To put it simply, if the Eagles offensive line plays well the Birds will be in the playoffs with a shot at going to another Super Bowl.
The Eagles have the most offensive talent than any other Birds team since the 2004 Super Bowl team. They will be able to score and score big if Donovan McNabb is given time and the runners are given some room to operate.
The Eagles offensive line showed some improvement on Sunday as they got the best of one of the better defensive line in the league. Still this line has a ways to go because they’ve got to become more consistent.
Their offense doesn’t need to have a dominant running game but they do need to be effective when they do choose to run the ball. I’m talking about converting 3rd and one and punching the ball in on the goalline.
They’ve got starting left guard Todd Herremans back in action and he’s their best pass blocking guard, so I wasn’t surprised that the Birds had few problems inside.
On Sunday, the “O” line did a good job of taking advantage of the Giants aggressive defensive line by opening up some holes for quick traps up the gut. Aggressive “D” lines and blitzing teams are always susceptible to quick hitters up the middle.
Right tackle Winston Justice was outstanding in keeping Giants left defensive end Justin Tuck under control. Tuck was so quiet that I don’t even know whether he played or not.
This says a great deal about Justice’s improved strength. He was able to prevent Tuck from using any of his power moves to get to McNabb.
Left tackle Jason Peters is going to have to step up his game. At times he gets off the ball late or has some type of a lapse in concentration. They can’t afford to have any mistakes on McNabb’s blindside.
Andy Reid said that one of the sacks of McNabb by Osi Umenyiora was part Peters’ fault and partially the fault of the interior of the line, which allowed penetration which prevented McNabb from stepping up.
Reid identified the only short coming of the play of the guards on Sunday was their inability to stop the Giants defensive tackles from knocking down passes. Reid said they have to keep pressure on the tackles so they won’t jump to block the pass.
All in all, the line did a good job against what was supposed to be one of the league better defensive lines. Right now I would put the Minnesota Vikings “D” line at the top of the pack.
