We’ve heard a lot of chatter this off-season about the Eagles, whether it was concerning Lito’s role on the team, Shawn’s depression, our lack of receiver depth, or McNabb’s superhuman abilities. Well, all that goes out the window once again as we start another season filled with high expectations. Many questions linger about all of these things, but the questions I’m concerned about are the ones that have gone unanswered for the entire decade.
Can the Birds stop the run? You’d think with all this talk of the improved secondary, that somehow stopping the run would be a problem that has long since been resolved. But I’m not convinced. We have guys that are undersized and unproven. And didn’t a few teams in the preseason march down the field on their first possession and score at will?
Will Donovan carry us? I mean, he sort of has to, no? With receivers that resemble the accountants sitting next to me, it’s going to take a lot from number 5. People say he’s improved and healthier than a mule. Well, does this translate into less happy feet and more touch on the ball? Does it? Because above all else, it has to. When opposing defenses are putting 8 in the box, and those 8 are storming towards D-Mac’s grill, will he have the wherewithal to step up, relax, and place a nice ball into the hands of these accountants that might only be 5 yards downfield? Or, will he get happy again and zing a ball like a scud missile to a guy with no one within 7 yards of him only to either swipe his feet out from under him or miss him high by 3 yards? That remains to be seen. All I know is, judging from one such throw that sailed over Kevin Curtis pre-hernia, Donovan can use a lesson or two in breathing and relaxation. Dude had plenty of time and he still missed a throw. And this was preseason, where there’s no pressure and D-Mac presumably felt like a million dollars.
Will Andy Reid get plays in on time and manage the clock well? History has proven that these skills have eluded him. What has he done to improve on this? I can all but guarantee we see one or both of these issues surface right away against a team that we should beat by 3 touchdowns (which raises another question – Can the Eagles avoid playing down to teams they should easily defeat?). Nothing says “kill momentum” like a delay of game penalty. Nothing says “we’re unprepared” like a wasted final minute and a half in the second quarter. Nothing says “wild card chances slim” like a bunch of these mishandlings during a season.
We can all agree that these questions have been huge concerns for Eagles’ fans throughout the decade. The question is, can the Birds prove that they’ve progressed beyond these annoying peeves on their way to a successful season.
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