Eagle Fan Diary

  The Eagles took a Giants team (and a lot of their media) partying like Super Bowl winners after their first playoff win in a decade and physically and emotionally destroyed them 38-7.   The Giants had no chance from the 1 st snap.   There was no turning point, no special deciding play.     The Eagles just owned the Giants starting right after the G-Men had their best play of the day... winning the coin flip.   Enjoy laughing at New York's (and the press) pre-game euphoria.   Overconfidence does not begin to describe Big Apple insanity: The Ringer’s podcaster Bill Simmons suggested NYG QB Danny Jones was the best QB in the NFC .     Fox Sports got on the Giant hype train, courtesy of Peter Schrager (Giants Super Bowl bound). Sportsnaut 4 bold predictions : Danny Jones rushing >100 (was 24).   Giant D scoring 1 TD. (Nope, but their offense did... just 1!) Evan Neal won’t yield a sack (He did not!   But he did "yield" 5 pres...

  The Big Blue Crew is confident!  Still, I wouldn't count the Eagles out.  They like to be "dogs:"  - Eagles finished season 1-2 with a pedestrian week 18 win vs. NY, not exactly a roll … Eagles finished season 14-3 with starter Jalen Hurts going 14-1. - Giants have some terrific momentum off a huge playoff win at Minnesota … Vikings did it with mirrors this year, actually scoring 3 points less than they yielded in 2022.  Their defense was 31st in the NFL.  They were ripe for the inevitable "upset." -  Giants are 6-0 vs. #1 seeds since the NFL playoff restructuring in 1990. ... The Eagles are 11-0 vs. the Giants in their last 11 home games.   -  Giants are coming off a win on their second straight road game , and have made it through the playoffs as a wildcard on the road in their past, most recently upsetting the Patriots in 2011. … This is not the '11 Supe winners.  This NY team played back to back road games thrice  t...

  Jalen Hurts health was “Good Enough” for him to play.  The Eagles offense was “good enough” to score 6 times.  And the Eagles as a team played “good enough” to beat the Giants “Little Blue” team, who rested their star players because they were locked into the NFC’s 6 th playoff seed (So NY took advantage to protect their premier players).  All in all, the post-game Birds feeling was “good enough.” The playoff teams and positioning were established last weekend.  AFC vs NFC playoff QBs- Big edge, AFC, with 5 of the current top 6 in the game: Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Joe Burrough, Justin Herbert, Trevor Lawrence.  The names say it all.  Lawrence is young but has attached a terrific NFL season to his unparalleled pedigree.  While the final 2 AFC playoff teams may not start their #1 QBs, Lamar Jackson and Tua Tagovailoa are very good when healthy in their respective systems, certainly top 10 QBs this season in their own right. In the NFC playof...

  At the time of this writing, the shock and worry associated with Damar Hamlin’s on field cardiac event and collapse remains the center of the NFL world.  Compassion and positive hope should remain the forefront of all good people.  Fortunately, positive news has emanated from the University of Cincinnati Medical Center as Hamlin is communicative (talking to his family since his breathing tube was recently removed). While the world must go on, we can all take a few moments to reflect, and wish the best to Damar and his family, with the hope for his full healthy recovery. Onto football… Have the Eagles altered their opinion of their backup QB from Minshew-mania to Minshew-phobia: The pick 6 Minshew threw vs. the Saints was not AJ Browns fault, despite a % of Eagle fans attempting to pin the blame on AJ (running a "soft" route).  Quez Watkins was a big reason for the 2 Minshew interceptions the week before vs. Dallas.  But Minshew was responsible for rele...

  The Eagles lost a close game to the Cowboys last Sunday.   The loss was painful… an incomplete pass at the 20 as the game ended was the difference between victory and defeat.   A poor game by the back 7 whilst the D-Line was excellent with both their run defense and pass rush suggests some Eagle defenders may have peaked against the Giants a couple weeks back. But there is time to turn that around.   Finally though, injuries to Jordan Davis (concussion), Avonte Maddox (toe) and Lane Johnson (abdominal tear) were most problematic.   The Eagles went toe-to-toe with the Cowboys for 4 quarters starting their backup quarterback.   While the offense generated 27 points (an additional 7 Eagle points were garnered on a great pick 6 by Josh Sweat vs. Dak Prescott), 4 miscues were effectively the difference in the game.   While Boston Scott and Miles Sanders both fumbled, the QB to RB exchange appeared ascue.   This has been overlooked in relation to th...

  When Jim Brown would get up from a tackle, he said, “each time I’d get up slow, deliberate, so no one knew if I was hurt… It gives you an advantage, because they don’t know if you’re hurt.   You conserve energy and you camouflage everything.” Jalen Hurts sprained his shoulder against the Bears in a toughly fought 25-20 win last Sunday, and when Jordan Mailata approached his QB, who had remained on the ground, and said “Are you OK,” Jalen’s response was “Pick me the F up!”   Hurts performance after that was exemplary, sprained shoulder and all.   Hurts is one tough guy, and perhaps moving forward should take a page from Hall-Of-Famer Jim Brown’s book, because he can play with pain and injury, yet will likely want to hide that from the opposition.   For this week, at least, the Hurts injury means that although bthe Birds won the game, they’ll lose their QB for a week or two.   When the Eagles coaching staff did not dress Dallas Goedert last Sunday vs. the...