They just couldn’t help it. Dallas had to go and prove pasty TV personality Skip Bayless right.
Looks like I’m not watching ESPN’s First Take this morning.
…Yeah, that’s all I got.
The harshest criticism I can muster after last night’s 24-0 win over Philadelphia was split—half inspired by handing Bayless grounds to gloat, and Cowboy receivers’ first-down celebrations.
Would a little variety kill you guys? Honestly.
Problem is, regarding that on-the-field stuff, I’m not so sure Dallas served itself well yesterday.
Marion Barber ran wild. Tony Romo’s throws didn’t. Miles Austin continues to do his thing, consequently soothing Jason Garrett’s perpetual struggle to do his. Big D’s D-line led the franchise to its first shutouts in consecutive weeks, by appearance leveling the Eagles to Washington Redskin-caliber.
Wasn’t in meetings this week, but I’m pretty sure that was the game plan. To the T(D).
Which, now, the Eagles will blow up in meeting rooms, cramming like a med student before exams. Difference is, they’re not working with one well-written textbook. They’ve got the damn answer key. And they’ve got a corresponding copy for each of the test’s three versions in existence (DAL vs. NO, DAL vs. WSH, DAL vs. PHI).
Last night, Dallas prodded every schematic flaw in the Eagles’ game, too. In the passing game, and against it. When it stacking the box and its own backfields.
Now, going “back to the drawing board,” as Andy Reid put it, the Eagles have the opportunity to remerge fully aware of their pitfalls, and what players and situations leave them most vulnerable.
I wish Dallas was so lucky.
I won’t buy stock in Andy Reid’s pristine first-round record in January, outright. ESPN: we love the fruits of your interns (hope I’m one of ‘em some day). But that stat isn’t holding up in the playoffs, on its own.
But in tandem with the guy’s ability to game plan (9-0 after bye week)? Could be problems.
Plus, it’s tough enough to be swept in a three-game series from a season’s start to its finish. But doing it in consecutive weeks requires perspiration—even for a Philly sports team.
Especially with Reid holding the reins.
Backhanded a compliment as it sounds, the Eagles play with too much pride for an unimpeded 13-day flop, anyway. If the Eagles needed a slap in the face for inspiration, they’re not deserving of even the sixth post-season slot.
But that same passion—the embodiment of the city’s spirit—now has direction.
That imposing a combo could shake boots like a Big Mac in front of an Olsen twin.
And as much as Dallas fulfilled its on-paper expectations, I can’t say the same for the Iggles. Dallas beat them to a pulp. But they didn’t beat them at their best—or in its recognizable vicinity.
Philly blitzed as infrequently as McNabb hit his receivers on the numbers. And how long, exactly, do you expect those trends to last? Dallas should come out on top regardless, but they’ll field a more formidable resistance than a pile of leaves offers a sugar-stuffed toddler.
And if I’m a player on the Eagles’ roster, I look at that abberation as a bad day at the office. As unavoidable as it is unusual. I stow it in overhead memory, but only long enough to get me pissed.
Dallas has gotta feel pretty good about itself right about now, their three-week stroll before the postseason raging in full-fledged caprice. And three years of unencumbered disappointment bolsters the high, for sure.
Question is: did they overdo it?