Eagles Expectations Soaring a Bit Too High
| Published 09/17/04

Graphic by: ARTIST NAME

Owens joins a receiver corps that was flat out horrible last year. Not one Eagles receiver managed to haul in at least 50 catches, and the one closest to that mark, James Trash, is now back with the Washington Redskins. While Owens brings an 80-catch, 1000-yard receiver to the mix, I do not see how effective he can be against the constant double teams he is sure to face. Add that to Donovan McNabb's woeful accuracy (57 percent) and you have the makings of a disgruntled star receiver. Sure, Philly fans will tell me that with Owens double-teamed that will leave Todd Pinkston and Freddie Mitchell in single coverage and therefore make easy targets for McNabb. However, these receivers all saw one-on-one coverage last season and still couldn't get the job done.

The Eagles also suffer at the running back position. Having let Duce Staley join their state rival, the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Eagles were left with the running duo of Brian Westbrook and Correll Buckhalter. Buckhalter went down with a knee injury in the preseason and is lost for the 2004 campaign. This puts the running game squarely on the shoulders of Westbrook. If he cannot carry the load himself, look for Donovan McNabb to attempt to do too much, and therefore generate more mistakes. Remember Philly fans, this is the same quarterback that people were screaming to bench early last season and who edged out only a meager 79 QB rating.

Jevon Kearse was a huge addition to the Philadelphia defense. Too bad the defense has fallen apart. Troy Vincent and Bobby Taylor have departed, leaving two sometimes-capable corners in their spot. The linebacking corps and defensive line have both been shaken up, and there are definite questions about the Eagles depth. The defense remained a fixture during the Eagles run to the Conference Championship game; but with potential big-play offenses in the NFC East, the Eagles cannot afford to let their defensive play become sloppy - especially with the concerns on the offensive side of the ball.

To be honest, Eagles fans, I do not even see the Eagles winning the NFC East. If Vinny Testaverde remains healthy and the Cowboys can get something out of the combined efforts of Julius Jones and Eddie George, they are the ones who could make a serious push. During this preseason, Joe Gibbs had the Redskins look like 10-6 threats even with vanilla offenses and defenses playbooks. I still can't count out a Giants team that is being headed up by a two-time MVP in Kurt Warner and the prodigy that is Eli Manning. This season will be a tough one for the Eagles to remain afloat.