Maybe the Eagles are simply looking to get as far away as possible from one of the ugliest losses in team history.
The Birds are in London for an encounter with the Jacksonville Jaguars.
It's going to take more than fish and chips to wash away the bitter taste of last Sunday's epic collapse at the Linc as the Eagles managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.
The Birds headed into the 4th quarter cruising along with a 17-0 victory. It appeared as if the talk that they were rounding into last year's Super Bowl-winning form was on the money. Carson Wentz was razor sharp; Doug Pederson was fearless; the defense was smothering Cam Newton and the Panthers. The touchdown celebrations were in full bloom.
And then someone stuck a pin in the Eagles' balloon.
The Eagles took their foot off the gas, the offense suddenly started to sputter and most importantly, the defense took their foot off the Panthers' necks, for some reason opting to fall back into a prevent defense.
The result? The Panthers quickly reeled off three straight touchdowns and posted a 21-17 victory.
But before you hang all of this on Jim Schwartz and the Eagles' defense, remember this. Wentz got the ball back with 1:20 left on the clock and timeouts in his pocket. Aided by a long interference call, he had the Eagles on the Panthers' doorstep. But as good as he had been all game, he came up short at crunch time. We're still waiting for Wentz to deliver that killer, game-winning drive.
Enough of that.
The Eagles desperately need to win this game or see the defense of their Super Bowl title become a long shot before as the season hits the halfway mark.
Both of these teams are 3-4, and both expected to be a lot better. A lot of people picked the Jags as a potential Super Bowl pick. I wonder if they've ever watched Blake Bortles for any length of time. The Jags' QB got pulled last week and seems to be at odds with his coaching staff. This would be a good time for the Eagles' defense to take control of the game and not look back.
Oh, and Doug? There's a new play call out there. It's called running the ball. It comes in handy when you're trying to burn the clock, especially when you're up 17-0 in the 4th quarter.
Running the ball just twice and turning the ball over to your opponent is just unforgivable.
This game could go either way.
I'll stick with the Birds. If they don't win, it just might be hockey season.
Remember, it's a 9:30 a.m. kickoff, or about 20 minutes after they end the World Series game.
THE PICK: Make it Eagles 24, Jaguars 23. Cheery-O, chaps. The Eagles are desperate. Then again, so are the Jaguars. I'll go with the Birds. It's either that or start rooting for the Sixers and Flyers to turn things around. That and Blake Bortles ought to be enough to turn things around for the Eagles.
LAST WEEK: A lot of people are talking about this being a must win for the Eagles. I don't necessarily disagree with them. It's slowly beginning to crystallize that this is not the same team that rolled to a Super Bowl last year - even without Carson Wentz. The unforgivable collapse against the Panthers again dumped the Eagles under .500 at 3-4. They didn't do me any favors either. My prognosticating process has taken a serious hit with this team. I'm sitting at 1-6 and have nowhere to go but up.
GAME BY GAME: Eagles 18, Falcons 12. (My Pick: Falcons 27, Eagles 13)
Buccaneers 27, Eagles 21 (My Pick: Eagles 23, Buccaneers 13)
Eagles 20, Colts 16 (My Pick: Colts 23, Eagles 17)
Titans 26, Eagles 23 in OT (My Pick: Eagles 26, Titans 13)
Vikings 23, Eagles 21 (My Pick: Eagles 24, Vikings 13)
Eagles 34, Giants 13 (My Pick: Eagles 19, Giants 17)
Panthers 21, Eagles 17 (My Pick: Eagles 26, Panthers 17)
Comments