By KO Kelly
Very few of us - if any - foresaw the Eagles season starting off this way. After a miserable preseason we all hoped was part of masterful misdirection plan to hide our real campaign to defend our title - we have continued to see sloppy and inconsistent play from our Birds.
We originally chalked it up to Foles’ high variance play and believed once Carson Wentz was back, things would come together. Wentz has performed much better these past two weeks but unfortunately it has not been enough. There have been too many mistakes (e.g. costly pass interference penalties, red-zone fumble), missed opportunities (e.g. not scoring after turnovers, not stopping three 4th downs in over-time), and just plain bad luck (e.g. Bennett’s roughing the passer, Vikings’ Joseph’s 64-yd TD).
Last year’s team wasn’t exactly lucky when you consider all the key injuries we suffered but many things did fall in our favor last year that are just not happening this year (e.g. Elliott’s 61-yd field goal, Julio Jones slipping in the end-zone). Having said that, we are just a few plays away from being 4-1 right now. If Ajayi does not fumble within the 5-yd line last week, that game potentially goes the other way. If we stop any of those three 4th downs in Tennessee, we win that game. Close does not count in the NFL, though, so we just need to play better.
I am not going to dwell on the bad. There are plenty of those writers discussing those concerns. In the pre-season I said there would be weeks like this, so I am going to heed my own advice and focus on three things to be thankful for:
• Wentz appears to have shaken off any lingering rust as is getting in mid-season form
• We are in the NFC East, which can be won by a 10-6 / 9-7 team
• Aside from the Rams and the Saints, the NFC in general is pretty wide-open
Now onto this week’s match-up against the much-despised albeit woefully inept NY Giants. I thought Eli might go on a revenge tour this year to demonstrate how wrong McAdoo was in benching him but the same old, cement-for-shoes Eli is still causing a good chunk of the NY metro area to have heartburn every Sunday. Luckily for them, they will be able to enjoy this weekend since they will have all day tomorrow to digest the pain they are about to be dished tonight.
I have tried to reel in my homerism in my first several predictions - (“Really?” you might be asking, “Those were tempered predictions?”) - but this week I am throwing logic and reason to the wind. The Eagles need a big win to change their momentum and what would be better for this team and city right now than a complete dismantling of a hated divisional rival in their own home.
Carson is going to put on a show that will earn him player of the week accolades and Clement will quiet down the clamoring to mortgage our future for a featured back. The defense will harass Eli all night and we will see our first pick-6 of the season. We still have a long uphill battle ahead of us but just like last year, beating the Giants will provide a spark for the rest of the season.
Eagles win 31 - 0
Record 3-3
Editor's Note
KO is looking for a long night for Giants' fans, but I do not think we will get a chance to go to bed early tonight. After slipping past New York last season on a 61-yard field goal in the first meeting of the year, the Birds got into gear for their Super Bowl run. Look for another tight matchup this time around to keep things interesting until the fourth quarter before Philly finally plays to form.
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