There are several things you could talk about with the Eagles this week, including:
- McNabb’s play over the last two weeks. Following the Ravens debacle, it seemed like his Eagles career was over. And “seemed” is really putting it lightly. However, 46-69 (67%), 451 Yards, 5 TD and 0 INT, and 2 wins over division leaders later, coupled with Kevin Kolb’s horrendous showing, have me wondering if McNabb really will be gone next year.
- A running game, apparently. The Eagles got the lead, and were able to wear down the clock with 131 yards from Brian Westbrook. When this team runs effectively and lets McNabb play within himself, they can be very good.
- The real MVPs of this game, the defensive front seven. In a cold game like this, you expected the Giants offensive line, undoubtedly the best in the league, to dominate. But the Eagles allowed only 88 yards rushing to the league’s #1 rushing attack (160.2 ypg). Trent Cole, Broderick Bunkley, Mike Patterson, Juqua Parker, Stewart Bradley, Akeem Jordan, Chris Gocong and reserves Chris Clemons, Trevor Laws and Victor Abiamiri, excellent work fellas. We’ll talk about your consistency problems another day.
But, I think the real question on Eagles’ fans minds is whether or not we can really make the playoffs. The NFC is absolutely loaded and it seems like everyone still has a shot at the playoffs. The best the Eagles can do is 10-5-1, which would mean they would make it ahead of any 10-6 teams, which usually are shoo-ins for the playoffs. Ignoring the fact that we’d have to win 3 straight to accomplish this, let me see if I can unravel some playoffs scenarios here.
Here’s What We Know:
- The Eagles are mathematically eliminated from winning the division, so they will have to take one of the two wild card spots to get in.
- They will almost certainly have to win the last 3 games to get in.
- The Giants and Cardinals have clinched their division titles.
- No Wild Card will come from the NFC West, so that leaves the NFC North and South winner and then the two best remaining teams.
- If the Eagles end up 10-5-1, the 2nd place team in the NFC North will not have a better record. Neither will the 6 loss Redskins or Saints.
- That means that final 3 spots will come down to the Eagles, Cowboys, Bucs, Panthers and Falcons. Let’s take a look at their schedules. Let’s also looks at the 7-6 Redskins, Saints and Bears to see if it is possible for us to make it a 9-6-1.
Eagles (7-5-1): vs. Browns, @ Redskins, vs. Cowboys
Cowboys (8-5): vs. Giants, vs. Ravens, @ Eagles
Redskins (7-6): @ Bengals, vs. Eagles, @ 49ers
Bucs (9-3): @ Panthers (Mon.), @ Falcons, vs. Chargers, vs. Raiders
Panthers (9-3): vs. Bucs (Mon.), vs. Broncos, @ Giants, @ Saints
Falcons (8-5): vs. Bucs, @ Vikings, vs. Rams
Saints (7-6): @ Bears, @ Lions, vs. Panthers
Bears (7-6): vs. Saints, vs. Packers, @ Texans
So, it would be possible to make the playoffs with 9 wins, but several teams would have to lose 2 of 3 games for that to happen. So let’s just discuss the possibilities if we go 10-5-1. That eliminates the Bears, Saints and Redskins from passing us.
The Cowboys also couldn’t pass us, because us beating them would put them, at best, 10-6. So that tells us that with wins in our last 3 games, we are guaranteed 2nd place in the division.
So that leaves the Bucs, Panthers, Falcons and us for 3 spots. Let’s assume that the Bucs and Panthers are in. They would each have to lose 3 of 4 to finish at 10-6 which is unlikely. Now it’s just us and Falcons for the last spot. The only way the Falcons go ahead of us is if they win all 3 remaining games. They will beat the Rams, leaving games with the Bucs and Vikings, two likely playoff teams who will still be playing for position.
So the Eagles are not guaranteed a spot in the playoffs if they win out. They will be ensured 2nd place in the division, but will have to battle the Falcons for the last spot. So aside from the Eagles winning their last 3 games, Eagles fans should be rooting primarily for the Falcons to lose at least one game.
But can the Eagles win their last 3 games? Sure, why not. I mean, we did just dominate the best team in the NFL on their home field, didn’t we? I would imagine the Birds will be favored in all 3 games. Certainly against the Browns at home with Ken Dorsey at QB. The 8-6 (assuming they beat the Bengals) Redskins on the road? That will probably be close, but we will have the better record and the momentum. And the final game against 9-6 (assuming a split with Giants and Ravens, which I wouldn’t bet on) Cowboys? All things being equal, don’t you think the oddsmakers would guess the crazy Eagles crowd would give us the edge? Against T.O. and the Cowboys, with a playoff spot on the line for both teams, in the last game of the season, likely the NBC primetime flex game? Can you think of a crazier regular season crowd?
While it’s frustrating that we shouldn’t even be in this position (the Bears, Redskins, Cowboys and Bengals games, ugh), it’s certainly nice that the team didn’t throw in the towel and has played some great football the last 2 weeks. Think it’s unlikely we see them make a run in the playoffs, let alone even get there? Well, we did say this about this Phillies this year…
It would make for great Philadelphia theater…we tie the lowly Bengals, bench our franchise quarterback a week later, and are left for dead by everybody. Then, suddenly, our head coach admits the error of his ways and changes his act, our franchise quarterback trying to do everything on his own armed with a potent running attack, and we march toward the playoffs, winning 5 straight games, including 3 against our divisional foes. Gosh, I can hear the Rocky theme now…
This Eagles team is too frustrating/questionable/confusing/etc for me to take. I am cursing them out of my life one week, then cheering to the point where my neighbors have to come over to make sure everything is ok. I need closure with this team and was hoping for a fresh start for the franchise next year, not a revival this year and a playoff push for another beloved Philly sports team. Why does McNabb and Reid like to toy with my emotions like this just when I have given up on the team? Hopefully they can continue to play solid D and get enough points on the board to use their “poof, there it is” running game that came out of the woodwork. Not sure where this team is going, but I am back on board with wherever it takes us.
playoffs? with the way they’ve played the past two weeks, SuperBowl baby.
Specifically 2 things are really working for me. Donovan is willing to run for the occasional 1st down, that makes a world of difference.
Second, Andy is more willing to run the ball. Why I can’t figure out for anything, but it’s making a huge difference.
is andy still doing the play calling or did he hand it over to mornhinweg?
Mike…..Andy is more willing to run the ball. Why I can’t figure out for anything, but it’s making a huge difference…….
I have always had the impression that Reid would like to run the ball, he just doesn’t want to run the ball. What I mean is that he gives it a shot early in every game. The problem is that if they don’t have immediate success running the ball, he abandons it.
Backing up my feeling, yesterday I heard Darryl Johnston comment about the Eagles running game. He said he spoke with an offensive lineman (I believe it was Runyan) and was told that they (the O-line) could impact Reid’s decision making regarding the run. He said that if the O-line could do a better job and create some successful running plays early on, he thought that Reid would then stick with the run.
Speaking of observations made by Darryl Johnston yesterday, how about when the Eagles were going to kick the field goal at the end of the 1st quarter?
Just before the FG attempt, a timeout was called. Johnston went on at length about how it was a brilliant call by Coughlin because Akers was kicking at the end of the field where the wind was more severe and would make a successful FG much more difficult. He said it showed how Coughlin pays attetion to every little detail and is a master of preparation and game management. After coming back from a commercial break it was revealed that Reid called the timeout….Oops. Pretty funny to hear Johnston dissembling, pulling a 180, and trying to explain why it was a good move on Reid’s part to call the timeout, since Akers made the FG.
That Ravens game certainly was a true wakeup call! Now finish the job, Birds!!
The teams most likely to challenge will be the Skins and Falcons. The Cowboys might already be eliminated by the time we play them with the schedule they have.
We can only hope that we win out. It seems unlikely given the inconsistency of this team. It’s a shame because they have a lot of talent. I truly believe that they have enough talent to win the Superbowl this year if they get in. But they won’t because they play down to their competition. This year they beat the best team in the NFC(Giants) and the 2nd best team in the AFC(Steelers). They were close enough to win every game except for the Ravens game. But somehow they lost to the Redskins Bears and tied the Bengals(all games they should have won)
I was really looking forward to having free time on Sundays to accomplish things other than sitting on the couch and watching 10 hours of football. Though I guess I can do those other things on Saturdays now.
But what do we take from all of this? Is it as simple as a healthy Westbrook? We all know that its Westbrook and not McNabb that makes our offense go so maybe no Westbrook is why the team struggled so mightily just a few weeks ago. But what should we expect from the future? Is this a one and done playoff team or can they really make some noise in the playoffs? Is it worth it for the Eagles to make the playoffs – this means a worse draft pick, the return of Andy Reid, and probably Reid keeping his GM duties. Do I really want all that?
Its a shame that the NFC is so competitive this year because if the Eagles win out they will have a pretty good record at 10-5-1. Its really like 11-5 in the sense that they have the tiebreaker over any other 10 win teams. In 2007 a 9-7 record would have got you in and in 2006 the Giants went 8-8 and made the playoffs. Just a good year for football/bad year for the Eagles I guess.
The sad part is that if the Falcons make it, the Eagles beat them pretty handily. Its just frustrating seeing the lack of consistency with this team. When they play well, they have as much talent as anyone in the league. When they play poorly, no one wants to step up and be the hero.
Adam-
Pete, if Carolina wins this game tonight at home (very plausible), Tampa has a loss. Then Tampa plays Atlanta next week in a game with direct Eagles implications, because one of those teams loses. If the Falcons lose, we’re in the driver’s seat and control our own destiny, but if the Bucs lose, all of a sudden they have lost 2 straight and face an improved Chargers team in Week 16 in a must win, desperate game…so if the Panthers win tonight, the Bucs are all of a sudden back in the picture as potential targets to bypass…
@ JDubbz “The sad part is that if the Falcons make it, the Eagles beat them pretty handily.”
Umm, actually the Falcons blew all of their timeouts so they couldn’t challenge the bogus “botched” punt blown call by the refs that would have set up the potential winning drive. Hardly beating them handily.
I don’t know, after watching them all season it’s hard to believe, even after 2 consecutive weeks of good-enough play, that they’ll mow down next 3 foes (1 weak sister & 2 formidable rivals). Maybe if weather remains cold with 40 mph winds they’ll have a chance to wedge into the playoffs, as Reid will then be forced to take advantage of his best offensive player, Westbrook, and his loyal, hard-working
back-up, Buckhalter. (Dan Klecko, a true football player, if not a natural fullback, would help too.) If weather conditions are mild and Reid goes back to passing 40 or 50 times, forget it; McNabb is not a title-grabber (the nicest way I can put it).
Stu, I don’t recall once in that game fearing an Eagles loss. I actually remember thinking that the Eagles should be beating the hell out of this team but were not capitalizing in the red zone when they needed to. The Eagles have had many close games in which they have won and more often than not, lost, but to my recollection, this was not one of them.
J Dubbz, I think we can both agree that it was a typical Eagles game in that we completely dominated them but in the end it actually came down to the Falcons having no challenges that prevented them from possibly stealing that game!
Completely agree with you there Stu. Typical Eagles can’t score when it counts and make the game seem closer than it should have been given proper coaching and execution. Just another pull your hair out season I guess.