THE EAGLES ARE BACK TO BEING ENIGMAS
By Joseph Santoliquito
Last week we got a good dose of what it’s like when everything works for the Eagles. Sunday night, we got a glimpse of what happens when nothing works the way it had been all season.
Dallas took away DeSean Jackson, the Eagles’ big-play threat, and that translated into a Dallas 20-16 victory, giving the Cowboys sole possession of first place in the NFC East with a 6-2 record.
All of the old haunts came creeping back for Andy Reid, like not managing timeouts very well, not being able to adjust when all of his weapons were locked down by the Dallas defense, and some dubious choices when to challenge plays.
What appeared so promising a week ago, after the Eagles slammed the Giants, 40-17, they produced their second-worst offensive showing this year, behind the 13-9 debacle against Oakland on October 18th.
Donovan McNabb threw for 227 yards and two interceptions. The Eagles had one sustained touchdown drive, and that was it. Jackson was held to two catches for 29 yards, his lowest production in the last four weeks. Dallas won the field-position battle, pinning the Eagles inside their 20 on four of their five possessions.
The Cowboys’ Tony Romo, meanwhile, wasn’t rattled by the Eagles’ blitz package, holding up exceptionally well under the Eagles’ pressure to complete 21 of 34 for 307 yards and a touchdown.
So it’s back to a team we don’t know much about, a team capable of looking excellent one week and maddeningly capable of questioning what any of us saw the next week.
The offensive line is still in what seems like a constant state of flux. LeSean McCoy and Jeremy Maclin can be a little more consistent, and the dumb penalties and inane choices need to be cut down if the Eagles hope to have any chance of a long postseason stay.
In the meantime, we’re all left pondering once again how good this team is. Sunday certainly didn’t prove anything.
STUPIDITY REIGNS
Asante Samuel owes Sheldon Brown dinner. At least he should. After making a great open-field tackle in the third quarter against on the Cowboys’ Marion Barber, Samuel had to remind Barber who made the tackle by getting right up into Barber’s grill. It wasn’t a very smart move and unsportsman-like penalty cost the Eagles 15 yards, putting Dallas on the Eagles’ 31.
Brown intercepted Tony Romo the following play, when Romo floated a pass intended for Jason Witten.
This came following another brilliant move earlier in the third quarter, when thee usually solid-citizen Jason Avant felt compelled to lift tight end Brent Celek’s leg after Donovan McNabb’s 11-yard scoring pass put the Eagles up 13-10.
It just seems to be a trend with the Eagles this year, and something that could eventually cost them in a crucial situation of a big game. We can all almost see it coming.
CRINGING COLLISION
Felix Jones’ 4-yard run in the third quarter wound up taking out Asante Samuel, who took a right knee into his head. Samuel was down for several minutes, no doubt shaking the cobwebs from his head. It was relieving to see Samuel leaving the field under his own power.
Maybe Asante should stop with this tackling stuff and stick what he does best—harassing wide receivers and picking off passes. It was later determined that Samuel had suffered a neck injury, replaced by Ellis Hobbs. The interesting twist is that Samuel later returned to the game—and Hobbs came off the field with a neck injury.
THE NEVER-ENDING QUARTER
Was it me, or did the third quarter seem like it lasted about five hours. It actually began at roughly 10:02 p.m. and ended at 11:01. But the monotony of the quarter seemed to drone on forever, slowed by injuries and two failed challenges, one by the Eagles, one by the Cowboys.
Joseph Santoliquito is an Emmy Award-nominated sportswriter based in the Philadelphia area.
