NFL

[MRandall25]

Looks like RGIII is starting to get into a rhythm. Too bad it took 3 quarters.

[Idoit40fans]

Maybe he should have taken a few snaps in the preseason. Pop

[Rocco]

It's going to take a little longer than I thought to de-Norv the Chargers.

[JS©]

[slappybrown]

Eagle offense looks pretty good.

I think they'll be pretty effective for half a year or so, until there's a body of film on them. I'm not at all convinced that this offense will work at the NFL level as more than a novelty once more and more QBs end up injured. I think in 3-5 years it'll be relegated to the tricksy part of the playbook.

It's even worse than the dink and dunk offense. Just horrible to watch. It works, so far, but I agree that it will wear off in 4 weeks or so.

It's not going anywhere for a while. Also, the Eagles are extremely fun to watch.

[shmenguin]

Aside from just running a ton of plays, I didn't notice anything too out of the ordinary from the eagles. The benefits of that rapid offense will last. It's just a matter of continued execution and focus on their part.

[shafnutz05]

Bingo. It's all about execution. They have the athletic ability to run that offense, regardless of what tape other teams have on them. That being said, naturally some adjustments will be made, but Kelly will do his own adjustments as well.

[Idoit40fans]

I don't think tape rotates defensemen into the game.

[shmenguin]

i think vick will get injured, and when he's not injured he'll still have accuracy problems. so i doubt they go very far this year. but that's not the system's fault.

[mikey287]

It's going to take a little longer than I thought to de-Norv the Chargers.

Things were going fairly smoothly for them, and then when the clock ticked over to the fourth quarter, it seemed like everyone on their sideline just looked at each other and went, "so...what the hell do we do now?" It's like they had no plan for them being in the lead...one series of up-the-middle runs, one series of Rivers being horrendous, one nasty INT return by Cushing (?)...the Texans just ate them alive...

Good for me, as I picked the Texans in SFTC...

[count2infinity]

[Kaizer]

i live 80 miles from jacksonville, guess which FL team wasnt on TV.

[slappybrown]

I still am puzzled by mac saying that the Eagles are "horrible" to watch, much like "dink and dunk." NFL games are often dramatic but much less often "fun", and that offense is definitely fun to watch.

[IanMoran]

I still am puzzled by mac saying that the Eagles are "horrible" to watch, much like "dink and dunk." NFL games are often dramatic but much less often "fun", and that offense is definitely fun to watch.

I genuinely have "fun" watching football, purely because of FF though

[slappybrown]

He said it a lot better than I could have:

http://www.grantland.com/blog/the-trian ... -fun-again" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Let's be honest: Football is not really that fun. It's awesome, dudes get lit up and we feel it in our chest-caves, it's intense, it's communal, and it's the dominant narrative generator in the world of sports. I wouldn't call it fun, though. But after an offseason that called into question whether it’s morally responsible to enjoy this sport, and after an opening Sunday of Carolina-Seahwaks, Gabbert, all of the Steelers getting hurt, Weeden, the Jets-Bucs Stupid Bowl, and the usual 10 seconds where you wonder whether someone just died on a football field after a hit, after all that, to see a team be so arrogantly creative, so wildly entertaining … that was something anyone could love. The Eagles deserved to be playing sports the same night as Rafa-Djokovic. Last night, the Eagles were fun.

[mac5155]

I still am puzzled by mac saying that the Eagles are "horrible" to watch, much like "dink and dunk." NFL games are often dramatic but much less often "fun", and that offense is definitely fun to watch.

I just feel like a guy running the option is not fun to watch. You know what's going to happen before the ball is even snapped.

[tifosi77]

I don't think tape rotates defensemen into the game.

Neither does it rotate in offensive players. Did you hear Vick post-game? He said that at the end of the first quarter, he felt like it was halftime. And he said that it's "going to be a long season" running this offense. If he's tanked after week 1, just how effective is this offense going to be in week 13?

Plus, I truly think this aspect is somewhat overrated. The Eagles ran 77 offensive plays.... the same number as Detroit, but fewer than New England (89) and Baltimore (87). (Granted, three of those four teams won their games.) But they only ran half as many plays in the second half as the did in the first, and I think that's because the Eagles' offense was every bit as gassed as the Redskins' defense. They were visibly worn down, and it nearly came back to bite them. How many three-and-outs did the Eagles have in the second half vs the first? It gave the 'Skins a door back into the game.

I remain unconvinced.

[slappybrown]

I still am puzzled by mac saying that the Eagles are "horrible" to watch, much like "dink and dunk." NFL games are often dramatic but much less often "fun", and that offense is definitely fun to watch.

I just feel like a guy running the option is not fun to watch. You know what's going to happen before the ball is even snapped.

wat

[shmenguin]

I don't think tape rotates defensemen into the game.

Neither does it rotate in offensive players. Did you hear Vick post-game? He said that at the end of the first quarter, he felt like it was halftime. And he said that it's "going to be a long season" running this offense. If he's tanked after week 1, just how effective is this offense going to be in week 13?

Plus, I truly think this aspect is somewhat overrated. The Eagles ran 77 offensive plays.... the same number as Detroit, but fewer than New England (89) and Baltimore (87). (Granted, three of those four teams won their games.) But they only ran half as many plays in the second half as the did in the first, and I think that's because the Eagles' offense was every bit as gassed as the Redskins' defense. They were visibly worn down, and it nearly came back to bite them. How many three-and-outs did the Eagles have in the second half vs the first? It gave the 'Skins a door back into the game.

I remain unconvinced.

you might be right, but the feeling i got from that game was that they let their foot off the gas because of the big lead - not exhaustion

[slappybrown]

I don't think tape rotates defensemen into the game.

Neither does it rotate in offensive players. Did you hear Vick post-game? He said that at the end of the first quarter, he felt like it was halftime. And he said that it's "going to be a long season" running this offense. If he's tanked after week 1, just how effective is this offense going to be in week 13?

Plus, I truly think this aspect is somewhat overrated. The Eagles ran 77 offensive plays.... the same number as Detroit, but fewer than New England (89) and Baltimore (87). (Granted, three of those four teams won their games.) But they only ran half as many plays in the second half as the did in the first, and I think that's because the Eagles' offense was every bit as gassed as the Redskins' defense. They were visibly worn down, and it nearly came back to bite them. How many three-and-outs did the Eagles have in the second half vs the first? It gave the 'Skins a door back into the game.

I remain unconvinced.

The Pats started doing this last year (kind of a lite version) and ran roughshod over people; its why they are in that list. Its a lot easier to (1) substitute on offense on the fly when running this offense (and when I say easier, I mean its possible in the first place, because you can't on defense when they are at max tempo) and (2) play gassed on offense as opposed to defense. Desean Jackson knows where he is running. The man covering him does not. Its difficult enough to play defense in the NFL, but when both sides are gassed, its even harder on the defense. Additionally, PHI has been prepping to play like this since he was hired. The teams they play have not.

There's no doubt they are going to have games where they wind up with some crazy disparity in TOP and plays run, and I don't see the Eagles being talented enough that they'd win more than 8 or 9 games, even assuming this proves to be a strategic advantage. But the league is headed in this direction.

[Idoit40fans]

I don't think tape rotates defensemen into the game.

Neither does it rotate in offensive players. Did you hear Vick post-game? He said that at the end of the first quarter, he felt like it was halftime. And he said that it's "going to be a long season" running this offense. If he's tanked after week 1, just how effective is this offense going to be in week 13?

Plus, I truly think this aspect is somewhat overrated. The Eagles ran 77 offensive plays.... the same number as Detroit, but fewer than New England (89) and Baltimore (87). (Granted, three of those four teams won their games.) But they only ran half as many plays in the second half as the did in the first, and I think that's because the Eagles' offense was every bit as gassed as the Redskins' defense. They were visibly worn down, and it nearly came back to bite them. How many three-and-outs did the Eagles have in the second half vs the first? It gave the 'Skins a door back into the game.

I remain unconvinced.

I don't disagree with anything you said. You also seem to be agreeing with me that teams "getting tape" on the Eagles isn't goingto mean much.

[tifosi77]

No, I very much do think that by mid-season - once there is a body of work of the PHI 1st team O vs 1st team Ds in a wide variety of situational down-and-distance combos, etc - that defensive coordinators in the NFL will begin to have this sussed out.

Obviously, I could be wrong. But I didn't see anything last night to dissuade me.

[shafnutz05]

I still am puzzled by mac saying that the Eagles are "horrible" to watch, much like "dink and dunk." NFL games are often dramatic but much less often "fun", and that offense is definitely fun to watch.

I just feel like a guy running the option is not fun to watch. You know what's going to happen before the ball is even snapped.

wat

wat indeed. I'm not sure what game you were watching, but if you actually knew exactly what's going to happen every time the ball was snapped last night, you must be a wizard.

[mac5155]

i mean as far as running the ball. Call me crazy but I like long passes and deep plays. Id much rather watch stafford go 1/10 to Megatron than Vick and McCoy combine for 30 yards.

[Kaizer]

When the eagles face a team that can keep the ball for 7-8 minutes at a time, their own defense is going be heat stroking from having to go back on the field before they get their own breather.