Behind the Mic: Oh, Those Eagles

I know this will show my age, but when I was a little kid, I was a Baltimore Colts fan.  Does anyone remember the Baltimore Colts (not the Ravens, not Indianapolis – Baltimore).  I was seven years old in 1953 when the Colts took the field at Memorial Stadium.  I don’t remember if I became a fan then, but I do remember when Johnny Unitas took over the quarterback position in 1956.  His crewcut and high top shoes and, more importantly, his great right arm and the ability to make the Colts winners made him an instant hero in my eyes.  Penn State’s Lenny Moore, Alan Ameche, and Raymond Berry were also stars of that team.  They won back-to-back NFL titles in 1958 and ’59 defeating the Giants both of those years.  They won another in 1968 when I graduated from college.

But after 30 years of rooting for the Colts, Bob Irsay took the team in the middle of the night to Indianapolis.  Baltimore lost the Colts and I lost my team.  From that point on, I watched NFL football, but never felt a real attachment to any team.

And then the Eagles signed Carson Wentz of North Dakota State.  In 2011, I flew with the Lafayette football team to North Dakota State to do a football game.  The fan base out there was so passionate about their team.  They closed down the town at 4:00pm on game day so everyone could go to the game.  Realistically, there wasn’t much else to do in Fargo anyway.

So with that small professional reference, I decided to jump on board and root for the Philadelphia Eagles and “Wentzylvania”.  And I am not sorry.  I have watched every Eagles game from start to finish, thanks to TIVO and, in all honesty, they have all been entertaining.  Even though they are 3-5, they were competitive in every game.  I think I will enjoy watching this team and their young quarterback develop under first-year head coach Doug Pederson.  But like any fan, there are some things that are already starting to bother me:

1. Nelson Agholor cannot catch the football. He is a “wide dropper”.  Wide receivers are supposed to catch the football.  He seems to have more “drops” than catches and Sunday against the Seahawks Agholor had no catches and a touchdown was called back because he did not line up properly.  Give me a break.
2. Jason Peters is a penalty machine. Does anyone in the league hold more often than he does?  And he is really good when he is not costing the team yards in crucial situations.  Then he is really bad.
3. Do the announcers have to put all of the Eagles’ woes on their young quarterback? They make it seem that he is responsible for every drive that stalls.  Between penalties and dropped balls by his wide receivers, he seems to always be in 3^rd and long.  I, for one, think he has actually played quite well for his first year.
4. The Eagles seem to turn the ball over at the very worst times. Two more wins would have been there for the taking if not for costly fumbles.
5. Doug Pederson has sadly managed games, at times, like his mentor Andy Reid. Is poor clock management contagious?  If so, Andy passed on the virus.

The fact that I even now care about these things tells me that I am starting to become a fan of the Eagles.  I hope, like the Baltimore Colts of old, they take me to the promised land.  E-A-G-L-E-S!  Go, Birds!

ABOVE THE EARS (SOME MUSINGS) 

1. The 152^nd addition of Lafayette-Lehigh was not competitive. Lehigh dominated in every aspect of the game.  Most disappointing was the lack of a sellout crowd.  Blame that on the Lafayette season.  Due to their record, it did not look like a good match-up and it wasn’t.  But I still look forward to 153.
2. What was good about the broadcast, however, was the use of a drone for aerial shots. The drone really added to the very professional look of the game and gave us some beautiful shots during the game.
3. Even more ironic, however, concerning the drone is that one flew over J Birney Crum Stadium on Friday night during the Parkland – Freedom game. The officials stopped the game and ordered both teams to their respective locker rooms which are about a quarter of a mile away.  Luckily before the long walk was completed, the drone left the area and the players came back.  So, one drone enhanced a game and another stopped the game – go figure.
4. They are still playing golf. Jordan Spieth won the Australian Open on Sunday in a playoff with two Aussies.  It was the second time he won the title.  Up until this week, it was still nice enough to squeeze in a round here.
5. PIAA playoffs this week are on RCN-TV. Whitehall will play Archbishop Wood on Friday at 7:00pm.  Parkland takes on St. Joe’s Prep on Saturday at 1:00pm.  Both games will be LIVE.  Good luck to Bethlehem Catholic and Notre Dame as their football teams take on Johnstown and Delaware Valley Charter.  Both games are on Saturday.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!!!

Gary’s Guesses: NFL Picks – (Last week – 10-3; Overall – 96-65-2 – 60%)

Week Twelve
DETROIT
DALLAS
INDIANAPOLIS
TENNESSEE
HOUSTON
BUFFALO
BALTOMORE
ATLANTA
MIAMI
NEW ORLEANS
GIANTS
SEATTLE
OAKLAND
DENVER
NEW ENGLAND
PHILADELPHIA