Philadelphia Eagles Eve 2008

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As Philadelphia football fans, the next seventeen Sundays are going to be awfully fun. The Phillies have stepped up their game in recent years to get our hearts pumping for baseball, but there is still nothing quite like the start of another Iggles campaign for that ever elusive Super Bowl title.

Tomorrow we get to watch Brian Dawkins, Brian Westbrook, and Donovan McNabb strap it up and do their thing at the Linc. If you’re not excited for kickoff, there is something wrong with you.

This game starts the tenth year of the Andy Reid and Donovan McNabb era in Philadelphia. We’ve been taken on quite the ride with plenty of ups and downs. The promised land was within sight a few times and we’ve been entertained but ultimately disappointed. Sometimes I think I’m a foolish fan for hoping and believing that this could be the year. But again, like so many years past, I hope and believe that 2008 could be the year.

Do I think the Eagles are going to win the Super Bowl? I mean, come on. I am from Philly. But do I think they can win this year? Why the hell not. It wouldn’t be as fun if I were one of those miserable fans who always expects the Birds to choke.

While I’m not expecting a Super Bowl, I certainly expect the 2008 Eagles to be a contender for the NFC East and the conference as a whole. There’s simply no good reason to think otherwise. Sure, I have more faith in Five than the average fan. But I don’t think its total homerism. Donovan McNabb can get it done. We all know, as the Giants showed us last year, that if you make it to the postseason, anything can happen.

The Cowboys scare me a little bit and the Giants look decent. Eli may have a ring and Romo may have 81, but I still like Five’s chances.

Like every other year there are plenty of question marks. That’s football.

Even without Kevin Curtis and Reggie Brown to start to the season, it’s not the receiving corps that worries me the most on the offense. If the aging offensive line and make-shift fullback Tony Hunt can give Donovan McNabb enough protection, I believe his ability to find the open man and make things happen, coupled with the ridiculous skills of Brian Westbrook, will be enough to make this offense potent.  The protection is vital.

The defense doesn’t get talked about as much, but they have their share of issues as well. The linebacking group is talented and young, and the front four will need to be dynamic. But you have to be excited about having Brian Dawkins healthy with a complete offseason workout under his belt. The cornerback trio, while not entirely happy, is still the best in football.  Asante Samuel was brought in to make plays, and a lot will be expected out of him.

If Jim Johnson gets those eleven guys firing on all cylinders, other teams around the league won’t have a lot of fun against them. Sure, there are a lot of ‘ifs,’ and the Eagles will certainly need the ball to bounce their way a few times here and there—something that didn't seem to happen often in 2007. But this is a good football team. We’ll spend the next seventeen Sundays watching to see if they can turn into a great one. I’m looking forward to it.

BallHype - Philadelphia Eagles Eve 2008
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Matt and I will both be down at the Linc tomorrow to watch this 2008 version of our Philadelphia Eagles. Kulp will have a Rams preview in the AM.

Time to bull up.

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