Friday, January 29, 2010

Is Donovan McNabb Getting Ready to Leave the Nest

With the end of another season and the Eagles not playing in the Super Bowl, the annual speculation about Donovan McNabb's future with the Eagles can officially begin.

What makes this year that much more interesting is the fact that McNabb is entering the final year of his contract and there has been little talk so far about any kind of extension.

The following is an article exploring the situation in further detail as recently posted on InasecTV.com

Is Eagle’s QB McNabb Leaving the Nest?

Wednesday, January 27, 2010

The Ins and Outs of the NFL 2010 Pro Bowl

This year's NFL Pro Bowl is sporting a whole new look, as for the first time since 1980 it will not be played the week after the Super Bowl in Hawaii, rather it will be held this Sunday, January 31st in Miami, the site of Super Bowl XLIV.

The following is a link to some thoughts on the game as posted on InasecTV.com

The Ins and Outs of the NFL 2010 Pro Bowl

Indianapolis and New Orleans Advance to Super Bowl XLIV

The Indianapolis Colts will meet the New Orleans Saints in Super Bowl XLIV on Sunday February 7th. The game is scheduled to kickoff at 6:30 from Dolphins Stadium in Miami. Both teams come in as the top seed in their conference as well as the top two quarterbacks in the league.

The following is a link to a recap of both conference championships as posted on InasecTV.com

Indianapolis and New Orleans Advance to Super Bowl XLIV

Friday, January 22, 2010

An Eagles Lincs Perspective on Championship Sunday

Here is a link to an article I just posted on Inasectv.com offering my perspective on this Sunday's conference championships.

It is not from a statistical standpoint or me getting on my soap box talking about why this or that team will win, rather it is from my love of the game; the things that attracted me to the sport of football in the first place.

This Sunday is Championship Sunday in the NFL

5 Things to Watch in the Conference Championships

The following is a link to five things to watch for in Sunday's AFC and NFC Championship games as posted on ATS Sportsline.

5 Things to Watch for in the Conference Championships

Thursday, January 21, 2010

NFC and AFC Championships- Previews and Predictions

The NFL's version of the Final Four is this Sunday, January 24th with the AFC and the NFC Championship games.

The early game, a 3:00 P.M. start pits the upstart New York Jets against the #1 seed Indianapolis Colts for the AFC Title.

Game two is the NFC's chance to crown a conference champion when the Minnesota Vikings take on the New Orleans Saints in a 6:30 start.

The following are links to my preview and prediction for each contest as posted on Inasectv.com

Why the Colts are going to Ground the Jets

Why the Saints are going to March all over the Vikings

Sunday, January 17, 2010

Minnesota Knocks Dallas Out of the Playoffs

The Minnesota Vikings did to Dallas what the Cowboys did to the Eagles last week; completely kicked their butts in a dominating playoff win. The final score was 34-3 as this game was never close.

From the very start, the Vikings had the Cowboys number. Defensively they shut down the running game and sacked Tony Romo six times as well as forced three costly turnovers. On offense, QB Brett Favre turned in a solid performance throwing for 234 yards for 4 TD's and no interceptions.
He completed 15 of 24 attempts ending the day with a passer rating of 124.5

I thoroughly enjoyed this beatdown of the 'Boys. Everybody and their mother jumped on their bandwagon after two wins over an uninspired Eagles team. All the closet Cowboy fans came out in full force to try and will "America's Team" to another win. Unfortunately, they are not nearly as good as all these bandwagon wanna be's thought they were.

I'll concede the fact that they were better than the Eagles at the end of the year, and that is something we as fans still have to stomach for the entire off season. What I will not concede is that this is one of the elite teams in the NFL. Tony Romo is an average quarterback at best and once again showed he cannot elevate his game when it mattered the most. Wade Phillips is a defensive coordinator disguised as a head coach. They have a ton of talent, but it has amounted to one playoff win in six postseason games.

One lasting image to take with you as Dallas exits the playoffs;team owner Jerry Jones pacing the sidelines with a dumb look of bewilderment wondering what just happened to his beloved 'Boys. As the Master Card commercial say's "priceless".

Friday, January 15, 2010

NFL Divisional Playoff Match-Ups

The winning teams from last week's wildcard round of the playoffs get a chance to play the top four seeds that are coming off a bye week. Here is a brief look at each game in terms of some facts and figures that could have an impact on the final outcome.

Trust me, this is a must read before making your final picks:

NFL Playoff Match-Ups

5 Things to Watch in the Divisional Playoffs

When it comes to the playoffs,there are many factors that come into play that can have a dramatic impact on the outcome of the game. Some of the obvious ones include penalties, turnovers, blown coverages, and dropped balls. Some of the more subtle ones are current momentum, favorable match-ups, and past history.

Here are 5 Things to Watch for this weekends game:

5 Things to Watch in the Divisional Playoffs

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

NFL Divisional Playoff Previews

The second round of the playoffs kickoff this Saturday, January 16th at 4:30 P.M with the Arizona Cardinals@ New Orleans Saints. The following is a preview of all four playoff games as posted on SportsBook Lists:

NFL Divisional Playoffs

NFL Divisonal Playoffs

Even though the Eagles crashed and burned last weekend in Dallas, life in the NFL goes on. This week we turn our attention to the divisional round of the playoffs as last week's winners move on to play the top 4 seeds in the league who had a bye last week.

Here is look back and a glimpse ahead to the divisional round match-ups.

NFL Divisional Round

Sunday, January 10, 2010

Cowboys Roll Over the Birds 34-14

Like shooting a wounded Duck, Dallas put the Eagles out of their misery last night by showing them door in an early exit from the playoffs. I think we can all agree that the better team won last night. The Eagles had no answer for either the Cowboy's offense or defense in their third and most disheartening loss of the year to Dallas.

Philly was completely man handled on both sides of the line. Their big play offense was held in check by a persistent pass rush and excellent coverage in the secondary. Their defense was shredded for 198 yards on the ground as for the second week in a row the Dallas RB's ran rough shot through the Eagles' defensive backfield. They did dial up a bit more pressure on Tony Romo, but he was still able to make the plays when he had to completing 23 of 35 attempts for 244 yards and two TD's.

It is hard to figure out whether the Eagles just played bad or if the Cowboys are that much better. One thing is for sure, as of now the balance of power in the NFC East has shifted and if the Eagles want to keep up they are going to need to address some pressing concerns, such as the offensive line and the defensive secondary in this sooner than expected offseason.

When they needed their running game and shutdown defense the most, they all but disappeared. Donovan McNabb will be another year older and Brian Westbrook's best days are behind him. Right now, Sean McDermott is no Jim Johnson and I'm not sure he ever will be. As far as their line backing core they may need to start from scratch to correct that weakness. Looking back I hope they realize that not resigning Brian Dawkins was a colossal mistake as his presence was sorely missed, especially in these last two meltdowns against Dallas.

The positive side of the situation is there is a ton of young offensive talent on this team, but that is also part of the problem. Until they learn to play as a cohesive unit against the better teams in the league they will continue to come up short in the big games. I still think that McNabb has a championship season in him, but it may not be with this team. Sometimes a change in leadership on the field is needed to get the most out of everyone else on the team.

To borrow a line from former Arizona head coach Dennis Green, this team is not who we thought they were. They are good, but at this point not good enough to compete for a championship. Dallas simply did them a favor by exposing some glaring weaknesses that we as fans chose to ignore. Weaknesses that would have been uncovered sooner or later by someone else down the road.

Saturday, January 9, 2010

Eagles vs. Cowboys Halftime Report

At the half the Eagles find themselves trailing the Cowboys 27-7. If not for a 76 yard TD pass from Michael Vick to Jeremy Maclin, Dallas would be pitching another shutout.

The Cowboy's defense has once again done a great job of shutting down the Bird's offense holding them to a total of 140 yards in the first half.

I would have to say that if the Eagles do not score a TD in their first possession of the second half, this one is just about over.

Friday, January 8, 2010

5 Things to Watch for Wildcard Weekend

When the playoffs roll around the intensity level of the games gets ratcheted to a whole new level. Every team has already proven they belong here, so the ones that can handle the pressure of the big stage the best usually come away with the win.

This has never been more the case than in this week’s wildcard round. The largest point spread in any one game is four points as these are some of the closest match-ups in recent memory. Below is a link to 5 things to watch that could help tip the scales one way or the other for each team. (originally posted on ATS Sportsline)

5 Things to Watch for Wildcard Weekend

Thursday, January 7, 2010

NFL Wildcard Weekend Totals Prediction

The NFL playoffs kickoff this weekend with four wildcard games starting on Saturday with the New York Jets traveling to Cincinnati to play the Bengals in a 4:30 P.M start and then at 8:00 P.M the Philadelphia Eagles will take on their NFC East division rival the Dallas Cowboys.

On Sunday at 1:00 P.M the Baltimore Ravens head north to play the New England Patriots followed by the Green Bay Packers in Arizona to play the Cardinals in a 4:40 P.M start.

The following are my predictions for each game's over/under result as posted on SportsBook Lists:

Wildcard Weekend Totals Predictions

Wildcard Weekend Predictions

Scoring is always at a premium in the playoffs as every point puts you closer to the ulitmate goal....a trip to the Super Bowl.

The following is a link to a preview of all four of this weekend's games in terms of the point spread and the totals line.

Wildcard Weekend Predictions

Eagles@ Dallas Preview

The following is a link to my preview of Saturday night's wildcard playoff game between the Eagles and the Cowboys as posted on SportsBook Lists.

Eagles vs. Cowboys

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

Eagles@ Cowboys Part II

Because of last week's meltdown in Big D the Eagles get a chance to do it all over again this week, but this time there is no second chance should they lose again.

It is hard to figure out what went so horribly wrong in that first game other than the fact that the Cowboys seemed to want it a heck of a lot more than the Eagles did.I certainly do not expect that to be the case again this week, but they are going to have to find a way to match Dallas's intensity level right from the start as they cannot afford to fall behind early. They need to come out firing on all cylinders and find a way to put some points on the board to take the crowd out of the game.

From what I saw last week the Cowboys are a much better team than they were earlier in the season, or at the very least they are playing that way. They are running the ball with authority and playing shutdown defense.
The one thing they haven't faced in the last three weeks is adversity. From the first play of the game to the final gun the Eagles have to go out and punch these guys in the mouth. Not literally, because that would add up to quite a few 15 yard penalties, but figuratively in their actions.

They need to hit Tony Romo hard and often instead of letting him sit in the pocket with his smug little grin.

They need to stuff Marion Barber at the line and tackle him to the ground.

They need to make Miles Austin pay for any ball he catches over the middle, instead of trying to jump the route.

Most importantly they need to burn Dallas deep for six points to let them know they can easily be scored upon.

I'm counting on Andy Reid to have this team ready to play this week as his streak of seven consecutive first round postseason wins is on the line as well as this team's pride and dignity.

Sunday, January 3, 2010

Cowboys Win the NFC East in Convincing Fashion

In what was easily their worst performance of the season, the Eagles were shutout by Dallas 24-0 costing them the NFC East title, the number two seed, and a first round bye in the playoffs.

For their effort what they do get is the sixth seed and a chance to play the Cowboys again next week back in Dallas in the wildcard round of the playoffs. If this week was any indication of how next week will play out it will be "one and done' for this postseason.

The following is my review of this game as posted on Dont Boo the Birds.

Cowboys Win the NFC East in Convincing Fashion