Why is it so amazing that Philly is doing well? (1 Viewer)

[valhallan]

They are one bad season removed from 4 straight NFC Championship appearances and a Super Bowl, have a 3-time Pro Bowler at quarterback, and plenty of talent in the secondary, in the trenches, and in the backfield. Why do I keep hearing the talking heads fawn all over Philly like the Eagles came out of nowhere? This team has been in the playoffs 5 of the last 6 years!

[/end rant]

 

[PatsWillWin]

Jeff. Garcia.

 

[valhallan]

Jeff. Garcia.

He's a 3-time Pro Bowler. What, he sucked in Cleveland and Detroit? Who doesn't? He's with a solid organization now and playing like he did the last time he was in that situation.

 

[PatsWillWin]

Jeff. Garcia.

He's a 3-time Pro Bowler. What, he sucked in Cleveland and Detroit? Who doesn't? He's with a solid organization now and playing like he did the last time he in that situation.

Drew Bledsoe went to a lot more Pro Bowls then Jeff Garcia. He was benched for a guy who has never been to one. I guess maybe past Pro Bowls aren't always a current indicator of ability, huh?If you're telling me that you thought Garcia was still a Pro Bowl caliber QB and after journey-manning through Cleveland and Detroit, he would come to Philadelphia and lead the McNabb-less Eagles to a playoff berth, then I'll pretty much just call you a liar.Nobody thought Garcia was capable of this. Nobody.

 

[BGP]

Jeff. Garcia.

He's a 3-time Pro Bowler. What, he sucked in Cleveland and Detroit? Who doesn't? He's with a solid organization now and playing like he did the last time he was in that situation.

Garcia played behind two crappy OLs in Detroit and Cleveland. What idiot would try to grade a QB based on how they play behind two of the worst OLs in the NFL?Anyone who thought Jeff Garcia was incapable of this knows absolutely nothing about the NFL. Period.The NFL is NOT fantasy football. The NFL is all about controlling the line of scrimmage. You need a good OL and DL to win.

 

[PatsWillWin]

Jeff. Garcia.

He's a 3-time Pro Bowler. What, he sucked in Cleveland and Detroit? Who doesn't? He's with a solid organization now and playing like he did the last time he was in that situation.

Garcia played behind two crappy OLs in Detroit and Cleveland. What idiot would try to grade a QB based on how they play behind two of the worst OLs in the NFL?Anyone who thought Jeff Garcia was incapable of this knows absolutely nothing about the NFL. Period.The NFL is NOT fantasy football. The NFL is all about controlling the line of scrimmage. You need a good OL and DL to win.

I guess that's why there were so many teams knocking down Garcia's door this past off-season. I guess 31 NFL GM's don't "know nothing about football. Period."

 

[valhallan]

Jeff. Garcia.

He's a 3-time Pro Bowler. What, he sucked in Cleveland and Detroit? Who doesn't? He's with a solid organization now and playing like he did the last time he in that situation.

Drew Bledsoe went to a lot more Pro Bowls then Jeff Garcia. He was benched for a guy who has never been to one. I guess maybe past Pro Bowls aren't always a current indicator of ability, huh?If you're telling me that you thought Garcia was still a Pro Bowl caliber QB and after journey-manning through Cleveland and Detroit, he would come to Philadelphia and lead the McNabb-less Eagles to a playoff berth, then I'll pretty much just call you a liar.Nobody thought Garcia was capable of this. Nobody.

I'm saying this shouldn't come as such a phenomenal surprise given the very recent success of this Eagles organization and Garcia's previous success in the exact same offense. We're not talking about some scrub from the streets, we're talking about a guy that averaged 28 TDs with only 11 picks and an over 62% completion rate over three straight seasons. I can't think of anyone other than Peyton Manning who has done that recently.You're just forgetting how good Garcia really was the last time he played in this West Coast offense.

 

[PatsWillWin]

Garcia is putting up amazing numbers. He was once an extremely good QB in SF, but in recent history he has been a journeyman QB.

He is now putting up numbers, at 36 years old, that rival, and in some ways beat, numbers he put up in his CAREER season. He's out-playing Philly's franchise quarterback Donvoan McNabb. He's lead his team, that was floundering around .500 when their start QB went down with a season-ending injury, to a 4 game winning streak and a very good shot to win the division after many thought the Eagles were done.

It's a great story. And it IS a surprise. Look no further than Pasquino's "Eagles are Done" to see a good sample of the sentiment of Eagles fans who know their team, presumably, better than the rest of us.

 

[valhallan]

Garcia is putting up amazing numbers. He was once an extremely good QB in SF, but in recent history he has been a journeyman QB.

He is now putting up numbers, at 36 years old, that rival, and in some ways beat, numbers he put up in his CAREER season. He's out-playing Philly's franchise quarterback Donvoan McNabb. He's lead his team, that was floundering around .500 when their start QB went down with a season-ending injury, to a 4 game winning streak and a very good shot to win the division after many thought the Eagles were done.

It's a great story. And it IS a surprise. Look no further than Pasquino's "Eagles are Done" to see a good sample of the sentiment of Eagles fans who know their team, presumably, better than the rest of us.

Yes, he was extremely good. He had one of the best three year stretches in the last 20 years. Read an Eagles fan's thread? No thanks. Fans are rarely capable of unbiased analysis of their team, particularly when the chips are down.

 

[Slider]

The problem is most of these guys gave all the credit to McNabb. That was wrong and they're blindsided by the success. Don't make them admit they were wrong. Just watch them squirm.

 

[BGP]

Jeff. Garcia.

He's a 3-time Pro Bowler. What, he sucked in Cleveland and Detroit? Who doesn't? He's with a solid organization now and playing like he did the last time he was in that situation.

Garcia played behind two crappy OLs in Detroit and Cleveland. What idiot would try to grade a QB based on how they play behind two of the worst OLs in the NFL?Anyone who thought Jeff Garcia was incapable of this knows absolutely nothing about the NFL. Period.The NFL is NOT fantasy football. The NFL is all about controlling the line of scrimmage. You need a good OL and DL to win.

I guess that's why there were so many teams knocking down Garcia's door this past off-season. I guess 31 NFL GM's don't "know nothing about football. Period."

Just because Garcia was picked up by the Eagles does not mean that the other 31 clubs believed Garcia was incapable of producing at the level he has been lately.

 

[GRIDIRON ASSASSIN]

Probably because they lost two of their star playmakers on each side of the ball for the season:

Donovan McNabb and Jevon Kearse

Do that to any other team and see how the do - more than likely, they'd suck.

Indy without Manning and Freeney?

San Diego without Tomlinson and Merriman?

Baltimore without Ray Lewis and Jonathon Ogden?

 

[dgreen]

The enormous amount of Cowboys and Romo love the past several weeks is why Philly has surprised some people. The media has spent so much time saying how great Dallas is that they've simply ignored Philly.

 

[valhallan]

Probably because they lost two of their star playmakers on each side of the ball for the season:

Donovan McNabb and Jevon Kearse

Do that to any other team and see how the do - more than likely, they'd suck.

Indy without Manning and Freeney?

San Diego without Tomlinson and Merriman?

Baltimore without Ray Lewis and Jonathon Ogden?

I think that's a bit shortsighted. Good teams with solid depth can survive losing a couple stars. Darrren Howard and Jeff Garcia were more than capable of replacing Kearse and McNabb. The bottom line is the Eagles have been one of the most successful franchises this decade. You don't have that kind of lasting success without making smart personnel moves like picking up a guy that went to the pro bowl 3 times in a west coast system as your back-up.

 

[Colin Dowling]

Who said they were surprised? THe Eagles looked like one of the best teams in football opening the year. Injuries and bad luck did them in mid-season. The loss of their star quarterback has made everyone focus a bit more, leading to where they are now.

 

[silentmark]

The bottom line is the Eagles have been one of the most successful franchises this decade. You don't have that kind of lasting success without making smart personnel moves like picking up a guy that went to the pro bowl 3 times in a west coast system as your back-up.

Depends on you definition of success. If you equate success in not winning a super bowl than yeah, they are quite successful Questionable draft picks, questionable play calls & questionable personal moves make me question their FO, BUT I will give them credit in that they have come together as a TEAM at the right time of the season. Now when they choke and the city of Philadelphia calls for Garcia's, Reid's or <insert any scapegoat for an excuse that an Iggles fan can think of here> head on a platter, feel free to pat me on the back or punch me in the mouth

 

[Banger]

The bottom line is the Eagles have been one of the most successful franchises this decade. You don't have that kind of lasting success without making smart personnel moves like picking up a guy that went to the pro bowl 3 times in a west coast system as your back-up.

Depends on you definition of success. If you equate success in not winning a super bowl than yeah, they are quite successful Questionable draft picks, questionable play calls & questionable personal moves make me question their FO, BUT I will give them credit in that they have come together as a TEAM at the right time of the season. Now when they choke and the city of Philadelphia calls for Garcia's, Reid's or <insert any scapegoat for an excuse that an Iggles fan can think of here> head on a platter, feel free to pat me on the back or punch me in the mouth

Ya, everyone's team should be so bad....

 

[redman]

I agree that people were too down on the Eagles - I said as much in Pasquino's thread.

If you have a good defense and a competent offense, that's a formula for winning in the NFL. The Eagles fit that to a "T", and actually have shown that they're better than competent on offense - McNabb gets a lot of attention as he should, but Westbrook, LJ Smith and Stallworth, along with that o-line are all above average at their respective positions. In the NFC especially that takes you places.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

There are two main reasons why the team is winning now:

1. The defense is tackling a lot better and controlling the line of scrimmage.

2. The playcalling is much better. Reid relies too much on McNabb and calls way too many pass plays when he's in there. When another QB is in, the offense has more balance.

 

[Jeff Pasquino]

Garcia is putting up amazing numbers. He was once an extremely good QB in SF, but in recent history he has been a journeyman QB.

He is now putting up numbers, at 36 years old, that rival, and in some ways beat, numbers he put up in his CAREER season. He's out-playing Philly's franchise quarterback Donvoan McNabb. He's lead his team, that was floundering around .500 when their start QB went down with a season-ending injury, to a 4 game winning streak and a very good shot to win the division after many thought the Eagles were done.

It's a great story. And it IS a surprise. Look no further than Pasquino's "Eagles are Done" to see a good sample of the sentiment of Eagles fans who know their team, presumably, better than the rest of us.

Yes, he was extremely good. He had one of the best three year stretches in the last 20 years. Read an Eagles fan's thread? No thanks. Fans are rarely capable of unbiased analysis of their team, particularly when the chips are down.

The thread I started isn't really that biased (last I checked). I threw in the towel not just because Philly lost McNabb, but at that time we couldn't stop anyone who decided to run it town the Eagles' collective throats.They faced the toughest (it seemed) part of their schedule to go (at Indy, Carolina, at 3 divisional opponents in a row, then Atlanta) and they looked bad. The Indy game wasn't any better.

Since then, Jim Johnson has Brian Dawkins and Lito Sheppard playing Pro Bowl caliber defense again, Omar Gaither is doing well at LB to compliment Trotter and they just posted 204 rushing yards. That used to be a month's total, not 60 minutes' worth.

Garcia has been a big part of the recent success, but the run game and the solid defensive performances are just a big a part of their accomplishments over the past 4 weeks.

 

[Jeff Pasquino]

There are two main reasons why the team is winning now:1. The defense is tackling a lot better and controlling the line of scrimmage. 2. The playcalling is much better. Reid relies too much on McNabb and calls way too many pass plays when he's in there. When another QB is in, the offense has more balance.

Did anyone else catch the stat on Monday night about Reid's calling 59% passes as a head coach? I think that was the most for a successful coach (not sure how they defined "successful coach", maybe wins or win %).That has changed significantly, and look for more of that against Atlanta this week. I think Garcia tops Weinke's attempts (7) from last week, but look for 35+ run plays.