|
Philadelphia Eagles:
TO will help Eagles soar into the Super Bowl
In the past three seasons the Philadelphia
Eagles have won the NFC East divisional title and in
the last two seasons they earned themselves a bye in
the first round of the playoffs. In those three seasons
the team has made it to the NFC championship and lost
each one of the three losing to the eventual winner of
the Super Bowl once. Last year Eagles fans saw their
team open up the season with a 2-3 record after a heartbreaking
23-21 loss to their divisional rival the Dallas Cowboys.
The Eagles then reeled off nine straight wins on their
way to their third straight divisional crown and a first
round bye in the playoffs. The Green Bay Packers won
their first round game and the chance to play the Eagles
in Philly. The game came down to the last drive with
the Eagles trailing 17-14. The Packers had pushed the
Eagles back to 4th and 26 and the Eagles were able to
make the improbable conversion off a 28 catch by wide
receiver Freddie Mitchell. David Akers nailed a 37 yard
field goal to send the game into overtime where the Akers
kicked another field goal to win the game. The conference
championship pitted the Eagles against the Carolina Panthers
who had a suffocating defense. The Eagles weren’t
able to get anything going and fell in an ugly game 14-3.
In the off-season the Philadelphia front office had a great deal of decisions
to make because they needed another playmaker on offense and at least one more
on defense. They got both of them in wide receiver Terrell Owens and defensive
end Jevon Kearse. The team also lost three of the lynch pins of their defense
in linebacker Carlos Emmons and cornerbacks Troy Vincent and Bobby Taylor.
In the draft the Eagles needed to fill holes on the offensive line and get some
more depth at cornerback. The team was able to do both by drafting Arkansas offensive
tackle Shawn Andrews and UCLA cornerback Matt Ware. The team also drafted offensive
guards Tray Darilek and Thomas Tapeh from UTEP and Ohio State. To get some more
depth in the secondary the Eagles picked up South Florida safety J.R. Reed and
Colorado State cornerback Dexter Wynn.
The head coach Andy Reid is a product of the Bill Walsh West Coast offense that
takes advantage of short accurate passes and the motor of the offense is a smart
mobile quarterback; enter Donavon McNabb. McNabb is a perfect fit for this offense
and has displayed many times over that he is the heart and soul of this franchise.
He hadn’t had much help in the past but with the acquisition of Owens and
the strong running of tailback Brian Westbrook the Eagles should be running on
all cylinders.
Defensive coordinator Jim Johnson is a firm believer
in the blitz. He blitzes linebackers, safeties and
cornerbacks from every different angle and in every
different combination imaginable. If he could blitz the water boys he probably
would. When a team prepares against the Eagles defense they have be pick up
the blitz and their quarterback has to be ready to
spend some time on his back. All-Pro free safety
Brian Dawkins is the main guy on Philly defense.
He is one of the few safeties in the league that
can blitz, cover slot receivers and make big plays
whenever he is near the ball. The defensive line
will be the strength for the Eagles D this year.
They showcase defensive tackles Corey Simon and Darwin
Walker and defensive ends N.D. Kalu and Jevon Kearse. Johnson is just hoping
that young cornerbacks Sheldon Brown and Lito Sheppard will be able to handle
starting on a regular basis well enough to keep them from being a liability.
All Images, Content
and Design © 2004
|
