Eagles Continue Winning Ways

The Eagles have a problem.  It’s called the first half.

During their first two games, the Eagles’ offense scored six points in the first half.  In the same timeframe, the Eagles defense allowed 34 points.

However, thanks to 24-10 and 34-0 second-half performances, early into the 2014 season, the Eagles sit atop the NFC East at 2-0.

It is quite a dichotomous situation.  But instead of pointing fingers and ranting about blown coverages (that allowed an undrafted free agent named Allen Hurns to have 100 yards and 2 touchdown), let’s take a positive view.

This is not daddy’s NFL anymore.  The game is currently designed for freak athletes to make unbelievable catches and showcase world class speed and agility.  Allowing yards through the passing game is a given, and with so many great athletes to spread around, the difference between most teams in the league is paper thin.  Still, wins are all that matter.  It is rarely mentioned that the Patriots Dynasty attained all three of their Superbowl victories by three points, unless it is in a conversation anointing Adam Venetari the best kicker of the generation.

Here is another example of the league’s parody, the Seattle Seahawks.  Seattle allowed 4700 yards of offense last year and put up 5300 of their own.  That’s a difference of around 60 yards a game or about the length of an average scoring drive.  So on average, the Seahawks are about one score better than their opponents when it comes down to moving the ball.  The Seahawks only defeated the Buccaneers, Rams and Titans by 3, 5 and 7 points respectively.  Seattle is with out a doubt one of the best teams in the NFL, but three of the league’s worst clubs had a punchers chance to knock out the league champs.

But how lopsided the score doesn’t really matter.  It’s all about the W.  The Eagles have found a way to get 2 W’s in 2 games.  Not bad.

Granted, it takes time for this Big Green Machine to get rolling, but after a half time speech from Chip Kelly and an offense that leaves opposing defenses with hands on their hips, come the second half, the Eagles continue to prove their brand of football gets them the win more often than not.

After a 2-0 start, the Eagles have to face the Washington Redskins.  Washington is a team the Eagles are “supposed” to beat.  With RGIII and DeSean Jackson out, the Skins are down two of their best offensive players.  This presents the Eagles with a great opportunity to add another check in the win column, and even more importantly, to continue establishing themselves as an upper crust NFL team.

If the Birds can play the way they have in the second half for an entire game, they could drop 40 points on Washington.  Hopefully the Eagle’s second-half mojo is not just a flash in the pan, but the Eagles’ true identity, and they put on an impressive display against the dinged-up Redskins.