Philly's clawless Eagles

By Gary Geffen Sports Central Columnist

Without failing, every NFL season produces a Pompeii. One minute, you're basking in the Italian sun, the olive oil is extra virgin, the orgies are a glutton for punishment, and the vino is just keeno. But the next minute, your burning up faster than Marion Barry's crack.

Having started 0-2 (both home games, the first one opening their brand new stadium), the Eagles are submitting a reasonable bid for the team most likely to spontaneously combust.

The overwhelming favorite to win the NFC East, the Eagles have shown us absolutely nothing. The truth is nobody should be surprised that the Eagles are stumbling out of the starting gate. Running back Deuce Staley held out, missing almost all of training camp while trying, and failing, to get a new contract.

This left Staley's timing and blocking skills more than slightly askew, not to mention his legs running in quicksand. Staley has a paltry 2.6-yard rushing average and has only touched the ball a total of 22 times. Adding to their offseason woes, the Eagles addressed filling last season's holes by signing six undrafted free-agents.

This wasn't Einsteinian scouting, it was collecting unwanted junk. The injuries to Philly's defense have been nothing less than blighting. Starting free safety Brian Dawkins is out 2-6 weeks with a Lisfranc sprain (bad foot). Also with a bad foot, CB Bobby Taylor is out for at least a week. That alone subtracts two potential Pro Bowlers from the starting lineup. Coupled with their secondary quagmire, the defensive line is missing four players.

Another strike against the Eagles is their schedule. Five of their next seven games are on the road, including matches against the Bills, Giants, Falcons (expect Mike Vick to be back for this Nov. 2nd game), and Packers.

Football fans in Philadelphia have the patience of a rabid, paranoid, schizophrenic, cornered rat. Remember, the fans from the City of Brotherly Love once booed Santa and stood to applaud as Michael Irvin was carted off the field.

So far this year's target has been beloved quarterback Donovan McNabb. Critics are saying that he has failed to improve on his weaknesses -- most worrisome is his inconsistent accuracy.

Against New England, it was more than notable how many passes either sailed over his receivers' heads or sank at their toes. With no touchdown passes, 3 INTs, a QB rating of 41.4, and a completion percentage of 45.1, it's hard to disagree. This is McNabb's fifth season, the step-up year for QBs.

If he truly wants to be considered elite, he needs to realize that it doesn't matter how many conference championships you lead your team to if you don't win them. Just ask Danny White.

A football team is like man -- it's born, it lives, it dies, the end. In between, some are successful, some even win Super Bowls, some aspire to mediocrity and manage a meager living hanging around 8-8 where the best it gets is the trickle down revenue from the big boys, and some become the Arizona Cardinals, but that's another story.

I'm not ready to say that Philly has sunk as low as George W. Bush's credibility rating -- after all, injuries heal and players rediscover their groove. Just two years ago, the Patriots started 1-3 and won the Super Bowl.

What I am ready to say is that the Eagles' lifeline is shortening and if they don't win something soon, they'll be just another faded life mired in eternal underachievement.

Article courtesy of Sports Central.