The plaintive cries of a dedicated Iggles fan:
1. Many of the big, high profile moves Chip made had huge upsides and downsides, and there you are, pick a side . . . but if you didn't do it before the season started, stfu, pile-on boy.
However, the Bradford, Alonso and Murray moves aside, it was releasing O-guards Herremans and, especially, Evan Mathis, and thinking he could just insert ball-fluffer and locker-room attendant level replacements that really seems to have turned out to be overreach hubris,
at least so far. And there is no depth behind the starters, so it's a true question if this can be fixed at all!
2. Pro Football Hall of Fame writer Ray Didinger, who always has a keen eye for analysis, pointed out one key fact about Sam Bradford, and that is that he did not once look confident or in charge during the Cowboys game. IOW, he did not look like a leader, like an NFL QB who will take your team to the next level. Oh, my!
Two things in response:
1. It's instructive to remember that a team is never as bad as it looks when it's going bad, and vice-versa.
2. Weaknesses in an offense (and a defense) tend to cascade, and make the whole unit look bad. The inability of the O-line to prevent penetration led the Eagles to all but abandon the running game,
might have made Bradford look bad (although he did look plenty bad on his own) due to not having sufficient time to find his receivers. Key drops by Matthews, Austin and Cooper on catchable balls didn't help.
Can the Birds turn this around? Honestly, if the O-line can't improve markedly, this question may not have a positive answer. Other than that, the sole saving grace is that it may not take much to win the NFL East, given the Cowboys' major injuries.
Now excuse me while I go find my tear-soaked security blanky.
Facebook
Twitter