Bigger question mark going into 06: Offense or defense?

Drunkmasterflex · July 17, 2006, 01:20:36 PM

Quote from: MadMarchHare on July 17, 2006, 10:11:38 AM
Lifting weights and receiving treatment in private is a whole lot different than playing football full speed, under the 'scope, doing interviews two-three times a week.

Your absolutely right, but someone who is willing to work so hard after such a tumultuous season tells me he is in the right frame of mind.

ice grillin you · July 17, 2006, 01:40:14 PM

Your absolutely right, but someone who is willing to work so hard after such a tumultuous season tells me he is in the right frame of mind.

i have no doubt he is in the right frame of mind right now (or at least he thinks he is)

where the problems might arise is when the season starts and he struggles...god forbid he comes out and plays bad in a loss to the texans...peope start calling for garcia...telling him how big a baby he was last year in the TO mess...that he cant play without TO...TO made him...ect...ect..ect..i dont think he can handle that...in fact i can see him sulking almost to the point where he subconciously wants to lose or not do his best to stick it to the fansand media who he percieves as having been against him since he was drafted...

MadMarchHare · July 17, 2006, 02:11:21 PM

It could be a sign he wants to prove his critics wrong.....or it could just be habit. He's been doing this kind of training for years, since he was a teenager, maybe before. Won't know the answer until September. He could really use a stiff defense this year.

The BIGSTUD · July 17, 2006, 03:16:48 PM

Quote from: rjs246 on July 17, 2006, 09:17:28 AM
I'd say its perfectly reasonable to question where McNabb's head is and it is a major concern.

Joe Buck and Troy Aikman

"McNabb drops back, he throws it deeeeep...... and it's picked off. Looks like he just put a little too much on that ball."

"I disagree. It looks to me as if he was still thinking about that TO situation, thus causing the interception."

MadMarchHare · July 17, 2006, 04:10:54 PM

You are a numbskull. You've never been distracted by something that happened at home that you find it hard to concentrate at work? Christ.

The BIGSTUD · July 17, 2006, 04:21:58 PM

It was a year ago.

rjs246 · July 17, 2006, 04:49:20 PM

The draft was 7 years ago and he still talks about that. Seven years = long time.

Feva · July 17, 2006, 05:41:02 PM

Quote from: rjs246 on July 17, 2006, 04:49:20 PM
The draft was 7 years ago and he still talks about that. Seven years = long time.

Because he's stil asked about that. Tell me when he's brought it up just in conversation.

It's like saying that Philly fans haven't gotten over booing santa claus. It's because other fans and the media still bring it up.

MadMarchHare · July 17, 2006, 05:49:44 PM

QuoteThat's what kills me. Now I'm fragile. Everything that I've been going through for the last eight years and now because one person said whatever I'm fragile? I'm fine. Really there's no way of answering the questions people have. Even if I go out and play well, somehow they're going to compare what he's done over there to what we've done over here. If we're playing well and they're not playing well, they're going to talk about him blowing up down there — "When he was with the Eagles." It's not going to stop. And I've told this to a lot of guys. Don't think that this is over. It's not over. Everything's fine and dandy now. Keep practicing through. Maybe during training camp, maybe during the season, something is going to come up. You can't ignore it because you get asked the questions. Everyone's going to be asked the questions. They're going to see it on TV. They'll hear about it. It doesn't bother me, I just keep doing what I'm doing, but I don't want them to feel like it's affecting me because they've heard it. Maybe I should just write a book of my own and put everything in there that's really happened (laughs).

From his interview with Reuben Frank.

Drunkmasterflex · July 17, 2006, 06:04:53 PM

Quote from: MadMarchHare on July 17, 2006, 05:49:44 PM
QuoteThat's what kills me. Now I'm fragile. Everything that I've been going through for the last eight years and now because one person said whatever I'm fragile? I'm fine. Really there's no way of answering the questions people have. Even if I go out and play well, somehow they're going to compare what he's done over there to what we've done over here. If we're playing well and they're not playing well, they're going to talk about him blowing up down there — "When he was with the Eagles." It's not going to stop. And I've told this to a lot of guys. Don't think that this is over. It's not over. Everything's fine and dandy now. Keep practicing through. Maybe during training camp, maybe during the season, something is going to come up. You can't ignore it because you get asked the questions. Everyone's going to be asked the questions. They're going to see it on TV. They'll hear about it. It doesn't bother me, I just keep doing what I'm doing, but I don't want them to feel like it's affecting me because they've heard it. Maybe I should just write a book of my own and put everything in there that's really happened (laughs).

From his interview with Reuben Frank.

He was asked about being fragile and responded. He has been through a lot in his tenure in Philly thus far, 3 years ago people were booing him and calling for AJ Feeley for god sake. It is scary I actually agree with Bunkley78 on this particular topic. Maybe McNabb isn't as mentally tough as I give him credit for, but for me he is close to the bottom of the list on concerns for me with this team.

Seabiscuit36 · July 18, 2006, 07:54:55 AM

PFT's Take on Da Birdz

QuotePFT PRESEASON POWER RANKINGS: NO. 16

With 16 teams in the books, at least every division -- except one -- has had at least one team on our list of the bottom half of the NFL franchises. Most have had at least two.

To date, only the NFC East has been spared. And we think it's high time to add one of the division's quartet of teams.

After all, one of them is going to finish in last place. So at least one of them, no matter how strong the division is, won't make it to the postseason.

But which?

Eeny. Meany. Miney. . . .

Philly.

The Philadelphia Eagles.

The best news? Terrell Owens is gone. The worst news? Terrell Owens is gone.

Even though he was a complete and total turd, Owens gave the Eagles something they didn't have before he arrived, and don't have in his absence: A receiver who can get behind coverage so consistently that he draws at least two defenders virtually all of the time.

Of course, there are only a handful of such guys in the NFL. Randy Moss. T.O. Steve Smith. Sanata Moss. Chad Johnson. Torry Holt, maybe.

With Owens, the Eagles were the conference's class, even when he was a pain in the ass. Without him, the best they can hope for to be is the same team that lost three straight NFC title games.

But we're far from certain that the team can get back to where they were pre-T.O. The division is significantly better than it was when the Eagles ruled the roost, quarterback Donovan McNabb is coming off of an injury-plagued season, and the natives are getting pretty damned restless.

As to McNabb, there's a broader question. Can he get past the whole Owens thing? At times, McNabb has seemed abnormally obsessed with T.O., referring at one point to Owens' treatment of him as "black-on-black crime."

Owens has stoked the fires lately with new book, which dumps even more on McNabb. For example, Sal Paolantonio of ESPN recently addressed whether McNabb is the person who, according to the T.O. tome, killed a possible return by Owens after the feces hit the fan.

So how will McNabb respond to T.O.'s presence within the same division? Though surely McNabb will seem at ease as he offers up a humorous quote or two about the situation, only Donovan knows whether the extra tension resulting from Owens playing for the Cowboys will mess with the veteran quarterback's head, which according to T.O. is something that happens in big games.

Elsewhere on offense, the team isn't much different than it was in 2005. The biggest news is that the crappy backup quarterback (Mike McMahon) has been replaced by an equally crappy backup quarterback (Jeff Garcia). Competent but not spectacular, the Eagles' offense is capable of scoring enough points to win games, but won't blow anyone away.

The defense might actually be a little bit better than it was in 2005, thanks to to arrival of defensive end Darren Howard, a solid complement to Jevon Kearse. But the key will be the middle of the defensive line, and the team still hasn't found a replacement for Corey Simon. Whether rookie Brodrick Bunkley can make an impact as a rookie will go a long way toward determining the total quality of the squad.

So even though the Super Bowl window has slid shut, the Eagles might get back to the top of the conference before too long. Of the other three NFC East teams, our guess is that two of them will do a backslide within two years. The Eagles are the best suited of the bunch to continue to be competitive well into the future.

For now, though, the reality is that the other teams in the division are too good and too much happened to the team within the past year to permit a quick turnaround.

Next, the fantasy grades.

Quarterback: Donovan McNabb's only season with a passer rating higher than 86.0 was 2004, when it rocketed to 104.7. Coincidence? Or could it be that 2004 was the only year in which McNabb had a receiver like Owens on the field -- and didn't have a piece of intestine poking through the flesh in the vicinity of "Little D"? This year, we assume that everything, um, down there is in proper working order. But Owens is gone, and so is much of McNabb's mojo. He gets a C.

Running back: Brian Westbrook is overrated as a running back, but a solid all-around contributor. He racked up more than 1,200 combined rushing and receiving yards in 12 games last year, and nine touchdowns. We like what he brings to the table, but he's not a top-tier guy. He gets a B-.

Wide receiver: Reggie Brown will be counted on to fill the void as the team's No. 1 wideout. He'll get plenty of passes thrown his way. What he does with them remains to be seen. For now, he gets a B- for potential -- and because there really isn't anyone else on the team who can make much of a difference at the position.

Tight end: L.J. Smith quietly had a solid season in 2005, catching 61 passes for 682 yards. On a team devoid of high-end receivers, he might be a good second-tier tight end option. B-.

Defense: Ranked No. 23 statistically in 2005, the Philly defense wasn't as solid as it's been in the past. Let someone else draft them higher than they merit based on reputation.

Kicker: David Akers' production slid in 2005 due to injury and some uncharacteristic accuracy issues. Coupled with the loss of Owens on offense, we'd look elsewhere at this position.

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ice grillin you · July 18, 2006, 08:24:50 AM

Though surely McNabb will seem at ease as he offers up a humorous quote or two about the situation, only Donovan knows whether the extra tension resulting from Owens playing for the Cowboys will mess with the veteran quarterback's head, which according to T.O. is something that happens in big games.

the only way this could be more on point is if i had written it