Sports

Week 3 - Kansas City Chiefs: Philadelphia Eagles Preview

On paper, the Philadelphia Eagles should destroy the Kansas City Chiefs this Sunday. Too bad for the Eagles, the games are played on a field. None of that matters to the national media or the networks of course, since this is the game in which Michael Vick returns.

The Eagles should win this game, but it’s not a lock. Injuries have ravaged the Eagles roster early in the season. QB Donovan McNabb is out for the second straight game with that broken rib. RT Shawn Andrews is out for the year with a case of the “crazies,” although it’s being listed as his back. His brother, Stacy, is still having trouble with his knee on which he had ACL surgery last December, so he isn’t playing. Who saw that coming, right? I mean, besides everybody on the planet but the Eagles brass? And LG Todd Herremans is out with a broken foot. RB Brian Westbrook has an ankle injury that may or may not keep him out of the game. By the way, it’s the same ankle on which he had surgery this past June, so that can’t be good. Both starting WRs are gimpy. DeSean Jackson has a groin injury.  Kevin Curtis has a knee injury and is listed as doubtful for this game. Any of those three may play, but all could sit out as well. With the bye coming up next week Andy Reid may look past the Chiefs and get his players and extra week of rest, thinking he’s got this game won.

That’s a tricky situation since the Eagles are 4-6 in the game before the bye week under Andy Reid. Can they really afford to look past any team after getting punched in the face and having their lunch money stolen by the Saints last week? I think not.

The Eagles will go with Kevin Kolb at QB, but I’m sure we’ll see lots and lots of Michael Vick in the Wildcat Formation. If the Eagles ran it 12-times (by Andy Reid’s count) last week, I bet they’re good for about 18 or so this week. Since that seems to be the only way they can run the ball, maybe that’s not such a bad thing. Speaking of running the ball, if Westbrook is hurt they are in trouble. McCoy looked explosive in the preseason, but if he doesn’t start hanging onto the ball, they’re going to change his nickname from Shady to Shaky. The injured WRs would be a concern if the Chiefs defense weren’t terrible. They’re so bad they may even make Kolb look good. I still think he’s good for at least one killer interception.

The Eagles defense has looked great one week and then looked like the worst defense in the NFL the next. I’m guessing they’re closer to the bad defense that we saw last week than the great one we saw in week 1. They can get after the QB if they get a lead and their D-Backs are excellent in coverage, but something is missing. I think what’s missing is leadership and apparently the Eagles have realized that as well. How else could one explain why they brought a retired middle linebacker, Jeremiah Trotter, in for a workout this week? Their LBs suck and they know it. What’s even more disturbing is that they know their defense is without a leader after they let Brian Dawkins leave because they are cheap bastards. For all of you who told me I was wrong about them letting Dawkins go, I would like to point out that Dawkins has 17 tackles in two games, which would tie him for the team lead on the Eagles. Yeah, he sure sounds washed up to me. Or not.

Luckily for the Eagles, the Chiefs offense isn’t that good. QB Matt Cassell was sacked more times (47) than any other QB last season. He holds the ball way too long and the Eagles should be able to get him a few times. RB Larry Johnson is done. He just is. Aside from WR Dwayne Bowe, they don’t have a legitimate threat in their receiver corps. The Eagles will be able to double-cover Bowe and go after Cassell all day.

The one place where the Eagles are at a disadvantage (to every other team in the NFL apparently) is in Special Teams. Besides the terrible Ellis Hobbs fumble that started the downward spiral that turned the Saints game into a rout, they also committed five penalties on Special Teams last week. That shouldn’t even be possible, yet there it is.

Michael Vick’s return and the Wildcat are going to get all the publicity from the lazy national media, but that really shouldn’t matter. The Eagles are just better than the Chiefs. They should be able to line up and beat them one-on-one, even if they are missing a few players due to injury.

I’m sure the game will be close because the Eagles will make enough mistakes (turnovers and penalties) to keep the Chiefs in the game. The problem for the Chiefs is that they just don’t have the players to take advantage of the gifts. Let’s call this one an Eagles victory, but they won’t make it easy on themselves. Good teams don’t lose to team as bad as the Chiefs. We’ll find out this week if the Eagles are a good team or not.

Welcome back! Follow us on Twitter, subscribe for FREE, or become a fan on Facebook to win tickets to Philadelphia events.