vasco75 Posted January 25, 2005 Share Posted January 25, 2005 http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/sports/10726630.htm I think what Sheridan is missing here is that in the past few years, the Eagles have been beating up on a very weak NFC and an even weaker NFC East. But a pretty good read though... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vasco75 Posted January 25, 2005 Author Share Posted January 25, 2005 Posted on Tue, Jan. 25, 2005 Phil Sheridan | Patriots' myth may be ripe for debunking By Phil Sheridan Inquirer Columnist Before they became this mythical beast, the New England Patriots were just a football team. A good football team, not a great football team. This was just three years ago. The Patriots had won the AFC East title by a tiebreaker over Miami. Both had good, not great, 11-5 records. The Patriots barely squeaked by the Oakland Raiders - in overtime, in the snow - thanks to the now-infamous "tuck rule" play that turned a Tom Brady fumble into an incomplete pass. After beating Pittsburgh in the AFC championship game, as they did again Sunday, the Patriots arrived in New Orleans as deserved underdogs to the Mike Martz-coached St. Louis Rams. Bill Belichick, who was considered a good but not a great coach, was immediately confronted by the big question of the week. Would he keep improbable regular-season hero Brady at quarterback, or would he do the obvious thing and let star Drew Bledsoe take over for the biggest game of all their lives? Belichick went with Brady. Looking back, that might have been the moment he crossed over from good coach to great coach. No one knew it at the time, of course. No one knew it until Belichick's defense held the Rams' explosive offense to 17 points and Brady directed the last-minute drive that got the Patriots to 20. The mythical beast was born. In this year of quest, it is fitting that a mythical beast stands between the Eagles and their grail. As a fan, sure, you'd like to see them line up against the Cowboys or Giants again. You'd like to start the celebration a few hours before kickoff. But this is the Super Bowl. This is the event that has turned itself into a quasi-national holiday. If the Eagles are going to win their first NFL title since 1960, they should have to beat the best possible team. They beat Vince Lombardi, the man for whom the Super Bowl trophy is named, to win their last championship. Might as well face the modern-day equivalent in their quest to win this time. "They have always said that in order for you to be a champion, you have to beat the champion," Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb said yesterday. "This is what you play the game for. I look forward to getting out on that field and competing versus their defense and having our defense versus their offense." In a parallel universe, this thing could easily be reversed. Think about it. Three years ago, the Patriots faced St. Louis because the Rams defeated the Eagles in the NFC championship game. Belichick and his defensive coordinator, Romeo Crennel, employed almost exactly the same defensive strategy that Jim Johnson's Eagles attempted in that conference title game. It's just that, with Troy Vincent limited by a hamstring injury, the Eagles secondary didn't quite have what it took to pull it off. The Patriots did. The next year, the Eagles went back to the conference championship game. Belichick's Patriots went 9-7. In creating the myth around the Pats, people tend to forget that season. Then came last year. The Eagles again provided the opponent for the Patriots. Carolina went into that Super Bowl with what seemed like no chance against Belichick and his well-oiled machine. Jake Delhomme was no match for Brady, who by then was hanging out at the White House in his spare time. Then Delhomme and the Panthers put on a fourth-quarter show, scoring 19 points - five more than they scored against the Eagles in the title game. New England survived, winning 32-29, and the myth of the beast was well on its way to being complete. It reached critical mass during the 2004 regular season, when the Patriots' winning streak reached 21 games. In that same period, the Eagles went 18-3. Since the start of the 2001 season, including the playoffs, the Patriots' record is 56-16. The Eagles' record is 54-19. That's two more wins for the Patriots: Super Bowls. That's three more losses for the Eagles: NFC championship games. It really comes down to that. In a league where sustained excellence is made as difficult as possible because of draft order, scheduling and the salary cap, the Eagles have been just one step behind the Patriots for the last four seasons. It is the one step between successful and mythical. It is the step between Andy Reid's well-respected tenure and Belichick's superlative-exhausting reign. It is the step between McNabb's stardom and Brady's mystique. That is the step the Eagles can take on Feb. 6 in Jacksonville, Fla. They can catch the Patriots, on the biggest stage the sport allows. They can slay that mythical beast. It's the only way they can fulfill their quest and become champions. That's good, because it's also the right way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steeler Posted January 25, 2005 Share Posted January 25, 2005 The only thing "mythical" is thinking the Eagles might win this game. They don't run the ball enough, and they don't stop the run.... BB will take advantage of both of those glaring weaknesses and destroy the Philiadelphia McNabs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AtomicCEO Posted January 25, 2005 Share Posted January 25, 2005 This is silly. After watching McNabb in this last game, I'm convinced that he will throw 4 interceptions in the superbowl. His accuracy is terrible when he's pressured in big games. Their running game isn't powerful enough to get going against the Pats, and you can't run a screen on every down (although they'll try it a lot). I think Philly will fare worse than Indy or Pittsburgh. This superbowl is going to be awful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skylive5 Posted January 25, 2005 Share Posted January 25, 2005 Well written and interesting article. No slams and no predictions. Just well laid out about two of the best teams in the NFL over the last 4 years. One that has got over the hump and one that hasn't when it comes being champions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kid Cid Posted January 25, 2005 Share Posted January 25, 2005 Well written and interesting article. No slams and no predictions. Just well laid out about two of the best teams in the NFL over the last 4 years. One that has got over the hump and one that hasn't when it comes being champions. 671400[/snapback] heh, heh, heh, he said hump. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kraftykraft Posted January 25, 2005 Share Posted January 25, 2005 It's hard to call a team that won two SBs overrated. Maybe after winning one superbowl they could be called that, but not really two. The Pats are obviously the class of the AFC right now. And the AFC is the strongest conference in the NFL. The Eagles are a very good team, but they have never closed the deal. I would like their chances far more in Terrell Owens was healthy, but the Eagles have as good a shot as anybody at beating the Pats. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I Like Soup Posted January 25, 2005 Share Posted January 25, 2005 Well, ok, I guess any team is an ok team before they run off a string of seasons like the Pats have. That was then, this is now. Interesting read nonetheless especially with the comparison of records over the last few years. The difference in wins and loses as the author points out isn't much in his opinion.....but it makes all the difference in the world since those three Philly losses are all of the NFC Championship variety and the two more wins the Pats have are the Super Bowl. But not much different..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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