Top 6 Philadelphia sports stories for 2003

6. Eagles start 0-2 but go on a 9 game win streak and finish with a 12-4 record to once again win the NFC East and become the NFC's top seed for the playoffs.

5. Veterans Stadium sees its last football and baseball games (both losses) and the uber-corporate (but really nice) Lincoln Financial Field opens (with a loss).

4. Phillies lose wildcard race despite a great season from Jim Thome. The Phillies choke down the stretch gives the wildcard spot to the Marlins who go on to win the World Series.

3. Sixers lose to the Pistons in the playoffs then lose Larry Brown, the architect of their success, to the Pistons as well.

2. Flyers lose to Ottawa. After defeating Toronto in a great playoff series little is left for the next series vs. Ottawa. Another playoff failure, another finger pointed at the goaltender, and Clarke still maintains that goalies aren't that important.

1. Eagles lose to Tampa Bay. All that's been said has been said.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

And the Flygals Win!

Not only did the Flyers Trounce the Blues last night, but they did it convincingly (7-2) in a game where they didn't have to outshoot the opponent by a 2:1 margin. You know things go right, when Brashear can add one to the team's tally. Did anyone see old man Mellanby bang one home (and drop Ragnarsson on his can)? Makes me wanna get out my old jersey for a day! (Watch it Here!)

1 Win in the Last Nine

With the Eagles winning the NFC no one should be paying much attention to the Flyers. If you are then you've already noticed how they have fallen from the top of the NHL. They are still in first place in the Atlantic but second in the Eastern Conference behind Toronto. In their last game against the formidable Colorado Avs, the Flyers played excellent hockey for about 58 minuets, unfortunately NHL games are 60 minutes long. The Flyers allowed a tying goal with less than 2 minutes left in the game and then another goal in overtime. We could be optimistic and say that they managed to get 1 point on the road from a very difficult team, but then again Philly Fans are not known for their optimism. In other game notes Mike Comrie made his debut and played all of 6 minutes. Also Sami Kapinen left the game with an injury no report on how serious that may or may not be.
Tonight the Flyers face off with Hitchcock's former team, the Dallas Stars. This is not the same team Hitch helped win a cup; this team is hovering around 50%. Look for Hitch to pull out some magic and get this team back on track.

Eagles win NFC

On Saturday night the Eagles easily beat the pathetic Redskins. Of course with anything good comes the bad - Westbrook being hurt. The defense is patting itself on the back for holding the mighty Rock Cartwright under 100 yards as if that was an accomplishment. The offense appears to be able to move on anyone right now, although without Westbrook it will be more difficult, but the defense seems incapable to consistently stop anyone, except Tim Hassleback and the Washington offense.

Thanks to the Lions the Rams lost and looked bad doing it on Sunday. But thanks to the Cardinals and the Vikings (who suck) Green Bay is in the playoffs and that's who I fear. Green Bay can run the ball and throw the ball and their defense is pretty good plus they think they're on a mission from God right now. I'm sure James Thrash begs to differ however. But they all have to come to Philadelphia so Eagles have the advantage.

Eagles-Skins Preview

The Eagles meet the Redskins Saturday Night in a long rivalled series that has the Eagles 59-73-5 overall. This matchup, however, features an Eagles team that has outmatched the Redskins while under Andy Reid (6-3, winning the last four straight). And, just like last year's third to last game of the season, the Eagles can clinch the East with a win over this team. In fact, the Eagles must do the same, as a loss would be devastating, likely putting (combined with a Cowboy win) the Eagles on the road in Minnesota or Green Bay for the first round of the playoffs.

The Redskins have had a horrific season under second year wonderboy head coach, Steve Spurrier. Their offense ranks 12th in the NFC overall and 11th in both the run and pass game. Their defense is similarly poor overall with a 12 rank in the NFC. Expect the Eagles' running game to dominate Andy Reid's normally pass-happy game plan, since Washington is 14th in NFC total rush defense and 8th in total pass defense. In fact, the Skins' have given the interception stingy McNabb problems in the past (throwing ~40% more interceptions vs. the Skins than his career average per attempt). Assuming Buckhalter makes all of his meetings and walk throughs this week, the three headed monster should produce significant yardage this week (only three of the last games against the Skins have resulted in less than 100 rushing yards for the Birds).

Donovan McNabb, who got his first ever career start in 1999 against the Redskins (winning 35-28 with only 38 passing yards), should pick his game back up and play consistently on Saturday. No one understands better than McNabb the importance of Saturday Night's game, where the Eagles look to take their 12-1 prime time (and 14-2 after a loss) record under Reid to an even better mark and resume their momentum heading into the playoffs. McNabb will bounce back from last week's subpar outing as he did against the Redskins earlier this season after Limbaugh's racially toned comments. He knows well that the Redskins are +4 on the season in turnovers (vs. the Eagles' +2), and that two of Washington's turnovers came from his own hand in Week 5 (one by Trotter and the other by the solid CB, Fred Smoot). To be sure, McNabb will not produce a 300 yard game (he has only topped 200 yards in two of the eight games he's started against Washington), but he should be accurate and avoid turnovers this weekend.

This game will also provide an opportunity for the Emmons-less Eagles run defense to pick up some confidence, as the Redskins this year have only produced 105 yds/game on the ground. While Carlos Emmons has had some huge games in the past against Washington (leading the team in tackles in 2001 against the Skins, forcing a fumble and recovering one for a touchdown in 2002), the presence of two of our pro bowl defensive backs (all of whom were absent in week five), should be more than enough to stop the Skins this week.

Despite the last close matchup in Philly, the Eagles should cover the spread this weekend. Under Reid, the Eagles have averaged a point margin over the Redskins of 5.9 points. With one of the league's best red zone offenses (Philly: 61% efficiency) matching up against one of the worst red zone defenses (Washington: 60% opponent efficiency), the Eagles will win decisively. And, fans, enjoy watching Spurrier drop to 0-4 against Reid and the Eagles.

Eagles favored, again

12/27 8:30 PM ET BetWWTS Bet365 Intertops Skybook WSEX Philadelphia Washington -6.5 40.5 -6.5 40.5 -7 OFF -6.5 40.5 -6.5 40.5

•Matchup

Philadelphia fans come through

Last night, for Santa night, the Sixers brought back the guy that was dressed as Santa when the Eagles fans pelted him with snowballs back in the day. I'm happy to report that Philadelphia stood tall:

They booed Santa Claus in Philadelphia again last night. Thirty-five years to the month, with three local teams in first place, with a public-address announcer pleading for them to be good for goodness' sakes, 18,827 at the Wachovia Center greeted Frank Olivo in much the same manner he was greeted as a 20-year-old fill-in Santa during that infamous snow-splattered game at Franklin Field in 1968.

Actually I think he was 18 at the time but what do I know, I'm not a professional journalist. Read the real info on the original incident here. Important to note: the snowball throwing was in humor, as was last night's booing. Something lost on all the out of town Philly fan critics. It's fun to boo.

The Sixers won the game last night as well with Iverson sitting it out. Glenn Robinson scored a season-high 22 points, and Eric Snow added 14 points and 14 assists to lead the Sixers over Orlando. The white shadow, Kyle Korver had 16 points for the 76ers, who blew the game open with a 22-3 run in the fourth quarter on their way to victory.

Oh well, there's always next year

I feel this loss is pretty much the end of the season. The porous and depleted Eagles defense looked like Jeff Hackett trying to stop a wrist shot from center ice. Maybe losing Emmons was the clichéd straw that broke the camels back. Not having Troy Vincent in the game was also killer because Lito Sheppard sucks. Hey dumbass, knock the ball down, stop trying to intercept it. On the offensive side of the ball, Westbrook is the best player on this team, sorry Donovan. I would have put him back there to return the kickoff to start OT.

So this defense playing St. Louis in their dome does not look promising, if they even manage to get there. The defense looks done, spent, depleted and I don't see how they're going to recover or shore things up. The offense and Akers couldn't bail them out this game. Will we ever win? Not this year.

Flyers Showing Why They Won't Win Cup

Coming off of their incredible winning streak, the Flyers have in the last week shown why they simply cannot win a Stanley Cup with the current team. Two things are particularly alarming to a long-time follower:

1. The goaltending. Besides the bulk numbers of 23 saves on 28 shots, the goaltending is NOT stepping up to make big saves. I don't care how many goals can be "written off" to a bad error by a skater, the goalie has to make some key stops. That wins cups.
2. The overtime record of 2-3-8 doesn't speak well for the club. The past years' playoffs have shown that teams need to be able to win in overtime to win series. Granted the bogus point now received in the NHL for just making it to overtime is a factor... but bad habits develop out of logic like that. With Hitch at the helm, I'm surprised at this particular problem.

Granted, I only follow these guys in print (a loud "boo" to Comcast!) nowadays, but am I missing something?

Fly, Eagles, Fly!
Big Daddy B

All like Eagles

Joe Theismann	Merril Hoge	Sean Salisbury	Mark Schlereth
Eagles	Eagles	Eagles	Eagles
Mike Golic	Eric Allen	Ron Jaworski	C. Mortensen
Eagles	Eagles	Eagles	AWOL

All week 15 picks here.

Damn, 7.5 points

12/21 4:15 PM ET BetWWTS Bet365 Intertops Skybook WSEX San Francisco Philadelphia 41 -7.5 41 -7.5 41 -7.5 OFF 41 -7.5

•Matchup

Flyers Make A Deal

Before losing tonite to the Flames, the Flygals traded defensive prospect Woywitka and two draft picks to the Oilers for holdout Mike Comrie. Does Comrie have enough fire power to center a few more goals for the Flyers? Based on tonite's production of 37 shots with only two goals, the deal seems like a positive one. I'll wait for more commentary from the hockey afficianados (Chilly?) to make up my mind.

Eagles-Niners Preview

Coming off a huge, tough MNF win and a short week, the Philadelphia Eagles will attempt to extend their winning streak to 10 games this weekend at home against the San Francisco 49ers. In a series owned by the Niners (Eagles are 7-16-1 vs. Niners) the Eagles look to better balance that record to an even 33% win percentage. More importantly, the Eagles will be aiming to avoid a classic trap game to stay a notch above the Rams in the battle for home field advantage in the playoffs.

Unlike past years, where the Niners pretty much dominated the Eagles (behind their own "million dollar" three-headed backfield of the fifties and Super Bowl teams of the 80's and 90's), the Eagles have recently outmatched this team, winning last year's MNF contest with an inspirational game by 2nd string quarterback Koy Detmer and outplaying them in 2001 (but scoring only 3 pts on two posessions inside the Niner 5 - including the infamous six straight plays inside the SFO 2, where the Eagles couldn't get a touchdown). Expect a competitive game this year from both teams, despite the Niners' ousting from this year's playoffs.

For a team that ranks 2nd in total offense, 3rd in total defense, and 2nd (tied) in the NFC in turnovers, the 49ers sure have a deceptive record at 6-8. They've lost games this year due to: 1) special teams weaknesses; and, 2) a weak red zone game. The Niners rank 14th in the NFC in average gross yards per punt (remember, Eagles signed and shortly thereafter dropped the horrid punter Jeff Baker from SFO last year), average yards per punt return, and field goal percentage (68.8%). In the Red Zone, the 49ers are at the bottom of the league offensively and defensively. And, in regard to clutch situations, the Niners have also failed to convert on fourth down, while allowing opponents to regularly convert their third and fourth down opportunities.

This game may yield another shootout (Vincent will not play), which is a situation and style that Big Daddy does not like to see the Eagles regularly compete in. With Garcia coming off a 300+ yd passing game and being named the NFC player of week two weeks ago, this game is anything but in the bag for the Birds. Additionally, the Niners feature a solid running game in both Hearst and Barlow to balance the pass. Expect last weekend's disappointing loss in Cincinnatti to add further fuel to SFO's desire to spoil the Eagles' run. But, with an 0-7 road record this season, expect the Eagles to prove - when all is said and done - too hot to stop for the Niners. Akers and dare I say Johnson will be the difference in this game.

Fly, Eagles, Fly!
Big Daddy B

Eagles make it NINE straight

Surprising most, the Eagles/Dolphins game was a high scoring affair. Reid for the most part called an excellent game. His only miscues were when he tried to get cute on the goal line but quickly got wise and just ran it in. The Eagles' defense still looked suspect but fortunately the Eagles' offense was on drugs and Miami had to play from behind for most of the game. Westbrook showed himself to be the best receiver on the team catching Freddie Mitchell's underthrow. Thrash showed how weak he is by not replicating Westbrook's catch on a very similar play.

The refs in this game were pretty bad but it didn't matter. Next up is San Francisco, a team that just lost on the road badly to the Bengals. It's looking good for the Eagles.

Proud to be a Philadelphia fan

There are reports of 20,000 Eagles fans in Miami for the game tonight which makes me a little proud. But these letters in yesterday's Phildelphia Inquirer really warmed my heart.

Re: George Hill's letter (Dec. 7) about his grandson's birthday disappointment at the Nov. 16 Giants-Eagles game.

Life is full of disappointments, Mr. Hill, and age 16 isn't too young to start learning about it. Nearly everyone knows that football fan(atic)s can be pretty rowdy at times, even when fans of opposing teams aren't sitting in the same section with them.

But get real. I'm sure your grandson, "big Giants fan" that he is, was wearing Giants colors when he went into Lincoln Financial Field. I'm also sure your son-in-law was aware of the potential hostility.

The fact that they didn't get stomped, especially after foolishly asking a bunch of "ignorant, drunken bullies" to stop "harassing" your grandson, was an act of God. You are unrealistic to expect these fans to refrain from expressing their dissatisfaction with your grandson's allegiance to the Giants.

Could you really believe that if the Eagles-Giants game had been played in the Meadowlands and a couple of Eagles fans were sitting in a sea of blue and were being harassed for wearing green, anyone would come to their defense? Fugetaboutit.

C.T. Lang
Voorhees

In response to a letter about the bullies ruining their trip at the Linc in Section 115, if you go to the game, you know that Philadelphia fans are very passionate fans. People who go the games and wear shirts, jackets, etc., with the opposing team are going to get ridiculed, mocked and made fun of. My advice is simple: Don't wear clothing from the opposing team if you know that this stuff happens. If you do wear the stuff to the Linc, expect to be mocked and ridiculed.

Phil Haddad
Boyertown, Pa.

I wonder if "C.T. Lang" is the letter writer's real name.

The Flyers Can't Beat the Devils!

We knew this home at home series was gonna be big. In the first game of the home at home series the Flyers found themselves in familiar territory at the end of the first, they were down 2-0. But the Flyers have been good at playing from behind. Sami Kapinen, who was still mad about some broken teeth, rallyed the troop and would end up with a goal and two assists. The scoring went something like this, first Primeau finds Kapinen for a goal and then Kapinen finds Brashear for another. Then in the third Elias bangs one in for the Devils. And finally the man of the night Sami Kapinen would set Primeau up for the tying goal.

"We can draw a lot of positives from tonight's game," said Primeau. "We came here with the intention of winning, but we came back twice and that is a good sign. We'll draw from those positives and go home to try to keep it going."

And what did the coach have to say:

"I've said this before, that the psychological part of it is just staying with it. That's a huge step, and a step we needed to take. Previous times we maybe would have gotten discouraged, but not anymore."

So now on to round two. The stage is set, here at home, in the Wacko center, with the undefeated streak on the line. A game that is very big in deed. You see for this game ChillyV had extra special tickets courtsey of none other than the former Captain Mr. Ed Van Impe himself! So I find myself sitting just behind the bench in anticipation of one of the greatest hockey match-ups in sports history. Surely my team was ready to put on a show for me! And what do I get? I get three periods of JACK SHIT! I end up watching the best goalie in the NHL get his seventh shut out of the season.

Right from the begining this game had a playoff feel to it. Very tight and very close. Nothing really happened in the first. Then Grant Marshall scored in the in the second. His shot came from the circle deflected off of Joni Pitkanen's stick and found Jeff Hackett's five-hole. In the third period the Flyers would get a much needed power play and a golden oppritunity to tie the game, but 40 seconds into the power play Primeau gets called for interference. They replayed the penalty up on the jumbo-tron and I sure didn't see it. I did however see Pitkanen jump over the board for a classic rookie mistake, and get called for too many men on the ice. New Jersey's Mike Rupp scored on the following powerplay, it was his third of the year all of which were against the Flyers.

The team fired a total of 72 shots at Brodeur in the two games but still managed to leave the series with only one point! In addition to the home unbeaten streak being stopped at 11, Hackett's personal unbeaten streak was also stopped at 11. His last lost was also to the Devils.

Fortunately for the Flyers the Devils won't be back until February 10th. That gives them plenty of games to figure out what went wrong and what to do next time. But if the Flyers can't face this psychological deamon that Hitch speaks of, then all those games don't really matter. After all you can spend the entire season beating everyone except for Jersey and Ottwa and you'll probably end up in first place. But if you can't beat the Devils, and you can't beat Ottwa then you can't get to the cup!

Philly Area High School Powerhouse Takes Title

Yes, you guessed it... The Concord Raiders took the High School Division II title against Archmere on Saturday and began the Big Daddy football sweep of the season (Read More). Now, only UD and the Eagles have to follow suit. Chattanooga showdown to begin next weekend!

Oh, and for all of you geography purists... Yes, of course, I know Concord is not a bona-fide Philly team, but I've got no other place to share the very mild excitement.

ESPN pundits like Eagles

Joe Theismann	Merril Hoge	Sean Salisbury	Mark Schlereth
Eagles	Dolphins	Dolphins	Eagles
Mike Golic	Eric Allen	Ron Jaworski	C. Mortensen
Eagles	Eagles	Dolphins	AWOL

All week 15 picks here.

Time to prove something

Tonight and Saturday is the time for the Flyers to step up and beat the Devils. Otherwise anything they've done up until now is pretty much worthless. The Flyers have lost only once in the last 18 games - to Ottawa. Guess who they lost to before the 18 game streak began.

The Devils have only lost once in the last seven meetings with the Flyers and of course more importantly have been superior to the Flyers in the postseason, where it really matters.

So if the Flyers want to make Keith Jones look good they need to prove they can beat New Jersey. And if they want to get more people to become true believers in this team 3pts from the home and home is necessary. So Flyers, step and show us you're for real.

Jonesey Responds to the Blog!

Answering the fabled question, "Will we ever win?" and calling it like he sees it... Jonesey this morning, live on 610 WIP, predicted that in the next twelve months there will be at least one Philly team to win a championship. He even went so far as to say up to three Philly teams might pull it off. Rhea responded that she thought he was on drugs. Al added that Keith always picks the Flyers to win it all. What do you think? (Oh, and check out Philly.com to see some great coverage of Wing Bowl, where Kalil puts down a 2ft sub in four minutes.)

Dolphins favored

11/30 1:00 PM ET BetWWTS Bet365 Intertops Skybook WSEX Philadelphia Miami 37 -1.5 37 -1.5 OFF OFF 37 -2 37 -2

•Matchup

McNabb To Lead Eagles Against Miami

The headline after McNabb's 2000 victorious matchup against his 1999 draft counterpart, Ricky Williams (Saints), read: "For one game, at least, Donovan McNabb proved he was the right pick for the Philadelphia Eagles." Indeed, McNabb passed for a then career high 222 yards, going 20/32 with two touchdowns, while Ricky Williams fumbled twice to mar his 103 yard rushing performance. And, up until that game, McNabb hadn't really had a breakout game (fellow draftmates Couch and Culpepper were off to better career starts). The resilient McNabb afterward exclaimed much like earlier this season, "I never had a problem with losing my confidence."

This Monday's Eagles' contest against the Miami Dolphins features that same matchup, wherein McNabb will be able to show once again that he was the right choice for the Eagles. This time, however, that saga is surpassed (much like the "hate the Boys" motivation was secondary last week) by the fact that the Eagles are playing to shore up their hold on the NFC East, get a first round bye, and obtain home field throughout the playoffs. You see, the Eagles have their fate in their own hands. And, winning out and taking an 11 game winning streak right into the playoffs would be fine by even most Philly fans' standards.

The Eagles, however, are winless in Miami in five attempts and 3-7 overall. The last time the Eagles played Miami (1999), Jimmy Johnson's Dolphins were without their starting quarterback, Dan Marino. And, even though their starter (Fiedler) is questionable for Monday, the Dolphins probably will not suffer from a lackluster offensive showing.

Keys to the game:

• Contain Ricky Williams. Although he has already run for 1,000+ yards, he is only averaging 3.3 yds/carry, which is not as good as some of the other runners the Eagles have faced so far this season. In fact, Green, McAllister, Davis, and Barber are all better in runs per carry and total yards on the season.
  
• Avoid turnover mistakes. This Miami team is positive in turnover ratio (+2) with individual AFC leaders in the interceptions, fumble recoveries, and sacks department. Their 15th ranked (out of 16 teams) AFC offense does not need any help.
  
• Establish a passing game early. Although the Dolphins feature a solid run defense, their passing defense is near the bottom of the AFC. Give McNabb the ball and hope some receivers can catch this week.

The Eagles will need a solid performance on both sides of the ball to take their Monday Night record under Reid to 6-1. However with a solid red zone offense (Philadelphia) going against the best red zone defense in the league (Miami), the Eagles get the edge on two counts: 1) they have an excellent red zone defense themselves; and, 2) they have David Akers, who might be the difference in the game in a Phi-Mia series where only two games have been decided by nine or more points.

Come From Behind to beat Montreal

After getting trapped in Boston under the storm of the century of the week the Flyers got into Montreal a little late. I think they were feeling tired, and that caused them to get off to a slow start. They found themselves down 1-0 at the end of the second thanks to Hackett. Hackett stood on his head and made some truly impressive saves, however he also made a truly bone headed turn over that cost his team a goal. However in the third period the Flyers would tie it up with a goal from Kim Johnsson. Shortly after that the Canadiens reclaimed their lead with a bizzare side angle shot from Pierre Dagenais. Ragnarson would tie it up with a nice one-timer with near the end of the third. John LeClair took the opportunity to score one more goal on his former team with only 1:13 left in the game. That makes 30 goals in 32 games against his former team. One other note, Robert Esche was sidelined with a pulled groin so Phantoms goalie Antero Niittymaki was the back up for Hackett. Canadien Recap, Eh.

Players generally don't like to blame the outcome of the game on the officals but I'm not a player, I'm a fan! So I will happly take the chance to criticize Don VanMassenhoven. He either needs to get his eyes checked or stop betting on hockey games, He was clearly not calling this game fairly. Early in the game he called goalie interference on Primeau and the replay showed otherwise. Fortunately the other ref (Eric Furlatt) decided to throw out a make up call to keep things fair. Later in the game VanMassenhoven just stared at an OBVIOUS trip when Jeremy Roenick was on a breakaway. Then near the end of the game Justin Williams gets whacked in the face with a stick and Crapenhoven gives him the ol' deer caught in the headlights look. Its bad enough to watch your team struggle to win, but when they have to play against an opponent and the officials as well thats just not right.

One last thing, was that Michael Handzus in the fight? Ok, you could barely call it a fight but he did drop the gloves. Get 'em 'Zus!

Is McNabb Back? (Including a Technical Answer)

Big Daddy declared McNabb to be back after the Atlanta game, as his performance in that game was on par with similar stats put up by other teams' quarterbacks vs. the Falcs. His performance since then has not only proven that Big Daddy was correct, but that McNabb is producing at an even higher level than ever before in his career.

The following chart shows the passer rating of all of McNabb's career games (red triangles). All seven of his last games have exceeded his career average rating of 77.5 (orange line). Also displayed are the rolling seven game average (blue line) and rolling seven game standard deviation (magenta line) trends.


What is immediately noticeable on the chart is that McNabb has recovered from his most recent nose dive and is trending upward as the Eagles head into the playoffs this year. In fact, his seven game rolling average is at a career high and his consistency (gauged by the standard deviation line: small is good) is at a near best for him. This high passer performance AND consistency has only happened two other times in his career and yielded playoff overachievement for the team in the 2000 and 2001 seasons. Not only can fans be encouraged by that, but the overall trend upward in McNabb's career passer rating numbers seem to indicate that he hasn't peaked yet and holds more potential.

For a guy that was ripped by NFL analysts, Rush Limbaugh, and even his own city's fans, McNabb sure has a lot to be proud of so far this season. He not only has the numbers now to prove it, but he is a winner and all around class guy. Let's see if McNabb wins next Monday's battle number two against his draft foe, Ricky Williams. Or, more importantly, we can watch to see if he takes this team to the Superbowl! If he accomplishes the latter, there will be no more debates about the man and his $115MM contract.

Big Daddy B

Eskin Keeps His Job

Yes, that's about the only negative from today's smashing of the cock-a-roaches... the "King of Bling" will remain on our local sports airwaves indefinitely longer. Today's Eagles game demonstrated that they are the superior team in the NFC East, as the Eagles rolled onto their eighth straight victory (second ever / 1980) by man-handling the nameless and over-achieved Cowboys. Apart from giving up some decent run yards, the Eagles' defense shut down the Boys and their offense picked apart the supposedly solid Dallas D. SGW's pick was looking pretty darned close, until Bucky pounded home that last touchdown.

The Eagles (arguably the hottest team in the entire league) look forward to a great Monday Night matchup next weekend against Miami as they try to win their ninth straight single season game - a feat accomplished only once in their history (in 1960, when they won the league Championship).

Fly, Eagles, Fly!
Big Daddy B

Could We Be Wrong About Hackett?

It's hard to get everyone to agree on one thing, but around these parts most of us agree that Hackett is not the Stanley Cup goal tender that the Flyers have been looking for. However this morning I checked in on the goalie ranking over at thehockeynews.com and they have Hackett ranked at THIRD! Esche is holding steady at 6th. And for those of us (myself included) who were shocked that Clarke would choose Hackett over Checkmanek, well he's floating down around 24th. Is it time for me to ask Santa for a Hackett jersey or maybe I should start driving the Hackett bandwagon. Or is the Philly curse gonna turn him to swiss cheese just in time for the playoffs?

Dallass sucks

Joe Theismann	Merril Hoge	Sean Salisbury	Mark Schlereth
Cowboys	Eagles	Eagles	Eagles
Mike Golic	Eric Allen	Ron Jaworski	C. Mortensen
Eagles	Eagles	Eagles	AWOL

All week 14 picks here.

Rush at it again?

Ok, "aside from the overtones of violence" in the "threats," ya think Rush is behind this conspiracy (Read Here)? The opinions (violence aside) aren't that far from some of the stuff he has publically stated before. Could he lead such an effort from a rehab center? (No, I'm not serious, but geez!)

I don't even think race, when I watch football. It's amazing others can emphasize such a secondary matter in the game (or life for that matter). Ever since Rush's McNabb comments, though, Donovan and the Eagles have rallied, so maybe opinions by ignoramouses like these will only help the game (no, that's not a justification for more, but rather an observation that comments like that often strengthen the one targetted).

Big Daddy B

At-a-Hitch!

From the AP wire:

"Philadelphia coach Ken Hitchcock said he knew the Flyers were going to win the game. How did he know? 'Because we are a better team,'' Hitchcock said. ``We have more talent. We are deeper, we have a good work ethic. I knew we were going to win the game. Pittsburgh is not going to beat us at home.'"

Now, I'm a huge fan of Hitch and believe him to be one of the brightest spots of the team. But, was it really that sure of a win, or is this one up there with his Ottawa psycho comment the other day? It sure isn't something you'd hear out of the mouth of Andy Reid before or after ANY game (granted less parity in the NHL than in the NFL, but...). Man, if Hitch was that sure, then I better get on this bandwagon as soon as the Eagles' season is over. I think one of the rare public network games is on this Friday, anyway!

Eagles-Boys Preview

The last turn of the tide came with the arrival of Andy Reid in 1999, when on Oct. 10 the Eagles handed the Cowboys a loss at the Vet in Reid's first ever NFL head coaching victory. Not surprisingly, AR's post game remark was, ""I'm going to get a big cheeseburger tonight." Since their prior matchup in 1998, the Cowboys have not won a game in Philadelphia and have little hope to turn the tide on Sunday.

Notwithstanding the Cowboys' #1 ranked defense in the NFC, their respectable passing game (6th in NFC), and an extended rest following a disappointing Thanksgiving Day loss to the Dolphins, the advantage Sunday significantly sways in favor of the Eagles. The Cowboys have not won in Philly since 1998, are 2-7 vs. the Eagles under Andy Reid, and have been outscored 117-248 in that same era. Additionally, the Eagles' defensive performance has been undercut by the total yardage statistics, as their forte this year has been based on key stops in the red zone (2nd in the NFC), forced turnovers (+1 on the season after starting the first two weeks -7), and capitalizing on red zone offensive opportunities (7th in the league at 55.6% vs. the Boys 42.9%). Additionally, Andy Reid's squad is a respectable 10-5 at home in December.

A look to just this season's performances by the two NFC East leaders further supports a Philly win on Sunday. Heck, Dallas this year lost to a miserable Atlanta team in week 1. They also barely beat the Eagles in week 5 after being spotted 7 points on AR's bonehead onside kick call. Considering the stretch of play of McNabb at the time and Andy Reid's inability to call for more runs, today's Eagles are a different team. McNabb is coming off a November NFC Offensive Player of the Month, where he posted a 103.4 passer rating. That combined with the productive three headed running game is sure to thwart the Cowboys' prior blitzing schemes that stalled the Eagles in week 5.

Granted, the Eagles don't put up the best numbers. But, expect to see a score higher than that of the Cowboys on Sunday. And, expect the Cowboys to show that they still have some growing to do under their wonder boy coach. (If you still aren't convinced, realize that this town isn't blessed enough to see Eskin lose his job that easily.)

Fly, Eagles, Fly!
Big Daddy B

For Who[sic], For What?

Eagle fans, that is the question I challenge you with this week as we head into one of the season's most highly anticipated games: Eagles vs. Cowboys. What is this game really all about? It's easy to become defocussed when such a great matchup meaningfully comes to town this time of year.

But, is Sunday all about the arch-rival Cowboys losing? Is it about bounties for downed Cowboy players (Buddy Ryan, 1989)? Is this about tarnishing a team's Super Bowl season (cough, cough) by busting a brainiac Switzerian double shot at fourth and one (1995, leading to an Eagles' game winning field goal)? Is it about despising an obnoxious stand-out two way player (Deion)? Is it about putting a pretty boy quarterback on the ground in the first quarter with a concussion (1997... there was also an 11 sack Aikman game somewhere in there)? Is it hoping for a moment to cheer a seriously (career ending) injured star receiver motionless on the ground (1999's Tim Hauck hit on Irvin)?

No, my fellow Eagle fans. While all of those moments were classic in this great rivalry of the times, the times they have changed. No bounties from AR; no Super Bowl for this year's Cowboys; no fourth and one mirages from Parcels; no big mouth hot shots in blue and gray (although Fox's pregame will feature that buffoon); and, it's just hard to hate any of the individual Cowboys right now. You see, this year features a more competitive Cowboy team than the last few and the rivalry is renewed; but, this week is about the Eagles winning. It is about the Eagles heading to 10-3 and taking over firm control of the Division. It is about extending their winning streak to eight games and proving McNabb right after this year's first matchup, where he shortly afterwards exclaimed with confidence: "We have to beat everybody we play. We should have won last week's game (against Dallas)... Everyone knows that in order to win the NFC, you have to go through Philly."

You see, watching Dallas lose is a great thing. And, all of us should enjoy witnessing that this coming Sunday. However, last Thanksgiving's Miami game should have been the last time this season Eagle fans focus so much on that, because this Eagle team is about bigger and better things than a Dallas loss at the Linc. It is primarily about heading back to the NFC Championship with homefield advantage, momentum, and confidence (regardless of the opponent). Our road to this main goal only conveniently happens to involve a crossing path against the Cowboys this weekend, which is icing on the cake (but not the cake itself).

Dallass Sucks

12/7 1:00 PM ET BetWWTS Bet365 Intertops Skybook WSEX Dallass Philadelphia 36.5 -5.5 36.5 -6 OFF -5.5 36.5 -6 37 -5.5

•Matchup

Streak Snapped at 12

The Flyers have been nothing short of amazing lately. Blanced scoring, outstanding goaltending and all around good play but every winning streak must come to an end. Unfortunatley for the Flyers, the Senaturds seem to be good at stopping the Flyers (see '01 and '02 playoffs for more information). The Senators pulled out to a two goal lead with a pair of flukey goals from Martin Havlat. Primeau came very close to sparking a comeback with a rare 5 on 3 short-handed goal. But in the end it was young goalie, Marty Prusek who would steal the spotlight with some incredible saves. In the second period Prusek was absolutely astounding, looking a lot like a young Dominick Hasek in net. Coach Hitchcock was quick with some comments after the game.

I think there are some psychological issues that need to get dealt with. Whether we've got to draw them out or whatever, I think those are real and they've got to get dealt with.

Kenny can blame it on some Psychobabble bull crap but I disagree. Prusek stopped 31 of 32 shots. It was a loss to a quality team. Now if the Flyers lose to the Penguins tomorrow night then we can talk about Psychological issues. Until then I'd like to point out that the Flyers are number one in points, number one power play percentage and since that was a road game they are still undefeated at home. Go Flyers! NHL.com Recap.

Football gods smile on Eagles yet again

The 2 point conversion versus the Redskins, Westbrook's punt return, Favre's and Green Bay's fumbling, week after week giving up 100+ yards rushing, and now Kasay missing 3 field goals and an extra point. Eagles keep earning improbable wins, keep getting the breaks, keep making 1 or 2 crucial clutch plays. The Eagles have the heart and just enough talent but the breaks thing, that's the part that's throwing me off. Is this really a Philadelphia team?