Well, that sucked

Eagles get blown out once again in the first quarter. Defense stops nothing, offense goes nowhere. Same old sad story, same pathetic effort. The Eagles think they won the Super Bowl or something and seem to have forgotten they're also rans just like everyone else but the Patriots. Another brilliant scripted first 15 plays from Andy Reid. I think they gained 1 or 2 yards while going 3 and out 4 straight times and blowing a timeout. Maybe there was one run in the mix. This is what they practiced all week. Then notice when the Eagles started to get back into the game the pass and run was evenly balanced? Gee, once again the idiots sitting at home appear to know more than Andy Reid does about how to play football. Once the Eagles started running the Broncos suddenly stopped getting to McNabb in 3 seconds. But then of course when everything was starting to go the Eagles way and they were poised to tie the game, McNabb tosses up one of his back breaking interception specials that he's perfected over the years. Once that happened the game was really over and the defense proceeded to make it official and didn't bother to make a stop for the rest of the game. Great job chumps! I expected you to lose but I didn't expect you to do it so miserably.

Eagles road underdog

10/30 4:15 PM ET	Opening	BetWWTS	Sportsbook	Intertops	BoDog	WSEX
Philadelphia @ Denver	43.5 -3	42.5 -3.5	42.5 -3.5	42.5 -3.5	42.5 -3.5	42.5 -3.5

Matchup

Clarke, fighting, etc.

In this article about the NHL deciding appropriate penalties for shots to the head, Clarke said this:

"I'm not sure making it a long suspension sends a message," Clarke said. "Look what happened two years ago when [Ottawa's Martin] Havlat took a stick to Mark Recchi's face. And now he goes and kicks a player [Boston's Hal Gill] in the groin.

"Did Havlat learn anything from two years ago? I don't think so. Sometimes, the old law of the jungle was the best way to solve these things. Have a player go out and kick the crap out of him."

Clarke of course did the same crap back in the day but he had a retinue of goons to protect him from retribution. But he does have a point. The new NHL is definitely better and way more entertaining but it's unfortunately come at the expense of crushing hits and fighting. Fighting is definitely being phased out, slowly but surely. There has only been one fight in the Flyers 6 games. And if Brashear isn't fighting, why is he even dressed?

Fighting isn't just stupid goonery like critics claim. It is a deterrent to cheap shot artists like Havlat but also serves strategic purposes. Just last night Carolina was sluggish and down 2-0 to Ottawa. Jesse Boulerice fights Brian McGrattan, the Hurricanes finally start playing, the game turns around, and Carolina wins 3-2.

The NHL's lame justification for the cheap, gimmicky shoot-out is "nobody leaves". Nobody leaves during a fight either. Nobody stays in their seat during a fight and it often is the loudest cheer other than a goal. And besides, the Flyers need a justification for keeping Donald Brashear on the roster.

A win is a win

I'm lazy and didn't feel like working to come up with a clever headline so I went with a tired cliche. Sorry.

Anyway, this game is really difficult to figure out and write about. On one hand the Eagles totally deserved to win. When you hold Ladainian Tomlinson to 7 yards rushing and make him, and the running game, disappear you deserve to win. When you shut down and shut out San Diego for almost 3 quarters you deserve to win. On the other hand, when you don't blitz and give up a 3rd and 19, when you blow a 10-0 lead, and when you almost get tied with seconds remaining, you deserve to lose. (Thank you Sheldon Brown, you saved the game). When your offense pass/run ratio is 80%/20% and you gain 24 yards total rushing, when you can't make a yard on 4th down, when you stupidly get sacked out of field goal range, when you can't call plays fast enough and waste 3 timeouts on one drive, when you totally blow it at the end of the first half with a stupid play, when you average 3 yards a pass completion in the second half, when McNabb plays terrible, when Reid coaches terrible, and when you go three and out on all your possessions but one in the second half, you deserve to lose. But the Eagles won anyway thanks to the special teams that played good all day (except for that one Dirk Johnson shank).

But in the end this game really came down to luck. You don't win many games by blocking field goals and getting the ball to bounce perfectly into a guy's hands so he can sprint down the sideline untouched. In the Eagles entire history they've never returned a blocked field goal for a touchdown until this game. So I will bring this post full circle and close with another cliche -- in this game it was better to be lucky than good.

Sixers recognized

The Sixers new season starts in a few weeks and Allen Iverson and Chris Webber have been singled out for special attention by Sports Illustrated. Webber is #4 and Iverson is #10 on their "All-Poison Team".

Webber stands out by virtue of his penchant for being traded, his second home on the injury list (where he is right now), his complaining about the Sixers offense (Iverson), and his "creaky knees". No mention was made of his calling timeout when there are none left in NCAA championship games or lying to grand juries about accepting money illegally from Michigan boosters.

Iverson makes the cut thanks to what he is known best for -- his love of shooting alot a lot of bricks while the rest of his team watches. Overlooked by Sports Illustrated were racial fights in bowling alleys, recording bigoted rap records, sporting some really bad tattoos, and the recent dress code complaining.

Will Cheeks make a difference with this team? Sure the Sixers have talent in a weak conference but Webber and Iverson are 2 "superstars" that have never grasped how to truly play as a team and I don't think Cheeks (or anyone else) can change that.

Eagles favored

10/23 1:00 PM ET	Opening	BetWWTS	Sportsbook	Intertops	BoDog	WSEX
San Diego @ Philadelphia	47 -4	47 -4	47 -3.5	OFF -4	OFF -3.5	47 -4

Matchup

PATHETIC

Since I don't have the finger stamina to type everything the Eagles did as horribly as it could be done, I'll just list the good things.

• 4th and goal stop was nice
• Greg Lewis made a nice catch
• Wynn had good coverage on that one punt
• Rod Hood made one good play
• TO had 2 nice pick ups
• That 1, 3 and out was nice
• Nice play by Sheppard and Brown

In trying to decide the Eagles player of the game it's really a toss-up between France and Johnson. Both had productive days and nice tackles so either one would work for me.

Same Old Routine?

Well, October 5th is here. For many of us, it's just a normal day of routine. I'm sure you got up, did a triple S (s*it, shower, and shave), maybe had some breakfast, and then got in your car, driving off to work for the man. But in your commute, perhaps you turned on WIP and heard Angelo (in between whining about a bunch of somethings and nothings) talk about how tonight, the Flyers open the regular season against the Rangers. Then something might have clicked, because a night of hockey certainly is not routine. Then again, we're talking about the Flyers and if history proves itself, they'll screw it up again, as losing is certainly part of the routine they've been stuck in for almost 30 years.

But will this year be different? Has Clarke and company done their homework and finally put the team together that will bring the Cup back to Broad Street? I defiantly think so, but then again, I've been saying that since the 4th grade and have absolutely nothing to show for it. Really though, when you break it down on paper, they have a great shot.

Forget Forsberg, we know if he stays healthy (he sat for all of preseason after ankle surgery except for one game, and it's noteworthy that he looked great and scored in that game) he'll be a natural leader, both in stats and in playoff experience. Hatcher? I'm not sure about him, as again, it's an injury issue (not to mention his physical style of play is frowned upon by the NHL's new set of "rules"), but Hitch loves him so he'll add depth to an already deep blue line (with the exception of Therien, he blows). Rathje was a pleasure to watch during preseason and Knuble, although he shows some of his age, will add to the Flyers already strong offense (however, fat chicks in spandex with their old Tocchet jerseys will hate this dude, as he sports number 22).

The media is pointing to Gagne as one of the Flyers stars, and I agree with them. He'll have a break out year. Still, the dudes we all should keep an eye on are the young guys, as they'll make the difference this year folks. Full-time Phlexheads Ron and OB did some serious scouting last year on Carter and Richards, who both contributed well in preseason, but I think the guy to focus on is Jon Sim. Finishing with 8 goals in 7 games during the preseason, he certainly seems to have kept the spark from last year and will be a guy to get the puck to on the powerplay.

Johnsson will be the defenseman that will carry the team (maybe he can teach Pitkanen a thing or two in the process, or Desjardins can will him some experience, as he's due to kick the bucket any day now) and once Kapanen comes back in December (out with a shoulder injury), he'll add some grit and guts that only a dude who's 5 foot 9 can. Look for Primeau to impress Wood even more with some late game heroics, and let's all pray that Handzus gets a f'n haircut.

Besides the ever evident possibility of injuries ripping the team apart, the only problem one can foresee is goaltending. Nittymaki was one of the main reasons the Troll was sipping from the Calder Cup last year, and in his first three NHL starts two years ago, he went 3 and 0 letting in a total of only 3 goals. I'll be honest in saying he looked a bit shaky in the preseason, but once he has some more games under his belt, he'll most defiantly give Esche a run for the starting spot. Still, one cannot forget the performance Esche gave during the 03-04 playoffs, and with that experience, I think he'll be the guy to carry the team deep into the post season. I should also mention he was spotted riding the Zamboni around City Hall last month, tossing hats to those in attendance, and when I yelled out, "Good luck this year Eschey," he replied, "Thanks buddy." Now that he and I are buddies, I think he'll do an alright job (he's gotta paint over the Kid Rock portrait on his helmet though).

The NHL may be banking on the Flyers as well, for the new home of weekly games, the OLN, has picked tonight's game as the national one to televise (some are pissed they won't be watching Crosby make his NHL debut). Those who shelled out money to actually be at the Wachovia Center tonight will be treated to a plethora of goodies, most notably the "Back Where We Belong" t-shirt and a sweet Flyers bandana to twirl when Jager gets crunched into the boards. It should also be noted that many National experts have picked the Flyers as early Cup favorites, although most of the dudes at ESPN favor the Flames.

So it's another year of Flyers hockey friends. Another year of worrying. Another aching pit in our stomachs come June when the same old routine can ring true: an early exit from the playoffs, leaving us only with a question we are all so tired of asking, "Will we ever win?" This year, I think the answer is, "Yes."

Well, I do not think it yet, I just hope it for right now. After all, being a bit reserved is a part of a Flyers fan routine.

Eagles favored, of course

10/09 4:15 PM ET	Opening	BetWWTS	Sportsbook	Intertops	BoDog	WSEX
Philadelphia @ DallASS	-3.5 44.5	-3 44.5	-3.5 44.5	-3 OFF	-3.5 OFF	-3 45.5

Matchup

A Tale of Two Kansas Cities

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was a half of wisdom, it was a half of foolishness, it was the half of belief, it was the half of incredulity, it was the football season of Light, it was the football season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, Kansas City had everything going for them, we had nothing going for us, they were all going direct to the Super Bowl, we were all going direct the other way- in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest fans insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.

The defense was horrible, then the defense was great. Priest Holmes was running through the Eagles with ease for early part of the first half and picked up most of his 87 yards. The Chiefs' play calling and formation shifting was keeping the defense off-balance and on top of that they weren't ready to play. The defense couldn't stop anything. Then after the Chiefs went up 17-0 a switch was flicked. FOX reported from the sideline that Dawkins told the defense that Kansas City isn't going to score on them again -- and he was almost right. Sheldon Brown started the Eagles resurrection by tricking Green into thinking he was covering long but then covered short, read the play, and returned the interception for 6. The special teams immediately squandered that momentum however by botching the extra-point and even worse, allowed a TD on the kickoff return. But Kearse, who finally had an impact game, disrupted the play on the Larry Johnson fumble which Rayburn recovered and the Eagles got the momentum back and scored off the turnover right before the half. By the second half things had turned around so well for the defense that Brown got another important interception off a lucky deflection. This never happens. Usually those deflected and tipped balls fall harmlessly to the ground, always a few agonizing inches out of reach.

The offense wasn't horrible, just sputtering and not warmed up, then the offense couldn't be stopped. Kansas City probably wanted to cover Owens but then again maybe it was their plan to leave him constantly wide open. And the amazing part is that if McNabb was more accurate with his long throws the Eagles could have had 50 or more points. The Chiefs did shut down Westbrook and the Eagles paltry running game, but that's all they did. And by focusing so much on Westbrook they allowed LJ Smith to have a big game. Once the Eagles started coming back, the Chiefs defense became panicked and clueless. McNabb and the offense did anything they wanted, and the bounces all went their way too. McNabb's final stats were 33 of 48 for 369 yards and three TDs. Imagine if he wasn't hurt.

The special teams were "special", then the special teams were special. In the first half the special teams were directly responsible for a swing of 19 points - kickoff return fumble that led to 7 for KC, blocked field goal, botched hold on the extra point, and a momentum killing kickoff return for a TD in which an Eagle didn't get within 4 yards of Dante Hall. In the second half though, they got it together. France put some nice field goals through (notice some actual animation and encouragement on the sideline from Andy Reid?), the punt returns were getting some yards, the kickoff and punt coverage became stingy, and things turned around so completely they recovered a Dante Hall fumble that led to points. They also recovered the onside kick with ease and Mahe very smartly ran out of bounds with the ball to essentially end the game.

Questions: Why aren't the Eagles ready to play at the beginning of games? Why did Kansas City use Gonzalez as a blocker and not as a receiver? Should Gordon get more touches? Was that Greg Lewis' first stupid mistake, trying to run with the ball before he caught it and costing the Eagles a first down? Did Reggie Brown get a catch? Is Kearse back? Will LJ Smith ever learn to keep 2 hands on the ball, especially on the 2 yard line? What if McNabb was healthy and more importantly, will he stay healthy enough to continue playing at this level?