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.. and Into the Hall of Fame
Monday, August 7, 2006
7:37:00 AM EDT
Feeling Chillin'
Hearing Ian Anderson - Step Into the Light
Shake off that nervous twitch
and feel your strength.
Stand astride the width
and walk the length.
Those super-troopers fired
and burning bright.
Step into joy. Walk into light.
Stand tall and be yourself.
It’s great to see real football again! And what is normally a blasé first weekend of August in the preseason; this year’s Hall of Fame weekend had my interest for two reasons: The enshrinement of Reggie White, and the Eagles facing off against the Raiders.
I can’t imagine many Eagles fans, (or football fans in general) who were not moved to tears watching Saturday’s ceremonies. The moment that Sarah and Jeremy White unveiled the bust of Reggie was truly a goose-bump moment. Many memories of White’s play over the years in Eagles green returned at that second.
The show of support by so many members of the current Eagles roster, attending the induction in throw-back No. 92 jerseys illustrates just how much owner Jeffry Lurie respects both the history of the game, and that of the Eagles franchise.
Then there is that game played Sunday night. Like many fellow Philly fans, I have been eagerly awaiting any positive signs from this Eagles team to erase the memories of last season’s injury-riddled debacle. I am happy to say that at least for both starting units, there were many positive signs to be enjoyed.
Upon first impression, it appears the move to bring Darren Howard into the fold was a smart one. Howard’s presence was advertised to bring strong pressure opposite Javon Kearse on the defensive line, and in the two series the starters played, the Raiders offense was held in check. This unit is clearly ready for the regular season to begin. The added wrinkle of moving Howard to the inside on passing situations will be a force to be reckoned with in the coming season.
The only drive for the first-team offense was extremely encouraging to see. I found myself rubbing my eyes wondering what happened to the pass-happy Eagles of last season as the team utilized “The Porterhouse 5” line to open running lanes for Brian Westbrook. Westbrook was terribly impressive in the opening drive, totaling 46 total yards in nine plays. If this is a portent of things to come in Eagledom, there will be no worries about his durability as the lanes opened for him were wider than you typically find on I-95 at rush hour.
McNabb looked very comfortable in the pocket to my eyes, and delivered the three passes he threw crisply and more importantly, on target. He looks to be meshing well with Reggie Brown and the out-of-nowhere emerging star Hank Baskett in this new-look offense. Baskett’s reception was impressive to me with the ease he turned the young Raiders DB around with that silky-smooth outside move, then cutting to daylight for the first down. If this is what we can come to expect from this kid, the steal of the off-season may very well be the deal with Minnesota to bring him in for Billy McMullen.
Tempering the elation the starting units brought to our living rooms last night was the performance of the supporting casts. While Reno Mahe played hard during his time on the field, fellow RB back-up Bruce Perry exposed a recessive “Metcalf gene” putting the ball on the ground three times. Back up QB Jeff Garcia appeared to be more auditioning for “Dancing With the Stars” than playing NFL football last night, at times being skitterish when the Raiders pressure did not warrant the need to flush the pocket. Too many shades of Mike McMahon were shown by his performance last night.
The Raiders first-team offense made scoring on the Eagles second-team defense look entirely too easy in the second quarter. Was our second unit that bad, or is Lamont Jordan really that good? In any event, Jordan put on an impressive power-running display last evening, and to me, showed excellent cut-back moves in the backfield that I had not seen last season, nor in his Jets years. Kudos also go out to Raiders TE Courtney Anderson on his TD reception. He was completely draped by the Eagles secondary, yet made the reception easily for the score.
Overall, the play of the back-up units was a disappointment for much of the evening. While this is a pre-season game, it is still a loss, and not a trend that any fan wishes to see building momentum. The only bright side from this display is the realization that during the regular season, the entire back-up unit should not see playing time as a whole.
There are four more games for Coach Reid and company to show if this display was an issue of the second team not playing as a unit, or revealing that this Eagles team is really that shallow at the back-up positions.
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7:37:00 AM EDT
Feeling Chillin'
Hearing Ian Anderson - Step Into the Light
.. and Into the Hall of Fame
and feel your strength.
Stand astride the width
and walk the length.
Those super-troopers fired
and burning bright.
Step into joy. Walk into light.
Stand tall and be yourself.
It’s great to see real football again! And what is normally a blasé first weekend of August in the preseason; this year’s Hall of Fame weekend had my interest for two reasons: The enshrinement of Reggie White, and the Eagles facing off against the Raiders.
I can’t imagine many Eagles fans, (or football fans in general) who were not moved to tears watching Saturday’s ceremonies. The moment that Sarah and Jeremy White unveiled the bust of Reggie was truly a goose-bump moment. Many memories of White’s play over the years in Eagles green returned at that second.
The show of support by so many members of the current Eagles roster, attending the induction in throw-back No. 92 jerseys illustrates just how much owner Jeffry Lurie respects both the history of the game, and that of the Eagles franchise.
Then there is that game played Sunday night. Like many fellow Philly fans, I have been eagerly awaiting any positive signs from this Eagles team to erase the memories of last season’s injury-riddled debacle. I am happy to say that at least for both starting units, there were many positive signs to be enjoyed.
Upon first impression, it appears the move to bring Darren Howard into the fold was a smart one. Howard’s presence was advertised to bring strong pressure opposite Javon Kearse on the defensive line, and in the two series the starters played, the Raiders offense was held in check. This unit is clearly ready for the regular season to begin. The added wrinkle of moving Howard to the inside on passing situations will be a force to be reckoned with in the coming season.
The only drive for the first-team offense was extremely encouraging to see. I found myself rubbing my eyes wondering what happened to the pass-happy Eagles of last season as the team utilized “The Porterhouse 5” line to open running lanes for Brian Westbrook. Westbrook was terribly impressive in the opening drive, totaling 46 total yards in nine plays. If this is a portent of things to come in Eagledom, there will be no worries about his durability as the lanes opened for him were wider than you typically find on I-95 at rush hour.
McNabb looked very comfortable in the pocket to my eyes, and delivered the three passes he threw crisply and more importantly, on target. He looks to be meshing well with Reggie Brown and the out-of-nowhere emerging star Hank Baskett in this new-look offense. Baskett’s reception was impressive to me with the ease he turned the young Raiders DB around with that silky-smooth outside move, then cutting to daylight for the first down. If this is what we can come to expect from this kid, the steal of the off-season may very well be the deal with Minnesota to bring him in for Billy McMullen.
Tempering the elation the starting units brought to our living rooms last night was the performance of the supporting casts. While Reno Mahe played hard during his time on the field, fellow RB back-up Bruce Perry exposed a recessive “Metcalf gene” putting the ball on the ground three times. Back up QB Jeff Garcia appeared to be more auditioning for “Dancing With the Stars” than playing NFL football last night, at times being skitterish when the Raiders pressure did not warrant the need to flush the pocket. Too many shades of Mike McMahon were shown by his performance last night.
The Raiders first-team offense made scoring on the Eagles second-team defense look entirely too easy in the second quarter. Was our second unit that bad, or is Lamont Jordan really that good? In any event, Jordan put on an impressive power-running display last evening, and to me, showed excellent cut-back moves in the backfield that I had not seen last season, nor in his Jets years. Kudos also go out to Raiders TE Courtney Anderson on his TD reception. He was completely draped by the Eagles secondary, yet made the reception easily for the score.
Overall, the play of the back-up units was a disappointment for much of the evening. While this is a pre-season game, it is still a loss, and not a trend that any fan wishes to see building momentum. The only bright side from this display is the realization that during the regular season, the entire back-up unit should not see playing time as a whole.
There are four more games for Coach Reid and company to show if this display was an issue of the second team not playing as a unit, or revealing that this Eagles team is really that shallow at the back-up positions.
Written by mrbiersnob Blog about this entry |
Add to del.icio.us | digg this
