A whirl wind of a month was it not? The Eagles are as hot as shrimp fried rice! After defeating the Redskins in a tight NFC East match up, the Eagles went into the bye with sole possession of first place in the NFC East at 6-5. Nick Foles and the offense had another steady game but the real story was how the defense has played so well in the close games and really the past 5 games. Fletcher Cox and Connor Barwin came up clutch in the end forcing RG3 to make some costly decisions. Brandon Boykin and the secondary benefited from this as Boykin caught the INT in the endzone to put the game on ice. Nick Foles didn't pass for any scores, but didn't turn the football over either not to mention the fact that he made a beautiful read in the redzone and kept a touchdown run. Naji Goode filled Mychal Kendricks spot beautifully recording a sack and contained RG3 on the ground as a spy all game. Another injury filler Rock Carmichael impressed in his 3 starts as well in place for Bradley Fletcher. This shows the depth that Chip Kelly and Billy Davis have built on every position on defense. Honestly I don't know a more promising, young, electric defensive line like the one that is buiding in Philadelphia. Fletcher Cox has been a menase all year long on both pass rush and run stopping. Cedric Thorton has been the unsung hero of the defense this year as well as Bennie Logan. Those 3 are all under 25 and still have been giving every offense they have faced a wicked headache. My personal favorite is Logan because of his sneaky pass rush ability and just the way he carries himself is exactly what the Eagles hoped to depend on when they shipped NT Issac Sopoaga off to the Wilforkless Patriots. Oh and THE STREAK IS OVER! The Eagles ended the 10 game losing streak at Lincoln Financial. Happy early thanksgiving Eagles fans! Now on to yesterdays thriller in Philadelphia against the red hot Arizona Cardinals. The Eagles (Fresh off a bye week) were coming in looking to prove they are a threat to the Cowboys in the NFC East and that this Cardinals headache the Eagles have needs to be rid of with some Nick Foles advil relief medicine ;). Carson Palmer going into this game had a top 5 QB rating after week 10. Michael Floyd (My Fantasy Baby) and Larry Fitzgerald have combined to be one of the best 1-2 punches in the league, and of course that scary Cardinals defense that is 2nd in run defense. Well what people forgot yesterday was that the Eagles have a pretty underratted defense themselves. On the first drive, Carson Palmer looking downfield throws the ball...but no! It is swatted back by none other than #58 the hunter Trent Cole and is recovered by the Eagles. Chip Kelly said in his press conference how when the turnover battle is won, your odds of winning is much higher (Not in those exact words of course). Well the Eagles offense delivered off the turnover after a beautiful play action roll, Foles gets to the right and sees a open Zach Ertz who slipped behind his linebacker and caught the 4 yard touchdown his second of the season. Now I won't go to a play by play but after a 10-7 lead for the Eagles, they kept their foot on the gas with Nick Foles getting the ball to his other tight end Brent Celek for another touchdown. You could tell throughout the entire game, and then the coaches and players confirmed that the Eagle knew how could Arizona's corners were, so they attacked their weakness which is their linebackers and safeties. Lesean McCoy notched out a tough 79 yards and made some big time plays in this game but one stood out over the others and that was ona 4th and 2, McCoy busted through a tight hole and picked up 5 tough yards to keep a drive going. That is what the Eagles need from their running game when the game is tight. Just like they did against Green Bay, they need to run out the clock and keep drives alive with McCoy and Bryce Brown. Nick Foles delivered Zach Ertz a beauty in the endzone to put the Eagles in promising position at 24-7. I really like how much Ertz has progressed this season. He now has 3 touchdowns on the year and has been a great compliment to a consistent and delightful starter in Brent Celek. Then the nail biting came when the Cardinals score 14 unanswered points. Michael Floyd scored a great touchdown that put them within 3. Nick Foles did throw a INT but was overturned after a penalty on Tyrann Mathieu for holding. So the record breaking streak contines. Anyway the defense need to come up big again. Just to clarify, early in the game Nate Allen picked off Carson Palmer after Coles strip sack and later in the game Carry Williams got a beautiful INT so the turnovers were there all game for the Eagles defesne that is a bend but don't break type defense. So this drive was going to be a tough one for Arizona but they were driving. With 1:56 to play Palmer gets the ball off just in time to Floyd but Bradley Fletcher who returned from injury this week got his "Inside leverage" on Floyd and was able to make a big time pass deflection to put the game on ice. This team is giving me heart issues with the close games, but I trust Billy Davis and this defense to get the job done when called upon. So the Eagles stand at 7-5 tied with the Cowboys for first in the East. Are we legit contenders? Super Bowl contenders? We will find out but Nick Foles and Chip Kelly have this team on the brink of something special. Or are we wittnessing it right now.
Quck Note: Desean Jackson has surpassed 1,000 yards on the season, he is having a big time season and is staying humble throughout the ride. He is close to breaking the single season record for yards as an Eagle. Go get it #10!
