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“It ain’t over until the fat lady sings”. This phrase came about with the stereotypical overweight soprano singing her farewell song at the end of the opera leading to the dramatic finish. So the opera was not over until she took the stage.
Now it has become a phrase often used in sports. In that context, it means do not jump to a conclusion about your team until you are absolutely sure of that conclusion. Don’t assume anything until it is true.
As you are well aware the Eagles lost to the Cowboys on Monday night 27-20. Both the Cowboys and the Eagles have identical 4-5 records. Both are two games behind the Redskins who sit at 6-3. Two games does not seem like all that much to overcome, especially for the defending Super Bowl champion. And the Eagles do have two games on the schedule with the Redskins. But, has the “fat lady” started to sing?
According to the NFL, the Eagles are left with the hardest schedule in football. Their future opponents have a combined record of 39-23, which is the best record any NFL team will face.
Up next, the Eagles travel to play the 8-1 New Orleans Saints. Their other foes who are not in their division are the 8-1 Rams and the 6-3 Texans, who have won six in a row. It will be very difficult to make up any ground in the East against any of these three teams. Philadelphia will not be favored to win any of them.
Without such a difficult non-divisional schedule, there would be hope. The Eagles have one game with the Giants (2-7), two games with the Redskins and one game with the Cowboys.
Now the East is weak and the Redskins could lose the next two – Houston and Dallas. Dallas has Atlanta next week, but they just lost to the Browns (to the Browns!).
Right now, it looks as if the Rams and the Saints are definitely making the playoffs. That would leave four spots for the Bears (6-3), Panthers (6-3), Vikings (5-3-1), and Washington (6-3). The Packers (4-4-1), Dallas (4-5), and, dare I say, Eagles have a glimmer of hope.
On paper, it looks like the Eagles are done and could easily end the season with a losing record. It was really wishful thinking anyway to expect another Super Bowl. Back-to-back NFL championships have not been won for 14 years. New England (of course) did it in 2004 and 2005.
This will be the fifteenth straight year that a team could not repeat. Cue the “fat lady”. She can start her aria.
ABOVE THE EARS (SOME MUSINGS)
- It would be an understatement to say that most coaches are rather high-strung. I see it every week at the high school and college level. It seems it is no different in the NFL. New Orleans coach Sean Payton smashed a fire alarm inside his team’s locker room in Cincinnati this past Sunday when it just kept going off. By the looks of the alarm, he made it stop.
- Since sports betting is pretty much legal nowadays, it was interesting to see some recent results. In the NFL, two weekends ago, according to Vegas, was the worst for bookmakers in 32 years. Things got better quickly. This weekend with all the upsets – Tennessee over the Patriots; Browns over Atlanta; Colts over Jacksonville; and the Cowboys over the Eagles, the bookmakers got much healthier.
- This Friday, I will be interviewing the manager of the Chicago Cubs, Joe Madden. The former Lafayette student is returning to College Hill for the rivalry game (see below). The last time I interviewed Joe Madden was in Yankee Stadium.
- RCN-TV is once again proud to present across the country college football’s most played rivalry when Lafayette takes on Lehigh this Saturday at 12:30pm for the 154th It is always a very special event.
- District championship playoff football is on tap this week. The AAAAAA bracket is intriguing because neither team has ever won a District football championship – #1 Freedom vs. #2 Emmaus on RCN-TV LIVE at 7:00pm. On Saturday, our attention falls to the AAAA championship between Bethlehem Catholic and Saucon Valley. That game is LIVE at 7:00pm.
Gary’s Guesses: NFL Picks (Last week: 9-5) (Overall: 93-53-2 64% )
Week ELEVEN
SEATTLE
CHICAGO
CAROLINA
DALLAS
BALTIMORE
NEW ORLEANS
TENNESSEE
HOUSTON
GIANTS
CHARGERS
ARIZONA
PITTSBURGH
RAMS
