Although on record as predicting a 28-17 loss to the Giants by the Eagles this coming Sunday, I need to cleanse my soul by presenting the counterpoint argument.
Kieran Darcy of ESPN.com attacked me with the reasoning why the Eagles could walk away with a "W" over the Giants this Sunday…
To quote from Darcy, both starting defensive tackles for the Giants, Linval Joseph (ankle/knee) and Cullen Jenkins (knee/Achilles), sat out practice Thursday, as did starting cornerback Corey Webster (groin). Backup cornerbacks Aaron Ross (back) and Jayron Hosley (hamstring) missed practice as well, leaving the Giants very thin in the secondary.
But Giants head coach Tom Coughlin and defensive coordinator Perry Fewell did not sound overly concerned when asked about the cornerback shortage. Trumaine McBride is a six-year veteran, and Fewell said Terrell Thomas could possibly be moved from nickelback to the outside.
"We have a plan, as far as what we’d like to do and how we’d like to do it going into the game," Fewell said Thursday. "They’ve done a good job in practice this week — even though we have some missing parts, they’ve done a really nice job."
LeSean McCoy is the Giants' No. 1 concern. The 25-year-old looks re-energized — leading the NFL in rushing, averaging 117 yards per game. (The Giants' run defense is ranked No. 28 in the league, by the way.)
"He’s running like he ran several years ago," Fewell said. "He’s an outstanding runner. And I think the Eagles' new scheme buys him an opportunity to showcase his talents even more. It’s a two-way street — some scheme, and then he’s just playing lights-out football."
Quarterback Michael Vick has completed 65 of 118 passes (55.1 percent), with five touchdowns and just two interceptions. And he's run the ball 26 times for 228 yards. (To put that in some perspective — the Giants only have 231 rushing yards as a team.)
DeSean Jackson has 21 catches for 393 yards and two touchdowns, averaging 18.7 yards per catch (fifth in the league). And the Eagles have 24 passing plays of 20 yards or more in four games.
"Those [players'] skill levels are really good," Fewell said. "So when you add that with the things that they’re doing now, it’s an offense that can move the football all over the field."
The Giants spent considerable time in training camp preparing for the Eagles' offense, considering they'll face it twice per season. Fewell said the coaching staff pored over three years' worth of tape from Kelly's Oregon days, dating back to 2010.
Giants linebacker Spencer Paysinger played for Kelly at Oregon, and said he sees some similarities between the Eagles' offense and the one he faced in practice in college.
"You’ve got to have players that have set rules," Paysinger said. "You don’t want to have to think too much against this type of offense because that’s what they’re banking on — you thinking too much, getting a half-man out of the gap and they can pop a good run."
So you're telling me there's a chance? Apparently, ESPN amigo…
Meanwhile, I'm still reeling from the negativity I had to pull out of my soul regarding this team we have a love-hate relationship with… There's an emotional cost associated with having witnessed so many regime changes over the course of 40 years following this team from Philly…
I will say this as a positive statement– Cedric Thornton is our overall best performer on defense.
He's the guy I'm counting upon to disrupt the Giants' offensive flow on Sunday.
Defensive end might be OK with starters Fletcher Cox and Cedric Thornton, whom Kelly singled out yesterday as being perhaps his best defensive player right now. But the team needs a nose tackle. Isaac Sopoaga, the free agent from San Francisco, is the epitome of a stop-gap at that position, and right now he’s neither a stop nor a gap.
"If the Eagles insist on staying in a 3-4 — even though they get out of it when they go to nickel, and they go to nickel a lot — they need a big-time nose tackle. Pittsburgh, which is the team you always think of when you think 3-4, made it work for years because they had Casey Hampton. That’s what the Eagles need — a Casey Hampton."— Mark Eckel, NJ.com
They also need outside linebackers who can get to the quarterback. Again, if you’re going to play a 3-4, you need that outside linebacker who scares quarterbacks.
The Eagles right now have Trent Cole and Connor Barwin outside, and they have a total of two sacks between them, with both belonging to Barwin.
Inside, the Eagles have DeMeco Ryans, who will turn 30 next year when he is scheduled to earn $6.8 million, and Mychal Kendricks, who is beginning to look like Quinton Caver 2.0 — athletic as all get out but with a lack of instanks that is very troubling.
I’m not even going to mention the secondary, and especially the safety position, because, well, you’ve seen the games.
"The Eagles are good at running back and tight end, and that’s it."…according to Eckel.
Speaking of tight end, Zach Ertz might turn out to be the next Jason Witten, and he better be. The team passed on a lot of good defensive players with that 35th overall draft pick last year to take him when they already had Brent Celek and James Casey.
The offensive line, thought to be a strength going into the season now that everyone was healthy, has allowed 14 sacks, a ton of pressures — tackles Jason Peters and Lane Johnson have combined for 27 — and have been called for 11 penalties.
Quality depth is needed to push the starters.
Another wide receiver also is a must. Maybe they re-sign Jeremy Maclin, who will be a free agent coming off his torn ACL… but maybe Maclin rejoins his old coach Andy Reid in Kansas City. Keep in mind, Maclin played his college ball at Missouri and might want to go back there in addition to re-joining his old coach. And there’s also the chance he’s not as good as he was after tearing up his knee.
In any event, we need another wide receiver. A go-to guy to keep opposing safeties from doubling down on D-Jax…
But let's stick to the matter at hand… we've got to go into MetLife Stadium on Sunday like it's a street gang brawl… 'cause that's the way it usually turns out to be with the Giants and the Eagles. There is also an unspoken code of honor perhaps best mirrored by the Jets and the Sharks in the musical "West Side Story"… We may need this win very badly, and God knows Chip Kelly needs it badly to instill local faith in his methodology…but if all else fails, we realize that the Giants and the Eagles are somehow related to each other in a family way. I guess you could call it shared history. It creates a bond of familiarity. We both go back a long way together. So neither team's fan base should freak out over a win or a loss. We shall meet again… and again…
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