Lesson for Birds? Hard to Find
Super Bowl XLV didn't seem to provide a template for a team like the Eagles to follow next season.
Lesson for Birds? Hard to Find
Les Bowen, Daily News Staff Writer
Usually I watch the Super Bowl with an eye toward what the Eagles might learn from the winner.
This year's verdict: Not much. In fact, after Packers coach Mike McCarthy left Aaron Rodgers back there to try to win the game by himself, without a running game or sure handed receivers, I was kinda hoping Andy Reid wasn't watching. The man needs little encouragement in this area.
I think the Packers' game plan only works if you have Aaron Rodgers. The Steelers defenders seemed stunned afterward. They made the Pack one-dimensional. They forced Rodgers into third and long. But as Troy Polamalu noted, they didn't force any turnovers, and Rodgers beat them, along with the three turnovers the Steelers committed, which led to 21 Green Bay points.
In some quarters, much will be made of the fact that the Eagles came closer to beating the Pack in the postseason than anyone else did. They lost by five in the divisional round and missed two makeable field goals.
That's OK up to a point. The Eagles did indeed lose to the league's best team, and not by a lot. But Green Bay was definitely the better team that day and every other day in the postseason. And the Packers aren't going anywhere. They will stand squarely in the path to the Super Bowl for any NFC contender, for years to come, Rodgers is just getting started.
Good team,good QB.But the Packers are who they are : they get out to big leads and then spend the rest of the game frittering it all away.Broken plays, inconsistent QB play and suspect DB play on the right side.Highly beatable.
— red rock- les,we all knew the Packers were on the right road they drafted Rodgers and had Plan to let him play and grow with the team,it was a great Plan by the Packers,BIG RED had a similar Plan that lasted a half game,,the Packers are SB threat for the next decade,BIG RED has to go,the BIRDS will never win a SB with mcVick..book it...wolf.— wolf 4
- Does anyone else picture wolf as a bitter little 5'3 60ish old man that just sits and pecks at his computer all day with no friends and a cat that he thinks listens to him?— cancer36
- Haha, good description. I thought maybe it was a bookish 14 year old, somewhat effeminate. Probably d0rky glasses. Mom is domineering when not drunk. Dad left long ago. I think what would be common with anyone's impression is the no friends part though.
Anyone else wanna share their impression of wolf? Be careful what you say though. He'll start talking about carrying jocks (he dreams of carrying KK's)— Mabus - What's wrong with 60ish old men?— bill166
- The Packers made the Packers one-dimensional, not the Steelers. Starks averaged 4.7 yards per carry on 11 carries. I felt like I was watching AR calling plays. First and goal from the 2 in the fourth quarter and they threw the ball 3 straight plays.— nate
- @cancer,i'll run rings around you,,you couldn't carry my jock,,and do us a favor-learn the game...wolf.— wolf 4
- You know philly.com labels your posts for you, right? You don't have to tag your lame comments yourself. — adzack3441
- Am I mistaken, or did the Packers win the superbowl without their best DB for 2.5 quarters, and if not their DB definitely their D leader. They used their 3d string RB, which showed on at least one blitz. And their CBs are were low round draft picks. I definitely think that here are things that the Birds could learn from the Packers.— wildboark
- Once again a journalist making a big prediction based off little evidence. Has anyone been paying attention to what the NFL has become? Things change so drastically from year to year that it has become virtually impossible to sustain a good team over any period of time. The Colts have come closest and they only managed one superbowl. The Pats won three, but much of that was in the early 2000s. The odds are the Packers won't even make the playoffs next year. I understand it's the job of sport writers to talk up the sports they cover, but lets keep things in perspective. The reality is that two pretty good teams played in the superbowl last night, but both had holes and benefited greatly from a very water downed league.— Hemingway
- AMEN — Mrmomo22
- The Pats won in the early 2000s because they were cheating.
I'm a 60ish young man.— Bruce in NM - What's with the cheap shot on Akers, Les?— ahab
- I'm just wondering where Westbrook36 is this morning with his post about how you can't win a Super Bowl as a pass happy team— cbanger
- ...or dare we mention CG25? A pass happy offense winning a super bowl, imagine that! I'm also for showing Mr Mustache the door, but for many reasons beyond his 'pass first' schemes. As a side note, wouldn't this be the perfect time to show him the door, now especially with replacement rumors floating about?
- The OL gave him time to throw, he stayed calm in the pocket and dealt with the blitz, and the team converted 3 turnovers into touchdowns. I don't see the Eagles as they are currently configured doing any of that.— TVGuy22
- ....if Akers hits just one of his field goal attempts..........
- I'm so tired of hearing about the Packers and Rodgers, I could throw up. They aren't that much better than the rest of the NFL. And Steelers (even with 3 turnovers) should've beaten them.— RocketC
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