Welcome to the Mark Sanchez era.
‘The Sanchize’ is now in charge of Chip Kelly’s offense. I don’t expect them to miss a beat. Sanchez looks very comfortable in the offense. More importantly, Kelly is very comfortable with Sanchez in control.
It can be fairly asked if Foles, who went down with a fractured collarbone at the end of the first quarter against the Texans, is still the future of this franchise. I’ll go one better than that. I am here to state that Foles never starts another game for the Birds.
I don’t think Sanchez is going to suddenly turn into Tom Brady. But people are all too quick to remember the debacle of the “butt fumble” and the debacle of his last days in New York, and conveniently forget that he led the Jets to the AFC title game.
And he did it without nearly the array of offensive weapons he will have at his disposal in Philly.
Sanchez will have a national audience for his return to the spotlight, as the Eagles tangle with the Carolina Panthers under the lights Monday night at Lincoln Financial Field.
Here is something to keep in mind, that I noticed during Sunday’s win in Texas, but that didn’t get much notice elsewhere. Pay attention to how much time Sanchez spends actually under center. That’s something Nick Foles almost never did. Sanchez is not Michael Vick. But he is much more mobile than Foles. With the QB under center, look for another big night from LeSean McCoy and the Eagles three-headed rushing attack, with Darren Sproles and Chris Polk.
The Eagles will control the game on the ground, opening up the short passing attack for Sanchez, who fans will quickly realize is much more accurate than Foles. Will he turn the ball over? Probably. But, added by Kelly and a well-rounded Eagles offense, he will be more than good enough to put away Cam Newton and the Panthers.
On defense, look for Mychal Kendricks to emerge as the unquestioned leader of the Birds defense in the absence of injured DeMeco Ryans.
The Pick: Make it Eagles 33, Panthers 17. Fan will be snatching up Sanchez jerseys and ordering their Super Bowl tickets after this one.
Season Record: I had the Birds pegged to handle the Texans, and they didn’t disappoint. The win made the Eagles 6-2 on the season, despite a staggering array of injuries. With the win I managed to climb to 5-3.
Game by Game: Eagles 31, Texans 21 (My Pick: Eagles 29, Texans 19)
Cardinals 24, Eagles 20 (My Pick: Eagles 24, Cardinals 23)
Eagles 27, Giants 0 (My Pick: Giants 31, Eagles 26)
Eagles 34, Rams 28 (My Pick: Eagles 35, Rams 19)
49ers 26, Eagles 21 (My Pick: 49ers 33, Eagles 29)
Eagles 34, Jaguars 17 (My Pick: Eagles 31, Jags 16)
Eagles 30, Colts 27 (My Pick: Colts 29, Eagles 23)
Eagles 37, Redskins 34 (My Pick: Eagles 24, Redskins 23)
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