shouldn't be surprised

[fansince62]

Quite the digression, to the point of being 100% irrelevant to what I said.

not at all. you made a comment about what you assumed to be my psychology which you don't have a *ucking clue about. so I thought I'd return the emotional cry with one that reflected my own needs: a need to set high standards and expectations.

want to attack someone? go for it! I'll respond in kind......

 

[fansince62]

So when did Hicks leave the game?

We were playing the game with half a starting OL? Boy that sounds familiar. Oddly, we ran the ball pretty well and managed to grind out a win. That's kinda nice.

Heyer is an easy target (and that last false start was a KILLER) but he was road grading pretty well in there. That's good coaching, scheming to a player's strength like that.

It's not so much that Hyer didn't have his good moments...it's that his bad ones come at the wrong time!

 

[Lanky Livingston]

Jamie, this doesn't sound like 100% satisfaction! LOL!

LOL! Its early on Monday morning, my phraseology is not the best.

 

[Ax]

Obviously, this is an incredibly important win. One to be relished. It's a division win, a conference win, and road win that puts us at the top of our division.

Again though, that said, if Slappy holds on to the ball in the end zone, I think everybody would agree that McNabb running out of bounds when he did, was a monumental blunder. I dare say, had Portis done so, people would have already picked his bones clean. Even with the win. McNabb shouldn't get any slack for doing something so stupid.

The offense also gets half the blame for the defense's near collapse in the second half, with their failure to sustain drives, so the defense could catch their breath.

Now, you can read me be as being overly critical if you want, but I don't see it that way. I'm relieved that our mistakes are all correctable, and thrilled to win a game while still learning the new dance steps.

2-0 in the division is nothing short of fan-****in-tastic!

But we must acknowledge that with a handful, or less, of plays this season we could be 4-0, or 0-4.

2-2 is damn good. For now.

 

[Lanky Livingston]

McNabb running out of bounds was stupid, to be sure. BUT - Heyer and Rogers deserve as much if not more of the blame for that last-second opportunity. Armstrong deserves some blame for succumbing to the turf monster. You can't just pin it on McNabb!

 

[servumtuum]

I don't think concentrating on any one mistake is the direction I would go here. There were plenty of mistakes to go around.

Heyer? I sure hope Trent is nicely healed up by next Sunday. In addition to being athletically talented the kid knows how not to "twitch" before the ball is snapped.

Carlos? I've accepted the fact that that one INT he's had was one of those once-in-a-lifetime events unlikely to be seen again. Given that reality, I'll be o.k. with him harassing receivers and slapping balls down. (In related news, serious props to Lorenzo Alexander in the "way to make a play" department!)

Armstrong? Yeah, I trip on sidewalks myself. But I'm an old guy.

McNabb. Sometimes he just seems to lose focus, just momentarily mind you, but he did that in Philly too. Enough to throw him under the bus? Hell no! He's still the best QB we've had in a decade.

Bidwell? One of the main reasons I fear three-and-outs. Danny Smith your days are numbered. At least I hope so.

In any game there are mistakes being made and pointing to any one of them as THE REASON the game was either lost or too close for comfort is, I believe, usually a mistake. (Another related story, you think we're hard on Haslett? I visited that Packers forum and they're positively reaming Capers for letting Detroit come so close to an upset). It's the cumulative effect of numerous mistakes that cause the problems. Gradually, the mistakes will go diminish-or those tasked with coaching the mistakes away may themselves go away.

The bottom line, to me, is that in spite of the mistakes we beat the damn Eagles in Philly and are 2-0 in the division.

How long has it been since we've opened a season 2-0 in the NFCE? Too long?

Damn right, and I'm savoring the feeling right now.

 

[Jimbo]

Armstrong? Yeah, I trip on sidewalks myself. But I'm an old guy.

I can so relate.........and I HATE spitting coffee all over myself.

 

[Henry]

Armstrong looks to be a serviceable #3 but if that's Moss out there it's a TD.

Still, he caught the ball in bounds and I'll take that at this point.

 

[Neophyte]

Man, I sure hope this place doesn't turn into ES - lots of irrational criticism after a *HUGE* division win! How can you not be 100% satisfied after that victory?

YIKES.

Lanky, I can be happy without being satisfied. I do it all the time with all parts of my life. I have some darn good homebrew I am happy with but not satisfied so I am looking at ways to improve it. My haunted house opened Friday night to rave reviews that I am happy with but I am still looking at a couple of upgrades this week for this coming weekend. And my football team won yesterday but not scoring in the second half doesn't leave me with that fulfilled feeling that a complete game would have.

It's just who I am and being content is just not in my nature (unless we are talking about hangover Monday following a Super Bowl win . . . then I would be satisfied!).

 

[Jimbo]

Neo, I'm obviously splitting hairs here but I would say I'm satisfied with the win but not happy about it because of all the mistakes.

I guess the only type of victory that would make be "happy" is if we could Osaka a "good" team the way we did the Bills in the first preseason game.

 

[fansince62]

Lanky, I can be happy without being satisfied. I do it all the time with all parts of my life. I have some darn good homebrew I am happy with but not satisfied so I am looking at ways to improve it. My haunted house opened Friday night to rave reviews that I am happy with but I am still looking at a couple of upgrades this week for this coming weekend. And my football team won yesterday but not scoring in the second half doesn't leave me with that fulfilled feeling that a complete game would have.

It's just who I am and being content is just not in my nature (unless we are talking about hangover Monday following a Super Bowl win . . . then I would be satisfied!).

well said!

 

[fansince62]

in the interest of BGO comity and general bon homeyism: Kirbster..apologies for the excess. I have been following these guys for a long, long, long time. sometimes it's easy to forget that we are on a 12 step recovery plan and that each slice of improvement should be accepted at face value.

 

[Neophyte]

Bidwell? One of the main reasons I fear three-and-outs. Danny Smith your days are numbered. At least I hope so.

Hey, Danny put Banks in the game too. First time in years I thought out punt return game was dangerous and it averaged 25 yards per return yesterday.

Credit where it is due, my friend.

 

[Miles Monroe]

He's good, but not great. He'll be a good #3 for us for awhile, but he's not elite. A player like DeSean Jackson catches the ball, turns upfield and stays in-bounds to score (yes, its not lost on me that we shut down DJax). Armstrong fell on his own, and we settled for a field goal. 21-3 and the game is essentially over - 17-3 and we're sweating silly things like McNabb going out of bounds.

I'll give Armstrong the benefit of the doubt on falling untouched. May have been due to the adjustment on the ball to make the catch, and just stumbled. It not like he's the first player to lose his feet all alone over the years. None the less, he doesn't need to be elite. People will quickly realize he's a legit down field threat, and it should help Moss out a bit. Better yet, have Moss out of the slot.The only way a young receiver is gonna develop is by playing. I rather have him on the field then an old seasoned vet in Galloway, as their numbers are almost identical.

I thought Haynesworth had his best game of the season so far. He pressured the QB, made some stops, and drew at least one holding penalty. He didn't have any sacks, but that's not how his play should be judged, IMO.

I'm not judging on sacks at all. That's not his mission in this D. He's supposed to occupy linemen. He just seemed to get pushed around a lot, and didn't draw the double team as often as he should.

 

[servumtuum]

Hey, Danny put Banks in the game too. First time in years I thought out punt return game was dangerous and it averaged 25 yards per return yesterday.

Credit where it is due, my friend.

Point taken, Neo. You're right, of course, nobody gets everything wrong. And Banks is just so much fun to watch!

I noticed, by the way, that Philly tried hard not to give Banks any breathing room after that punt return.

Still not totally satisfied with general special teams performance though-especially Bidwell. Giving the opponent a good field position to start a series of downs with can make things seriously hard for the defense-kinda like letting a boxer with good footwork cut half the ring off from his opponent.

 

[Lanky Livingston]

I'm not judging on sacks at all. That's not his mission in this D. He's supposed to occupy linemen. He just seemed to get pushed around a lot, and didn't draw the double team as often as he should.

I mean, from what I saw, Haynesworth was a force when he was in game, and occupied plenty of linemen. I guess we just saw different things.

 

[Burgundy Burner]

I mean, from what I saw, Haynesworth was a force when he was in game, and occupied plenty of linemen. I guess we just saw different things.

He made Vick run for his life on that first series. Dog had to throw it away. Great job by AH on that play.

 

[Miles Monroe]

I mean, from what I saw, Haynesworth was a force when he was in game, and occupied plenty of linemen. I guess we just saw different things.

Maybe my eyes have become a bit jaded when it comes to watching Alberto. You echo what Shanny is saying about his play yesterday.

 

[Sassy Gretsch]

After the loss to the Rams, I was quite the gloomy customer. I was expecting disaster this past Sunday, but our boys showed up to play. They were physical, they were motivated and they did just enough to get the win.

This is the NFC East. It may be a down year for the division, but these games are almost always hard-fought (to borrow from the venerable Joe Gibbs). We beat Philly on the road in a game we needed.

We live to fight another day. We have another week to work on schemes, to build cohesion, to correct mistakes and build on the positives. We can parse this game all we want, and we should, because we demand more, but at the end of the day, we are leading the NFC East after a quarter of the season, and there is reason to hope that we can continue to improve.

Suddenly, the Packers and Colts aren't as frightening as they were, and we have a chance--if we show up the way we did this past Sunday--to win.

Personally, I expect this to be an up and down season all the way. We'll win some great games and we'll lose some excruciatingly. Remember, that we are trying to rebound from ten years of gross mismanagement and that it is going to take some time. Let's enjoy the wins when they come.

By the by, I always enjoy reading Serv's reasoned and well-written responses. You're one of the best, my friend.

 

[Boone]

I wasn't surprised we won - I thought we would as we generally play the Eagles tough on the road in recent years, and I think the Vick thing maybe had the Eagles believing their own headlines. That and the McNabb motivation factor.

All the talk of our 2-0 division record is somewhat overblown. Although if you're going to have 2 wins, those are two nice ones to have - we have 2 very tough games upcoming. We need to win at least one or our division 'lead' will be very short-lived.

The NFC East is up for grabs this year. I'm not yet convinced the Redskins have what it takes to do something about it. But this was certainly a more encouraging showing.