WESTBROOK: "IT WAS PAINFUL."
Eagles coach Andy Reid described running back Brian Westbrook's situation as day to day after the running back underwent an MRI examination on his right ankle this morning.
WESTBROOK: "IT WAS PAINFUL."
Bob Brookover
Eagles coach Andy Reid described running back Brian Westbrook's situation as day to day after the running back underwent an MRI examination on his right ankle this morning, but the running back admitted on his 950 ESPN radio show this evening that he is still in pain and it's more than a run-of-the-mill sprain.
Westbrook compared it to an injury suffered by teammate Brian Dawkins in the past, but he did not specify which injury. Dawkins missed the final game of last season with a foot injury, but he also had the more severe LisFranc sprain in 2003 when the safety missed nine games.
Asked if it was a high ankle sprain, Westbrook hinted that was the case.
"I know it's not a regular ankle sprain where you take a couple days off and you're fine," Westbrook said. "I think it's closer to being a high ankle sprain than anything else."
The ankle injury, which occured on the first play of the second quarter, knocked Westbrook out of the Eagles' 15-6 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers Sunday. Reid continued to describe the injury as an ankle strain. Westbrook said his right foot got caught in the turf at Lincoln Financial Field after he lost his balance because his left foot landed on teammate Tra Thomas.
"It was painful," Westbrook said on his radio show. "I've sprained my ankle before and I've had different ankle injuries, so I knew it was something. Of course you never know exactly what it is until you get it checked out. I went ahead and got an X-ray, the X-rays were negative and I started rehabbing today. It's going to be painful. I had ligaments and tendons in there that may have been sprained."
Reid, ever the optimist when it comes to injuries, suggested that Westbrook might be able to play Sunday against the Bears in Chicago, but that sounds unlikely.
"He was on crutches yesterday and he's limping around without crutches today," the coach said at his noon news conference. "I guess that's a positive. It will be a race to get him ready for Sunday. It's not torn or damaged, but there is a strain in there, yes."
If Westbrook cannot play, Correll Buckhalter would get the start. Reid said he thought fullback Tony Hunt would be able to return against the Bears after being knocked out of Sunday's game with a concussion in the first quarter.
Reid also seemed to think that quarterback Donovan McNabb will be ready for the Bears.
"Do I think he'll be sore this week? Yeah," Reid said. "He's sore today and I think he'll get progressively better as the week goes on. He's got a contusion on his upper chest."
The coach did not have an update on tight end L.J. Smith, who left the game with a back injury.
It did not sound as if Pro Bowl guard Shawn Andrews was close to returning to the lineup. Reid said Andrews' lower back injury had not improved.
REPLAY IT AGAIN SAM. It’s one thing for the officials to get things wrong on the field because the players and the game move ultra fast in the NFL. But the replay official has the modern technology of super slow motion and plenty of time to get the calls right.
And still replay official Dale Hamer whiffed when he overturned a ruling by line judge Byron Boston that Tony Hunt was down by contact in the first quarter. That should never happen. Hamer’s gaffe cost the Eagles the football and probably at least three points.
The Steelers challenged the play and Hamer determined that Hunt lost the football after simultaneously taking three jarring hits from
From the angle that the ball is most visible, it’s clear that Hunt is losing the ball as he goes to the ground. What’s not clear, however, is whether his left knee has already hit the ground when the ball comes loose. Watch the back angle replay, which is the final replay shown by CBS, and it’s clear that Hunt’s knee is down before the ball starts to come loose.
The most conclusive evidence on the replay is how Hunt suffered the concussion that ended his day. Defensive end Orpheus Roye had a running start before applying a helmet-to-helmet hit on the running back. If the NFL watches the replay, it might consider fining Roye. Hunt was hit so hard he almost came out of his pants as he hit the ground.
The comment by Dave 582 makes an outstanding point. Referee Walt Anderson does have the final say on the replay because he's the guy examining the replay from field level. So apologies to Dale Hamer and Dave, but Anderson still got the call wrong.
I also wondered when the whistle blew— robinlupe- Hunt should have taken a lesson out of B West's playbook.....try lunging forward nice and low to 1) pick up extra yards and 2) protect the football....while avoiding concussive hits.— Troy Winston
- the helmet to helmet hit was obvious in all of the replays. that the TV broadcast crew completely ignored it was mind-numbing. idiots, one and all.— defg0003
NFL broadcasters are horrible for the most part, in my opinion. I almost puked at how much the monday night crew was riding Big D's jock.— gho_matt- That was absolutely a missed call. Really inexcusable.— hop251
- only thing worse then NFL broadcasting, is the Sunday Night MLB crew...what did we do to Joe Morgan that he hates the Phils so much and LOVES the Mets? not to mention, the way he pronounces Carlos Betran's name is very annoying.— cheesesteak17
they missed 4 facemask calls from the previous week also.— daveH- 'Riding Bid D's jock' gho_matt? Could you be any more of a homer? How 'bout the pass interference call that gave the eagles the ball on the 1, to score a TD? Clear as day that the receiver pulled the defender's jersey, and should have been offensive PI. The MNF crew called it, as well as local media I've heard. And even on the Westbrook short-pass TD, there were two flagrant eagles' holding penalties NOT called, that allowed him to waltz into the end-zone - right in front of the ref. Dallas did get away with two blatant head-turning facemasks. I have no prob admitting that. Officiating was suspect thru the game, for/against both teams, but NOT favoring either. Be serious.— deanm828
- The officiating was terrible for the second straight week! The birds were flagged for numerous "off sides" penalties in the first half that were clearly wrong...in fact, a few times, it appeared that the steelers actually jumped before any of the Eagles ever crossed the line. I can only guess that the Eagles coaches were in the faces of the refs because it wasn't until the second half that they actually started to call the false starts. I also thought that the officiating in the Packers-turds game was awful as well. It is one thing to have to watch when your team is losing because they are getting beat by the other team, but it is excruciating when the refs make calls, or don't make calls, that are obvious to everyone else! While I am on my soap box, I would like to mention how terrible I think the network coverage has been..I was watching the Skins and cards game and there was a play where the cards were called for delay of game. Warner was visibly upset and the talking heads in the booth didn't even mention it...in fact, the play clock wasn't even shown at the bottom of the screen until sometime after that play. Nothing else was mentioned about that until after half time when "what's her face" on the sideline said that the cards were upset that there was 1 second left on the play clock when the ball was snapped. I don't unerstand why she would even mention it if nothing was said about it in the booth to begin with! I know it wasn't the Eagles game and it may not seem like a big deal, but I am just so sick of the guys in the booth talking to hear themselves, and try to show how "smart" they are, instead of giving the viewers quality commentating! Lastly...enough with the sideline reporting!!! Male or female doesn't matter...most of it is useless and trivial and does nothing for the viewer!!— extremebeat
- Come on now! You're blaming the wrong guy on the replay. The guy in the booth doesn't decide that, the referee on the field does based on the replay he is fed under the hood. You should know that!— Dave852
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- When the whistle blows has no bearing on non-QB fumbles now. And the defense can get called for delay of game if they try to mimic the QB's snap count. Not sure if that's what happened, but I've seen that called last year.— tbone pickins
- Hunt's fingers were still around the ball when Phil "I love the AFC" Sims was calling it a fumble and the ref blew it out the Steelers jock to confirm it a fumble. Maybe he needs HD to get the call right.— Barndog
- I agree with and share everybody's opinions on the bad calls and bad reporting. Gordy's comment on the defensive delay of game is the most aggravating of them all. I was yelling at the TV "Will somebody please explain that penalty!" and I'm still baffled by it. It's unbelievable that the broadcasters totally ignored it. I was also yelling that the only thing that the replay of Tony Hunt's "fumble" should overturn was the no-call on the helmet-to-helmet hit (that the braodcasters also ignored).— ithink
- Another totally missed call yesterday, even though the result of the play was correct. It was NOT intentional grounding in the end zone by Roethlisberger on the safety that all but clinched it for Philadelphia. The Eagles should have been awarded a 10th sack because Ben's knee was on the turf before he released the pass. Moreover, #21 for the Steelers, Mewelde Moore, was in the vicinity of where Ben was trying to throw it. I never understand how the officials can call intentional grounding when a QB is being grabbed and his arm is being pulled on when he throws it. He obviously was not intentionally grounding it, because he knew that would be a safety. A desperation heave to your nearest skill player is not intentional grounding. But again, it's not a call that will get a lot of scrutiny because the result was the same regardless, it was a safety if they had correctly ruled it a sack. But statistically, the Steelers should have one fewer penalty and the Eagles should have a jaw-dropping tenth sack. I'm a Pittsburgh guy who lives here now and I had a great time at the game yesterday. Everybody that I saw treated fans of each team with respect. It was a classic Pennsylvania defensive football battle, probably more appropriate for December than September, but nonetheless both teams are 2-1 and despite key guys being a little banged up, it appears that these clubs will be playing more than 16 games this season.— youngmc100
- Kornhieser on MNF is a joke. That was one of the best games I ever saw and he was trying to talk about Jessica Simpson?— fla
- jlcharles - wow, you're awfully impressive with the name-calling. And if YOU had a brain, you'd remember that Madden didn't call the eagles/Dallas game, the MNF crew did - Jaworski, Kornheiser and Tiricco. FYI - Madden lives for Brett Favre, and Tom Brady. If you really have nothing intelligent to offer - beyond name-calling, why waste other people's time who can carry an adult conversation? My point was that not only were the games poorly called by refs, but the broadcasters seemed to pick up on bad calls. How anyone can say that a crew of broadcasters that includes Jaworski is UN-biased, well, that's clearly not true.— deanm828
- Hey extremebeat - do what we do. Watch the TV broadcast with the sound off, and listed to Quick/Reese on the radio. It can sometimes start up a bit out of synch, but that resolves itself in a few plays. And Merrill's a homer, but he's OUR homer. And Quick keeps him honest. A much better experience, I find. Just relieved that Westbrook isn't hurt more seriously (if the Eagles are to be believed). Whew. Good, physical win. Go Birds.— njbirdsfan
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- The officiating has been terrible in both games. Blown calls against both teams the last two weeks. But the coverage is ridiculously bad. Simms obviously hates the Eagles and that's been true for years. Radio is the way to go. Reese is a complete homer but who cares. I'm an Eagle's fan. Why would I want to hear someone who hates the Eagles call the game? It's not like these guys are giving any great insight into the game that I'd miss out on. The refs didn't think anything of the hit on Hunt even though he got knocked out? If I could watch a game with no broadcasters at all, just the crowd and game sounds, I'd do it.— MikeP
- Wouldn't it be interesting if the refs could call penalties when they do a review. ie: the helmet to helmet hit!!!— mindspring
- Re: NFL TV coverage: Most games we watch in MLB, NBA, NHL are regional or local with announcers that travel with the teams, call all of their games and have (for the most part) good rapport with the players and coaches. They are familiar with each other and we are to them. But in the NFL, all games are shown by national broadcasters who utilize roving announce crews and the sense we get is that they know a little bit about each team, but not enough about any one of them. It's the great paradox of NFL TV coverage getting the highest ratings of any sport, and the fact is that NFL games on TV have the least savvy announcers, in general, compared to other major sports.— youngmc100
- Hunt should have run out of bounds on that play. He already had the first down I believe and there was nowhere else to go. But if he did run out of bounds people might have said he was soft.— doorspj24
- Thankyou jlcharles for pointing that out to that moron... What a tool?— shaynepaul
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- Yeah, Phil "Give me another cup of Big Ben's bath water" Simms, wanted the Steelers to win so he can tell everybody on "Inside the NFL" how dominant they are and how they may be the best team in the NFL. Now with Pittsburgh getting dominated by the Eagles, it's officially clear the AFC is inferior and the Super Bowl winner will come out of the NFC East. It won't be Dallas, though. Wade "I'm gonna get fired at the end of the season for failing to win a playoff game again" Phillips does not know how to win past December, and he never will. This is Philly's year.— jimqk
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- shaynepaul 03:51 PM, 09/22/2008 thank you jlcharles for pointing that out to that moron... What a tool? Read the response from that "moron" before you chime in on his stupidity. "Tool" - good one. Now go back to watching Oprah with your mom.— deanm828
- Domo - what was the deal with the delay of game on defense call?— shoeshineboy
- Orpheous Roy should be fined heavily by the league for that hit. He is 330 pounds and ran 20 yards and went helmet to helmet. That kind of force could be deadly, no joke. Hunt is very lucky to have gotten away without a far more serious injury. I like the rule, it's only fair.— tr88
- The defensive delay of game call took on a life of its own in the upper deck yesterday. Hard to believe all these avid football fans have never seen or heard of the call before. It's usually called when someone on the defense tries to mimic the QB's cadence verbally or by gesturing. Needless to say, there would have been significantly less questioning of the veracity of the rule had the Steelers been called for it. It reminded me of situations that one sees at most baseball games. With a home team runner on base, a visiting pitcher makes any kind of fertive movement on the mound but the ball isn't pitched or thrown to a base. So the home crowd cascades boos on the umpires for not calling a balk. In both cases you have tens of thousands of people cloak their legitimate understanding of the actual rules of the game with overzealousness and overmodulation.— youngmc100
- Brian Baldinger pointed out last week that he thought the Cowboys were trying to injure Brian Westbrook deliberately by continuously grabbing him by the facemask. I strongly suspect the Steelers were trying to injure Eagles players on purpose, as well. For instance, DeSean Jackson was tackled by a Steeler and on the ground when another Steeler came flying into him head-first out of nowhere. The late hit wasn't called, but it should have been. I also noticed that Troy Polamalu was all smiles on the sideline after the Hunt injury. Hunt, as you remember, suffered a needless helmet-to-helmet collision from the Steelers. The Steelers and the Cowboys are dirty players.— jimqk
- Oh, yeah. NFL players try to injure each other. Really? They're just playing hard. Every play is a dangerous collision waiting to happen. It's not tiddlywinks out there. By the way, isn't yesterday's home team the one that had a head coach who admitted placing bounties on certain members of their opponents' rosters? Yeah, the whole world is against you Philadelphia, they really are.— youngmc100
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- I would appreciate any information on that delay of game call on the birds. I rewatched to play several times and don't see anything, so it must have been mimicking the qb's snap count, but how the announcers don't explain that call is beyond me. There was also a hold call on Herremans that looked very bad, but you could argue calls all night long. Overall, the Eagles starting 2-1 is basically all you could ask for when looking at the schedule. You would have to be a little crazy to expect the Eagles to beat both the Cowboys away and the Steelers at home. Can the Eagles win both winnable games that bookend the bye week? Those two games are vital for the birds. I'll be thrilled with a 11-5 record.— airbuzz
- "tight end L.J. Smith, who left the game with a back injury" Has there ever been a more injury prone TE in the history of this franchise? Why was this player brought back for another season when it was obvious to everyone his skills were diminishing and his injury history accelerating. Its time to exam very closely the waiver wire for TE help and do it fast before the others teams get first dibs; the best pickings are early on in that start of a new season.— sdeens
