The Carper

Well did he do it again or did he do it again?  Michael Vick, so adament that the team problems the Eagles are going through are just that, team problems.  And nothing to do with the fact that Vick has simply lost his touch.  Yes, he was sacked 7 times but McCoy had no problem rushing for 119 yards on 19 carries for an impressive 6.3 ypc.  Desean Jackson added 100 yards receiving on 3 catches.

Point is, it’s not the line and it’s not the players around him, it’s Vick.  Not only did he throw a pick 6 in the game, the Eagles had 4 1st a goal chances in the game.  Those chances turned into 2 field goals.  As I said in an earlier post, now might be the time to start thinking about giving Nick Foles some reps.  With McCoy running well, it would take a ton of pressure off the rookie QB and give him some good experience in a tough division.

In more exciting news, the Saints are 3-5.  Brees threw for a modest 239 yards and added a pair of touchdowns.  Are the Saints back on track?  I’m not going to so far as to say yes, but if there’s a team that can string 6 wins out of 8 games left, it’s Drew Brees.

PHI 13 – NO 28

It was a week of close games this week.  I felt like every channel had some game that could go either way.  While there we some blowouts, we saw a couple great teams struggle to win, which is the feeling I’m left with in terms of this entire season.  Is it parity in the league or does every team kind of suck this year?

Cowboys v Falcons – It’s like Dory in Finding Nemo, just keep winning, just keep winning.  I don’t know how they do it, they just keep doing it.  There’s no better team in the NFL right now than the Falcons.  DAL 13 – ATL 19

Bills v Texans – What a game!  I thought the lowly Bills would finally turn their season around.  Seriously, what game against which opponent could have been a bigger springboard.  In the end, it wasn’t enough.  We’ll see how the Texans do next week against the Bears.  BUF 9 – HOU 21

Cardinals v Packers – Since the week 5 loss to the Colts, the Packers have scored at least 24 points each game.  Looks like the Colts gave this team exactly what it needed.  ARI 17 – GB 31

Bears v Titans – Cutler had a game.  No other way to say it.  3 TD’s and like always, the Bears defense showed up in a big way.  CHI 51 – TEN 20

Steelers v Giants – By far the best game of the week.  Manning had a chance at the end but his slump continues.  He was only 10-24 passing and couldn’t get anything going.  PIT 24 – NYG 20

Broncos v Bengals – In a game that was closer than it should have been, Manning showed why the Broncos are the team to beat in the AFC.  DEN 31 – CIN 23

Ravens v Browns – I’ll give the Ravens credit, they’re still fighting after the GIGANTIC loss of Ray Lewis.  The game was against the Browns, but a win is a win.  BAL 25 – CLE 15

Chiefs v Chargers – In a game that probably no one actually paid attention to the 1-7 Chiefs had four turnovers to give the whiniest team in the league it’s 4th win.  Congrats Rivers, you’re still the most overrated qb in the league.  KAN 13 – SD 31

Dolphins v Colts – I can’t believe I’m going to say this, but are the Colts really 5-3?  Are they legit or are teams just overlooking them?  In either case, Luck dropped 433 yds on the Dolphins and continues his phenomenal rookie season as the front runner to win Offensive Rookie of the Year.  MIA 20 – IND 23

Panthers v Redskins – This was supposed to be a battle of similar young qb’s.  In the end, neither showed us much and RGIII continues to fall in the rankings for best rookie qb.  CAR 21 – WSH 13

Lions v Jaguars – Apparently the Lions are a real football team after all.  They’re 4-4 but have a real chance to make up some ground if they have truly gotten things figured out.  DET 31 – JAX 14

Buccaneers v Raiders – Doug Martin is getting my vote for best RB this season.  After rushing for 135 last week, he dropped 251 on the Raiders this week.  This dude is the only reason the Bucs are 4-4.  TB 42 – OAK 32

Vikings v Seahawks – In all honesty, the Seahawks are the most frustrating team in the league.  No other team in the league makes winning look so impossible.  This is the only team in the league with almost no talent but a winning record.  MIN 20 – SEA 30

The 3-4 Eagles take on the 2-5 Saints tonight in a game the NFL definitely didn’t think would feature two of the most disappointing teams in the league.  Andy Reid is essentially fighting for his job at this point and Sean Peyton is a free agent next season.    Neither coach is too excited to play, since Peyton won’t even be there.

Andy Reid announced today that Vick would be the starter for next weeks Monday night game against the Saints.  The 3-4 Eagles have mostly been hurt by Vick who is single-handedly losing games for the Eagles.  After their 3rd lost in a row, fans are calling for Vick’s head and for Reid to replace him with rookie Nick Foles out of Arizona.

At this point, it wouldn’t be such a bad idea.  Maybe not this week on the road against the Saints, on Monday night, but soon.  With Jackson, Maclin, McCoy, and Brent Celek all around him, he has plenty of weapons to take some of the pressure off.  When you have situations where the player is asked to do it all, rarely do rookies succeed.  However, with a talented offense around him, the standout from Arizona could flourish.

At some point the Eagles will have to make a decision and I believe they are one more goal line fumble away from Vick forcing their hand.

ESPN.com – FROM ELIAS SPORTS BUREAU: Justin Verlander: 3rd AL pitcher to lose 1st 3 career World Series starts He’s the first since Lefty Williams, who was banned from baseball as part of the Black Sox Scandal.

So with Pablo Sandoval taking him behind the woodshed for 2 of his 3 home runs last night, Justin Verlander became the first American League pitcher to lose his 1st 3 World Series starts since 1919. Does that year sounds familiar? That’s right, 1919 was the year that the “Black Sox” threw the series on purpose and nearly destroyed the game of baseball. Lefty Williams was on noly on that team, but was one of the players banned for life for losing on purpose. My deductive reasoning tells me that in the last 100 years, the only guy who sucked worse than Justin Verlander on the biggest stage had to fuck up on PURPOSE to be that bad.

Giants in 6.