Eagles playoff hopes remain alive after downing Jets

Playoffs?  Playoffs??  Apparently the Eagles aren't ready to go away just yet this season, notching a solid win over the Jets, 45-19, to keep their slim playoff hopes alive.  Here are a few thoughts on the surprisingly solid win:

-The defense has turned from embarrassing to dominating in the last few weeks.  While the Jets offense isn't exactly lethal, the Birds defense swarmed Mark Sanchez all game long and created havoc in the form of 4 sacks, 2 fumbles, including one returned for a touchdown, and two interceptions.  Jason Babin led the charge, picking up 3 more sacks (giving him 18 on the year) as he abused Sanchez every chance he got.  While Juan Castillo does deserve some credit for turning things around, this is how this defense should have been playing from Week 1.

-Turnovers were the only reason the Jets even had a chance of making the game close.  The Eagles are still too careless with the ball and still prone to make boneheaded plays, especially on special teams.  Michael Vick was careful with ball, only throwing one interception on a desperation heave at the end of the first half.

-Speaking of Vick, he wasn't slowed by injuries at all this week, dancing around the pocket as he found open receivers all over the field.  While he still isn't sliding when he scrambles, Vick seemed much more mobile and much more like the quarterback that took the league by storm last season.

-Brent Celek has really turned his career around this season and now leads the Eagles in receptions.  He has overcome his case of the dropsies to become a reliable receiver and is no longer a complete afterthought in the Eagles offense.

-Congratulations to LeSean McCoy for setting the club record for touchdowns in a season.  He has proven time and again that he is the Eagles best offensive weapon and good things happen when he is fed the ball.

-Andy Reid won yet another challenge this week.  Say what you will about his coaching job this season, he has been killing it on challenges this season.

-With the Giants losing to the Redskins, the Eagles are still somehow alive for the NFC East division title.  All that has to happen is the Eagles have to win out, the Jets have to beat the Giants in Week 16 and the Giants have to beat the Cowboys in Week 17.  Doesn't seem too far-fetched but doesn't seem all that likely, either.  With the way the Eagles have been playing better the last few weeks, I don't think anyone in the NFC would want to play them in the playoffs.  At the very least, it will make for a fun last few weeks in a season that appeared a total loss.  Bring on the Cowboys next week!

The positives and negatives from the Eagles first preseason game

Eagles football is back! With one preseason game in the books, the Eagles are undefeated, squeaking by the Ravens 13-6. Wins and losses are meaningless in preseason but the Eagles certainly looked like the better team when the starters were on the field. Here are some of the positives and negatives that I noticed from the Eagles first preseason game:

Positives:

First team offense: Nothing to complain about for the first team as they drove right down the field for a touchdown on their only drive. Michael Vick was solid, completing 4 of 6 passes to the backup receiving group of Jason Avant, Chad Hall and Riley Cooper. I would have liked to see them run the ball more with LeSean McCoy but we all know that isn't how the Eagles offense works.

First team defense: The Ravens did move the ball on the Eagles first team defense but they still looked great. We got our first look at the defensive line rotation, which is crazy deep, and the secondary had the Ravens receivers covered for the most part. The linebackers are fairly weak but the combination of a strong pass rush and a lockdown secondary should make the Eagles an elite defense.

Chad Hall: He took advantage of the extra playing time with the starting wideouts sitting, catching 5 balls for 82 yards. With the signing of Steve Smith, Hall will have a tough time making the team but more nights like this one will force the Birds to keep him.

Riley Cooper: Catch of the game for Cooper, who made a nice grab on the opening drive. He might get lost in the shuffle at wideout this year but Cooper can play and will make the occasional big catch this season.

Darryl Tapp: Two sacks on the night for Tapp, who should be a great contributor in the defensive line rotation. He will have one job this season: get the quarterback. He should do just fine.

Alex Henery: With the David Akers era over, its important that Henery is successful early on. He was perfect tonight, hitting a pair of field goals, and also showed off a strong leg on kickoffs. Can't ask for anything more than that.

Negatives:

Playing time for the first team: Its still early but I'd like to have seen more out of the first team offense and defense than just one drive. All of the free agents and rookies need more than a handful of plays to gel together, especially the offensive line. I know, its only the first preseason game, there is still plenty of time.

Brent Celek: Even though he had a touchdown, Celek still had a drop on a play that was negated due to a Ravens penalty. If Celek is going to have more drop problems this season the Eagles better start thinking about alternative plans at tight end. I'm not sure Clay Harbor or Donald Lee is the answer, though Lee had a couple of nice catches.

Austin Howard: The Ravens had only one sack in the game and Howard was burned on the play as well as on a few others. Howard probably isn't in jeopardy of losing his backup LT spot but he will need to step it up in the next game.

Kurt Coleman: Not a great day for a guy that is fighting for a starting spot. While rookie Jaiquawn Jarrett had a nice interception, Coleman got burned on two big plays early on. It will only be a matter of time before Jarrett leaps over him on the depth chart.
(Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)

Brent Celek's Captain Morgan Commercial

Brent Celek had a pretty substantial dip in production in the 2010 season, but that hasn't hurt his endorsement status. As you may remember, Celek did the Captain Morgan pose last year after scoring a touchdown against the Cowboys:

Now, he's in a commercial for Captain Morgan that discusses why he lifted up his leg:

I don't think any amount of rum will help him get over the dropsies he had last year.

Eagles wake up just in time to edge Broncos

(AP Photo/Michael Perez)

I seem to say it every week but, eventually, the Eagles inability to play 4 solid quarters of football will hurt them. Fortunately for them, when the Eagles aren't napping, they are one of the best teams in the league. Despite taking most of the second half off, it didn't stop the Eagles from winning their 6th game in a row against the Broncos, 30-27.

The game was truly a tale of two halves. In the first half, the Eagles offense dominated the Broncos, moving the ball at will as the Birds cruised to a 20-7 lead. Donovan McNabb was about as good as he could be, passing for nearly 250 yards and two touchdowns against a Broncos secondary that was one of the best in the league coming into the game. McNabb favorite target when the offense was clicking was Brent Celek, who he hooked up with on several big plays, including a 47 yard touchdown. The defense also played solid, keeping the Broncos receivers in front of them and not allowing Kyle Orton to get Denver going downfield at all.

The second half was a completely different story as the Eagles flubbed and fumbled away their lead, allowing the Broncos to fight back into the game and tie it up at 27 late in the 4th quarter. Fumbles by McNabb and Macho Harris coupled with a bad pick by McNabb put the Eagles on their heels. The passing game lost most of the magic that it had early in the game as McNabb made a series of poor decisions but managed to come to life at just the right time as a Jeremy Maclin catch along the sidelines led to a game-winning David Akers field goal in the waning seconds of the game.

Despite complaints about their inconsistent play, Eagles fans should be happy with the result. The Eagles knocked off a tough AFC opponent that needed to win to get closer to the playoffs. Yes, they didn't play a perfect game, but the Eagles have shown they can come up with just enough plays to win the close ones. With a showdown with Dallas with the NFC East on the line next week, the Eagles will need to put together a complete game if they want to ensure a home game in the first round of the playoffs.

Now, if this team could just put together 60 minutes of football...

Eagles extend Brent Celek through 2016

First it was Winston Justice getting his contract extended through 2013, now it's Brent Celek's turn for an extension. Celek, who has rapidly improved into the most reliable receiver in the Eagles passing game, has agreed to a 6 year contract extension with the Eagles that will keep him with the Birds through 2016.

Celek has made great strides in his 3 years in the league, jumping from 16 catches in 2007 to 27 in 2008 to already 54 catches this season. Despite his case of the dropsies when he was dealing with an injured thumb last week against the Redskins, Celek has proven that he can be trusted to make the tough catches.

This contract extension is just yet another example of the Eagles being smart with their money. They consistently identify the young players they want to keep around and lock them up for long extensions at a cheap rate before they can cash in as free agents. It's a smart business plan but it can lead to some complaining from the player once they play to their potential and they aren't getting paid like the top players at their position.

Eagles close to signing tight end Tony Curtis

It's not an earth-shattering move, but when you are desperate for some depth at tight end, these are the kind of signings that happen. According to an NFL.com blog, the Eagles are "on the verge" of signing veteran tight end Tony Curtis. Curtis, who had spent two years with the Cowboys and part of this preseason with the Chiefs, has been brought in by the Eagles, who are evaluating him with a plan to sign him if he passes a physical. Curtis was battling injuries this past offseason, so there is no guarantee that he will be healthy enough to contribute.

Curtis, who had 11 career catches and three touchdowns in two full seasons in Dallas, is likely being looked at as competition for the 3rd tight end spot. Currently, the Eagles have Matt Schobel, Eugene Bright and Rob Myers battling for two backup spots behind starter Brent Celek. Schobel appears likely to make the team, so that would leave Bright, Myers and Curtis in a fight for the third spot. After a solid game last night, Myers might be making his move for the spot, but Curtis actually has experience in the NFL and could quickly vault onto the roster.

Again, this move is hardly exciting considering he only had 8 catches last year, but Curtis could have a role to play given how little depth the Eagles have at tight end. Should anything serious happen to Brent Celek, it's safe to say the Eagles are screwed.

Eagles win, climb out of NFC East cellar

(AP Photo/John Froschauer)

It's not how you start the game, it's how you finish it.

The Eagles got behind early against the Seattle Seahawks when Seneca Wallace connected with Koren Robinson for a 90 yard touchdown on their first offensive play of the game. Things continued to look bad as Donovan McNabb was 0 for his first 7 passing attempts and even threw an interception near the end of the first quarter. After an ugly first quarter, the Eagles looked poised to be in a dogfight all day with a weak Seahawks team.

Of course, quarters 2, 3 and 4 were a completely different story. The Eagles ran off 26 consecutive points as the Seahawks failed to score again, giving Philly a 26-7 victory. McNabb bounced back from his slow start to complete 28 of 43 passes for 349 yards and 2 TD's, spreading the ball around to 10 different receivers, including offensive lineman Todd Herremans, who caught a one yard touchdown.

The receiving star of the night was tight end Brent Celek, who got the start for the injured L.J. Smith. Celek was open all day and caught 6 passes for 131 yards. Kevin Curtis also had a good game as he looks to be rounding back into form with 83 receiving yards.

Defensively, the Eagles rebounded after giving up the big play in the beginning of the game. They did struggle to stop the run at times but with the Seahawks dealing with a deficit for most of the game, they were forced to pass and they managed only 77 yards through the air following the 90 yard play in the first quarter.

The Eagles should also be commended for not having a penalty called on them for the entire game. That's a rare feat in the NFL, especially when holding can be called on nearly every play.

With the Giants knocking off the Cowboys, the Eagles now find themselves out of last place with a solid record of 5-3. While most fans hoped the Eagles would be at least 6-2 at this point in the season, things are definitely looking up for the Birds. A huge game looms next week against the Giants on Sunday night, and if the Eagles can pull that one off, they will be in a great position to challenge for a playoff spot and possibly for the NFC East title.

Just like this game, it doesn't matter how the Eagles started the season. They were 2-3 and things looked grim, but after 3 straight wins the Eagles are poised to make some noise. Hopefully some of the magic of the Phillies can rub off on the Birds, although asking for another championship so soon might just be greedy.