Raise your hand if you saw that one coming? Me neither.
Two weeks after he looked like he didn't have a clue, Nick Foles returned with a vengeance and took his place right there beside Peyton Manning and six other QB legends by throwing seven touchdowns in a game.
In the process, Foles dismembered the Raiders' defense.
The question now is, which Nick Foles will show up on Sunday in Green Bay?
I have to think he'll be somewhere in the middle.
I'm not ready to start preparing his bust for Canton, but then again I may have been a tad premature in saying the guy couldn't play in this league after his bewildering performance against the Cowboys.
What's odd is the way Chip Kelly has reacted to the performance of his QB. Kelly has been cool when talking about Foles' out-of-this-world showing, and has been hesitant in naming him his starter for the rest of the year. Does anyone else think that if Michael Vick were healthy this week - which he is not - that Kelly would be starting him after Foles tossed 7 TDs? I don't see it. What I do see is something that has been a bit understated - Kelly's game plan and the tempo the Eagles used to obliterate Oakland.
But Foles does some things that Vick simply does not do. One of them is seeing the field and quickly reading the defense. Add to that his accuracy - not counting what I'm hoping is an aberration against Dallas - and his ability to move around in the pocket to gain some time, and you have the makings of a very solid quarterback.
Then there's the bit of luck the Eagles got on Monday night, when the Packers lost their All-Pro Quarterback Aaron Rodgers with a broken collarbone.
This was going to be a very tough game for the Eagles to win on the not-quite-frozen tundra of Lambeau Field with Rodgers in command.
No one is running scared of them with Seneca Wallace at the helm. Now the Eagles' defense can focus on shutting down the running game and Eddie Lacy, a very good back.
I think Foles comes down a bit from last week's lofty perch, but is still plenty good enough to beat the Pack.
The Pick: Make it Eagles 29, Packers 16. Foles has another solid outing, but will that be enough to convince his coach that he should be the starter the rest of the way? And if he does play well, does that mean the Eagles will not be in the market for another quarterback in the draft?
Last Week: Just an absolute eye-opener. Nick Foles came back from his atrocious outing vs. the Cowboys, and from the concussion he had to boot, and was simply lights out vs. the Raiders. Overlooked in the aura surrounding Foles was another solid week for the Eagles defense, which just gets better each week under coordinator Billy Davis.
Season Record: My win streak was snapped by Foles' all-world effort. That puts me at 5-4, while the Eagles sit at 4-5, with a chance to climb back to the .500 mark with a win on Sunday in Green Bay. A win and a good showing from Foles also will have people thinking about winning the NFC Least and a trip to the playoffs.
Game by Game: Eagles 33, Redskins 27 (My Pick: Redskins 31, Eagles 23)
Chargers 33, Eagles 30 (My Pick: Eagles 33, Chargers 17)
Chiefs 26, Eagles 16 (My Pick: Eagles 31, Chiefs 23)
Broncos 52, Eagles 20 (My Pick: Broncos 41, Eagles 27)
Eagles 36, Giants 21 (My Pick: Eagles 29, Giants 26)
Eagles 31, Buccaneers 20 (My Pick: Eagles 26, Buccaneers 17)
Cowboys 17, Eagles 3 (My Pick: Cowboys 33, Eagles 23)
Giants 15, Eagles 7 (My Pick: Giants 26, Eagles-23)
Eagles 49, Raiders 20 (My Pick: Raiders 23, Eagles 13)
Comments