Hello Friends!

In spite of the performance that the Eagles gave this past Sunday on the field, “The Hatchet's" Locker Room was packed once again with our crazy, wonderful friends. Everyone was excited and ready to party hoping that the Eagles would come away with their fifth win of the season, but it wasn't meant to be. It's becoming a way too familiar theme with this team as they continue to make mistakes both mentally and in their play execution. If they continue to play like that I'm going to have to have our family physician, Dr. Leif Christiansen, on call to revive me at game’s end! 

Once again, Doug Pederson has to absorb the bulk of the blame for this latest loss with his very questionable play calling. The Eagles have lost 4 out of their last 5 games and have 3 division losses at this point, and that is a huge problem. It's looking more and more like the division title will be out of the question with the way those Dallas Cowboys are playing. At this point making it as a wildcard team might be the only avenue we have to take and even that will be difficult. Twice the Eagles were in field goal range on 4th down and both times Coach Pederson decided to attempt to get the first down - failing both times. I can see him trusting and having confidence in his offense in going for it, but he has to call plays that have a chance at success. Both calls were horrible in my opinion as he ran Wentz on a sweep that went for a loss and then he runs Mighty Mouse Darren Sproles into the teeth of the defense and the Giants stoned him cold!

The frustrating part for us Eagles fans as we sit here with a 4-4 record at the half-way point of the season is we could very easily be 7-1 if not for stupid mistakes by players and coaches. Horseshoes, a shave, cuddling up by a cozy fire with your special girl, those are all things you like to be close with, but in football...CLOSE DOES NOT CUT IT! We have 5 of our last 8 games at home where they're 3-0,  so let's hope that they correct the mistakes and hopefully steal one or two on the road to make a push for the playoffs! It will not be an easy task this week though as the very tough Atlanta Falcons with Matt Ryan, Julio Jones and company come to town!

Three Things To Know About This Week’s Game

Week 10: Eagles vs. Falcons

1. On offense the Eagles in my opinion have become way too predictable with the plays they are running. I also think they are putting too much of a burden on Carson Wentz's shoulders by having him pass way too much. We have four running backs and we should at least try to establish the run so that the defenses won't be teeing off on Wentz every down. I don't care who you have at QB, if you keep getting waffled over and over it has to take its toll mentally, as well as physically. I want to see the carries split up between the backs because if they continue to use Sproles as the featured back, he will break down real soon. I know Ryan Matthews is probably in Coach Pederson's dog house for his fumble problems but he's healthy and he is a big, quality back, so use him and hope he holds onto the ball. He certainly would have been a much better option than Sproles last week on that crucial 4th and 1 that they ran Sproles on. In the passing game, I want to see a lot more of the speedy receiver Bryce Treggs who can take the top off of a defense as he showed last week with that 58-yard reception. We haven't had that kind of speed at receiver since the dynamic DeSean Jackson. As the game went on with Treggs on the field (even if he was not the primary target) you could see that the underneath stuff was there for the Eagles as the Giants had to account for him. Jordan Matthews is a fine receiver and as hard a worker that you'll find, but it will take more than Matthews for this team to succeed. Dorial Green Beckham was a non-factor last week as he was targeted five times coming away with ZERO catches in that game. He has to step it up as he has the size and speed to be an impact player but has yet to live up to his potential. Another huge disappointment has been Nelson Agholar, who was the Eagles first-round pick last year in the NFL draft. Thus far he has looked lost and has way too many dropped passes for my liking. I don't know what his problem is because at USC he was a dominating wideout. Maybe he's trying too hard. Maybe they should start thinking of deactivating Agholar for a game or two and give the kid Paul Turner a shot. It certainly couldn't hurt. If you remember in the pre-season, Turner led the NFL with the most receptions, so we know he has good hands. In last week’s blog, I was calling for Wentz to start throwing more to tight end Zach Ertz. I was happy to see Wentz get Ertz involved as #86 ended up with 8 catches for 97 yards. More of the same this week against the Falcons will be a very welcome sign.
    
2. The Eagles defense had no answers last week for Eli Manning as he threw for four touchdowns and this week "Matty Ice" comes to town. These past few weeks the Eagles defense has had to defend some very good wide receivers with the likes of DeSean Jackson, Dez Bryant and Odell Beckham, Jr. This week, they have the tough task of defending the incomparable Julio Jones, who is the best in my opinion. The Eagles had great success in the Vikings game by blitzing Sam Bradford, making it tough for him to get comfortable. I know Jim Schwartz doesn't like to live by the blitz, but he better come up with a plan to get pressure on Matt Ryan or it will be a long day for all of us Eagles fans! Besides Jones, the Falcons have other weapons for the Eagles to worry about. Mohamed Sanu is another fine wideout and at running back, the Falcons have the dangerous Tevin Coleman, who has been hobbled with a hamstring. Hopefully he'll be on the sideline for this week’s game. The Eagles defensive front has been without tackle Benny Logan these past few weeks and hopefully he'll be able to go this week. We need him alongside of Fletcher Cox to cave the pocket and put heat on Ryan to make it a very uncomfortable day for "Matty Ice!”
    
3. Be It Ever So Loud There's No Place Like Home! The Eagles return home to the friendly confines of Lincoln Financial Field where they are a perfect 3-0 so far this year. This might just be what the doctor ordered for the Eagles as that crowd will be at a fever pitch ready to be as loud as they can be every time the Falcons have the ball. That edge cannot be underestimated for sure! Also what might be a big factor in this week’s game are the special team units. The Eagles special teams have been playing lights out and are near the top of the league in stats. If the game comes down to special teams making a play, I love the Eagles chances! 

Before I sign off, I must give props to all of our wonderful friends that are kind enough to bring food to add to our tables here in the Locker Room. It was a banner day again last week with a menu that had a variety of treats that included three different soups, meatballs, sweet sausage, hot sausage, the best wings you'll ever eat (Good job Mike Vogt aka "WINGMAN") and much more. FYI...“The Hatchet” got his cannoli thanks to Denise Messersmith Stern. Okie dokie folks,  thanks for joining me. Have a good week and please join me again next week as I take a look at the Eagles next opponent: those Seattle Seahawks. Fly Eagles, Fly!