The Kind-Hearted Smart Aleck

It was definitely a day to remember for the Arizona Cardinals and one to forget for the Philadelphia Eagles. With the win, Arizona improved to 3-0 for the first time since 1974. The loss moved the Eagles into a 1st place tie in the NFC East alongside New York and Dallas, whom both won over the weekend. The Philly defense, for the most part, played well. They held Arizona to 292 total yards on the day and only 99 on the ground (2.9 per carry), however their top 5-pass defense got owned at times by the Cardinals' passing attack. Standout receiver for the Cardinals, Larry Fitzgerald, had a field day on the Eagles' secondary - catching 9 passes for 114 yards and a score. In the grand scheme of things, however, the Eagles' defense was the least of their worries. While their special teams were nothing to marvel about, most of the problems Philly faced on Sunday afternoon were with regard to the offense. The two things that stood out to me were the play-calling and blocking. ...

It's pretty amazing for as much talent as they have, how the Eagles can play as they have this year. Well, I should specify, how the Eagles have played in 4th quarters this year. If games ended after three quarters, Philadelphia would be 8-1, with their only loss coming to Buffalo. BUT, since it is a four quarter game and with their loss to the Cardinals yesterday, the Eagles are 3-6. That's right, they've blown 4th quarter leads in five games this year, five of their six losses and five of their nine total. In all four of their losses at home (1-4 at home), they've had the lead going into the 4th quarter and blown it. Going into today, a lot of the blame by the media was laid squarely on quarterback Michael Vick's shoulders. However, news came today that Vick had suffered two broken ribs in the game and played through it, having to sit out just one play. Also, even if he hadn't have broken a couple ribs, while he didn't play particularly well, he cannot b...

So, I watched the San Francisco 49ers/Philadelphia Eagles game in its entirety on Sunday along with the last few minutes of the Arizona Cardinals/New York Giants game. In the two games, there were two plays that stood out to me for how boneheaded they were on the players part (and in one case, the coach's as well). I'll start with the Eagles game. On a 3rd-and-goal from the 49er 1-yard line, tailback Ronnie Brown received the handoff and was stuffed at the 2-yard line. As he was being tackled to the ground, he threw the ball laterally and it was recovered by the 49ers. At first look, I was wondering what in the hell that guy was thinking. Afterward, I still am, but come to find out, it was a called halfback option play. He was told to throw the ball. Now, I doubt Andy Reid said to still throw the ball as he was being stuffed a yard behind the line-of-scrimmage and being taken to the grass. However, it was a called play. How stupid of a playcall is that? A halfback pass play o...