The Starting Five NFL Week 17 Recap: How In the Hell Did The Eagles Come Up So Small With So Much At Stake?
NFC East crown handed to the hated Cowboys. No pressure on Tony Romo. 4 sacks of McNabb. Passes dropped by young receivers. Passes thrown behind receivers. No Michael Vick. No competent blitz package. No intensity. No sense of urgency. No pride. Andy better have his crew locked and loaded. Playing in a hostile new arena or playing home? I’m taking the home game…although getting Westbrook’s legs now instead of resting another week could be key. This will be a rough week for the Eagles in the Philly media in that the season accomplishments will not matter. Everything will be negative. Personally I think they will respond because it sure as hell can’t get any worse. They did it last year (victory in NY). I hope they come out in the black jerseys…
Buffalo 30, Indianapolis 7
Passing
P. Manning 95
R. Fitzpatrick 155
Rushing
M. Hart 28
F. Jackson 212
Receiving
D. Clark 52
T. Owens 65
Fred Jackson goes off. Colts will in effect have three weeks off before they get down to business.
Carolina 23, New Orleans 10
Passing
M. Brunell 102
M. Moore 162
Rushing
L. Hamilton 48
J. Stewart 125
Receiving
L. Hamilton 38
M. Muhammad 85
Same thing here? I don’t know. Saint’s ain’t been right since Dallas.
Cleveland 23, Jacksonville 17
Passing
D. Garrard 202
D. Anderson 86
Rushing
M. Jones-Drew 82
J. Harrison 127
Receiving
Z. Miller 69
R. Royal 34
Cleveland wins 4 straight? Totally unacceptable for Jax to lose this game.
Chicago 37
Detroit 23
Passing
J. Cutler 276
D. Culpepper 262
Rushing
M. Forte 101
M. Morris 65
Receiving
G. Olsen 94
C. Johnson 86
Have the Bears played well enough at the end of the season to save Lovie’s job?
Houston 34, New England 27
Passing
T. Brady 186
M. Schaub 303
Rushing
F. Taylor 33
A. Foster 119
Receiving
J. Edelman 103
J. Dreessen 81
Houston played well but still were eliminated from playoff contention. Welker is done for the year.
Pittsburgh 30, Miami 24
Passing
B. Roethlisberger 220
C. Henne 140
Rushing
R. Mendenhall 94
R. Williams 31
Receiving
M. Wallace 64
D. Bess 85
Big Ben is a boss. Arm injury, smarm injury. Tomlin is gonna whip this team in shape for real. Let’s hope Pat White is alright after catching a horrific hit.
Minnesota 44, NY Giants 7
Passing
E. Manning 141
B. Favre 316
Rushing
D. Ware 22
A. Peterson 54
Receiving
S. Smith 57
S. Rice 112
The Vikings back on track or are the Giants just that wack?
San Francisco 28, St. Louis 6
Passing
A. Smith 222
K. Null 57
Rushing
F. Gore 107
S. Jackson 63
Receiving
V. Davis 89
D. Avery 23
Coach Mike and his young outfit finishes strong. I still think this would be the best spot for Vick.
Atlanta 20, Tampa Bay 10
Passing
M. Ryan 223
J. Freeman 174
Rushing
J. Snelling 147
C. Williams 40
Receiving
R. White 66
K. Winslow 56
Emphasis will be put on the Falcons having a winning record, but they still didn’t make the playoffs.
Green Bay 33, Arizona 7
Passing
A. Rodgers 235
M. Leinart 96
Rushing
R. Grant 51
T. Hightower 24
Receiving
D. Driver 65
A. Boldin 38
Quan’s ankle injury a concern. Mad ironic how all these teams are playing each other in the wild card round. Arizona is an intriguing bunch, still not sold on the Pack.
Dallas 24, Philadelphia 0
Passing
D. McNabb 223
T. Romo 311
Rushing
B. Westbrook 17
2 tied with 91 (Barber, Jones)
Receiving
B. Celek 96
P. Crayton 99
Did anyone see Maclin cower from a McNabb pass late? He was so worried about the safety hit, he had no interest in the ball. He’s done this a lot this year. If you can’t take a safety hit in the NFL you shouldn’t be a receiver. I’ve said it all year this is the time for all the young talent the Eagles have to step up. I had my concerns then and still have them now. Who besides Avant is going to make the catch on third and fourth when it counts to help cement Triple 5 Soul’s legacy? Yeah, it’s important. He can’t wait on the young fellas. He didn’t have his best game either. I’m not for this reverse psychology thing either. There’s been way to many years in our mirror searching and waiting for a semblance of historic 5 credibility. Donovan needs this Super Bowl win or he’s outta here. I know you all want him somewhere else, but this is where I live.
Kansas City 44, Denver 24
Passing
M. Cassel 207
K. Orton 431
Rushing
J. Charles 259
K. Moreno 50
Receiving
C. Chambers 80
J. Gaffney 213
Said this would be a shootout, but in reverse. Denver is a mess. Charles runs for 259. Come back home Weapon X.
Baltimore 21, Oakland 13
Passing
J. Flacco 102
C. Frye 180
Rushing
W. McGahee 167
M. Bush 18
Receiving
T. Heap 40
C. Schilens 99
Willis gets loose. Ray Rice had a couple of nice runs. Baltimore defense stiffens. Raiders not as bad as advertised.
San Diego 23, Washington 20
Passing
J. Campbell 281
B. Volek 216
Rushing
Q. Ganther 27
M. Bennett 28
Receiving
M. Kelly 109
M. Floyd 140
DC wastes no time in firing Zorn this morning. Campbell not the problem. San Diego looks Super.
Tennessee 17, Seattle 13
Passing
V. Young 171
M. Hasselbeck 175
Rushing
C. Johnson 134
J. Forsett 74
Receiving
N. Washington 83
D. Branch 77
Young 8-2 in relief. Chris Johnson three more than OJ. There will be high expectations in Tennessee in ’10
NY Jets 37, Cincinnati 0
Passing
J. O’Sullivan 31
M. Sanchez 63
Rushing
L. Johnson 38
B. Smith 92
Receiving
L. Coles 19
J. Cotchery 39
This was unexpected. Mirror to Philly/Dallas and Green Bay/ARI? Weird.
Very painful to watch….I’m sure Diallo is smiling.
Happy New Year Yall…..I’ve been M.I.A for a minute
Hi Michelle!!
OK…I made a bet on the Eagles this Sat night…..I will be royally pissed if i cant buy those fabulous boots I saw at Nordstrom’s on Sunday.
I ain’t saying shit…
@Mizzo:
The fact that they lost their starting center is scary.
Tennessee, Carolina, and San Fran ended on a nice note yesterday. All three should push for playoff spots next year.
Philly, Arizona and Cincy all have me confused. I mean I understand not wanting to show your hand to a team you’ll face again in a week but damn. I wouldn’t be surprised if they all lost again.
I wanna believe in San Diego. They are very good against the Colts and should be SB favs in the AFC.
As for the NFC, my heart says Vikings but my head says we’re only a clear favorite against Green Bay, and maybe Dallas. Let’s hope New Orleans goes down and the road to the SB goes through the MetroDome!
Miz,
A Dallas fan at work actually bet me $5 that the Eagles take the ‘boys on Saturday night. I told him this is one bet I hope I lose but after that performance yesterday I just don’t see this team going into that stadium and coming out with a win. I haven’t broken my ankle jumping off the bandwagon because I’m ride or die for my team but damn they broke all their fans yesterday.
I will repeat what I’ve been saying all year WHO THE HELL IS GONNA STEP UP AND CATCH A BALL WITH THE GAME ON THE LINE BESIDES JASON AVANT?
@Mizzo: DeSean Jackson?
Did you watch the game? He’s still a second year player. Before the season, Joe Banner said publicly the Eagles have the most talented NFL roster. That may or may not be true but not having a proven veteran receiver to make the play when it counts is still their problem.
Columnists here are laying blame on the doorstep of 5 and while he didn’t have his best game, there were plenty of drops from Jackson, Maclin and Celek.
I have to find video of Maclin having no use for the ball in the end zone because he was too worried about the safety hit over the top. He flinched like a little kid does when Pop is mad. I was disgusted and so was Donovan.
It’s too late in the year to be dealing with the same bs that has caused numerous playoff failures over the last decade.
If the Eagles do not win this game…or probably the Super Bowl…McNabb is most likely done here despite scoring the most points in franchise history.
It’s put up or shut up time and that starts with the coaching staff, down to 5 and sprayed over the entire roster. No excuses.
They also have to commit to running the ball and get Westbrook involved EARLY and often. He still have the skills to give Dallas fits on offense. They need to setup screens for him to neutralize the outside rush of DeMarcus Ware. He only had 5 carries the entire game. That’s crazy.
Also, they need to use Weaver in their scheme. Keith Brooking is the weakness in that Dallas defense. He can’t cover Westbrook, Celek, McCoy or Weaver. If they can take advantage of matchups with him, they can have success.
The eagles rank 28th in the league in rushing attempts.
That all you need to know about the coaching staff.
We are fooling ourselves if we truly think the Eagles are going to change. If they want a shootout like I know Andy does, they have to simply make plays. I see Westbrook breaking a long touchdown off a screen. Leonard Weaver has to get the rock as well, but I think it’s all wishful thinking fam.
Mizzo –
You know I agree with you.
Mizz:
BTW, I put DeSean Jackson on my first annual All-Pro team but it wasn’t that I think he’s a great receiver. I don’t. He’s not.
He did have a spectacular year, though…and his productivity on special teams put him over the top for me.
He has a great deal of room to grow.
Oh I agree but when it’s hot hot, he’s gotta be hottest. The last game he was like a young star blowing it at the free throw line.
Earlier in the season when Desean was setting the league ablaze I noticed many of his catches were in space. By this I mean he was wide the hell open. I told my Pops that we’d see if he was the truth once he took a lick. Like a good troy polamalu, b dawkins, ‘where did he come from’ lickin. He took that shot and since then I believe he’s been a shell of his former self. He’s still electric but he’s no longer fearless. This also has to be said. Jackson is a small dude. Macklin too. The only small dude in the league that plays without fear is steve smith. And even he takes some pretty big hits.
I say all that to say what are you expecting out of the eagles receiving corp? Big plays? Clutch catches? Consistency? Your two most explosive pass catchers are 1st and 2nd year guys that don’t wanna get blasted. Middle of the field chain movers are Celek and Avant. Most consistent guy is westbrook. That’s your andy reid made bed so you gotta sleep in it.
It is what it is.
“Your two most explosive pass catchers are 1st and 2nd year guys”
Thats the key right there.
Yo Temple you are a stats dude……….isn’t the 2002 Tampa Bay team is the only team over the last 10 years (even longer)
to win a superbowl while being ranked in the 20s (23rd) in rushing attempts. And they had a dominating defense.
Even the year the eagles went to the superbowl they were ranked 30th in rushing attempts.
You are just not going to win a superbowl with an run and shoot mouse davis offense like that.
That just speaks how great Mcnabb is to even lead this team to so many playoff games with a team that often times ranks in the low 20s in rushing attempts.
The sad thing in all of this is that before 2003……..the eagles actually ranked very high in rushing attempts. Even if you subtract Mcnabb rushes. Its just that as Mcnabb got better as a passer Andy completely abandoned the run.
“The sad thing in all of this is that before 2003″
Should read “before 2004″
@ Jerold: I don’t care about stats really young fella. Yes I want consistency. I rode with what the Eagles doled out despite hoping Joe Banner would go after a disgruntled Anquan Boldin. He’s hurt there, but you never know what would have happened here. When you got a shot at a big physical receiver you gotta take it. Jukebox is a monster but he’s still learning. 5 doesn’t have time for that. They are the second youngest team in the league and ballin’ but this is money time where everything is obviously fine tuned. Because of this team’s youth on offense 5 is worthy of MVP votes. Straight up. Will he get any, hell no.
Origin:
Bucs were tied with the Raiders that year. Someone had to win — the guy with the playbook.
’06 Colts were 18th. ’99 Rams were 16th. Colts actually ranked very high in rushing first downs (8th). The Colts actually had a powerful run game that season — and so many people were shocked when they went straight smash mouth on the Ravens and Colts — but it worked well for them.
Saints and Dallas have hammers in their run games. Vikings have a hammer with holes in it. I’m waiting for AP to fumble on 1st and goal from the 2 yard line in the 4th quarter with the Vikings trailing by 5. OUCH!!!
AZ backs fumble a bunch and I don’t like Ryan Grant after contact or in short yardage…so, we’ll see how it all SHAKES OUT.
5 is 6-0 in the first round of the playoffs just so you know. When initially asked…Donovan gave a straight up truth quote:
Juke box’s response:
This was a very humble response by DeSean. Dude’s confidence is off the charts. You should see his swag in the locker room. I’m glad he realizes the moment and stuck to the script.
Because the media here…obviously…are digging into 5′s comments. Donovan squashed it:
So basically he again was asked if he was blaming the young cats and he stayed high:
Knowing Donovan, I can guarantee you he clamored for the front office to bring in a veteran receiver with size in the off season. He can’t be happy with what he’s been dealt at this stage in his career because the writing is burned on the wall now. The Eagles lose this game, Donovan is out.
Regular season play and stats mean absolutely nothing more but getting you to the show. Step ya game up young fellas.
But…
Folks this all points to an Eagles 28-26 win. Akers sends them into the next round. This team needs this type of drama to grasp a sense of urgency. DeSean has a total of 4 catches vs. Dallas. Expect that to change.
Maclin on the other hand is still flinching like he caught his Pop’s Hot Wheels tracks. 18 if you can’t take a safety hit in the NFL, take yo ass back to the Big 12.
Please learn something from the man whose job you are taking. Reggie Brown is talented but his ticker ain’t shit.
Ouch!! Oh, that’s serious ouch!!
I really have enjoyed reading what you’ve provided all year long, I am always a little reluctant to comment, but felt the need at seasons end to tell you great work and I hope to see you back next year!!
Hopefully the Packers can pull off a close one last week but it may be tough after they exposed so much of their game plan while Arizona put together a rather vanilla-type game-plan.
Should be an interesting match-up and if Ryan Grant can get going early, it will relieve all the pressure of Aaron Rodgers and allow him to convert on third-and-short’s considering he is the best quarterback in the NFL on third downs.
GO PACK!!
feel free to check out my in depth prediction at http://www.lionsdenu.com/category/sports/nfl-guide-2009-2010/
best of luck this week and have a happy new year!
hope to see you back during NFL 2010.
Regards,
TheCoach
28-26 Eagles win?
From your lips to God’s ears, Mizz.
Hope He’s listening too…
You know who’d look good in Philly? Brandon Marshall.
Nah, Riq, Marshall will be a monster of the midway next season.
The Blonde Ghost (Whaddup, DWil) would never let a top receiver like that go to a team that could possibly be QB’d by a Black guy.
1998 and 2004 shut all that down.