All loaded up. On the team plane as I write this, with players walking past and on the way to their seats. The mood is electric. The anticipation level is incredible. In a matter of hours the Eagles will be in Charlotte, N.C. and Eagles fans will welcome the team and a night of final thoughts will follow before the season opens on Sunday ...
And I'm having all kinds of daydreams. If the Eagles can block Carolina, the Panthers will have trouble covering DeSean Jackson and Kevin Curtis and Co. If the Eagles can start fast, they can take the game by the throat and control it for 60 minutes. If the Eagles can contain the run on first and second down, they can cover Carolina and force Jake Delhomme into mistakes.
Special teams? So many thoughts. Sav Rocca must be consistent and accurate with his punts. David Akers must be perfect in the Carolina air. A young coverage group has to chase down Steve Smith in the punt return game and the kickoff coverage team must be sound.
Brodrick Bunkley walks past. Is there anyone more important on the defense? Yeah, I know Macho Harris is a rookie and I know Omar Gaither is going to have two tons of fun running at him all game, but if Bunkley and his partner, Mike Patterson, control the guards, the Eagles are going to be fine on defense.
There goes Winston Justice. What is he thinking? He looks fine and confident, but don't you think the Panthers will line Julius Peppers over Justice all game and see what the inexperienced tackle does? And then don't you think about how the Eagles will adjust and slide help in Justice's direction, and what that will mean to the rest of the defense?
Everything matters in this game. I know that Donovan McNabb, Sheldon Brown and Akers are the captains for this game, and I can't think of three more appropriate players to take those titles into the season. I know the coaching staff has been looking forward to this for a long, long time, just like you and me.
Harris walks by. Dressed casually. He has been that way throughout his time as an Eagle. He does what the coaches want, and then some. And his work habits and his natural skills have catapulted him to a starting free safety role. Amazing. Who woulda thunk it? ....
Time to go. Time for wheels up. Carolina is on the other end of this flight, and the start of the season, the start of finding out what the Eagles are all about and, well, I can't tell you how exciting it is to feel this feeling right now.
