Good afternoon, Eagles fans. The team returns to practice today preparing for its game against Tampa Bay on Sunday. While waiting, get caught up on all the latest Tuesday content for November 17th ...
Season Can Be Salvaged If ... – Dave Spadaro
"So how do the Eagles turn this thing around? First, there is the matter of health. Kelly had no update on quarterback Sam Bradford, who was knocked out of Sunday's loss with a left shoulder injury and a concussion. Can Bradford play against Tampa Bay? If he doesn't go, it's Mark Sanchez with Thad Lewis as the No. 2 quarterback. Other players who need good news on the health front are running back Ryan Mathews (concussion) and left tackle Jason Peters (back), and we know how much of a difference they make when they're on the field.
Getting Peters back would be a huge plus for an offensive line that had a rough game on Sunday. Peters hasn't played since the Carolina game, so maybe he's got some fresh legs and is ready to play as a dominating left tackle down the stretch. It would be a gigantic help for the line to have Peters at the top of his game on the left side, with Lane Johnson moving back to the right side.
This is the start. Get the offensive line right and go from there. Whether it's Bradford or Sanchez against Tampa Bay, the offensive line needs to play much better than it did on Sunday.
No. 2, the running game needs to be the focal point of the offense, particularly in the red zone. The Eagles were 2-of-5 inside Miami's 20-yard line, and while the interception Sanchez threw in the end zone – the fifth end zone interception of the season for the Eagles - was so crushing, the two other missed chances in the red zone were also harmful. Leaving points on the field has been costly for the Eagles the last couple of seasons, especially in the red zone."
Tweet Of The Day
Take a look at all the best photos from this weekend's #EaglesSalute game ...
Community Monday: Franklin Institute
[Jordan Matthews spent his Monday afternoon with Steppingstone Scholars at the Franklin Institute's SportsZone exhibit ...
Jordan Matthews was back at the Franklin Institute's SportsZone exhibit on Monday afternoon with Eagles Care partner Steppingstone Scholars ...
Before heading out to the Franklin Institute's SportsZone exhibit, Jordan Matthews and SWOOP got a quick behind-the-scenes tour
Then it was time to meet up with the kids of Steppingstone Scholars!
Everyone was excited to get race Jordan
Jordan was even challenged by this member of Steppingstone Scholars
Let the races begin!
Time for Jordan to watch on and give his pre-race advice
Run, run, run!
SWOOP didn't want to miss out on the races and jumped in, too
Time for some pictures!
Funny faces anyone?
A big thanks to the Franklin Institue and Steppingstone Scholars for an afternoon of fun!
Eagle Eye: Analyzing The Missed Chances – Fran Duffy
"Sunday's loss to Miami was as tough a pill to swallow as any game in the last three years. As is always the case, whenever you fall short in a close game, there are dozens of plays you can look at and say, 'Well if this had gone differently, the outcome may have changed.' The Eagles were one turnover, one big catch, one fewer special teams error and ultimately the result was coming up one point short of the Dolphins on Sunday afternoon. As disappointing as that fact is, and it is very disheartening for this team to be 4-5, there's still a ton in front of the Eagles IF, and only if, they can correct the mistakes and improve their overall consistency across the board.
When you look at the Eagles' offense, you see a unit that clearly started the game off hot, and it was a better first quarter than we had seen from the team all season long. The Eagles racked up a lot of first downs, generated some big plays and kept the Miami defense guessing out in space. One of the ways they did that was with one of the staple concepts in their offensive attack, boot-action.
Last week against Dallas, the Eagles' offense was able to win the game because of its ability to work against defensive flow. Since head coach Chip Kelly's arrival, they've tried to establish the run in a number of different ways. Once you've got the defense working to stop the run, now you can work off of that. The Eagles can utilize several play-designs that are aimed to get the defense flowing in one direction before having to change gears and go back the other way. It's worked in the past on so many occasions, and it worked for the Eagles again on Sunday against Miami. On the play to Nelson Agholor, the Eagles get the defense flowing to the right to defend their sweep play, only to have the rookie run behind them into the open field for a 21-yard gain and a first down.
The Eagles had a ton of success with these types of concepts all day long, and it started with the opening drive."
360: Westbrook On What Needs To Improve
*Eagles Hall of Famer Brian Westbrook highlights the biggest problems in the team’s 20-19 loss to Miami ...*
Other Views
Keep Grinding – Tommy Lawlor, IgglesBlitz.com
"The NFL is the ultimate grind, from year to year, from week to week and sometimes from quarter to quarter. You are only as good as your last play or your last game. The challenge is to play well on a regular basis and fight through those tough times that come around.
Look at the Dolphins. They had lost 2 games in a row and were down 16-3. That team didn't mail it in. They kept grinding and suddenly things started to go their way. Next thing you know they've got a hard-fought win and there is life in their playoff hopes.
That's life in the NFL.
This Eagles team has shown that it can battler. They were down big to the Falcons and Skins and then took late leads in those games, only to give them up and lose. The Eagles make a lot of mistakes during the course of a game. That puts them in a situation where they are playing from behind or have a smaller lead than they should.
And then when it comes to winning time, something goes wrong. The only close win was the one in Dallas. The Eagles might have won that game simply due to winning the coin toss.
Think about the tight losses. There are missed FGs in all 3 of them. There are crucial penalties, on offense and defense. There were dropped passes. Missed blocks. Missed tackles. Poor coverage. You name it, it was seemingly a problem.
The Eagles are talented enough to be in position to win these games."
Rams Bench Former Eagles Quarterback Nick Foles – Zach Berman,* Philadelphia Inquirer*
"Nick Foles' starting tenure in St. Louis lasted nine games.
Rams coach Jeff Fisher announced Monday that he is benching the former Eagles quarterback and starting backup Case Keenum after Foles threw just one touchdown pass in the last four games.
The Rams acquired Foles from the Eagles in a March trade for Sam Bradford. They signed him to a two-year, $24.54 million contract extension that included $13.792 million guaranteed. Fisher said Foles would 'eventually be under center' for the Rams again.
'By no means do we regret the trade, by no means do we regret the extension,' Fisher said at a news conference in St. Louis. 'Nick is a good quarterback, he's captain of this football team, but at this point, right now, based on where we are offensively, I feel like this is the direction we have to go.'"
