Are you ready for some football?
Paula Wolf, a sports enthusiast who uses a wheelchair because of rheumatoid arthritis, is a staff writ
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I definitely am, and as the Eagles begin their 2008 season today at home against the St. Louis Rams, here's my take on the Birds' strengths and weaknesses — and, most importantly, their chances of returning to the playoffs.
Offense: Quarterback Donovan McNabb looked sharp in preseason, and if he stays healthy the entire year, that's a major bonus. But here's the disturbing trend he's trying to reverse: Over the first six years of his career, McNabb — who turns 32 in November — led the Eagles to a 56-23 record. In the last three injured-plagued seasons, he's just 17-16 in games he
has played.
If McNabb is close to 100 percent, then running back Brian Westbrook won't have to shoulder as much as the offensive burden, which could prolong his career. Backups Correll Buckhalter and Lorenzo Booker also will take some of the load off Westbrook.
The offensive line, however, is a bit of a question mark, with tackles Jon Runyan and Tra Thomas now in their mid-30s and All Pro guard Shawn Andrews coming off a serious bout with depression.
Wideout could be a problem, too, especially with 1,000-yard guy Kevin Curtis recovering from sports hernia surgery. Disappointing Reggie Brown needs to step up, and tight end L.J. Smith must stay healthy.
The wild card in all this is rookie DeSean Jackson, who looked great in the exhibition games.
Can he be the game-breaker the team has sorely missed since the departure of Terrell Owens? I sure hope so, but admittedly that's an awful lot of pressure to put on a 21-year-old second-round draft choice.
Defense: With Asante Samuel, Sheldon Brown and Lito Sheppard, the Eagles have depth at cornerback to match any team in the league. Potential Hall of Famer Brian Dawkins, looking to rebound from a subpar 2007, and emerging Quintin Mikell are the starting safeties. Last season, the Birds ranked a pathetic 32nd in the NFL in takeaways, which is why they forked over big bucks for free-agent ballhawk Samuel.
While the secondary will almost certainly be better, the young, talented linebacking corps of Omar Gaither, Chris Gocong and Stewart Bradley is being depended on make big plays, too.
Pro Bowl defensive end Trent Cole anchors a defensive line that did well against the run last year. Free-agent Chris Clemons, who was hurt most of the preseason, is being counted on to provide a pass rush as well, along with Juqua Parker (formerly known as Juqua Thomas) and underachieving veteran Darren Howard. Tackles Brodrick Bunkley and Mike Patterson are steady.
Special teams: Sav Rocca averaged 42 yards a kick last year, but he needs to boot the ball inside the other teams' 20-yard line more, instead of punting it into the end zone. It also would be nice to see normally reliable kicker David Akers start hitting more long-distance field goals.
As for the return game, the aforementioned DeSean Jackson will return punts, and fellow rookie Quintin Demps will run back kickoffs. This is probably the most-improved area on the team.
Schedule: Assuming the Birds split their six NFC East games, they have to go 7-3 in their remaining contests to end up 10-6, a record that should put them back in the postseason.
And with games against teams like the Ravens, Falcons, 49ers and Rams, that's a reasonable scenario. In fact, an 11-5 regular season isn't too far-fetched, either.
So, are the Eagles a Super Bowl contender? Realistically, probably not. I think the Cowboys are the best team in the NFC.
But once you get to the playoffs, who knows what'll happen. Remember, hardly anyone believed the Giants had a snowball's chance in Hades against the Patriots in Super Bowl XLII.
Paula Wolf, a sports enthusiast who uses a wheelchair because of rheumatoid arthritis, is a staff writer for the Sunday News. E-mail her at pwolf@lnpnews.com.
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