How the Birds Stole Christmas

Much like the legend of the Phoenix, the Philadelphia Eagles and their fans accepted that hope had been lost, and the end of the season was near. Getting symbolically set ablaze in Indianapolis, the Birds took this torching by the Colts, only to rise from the ashes anew — stronger than ever. Taking down division rivals Washington and New York on the road, Christmas day gave the revitalized Eagles a chance to create a legend of their own in front of the nation.

In a game that many felt was going to be a lopsided mugging by the media darling Dallas Cowboys, started and finished the exact opposite.  Never trailing in the game, the Eagles were up 13-7 heading into halftime, and finished the dismantling of the Cowboys with a final score of 23-7, dominating almost every aspect of the game.

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Coaching
With the season ending injury to aspiring league MVP Donovan McNabb, Andy Reid and coaching staff had a tall task ahead of them, keeping confidence up while working without their best player. Not only did Reid, Johnson, and Mornhinweg, step up their coaching effort in the face of tribulation, but they realigned the Eagles philosophy, essentially creating an entirely different looking team.  The biggest change that is leading to this newfound success is the unleashing of running back Brian Westbrook.  Formerly overprotective of the smaller back, Reid has let Westbrook run between the tackles more often which has produced a new dimension to the Eagles offense, and took a major toll against the Cowboys. Winning the time of possession by 15 minutes, the Eagles took a lead and kept it unlike any other game this season.

Jeff Garcia
Though it is late for the contention of comeback player of the year, Jeff Garcia is wearing his heart on his sleeve and becoming one of the NFL’s best comeback stories.  Winning big division games in December is not something many quarterbacks in the league can accomplish, yet resilient Garcia wracked up four huge December wins.  Garcia’s best attribute in his short time playing is the lack of mistakes he makes in crucial situations. Although he threw one interception against Dallas, it was more of an anomaly rather than a trend.  Garcia went 15-23 for 238 yards with one touchdown, one interception.  His statistics were no more than adequate, yet it is the way Garcia managed the game that makes him so successful in this system, and keeps the Birds winning.

Offensive and Defensive Line
Most NFL games are won and lost in the trenches, and which team wins the battle of the lines. This game was no different as the Eagles offensive line bullied the Cowboy defense around running the ball at will.  The Eagles rushed for an amazing 204 yards, including ten rushing first downs.  If it was the offensive line who started the road to winning this game, it was the defensive line that finished it.  The Eagles stopped the Dallas’ dangerous run game outright in the first half, but failed to get pressure on Tony Romo. The Eagles defensive line eventually wore down the Cowboys, and sacked Romo three times.  The pressure forced Romo into making mistakes in the passing game, which led to 2 interceptions, and the end of Dallas’ offensive threat.

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Terrell Owens
Christmas night against the Eagles gave Owens another shot and sticking it to his former team.  After an embarrassing no show in the first confrontation, T.O. disappointed again.  Dropping more balls than he caught, the boos in Cowboys Stadium reigned down for Owens who has simply become a serviceable receiver in the NFL, rather than the great one he once was.  After the game the T.O. excuse machine was in full effect as he blamed not getting the ball enough early in the game on his poor play later on.  This bewilders many fans who do not see Owens making the plays dealt to him now, questioning his bid for more opportunities.

Carrie Underwood
There were many questions after the game as to why so much attention was given by ESPN to Carrie Underwood and Tony Romo.  Romo, who is a new media darling, was shown during the pre game warm-up flirting it up with Country music, and American Idol superstar Carrie Underwood.  The cameras panned to her multiple times in an obvious attempt to promote support for Romo, who was supposed to drive his Cowboys to a division title on Christmas.  Regardless of what ESPN wanted, the game resulted in a lackluster effort from Romo, which hopefully halts the Romomania, because the media attention is becoming nauseating.

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The past few weeks the Eagles have been playing football with house money.  With no expectations or pressure, they are playing excellent football that has even the former skeptics saying that this team could be a Superbowl contender. Next week the Birds host the distraught Atlanta Falcons, who are mathematically playoff eligible but are sinking quickly.  If the Eagles continue their solid play, and their tough run defense, the Falcons should not impose any problem that will keep the Eagles from the improbable NFC East Division title.

Photo by  (AFP/Getty Images)