Eagles-Lions Up-Down Drill
The Philadelphia Inquirer Blog - Eagles
Eagles-Lions Up-Down Drill
Jeff McLane, Inquirer Staff Writer
A look at the ups and downs from the Eagles' brutal 26-23 loss to the Lions in overtime:
Andy Reid
↓ -- A lot will be written about so-and-so did this wrong, and so-and-so unit did that wrong, but the Eagles’ 3-3 start rests solely on the head coach’s shoulders. Reid was terrible on Sunday. A .500 record going forward, needless to say, won’t save his job.
Nnamdi Asomugha
↑ -- For more than three quarters, Asomugha and others kept Calvin Johnson in check. But games go four quarters – more than four in this case. Megatron found his rhythm late, but most of it wasn’t at Asomugha’s expense. The cornerback’s interception was the only big-play the defense made all game.
Eagles o-line and d-line
↓-- It all starts up front, as Reid is wont to say. The Eagles lost the battle in the trenches. Jim Washburn and Howard Mudd are two of the best position coaches in the league, but their units aren’t getting the job done this season.
Michael Vick
↓-- The Eagles quarterback was under ungodly pressure for most of the game. Not many would have survived that kind of beating. But those two interceptions were brutal.
Jeremy Maclin
↑ – Lost in that disaster was the wide receiver’s best game of the season. Maclin finished with six catches for 130 yards and a 70-yard touchdown.
Marty Mornhinweg
↓ -- He made some good calls throughout the game, but overtime hasn’t been good to Mornhinweg. Why in the world would any offensive coordinator not call for a screen pass on third and 31 and backed up in overtime?
Dallas Reynolds
↓ -- Forget about his below-average blocking, who snaps the football to his quarterback as he’s waving for his wide receiver to go in motion? It wasn’t like Reynolds had to contend with crowd noise.
Danny Watkins
↓ – Danny Watkins is a worse top draft pick than Brandon Graham will ever be because the Eagles are forced to play the right guard and he just can’t get the job done.
Trent Cole
↓ – This was going to be an up arrow for the third and one attempt in the second quarter that the defensive end helped disrupt. But Cole, once again held sackless like the entire Eagles defense, shouldn’t finish any game without a tackle.
Howie Roseman
↓ – Some battles are lost before they’re fought. The Eagles’ lack of depth at safety had been harped upon since the start of the off-season and yet the general manager did little to address the issue. It cost the team when Nate Allen left with an injury.
Brent Celek
↓ -- The Eagles tight end took a beating and kept on playing Sunday night, so it’s hard to criticize Celek. But he should have held onto a couple of throws, including one in the end zone. He also had a touchdown called back when he pushed off at the line.
Juan Castillo
↓ – Three quarters of strong defense based on a solid game plan does not excuse getting out-coached in the fourth quarter and overtime. The Eagles defensive coordinator was out-witted by Lions offensive coordinator Scott Linehan at crunch time.
Fletcher Cox
↓ -- The rookie has to keep his cool. Cox was kicked out of the game for punching a Lion. With the extra time and the Eagles’ struggles on the line, losing the defensive tackle hurt down the stretch.
Brandon Hughes
↓ -- Why was Hughes out of the field late in the game getting beat time after time? Because he’s the Eagles’ sixth defensive back in their dime package. Doesn’t excuse some shaky defense from the cornerback.
and the final 10 countdown begins.. 10 more games left for Andy Reid as Eagles coach....— warbiscuit- On the bright side everyone forgot the time/timeout mismanagement in the first half and again in the second half. In the first half we blew one time out at the wrong time. During the one minute drill when we needed them we had only two, and we blew both of those right away. Players and plays did not get out of bounds. And Shady catching the ball for a loss inbounds? That's a pass you're allowed to drop. Players were not made aware of the situation. Down the stretch in the second half we amazingly had all three of our time outs. The Eagles could have used their time outs and could have gotten the ball back with more than 3 seconds left in the game. What were we saving those time outs for? Overtime? Really?
Pathetic.
Andy Reid will make a good position coach somewhere. Just don't let him call plays.— HeelYes - Agree with oldbird... Vick wasn't perfect today, but I doubt anyone else could have done much better. The two INTs fortunately did not hurt too badly. This game was lost in the trenches.— Mr. Magee
- Everyone yelling "run the ball more" must realize how overmatched the OL was today against a superior Lions DL. There is no point trying to run into a brick wall. Shady averaged less than 2 ypc. Not his fault. The OL was just terrible today.— JBirks
- I thought Brandon Hughes killed us letting the TE get deep. How that happens with a 10 point lead and 4 plus minutes left, I don't know. Castillo looked lost late in the game. No way we should have no sacks and give up over 4.9 yards per carry to Detroit.— ace88
- speaking of Howie Roseman, wouldnt it have been nice if we spent that 2nd round pick on an offensive lineman or Safety instead of Vinny Curry? No offense to Vinny (he may end up being great ala Trot not seeing the field most of his first year). But seriously this team knew it had big holes on OL and Safety, and they went and tried to get richer in an area like DE?— BirdsC23
