State of the Eagles by Jeffrey Stoltzfus

Being a Philadelphia Eagles fan is tough. First off, everybody hates you. Yeah we threw
snow balls at Santa, and batteries at J.D. Drew, but we also cheered for Donvan McNabb
when he returned to as a Redskin (at least until the game started). We have a lot of
love and a lot of hate. It’s an emotional town. It’s a city that craves a win. The Phillies
winning the World Series was great but it wouldn’t equal the Eagles winning a Super-
Bowl. And while we had mixed feelings when Michael Vick came to town, is there any
doubt we love/need him now?

Fact: With Michael Vick playing a full game the Eagles are 2-0
Fact: With Kevin Kolb as QB the Eagles are 0-2

To be fair Kolb hasn’t played a complete game in 2010. It’s hard to properly critique
Kolb until he’s played at least two complete games. And no, last year does not count.
Those two 300+ yard games look good on paper but I actually watched those games. He
wasn’t that impressive. Nonetheless the preseason had nearly every NFL analyst saying
how he was going to be the next Aaron Rogers, the next Tom Brady. Andy Reid and
owner Jeffery Lurie obviously thought so too. They traded the most prolific passer in
franchise history to their division rival and gave Kolb a new contract. The writing was
on the wall – Kevin Kolb is the future of this team. Scrawled just below that in fine print
was: Just in case he’s not, Vick is our backup plan.

What I saw last week was not a good start. Kolb became a check down Charlie dumping
the ball off to McCoy, full back Owen Schmitt, and occasionally Celek. He didn’t even
look for DeSean Jackson or Jeremy Maclin. Let me tell you about another QB who kept
checking down and rendered his WR’s useless, his name is Trent Edwards. Ask a Bills
fan how that turned out.

A wide receiver doesn’t necessarily need to be open for you to make a play. Flashback
to Monday night September 27th in the year of our lord 2010, Bears vs Packers. A double
chinned Jay Cutler tossed the ball to a blanketed WR and drew a pass interference call
that put them in range for the game winning field goal. If Cutler didn’t make that toss the
game could have gone ended a lot differently.

Here’s what I know – Fantasy Football-wise

When Vick is healthy he’s a must start each and every week. No question. When Vick
plays the value goes up on DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin. The value goes down on
TE Brent Celek. For some reason he just doesn’t look to him that much. If McCoy takes
a hit it’s minimal. Vick is his own running game. It’s both a detriment to McCoy because
he takes yardage from him, and a blessing because he keeps drives alive and potentially
sets up goal line work for McCoy.

When Kolb starts I wouldn’t let him do more than ride my bench. He’s just way to risky
right now. He has a lot to prove and little time to do it. When Kolb plays the value goes
up on Celek and McCoy because they get all those check downs. Jason Avant gets a
boost too. Not enough for regular fantasy relevance but he’ll get a ball or two. Maclin
takes a huge hit. Let’s face it if you’re going to force the ball to anyone it’s going to be
Jackson. But Jackson’s numbers drop so much you almost question starting him.

With McCoy being injured a lot of people will roll the dice on Mike Bell this week. I
don’t see much value there unless you’re really hurting for a flex play RB. The Eagles are
a throw first team no matter who is at QB. That’s not going to change. I like Mike Bell.
I was glad the Eagles got him. But I don’t see much breakout ability for him. He’s not
going to find much space on the run with that weak offensive line. (Jason Peters you’re
overrated and over paid). Most of McCoy’s yards come from spinning and juking after a
five yard catch. Bell doesn’t have the same skill set. He might get a goal line carry but I’d
be surprised. The Eagles have even been known to use RB Eldra Buckley from time to
time. But any fantasy relevance there is purely fantasy. Also consider that McCoy played
most of last week’s game after getting the injury. He’s tough. He’ll be back in the mix
very soon.

The Defense is underperforming, as is the Special Teams. I can’t quite explain this
as I like the talent on the roster but they’re inconsistent. Defensive Coordinator Sean
McDermott talked about making changes this week; trying to plug the holes that
everyone and their momma have been running through. We’ll see if the adjustments
make a difference. Right now I’d play any starting RB against the Eagles defense with
confidence.

I don’t see any young unknowns stepping up to become a fantasy sleeper on the
Philadelphia Eagles any time soon. Riley Cooper looked promising but how much would
you consider a rookie WR that fumbled an onside kick, left the game with a concussion,
and didn’t practice all week. He’s also fourth on the depth chart. Seek your entertainment
elsewhere.