Hello Friends!
Once again folks “The Hatchet's" Locker Room was jam-packed with Eagles fans and the electricity was at peak level this past Sunday.
What a big win for our Eagles as they absolutely dominated the Falcons (a team nobody gave us a chance against) in all phases of the game from the kickoff. If you remember I said in last week’s blog that Coach Pederson had to start running the ball with Ryan Matthews and company to take the pressure off of the rookie Carson Wentz. And boy oh boy did he listen! Ryan Mathews was on a mission as he pounded that ball and had a great game with 109 yards rushing, dragging two or three defenders with him on most runs. It opens up everything when you can run the ball and it showed last Sunday. I can't say enough about the defensive effort last week as the Eagles’ front four were dominating to say the least. They had Matt Ryan flustered with constant pressure and even when he got a pass off the "D" still got plenty of hits on him. It was a big plus to get Benny Logan back after a few weeks of being hurt and his presence certainly made a big difference. Malcolm Jenkins was like a mad man with great coverage and sure tackles and his leadership cannot be underestimated. I'd hate to see where we'd be if not for Malcolm Jenkins. It was a blow to the defense when cornerback Nolan Carroll went out with a concussion but Leodis McKelvin came in and played well in his place. Leo also had a game-clinching interception to ice the game and we all could breathe a little easier!
All in all, it was a great team win that gave us all something to celebrate. And celebrate we did! Once again I must apologize to those of you that had to stand as the crowd was awesome. I have to try to talk Dawn into letting me make the Locker Room bigger. I'll let you know how I make out with that. I might have to bunk with one of you friends when I spring this idea on her. Haha!
Three Things To Know About This Week's Game
Week 11: Eagles vs. Seahawks
- As it was last week, this upcoming game against the Seattle Seahawks will be a tough game. Last week the Eagles were in the friendly confines of Lincoln Financial Field, but this Sunday they will be in the very unfriendly home of the Seahawks. It's been darn near impossible for a visiting team to go into Seattle and come away with a victory. That doesn't mean it can't be done. One thing the Eagles have to be hoping is that the Seahawks will suffer a letdown after getting a big win vs. Tom Brady and the New England Patriots in Foxboro. It's a known fact that you must have a very balanced attack against the Seahawks if you're going to have a chance. So in this game I hope to see more tough, hard-nose football by establishing the running game which will make it much easier on Wentz. The Seahawks secondary is second to none and Doug Pederson will have to have a very good game plan in place if we're gonna be successful. Richard Sherman, Cam Chancellor and Earl Thomas are a tough unit to throw on, but there is a way to beat them. The Seahawks play a lot of press coverage that relies a lot on Thomas and Chancellor and you can have success with Zach Ertz, Brent Celek and Jordan Matthews making tough catches in the seams. These guys can be the difference-makers in this game, BUT they have to come up with some big catches. Teams that beat the Seahawks do it with big games from the tight ends and we have three very good ones. Ertz is a top talent and I want Wentz to start going to him much more. So on offense, tough running, big catches by the aforementioned and the other receivers Agohlar, Beckham & Treggs must most certainly start to earn their paychecks. They are way overdue!
- On the defensive side of the ball, our front four must come up with another outstanding push up the middle to harass Russell Wilson. Wilson is one of the toughest guys to defend in the league, but has been slowed a bit by an ankle injury. Running is a huge part of his game but he has only 60 yards rushing on 31 carries thus far. Wilson did, however, look a little bit more like himself on Sunday night in that big win over the Patriots. They have other weapons beside Wilson on offense that the Eagles have to worry about. Wide receiver Doug Baldwin and tight end Jimmy Graham are really good players that can hurt you if you aren't careful. Standout rookie running back out of Notre Dame C.J. Proise is having a very good rookie campaign and had a huge game vs. the Patriots accounting for 153 total yards. Seattle's offensive line is pretty weak and I think that the Eagles fearsome foursome can have a tremendous impact on this game’s outcome. I can only hope!
- Home field advantage is something that plays a big part for some teams and Seattle is one. Their stadium is home to the famous 12th man and is as tough a place for visiting teams as there is. The crowd will be louder than anything Carson Wentz has experienced this year and it will be a big test for the kid. Will he handle it with ease like he's done with everything else thus far, or will he buckle? The Eagles must get up on Seattle early and take the fans out of it to have a chance. If you give the Seattle fans something to hoot and holler about they will make it really hard on visitors!
Some tidbits for ya: NBC10 television is going to be here during the week to film me and the Locker Room for the Eagles Game Day Show. The show airs every Sunday morning at 9:30am and I am pretty sure I will be on this Sunday's show. Try to tune in if you get a chance as I'm going to be singing the praises of the greatest friends any man could have, and that's you, my Locker Room friends! There's some other neat stuff that is on the horizon for “The Hatchet" and I'll be filling you in on in my future blogs. I will say it again...I have been, and I am so very blessed, to have so many wonderful things happen for me in my life. I am forever grateful!
Please join me again next week as I take a look at the next opponent the Green Bay Packers.
Fly Eagles, Fly!
Hello Friends!
Once again folks “The Hatchet's" Locker Room was jam-packed with Eagles fans and the electricity was at peak level this past Sunday.
What a big win for our Eagles as they absolutely dominated the Falcons (a team nobody gave us a chance against) in all phases of the game from the kickoff. If you remember I said in last week’s blog that Coach Pederson had to start running the ball with Ryan Matthews and company to take the pressure off of the rookie Carson Wentz. And boy oh boy did he listen! Ryan Mathews was on a mission as he pounded that ball and had a great game with 109 yards rushing, dragging two or three defenders with him on most runs. It opens up everything when you can run the ball and it showed last Sunday. I can't say enough about the defensive effort last week as the Eagles’ front four were dominating to say the least. They had Matt Ryan flustered with constant pressure and even when he got a pass off the "D" still got plenty of hits on him. It was a big plus to get Benny Logan back after a few weeks of being hurt and his presence certainly made a big difference. Malcolm Jenkins was like a mad man with great coverage and sure tackles and his leadership cannot be underestimated. I'd hate to see where we'd be if not for Malcolm Jenkins. It was a blow to the defense when cornerback Nolan Carroll went out with a concussion but Leodis McKelvin came in and played well in his place. Leo also had a game-clinching interception to ice the game and we all could breathe a little easier!
All in all, it was a great team win that gave us all something to celebrate. And celebrate we did! Once again I must apologize to those of you that had to stand as the crowd was awesome. I have to try to talk Dawn into letting me make the Locker Room bigger. I'll let you know how I make out with that. I might have to bunk with one of you friends when I spring this idea on her. Haha!
Three Things To Know About This Week's Game
Week 11: Eagles vs. Seahawks
- As it was last week, this upcoming game against the Seattle Seahawks will be a tough game. Last week the Eagles were in the friendly confines of Lincoln Financial Field, but this Sunday they will be in the very unfriendly home of the Seahawks. It's been darn near impossible for a visiting team to go into Seattle and come away with a victory. That doesn't mean it can't be done. One thing the Eagles have to be hoping is that the Seahawks will suffer a letdown after getting a big win vs. Tom Brady and the New England Patriots in Foxboro. It's a known fact that you must have a very balanced attack against the Seahawks if you're going to have a chance. So in this game I hope to see more tough, hard-nose football by establishing the running game which will make it much easier on Wentz. The Seahawks secondary is second to none and Doug Pederson will have to have a very good game plan in place if we're gonna be successful. Richard Sherman, Cam Chancellor and Earl Thomas are a tough unit to throw on, but there is a way to beat them. The Seahawks play a lot of press coverage that relies a lot on Thomas and Chancellor and you can have success with Zach Ertz, Brent Celek and Jordan Matthews making tough catches in the seams. These guys can be the difference-makers in this game, BUT they have to come up with some big catches. Teams that beat the Seahawks do it with big games from the tight ends and we have three very good ones. Ertz is a top talent and I want Wentz to start going to him much more. So on offense, tough running, big catches by the aforementioned and the other receivers Agohlar, Beckham & Treggs must most certainly start to earn their paychecks. They are way overdue!
- On the defensive side of the ball, our front four must come up with another outstanding push up the middle to harass Russell Wilson. Wilson is one of the toughest guys to defend in the league, but has been slowed a bit by an ankle injury. Running is a huge part of his game but he has only 60 yards rushing on 31 carries thus far. Wilson did, however, look a little bit more like himself on Sunday night in that big win over the Patriots. They have other weapons beside Wilson on offense that the Eagles have to worry about. Wide receiver Doug Baldwin and tight end Jimmy Graham are really good players that can hurt you if you aren't careful. Standout rookie running back out of Notre Dame C.J. Proise is having a very good rookie campaign and had a huge game vs. the Patriots accounting for 153 total yards. Seattle's offensive line is pretty weak and I think that the Eagles fearsome foursome can have a tremendous impact on this game’s outcome. I can only hope!
- Home field advantage is something that plays a big part for some teams and Seattle is one. Their stadium is home to the famous 12th man and is as tough a place for visiting teams as there is. The crowd will be louder than anything Carson Wentz has experienced this year and it will be a big test for the kid. Will he handle it with ease like he's done with everything else thus far, or will he buckle? The Eagles must get up on Seattle early and take the fans out of it to have a chance. If you give the Seattle fans something to hoot and holler about they will make it really hard on visitors!
Some tidbits for ya: NBC10 television is going to be here during the week to film me and the Locker Room for the Eagles Game Day Show. The show airs every Sunday morning at 9:30am and I am pretty sure I will be on this Sunday's show. Try to tune in if you get a chance as I'm going to be singing the praises of the greatest friends any man could have, and that's you, my Locker Room friends! There's some other neat stuff that is on the horizon for “The Hatchet" and I'll be filling you in on in my future blogs. I will say it again...I have been, and I am so very blessed, to have so many wonderful things happen for me in my life. I am forever grateful!
Please join me again next week as I take a look at the next opponent the Green Bay Packers.
Fly Eagles, Fly!
