Redskins Making Me Worry

The more I hear about the Washington Redskins and examine their season thus far, the more I get worried about Monday night's game. This, of course, is fueled by last Sunday's totally improbable loss to the Oakland Raiders, a futile team in seemingly total disarray. The Redskins have some similarities, but have also played close games every week, albeit against some bad teams.

The Redskins take a 2-4 record into the game, having eked out wins against the Rams and Bucs at home. They lost their other home game against the Chiefs, as well as their three road games. Except for the Giants, all their opponents have losing records and are a combined 1-23 against the rest of the league.

Despite playing such a soft schedule, the most points they have scored is 17. Averaging a meager 13 points per game, only a handful of teams have performed worse. In an unprecedented move, the team announced yesterday that they are going to have a consultant in the press box take over the play calling duties from their current coach.

Perhaps they preferred torturing Jim Zorn rather than simply cutting him loose? Sounds a little dysfunctional, somewhat like the Oakland Raiders. At least detectives and law enforcement officers are not involved, but it is not your typical, sure fire way to jump start an NFL offense. Zorn did say that he gets a chance to walk around and listen in to the play calls.

Are you getting scared, yet? Similar to last week, all conventional reasoning and odds would seem to favor the Eagles this week. A team in turmoil, with a futile offense taking on another team that is supposed to be a Super Bowl contender. Unfortunately, things did not work out as most everyone would have expected against the Raiders. Could the Eagles experience deja vu?

Here is the argument that the Birds could be similarly challenged this week:

• The Redskins are 2-1 at home and the game is in Washington.
• It is a Monday night football game, which provides extra motivation as players know their peers are likely looking in.
• The Redskins swept them last season, including a 10-3 win in Week 16 when the Eagles needed a victory to control their playoff destiny.
• Washington has been in every game this season.
• The Eagles offensive line is hurting and surrendered 6 sacks last week.
• The Redskins have a strong pass defense and have a defensive line that can put pressure on the QB.
• Donovan McNabb and his offense were out of synch all day, partially due to the line as well as the play calling.
• The Redskins are ranked 5th in the NFL in points allowed, so they are capable of making things difficult for the Birds again this week.
• The Eagles have a hole at middle linebacker after losing their starter and back-up for the season. The Raiders were able to exploit Jeremiah Trotter's lack of speed last week and just acquired Will Witherspoon will still be learning his abc's.
• Although they have not scored many points, the Skins do have some playmakers in Clinton Portis, Santana Moss and Chris Cooley.

You can see, despite outward appearances to the contrary, there is ample reason for Eagles fans to be concerned about Monday's game. This is especially true if the Eagles themselves take the game too lightly and do not properly prepare. The team would be wise to ignore the Redskins record and all the stuff about their new "offensive play caller in the press box consultant." Instead, they should remind themselves that this opponent swept them last season, and that they could only muster 3 points in a "must win" game at the end of December.

Pitching Still the Key Concern for the Phillies

Pitching continues to be a key focus and a source of some lingering concerns for the Phillies as they head down the 2009 season stretch. Oddly enough, the concerns revolve around the four most reliable and successful pitchers from a year ago. On one hand, it speaks volumes that this year's team has been able to withstand their struggles and prosper without them performing at the level expected. On the other hand, these issues will become increasingly important.

In 2008, Cole Hamels was the clear ace of the starting staff and a rising star in the National League. The team was able to ride his excellent pitching through the playoffs and World Series. The other major strength was found in the back-end of the bullpen, where Ryan Madson and JC Romero were the dominating "bridge to" Lidge, who was merely perfect in all 48 save opportunities.

As has been well documented, both Hamels and Lidge have continued to struggle throughout the season (see Hamels and Lidge Need to Find Their "Mojo" for more on that topic), unable to find any level of consistency. Madson has displayed similar dominance for periods of time this season, but continues to be very shaky in the biggest pressure moments. Lastly, Romero was suspended for the first 50 games of the season, pitched well in his return, but then found himself on the disabled list.

Lets take a further look:

Cole Hamels and Ryan Madson

Perhaps Hamels righted himself last evening with a strong performance against the Pirates. He shut out the Bucs through 8 innings, scattering 7 hits, while walking two. Unlike some previous outings, he was able to put away hitters and struck out 7 batters.

Hamels was lifted for a pinch hitter in the top of the 9th, but would not have been permitted to return to the mound to earn a shut out since he had already thrown 123 pitches. With Brad Lidge unavailable after pitching four consecutive days, Ryan Madson was called on to protect the 1-0 lead in the bottom half of the inning. Unfortunately, Madson was unable to gain his 5th save as he yielded a one out, game tying home run to Brandon Moss.

The Phillies went on to win in the tenth inning when Ryan Howard clubbed his 9th home run in the past 13 games with mates aboard, and then Madson pitched a scoreless bottom half of the inning to earn the victory. It was a twist of fate for Hamels as he deserved the win, but Madson let it slip away and then himself earned the win.

Last night had the appearances of a spring board opportunity for Hamels, but he faltered similarly following through on a couple previous occasions this season. Meanwhile, Madson reinforced how different and difficult it is to close games.

JC Romero

Romero is progressing slowly in his efforts to return to the team. He is only at the stage of throwing in the bullpen, so he appears to be at least a couple weeks away. Fortunately, Scott Eyre has very ably filled his role as left handed set-up man in his absence.

Brad Lidge

After making some strides forward with his previous 3 appearances, he crashed on Tuesday evening when he suffered his league leading 9th blown save, giving up 3 runs in the bottom of the ninth. To be fair, and also thoughtful in assessing the meaning of it, Lidge was pitching for the 4th consecutive day. In retrospect, his bad outing was most likely attributable to being overworked and not something to get overly alarmed about in terms of his pitching ability. The key will be whether Lidge can use a little selective amnesia and not let it erode his confidence.

All in all, the Phillies continue to roll on, winning 12 of their last 15 games, while expanding their division lead to 7 games. This gives them some flexibility to work through the difficulties, but it still remains critical for these four key members of their staff to find their groove as the games get more intense and meaningful. The team's lofty post season aspirations will surely require it.

Many Unanswered Questions on the Eagles Remain

As the Philadelphia Eagles prepare for their third pre-season game tomorrow night against the Jacksonville Jaguars, many questions still linger regarding the team and how they will fare in the upcoming season. By most accounts, the team had a very productive off season after a run to the NFC Championship Game in January, so on paper, the Eagles appeared to be a Super Bowl contender before training camp opened.

Now that a few weeks have passed, that assessment seems a bit more tenuous as several question marks still persist, while others have arisen. The biggest concerns surround the health of the team's offensive line. After all, as the NFL coaching fraternity tends to say, everything starts up front- and this is particularly true with the pass heavy Eagles offensive approach.

Concerns are not limited to the front line, though. Obviously, several emanate from a recent team addition as an hour does not pass without a TV or news blurb on the topic. Depending on how these lingering issues unfold, the fate of the team could vary widely. As testimony to the high competitive balance in the NFL, the Eagles season could range from disappointing to conceivably competing for the Super Bowl title.

Here are some, but surely not all, of the questions surrounding the 2009-2010 edition of the Eagles:

▪ Can Stacy Andrews and Jason Peters fulfill their advance billing and measure up to the team's commitment to them? At this point, even more pressing is whether they will see the field?
▪ Will Shawn Andrews find his way back onto the field on a regular basis? If so, will he return to the Pro Bowl form of the past?
▪ Can rookies Jeremy Maclin and LeSean McCoy make the adjustment to the NFL well enough to contribute similarly to DeSean Jackson last season? Both show flashes of wonderful potential that needs to be consistently present as the team is probably relying on their contributions more than any rookies in previous seasons in the Andy Reid era.
▪ Will Bryan Westbrook come close to the form that he showed in the 2007-2008 season, or will he be last season's part-time, limited performer?
▪ Will Michael Vick add enough to the offense to compensate for the distractions and make his signing worthwhile? On a more basic level, will he fulfill his commitment to the team in regard to conduct and behavior?
▪ Can Donovan McNabb continue where he left off in January? Will he prosper or falter through the almost inevitable quarterback controversies that will ensue?
▪ Can Joe Mays or Omar Gaither step up to fill the big hole created by MLB Stewart Bradley's season ending injury?
▪ Will a true leader emerge on the defense to fill the vacated shoes of the former Eagles icon Brian Dawkins?
▪ Will the players and coaches respond well to the Michael Vick experiment by not allowing the distractions to disrupt team chemistry or game preparation?
▪ Can the secondary come together to once again become a team strength needed to make their defensive scheme work?
▪ Can Sean McDermott come close to replacing one the NFL's best and most beloved defensive coordinators, Jim Johnson?

Tomorrow night, Reid and his coaching staff hope to gain some valuable insight and possibly gather some answers. Certainly, other questions will remain that will only be answered under the spotlight of the network cameras, when the games count in the regular season. All teams have question marks as they head into each campaign, but this Eagles team would seem to have more than its fair share, particularly considering that they are widely viewed as Super Bowl contenders.