Andy Reid said today during his post game news conference that he isn’t sure whether Michael Vick could play this week or not.
“I’m not even sure he could get back from what he has now, the quad,” Reid said. “It was painful yesterday and it as painful today. If he had to play today, he couldn’t. It’s tight, it’s sore. He’ll be all right down the road.”
Reid didn’t commit either way concerning whether he will have Vick play or not this week.
I personally think we’re going to see Kevin Kolb on Sunday and hopefully Vick will be able to regain his magic in the following week. They can’t play Vick on Sunday with the knowledge that they might have to play again on Saturday.
Reid also said DeSean Jackson’s foot was bothering him last night, so despite the fact that Reid didn’t go further, I would imagine Jackson might be held out of the game against the Cowboys because of his ailing foot.
Reid knows how important it is that his team be healthy before the playoffs begin. Game breakers like Vick and Jackson aren’t the same if they’re injured.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Eagles fans have to be concerned. Backup defensive tackle Jeff Owens was placed on IR this afternoon. He ruptured his patella tendon last night.
What do you think about Stewart Bradley coming back for the playoffs? Reid says he will be available on the first week of the post-season. I don’t think a rusty Bradley is going to be a plus for the Birds.
Chaney is a rookie who makes his share of mistakes, but I don’t know if Bradley is going to be an upgrade after missing a month of action.
Chaney looked bad on the play action pass route with Visanthe Shiancoe running wide open across the middle. Still, I think his return will make the Birds deeper at the linebacker position which will be a good thing for them in the playoffs.
According to the Eagles, if they had practiced today, DeSean Jackson wouldn’t have been able to practice because of injured foot. Wide receiver Trevor Laws would have missed the workout because of the shoulder he injured last night.
Cornerback Asante Samuel is still having trouble with his knee. Of course Michael Vick would have missed the workout because of his swollen quadricep.
team is a mess right now..
I would not even think about playing Vick in the Game,
nor D-Jaxand limited with McCoy..
I would trreat this game like a PReseaso GAme,
Play Kolb 1 3 quarters and then finish up with Kafka..
Lrt RB J HArrioson/E Buckely get most of the Snaps and have back-up O/L like Dunlap/Howard plays
defensively, I woult sit out Samuela and take it easy with players like Mikell/T Cole and play as many back-ups as possible
Vick has nagging injuries and Fat Boy continues to expose him to vicous hits by throwing 55 times and running 16 times and giving him dirt field position with returner Chadd Hall. Of all the return men with speed and strength we get Chad. Andy Reid is out of his mind with Mahe- the Skier and now Air Force Chad.same old same old. Reid will turn Vick into McNaab.When is 50 going to make a play and not over run the ball carrier again.Where is Howie’s magic?
I like reid and am a supporter of him but his blindness kills this team sometimes. Preach BIGe
Trevor Laws must be the biggest wide receiver in the league.
Reid has a frustrated QB mentality. When I saw him in the punt pass and kick competition as a youngster man beast towering over his competition and never being allowed to play QB for any team because of size, weight and lack of speed. Somewhere is his psyce he lives his life vicariously through his QB’s with this pass first and pass long no matter what the outcome. We lost several important games in the playoffs because he gave up on the run. History repeats itself with.
Below is a portion of Didinger’s take on the game.
Regarding the offense, he hit the nail on the head, except for one small detail: Reid’s attack hasn’t been balanced since the Atlanta game.
Didinger: Loss to Vikings raises troubling questions
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Posted: 2:36 p.m.
By Ray Didinger
CSNPhilly.com
Coach Andy Reid called his team’s performance “pathetic,” and he was right. It was their worst effort of the season top to bottom, and it cast an ominous shadow over their postseason hopes.
If the Eagles can’t get rookie quarterback Joe Webb off the field on third down, what chance will they have against, say, Aaron Rodgers? And if they can’t block the Vikings’ pass rush, which had the third-fewest sacks in the league, how will they keep Mike Vick safe in the playoffs? Those are just some of the troubling questions Reid carried into the frosty night.
The Eagles are better than they looked on Tuesday, but what the 24-14 loss demonstrated was their margin for error is not great. There are a lot of new faces in key roles, and while Vick has elevated the whole team along with his own level of play, he cannot be expected to perform Meadowlands-like miracles every week.
It looked like that’s what happened Tuesday. When things weren’t going well in the third quarter, with the team trailing and the defense sagging, you could almost see the players in the huddle looking at Vick as if to say, “It’s up to you.” And the coaches contributed to it with their play-calling.
After the Vikings extended their lead to 17-7 – Webb’s nine-yard run capped a deflating seven-play, 75-yard drive – the Eagles needed to answer. They got the ball at their own 26 and on the next 10 plays, Vick either threw a pass or ran the ball himself eight times. He handed off to LeSean McCoy twice, once for seven yards, once for three yards. Why not more?
The drive looked and felt desperate with the Eagles asking the hobbled Vick to single-handedly save the day. Re-reading my notes: “Vick pass to (DeSean) Jackson for 11 (yards)…Vick scrambles for seven…Vick pass to (Brent) Celek for six…Vick pass to (Jeremy) Maclin for 14…Vick scrambles for eight…Vick passes incomplete to Maclin…”
On second-and-10 at the Minnesota 28, Vick again tried to run, but he was hit by Kevin Williams and lost the ball, his second fumble of the game and third turnover of the night. You can debate whether it was a case of one player trying to do too much or the coaches asking him to do too much, but the result was the same – a backbreaking mistake.
If you factor in the six Vick sacks and the six times he scrambled, the Eagles’ coaches called 55 pass plays in the game. By contrast, there were just 16 called runs. Reid and offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg got away from the balanced approach that served them well for most of the season and, as it often does, it cost them.
On a night when the quarterback was limping from the very first play and when they did not have any answers for the Minnesota blitz, why didn’t the Eagles go to the run a little more? They stayed in the shotgun and emptied the backfield, which made it easy for the Viking blitzers to zero in on the quarterback.
It was the worst physical beating Vick absorbed all season and it is no coincidence it also was his poorest passing performance. He missed throws he completed in other weeks and he threw several balls right into coverage. Lito Sheppard and Frank Walker dropped easy interceptions that could have turned the game into a Minnesota rout.
For the first time this season, Vick looked skittish. The poise he displayed earlier – keeping his eyes focused downfield and allowing plays to develop – was not there. When he felt pressure, he reverted to the jackrabbit he was in Atlanta and took off running.
It could be the result of taking too many hits the past few weeks or it could be that Vick no longer trusts his protection; maybe it is a combination of the two, but it is a concern as the Eagles prepare for the playoffs.
Judging by the looks of the Eagles’ defense, they aren’t going to win any 10-7 games in the post-season. They will have to outscore the opposition, and they aren’t going to do it unless Vick is playing the same mistake-free football he played earlier this season.
And that’s from a guy who despises Vick because of his past.
Drummer I posted this on the other thread, but I’ll repeat it here…..check to see if the “poise” Diddinger writes about has really been there. I don;t think it has been since the Wsh game and they didn;t send any pass rushers.
“No QB has come close to taking the abuse that Vick has, and it has little to do with his running.
In fact, his running has saved both this team and his life.”
Really?
What was he doing when he broke his ribs again?
What was he doing when Nick Collins blasted him into the next hemisphere week 1?
What was he doing when the Cowboy DE (spencer?) slammed his shoulder in to the turf?
What was he doing when Spencer hit him OB?
Stay in the pocket. Throw the ball quicker, and if he then gets hit it’ll be 15.
Go to NFL playbook…watch the Giants/Eagles highlights.
Please do not listen to Baldinger who spends the entire time saying how great Vick is…instead just watch it. Stop the film at:
2:17 to see McCoy leaking to the right open. Vick scrambles away left almost as soon as he gets the ball, makes a terrible throw in to the defenders arms (lucky) and gets hit. Throw the checkdown and he won’t get hit.
2:38 and you’ll see what you are often talking about, all WRs streaking and Vick scrambles. That being said, Inside WR (avant) is WIDE open at the 15 and it appears that he’s looking back. Throw the ball and there will be no hit.
3:14…going to be a screen to McCoy and tuck stops it – for a second, then McCoy is free. There is no pressure and yet off Vick runs and makes a terrible throw. And gets pasted again. He stays for another 1/2 second and its shady’s ball and no hit.
3:33. Vick standing in a nice pocket and McCoy wide open again to his right. Throw the ball and there’s no hit. Instead, Vick scrambles (for a big gain) but gets hit.
So…on at least 3 of the 4 plays highlighted, Vick has a wide open checkdown and he runs and gets hit. On the 4th, I think he could have thrown it to Avant at the 15.
Keep blaming Reid.
It’s amazing they’ve got this far with such a banged up squad. They’ve got a……..
1) 3rd-string CB
2) 2nd-string rookie Safety
3) 3rd-string rookie LB
4) 2nd-string Center (that controls blocking assignments for the whole line)
5) 2nd-string waiver wire FB
6) 2nd-string RG
7) missing their first-round DE.
The fullback and center have been nice fills but the LB and, most of all, Corner are killing us.
MCoy 13 runs for 44 yds,10 runs 64 yds last 2 games
Did you know!! Patriots beat the Bears ran ball 35 times crushed 36-3
Eagles lost to Bears ran ball 10 times Mcoy 53 yds
I like Reid, i give him credit for all the wins over the years, especially this year with alot pieces of puzzle missing. Vikings game he wanted MVP numbers for Vick and i respect that and wanted it for Vick too.But by now he should know running opens for the pass. Patriots(who i hate) ran ball Sunday 38 times………… I love my dad very much, but if he coached Eagles and ran the ball 10 times every game( i mean main RB) I would fire his ass!!!!!!!
To Boyer,
I have to disagree with your assesment of some of these players you mentioned
#1) D Patterson was listed as a Back-up to Hobbs (Hanson is slot CB for Nickle Packages)
#2) K Coleman is correct,he is a 2nd String rookie Safety
#3) J Chaney has been ahead of Gaither as 2nd String on the Depth Chart as the back-up to Bradley at MLB for most of the season.
#4) McGlynn has been taking snaps at Center with the 1st team since Summer Camp since
Jackson was rehabbing and N Cole was out most of Summer Camp & Preseason w/knee issues.
#5) FB – O Schmitt is correct and was picked up off the streets but has fit in nicely
#6) RG- MJG, again, he took the most snaps with the #1 Team since Summer Camp with N Cole out with a sore Knee and since it was obvious that Stacey Andrews was a bust
#7) DE – Graham was a rotational player only since he couldn’t beat out J Parker, he was on the field for 15-20 snaps a game and has not made much of an impact during his rookie season..
Botton line is that the O/Line has been a work in Progress since Camp open but both McGlynn and MJG have had more practice time and snaps with the #1’s than the players who were penciled
in as the Original starters (Jackson & Cole) from back in July.. but to say 4-5 months later in December that these are back-up players is not accurate, they have been starters for most of the season and since camp time, so you go with what you have .
I don’t hear the Cowboys,GIants,Redskins,Colts,Steelers,Saints,Viking fans crying about all their injured players and missed starters…
You Play and Coach with what you have and the important thing is that you Scheme/Game plan accordingly based on who you have playing to playcall to utilize their strengths ..