Sunday, September 12, 2010
www.philly.com
THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER
COACHINGMATCHUPS Mike McCarthy 38-26 .594 20-12 18-14 1-2 5th
EAGLESSCHEDULE
Andy Reid
Wk Date
Record 108-67-1 Win pct. .614 Home record 56-32 Away record 52-35-1 Playoff record 10-8 Year as head coach 12th MIKE ROEMER / Associated Press
DAVID MAIALETTI / Staff Photographer
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Sunday Sun., Sept. 19 Sun., Sept. 26 Sun., Oct. 3 Sun., Oct. 10 Sun., Oct. 17 Sun., Oct. 24 Bye
Opponent
Detail
Green Bay at Detroit at Jacksonville Washington at San Francisco Atlanta at Tennessee
4:15 p.m. 1 p.m. 4:05 p.m. 4:15 8:20 p.m. 1 p.m. 1 p.m.
T
he Eagles are going to look great on Sunday. I guarantee it. No, I’m not promising that Kevin Kolb will be a stud. I have no idea if the offensive line will get it together. My thoughts on Brandon Graham? Just a hair better than a wild guess. But I do know that the Eagles will be wearing their classic kelly green uniforms Sunday, and I also know that they are awesome. The Eagles should embrace the old-school upgrades and return to them for good. Who would miss the dour midnight green, adopted at a time when “forest” green was mistakenly cool? I know, taking fashion ad-
vice from a sportswriter is like taking legal advice from Roger Clemens. But just look at the Eagles’ NFL brethren: The Giants, Jets, and 49ers have all adopted clean, vintage motifs full time, and all look better for it. Even the Patriots, when they rock their red and white throwbacks, add an attractive veneer to Bill Belichick’s dark inner workings. In an era when retro rules, when stylish Adidas has an entire “Originals” line that mimics the fashionable designs of the past, the Eagles should take note. While their next-generation roster looks to the future, the organization’s “look” should go back.
T
he question has been asked since the Eagles traded Donovan McNabb, since the schedule was released, since the end of the minicamp, since the start of training camp and since the end of the preseason: What’s the Eagles’ record going to be this season? Each time the response was the same: “The prediction will come right before the season.” Well, here we are. At first a mark of 10-6 seemed fair. This, after all, was a team that finished 11-5 with a playoff berth a season ago. But only one of those wins was against a team with a winning record, and two season-ending lopsided losses to Dallas made
it clear that 11-5 was a bit of a mirage. And then the schedule was released, a 16-game stretch that is teed up early but has a Pebble Beach-like finish against a number of playoff contenders. All of a sudden, 9-7 looked good. And then the Eagles practiced, and they played, and the flaws became more pronounced: A first-year starting quarterback who is going to take his lumps, an offensive line that has yet to play as one, and a defense with question marks at free safety, right cornerback, and weak-side and middle linebacker. They’ll be some good, some bad, some ugly, and 8-8 sounds about right.
Here are some numbers to roll around in your head while you wait for the Eagles and Packers to kick off.
4,000
As in, Packers QB Aaron Rodgers threw for more than 4,000 yards in each of his first two seasons as a starter. That shows two things to the Eagles. One, they will need to shut down Rodgers and his receivers if they hope to keep this one close. Two, it could be a field day for Eagles CB Asante Samuel. The more No. 12 throws the ball, the more 22 may pick it off.
1
As in, the Packers had the top rushing defense in the NFL last season. This fact will likely be crucial on Sunday because defenses that stop the run tend to put opposing offenses in plenty of third-and-longs, and that can’t be good for Eagles QB Kevin Kolb and his quest for passing consistency. Look for the Birds to pass often on first down — there’s a shock! — to keep away from third and 9.
4-0
29
As in, that’s how many Eagles are 25 years old or younger. That can mean several things. The young Birds — average age 25.98 — will be fresh in the fourth quarter when the Packers veterans begin to get weary. Or that the young Birds will give little mind to the Packers’ glorious history. Or, and this is what worries coach Andy Reid most, the young Birds will make plenty of costly mistakes. Will youth
YONG KIM / Staff Photographer
DeSean Jackson will surely be a focus of the Packers’ defense. If he can break one early, Green Bay may not be so quick to blitz quarterback Kevin Kolb.
11-0
be served or serve up a doozy? As in, the Birds never lost last season when they led at the half. That says a lot about their much-maligned 2009 defense. At least it could hold a lead. With the Packers’ big-play capability, that ability will be vital in this game. So look for Andy Reid to come out firing. No waiting for Eagles QB Kevin Kolb to find himself in the second half. The Birds needs points in a hurry.
10
As in, count on Eagles WR DeSean Jackson to be the apple of Dom Capers’ eye. The defensive coordinator for the Packers certainly knows that 10 of Jackson’s 12 TD passes last season went for 35
yards or longer. Eight of the 10 went for an NFL-record 50 yards or more. Yes, that was last season, and Kevin Kolb is not Donovan McNabb. But if Jackson can break one early, Capers will be sure to think twice before calling those all-out blitzes that Kolb fears most.
11
As in, spots traded up by the Eagles to select DE Brandon Graham in the 2010 draft. So far, Graham has not disappointed. He won the starting job at left end and has entertained fans and teammates alike with his colorful play and even more colorful tweets. Linemate Trent Cole compares Graham to Colts star DE Dwight Freeney. Packers QB Aaron Rodgers will share his view after the game. — Gary Miles
EAGLEEYE Things to watch on and off the field Here are some things — on and off the field — that you may want to keep an eye on:
More fines
What kind of touchdown celebrations have the Eagles cooked up? Last year, after tight end Brent Celek scored, a group of players circled center Jamaal Jackson and either hopped or flopped to the ground when he spiked the football. The celebration resulted in $60,000 worth of fines.
Repeating the past
Will Chuck Bednarik, during the on-field celebration honoring the 1960 Eagles championship squad, run over to the Packers’ sideline and first tackle and then sit on injured cornerback Al Harris because he sees his No. 31 jersey and thinks it’s Jim Taylor? Concrete Charlie did that to Taylor to close out the ’60 title game.
Take a knee
Eagles center Jamaal Jackson hasn’t played against live competition since
quarterback Kevin Kolb. Defenses will be looking for him in 2010.
December. He says his surgically repaired anterior cruciate ligament, torn Dec. 27, is healthy and ready to go. His first assignment: 6-foot-2, 337-pound nose tackle B.J. Raji.
The rookies
Eagles safety Nate Allen and defensive end Where’s Vick? Brandon Graham Michael Vick’s speed is back. are starting the With a full off-season to prepare, first games of Vick appears to have regained their NFL much of the quickness that made careers, and both Brandon Graham the quarterback such a running have important threat in earlier years. But how exactly roles to play in slowing the Packers’ will the Eagles use him? passing attack.
Wrap ’em up
The first thing defensive coordinator Sean McDermott emphasized at training camp was tackling. He was frank about the failures he saw last year in one of the most basic skills on defense. Has an off-season of work cured the problems?
Dialing up No. 87
Tight end Brent Celek led the team in receptions in a breakout 2009 and has a close personal relationship with
Opponent
Detail
9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17
Indianapolis at Washington N.Y. Giants at Chicago Houston at Dallas at N.Y. Giants Minnesota Dallas
4:15 p.m. 8:30 p.m. 8:20 p.m. 1 p.m. 8:20 p.m. 8:20 p.m. 1 p.m. 1 p.m. 1 p.m.
Sun., Nov. 7 Mon., Nov. 15 Sun., Nov. 21 Sun., Nov. 28 Thurs., Dec. 2 Sun., Dec. 12 Sun., Dec. 19 Sun., Dec. 26 Sun., Jan. 2
Eagles Roster
STATSHEET
As in, the Packers’ record under coach Mike McCarthy in the first road game of the season. Sure, these kind of numbers can mean anything if you spin them one way or another. Indeed, the Packers may be due to lose a road opener under MM. On the other hand, many players say they use these numbers, like ritual superstitions, to bolster their confidence. And 4-0 is a pretty good confidence-builder for a pretty good Packers team. Too late to shift to Lambeau Field?
Wk Date W L T
WHATISAY By The Inquirer’s Eagles Beat Reporters
Move over No. 4
Eagles QB Kevin Kolb said he won’t mind if Michael Vick replaces him now and then. But check out Kolb’s expression if No. 7 replaces No. 4 in too may key situations.
Pam Oliver
The Fox sideline reporter had a testy exchange with Donovan McNabb. Here’s hoping she gets off on the right foot with Kolb. — Jonathan Tamari and Jeff McLane
Player Jeremy Maclin Jason Peters Todd Herremans Jamaal Jackson Nick Cole Winston Justice Brent Celek DeSean Jackson Leonard Weaver LeSean McCoy Kevin Kolb
No. 54 98 97 58 50 55 56 22 31 27 29
Player Brandon Graham Mike Patterson Brodrick Bunkley Trent Cole Ernie Sims Stewart Bradley Akeem Jordan Asante Samuel Ellis Hobbs Quintin Mikell Nate Allen
Pos. WR T G/T C G/C T TE WR FB RB QB
Wt. 198 340 321 325 350 320 255 175 250 208 218
No. 85 76 73 63 71 65 88 80 12 25 35
Player Greg Jennings Chad Clifton Daryn Colledge Scott Wells Josh Sitton Mark Tauscher Jermichael Finley Donald Driver Aaron Rodgers Ryan Grant Korey Hall
Ht. 6-2 6-1 6-2 6-3 6-0 6-4 6-1 5-10 5-9 5-10 6-1
Wt. 268 300 306 270 230 258 230 185 195 203 210
No. 79 90 77 52 50 56 59 21 38 42 36
Player Ryan Pickett B.J. Raji Cullen Jenkins Clay Matthews A.J. Hawk Nick Barnett Brad Jones Charles Woodson Tramon Williams Morgan Burnett Nick Collins
Pos. K QB P QB WR CB CB RB RB CB CB S LS LB LB DE LB LB G T T DE G C/G WR TE WR RDT DE LDT LB
Wt. 200 225 265 215 222 185 200 225 207 183 184 195 250 242 251 263 236 229 358 330 333 250 314 315 212 252 220 322 270 304 235
No. 2 8 10 16 22 24 26 29 30 32 33 37 45 51 54 55 58 61 67 70 72 74 75 81 83 86 87 89 91 96 98
Pos. WR T G C G T TE WR QB RB FB
Ht. 5-11 6-5 6-4 6-2 6-3 6-3 6-5 6-1 6-2 6-1 6-1
Wt. 198 320 308 300 318 320 247 194 225 222 236
Ht. 6-2 6-2 6-2 6-3 6-1 6-2 6-3 6-1 5-11 6-1 5-11
Wt. 340 337 305 255 247 236 242 202 191 209 207
Defensive starters
Ht. 5-10 6-3 6-5 6-0 6-3 5-9 5-10 6-0 5-9 6-0 5-11 5-11 6-0 6-0 6-1 6-3 6-1 6-1 6-3 6-9 6-7 6-2 6-4 6-4 6-0 6-3 6-4 6-3 6-1 6-1 6-2
Pos. DE NT DE LB LB LB LB CB CB S S
Special teams and reserves
Special teams and reserves Player David Akers Mike Kafka Sav Rocca Michael Vick Riley Cooper Joselio Hanson Dimitri Patterson Mike Bell Eldra Buckley Trevard Lindley Jorrick Calvin Kurt Coleman Jon Dorenbos Jamar Chaney Antwan Barnes D. Te’o-Nesheim Moise Fokou Keenan Clayton Max Jean-Gilles King Dunlap Austin Howard Juqua Parker Reggie Wells Mike McGlynn Jason Avant Clay Harbor Hank Baskett Antonio Dixon Darryl Tapp Trevor Laws Omar Gaither
W L T
Offensive starters Ht. 6-0 6-4 6-6 6-4 6-0 6-6 6-4 5-10 6-0 5-11 6-3
Defensive starters Pos. DE LDT RDT DE LB LB LB CB CB S FS
E13
Packers Roster
Offensive starters No. 18 71 79 67 59 74 87 10 43 25 4
No. 2 3 6 7 14 21 23 26 34 35 38 42 46 49 51 52 53 57 62 65 68 75 76 77 81 82 84 90 91 93 96
C
Player Mason Crosby Tim Masthay Matt Flynn Brett Swain Pat Lee Jarrett Bush Charlie Peprah Derrick Martin John Kuhn Brandon Jackson Brandon Underwood Sam Shields Quinn Johnson Brady Poppinga Brandon Chillar Desmond Bishop Frank Zombo Brett Goode Nick McDonald T.J. Lang Jason Spitz Marshall Newhouse Bryan Bulaga Andrew Quarless Tom Crabtree Donald Lee Jordy Nelson James Jones Justin Harrell Mike Neal C.J. Wilson
Pos. K P QB WR CB CB S S RB RB CB CB FB LB LB LB LB LS G T-G C-G G-T T-G TE TE TE WR WR DE DE DE
Ht. 6-1 6-1 6-2 6-1 6-1 6-1 5-11 5-10 6-1 5-10 6-1 5-11 6-1 6-3 6-3 6-2 6-3 6-1 6-4 6-4 6-3 6-4 6-5 6-4 6-4 6-4 6-3 6-1 6-4 6-3 6-3
Wt. 207 200 225 200 196 200 203 198 250 216 191 184 263 250 237 238 254 255 316 318 305 319 314 252 245 248 217 208 315 294 290
2009 Eagles Statistics
2009 Packers Statistics
Avg. PASSING Att. Cm. Yd. TD Gn. McNabb 443 267 3553 22 8.02 Kolb 96 62 741 4 7.72 Vick 13 6 86 1 6.62 Westbrook 1 0 0 0 0.00 EAGLES 553 335 4380 27 7.92 OPP. 580 354 3778 27 6.51 RUSHING No. Yds. Avg. Lg. TD L. McCoy 155 637 4.1 66t 4 Weaver 70 323 4.6 41t 2 Westbrook 61 274 4.5 25 1 McNabb 37 140 3.8 27 2 De. Jackson 11 137 12.5 67t 1 Vick 24 95 4.0 34 2 Buckley 15 44 2.9 9 1 Kolb 5 -1 -0.2 5 1 Garcia 3 -2 -0.7 0 0 Re. Brown 1 -3 -3.0 -3 0 Maclin 2 -7 -3.5 -1 0 EAGLES 384 1637 4.3 67t 14 OPP. 413 1675 4.1 72 11 RECEIVING No. Yds. Avg. Lg. TD Celek 76 971 12.8 47t 8 De. Jackson 63 1167 18.5 71t 9 Maclin 55 762 13.9 56 4 Avant 41 587 14.3 58 3 L. McCoy 40 308 7.7 45 0 Westbrook 25 181 7.2 34 1 Weaver 15 140 9.3 59 2 Re. Brown 9 155 17.2 43 0 Curtis 6 77 12.8 19 0 EAGLES 335 4380 13.1 71t 27 OPP. 354 3778 10.7 86t 27 INTS. No. Yds. Avg. Lg. TD Samuel 9 117 13.0 37 0 S. Brown 5 152 30.4 83t 1 Jo. Hanson 2 8 4.0 6 0 S. Jones 2 37 18.5 37 0 A. Jordan 2 14 7.0 11 0 Mikell 2 16 8.0 16 0 Demps 1 12 12.0 12 0 T. White 1 5 5.0 5 0 Witherspoon 1 9 9.0 9t 1 EAGLES 25 370 14.8 83t 2 OPPONENTS13 131 10.1 97t 1 SACKS T. Cole 12.5; Ju. Parker 8.0; D. Howard 6.5; Clemons 3.0; Babin 2.5; Abiamiri 2.0; O. Gaither 1.5; M. Patterson 1.5; Bunkley 1.0; A. Dixon 1.0; Gocong 1.0; S. Jones 1.0; A. Jordan 1.0; W. Witherspoon 1.0; Jo. Hanson 0.5. EAGLES 44.0 OPPONENTS 38.0 Gross PUNTING No. Yds. Avg. Lg. Blk. Rocca 76 3202 42.1 61 0 EAGLES 76 3202 42.1 61 0 OPPONENTS80 3604 45.1 64 0 PUNT RT. No. FC Yds. Avg. Lg. TD Jackson 29 15 441 15.2 85t 2 Maclin 6 4 30 5.0 27 0 EAGLES 35 19 471 13.5 85t 2 OPP. 39 15 229 5.9 26 0 KICK RET. No. Yds. Avg. Lg. TD E. Hobbs 20 481 24.1 63 0 Mac. Harris 19 394 20.7 32 0 Maclin 7 124 17.7 28 0 EAGLES 58 1191 20.5 63 0 OPP. 81 1907 23.5 52 0 KICKING XP-A FG-A Pts. Akers 43-45 32-37 139 EAGLES 43-45 3-37 139 OPPONENTS 38-38 21-24 101 START TEAM STATS Eagles Opponent TOTAL POINTS ……429 337 TOUCHDOWNS …………47 39 Rushing …………………14 11 Passing …………………27 27 Returns ……………………6 1 FIRST DOWNS ……290 295 Rushing …………………87 81 Passing …………………182 179 By penalty ……………21 35 3d-conversions …75-207 73-221 3d-efficiency…………36.2% 33.0% 4th-conversions ……6-14 17-30 4th-efficiency ……42.9% 56.7% 5137 YARDS (net) ………5726 Average per game …357.9 321.1 Average per play ……8.0 6.7 YARDS RUSHING …1637 1675 Average per game …102.3 104.7 Total rushes ……………384 413 Average per play ……4.3 4.1 YARDS PASSING …4089 3462 Average per game …255.6 216.4 Sacked-yards lost 38-291 44-316 Complete-attempts 335-553 354-580 Pct. complete ………60.6% 61.0% Had intercepted…………13 25 Punts-average ……76-42.1 80-45.1 Fumbles-lost ………23-10 25-13 Time of possession 28:15 31:45
Avg. PASSING Att. Cm. Yd. TD Gain Rodgers 541 350 4434 30 8.20 Flynn 12 7 58 0 4.83 PACKERS 553 357 4492 30 8.12 OPP. 540 294 3450 29 6.39 RUSHING No. Yds. Avg. Lg. TD R. Grant 282 1253 4.4 62t 11 Rodgers 58 316 5.4 35 5 A. Green 41 160 3.9 26 1 B. Jackson 37 111 3.0 9 2 D. Wynn 6 19 3.2 6 0 Kuhn 8 18 2.3 5 1 Driver 1 13 13.0 13 0 Flynn 5 -5 -1.0 -1 0 PACKERS 438 1885 4.3 62t 20 OPP. 371 1333 3.6 42 5 RECEIVING No. Yds. Avg. Lg. TD Driver 70 1061 15.2 71t 6 G. Jennings 68 1113 16.4 83t 4 Finley 55 676 12.3 62t 5 D. Lee 37 260 7.0 19 1 Jam. Jones 32 440 13.8 74t 5 R. Grant 25 197 7.9 27 0 J. Nelson 22 320 14.5 51 2 B. Jackson 21 187 8.9 17 1 Havner 7 112 16.0 45t 4 Kuhn 7 47 6.7 14 2 K. Hall 5 41 8.2 13 0 A. Green 3 18 6.0 12 0 Q. Johnson 2 4 2.0 4 0 D. Wynn 2 19 9.5 11 0 PACKERS 357 4492 12.6 83t 30 OPP. 294 3450 11.7 68 29 INTS. No. Yds. Avg. Lg. TD Woodson 9 179 19.9 45t 3 N. Collins 6 110 18.3 31 0 Bigby 4 14 3.5 14 0 Tram.Williams 4 94 23.5 67 0 A. Harris 2 29 14.5 29 0 Hawk 2 42 21.0 29 0 J. Bush 1 3 3.0 3 0 C. Jenkins 1 4 4.0 4 0 Jolly 1 2 2.0 2 0 PACKERS 30 477 15.9 67 3 OPPONENTS 8 171 21.4 80 1 SACKS C. Matthews 10.0; C. Jenkins 4.5; Barnett 4.0; B. Jones 4.0; Kampman 3.5; Chillar 2.0; Woodson 2.0; N. Collins 1.0; A. Harris 1.0; Hawk 1.0; Jolly 1.0; Poppinga 1.0; Raji 1.0; Tram. Williams 1.0. PACKERS 37.0 OPPONENTS 51.0 Gross PUNTING No. Yds. Avg. Lg. Blk. Kapinos 66 2891 43.8 58 1 PACKERS 67 2891 43.1 58 1 OPPONENTS74 3329 45.0 64 0 PUNT RT. No. FC Yds. Avg. Lg. TD J. Nelson 17 6 90 5.3 14 0 Tr.Williams 13 5 135 10.4 45 0 Blackmon 3 1 11 3.7 6 0 Woodson 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 PACKERS 34 12 236 6.9 45 0 OPP. 40 7 403 10.1 60 0 KICK RET. No. Yds. Avg. Lg. TD J. Nelson 25 635 25.4 54 0 Blackmon 10 233 23.3 28 0 A. Green 9 196 21.8 37 0 PACKERS 54 1193 22.1 54 0 OPP. 80 1824 22.8 83 0 KICKING XP-A FG-A Pts. Crosby 48-49 27-36 129 PACKERS 48-49 27-36 129 OPPONENTS 34-34 13-17 73 START TEAM STATS Packers Opponent TOTAL POINTS ……461 297 TOUCHDOWNS …………54 36 Rushing ………………20 5 Passing …………………30 29 Returns ……………………4 2 FIRST DOWNS ……335 272 Rushing ………………102 68 Passing …………………201 168 By penalty ……………32 36 3d-conversions 103-219 76-211 3d-efficiency ………37.0% 36.0% 4th-conversions ………3-9 10-25 4th-efficiency ……33.3% 40.0% 4551 YARDS (net) ………6065 Average per game …379.1 284.4 Average per play ……7.6 6.8 YARDS RUSHING …1885 1333 Average per game …117.8 83.3 Total rushes …………438 371 Average per play ……4.3 3.6 YARDS PASSING …4180 3218 Average per game …261.3 2011 Sacked-yards lost …51-312 37-232 Complete-attempts 357-553 294-540 Pct. complete ………64.6% 54.4% Had intercepted …………8 30 Punts-average ……67-43.1 74-45.0 Fumbles-lost ………20-8 24-10 Time of possession 33:03 26:57