Eagles win thriller over 49ers 40-26
by JasonB
on Oct 12, 2008 8:27 PM EDT
in News
Honestly, I think the score flattered the Eagles a bit... we probably weren't 2 TDs better than the Niners today. I have to give that San Fran team and their young QB a lot of credit. For a little over 3 quarters they did a great job... This was a gutty win from the Eagles on a day that felt like we were going to watch another Eagles second half collapse.
Not this time though.
Onto headlines
A game of runs
With :41 left in the first half the Cardinals kicked a FG that was the first of 20 unanswered points into the 4th quarter. With a little over 11 minutes left in the 4th quarter, the Eagles ripped off 23 straight points to win it. Until today the Eagles hadn't scored a second half TD in 2 games.
Big game for Buck
No Brian Westbrook, no problem.
What a huge game from Correll Buckhalter today! He was three yards shy of a 100 on the ground, where he averaged over 5 yards a carry and scored a TD. He also caught 7 passes for 89 yards. The man with bionic knees finished the day with 186 total yards and a TD. It was a Westbrook like performance and one the Eagles really needed today. The Eagles run game looked better today than it has all year. We'll have to cehck the tape but did Klecko at FB really make that much of a difference? I would say Buck is the unquestioned player of the game if not for...
The sack artist formerly known as Thomas
New name for Juqua Parker and a new level of lay as well. Juqua got his team leading 4.5th sack, he had a huge tackle for a loss in the quarter where he read a TE screen perfectly, and of course he had the big INT return for a TD that iced the game. Really the whole defensive line really started to beat the Niners in the 4th quarter, but no one played bigger than Juqua.
The rest of the boys up front were pretty productive as well. Trent Cole had the big strip, Darren Howard had a sack, and Chris Clemons had a nice day with several pressures and a fumble recovery.
Record setting day for #5
Besides just having a pretty damn good game, Donovan McNabb pass Ron Jaworski to become the franchise leader in both pass attempts and yardage.
McNabb finished the day 23/36 for 279 yards, 2 TDs and 1 INT(that was clearly in part on LJ Smith). Real nice day out of McNabb.
And hey, the fade pass! McNabb to Baskett for 6. I thought McNabb couldn't throw the fade...?
NFC East just got a lot more interesting
With Dallas and Washington losing both in big upsets today, the NFC East race looks a lot more interesting now than it did yesterday. The Giants are still rolling along undefeated, but in 2 weeks their schedule will get much tougher than it has been. However, Dallas and Washington have both dropped to 4-2 and the Eagles, even at 3-3 are just a game back of them. Considering that we still have to play both teams again, they're absolutely within striking distance. Plus, after hearing so much this year about the vaunted NFC East... Two NFC West teams got wins against the East today and another gave the Eagles everything they could handle. The NFC South looks pretty damn good as well.
Overall it was an incredible day in the NFL with 5 games decided in the last seconds. Days like this remind us of why we do this every Sunday.
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Hank Baskett was fantastic today. He deserves some praise, and more playing time. Is there anything Reggie Brown brings to the table that Hank doesn’t? The Eagles can’t run that fade route with any other player on the team, for certain.
by BFH on Oct 12, 2008 8:36 PM EDT 0 recs
He definitely played well. Frankly, I thought Reggie had played well the previous 2 weeks… It really makes me think that with a healthy CUrtis & Reggie… along with Desean and Hank and Avant… We’ve got a pretty damn good WR corps
by JasonB on
Oct 12, 2008 10:30 PM EDT
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Donovan McNabb
All time team leader in yards and pass attempts.
And at least 25% of all Eagles fans still consider him the worst QB in Philly history.
The monster at the end of this blog.
by grover on Oct 12, 2008 8:41 PM EDT 0 recs
you think he’s sexy… don’t cha?
Foos for OC in '09!
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by foos05 on
Oct 13, 2008 3:05 PM EDT
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let's just say
You look mighty cute in them jeans…
by cavortingEagle on
Oct 13, 2008 5:21 PM EDT
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cool avatar btw
Foos for OC in '09!
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by foos05 on
Oct 14, 2008 7:53 AM EDT
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thanks man i made it myself
http://www.libertyballers.com
by Remis on
Oct 14, 2008 12:08 PM EDT
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I was wrong
Buck had an amazing game and i admit he is not as bad as i thought he was. i still however feel its time to go with someone younger. but i do give buck respect now
by NickPampani on Oct 12, 2008 8:42 PM EDT 0 recs
why did you ever think he sucked?hes always averaged 4.5 ypc
by Joe_D on
Oct 13, 2008 11:29 AM EDT
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+1
"I need to do a better job of putting players in the right position to perennially come up short of expectations"
by Whodie126 on
Oct 13, 2008 1:15 PM EDT
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because he goes down pretty easly. but the main reason is that he is not the right complement back for westbrook. usualy when you have a shifty back like westbrook you would have a muscle guy to power through for short yardage situations and so many times ive seen him fall down at the line. he needs to go 5 yards before he can break a tackel
by NickPampani on
Oct 13, 2008 1:43 PM EDT
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Goes down easy?
Actually, Buckhalter is one of the best in the game at plunging ahead for positive yards on every run. You’ll rarely see Buckhalter getting caught in the backfield for a loss.
by Andrew B on
Oct 13, 2008 3:03 PM EDT
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for the past 3 weeks i have seen Buck go down at the line so many times i can explain it
by NickPampani on
Oct 13, 2008 3:12 PM EDT
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no not always but i still feel he needs to build up steam to break a tackel and he cand do that untill he gains 5 yards
by NickPampani on
Oct 13, 2008 5:31 PM EDT
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+1
I’ve had this argument so I’ll let the others take it from here, but I don’t know how anyone can say Buck sucks (4.4 avg for career) his stats prove the opposite on there own (let’s remember he has only started like 5 games in his entire career)
he is not the right complement back
this quote on the other hand may not be completely off point. But I don’t think it’s because HE isn’t the right back I think the plays he gets are not tailored to his strengths when Westbrook is in the game.
"I need to do a better job of putting players in the right position to perennially come up short of expectations"
by Whodie126 on
Oct 13, 2008 5:34 PM EDT
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+1 to Remis btw
"I need to do a better job of putting players in the right position to perennially come up short of expectations"
by Whodie126 on
Oct 13, 2008 5:35 PM EDT
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Another big factor — the Niners didn’t blitz a whole lot, and when they did the O-Line (generally with the help of a tight end and/or Buck) picked it up.
McNabb scrambled away from a few as well, but with Buckhalter’s performance in Giants stadium last year I was pretty concerned he was going to spend a lot of time horizontal.
Notice Lorenzo Booker didn’t spend much (if any) time in the backfield, despite the team being short at RB. It is likely because he’s such a liability in blitz pickup. Good decision by Reid there.
by BFH on Oct 12, 2008 8:45 PM EDT 0 recs
He lined up at WR alot which I kind of expected. We really needed some bodies there.
by JasonB on
Oct 12, 2008 10:30 PM EDT
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Maybe it's just me...
…but I don’t know how to feel about this win. On the one hand we almost lost to the 49ers. On the other hand we had like our whole starting offense out. So I guess it’s a a good win, certainly with Dallas and Washington losing. I second the notion that Baskett played great and I though the fade was a thing of beauty. Parker is a beast; hard to imagine a few years ago he was Kearse’ backup. Buckhalter ran hard and strong. But what the hell has happened to our run defense?
I am glad we get a week to rest up and make a run.
by ajay on Oct 12, 2008 8:59 PM EDT 0 recs
Gocong played a lot less and Lito a lot more this week. This is likely an admission by JJ that Gocong is doing more harm (having tight ends run right by him) than good (stopping the run).
So having him on the sideline with Lito on the field hurt the run defense significantly.
by BFH on
Oct 12, 2008 9:19 PM EDT
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Actually Hanson played more than Lito. Lito had some sort of groin injury that kept him out for a good part of the game.
by JasonB on
Oct 12, 2008 10:31 PM EDT
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Indeed. Perhaps I forgot that #21 was on the field a lot because neither him nor Lito were in on many plays when they were out there.
I concur that the Niners have some talent, and are getting better. The Ike Bruce signing has been a big deal for them. They have speed at linebacker, including perhaps the best MLB in the league. And Nate Clements and Walt Harris are a really, really good duo at the corner spots.
There biggest problems remain on the lines. They have trouble generating a pass rush. But their O-line was decent today till late.
It was a worthy victory.
by BFH on
Oct 12, 2008 10:59 PM EDT
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i think it was hamstring
http://www.libertyballers.com
by Remis on
Oct 13, 2008 1:43 PM EDT
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Frankly, I left this game thinking San Fran was better than they’re given credit for. They played really really well for 3 quarters today. Frank Gore is just great, their defense has some holes but it’s got playmakers, and their offensive gameplan was really good and executed to perfection until the last quarter.
If the Eagles are going to bring the house, smart teams are going to kill us with screens and quick slants. That’s what they did for most of the game. JT O’Sullivan was smart with the ball and he did well to elude the rush… it just all kinda fell apart for them at the end.
by JasonB on
Oct 12, 2008 10:35 PM EDT
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eagles are just a game back of them...
likely it was a typo
by eagleyosh on
Oct 12, 2008 9:55 PM EDT
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effectively 2 games behind
considering they have the tiebreaker at this point
by joshjoshjosh on
Oct 12, 2008 10:33 PM EDT
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True, but we play both of them again. So they do have the tiebreaker right now, but we do control our destiny there. If we beat them both we negate those losses.
by JasonB on
Oct 12, 2008 10:36 PM EDT
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I agree, the 49ers didn’t seem completely horrible for the first 3 quarters. Gore just tore them apart and the Eagles still have problems with the TE.
Are Baskett and DeSean Jackson the best pair of wide receivers the Eagles have had during the Reid era not counting the TO year?
The blocked field goal was disheartening. I actually thought Akers missed the 38 yarder when I first saw it. Akers really worries me at this point. If I were Heckert, I’d consider watching the CFL closely to see if there is a kicker who could help you at the end of the year if this keeps up with Akers.
by Baron Dainer Von Tresvant on Oct 13, 2008 12:01 AM EDT 0 recs
I’d consider watching the CFL closely to see if there is a kicker who could help you at the end of the year if this keeps up with Akers.
http://www.cfl.ca/index.php/roster/show/id/660 im from Saskatchewan, this kid has a leg. he has hit kicks over 40 yards into some strong winds. hes clutch to.
by agj88 on Oct 13, 2008 1:47 AM EDT 0 recs
So after the bye week we should have: curtis, Abiamiri, westbrook, and brown back?
We will really have no excuses after that. I can’t wait to have curtis and jackson out their on the field at the same time.
by thwalls on Oct 13, 2008 8:03 AM EDT 0 recs
what about Andrews Does anybody know whats up with him
by NickPampani on
Oct 13, 2008 8:46 AM EDT
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hopefully Andy lets Curtis and Jackson play together in the same sandbox
Foos for OC in '09!
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by foos05 on
Oct 13, 2008 8:53 AM EDT
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I’m more interested in how Curtis looks when he returns … we’ve seen McNabb and Smith try and come back from the same injury/surgery and neither looked back at 100% until a year later … and the book is still open on LJ.
"I need to do a better job of putting players in the right position to perennially come up short of expectations"
by Whodie126 on
Oct 13, 2008 1:21 PM EDT
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True, but from what I understand, Curtis’ was a bit different in that they caught it quite early. McNabb’s and Smith’s were both a disaster… We shall see. Based on what we’ve seen all year though, I wouldn’t mind seeing alot of 4 wr sets (almsot like a spread offense) with Curtis, Jackson, Baskett, and Brown… We must keep Jackson on the field though… Andy better not try any of this shit and pull him off alot
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by foos05 on
Oct 13, 2008 1:26 PM EDT
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does anyone else have problems watching whenever David Akers attempts a field goal?
by Clyde Simmons on Oct 13, 2008 9:19 AM EDT 0 recs
yes… i want to poke myself in the eyes with pencils
Foos for OC in '09!
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by foos05 on
Oct 13, 2008 9:30 AM EDT
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YEAH
i left the room yesterday during the 38 yarder
"Watching Big Ben kiss the canvas nine times in Philly was like watching a guy fighting a school of sharks -- with everyone rooting for the sharks."
by 700 Level on
Oct 13, 2008 10:42 AM EDT
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I’d also like to thank Mike Martz for getting too pass-happy in the 4th quarter.
Time's yours, Andy.
by BrianS on Oct 13, 2008 9:53 AM EDT 0 recs
seconded…he may wear red now…but somewhere under there he must have been wearing some blue and silver.
by Clyde Simmons on
Oct 13, 2008 10:23 AM EDT
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Flattery?
“Honestly, I think the score flattered the Eagles a bit… we probably weren’t 2 TDs better than the Niners today.”
Eagles – 3 offensive touchdowns
49ers – 1 offensive touchdown
Eagles – 7 of 11 drives ending in scores
49ers – 5 of 12 drives ending in scores
Eagles – 21 first downs
49ers – 14 first downs
Eagles – 6 of 12 on 3rd/4th down
49ers – 3 of 13 on 3rd/4th down
Eagles – 3 sacks
49ers – 0 sacks
Eagles – 6 tackles for loss
49ers – 1 tackle for loss
Eagles – 2 interceptions, 1 fumble recovery
49ers – 1 interception
Eagles – 7.8 yards per pass attempt
49ers – 5.3 yards per pass attempt
Eagles – 64.8% completion percentage
49ers – 56.7% completion percentage
Eagles – 2 penalties
49ers – 10 penalties
Eagles – 3 of 7 in redzone
49ers – 1 of 4 in redzone
Eagles – 130 yards punt/interception returns
49ers – 46 yards punt/interception returns
Eagles – 29.0 yards average kickoff return
49ers – 21.6 yards average kickoff return
Eagles – 46 yard line average starting field position
49ers – 27 yard line average starting field position
Eagles – 40
49ers – 26
There’s nothing flattering in any of that. The Eagles flat out dominated the 49ers, and the only reason it seemed close was that the 49ers got their flukey return touchdown first at the end of the first half, while ours was second at the end of the second half. Kind of like the first Cowboys game of 2006, where an early McNabb sack-fumble-TD return waited until the end of the game for a Lito Sheppard pick-6 to uncover the 14 point margin the Eagles offense had vs. the Cowboys offense.
The only thing the 49ers did well was to run out the clock on themselves by attempting to ride a rush first offense to victory, and to catch kickoffs after the Eagles scored 8 times.
by Andrew B on Oct 13, 2008 2:58 PM EDT 0 recs
The only thing the 49ers did well was to run out the clock on themselves by attempting to ride a rush first offense to victory, and to catch kickoffs after the Eagles scored 8 times
Most of the game I thought the Eagles were just trying to find a way to lose, but I think you hit a really good point here.
There are so many places these days to read about the WCO that I’ll let others google it for themselves (oh all right here’s one), but the basic premise is to run once you’ve established a lead. The reason that blocked kick hurt so bad was that it allowed the Niners to continue with the clock eating style of play. Ideally Akers would have hit that kick, and even had the Eagles not kicked, the score would have been 17-9 (ideally 20-9), and the Niners would have been forced to play catch up in the second half. Instead they were able to come out of the locker room at the start of the 3rd and grind out two nice clock eating drives which made us all start thinking about the draft.
Fortunately for us, our D really imposed itself in the 4th Quarter – and the more I look at the game stats and Play by play, we really smoked the niners.
By the way – has anybody paid attention to who has beaten the Browns and who the Giants have played? Wouldn’t it be sweet to see a giant upset today? They shouldn’t have beaten Cincy…
by cavortingEagle on
Oct 13, 2008 4:31 PM EDT
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I actually have faith in the browns ability … they just haven’t been the same team that finished last year.
"I need to do a better job of putting players in the right position to perennially come up short of expectations"
by Whodie126 on
Oct 13, 2008 5:31 PM EDT
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Rush First
A lot of rush first teams run out the clock on themselves.
The problem when facing a team like the Eagles is the disparity in yardage per play.
Eagles and 49ers were both running just under 5 yards per rush. But the Eagles were throwing just under 8 yards per pass attempt, while the 49ers were just under 6. Every time the Eagles threw instead of running, they average 3 more yards down the field. That’s why Reid had a 2-1 pass-rush ratio. The 49ers gained almost nothing over running by passing except for draining the clock. However, the Eagles simply continuously scored on almost every possession, leaving the 49ers no margin for error in their attempt to run out the clock before the Eagles could rectify their blocked field goal return error. The low scoring run heavy offense didn’t produce what the 49ers really needed.
People want to claim that “Martz went away from the run” in the 4th quarter, but what really happened was that Gore stopped breaking through the line. Through the first 34 minutes of the game, Gore had two tackles for a loss and one run for 3 yards. Everything else was 4 yards or more. His first down runs to start the game were 6, 6, -1, 4, 7, 4, 6 TD, 7, 7 yards. After the 49ers last field goal, Gore had three first down runs of 0, 1, and 2 yards. 2nd and long forced Martz to call pass attempts, and the Eagles were able to get to O’Sullivan and disrupt the drives, which had little chance of succeeding once Gore failed on his first down run. Martz play calling didn’t change, despite the fantasies of ignoramuses like Rhea Hughes. The Eagles defense changed.
by Andrew B on
Oct 13, 2008 5:39 PM EDT
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A lot of rush first teams run out the clock on themselves.
If you average 7.8 yards per pass and 4.9 yards per run, why would you run?
To keep the opposing defense honest, or to run out the clock.
The disparity is even greater if you only look at the first half numbers. Buck averaged 4 yards per rush on 8 carries and Don averaged 8.6818(18 repeating) per pass attempt in the first half. So why run at all? We had to continue keeping the opposing D honest. It worked. We were down in the second half and Buck was able to break off three carries that went for over 10 yards in the second half. Effectively moving the ball through the air in the first half opened up the running game in the second. A normal score (say 17-9) would have allowed an even more balanced attack in the second half that tried to run out the clock, but we didn’t get a normal score. However, establishing the pass in the first half opened up the running game for some long gains in the second.
The nice thing about the offense in place under Andy is that if we have to score the “philosophy” is there. Run first teams that find themselves behind are often without recourse in the second half.
by cavortingEagle on
Oct 13, 2008 6:20 PM EDT
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Giants Run Out the Clock
The Giants gave a textbook example of running out the clock on yourself last night. They held the ball for almost 4 minutes in the 3rd quarter and alsmo 11 minutes in the 4th quarter interrupted only by a Elisha mannign pick-6. Of that time, 2 1/2 minutes of the 3rd quarter and almost 6 minutes of the 4th quarter was spent running out the clock on themselves.
by Andrew B on
Oct 14, 2008 9:59 AM EDT
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