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What they're saying: Reid gets blasted

Here's a roundup of what the national media are saying about the Eagles after their loss to the Bills Sunday night.

And in case you missed it from earlier Monday, check out Man Up on the defense.

SI.com's Peter King took aim at the Birds in his Monday Morning Quarterback column:

The Eagles are playing in quicksand. They make a little progress, make a couple of plays and then, week after week, do something really stupid to set themselves back. A strip. A penalty. An interception. An idiotic offside call when they can least afford it. Sloppy teams do dumb things like that all the time, and the Eagles right now are both sloppy and dumb.

King named three Goats of the Week. They were all Eagles: Jason Kelce, Jason Avant and Juqua Parker. Here's what he said about Kelce:

Eagles down in Buffalo 14-7, 39 minutes left. I'm not clearing Mike Vick of guilt on his three first-half interceptions. (Though one was tipped, and the other two came when he got creamed just as he was throwing.) But Kelce made such a bizarre error in blitz pickup that it led to the third pick, a 31-yard Nick Barnett interception. I described the ridiculous play above, but let's just say Kelce allowed the blitzer, rookie linebacker Kelvin Sheppard, to come free by picking up a nickelback who was already being blocked. If Kelce picks up the correct man, Vick has time to find an open man and surely wouldn't have thrown the ball right into Barnett's breadbasket. It's one of many reasons the Eagles are 1-4 this morning.

Greg Couch of FoxSports.com says it's time for Reid to take a break:

Everything has an expiration date, even the best of things.

So it isn't entirely Andy Reid's fault that the Dream Team is terrible, heading toward the biggest disappointment in NFL history. Oh, Reid has made some terrible decisions: baffling hires, reckless game plans, confused play calls. He's still a good coach, even an excellent one. But this is a mix of burnout and inevitability.

The Philadelphia Eagles lost to the Buffalo Bills 31-24 Sunday, falling to 1-4. They are almost out of playoff hope already. Reid has gone stale. It happens. He needs to step away from the Eagles, refresh and recharge. And then come back to the game. He's not done. He needs a break. He is melting down.

Ashley Fox of ESPN.com says the finger has to be pointed at Reid:

Reid was the one who decided to promote his offensive line coach, Juan Castillo, to defensive coordinator. He signed off on high draft picks that haven't panned out. Reid oversaw the overhaul of his defense even though the Eagles did not have the benefit of an offseason to work together.

The Eagles will not fire Reid midseason, but if the mistakes continue, the question in Philadelphia is this: After the season, will Reid still be in charge?

Dan Graziano of ESPN.com agrees:

Reid has been an outstanding NFL coach since taking over the Eagles in 1999, but he's doing a lousy job coaching this season's team. The Eagles have electrifying talent all over the field, but the players play as though they haven't been coached on how to handle game situations. They don't take care of the ball in spots where it needs to be a priority. They don't make good decisions. They look like a team that either didn't practice or didn't pay attention in practice all week, and that's on the coaches, no matter what the players say.

Chris Burke of SI.com says it's time to just admit it: the Eagles aren't very good:

Eleven games left and Philadelphia's year is already an unquestioned disappointment and failure. Barring a miracle turnaround, the Eagles will be watching the postseason from home.

Looking at the talent Philadelphia has up and down its roster, that's a baffling prospect. Watching the Eagles stumble around the field, though, it's getting harder and harder to be surprised when they fail.

John Clayton of ESPN.com thinks Vick is trying to do too much:

Because the Eagles' defense is struggling, QB Michael Vick has had to take more chances and he's making more mistakes because of that. Vick had four interceptions Sunday, including a pick-six by Nick Barnett. Vick recently put the Dream Team idea to rest, but Eagles ownership may soon be seeking answers for why this team is playing so poorly.

Brian Billick of FoxSports.com, who called Sunday's Eagles game, has high praise for LeSean McCoy:

Philadelphia's LeSean McCoy is the best cutback runner in the game. His vision out of the backfield to find the cutback lane and hit the backside hole is very impressive. He makes a lot of plays out of nothing.

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