Not Sure About That Glass

There were an awful lot of good things about this game tonight.  The coaches on both sides of the ball came out with aggressive, innovative game plans that took the fight right to the Patriots.  The Eagles played with focus and determination, looking for all the world like the veteran, hard-fighting squad we remember from years past.  And A.J. Feeley and his wide receivers showed that it's not just Westbrook and the Seven Dwarves out there.

On the other hand, the Eagles lost tonight not just because the Patriots are really, really good, but because of the same mistakes that have plagued this franchise for years.  Blown timeouts (one left at the end of the game).  Stupid penalties (helloooo, Nick Cole).  Unrealistic play calling (that first pick six).  The guys put up a heck of a fight, but it was disappointing to see the same kinds of mistakes costing them another game.  And where has this kind of effort been all season?

With that said.

The Eagles obviously have nothing to feel badly about tonight.  They played their guts out against the NFL's best team and almost pulled off an incredible upset.  What matters now, though, is where they go from here.  Will this just be a blip in an otherwise underwhelming season?  Or will they build on tonight's effort by playing the same type of tough, aggressive -- and even creative -- football the rest of the year?

I just watched Andy Reid's post-game press conference and he made it quite clear that McNabb will be the starting quarterback next week.  Clearly A.J. didn't win the job tonight -- that second INT was the killer -- but he did things tonight with this offense that we haven't really seen this year.  That's puzzling, disturbing or vindicating, depending upon where you stand on the whole McNabb issue.

Finally, I want to call out a few other guys too.  I have no idea how J.R. Reed does in coverage, but I'll tell you what, he's not afraid to hit people.  Lito pretty much handled Randy Moss.  The rest of the defense played its best game of the season (scary, considering how well the Pats moved the ball).  The offensive line did a fantastic job giving A.J. time to make plays.  And Greg Lewis emerged from the void to make a huge contribution to this offense. 

And with that, I've got a 7 a.m. flight tomorrow, so it's time to move on.

Heck of an effort, though.  Heck of an effort.

Comments

[BrianS]

Dammit. I expected them to lose by 40, so why am I so disappointed.

I've Reid bashed all year, but he did a great job tonight. Two bad throws away from an unbelievable upset.

[Dan]

They threw some serious curveballs and sliders at the Patriots, and they were rattled by 'em.

The Defense made some HUGE stops in the 2d half. I said earlier that if they could get just 2 stops, that would be huge. But they got more than that, and they held the Patriots to field goals, and field goal attempts.

The pass protection was huge tonight. Feeley had time, if anything tonight, they forced the ball to Westbrook, instead of letting the game come naturally to him.

Feeley spread the ball around, and the receivers made key, clutch receptions, that moved the chains. All that crap that the receiving corps has let down McNabb is just that, crap. They were open, they made huge, clutch receptions. They moved the chains.

What more can you want?

The birds put up 28 offensive points against the Patriots. The Cowboys didn't do that, I think they scored 24, and one of those touchdowns was a Brady fumble, that was run back for a td.

So the final score means the Birds held that offense to 24 pts, plus the 7 from Samuels' first quarter td.

24 pts. Probably the best offense in NFL history was held to 24 pts, so the defense showed up big time.

That was a game much like the Super Bowl, there for the taking.

Feel bad for Feeley though, he knows he let one get away, and that one will hang on him.

[Paul]

First off, I can't believe we were even in that game. This team might go down as the greatest in the history of the game and we hung with them till the very end.

If Hanson/Gathier could stop Wes Welker for only a couple of those killer first downs than we probably would've won this game. That guy killed us. (btw...How does Andy Reid not see a little Curtis in Welker. Jesus, sign a top flight receiver in the offseason, make Curtis your slot and develop Reggie at the number 2)

As great as Feeley played, I think if McNabb was in, we win that game. Say what you want, the guy protects the ball better than anyone in the league and he does NOT throw that ball. Granted I don't know if McNabb would've had the touch to throw the first Greg Lewis touchdown, but he also probably doesn't spot them 7 points on the 3rd play of the game. It's a shame the guy turned into some sort of a pansy and couldn't suck it up for the biggest game of the season...remember the 3 touchdowns on a broken ankle game?...yeah, I want that McNabb back.

That whole 2nd to last drive for the Eagles I actually agreed with Madden. We were within Akers field goal range at the 30, there's 4+ minutes left, and you have one of the best backs in the league. WHY THE HELL DO YOU CALL A PASS!?!? The should have run it down their throats, prayed you could eventually get a touchdown, and if not, just kick the field goal with little to no time left on the clock. Cause you know that if Brady gets the ball back with anything more than 1 minute left, he would find a way to win. While watching that drive I kept saying in my head "Ok, worst case scenario is we run the clock down, kick the field goal, and pray we win the coin toss in OT"...turns out, that wasn't the worst case scenario. I know Feeley screwed up and he is to blame, but I put that on Andy. The guys a career backup playing the best game of his career, why would you put him in a position to even attempt that through? Call a run or a high percentage pass, not a deep route on their best corner. Also, wasn't that practice squader Jackson still in on the other corner? How the hell don't you call a deep route to his side?!?!

Oh, and Nick Cole should be released, much like Matt McCoy was earlier in the year. Every first down on that drive following his penalty, I cursed the TV.

Lastly, if Feeley leads Curtis on that deep pass attempt in the 4th, we're celebrating a win. That's the difference between career backup and Hall of Famer...Brady doesn't miss that throw.

[Paul]

One last thought, I'm really starting to consider if this team just doesn't like McNabb. How the hell do you explain the difference of precision, heart, and execution between when McNabb has started, or Feeley/Garcia has started?

[whoismariowilliams]

What a great effort. This wasn't a case of the heavy favorite playing down to the competition, the Pats were outstanding as always.

The defense played like the old days. Making sure tackles AND laying the wood. You're right about JR Reed. He needs to be the full time starter, in my opinion.

I hope they can use this performance to gain some confidence and roll through the rest of their schedule. 9-7 will definitely get them into the playoffs.

What a great game.

[Cheesesteak Hoagie (aka Gabe from BountyBowl)]

I actually don't think that the "team doesn't like McNabb" theory is so crazy at all. The defense just looks a lot sharper when he's not in there. I dunno. It just isn't the craziest thing I've ever heard.

[bigmyc]

Paul. With all due respect, you couldn't be more incorrect about McNabb. With him in there, we don't come close. We don't make it to the mid second quarter still holding a shot.

McNabb clearly doesn't care unless he's somehow moved to do such. He showed how fragile his mentality is and I am almost regretting him having so many good years with the EAgles since I wanna kiss him good bye so badly, yet am still hesitant...He should have played but I'm glad he didn't. The guy isn't exactly a winner. What exactly has he won yet? The same could be said of most QBs in the NFL...good ones...but are they as talented as #5?

Donovan needed to be there and he HAD a reputation of taking care of the ball....not so much for the last two years. Remember that Super Bowl.