The Philadelphia Eagles have improved from 5-4 to 11-4 over the past six weeks and with a win this Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys they will earn a division title and a first-round bye in the playoffs.
But if they lose this Sunday, Philadelphia will be entering the postseason with zero wins against playoff teams (unless somehow the Broncos sneak into the AFC playoffs). The Eagles have beaten Carolina, Kansas City, Tampa Bay, Chicago, Atlanta, San Francisco, Denver, and both the Redskins and Giants twice.
Think you know football? Test your knowledge at GMC Sierra's Engineered to Win Challenge and enter each week for a chance to win a 2010 GMC Sierra.
» Click here
It doesn't bode well for Philly's Super Bowl chances if they lose to Dallas and have to go on the road against quality opponents every week in the postseason.
That said, the Eagles could only play the teams on their schedule, and they've beaten 11 of them. That's a whole lot better than the majority of NFL teams faired in 2009.
To continue their winning streak this Sunday and beyond, Philly must find new and creative ways to get wide receiver DeSean Jackson and tight end Brent Celek the ball. This season the tandem has caught 129 passes for nearly 2,000 yards and 17 touchdowns.
They are both athletic mismatches in any man-to-man situation. Jackson is one of the most explosive players in the NFL and Celek routinely beats linebackers and safeties in coverage. He even beat Broncos Pro Bowl cornerback Champ Bailey on a double-move last Sunday. On the sideline after the play, backup quarterback Kevin Kolb said to Celek, "You spun him like a top."
The beauty of the Eagles offense is that Jackson and Celek can win one-on-ones, but coach Andy Reid and offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg can also scheme them open.
Against Denver, Celek caught a 47-yard touchdown on a play in which no one covered him. It's something you see every week when you watch the Eagles -- receivers running free through the secondary.
Our Anatomy of a Play features Celek's touchdown and a play from the week before, against the 49ers, that set it up.
Against San Francisco, the Eagles motioned Jackson to the outside of a three-receiver bunch, which included Jason Avant in the middle and Celek on the inside. Jackson ran a shallow cross, Avant a deep in-breaking route, and Celek a corner route. The criss-crossing nature of the play created a 39-yard completion to Jackson.
The result of that play was on tape for Denver to watch all week in preparation for the Eagles. So when Philadelphia called the same exact play against the Broncos, two defenders -- Bailey and safety Brian Dawkins -- jumped Jackson's route and no one covered Celek. It was a beautiful design, well-crafted by Reid and Mornhinweg and well-executed by quarterback Donovan McNabb.
The softness of the Eagles' schedule doesn't take away from the big-play ability of McNabb, Jackson, and Celek. They can torch any defense in the league. It will be up to Philadelphia's defense to join the party -- in their three losses to playoff teams the Eagles have allowed 33 points per game.
No comments:
Post a Comment