Monday Musings

Some things I think I think:

I knew this was going to happen with the McNabb thing.  Unfortunately, there are an awful lot of people out there who have invested an awful lot of time and mental effort in the idea that McNabb is a sub-par quarterback.  The problem those folks face when McNabb plays like he did last week is that 1) his ability is pretty much undeniable and 2) these people are actually Eagles fans at heart and don't want to be left out of the party when things are rolling. 

So to resolve their nagging case of cognitive dissonance, the negative nellies try to convince everyone (and themselves) that if only McNabb had played like this before then they would have been huuuuuge fans too. 

Right, dude.

The truth is that McNabb has been a great quarterback for a long time, the way he used to play was perfectly adapted to the skillset he had back then, and at most we're maybe talking about a couple of plays a game where he does something he didn't used to do.  That's it. 

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Further point of McNabbian clarification.  Confusingly, there are actually two issues at play here in the whole discussion of what Donovan's doing differently this year.

The first, which is the one everyone's focused on, is the idea that maybe he's a bit more willing to let his receiver make a play on a 50-50 ball than he was in the past.  That's the whole issue of "separation" and it's one we've covered to death.

The second point though is really more about this:

"I'm not 21, 22, 23 years old anymore. There are no 14-second scrambles going on. Drop back, get the ball out of your hands and let those guys go to work."

That's not about 50-50 balls.  That's about going through your progressions quickly and if options one and two aren't there, then just get the ball to an open #3.  Don't freelance as much.  Don't feel like you're the guy who always has to make the big play for this offense.  Just read, read, throw and take your eight yards.  It also means that if no one's open and the pocket is starting to close up, then throw the ball away and live to fight another day. 

This may or may not make Donovan a better quarterback, but it will give him a much better chance of staying healthy throughout the whole season. 

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I'm really looking forward to what Jim Johnson has planned for his defense tonight.  Will he keep his linebackers on the field to try to stop the run game or will he instead go with lots of nickel and that three-safety dime with the idea that he needs his best possible coverage unit on the field?

In either case, the play of the Eagles' front four is going to be absolutely critical tonight.  Things to watch for with each guy:

• Trent Cole -- Will the Eagles' Pro Bowl defensive end be able to get anything going against Flozell Adams on the right side?  Cole has had some success against the Cowboys, but he has had a tendency to get swallowed up a bit by the truly elite guys like Adams.  Will he be able to provide the consistent pressure that forces the Cowboys to scheme his way with Barber and Witten?
• Mike Patterson Brodrick Bunkley -- The Eagles RDT is in the enviable position of lining up across from the Cowboys' weakest offensive lineman, LOG Kyle Kosier.  Patterson Bunkley needs to win this match-up early and often so that Pro Bowl center Gurode has to double-team him.  
• Brodrick Bunkley Mike Patterson -- Davis v. Bunkley Patterson is a match-up of two real heavyweights.  By FO's stats, the Cowboys were first in the league last year in runs to the right side last year (over right tackle or right end).  given some of the concerns we have with JP against the run, Bunkley Patterson needs to be a force at the point of attack.  [Ed note:  argggh]
• Juqua Parker -- Yeah, it would be nice if he could get some pressure on Romo.  But the real key for JP is making sure he's not getting blown off the ball in the run game.  If he's not holding his ground, the Eagles are going to have trouble getting into their five and six DB alignments. 

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In fact, here's something we might even see tonight.  You have Trent Cole, who has some trouble with Flozell Adams with his pass rush but is remarkably stout against the run for his size.  You have Juqua Parker who plays the run with heart but is still somewhat vulnerable at the point of attack.  And you have Darren Howard, who looks like a rejuvenated man, is stout against the run, but doesn't really feel comfortable on the left side.

So why not, as a change-up, move these guys around a bit?  If Howard comes in at DE, flip-flop Cole to the left side and put Howard at his natural RDE position.  Gives the Cowboys one more thing to think about.

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Chris Gocong is going to have a role tonight against Witten.  I just don't think that role will involve covering him much downfield.  Look for the Eagles to come out regularly in the 4-3 over look, with Gocong head up on Witten.  It's a powerful strongside run defense and it also allows Gocong to jam Witten up at the line so he can't get into his pattern.

This isn't an original thought, by the way.  Many people have been expecting Gocong to play this role in the defense a la Carlos Emmons back in the day, but we haven't seen much of it so far.  However, last week Gocong was practicing this against the Rams, so I expect we may see a bit more of it tonight. 

He'll still have help behind him though.

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Speaking of Lito...  If he has his typically good night against the Cowboys and Asante struggles some with TO, do you think #26 might point that fact out next week?  Or will he just let it go unsaid... 

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Have you noticed?  Philly.com is now the latest online pub to start splitting it's stories across multiple pages to inflate page views and ad revenues improve readability (like this).  This is absolutely one of the most annoying trends in cyberspace. 

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Lastly, it was FO:

Aaron Schatz of Pro Football Prospectus once wrote, “Championship teams are generally defined by their ability to dominate inferior opponents, not their ability to win close games.”