The Eagles do not have enough talent. That much is evident. For all the talk of McNabb’s poor play (and he didn’t do anything last night to silence that chatter), this team has problems all over the roster.
Are Andy Reid’s personal issues affecting the team? Perhaps, but I don’t know that for sure. This was a loss that put a ginormous spotlight on the front office and their inability to bring in the right personnel. And I’d like to include coaching in that. So, let’s take a look at the game:
What I liked…:
-****…….crickets chirping……****
…And Not so Much:
-Where do I start? How about the offensive line? Regarded as one of the best and deepest units in the league at the start of the season, I just don’t know what has happened to the line. There was no room for Westbrook. McNabb was pressured all night. I’ll give Jon Runyan a pass as he is playing with a cracked tailbone. In all fairness, with no threat of McNabb running all over the field and only Westbrook to be worried about, defenses can bring the heat. I’m sure it’s a combination.
-The defensive line just does not have enough playmakers on the edge. The tackles have been fine, but where is the heat from the edge? Trent Cole is a nice player, but after that there just aren’t enough difference makers. Tony Romo had all day to find whatever receiver he wanted. It’s tough enough to cover Terrell Owens, but giving him extra time to get open is just not a good thing.
-Sean Considine has some of the worst ball skills I’ve ever seen. It’s not like he’s three steps behind the receiver. He was all over the Cowboys third-string tight end in the end zone and looked absolutely baffled as he was beaten for six. What is this guy’s deal? He did the same thing against Muhsin Mohammed in the Bears game.
-What does Chris Gocong do? I think he’s the wrong player on the wrong defense.
-In looking at the myriad of holes on this roster, special teams gets overlooked too often. There has been a lot of talk about the differences between the 2007 Eagles and Eagles playoff teams of the recent past. Brian Mitchell gave you a shot to get good field position. Reno Mahe (who is there not to screw up, not to make plays) and Correll Buckhalter (only because no one is better) are just not threats. It’s painful.
-The defensive game plan was awful. You could tell that Dallas knew they could run draws on this defense. They ran the draw and little screens to running back Marion Barber all day early on. The Cowboys could run, throw and do whatever they pleased whenever they wanted.
-The offense does not have enough talent. I know I’m beating a dead horse and that all of this is painfully obvious to everyone, but Reid and the front office have done a miserable job of loading up the offense with playmakers. Heck, the defense doesn’t have enough playmakers either. Where are the game-changing players?
-Does John Madden do any research? He kept harping on the fact that he was surprised the Eagles didn’t come out and take more shots down the field. With what? They haven’t taken shots down the field all year. They can’t. Throwing deep to Reggie Brown is a joke. That’s not Kevin Curtis’ specialty either.
-With the lack of wide receiver weapons, shouldn’t they at least try to get Hank Baskett involved more in the offense? It seemed like they looked his way a little more last night. I’m not saying he’s the answer at all, but I’m operating on the “Why Not?” theory. He has a couple 80+ yard TD receptions so he is capable of making a big play. I’m just trying to mix it up here. Throw something up for grabs and see what happens. It can’t be any worse that what we are seeing.
-Those turnovers were killers early. Dallas got 14 points off of two turnovers in Eagle territory to get a 21-7 lead. That sound important?
-I would love to know what Tom Heckert’s level of responsibility is in this. Unless you are in the war room on draft day, or in the free agent discussions, you can never know for sure. I just think it’s interesting that his name hasn’t come up yet when talking about the poor roster moves.
micahw@feverpitchmedia.com
