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12 Comments (8 conversations)
Tim Gallagher
Les made some great points in this article but would argue that 2002 Bucs team had the more talented team (including 4 HOF players to Eagles 1)
Les Bowen
Maybe! But would they all have been HOF players without that Super Bowl title?
Bray Brunkhurst
The Eagle’s mistakes on Sunday very well could of cost them the game. The penalities, the safety, Hurt’s injury…it could cost them the SB! To be champs, the Eagles will need more than Jalen Carter and Saquon’s heroics!
Jason Harris
I’m tired of worrying about “if.” Yeah, they could have lost. They didn’t. Of the 16(!) games they’ve won, probably they could have lost 12. Screw it. They’re 60 minutes from an NFC championship and 120 minutes from a Super Bowl win. I’ll think about that other shit if and when it comes to pass.
Joe Hampson
I like that Hurts is not turning the ball over, but he also seems tentative to make throws where a defensive player is anywhere close. I also think Moore has done a decent job of recognizing that they need to ride Barkley, but they aren’t doing Hurts many favors in the passing game. I’m begging for more quick slants to Brown or intermediate routes to Smith in the slot. They are basically gimme completions that Hurts has shown he can make. It really seems on the broadcast that the offensive scheme is run the ball and then intermediate to long passes (Outs to TEs, long post/corner routes to WRs) or long developing screens which rarely seem to work (except that Barkley one this week) for various reasons (focus on RBs who are immediately covered, penalties). With Hurts holding the ball for too long and taking sacks trying to be risk averse I would like to see more West Coast style slants like they threw to Brown for easy 1st down conversions on multiple plays, he may even be able to break some for YACs given more opportunities. I’d like to see some break down of the All-22 film and to be a fly on the wall in the QB room to see what they are coaching Hurts to do on some of these reads.
Jack MCDERMOTT
I would love a recording of Les ending a line of questioning to Nick with “WTF?”. Now that’s entertainment.
Michael Erazo-Kase
“when the Tampa Bay Bucs came from behind in the NFC Championship Game”…Am I misremembering this? After Duce’s TD on the first series, the Bucs pretty much controlled that game.
Les Bowen
I wouldn’t say that. Eagles led 7-3 in the second when Bobby Taylor’s INT gave them the ball at the Tampa 46. They ended up managing not to score on the drive. If there was real TB control, it came in the third quarter.
Patrick McCusker
You are misremembering. Tampa Bay scored their first TD to go up 10-7 before the first quarter was over. The Eagles did not lead again for the rest of the game.
https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/200301190phi.htm
John Thomas
Great article Les – what’s to be made of AJ Brown? Is he that badly hurt he can only be a decoy?
Gerald Glickman
Well said!
“There is a type of fan who waves his/her/their hand at all this. “Hey, they keep getting away with it, don’t worry.”
Don’t be that type of fan.”
Les Bowen
Thanks!