More on Eagles And NFL Week 1

I’ve been reading reader comments about the Eagles game this week and I’ll tell you what, you can’t say Eagles fans don’t love their team.  I wanted to not just take another look at the Eagles game, but see how the rest of the league is shaping up as well.

Again, it’s only Week 1, so we can’t go nuts just yet.  
 
I’m not sure how many Eagles fans watched the Dallas/NYG game on Sunday night.  Eagles losses like that can sometimes force the faithful to shut off football for the day.  I watched the whole thing and this is something to keep in mind when railing on the Eagles poor first week:  No one else is that good either.  
 
Let’s take a gander at the NFC football team in New York.  Despite reports from the Giants, it’s widely believed that Eli Manning will be out at least a month with a partially separated shoulder. All of a sudden, the QB up here that everyone hated is now going to be missed. Their starting RB Brandon Jacobs? Out 3-5 weeks.  Their best defensive end (Strahan is old and missed all of training camp) Osi Umenyiora?  The Giants got some better news this week and it looks like he may only be out a few weeks, but that’s still not good.  This team is banged up badly and wasn’t that good to begin with.  If you ring up 35 points, you should win.
 
The Dallas Cowboys secondary is atrocious and their star cornerback has a plantar fasciitis issue that will bother him all year.  Tony Romo made some big plays, but I saw him make some terrible passes as well.  Yes, they outscored the Giants and came up with “W,” but I’d hardly be thrilled if I was a Dallas fan. That front seven on defense was not as good as I thought it would be.  
 
I know the Saints and Bears played two AFC powerhouses in the Colts and Chargers respectively, but they have issues too.  The Saints secondary is bad, and their offense was hardly anything to rave about.  They will be better, that’s for sure, but I’m still not sold on the Colts defense.  Reggie Bush has some great moves, but I don’t like the way he finishes his runs.  He doesn’t find ways to fall forward after a hit and slide up for a few extra yards.  I saw him do this several times Thursday night.  He has to be better in that area in my opinion.  
 
The Bears played a huckuva defense in San Diego, but their offense still doesn’t do it for me. For everyone that wants to complain about Donovan, how would you like Rex Grossman to be your starting QB? You think the fans in Chicago wouldn’t take McNabb in a heartbeat?  Also, Cedric Benson is having trouble finding running room, and he had that problem in the preseason too.  We’ll know more in a few weeks, but they could be sorry they moved Thomas Jones.  
 
Speaking of the Jets, they were a playoff team last year and they have playoff aspirations this year. I don’t see that happening. There is a QB controversy brewing in Jetland (is that even a word?  It is now), and their defense struggled to get any pressure whatsoever on Tom Brady.  Pete Kendall’s replacement at guard, Jacob Bender, looks completely lost out there and he will probably be a liability all year.  
 
In St. Louis, all-world RB Steven Jackson, the consensus #2 overall fantasy pick, put two balls on the carpet Sunday against Carolina and is now dealing with a banged up offensive line.  Richie Incognito is nursing an ankle sprain and former #1 overall draft pick Orlando Pace is likely done for the year.  That’s not good for a team with serious defensive issues.  
 
The Baltimore Ravens have their problems too.  McNair left the game last night with groin issues and you know what that means…Kyle Boller!  Boy, is he awful.  And before Boller got in the game, their offense had issues holding onto the football.  Way, way too many turnovers.  Oh, and Ray Lewis says he has a torn triceps.  In a conference as tough as the AFC, these are all terrible signs.  
 
Was anyone impressed with the Cardinals or the 49ers last night?  I wasn’t.  Jacksonville’s supposedly tough defense gave up some 175 yards on the ground to Titans’ RB Chris Brown.  The Chiefs look awful.  The Lions were excited that they beat a putrid Oakland team.  
 
My point is, just about every team has issues.  Many of them are in far worse situations than the Eagles.  When we saw the Eagles get run all over last year, you knew that would be a weekly issue.  Apart from some of the other problems (many of which are fixable), you can’t think that the Eagles will have to deal with multiple muffed punts from bonehead plays from week to week.  I just don’t see it happening.  So before you get on top of the Walt Whitman Bridge and think about hopping into the Delaware River, just relax and take a deep breath. Crucify Andy Reid all you like, you have to admit that one of his strengths is that he gets these clunker games turned around.  Let’s give this a few weeks and see what the squad looks like heading into the bye week.  

micahw@feverpitchmedia.com