid LJ Smith because apparently he was “injured.” Brent Celek co-led the team with three receptions for 30 yards, including a 1-yard touchdown reception with 13 seconds to the half. Also, it should be made mention of that Matt Schobel was in the game, but if anyone saw him anywhere, please feel free to tell me.
Unit Grade: B+ (89%)

Offensive Line: Back in week two, the Eagles offensive line allowed five sacks to the Cowboys, and there must have been at least a dozen more times where McNabb had to fight off pressure in order to avoid taking another sack. But this time, Dallas managed only one sack and one quarterback hurry, both from Bradie James, and sack artist DeMarcus Ware, who came into the game with 20 of them, left with zero. The line allowed the actual runners on the team 4.3 yards a carry (we won’t include the two quarterbacks) and committed no fouls (although Philadelphia committed NONE as a team). For the season, the line, which has again seen three starting right guards, going from Shawn Andrews to Max Jean-Gilles to Nick Cole, allowed only 23 sacks on Kevin and Donovan. That is five less then they did in 2006 and a very sharp decrease of 26 from last year.
Unit Grade: A+ (98%)

Defensive Line: One would have to be quick to forgive Tony Romo, because if he felt as if he was stuck in some never ending horror movie where he kept getting sliced and diced instead of sacked and pressured, then it would be understandable. Despite missing Victor Abiamiri due to what I would assume was some sort of injury, seven of the linemen still enjoyed the mayhem they created, starting with Darren Howard who had three tackles, a sack, a tackle for a loss, a QB hurry, and one pass defense. Juqua Parker also had three tackles along with a pass defense, and Chris Clemons had easily his best game as an Eagle, posting two solo tackles, two sacks, two QB hurries, a tackle for a loss, a forced fumble, and a recovered fumble from Brian Dawkins off of Romo which he took for a touchdown. Both starting tackles Broderick Bunkley and Mike Patterson had two total tackles (one solo and one assist) and backup tackle Trevor Laws recovered his first fumble of the season, the one that Clemons forced. Trent Cole didn’t get a tackle but was always entering the backfield and had one pass defense. In all, the line piled up three sacks, three QB hurries, and helped to hold Dallas to 87 yards rushing on 19 carries. Of course, the actual runners of Marion Barber and Tashard Choice averaged 4.3 yards a run.
Unit Grade: A (95%)

Linebackers: Jason Witten, who has traditionally killed the Eagles, made seven catches again but was held to only 50 yards, thanks in large part to Akeem Jordan. Jordan, who had five more tackles then the rest of the linebackers put together and four more then Dallas’s leading tackler (James had seven), Jordan had 11 tackles for the game, including two of them for a loss. Both Chris Gocong and Stewart Bradley pitched in two tackles and Bradley had a “pass defense” right in front of Witten which was a dropped interception. Also making an appearance at linebacker was Omar Gaither, who lost his job at WILL to Jordan back before the Ravens game, had a tackle for a loss, and Tracey White had one tackle.
Unit Grade: A- (90%)

Secondary: If Brian Dawkins is not back in midnight green again in 2009, it better be for a DAMN good reason, like he chooses to retire, and not because we can’t re-sign him. In traditional rise up and take charge fashion, the crazy man who leads the fans in our fight song chant after scores from the sideline had five tackles, two forced fumbles, a sack, a tackle for a loss, and a QB hurry. Quintin Mikell had four tackles and two pass defenses, and was in prime position for another interception, much like he was in Landover, but failed to get it. Quintin Demps pitched in two tackles after Dawkins left the game in the third quarter, and Joselio Hanson had one tackle, a tackle for a loss on Roy E. Williams, a pass defense, and a 96-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown, which Dawkins forced on Barber. Both Sean Considine and Asante Samuel had one tackle, and Sheldon Brown intercepted his first pass of the season, and his first in 19 games, and had three additional pass defenses. All toll, Dallas had 233 passing yards, but only 191 of them came from Romo and, later, Brooks Bollinger, as Witten had a 42-yard pass to Terrell Owens. Speaking of, Owens himself was the only consistent receiver, posting six receptions and 103 yards, while “Superstar” Williams had two receptions for four yards.
Unit Grade: A- (90%)

Special Teams: Every looked really good here, for a change. David Akers booted three field goals, and while he did miss one, it was way late when we were up 44-3 anyway, and he drilled a 50-yard field goal after special teams’ forced the fumble prior to the half on Adam “Pacman” Jones. Sav Rocca got back to more charted land as he punted three times (twice in the fourth quarter) and netted 41.3 a kick, thanks in large part to Jones being held to two yards a punt return on two tries. Together, the team of Jones and Miles Austin averaged only 20.4 yards a kick return and Jones fumbled one away prior to the half, with Demps on the hit and Gaither on the recovery. Jackson even got some breathing room on punts, averaging 12 yards a return on two tries, including 21-yard on one. But, I wish the same could be said for Demps on kick returns, as he averaged only 11 yards a return on two.
Coverage Grade: A+ (98%)
Akers Grade: A (95%)
Rocca Grade: A- (90%)

Coaching: First of all, I would like to say again that we committed not ONE penalty in this game, so the staff gets a huge spike in the grading scale for that. Defensively, the team did allow a few big pass plays here and there, but whatever it was that Dallas picked up, the defense turned it upside down with a fumble, or a sack, or an interception, so props for remedying those situations are in order. Special teams was nearly flawless, outside of weak kick return blocking and one meaningless missed field goal by Akers. But to be honest, I am shocked at the offense once again, as it seemed to take a decided 180 from last week when he went pass heavy. The team “ran” the ball 36 times, although only 31 should count, and we attempted 22 passes with the one time McNabb was sacked. And it’s not like only one back did all the work, because Westbrook and Buckhalter split the main handoffs 13-10. Finding a balance like this through the playoffs could see this team going further then anyone could possibly imagine.
Offensive Grade: A+ (98%)
Defensive Grade: A (95%)
Special Teams Grade: A- (90%)

Ripper’s Three Game Balls:
3. Joselio Hanson: Huge open field tackle on a much bigger receiver (Williams) and the longer of the two fumble recoveries for a touchdown
2. Brian Dawkins: Massive game again from the “Old Guy”: appears to be playing again like he did in December of 2006 when he was defensive player of the month.
1. Chris Clemons: In my opinion, played the best game of his career here: two sacks, a forced and recovered fumble, and a touchdown spelled domination.
Honorable Mention: Correll Buckhalter, Sheldon Brown, Darren Howard, Quintin Demps, and Donovan McNabb

Stats and Numbers of Interest:
-Since 2000, the Cowboys are 0-9 in season finales. This even includes the 2007 season, when they finished 13-3.
-Tony Romo is now 5-8 in the month of December, and 0-2 in the month of January.
-The Cowboys first field goal sustained 8:15 off the clock: that drive eclipsed the amount of time they held the ball in the final three quarters (4:06, 8:05, and 7:24).
-The nagging and complaining about the red zone offense seemed to find a resolution, as the team had three red zone attempts and made the end zone every time, and they even succeeded every time from “goal-to-go” yardage. In addition, the team managed to complete 50% of their third down tries (7-of-14).
-With his game today, DeSean Jackson led all rookies this season with 898 receiving yards, and also had 62 receptions as well.
-The difference of 38 points is the biggest margin of victory for either team since 1961, when the Eagles defeated the Cowboys 43-7 (36 points).

Well guys, I don’t know what was more fun…making the playoffs or trumping the Cowboys in order to get in. But, once again, had Houston and Oakland not won, then we wouldn’t be getting in, even with this game that we had. So I thank them two teams, and am looking forward to our wildcard match in the Metrodome next weekend, whenever it might occur.

Eagles Ve Redskins Game 2 Review

The situation was perfect for the Philadelphia Eagles: two AFC teams lent helping hands to gun down two of the Eagles’ main advisories in the wildcard race, as the Baltimore Ravens beat the Dallas Cowboys on Saturday Night 33-24, and then on Sunday afternoon, the San Diego Chargers beat the Buccaneers in Tampa Bay 41-24 to drop two teams closer to Philadelphia. And, going into the late afternoon game which was changed due to flex scheduling, all the Eagles had to do was get revenge on a team who had beaten them at home in week five. After all, the Eagles went to the Meadowlands and beat the Giants, so why not the Redskins in Fed-Ex?

And then, well, the offense turned Pre-Cardinals game again.

In a game that would have pushed the Eagles alone into the 6th spot in the NFC, the offense came out flat and stayed that way, save for one long pass on a field goal drive and the final drive of the game which came a yard short of the end zone with the clock running down from four seconds. The end result was a 10-3 Redskins victory and a season sweep of the Eagles by Washington. And realistically speaking, the Eagles can STILL make it in the playoffs, but the following things need to happen in week 17:
A) Eagles need to avenge a week two loss to the Cowboys with a victory at Lincoln Financial Field on Sunday.
B) In a revelation befitting to the “one team has nothing to play for and the other does” quota, the Oakland Raiders need to beat the Buccaneers in Tampa Bay, which would take them from well endowed in the playoffs at 9-3, to 9-7 on the season.
C) Then, the Eagles record of 9-6-1 would trump the matching 9-7 records possessed by Dallas and Tampa Bay.

But, somehow, I can’t see Oakland winning on the road, and I don’t think that Sundays in January will have any events for the team, unless it’s watching the game at home from the couch.

Quarterbacks: There were not a lot of things out of the realm of reality that could have went wrong in this game for Donovan McNabb, except for throwing an interception (which could have been the case at least three times). If he wasn’t throwing the ball behind receivers, he was throwing them to ones who were covered and getting killed, or receivers would drop passes. For the game, McNabb was 26 of 46 (56.2%) for 230 yards, no touchdowns, no interceptions, and a 70 QB rating. In addition, McNabb kept the ball and rolled out twice for eight yards and, on a sack, fumbled the ball for the game’s only turnover. I understand that the receiver drops were not his fault, but a lot of passes were being forced that either were incomplete or he was pitching them to targets who weren’t even remotely open by an inch.
McNabb Grade: C- (70%)

Running and Fullbacks: Remember when Andy Reid said that if we didn’t run for at least three yards a carry that he would abandon the run? Well, I’d hate to tell him this, but we averaged 3.9 rushing as a team and yet the ball was only taken 16 times and, of course, only 14 count because McNabb kept it twice on a rollout. Brian Westbrook was hobbled a little bit later on but took the ball 12 times for 45 yards and also caught six passes for 71 yards, including a 47-yard reception which led to our one and only field goal. DeSean Jackson had one rush for seven yards and had another which was negated by a holding call on Reggie Brown, and more disappointing was the one carry Correll Buckhalter got for two yards, while he had two receptions for 18 yards. And if it hadn’t been for one reception by Dan Klecko for two yards, I would have never known he was out there, same with Kyle Eckel.
Unit Grade: B (83%)

Wide Receivers: The loss of Kevin Curtis and Hank Baskett to injuries for this game is NO EXCUSE for a PATHETIC eight drops, six of them coming from this unit. Brown, who saw his first action in three weeks due to the injuries to the two mentioned out front, had four receptions for 47 yards, including the one at the goal line which ended the game, and contributed one drop. Both Jason Avant and Jackson had two receptions each, and while Avant had one drop on the game, NO ONE beat Jackson, who was credited with FOUR drops, including one where he beat DeAngelo Hall on the sideline and on the final drive in the end zone. And despite the injuries and receiver shortage, Greg Lewis had only one catch.
Unit Grade: D- (60%)

Tight Ends: Yes, LJ Smith DID lead the team with seven receptions, but he only averaged seven yards a catch, he dropped two passes, and completely missed on his blocking assignment on 3rd and goal at the 3, which forced us to go for the field goal. Brent Celek had one catch for eight yards and in my mind he could have been tagged with a drop but he didn’t get it.
Unit Grade: D- (60%)

Offensive line: The battle between Jon Runyan and Jason Taylor was often a struggle for Runyan, as Taylor had both of their sacks and the forced fumble along with a QB hurry. Tra Thomas held Andre Carter in check for the most part, although he still had two QB hurries. The line was not called for a penalty, but rarely was there a push up the middle for any runner who was lucky enough to get the ball. Still, aside from Taylor, the line did pretty well.
Unit Grade: B (85%)

Defensive line: Havoc was created by the defensive line, mostly by the defensive ends, and Jason Campbell could not step back without fear of getting smashed. Again arguably the best defensive player on the field, Trent Cole posted eight tackles to lead the line, along with a sack, a QB hurry, and a tackle for a loss. Mike Patterson had seven tackles on the game, all against the run and was a vital clog in the middle against Clinton Portis and Laddell Betts. Broderick Bunkley had four tackles along with a pass defense while rookie Trevor Laws had two tackles in the rotation behind Broderick and Mike. Victor Abiamiri had two tackles in the end rotation and also posted a sack, a tackle for a loss, and a forced fumble (which makes no sense because I remember Troy Aikman saying Campbell “Dropped the ball,” and he is NEVER wrong). Darren Howard had one tackle, two QB hurries, a pass defense, and a sack and would have had two if Chris Clemons, who had one tackle himself, wasn’t called for being “off sides.” Juqua Parker chipped in a pass defense as well, and Washington ran for 122 yards on 32 carries, although their 3.8 run per carry is awfully deferred by 14 yards a scramble for Campbell.
Unit Grade: A (95%)

Linebackers: The unit saw plenty of action against the run and in the form of passes out of the backfield and to the tight end. Stewart Bradley led the team with ten total tackles while Akeem Jordan had seven tackles and a tackle for a loss (three yards on Portis). Chris Gocong though was the busiest of the three all-around as he had six tackles, two pass defenses, and a tackle for a loss (two yards on Portis).
Unit Grade: A (93%)

Secondary: On 18 completed passes, Campbell only had 144 yards (127 after sacks) and no one receiver had a dominating effect in the game (Betts and Santana Moss had five receptions and 43 yards for Betts) but regardless the secondary still had two miscues. For one was Quintin Mikell who while he led the unit with six tackles and one QB hurry on a mad blitz, had a “pass defense” which should have been an “interception” in the end zone, leading to Washington’s 3-0 lead. Another was in the 4th quarter at 11:29 on a pass intended for Devin Thomas when Asante Samuel, who had four tackles for the game, dropped a sure handed interception, simply making THAT a pass defense. Brian Dawkins, attending his seventh pro bowl in February, had five tackles and a pass defense, while both Sheldon Brown and Joselio Hanson had three tackles each, and Quintin Demps had one on defense.
Unit Grade: B+ (89%)

Special Teams: Sub par overall, to be nice. David Akers made his one and only field kick, but Sav Rocca only averaged 39.8 a kick, and some sloppy punt coverage saw his net fall to 34.3 a kick on eight of them. Jackson had one punt return for seven yards and Demps had one kick return for 18 yards, while our coverage teams held Rock Cartwright to one kick return for 20 yards but Antwan Randle-El had 13.3 yards a punt return and a long of 36 yards. The X-factor was Ryan Plackemeier, who averaged 40 a punt and 34.1 net but put FIVE inside the 20-yard line.
Akers Grade: A (93%)
Rocca Grade: C+ (78%)
Coverage and Blocking Grade: D+ (68%)

Coaching: There is really nothing I can say about the defense, except for them two dropped interceptions. Special teams was not very good, especially covering punts and coverage for our own when we did get a shot. And, well, why am I not surprised that the old ways came back to life in this one? And by that I mean the totally titular play-calling again. All toll, we had 48 pass attempts including the two sacks, and 16 carries (again, if you count that McNabb scrambling was pass attempts, then 50-14). And I understand that passing might have been the best thing to do with Westbrook hobbled, but come on, we have TWO OTHER RUNNERS, and all the passes that were either missed, dropped, or nearly intercepted and we keep going at it. That is a poor job by the play caller, and I would be willing to bet 50 dollars that this imbalance means Andy is back on the signals again.
Unit Grade - Defense: A (95%)
Unit Grade - Special Teams: C (75%)
Unit Grade - Offense: D (65%)

Ripper’s Three Game Balls:
3. Chris Gocong: Very good game against run and pass.
2. Darren Howard: Should have had two sacks thanks to Clemons.
1. Trent Cole: Monster game again from a guy snubbed of the pro bowl.
Honorable Mention: Ryan Plackemeier (first Non-Eagle) and Victor Abiamiri

Stats and Numbers of Interest:
-Only two times did the Eagles manage to post net yard drives of 20 or more yards, 76 on a drive for the field goal, and 90 yards on the final drive which ended the game at the 1-yard line.
-Despite holding the ball for 33:14, nearly 1/3 of Washington’s time came in the 2nd quarter, when they held it for 11:12, managing only the field goal.
-Despite only scoring three points, the Eagles actually had more offense (275 to 249) but their 3rd down percentage collapsed again: where as over the last three wins they were 33 of 50 (60%) they were 3-of-14 in the game for 21%.

Well, even though every possible scenario exists for the Eagles to still make the playoffs, it becomes less likely if the offense that showed up in Landover comes home and shows up for the Cowboys. All this and NOW we have to hope that Oakland can beat Tampa Bay?

I think I will be going back to that “off-season thread” within the week with a full-on off-season landscape.

Eagles Vs Browns Review

On primetime games, the Philadelphia Eagles have not faired too well, going back to the end of the 2006 season. They lost every game they played in the spotlight in 2007, and had lost every game leading up to Thanksgiving this year when they played the Arizona Cardinals. So, against a team that had a 2-0 record on Monday Night, having defeated the New York Giants and the Buffalo Bills on ESPN, you would think there would be some level of concern. And you also must factor in that the opposing team, the Cleveland Browns, were 4-9 and had nothing to fight for anymore, having been eliminated from playoff contention for at least two weeks.

Oh wait I’m sorry, we were playing the BROWNS…silly me!

Clearly a franchise in turmoil from the ground up, the Browns played like it as the Eagles kept the picture on the playoffs sharpened with a 30-10 victory in the Monday Night Main Event. And you must consider two more things before looking at that final score and thinking that is impressive as is:
A) The Eagles squandered two very good red zone opportunities to score touchdowns and if they had hit, the score would have been 44-10.
B) The Browns only touchdown of the game came with nine minutes left in the game, due to Kevin Kolb being picked off by Brandon McDonald. Combining the scenarios from A and B, the score SHOULD have been 44-3.

As is, the victory makes the Eagles 8-5-1 but does nothing for their playoff positioning, because Atlanta and Dallas both won on Sunday, and with the Falcons beating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, that now makes three teams who possess 9-5 records, a half game ahead of the Eagles. The only redeeming quality about the weekend were losses by the New Orleans Saints and the Washington Redskins eliminated the former team, and the latter might as well be eliminated.

Quarterbacks: As I had figured, we would see more of Donovan McNabb throwing the ball, and while his attempts went up from seven the week before, it was the deadly accuracy and that laser pass he displayed that wrecked the already crappy Browns secondary. In conditions overcast and then turning to rain, McNabb hit 26 of 35 passes (74.3%) for 290 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception. And in his defense, while the pass was a little under where Hank Baskett should have been, an argument for McDonald getting the interception could have been Baskett gave up on it. But it was his only bad pass, which is FAR more then we can say about anyone else who “tried” to throw the ball. Kolb, who appeared for the last ten minutes of the game when we WERE up 30-3, gift wrapped the Browns only touchdown to snap their long 240+ minute touchdown-less drought, and was 0-for-2 with the interception. And in a well placed call but poorly executed throw, DeSean Jackson tried to throw the ball from the Wildcat, but was picked off by Sean Jones.
Donovan Grade: A (93%)
Any other “Thrower’s Grade: F (50%)

Running Backs & Fullbacks: In the Giants win, Brian Westbrook had 31 carries by himself. And in this game, we ran the ball 31 times again, but this time you would be hard pressed to find out that it wasn’t ALL Westbrook this time around. Correll Buckhalter, who missed the last two games due to a knee injury suffered in Baltimore, led the team with 55 yards on six carries, including a 27-yard run which set up the last touchdown we scored off of Ken Dorsey’s second interception. Westbrook had 16 carries for 53 yards and also three receptions for 14 yards, and Kyle Eckel, seeing all of his work running when Kolb joined the game, had nine carries for 28 yards, averaging barely three yards a carry. Dan Klecko had one catch for six yards, and a few impressive truck blocks.
Unit Grade: B+ (88%)

Wide Receivers: Every game there is someone new who creates an ethic mismatch for the defense (after all, pass distribution, which has been our offensive trademark, will do that for you) and this game it was the Jason Avant show. Avant co-led the team with five receptions and posted 101 yards, including a David Blaine approved magic trick where he was locked up with Cornerback Eric Wright and still made the catch. Jackson had five receptions as well for 77 yards, and Kevin Curtis had four receptions for 45 yards, also beating Wright, only this time cleanly in 1-on-1 coverage in the end zone. Hank Baskett had three receptions for 15 yards but 14 on one catch, while we had a Greg Lewis sighting, none the less in the end zone as he caught one there from 10-yards out. 
Unit Grade: A- (90%)

Tight Ends: If it hadn’t been for run blocking, I would have forgotten LJ Smith and Brent Celek were even there. Both of them had two receptions, Celek had the first one of the game for a yard, and Smith caught one for 11 yards.
Unit Grade: B (85%)

Offensive Line: It is understandable that interior lines are going to struggle against Shaun “Big Baby” Rogers, but the fact that Rogers only had three tackles and a pass defense should bring some recognition to the interior three, more so Jamaal Jackson and Nick Cole. The Browns did get two sacks from linebackers Willie McGinest and Kameron Wimbley, but that is as much McNabb’s fault for dancing as it is the ethic mismatch the 3-4 defense presents. And the Eagles’ only penalty of the game was on Tra Thomas for getting a head start on the play. By the way, did you notice that not only did Mike McGlynn get in for I believe was Tra, but they were actually playing Winston Justice at right tackle for Jon Runyan?
Unit Grade: A- (90%)

Defensive Line: Despite only punching out one sack up front, it appeared as if Trent Cole was paying way more visits to Dorsey then he would have liked. Cole led the front line with four tackles, three QB hurries, and the lone sack while Juqua Parker and Broderick Bunkley had two tackles each, the former with one hurry as well. Trevor Laws and Victor Abiamiri each had one tackle each, while Darren Howard and Chris Clemons, without a tackle, were still around the ball. Oh, and here is one for you: the “Great” Jamal Lewis had 32 yards rushing and the team had 57 total.
Unit Grade: B (85%)

Linebackers: While the Browns employ four linebackers (Wimbley, McGinest, Andra Davis, and D’Qwell Jackson) not one of them was as good as Stewart Bradley was. Bradley led the team with six tackles, three of them for a loss including a hit on Lewis where he went right through Ex-Eagle center Hank Fraley and one where he blew up Josh Cribbs on a running play, and an interception with Dorsey treating him like a Browns tight end. Akeem Jordan had five tackles while Chris Gocong had three tackles but is more revered for his penalty which was not when he shoved Jason Wright down as he was leaving the backfield.
Unit Grade: A- (90%)

Secondary: Braylon Edwards was an ethic mismatch for whoever he was up against, and Darnell Dinkins dropped a pass as he was wide open, which could have made the game 7-7 early on. But other then that, pass coverage was pretty much air tight, leaving Dorsey to only 156 yards passing and 139 after two sacks. Sheldon Brown led the secondary with five tackles while Brian Dawkins had four, including taking a page from Stewart’s book and blowing up Cribbs on a wildcat run. Quintin Demps, Quintin Mikell, and Asante Samuel had one tackle each, Demps had a sack late in the game when subbed in, Samuel had an interception for a touchdown, his first as an Eagle, and both Brown and Joselio Hanson dropped sure interceptions. But the big question is, what happened to Lito Sheppard? Did someone forget to tell him there was a game or what?
Unit Rating: A (93%)

Special Teams: Well, seeing no blocked field goals was a good thing, as David Akers hit all three field goals and all three extra points for 12 total, while Sav Rocca was only needed to punt twice, both times in the 4th quarter, putting one inside the 20. Demps had three kick returns and averaged 29 yards a return, including a 39-yard return on the second drive, while fancy man Jackson averaged one yard on three punt returns. Coverage, meanwhile, held the dangerous Cribbs to 21 yards a kick return, and kept him with no punt returns as well.
Coverage grade: A+ (98%)
Akers and returns grade: A- (90%)
Rocca Grade: B- (80%)

Coaching: Plenty of blitzes were brought, and while they only got to Ken twice, it was pretty obvious he was rattled by it. Special teams was very good all around, except for a shank punt by Rocca on the second kick in the final quarter. On offense, we attempted 40 passes (although 37 of them were from McNabb, three from other “good” sources) and we ran the ball 31 times. But I can see why the pass was called a little bit more, because a lot of them were beating the Browns every which way but straight. I am just surprised that Buckhalter actually got six carries in his first game back in three weeks.
Coaching Grade: A (93%)

Ripper’s Three Game Balls:
3. Stewart Bradley: Led defense in tackles and was wide open on his interception.
2. Asante Samuel: First touchdown as an Eagle came after Jackson was picked off in the end zone to negate his mistake.
1. Donovan McNabb: Aerodynamic and laser like passes too much for the Browns: made only one mistake before the half with pick.
Honorable Mentions: Jason Avant and Trent Cole

Numbers and Stats of Interest:
-Two of our most beloved veterans reached game milestones by starting on Monday Night: Dawkins bypassed Harold Carmichael on the all-time list for most games played as an Eagle with 181 games. Also, Runyan played in his 200th career game between Philadelphia and Tennessee, and started his 190th straight game.
-For the third straight game, the Eagles completed over 60% of their third down conversions, hitting 11-of-17 for 64%. Also, the Eagles held the ball for over 35 minutes for the third straight game, posting up 37:08 in T.O.P.
-But, once again, the red zone offense was horrible. The team was 2-of-7 (28%) in the red zone, settling for three field goals and were picked off twice. Worse yet was the goal-to-goal situations, going 1-of-4 for 25%.

The Eagles took care of business by beating down a team that had nothing left to lose, being 4-9 previously. But the next two games are pivotal for the Eagles, and getting a helping hand in only one mere loss by either Atlanta or Tampa Bay will leave the sixth spot wide open with their names on it. If the Eagles can play the game that has won them three straight contests, then getting revenge for early seasons losses to the Redskins and Cowboys will be eminent.

Eagles Vs Cardinals Review

Thanksgiving is a holiday that, with the vast commercial and marketing appeal of Christmas, is usually overlooked once Halloween is over. Dating back to what is now the Massachusetts, Maine, and Vermont bordering states and with the Pilgrims and the Indians sharing feasts together, it has become a tradition of giving thanks and being with your loved ones. It is also a day of football: traditionally, both the Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys always host games on this day. But starting a year ago, an idea was given to the NFL to host another game on the NFL Network at 8:00 PM. This year, the Philadelphia Eagles hosted the Arizona Cardinals on this day. And as a person, I am always grateful and thinking of those less fortunate during this time.

But as an Eagles fan, I am thankful for this BIG win.

The Eagles offense returned in powerful fashion, putting on a clinic against the 10th ranked Cardinals defense with a season high 48 points en route to a 48-20 victory over the visiting red birds. The Eagles got stoic efforts from both Brian Westbrook and Donovan McNabb, a man many fans had started to turn on after the past two games, and the play calling was finally balanced enough to levy power to both the left and the right sides. The defense also broke down potential MVP Kurt Warner with three interceptions, and they did it without pro bowl cornerback Asante Samuel, who was suffering from a neck injury. Joselio Hanson and Lito Sheppard did not miss many beats at all in his absence, and the pressure was non-stop, despite the defense not being able to sack Warner.

Quarterbacks: Knowing that he was under pressure to perform after being benched for the first time in his career, be it high school, college, or pros, McNabb delivered with a timely and well managed offensive attack. And the best part of it was that the offense DID NOT rely solely on him and his arm, unlike the past three weeks. McNabb completed 27 of 39 passes (69.2%) for 260 yards and four touchdowns. McNabb also put his good footwork to use and ran the ball four times for 24 yards, and while the process might not evoke anything from 2002 (the year in which he broke his ankle, came back, and still beat the same team) there is no denying that his mobility has gotten much better this season as it has went along. Kevin Kolb even got into the game later on, to hand the ball off and take two kneel downs under the two minute warning to finish the clock off.
Unit Grade: A (95%)

Running Backs & Fullbacks: Multiple jokes were made up in the booth between radio announcers Merrill Reese and Mike Quick as to what the Eagles did with Westbrook between Sunday and Thursday, if they sent to a spa every day or sent him to a resort (no mention of Tony Romo though). Whatever it was that they did, it worked masterfully, as Westbrook hacked and slashed his way through the line and defenders unlike any one game this year outside the Falcons game, as he picked up 110 yards rushing on 22 carries for a neat five yards an average and two touchdowns. On top of that, Westbrook also caught three passes for 20 yards and two more touchdowns, so overall he had 25 touches for 130 yards and four touchdowns. For the first time since the bye week when we signed him, Kyle Eckel made his Eagles debut and became Correll Buckhalter if you will, as he ran the ball six times for 27 yards, most of which all came in the 4th quarter. What’s strange about the use of Eckel is that he was subbed in at running back despite being a fullback by trade, but another former Patriot was already there in Dan Klecko. Lorenzo Booker, also active for the first time in weeks, ran four times for 21 yards, while DeSean Jackson had one wildcat run for six yards.
Unit Grade: A (95%)

Wide Receivers: Jackson was looked at as a prolific return man, but a very good quality often missed in him is his route running and pass catching skills. This is further evidenced with him being the most consistent receiver on the team week in and week out, logging six receptions for 76 yards and a touchdown. Both Kevin Curtis and the big man Hank Baskett grabbed five receptions, Curtis going for 59 yards and Baskett for 42 yards, while Jason Avant caught four passes for 25 yards and a touchdown as well. Noticeable in production absence was Reggie Brown, who had no catches but was out there for some plays, and noticeable in complete absence was Greg Lewis. Perhaps a lot of this has to do with recent dumb penalties he has committed on special teams over the past three weeks.
Unit Grade: A (95%)

Tight Ends: It’s usually a good day when four receivers get at least four grabs each, that means we are spreading the ball around. But when LJ Smith gets involved, including spinning off the longest offensive play of the game for the Eagles, you KNOW a lot of good things are going on. Smith caught three passes for 32 yards, including one for 25-yards, and Brent Celek had one reception for six yards. Deactivated again was Matt Schobel, a person that I am sure is not on the cheap.
Unit Grade: B+ (88%)

Offensive Line: The line has not looked this good overall since the first game of the year, opening up holes and pass blocking, and it also comes at the expense of a backup center having to be the third right guard on the season. Prior to the half, Max Jean-Gilles was injured and what preliminarily was being called a broken ankle, turned out to be a fractured ankle and torn ligaments in his knee. Not only will this injury sideline MJG for the remainder of the season, but it is an injury he is expected to take up to NINE months to rehab from. For the second half, Nick Cole took over at right guard, and he didn’t miss a beat, knowing the system and played left guard and center for the team. Only one time did the Cardinals get to a running back for a loss, and only one time did they sack McNabb. Only two penalties were levied to the line, a holding call on Jamaal Jackson and false start on Tra Thomas. But 186 yards rushing with a backup center at right guard looks really good to me.
Unit Grade: A+ (98%)

Defensive Line: As stated out front, no one got a sack on Warner, but the line helped to put a lot of pressure on him and force some errant throws in the form of drops and interceptions. Trent Cole, Darren Howard, Juqua Parker, and Mike Patterson all had one tackle each while Howard had a forced fumble the Cardinals recovered, with Cole providing two QB hurries and Howard and Parker one each. The lack of tackles is a direct result of Arizona’s inability to run the ball, or even have a remote interest in such an activity, with a total of ten carries for 25 yards.
Unit Grade: B (85%)

Linebackers: Whether he knows it or not, Stewart Bradley indirectly set the tone for the game. While he only had two tackles, he had the big pass defense that ended up in the hands of Joselio Hanson on the first Cardinals drive of the game. Akeem Jordan had three tackles and a recovered fumble forced from Anquan Boldin from Brian Dawkins, and Chris Gocong had one tackle. And aside from two freak receptions by Leonard Pope and Tim Hightower, coverage was pretty solid.
Unit Grade: B+ (88%)

Secondary: Considering that Warner is a well known gunslinger, being down Samuel was not an ideal situation for the Eagles to be in. But despite that, the unit held the most proficient passer in the NFL to 235 yards, and while he had three touchdowns, he was picked off three times. Quintin Mikell had six tackles to lead the team with an interception while Brian Dawkins had five tackles, a forced fumble to Jordan, and a beautiful center field interception on 4th and one for Arizona. Hanson, the man of the hour on the time clock, had four tackles and the first interception of the game, while Sheldon brown had three tackles, as did Lito Sheppard. Quintin Demps, who also saw extended time on defense, had one tackle there and a couple of spots where he was matched up against both Boldin and Steve Breaston with measurable success against the two.
Unit Grade: A- (90%)

Special Teams: Except for Jackson’s miscalculated error on a punt return, the entire special teams unit was impressive. David Akers kept busy with two field goals kicked and six extra points made for 12 points while Sav Rocca got back to strong punting form, only needed three times averaging 45.7 a kick and 42.7 net with two of them inside the 20. Demps, the only saving grace a week ago from a shutout, had 24 yards an average on four kick returns and Jackson averaged three yards a punt return, mainly due to former Eagle punter Dirk Johnson not being able to tell the side of his foot from his shoe front. Coverage teams were sharp too, holding dynamic return men JJ Arrington to 21 yards a kick return on EIGHT returns, and Breaston to four yards on two punt returns.
Unit Grade - All Facets: A+ (98%)

Coaching: I don’t know how long it has been since I can say this, but I have NO complaints with ANY coach on the team! I thought the defensive improvements in the wake of Samuel’s injury were stellar, and special teams played very well. And on top of that, the balanced play calling from the very first drive was not something I expected. Now Andy, Marty…is it TOO much to ask to consistently do this?
Unit Grade - All Facets: A (95%)

Ripper’s Three Game Balls:
3. Brian Dawkins: Weapon X played brilliantly again with his two turnovers and huge hammering hits on Cardinal receivers.
2. Donovan McNabb: Brilliant all around game from the man many fans were quick to crucify for the team’s failures.
1. Brian Westbrook: I’ve said it before and will say it again, when you get the man the ball, at 75% he is better then many backs are at 100%.
Honorable Mention: Joselio Hanson and Quintin Mikell

Numbers and Stats of Interest:
-With his interception in the 4th quarter, Dawkins tied the franchise record for most interceptions in a career with the Eagles. Along with Bill Bradley and Eric Allen, Dawkins now had 34 interceptions all time.
-The Eagles came into the game with an all-time record of 4-0 on Thanksgiving: the win tonight gives them a 5-0 mark all time now.
-Brian Westbrook, with four touchdowns on the game, was one away from breaking the record for most touchdowns in a game by an Eagle.
-David Akers eclipsed the 1,000 career point mark with his second field goal in the fourth quarter of the win. He now has 1,004 career points.
-The Eagles made better then usual in the red zone, entering seven times and walking away with six touchdowns. In addition, from the goal-to-go situations, they were a perfect five of five. Also, third downs were better executed, as the team went 10/14, good for 71%.
-The failure to pick up a sack in the game marks only the second time all year that the Eagles were held without a sack in a game.

Time will tell just how far this win will go to helping our own personal playoff picture. Now with ten days off until the next game at the Meadowlands, some players on the mend can take time to heal up and return for our second match of the year with the Giants on December 7th.

Eagles VS Ravens Review

The possibility of losing, with teams ahead of them in the wildcard race and in tow beside or behind them, was one that the Philadelphia Eagles could not possibly stand to face. Heading into enemy territory to face the Baltimore Ravens, a team with an inside track on the wildcard picture in the AFC, the Eagles needed to beat the team that their former special team’s coach and secondary coach for a year had went to fill a head coaching vacancy. And like with Steve Spaguolo, who went to the New York Giants as a defensive coordinator, John Harabaugh has a one up knowing what to expect from the ever predictable Andy Reid.

It comes as no surprise, then, the end result of it all.

In one of the most lopsided and absurd losses this side of 2005, the Eagles managed to lose the football game in every possible facet. The Ravens defense scored more points then the Eagles offense did (7-0) the Eagles suffered their first blocked punt of the year, and again the defense was put on the spot, allowing three touchdowns on the game, two of them well earned and another not so much. The end result was a score of 36-7 Ravens and a further burial in the basement of the NFC East with every rival of ours winning on Sunday. And while the Eagles mathematically remain alive for the division title, the Giants at 10-1 would have to drop all five and we would have to win all five and finish up 10-5-1. Worse yet, ahead of the Eagles in the 5th spot is Tampa Bay at 8-3, Atlanta, Dallas, and Washington are all 7-4 in the 6th spot, Minnesota is now 6-5 with Chicago, and tomorrow night, Green Bay and New Orleans, both 5-5 teams, will play each other.

Quarterbacks: For the first time in his career, Donovan McNabb was pulled from the game and benched after the half. Yes, you heard me right, the coaching half of the “10-Year Odd Couple” pairing put the quarterback half on the bench for Kevin Kolb in the final 30 minutes. But a number to know here is 12.5, and that is the average of the two and their QB rating COMBINED. Kolb had a slight lead in the rating department for his half, completing 10 of 23 passes (43.5%) for 73 yards and two interceptions, including one in the end zone which Ravens safety Ed Reed took 108-yards for a touchdown, for a 15.3 QB rating. McNabb completed eight of 18 passes (44.4%) for 59 yards with two interceptions, a fumble, and was sacked twice with a 13.2 QB rating. Neither quarterback was impressive, and if the season is shot as I have it figured as, the question is who starts from here out then?
Unit Grade: F (50%)

Running & Full Backs: Well, the good news is that the team averaged over four yards a carry as a team running the ball, but the bad news is that we STILL only ran the ball 21 times (as opposed to 43 pass attempts). But I guess with the way Brian Westbrook was running the ball when he was in there, I can understand why. Westbrook, having claimed to be banged up yet again and questionable, ran the ball 14 times for 39 yards and caught two passes for minus five yards, totaling only 16 touches for 34 yards. It might just be my opinion, but either the injuries are taking a toll because he is shy about hitting the holes, or he is really missing Shawn Andrews THAT much. But with Correll Buckhalter averaging eight yards a carry (two for 16 yards on the game) it leads me to believe it is the former for Westbrook. Kolb ran the ball three times for 12 yards, DeSean Jackson had one direct snap for 12 yards, and McNabb had one roll out for seven yards. And everyone’s favorite tackle-turned-fullback Dan Klecko had two catches for 18 yards, which I am sure is a career high for offensive output for him. I am still strongly of the belief that if the injuries are bothering Westbrook so much, then on such a short week, he should sit out the Thursday game, we activate Lorenzo Booker, and him and Buckhalter do the running (when we do it of course).
Unit Grade: B- (80%)

Wide-outs & Tight Ends: Both of these are back together after the lack of production on the game. Jackson led the unit with five receptions for 47 yards and was also the fault of McNabb’s first interception while Brent Celek pulled in three catches for 26 yards, most of them from Kolb. Both Jason Avant and Kevin Curtis had two receptions each while our two tallest targets, LJ Smith and Hank Baskett, had one reception each. To me, the interception by McNabb to Fabian Washington is the only one a receiver can be blamed for (Jackson).
Unit Grade: C- (70%)

Offensive Line: Truly a mixed bag for this unit today. While they helped to average over four yards a carry rushing, they also allowed five tackles for a loss on backs as well, gave up five QB hurries and two sacks, 1.5 of them to linebacker Jarrett Johnson and a half to Trevor Pryce. And in rare fashion, every offensive lineman was tagged with at least ONE penalty EXCEPT for Todd Herremans: Jon Runyan was called for a hold (extremely questionable) and unnecessary roughness, Jamaal Jackson and Tra Thomas for holding, and Max Jean-Gilles for a false start. Like with the quarterbacks and offense as a whole, not very disciplined.
Unit Grade: C+ (78%)

Defensive Line: You would be hard pressed to find another unit on this team that, no matter what the situation is or what the score is, will continue to play regardless and play well. Trent Cole led the unit and finished second on the team with eight tackles with a sack worth 13 yards, a tackle for a loss, and a QB hurry while his bookend in crime Juqua Parker had six tackles and one for a loss. Mike Patterson had five tackles and one for a loss while Darren Howard provided three tackles and two QB hurries off the bench while Broderick Bunkley, who got injured and returned, had three tackles and so did Victor Abiamiri, alongside a sack, a QB hurry, and a tackle for a loss. Trevor Laws, our top pick in the 2008 draft, saw his most extensive action this year with Bunkley down, logging one tackle for a loss.
Unit Grade: A (93%)

Linebackers: In extremely odd fashion, Reid decided to bench Omar Gaither and start Akeem Jordan at WILL, citing the speed of Ray Rice and Willis McGahee for such a change. And from a statistical stand point it looked alright, but it did nothing from a playmaking stand point, as Jordan led the team with nine tackles and also had two tackles for a loss. Chris Gocong posted six tackles, instrumental vs. the run as well while Stewart Bradley had three tackles and a pass defense. And as far as I could tell, even with Jordan in at D and Tracy White and Tank Daniels getting numbers on teams, Gaither was nowhere to be found period.
Unit Grade: B- (80%)

Secondary: The Ravens managed 110 yards on the ground on 40 carries, limiting their pass attempts to only 26 (I know, the polar opposite of the Eagles) so not a lot was made of back here, except for one freak touchdown pass. Sheldon Brown led the unit with seven tackles and had a pass defense while Quintin Mikell had six tackles, a sack, a tackle for a loss, and a forced fumble which, by the time it was all said and done, cost the Ravens 23 yards since they picked it back up. Brian Dawkins had two tackles while Joselio Hanson had one tackle, a QB hurry, and a pass defense. Asante Samuel, despite getting injured twice and coming back once, had one tackle and did pretty well on Derrick Mason, but Lito Sheppard got burned alive by Mark Clayton on a 53-yard touchdown pass, and Sean Considine was had by Daniel Wilcox on a 1-yard touchdown pass.
Unit Grade - All not named Lito or Sean: B (85%)
Unit Grade - Lito and Sean: C- (70%)

Special Teams: Talk about a terrible time to have your first blocked punt of the season, how about being down 13-7 at your own four yard line? That’s what happened to Sav Rocca thanks to blown coverage by Gocong and Considine, he averaged 48.5 a boot (41.6 with the block counted) with two inside the twenty and one touchback, while David Akers only got to hit an extra point. In somewhat of a joyous and celebratory occasion, a very rare kick return touchdown was posted by Quintin Demps, as he kept us from being shutout in this game with a 100-yard return just short of the half, and averaged 44.3 yards a return on four, and the team averaged 29.3 with short returns by Avant, Klecko, and Abiamiri. Jackson averaged six yards a punt return, and the Eagles held Yamon Figurs to 7.5 yards a punt return and the Ravens to 19.5 yards a kick return as a whole unit. And after seeing yet another dumb penalty by Greg Lewis (like one previous when he ran over a return man against the Giants) I question his existence in life, let alone on this team.
Unit Grade - Kick return and coverage: A+ (100%)
Unit Grade - Punt return and coverage: B (85%)
Unit Grade - Rocca: C (75%)
Unit Grade - Punt blocking: D (65%)

Coaching: Again another game where the defense is left out to dry…why am I not surprised by this revelation? The punt block was bad, and punting overall wasn’t that stellar (again) but coverage for kicks was very good and our kick returns were excellent for a change. But about Andy Reid and Marty Moron, I think my accompanying video review of the game in the smack shake part of the site best speaks to the way I feel about them two and Andy’s bone headed calls, including benching Donovan in a must have game and not allowing him to find his bearing once again. I said a week ago that I was plain out pissed with him, and while that might still be the case, I am ready to mark him off as perhaps the most senile and predictable point in his career and is obviously becoming a joke of a coach. And considering we’ve seen the likes of Rich Kotite and Ray Rhodes lately, that is saying a hell of a lot. Furthermore, Marty Moron is no Brad Childress, and is only proving that with his lack of input and inept attitude.
Unit Grade - Defense: A (93%)
Unit Grade - Special Teams: B (85%)
Unit Grade - Offense: F (55%)
Unit Grade - Head Coach: F- (35%)

Ripper’s Three Game Balls:
3. Trent Cole: A sack and seven tackles on the game: non-stop motor and effort.
2. Quintin Mikell: Six tackles and the forced fumble on a sack.
1. Quintin Demps: Saved us from being shutout with his 100-yard kick return for a touchdown, and provided a wallop of a tackle on a Yamon punt return.

Numbers and Stats of Interest:
-Heading into the game, the Ravens were one of two teams the Eagles were undefeated against, going 1-0-1 against them: obviously now we are 1-1-1.
-In the last two games, McNabb has incurred seven turnovers (five interceptions and two fumbles) the most over any two game stretch in his career.
-The 30 minutes Kolb was in for surpassed his previous outings combined.
-Again, on third down the team only managed to go 3-of-13 for 23% while missing their one and only red zone chance due to a Kolb interception.

Well, many have been telling us that this loss to Baltimore broke our playoff hopes in half, and while we still are mathematically alive, I cannot see the team digging out of this hole, not with three division games left and an 0-3 mark in it this year. Another loss, and I will officially be looking to the off-season.

Eagles Vs Bengals Review

One thing I have learned in the NFL season of 2008 is that nothing can be taken for granted, and nothing is ever perceived as certain. Reeling from a loss to the defending Superbowl Champion New York Giants and knowing that a pair of six win opponents await followed again by the Giants, many fans felt as if the Bengals game was a pushover. Many were looking forward to playing the Ravens and Cardinals instead of playing the team that lie right in front of them instead.

Therein was the biggest problem.

First, is was unbelievable that the Bengals would keep the game close with the Eagles. Then, it was unbelievable that the Bengals actually held a ten point lead in the third quarter. Then it was unbelievable that the game was actually going into overtime. Then finally, it was unbelievable that the two teams would actually not be able to decide a winner VIA overtime, as the game ended up tied 13-13. The tie effectively leaves the Eagles in the basement, as the Dallas Cowboys defeat of the Washington Redskins 14-10 pulls the teams into a 6-4 quandary, and the Giants smashing of our next opponent on Sunday, 30-10, moves them to 9-1.

Quarterbacks: Chopped into wood and thrown into the fire by his own head coach, Donovan McNabb looked like his usual unspectacular self to start the game, but unlike weeks past, he never seemed to find a consistent, white hot groove at any time. McNabb attempted a whopping 58 passes (and 60 when you include the two times he was sacked) and completed only 28 of them (48.3%) for 339 yards with one touchdown, three interceptions, a lost fumble, and a mere 50.9 QB rating. Now I know that McNabb is smart enough to realize that he can call an audible when he sees something he doesn’t like, but why would they keep giving him the pass when he was hit and lost a fumble and three interceptions on top of that?
McNabb Grade: C (75%)

Running and Full Backs: All I have to say about the lack of respect to your running game when the Bengals had the 22nd best run defense is this: 18 carries. That is all the more that we ran the ball all game, even with 33:46 of total possession INCLUDING overtime. Brian Westbrook had 14 carries for 60 yards and had three receptions for 11 yards, totaling 17 touches for 71 yards and no touchdowns. Correll Buckhalter had one carry for three yards but his lone reception was the 2nd longest play of the game at 44 yards, while McNabb had two yards rushing on a 4th and inches situation in the final quarter of regulation. In his hand off duty, DeSean Jackson had two carries for three yards and Dan Klecko had a catch for eight yards.
Unit Grade: B (85% due in large part to getting screwed in play calling)

Wide Receivers: It is hard to believe that McNabb missed 30 passes during the game, but some timely and costly mistakes came from this unit. Kevin Curtis led the team with seven catches for 64 yards but also tipped an interception and dropped two passes, while Jackson had four catches for 66 yards. Jason Avant had three catches for 32 yards while Hank “My new wife is a former girlfriend of Hugh Heffner’s” Baskett caught two passes for 74 yards, one of which went 57 yards and set up our only touchdown, while Reggie Brown caught the first completion of the game for a HUGE gain of zero yards! Something I find post-humorous is that Greg Lewis was listed as being subbed in, but he appeared nowhere to my knowledge.
Unit Grade: C (75%)

Tight End: Coming complete with his own cheering section (after all, he did go to school at Cincinnati) Brent Celek was ready to take on the Bengals and his own teammate LJ Smith. Both of them caught three passes while Celek had 25 yards to Smith’s 15, but LJ had the team’s only touchdown. That Smith actually got open in the end zone without finding a pitfall again is a minor victory in its own right.
Unit Grade: B- (80%)

Offensive line: When you do simple math, you can look at the fact that McNabb was sacked once for every 30 times he dropped back, which is pretty solid, but the numbers are deceiving. Despite only allowing two sacks, the line still allowed for three different linemen to knock down passes at the line of scrimmage and five quarterback hurries and four tackles for a loss on runs. However, the Eagles DID get Westbrook up at 4.3 yards a run and 3.8 as a team, and if they would have been released on the run, I think it would have been much better. But as it is, it was just another day for the big men up front with yet again NO penalties called on them, even though the consummate whole of the team got flagged eight times.
Unit Grade: B (85%)

Defensive Line: Another Cincinnati alumni came back to haunt the pro team in the city something terrible. Trent Cole was an absolute destructive force, pacing the team for one quarter of their eight sacks with two of them along with two hurries and two tackles for a loss combined with ten total tackles. Both Broderick Bunkley and Juqua Parker had six tackles each with Bunkley posting a sack, a tackle for a loss, a QB hurry, and a pass defense as well. Darren Howard again tightened his lead on the team’s sack race with two more, along with five tackles, three tackles for a loss, two QB hurries, and the games only turnover on a recovered fumble. Chris Clemons also chipped in a sack with a tackle for a loss and a QB hurry while Victor Abiamiri and Mike Patterson had two assisted tackles with Vic logging a pass defense, and Trevor Laws had one assist tackle. The guys up front made life for Ryan Fitzpatrick a living hell and were a BIG reason as to why the Bengals averaged 1.9 yards rushing as a team (30 carries for 56 yards).
Unit Grade: A+ (98%)

Linebackers: Fooled by a few miscues on pitches to halfbacks, the linebackers still did a very good job against the run and looked strong once again. Stewart Bradley, one week removed from a career high 14 tackles against the Giants, had 12 more against the Bengals (10 solo and 2 assist) with two tackles for a loss and a forced fumble while Omar Gaither came in with six tackles. Chris Gocong checked in with three tackles as well, while backups Akeem Jordan and Tracy White each had a tackle on special teams.
Unit Grade: A- (90%)

Secondary: It appeared that, no matter where he lined up, that TJ Houshmandzadeh proved an ethic mismatch for any corner, totaling 41% of his team’s receptions (12 catches) and 57% of their yards (149 yards) and their only touchdown of the game. Joselio Hanson had the most active game of anyone back there, whether for better or worse, as he led with six tackles, recorded a sack with a tackle for a loss and a QB hurry but was also the one who was lined up against “Who’s Your Daddy” on his touchdown catch. Sheldon Brown had five total tackles with two QB hurries, one of which led to a roughing the passer call, a tackle for a loss, and a sack while Quintin Mikell had five tackles (all assisted) with a pass defense. Asante Samuel had four solo tackles and a whopping FOUR pass defenses, two of which easily should have been picked off while both Brian Dawkins and Lito Sheppard have four tackles apiece, Dawkins with a tackle for a loss and Sheppard with a forced fumble. Allowing a mediocre quarterback like Fitzpatrick to pass for 261 yards is not good, but then again, TJ was the bigger detriment, considering Chris Henry had like 700 drops and Chad “Ocho Stinko” Johnson was quiet.
Unit Grade: B- (82%)

Special Teams: What a bad time for Sav Rocca to regress and show us his 2007 inconsistent side again. Rocca punted ten times but only averaged 36.2 yards a punt prior to his net, which was a woeful 31.1 yards a kick with none pinned in and one kick in the end zone. David Akers was solid again, hitting his two field goal tries and one extra point attempt, but once again, punt return blocking and kick blocking both were terrible. On four returns, Quintin Demps averaged a meager 17.5 yards a return, and Jackson averaged 7.2 yards on six punt returns, while coverage allowed Glenn Holt 24.3 yards a kick return and 7.8 yards a punt return between Antonio Chatman and TJ. Sean Considine led with four tackles, two assist and two solo.
Akers Grade: A- (90%)
Coverage Grade: B- (80%)
Returns Grade: C (75%)
Rocca Grade: C- (70%)

Coaching: First off start with some good: the defense, even though they gave up 261 yards passing but netted 226 after the eight sacks for 35 yards, giving up a total net of 282 yards despite being out there 41:44 of total game time is quite impressive. That said, the offense and special teams take a heavy hit in this game for the tie. And as you are about to see in my video about Andy and the offense exclusive to the “Smack Shack” forum of the site, I do not like the way things are going. Just when we thought that the days of 60-40 or even 65-35 pass-run ratios were gone, the ugliness only begins today: out of 78 total offensive plays, the team threw the ball 60 times, including sacks and ran the ball only 18 times! So, to save you the dividing as I have already done it, that is 77-23 pass-run. And this is remembering that Cincinnati had the 22nd WORST RUN DEFENSE in the NFL, NOT the pass defense. This is totally asinine and absurd and there is NO EXCUSE at all for this type of offensive play calling. This is something I would expect if Bozo and Doink the Clown family were calling the damn offense but…oh wait, you know what? That is pretty close to the case anyway, isn’t it?
Defense Grade: A (95%)
Special Teams Grade: C+ (78%)
Offense and Coach Grade: F- (40%)

Ripper’s Three Game Balls:
3. Stewart Bradley: Becoming the pulse and leader of the defense.
2. Darren Howard: Continues to impress off of the bench as #3 defensive end.
1. Trent Cole: Raised some almighty Cain returning to the city where he played college ball at.
Honorable Mention: Broderick Bunkley, Sheldon Brown, Asante Samuel, and Joselio Hanson (Heck, how about the whole D?)

Numbers and Stats of Interest:
-The last tie in NFL history came in 2002, the Eagles last tie came oddly enough 11 years ago to the day of the Bengals game. Even more odd was that we tied the team we are due to face next Sunday, the Ravens, 10-10.
-Due to a valiant goal line stand thanks to Donovan’s fumble, the defense stopped the Bengals lone red zone attempt, while the Eagles were 1-of-2 with a touchdown from 4-yards but one field goal. But once again, the 3rd down percentage was horrid, finishing up 3-of-18 for 17%.
-The Eagles were penalized eight times for 60 yards, the most amount of yellow flags thrown against the Eagles in one game this season.

I got one more thing to say before I sign off: as stated, McNabb missed 30 passes for the game, and 14 of these misses were pass defenses by the Bengals. And despite throwing three interceptions, against a more competent team like, say, the Ravens, we would be burned alive on the mistakes.

So then, have I told you how much Andy and Marty have pissed me?

Eagles Vs Giants Review

RipperEagle Retrospectives:
Week 10: Giants @ Eagles
By RipperEagle (RE96)

As expected when it comes down to many of the battles between the Eagles and their NFC East brethren, the games are always going to be exciting, close in score, and feature things you aren’t going to find in other matches out there. And Sunday Night’s game with the visiting Giants was no exception to this rule: guys who weigh 264 pounds flying through the air, a defensive tackle picking off a pass and rumbling with it, and two silly challenges in a row by one coach and a challenge on another call which was unjust by the other. But the bottom line is that, right in front of the Eagles was their chance at their very first division win, and the opportunity to knock off the defending Superbowl Champions.

But like with our other primetime games, this didn’t happen.

The score went one way from the next: the Eagles had a 7-0 lead right away, then the Giants led 17-7, then the Eagles led 24-20, then the Giants led 36-24. But when all was said and done, the Giants defeated the Eagles 36-31 thanks to some silly play calling on 3rd and 3 and 4th and 1 to end part of the game on.

Quarterbacks: As has been the case with the past two weeks, Donovan McNabb got off to yet another slow, ice cold start. But unlike other units and players, he once again found his bearings to a degree once more this time as he hit 17 of 36 passes (47%) for 194 yards, three touchdowns, and an interception. And he also led the team with 35 yards rushing on three carries. Thanks to the offensive line, McNabb had plenty of time to throw the ball, but a lot of the misses came as a result of forcing to someone who wasn’t open, or again, drops.
McNabb Grade: B- (80%)

Running & Full Backs: What a sad showing from the actual runners. The reason I say actual runners is because a receiver (DeSean Jackson) had more rushing yards then the backup runner and also two less then the starter. Brian Westbrook carried the ball 13 times for 26 yards and caught three passes for 33 yards, clearly a non-factor. Correll Buckhalter had two carries for 21 yards, but 20 of them were on one run. Dan Klecko, more then not, missed a good amount of lead blocks, and I got to wonder, where DID Kyle Eckel go, Antarctica?
Unit Grade: C (75%)

Receivers: Jackson was the team’s best receiver and third best runner: he had four receptions for 61 yards and ran the ball three times for 24 yards and a 10-yard touchdown run from the wildcat formation. Two receivers tallied 25 yard receiving and a touchdown with Kevin Curtis getting there on three catches, and Jason Avant on two receptions while both Hank Baskett and Reggie Brown had a seven yard reception, Hank using his size in the end zone to post the third touchdown.
Jackson Grade: A (95%)
Unit Grade: B- (80%)

Tight Ends: What a difference a week makes: last week, Brent Celek was a superstar, and this week, he had one notable lazy drop but nothing else. Instead, it was the returning LJ Smith who finished second with three receptions for 36 yards. Obviously, the Giants defense is much better then the Seahawks defense, so now the question is, was that a fluke or not?
Unit Grade: C (75%)

Offensive Line: No one can blame the big guys for not doing their job. Up against the second best defense in terms of sacks and the best in the NFC, they allowed the Giants NO sacks and very few hurries or pressures either. And while the running game wasn’t too proficient with Brian or Correll running, only one time did someone get hit in the backfield for a 1-yard loss. Jon Runyan provided the block of the game on Jackson’s 10-yard touchdown run. And why Nick Cole started instead of Todd Herremans, who later came back, is a mystery to me.
Unit Grade: A+ (98%)

Defensive line: Save a sack, this unit was abysmal. They were easily engulfed by the Giants offensive line on the run, and more then not, were simply manhandled and pushed around in pass rushing. Broderick Bunkley had seven tackles even though he needed an IV for cramping later on while Trent Cole had six tackles and the game’s only sack. Juqua Parker posted four tackles, Trevor Laws had two tackles in extensive action for the missing Bunkley, and both Darren Howard and Mike Patterson had a tackle, although Patterson ALSO had his first interception and recovered a fumble by Brandon Jacobs. True, the defense got four tackles for a loss of 12 yards on the Giants, but 44 carries, 217 yards, and 4.9 yards a run loom larger then that minuscule stat.
Patterson Grade: A (93%)
Bunkley and Cole Grade: B (85%)
Unit Grade: C- (70%)

Linebackers: Often thrown into the fray when (insert name of Giants running back here) got past the first line of the defense, the linebackers had their hands full, some more so then others. Stewart Bradley posted a total of 14 tackles and also a facemask penalty while Chris Gocong had six tackles, one of which was a wicked shot on Jacobs which forced a fumble, and Omar Gaither had three tackles and a forced fumble which went out of bounds. Somehow, Akeem Jordon got in for a while at linebacker at someone’s expense and had two tackles as well.
Unit Grade: B (85%)

Secondary: Not a lot of activity here, although when you can run the ball like the Giants did, I guess I can understand why. Brian Dawkins had seven tackles and a forced fumble on the game while Joselio Hanson had four tackles and Asante Samuel had three. Quintin Mikell had three tackles but was best remembered for Kevin Boss hurdling right over him while Sean Considine had one tackle and Sheldon Brown had an assisted tackle. Not really tested that much except in the red zone with touchdowns by Boss and Burress.
Unit Grade: B- (80%)

Special Teams: David Akers and Sav Rocca both came to work again, Akers hitting four extra points and his only field goal try while Rocca punted five times with two inside the 20, a rare touchback, and a net average of 32.6, but only because of two Dominick Hixon punt returns for 22 yards an average. Jackson never got to return any of the three Giants punts, but Quintin Demps averaged 27 yards a kick return on eight of them and fumbled for the first time this season.
Akers and Rocca Grade: A- (90%)
Unit Grade: B- (80%)

Coaching: We have not been known as a running team, so I want to know who the genius was who thought that calling runs on 3rd and 3 and then 4th and 1 to a guy who was getting shut down was a good idea. Furthermore, Jimmy better chew out that pathetic run defense before we head to Cincinnati, and Rory needs to get the punt cover unit back to the tackling basics.
Unit Grade: C- (70%)

Ripper’s Three Game Balls:
3. Mike Patterson: First career INT and recovered fumble
2. DeSean Jackson: 85 yards of offense and a rushing touchdown
1. Offensive Line: Great job against the 3rd best defense in the NFL.

Numbers and Stats of Interest:
-Did you know that our record in primetime games, going back to 2007, is NOW at 0-7, and that includes an 0-5 mark against the NFC East?
-This is the second time this season we gave up more then 200 yards rushing in a game, the first time was again at home to Washington in week five.
-The Eagles held the ball for only 20:10 in the game.

I apologize for not having too much to say guys, but this loss really hurt. In my opinion, this is the WORST loss of the season just a bit ahead of losing to the Chicago Bears in week four.

Eagles Vs Seahawks Review

We all know the recent history of the Philadelphia Eagles and the Seattle Seahawks, and it is something that has been a bit of a nuisance for the Eagles and their backup quarterbacks. The reason for that, of course, was in the last meeting in week 13 of the 2007 season when AJ Feeley was filling in for an injured Donovan McNabb, and Feeley got confused and figured Lofa Tatupu was on his team, pitching him three of his four interceptions in a 28-24 loss at home. In 2005 it was even worse then that, as the now dismissed Mike McMahon and Koy Toy Detmer combined to bury us in a 42-0 blasting in 2005 when we were supposed to be honoring the late great Reggie White on a Monday Night game, again in December. And once again, for both the Eagles players and fans alike, the aura had to be over their heads that in recent years, the Seahawks and Mike Holmgren had their number.

The only difference was this time there were no backups to help them out.

Facing the Seahawks for the first time in over four years, Donovan McNabb showed Seattle what a difference it could make with the backups out and the master of the offense in the game, as his numbers helped propel an offense which scored two touchdowns in the second quarter. After this point David Akers came out for a virtual field goal practice session, as the Eagles made one mistake on the first defensive play of the game but struck back with 26 unanswered points to defeat the Seahawks 26-7 at Qwest Field in Seattle to improve to 5-3 on the year and continue on a 3-game winning streak. But the win only further complicates the NFC East picture, however, the Eagles moved into 3rd place going into week ten because at the same time the Eagles were beating the Seahawks, the New York Giants defeated the Dallas Cowboys 35-14. The Cowboys loss leaves them back a half a game in last place going into their bye week, and the Eagles one whole game behind the Washington Redskins, set to do battle with the Pittsburgh Steelers on Monday Night Football prior to their week ten bye with Dallas, and two whole games behind the Giants, who they host next Sunday Night on NBC.

Quarterbacks: When McNabb is on, he is really on. As of late, McNabb’s numbers have been stellar and his ability to fight off pressure and still get his passes to his receivers reminds many of 2004 all over again, a certain year where a certain team made it to the Superbowl. Yeah, in MY OPINION anyway, he is looking that good once again. For the game McNabb was 28 of 43 (65%) for 349 yards with two touchdowns and an interception which proved meaningless and a 96 QB rating. His accuracy is especially encouraging, since he started the game going 0-for-6. He also had two carries for six yards including a 1-yard quarterback sneak to convert a 4th and inches situation from the Hawks 35 which led to our second touchdown. If we plan on beating the Giants and pushing our way into the playoffs or even the division title, it is pivotal we keep #5 standing and give him time so he can cut down the opposing secondary. But that’s pretty much elementary, right?
McNabb Grade: A+ (98)

Running Backs: For two straight weeks, we have done what Brian Westbrook wants done. He has stated on many occasions that he would like to run the ball at least 20 times a game, and today he got 20 carries, it is just that he only got 61 yards to go with it. But it seemed as if wherever he went, he couldn’t seem to make anything work at all, in fact no one really could, which is a shame because the week before we had 192 yards against Atlanta. Westbrook also had a three way tie with six receptions for 35 yards, totaling 26 touches for 96 yards. Correll Buckhalter had two carries for two yards and a reception for six yards and Lorenzo Booker had three carries for zero yards, and DeSean Jackson had one receiver end around for three yards. All toll, the team ran the ball 28 times for 72 yards at 2.6 a carry, and the longest run went eight yards, which of course was Brian’s.
Unit Grade: B- (80%)

Wide Receivers: Separate from tight ends this week because of actual tight end production we will start here first. A huge welcome back to Kevin Curtis, who returned to the field a week ago but returned to playmaking this week as he caught six receptions for 83 yards and one was yard shy of picking up his first touchdown of the season. Both Greg Lewis and Jackson caught two passes apiece while Reggie Brown’s lone reception went 22 yards for a touchdown while the lone reception by Hank Baskett was accused by Seattle of not being a catch, a dispute which would soon cost them a timeout and the challenge. As though it seems a different receiver is featured every week, this time Curtis was in the spotlight.
Unit Grade: B+ (88%)

Tight Ends: I figured with LJ Smith out and the fact that the tight end has been invisible anyway that Brent Celek would just be an “after thought starter.” But that was FAR from the case as Celek turned in huge numbers in the league of Jason Witten and Antonio Gates and far and away from anything we are used to. Celek caught six passes for 131 yards and 21.8 yards a catch. What is even better is the fact that Matt Schobel, who hadn’t been active for weeks, was put in as the number two tight end and had two receptions for ten yards. Maybe it is rash, but I really think that, even when Smith comes back, Celek would stay the starter.
Unit Grade: A+ (99%)

Offensive line: First thing is first, and that is to address our newest pass catching threat, you know him previously as Todd Herremans, but NOW he has become “Hands Herremans”! An eligible tackle from 1st and goal on the Hawks one yard line, he caught his first ever touchdown catch to put us up for good at 14-7. That said though, the actual play of the offensive line was average in the running game but pretty good in the pass game, although McNabb was hurried seven times, all by defensive linemen for Seattle and sacked once, although THAT was more his fault due to his dancing at the Hawks 4-yard line. Early on, the line was not able to move the front line of the Seahawks minus Patrick Kearney who was out with a shoulder injury, but by the time they could, the running game was pretty well grounded anyway. Not getting tagged with a penalty was a plus though, and the pass protection was solid for the most part, but they HAVE to start using more of a push between a 360-LB Max Jean-Giles and a 350-LB Jamaal Jackson for the running backs. I know, Shawn is hurt, but come on, Max is even BIGGER then he is!
“Hands Herremans” Grade: A+ (100%)
Pass Blocking Grade: A- (90%)
Run Blocking Grade: C (75%)

Defensive line: Even though the line forced three of the team’s four sacks, it seemed as if they COULD have come away with about six or seven sacks. And as evidenced by them forcing six of the team’s eight quarterback hurries, even WHEN they were not sacking Seneca Wallace, seemed to be in his face all the time. More so Darren Howard, who led all linemen with four QB hurries, three tackles, two sacks, and two tackles for a loss while Broderick Bunkley pulled in three tackles as well. Both Trent Cole and Mike Patterson posted two tackles each, with Cole adding a tackle for a loss and Patterson a tackle for a loss and a quarterback hurry. Chris Clemons, Juqua Parker, and Victor Abiamiri had one tackle each, Parker and Abiamiri posting pass defenses and Clemons a tackle for a loss, a QB hurry, and a sack on the very last play of the game. The three sacks forced only tell a third of the story: another third would be the hurries and pressures, and the other third would be their ability to contain the duo of Maurice Morris and Julius Jones, who were both held to a combined 84 yards between them and as a team they had 86 yards.
Unit Grade: A (95%)

Linebackers: For the past two weeks, the linebackers haven’t been harassed by a tight end and John Carlson and Owen Schmidt, two rookies from the Hawks 2008 class, were held to a combined five catches for 40 yards. Omar Gaither and Chris Gocong both co-led the team with six tackles each while Gaither piled on three tackles for a loss, a sack, and a QB hurry. In fact, he was the first defensive player to post a sack in the fourth quarter for the Eagles. Stewart Bradley had four tackles and looked pretty much as a stand by watching the outside linebackers do their thing, as all three reserve linebackers, Tracy White, Akeem Jordon, and Tank Daniels, all figured in on special teams along with Gaither and Gocong as well.
Unit Grade: B+ (88%)

Secondary: Wallace threw for 169 yards, which is a very good number for the secondary, but then you take their ONLY play which scored a touchdown away from them, Wallace had 79 yards instead! That pass was to Koren Robinson who burned Lito Sheppard, who looked great against the Falcons, to the ground. Quintin Mikell had four tackles with a quarterback hurry and a pass defense as Sheldon Brown, Brian Dawkins, and Sheppard all had two tackles with Brown posting two pass defenses and Dawkins one. Joselio Hanson and Asante Samuel both had one tackle with Samuel posting two pass defenses.
Everyone except Sheppard Grade: A (95%)
Sheppard Grade: DD (For Donkey Douche)

Special Teams: With Akers hitting four field goals on four tries, one would believe that his kicking struggles are under control, and one of them was from his dreaded 40-49 range as well. Sav Rocca kept us in the game early with his masterful punting and as a reward, was really not needed as much from the 2nd quarter on when we finally started scoring points, punting five times and averaging 47 yards a punt, netting 41.4 and putting two inside the twenty. Quintin Demps only saw two kick returns (both in the first) but averaged 31.5 a return and Jackson had ten yards a punt return. The kick coverage team allowed Josh Wilson and Josh Forsett to 24.6 yards a kick return and Forsett to seven yards a kick return while Gocong and White both had two tackles while Sean Considine, Daniels, Jordan, Gaither, and Demps all had one tackle each.
Kicking and Punting Grade: A+ (98%)
Returns and Punt Coverage Grade: B+ (88%)
Kick Coverage Grade: B (83%)

Coaching: For starters, the defense gave up only 233 net yards of offense and forced ELEVEN punts on Seattle, and don’t forget once again, 90 yards on one play. As is, they averaged 4.2 yards per play on offense on 55 plays, but removing the play where Sheppard appeared to be daydreaming about his off-season trade, they averaged 2.6 yards a play, a whopping 1.6 yard difference on one play! So they done well, and the special teams unit work speaks for its self. But once again, I want to talk offense and play calling, and no, I am NOT here to bash it this week. For the record, it was 72 total plays, 44 passes (including one sack) and 28 runs, making it 61-39 pass-run. But it wasn’t just the numbers Donovan had that will allow me to look past this, but also the fact that the offensive line couldn’t get much of a run support push until way later on. This week, the pass happy game plan will be okayed by me (you are SO lucky Andy Reid!)
Defense Grade: A+ (99%)
Special Teams Grade: A (93%)
Offense Grade: B (85%)

Ripper’s Three Game Balls:
3. Darren Howard: Apparently he was nothing more then a name and phantom in figure to Seattle: has proven the people who were Anti-Howard and Pro-McDougle in training camp to look like idiots (innocent whistling).
2. Donovan McNabb: Only smudge was the interception, but he takes a back seat to the shocking superstar of the game.
1. Brent Celek: Breakout game from a tight end was something we didn’t expect: our future starter might be closer then we think he is.
Honorable Mention: “Hands Herremans” and Kevin Curtis

Numbers and Stats of Interest:
-On their opening drive, the Seahawks went 90-yards for a touchdown. On their following 12 drives, they punted 11 times, combining for 143 yards for the final 58:11 of the game. In addition, only three of their 13 drives managed to enter Eagles territory, and their best one, to our 22-yard line, ended when the game did.
-The Eagles posted the most lopsided advantage in time of possession to date this year, holding the ball 37:15 of the 60 minutes and never ceding any advantage to Seattle in any single quarter of the game.
-On the opening three drives for the Eagles, they combined for six yards of offense and no points: on the next 11 drives, they combined for 413 yards, four field goals, two touchdowns, and the only interception of the game.
-Again the red zone offense was merely pedestrian, along with the 3rd down efficiency rating: the red zone offense was 1-of-3 today, with the Herremans touchdown, a field goal, and an interception, and the Eagles, coming in only 39% on 3rd down attempts, went 6-of-16 for 38% once again.
-On the flip side, Seattle never ONE saw our red zone on 12 drives.
-Poor timeout management and penalties spruce hurt Seattle just as much: even though they only had four penalties, two came back to back in the 3rd quarter on a 4th and 10 and then 4th and 15 (a false start on left guard Mike Wahle, and then a delay of game on punter Jon Ryan).

The Eagles going into Sunday Night Football with the Giants with a 5-3 record and a three game winning steak is a huge plus. But I do not believe that the team is going to fare very well if we start off slowly like we have against Atlanta and Seattle. New York is going to bury us if we do that: here is hoping we can play football for a full sixty minutes next week and pull closer to the top of the division.

Eagles Vs Falcons Review

RipperEagle Retrospectives:
Week 8: Falcons @ Eagles
By RipperEagle (RE96)

The numbers spoke for themselves, and just about any loyal Eagles Fan knows the drill: after the bye week under Head Coach Andy Reid, the Eagles have not lost to any opponent coming into their week eight game with Atlanta, after having week seven off. It didn’t matter who the opponent was, or where the opponent was at, or in what city we were partaking football action in. And at the beginning, it appeared as if that nine game streak would be challenged as the offense was ice cold, starting with Donovan McNabb, lack of running ability, and some receiver drops as the Falcons went up early. Then, a few plays started popping and soon enough, the offense was ejecting heat and smoke flames every which way at the Falcons.

And soon enough, Atlanta would become another number.

In what could be described as a modern day miracle, the Eagles offense came as humanly close to even as possible in the play calling department, and it paid off in huge dividends as the team punched in three rushing touchdowns. And the defense allowed two touchdowns but it kept the door closed when it had to as the Eagles improved to over 500 with a 27-14 win over the visiting Falcons. After spotting the Falcons a seven point lead, the Eagles posted 20 points unanswered, thanks in large part to returning pro bowl back Brian Westbrook. And then after Atlanta scored their lone 2nd half touchdown, it was once more Westbrook playing the role of Sarah Michelle Gellar in Buffy and slaying the Vampire one last time with two of the touchdowns, McNabb plowing his way for the other. But still, the win doesn’t allow for the Eagles to leave the basement of the NFC East anytime soon as Washington and New York won on the road, and Dallas won at home, making the entire division four and zero, all in out of division matches, three inner-NFC.

Quarterbacks: It took McNabb a while to find his bearings, starting off at 3-of-11 early on in the game, but he would eventually get into his groove and manufactured three total touchdown drives and two field goal tries. Most astounding was the fact that McNabb has once more become bold and reckless out there, as he actually took six carries for 25 yards and the best one was his three yard dive right up the middle for the first touchdown of the game to tie it at seven each. His passing numbers were 19 of 34 (56%) for 253 yards with no touchdowns but no interceptions either with a QB rating of 79.7. In my honest opinion, I think the usage of more running plays allowed him to become more consistent as the game went on, finishing 16 of 23 after that poor opening quarter, although he had our only turnover with a fumble.
McNabb Grade: A (93%)

Back Field: Whether you refer to him as “The Wizard” or “B-West” or whatever you wish, just call Westbrook the guy who gets it done. The simple fact that he got the ball 22 times to run it is a sign that perhaps he is far healthier then we originally thought, as he ripped off a career best 167 yards rushing for an impressive 7.6 yards a run and two touchdowns, one from 16 and the other from 39 after the late mishandled punt by Adam Jennings. And what would the typical Westbrook outing be without some pass receptions as he hauled in six for 42 yards, so his total numbers were 28 touches for 209 yards and two touchdowns. Correll Buckhalter saw his action limited, two weeks removed from topping over 90 yards rushing in San Francisco, as he had four carries for zero yards and two catches for 29 yards. Perhaps the most infuriating thing was the fact that a rare Dan Klecko reception for good yardage was negated by a penalty on Tra Thomas.
Unit Grade: A+ (100%)

Wide Outs and Tight Ends: It has occurred to me that I have grand ideas for a mid week column between games, entitled “Ripper’s Unsolved Mysteries: Wide Receivers Edition.” It sincerely and truly boggles my mind as to how someone like Hank Baskett can bounce in numbers so oddly from week to week and how, even though it says they played, Greg Lewis and Jason Avant were invisible to the human eye, calling on a microscope to find them out there. The Eagles welcomed back Kevin Curtis for his first game of the season as he co-led the unit with three catches, along with DeSean Jackson, while Baskett had only one lousy catch. Both tight ends LJ Smith and Brent Celek had two receptions as well, and Smith was actually called out as laying safeties and corners out for Westbrook. That was, of course, prior to having his bell rung on a cheap shot by Lawyer Malloy. And yet again, Matt Schobel wasn’t even activated for the game…I would tell you I am surprised by this, but I am sure that you already know I am sarcasm tired there.
Unit Grade: B- (80%)

Offensive line: Well, prior to the game we found out that pro bowl guard Shawn Andrews had successful back surgery and will miss about three months. This, of course, will put him to the middle of January for him to even start practicing on that timetable, and the debate was over whether to put him on the IR or not. But after what the offensive line did against Atlanta and the rushing yards we got, I would be inclined to put him on the IR because they look just fine without him. The line forged the way for 192 rushing yards at six yards a carry for the team while allowing only two sacks and two penalties on the left side of the line (Thomas for illegal hands to the face and Todd Herremans for holding) while center to right, including Shawn’s replacement Max Jean-Gilles, were scotch. They have allowed 12 sacks now in seven games, less then two a game, and have rarely looked better.
Unit Grade: A (95%)

Defensive line: The line knew it had a big task on their hands, and the way they were going against the run as of late, it would be natural to question their ability to stop the NFC’s best running offense (and second behind the Titans). But as with the first four games of the season, the run defense came up huge again, thanks in large part to the mismatch at end between Trent Cole and aging tackle Todd Weiner, who was in due to Sam Baker having an injury. Cole played a large hand in stopping the run, leading the team with six tackles and one for a loss while Broderick Bunkley had three tackles and another for a loss. Darren Howard had a tackle, which turned out to be the line’s only sack along with a tackle for a loss and a QB hurry, while Juqua Parker, Mike Patterson, and Trevor Laws all had one solo tackle each.
Unit Grade: A- (90%)

Linebackers: Taking center stage was not Omar Gaither nor was it Stewart Bradley, rather, it was Chris Gocong. Yeah I know, that sounds kind of anticlimactic huh? But Gocong was the focal point of the attack from the backers today, as he posted four tackles (which it usually takes him four games to get that many tackles at any rate) with two tackles for a loss, a QB hurry, and the team’s first sack of the game, and a special teams tackle as well. Bradley had four tackles from the middle and Gaither had two tackles from WILL, while Akeem Jordan stole the show on special teams along side Tank Daniels and Tracy White, the second newest Eagle on the team (behind Kyle Eckel, who did not play in the game). The three starters had a huge hand in helping to hold the Falcons to a team total 77 yards rushing, and Michael Turner to only 58 of them yards.
Unit Grade: A- (90%)

Secondary: Just to show you how important Roddy White is to their offense look at the numbers from the game: Matt Ryan completed 23 passes, eight of them to White (and 15 to six other targets) and 113 yards for White (as opposed to 164 yards) and two touchdowns (none for anyone else). And that doesn’t even include the other looks his way that were dropped, knocked down, intercepted, or the one where White was called for pass interference. Brian Dawkins, Sheldon Brown, and Joselio Hanson (yep, you saw that right) had five tackles each to lead the unit with Brown notching a pass defense. Asante Samuel had four tackles for the game, along with three pass defenses and an interception while Quintin Mikell had four tackles. And Lito Sheppard finally woke up, posting two tackles, FOUR pass defenses, and his first interception of the year despite White interfering with him in the end zone.
Unit Grade: B (85%)

Special Teams: Coverage was the name of the game (well, on the Falcons returns anyway) as they held the Falcons to 17 yards a kick return and 5.5 yards a punt return, and it was Jordan who sealed the fate of the Falcons with the recovered muffed punt at the Falcons 37 with 2:22 left in the game. Sean Considine, Daniels, and Jordan all had two tackles on special teams, but our returns were terrible, with an average of 15.7 yards a kick return between Quintin Demps and Buckhalter, and a negative 1.7 yards a return on punts for Jackson. However, David Akers hit three extra points and two field goals for nine points, and Sav Rocca punted seven times, averaging 40.9 a boot and netting 37.7 with two inside the 20.
Kick and Punt Coverage Grade: A+ (100%)
Kicking and Punting: A- (90%)
Return Game: D+ (68%)

Coaching: First of all, my hat is off to the team of Reid and Marty Mornhenwheg for putting together a more balanced attack (because according to Merrill and Mike, both men are calling the plays now) as 66 total plays produced 34 pass attempts and 32 rushes, at 52-48 pass-run ratio, certainly one that I think we can ALL live with from week to week. Secondly, the run defense did much better because some of our drives were longer then they had been, well, at least from the second quarter on. And third of all, Rory has to get the guys to block for our own return men, otherwise, they did a heck of a job.
Coaching Grade: A (93%)

Ripper’s Three Game Balls:
3. Akeem Jordan: Made the play that helped to bury the game once and for all.
2. Lito Sheppard: Finally came out to play with his first pick and four pass defenses.
1. Brian Westbrook: An unanimous decision by Ripper and his evil and good sides: 209 yards of offense and two touchdowns shows why we are so much better with both him and Donovan in the backfield at the same time.
Honorable Mention: Asante Samuel and Donovan McNabb

Numbers and Stats of Interest:
-Coach Andy Reid won his 100th game as the leader of the Eagles, including playoffs, in defeating the Falcons.
-The Team’s 192 rushing yards is easily the highest such total of the season to date, easily dwarfing their previous high of 106 yards in week four at Chicago.
-Again, the red zone offense encounters a 1-yard line situation and has to settle for a field goal, going 2-of-4 down inside the red zone: so much for the fade.
-The Eagles are now 10-0 after the bye week under Reid: this officially calculates to 10% of his career wins in Philadelphia.

A very solid win by the team, although once again it was made more exciting then it had to be when the Falcons cut the lead to 20-14. Next up is a trip to Seattle to face the Seahawks, who beat us last year 28-24 at the Linc. However, THAT was AJ Feeley and his four interceptions leading that team, but THIS team will be lead by McNabb into Qwest Field.