We have this just in: Andy Reid takes full responsibility. He wants you to know he takes full blame. This in the wake of one more disgraceful loss, last night to the Bengals.
Don’t believe a word of it.
After last night’s debacle on national TV, in which his Eagles manged to turn the ball over five times - including four fumbles - if Reid really meant those words he mumbles after every defeat he would resign. Today.
Of course he’s not going to, nor will absentee owner Jeff Lurie step in and put the inglorious end of the 14-year Andy Reid Era out of its misery.
Instead, I feel comfortable in saying Reid will appear before the media at noon and tell us all that “he has to do a better job.”
Apparently that does not include schooling rookie running back Bryce Brown on how to hold onto the ball. Better job? Brown has shown an alarming tendency to cough the ball up, and it does not appear anything has been done to rectify it.
Then there were more hijinks on special teams. Once again in the first half the Eagles failed to have the correct personnel on the field for a punt. Tight end Clay Harbor came sprinting onto the field at the last second. Then a blocker got pushed back into the punter, who proceeded to kick the ball directly into the back side of his own player. And yet special teams coach Bobby April continues to be employed. April was lauded as one of the league’s best special teams coaches when Reid brought him here. Not sure where that guy is, then again maybe it’s Reid’s system that has left April’s troops so alarmingly unprepared.
Have you ever seen a team simply unable to return a kick to the 20-yard line on such a consistent basis. That is when they’re not fumbling it. They did that last night again, too.
The defense, with Jim Washburn and Jason Babin exiled, again played well last night, a bright spot in a decidedly dark, dank and half-empty Lincoln Financial Field. So why did it take Reid so long to recognize the flaws in this defensive design? Because he was vowing that he had to do a better job, but not mentioning that it might take two years for him to do it.
The Eagles last night turned a 13-10 halftime lead into a 34-13 blowout loss to the Bengals. Once again Reid’s team came out of the locker room for the second half and was plowed under by their own mistakes and the adjustments made by the Bengals. Do a better job? Apparently not at halftime either.
There are two more week to go in this sadsack season.
Plenty of time for Andy Reid to do a better job.
Funny, I didn’t see anyone doing chest bumps or high-fives last night as was so evident after that lonely victory last Sunday in Tampa.
Do a better job? I guess last Sunday’s effort will have to suffice.
Andy Reid will not do a better job. He won’t take full responsibility. Or the blame.
If he did he would no longer be the head coach of the Eagles.
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