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I should have known what kind of outcome this game was going to have when in the first few minutes after kickoff there was a knock at my door. Then the doorbell was buzzing incessantly. Someone was trying to get my attention and DARED interrupt my Sunday afternoon ritual. Clearly this must be someone who doesn’t know me! I answered the door to a political supporter canvassing the neighborhood. And I scolded him for campaigning during the Eagles’ game! No lie, I answered the door and said “Dude, not during the Eagles’ game!” When I realized it was actually my State Representative (oops!) I pretended not to be embarrassed but I did at least reassure him that I’d be at the polls on Tuesday.
I returned to the game feeling confident as the Birds took control from the start. It appeared to be a game that was going to be driven more by the defense from both teams. Quintin Mikell caught an interception and hit their QB with a sack-forced fumble combo to take possession twice from the Titans in the first half. We kept them out of the end zone initially and they held us to field goals on several red zone attempts. We went an entire quarter and a half before David Akers put one through the uprights. I was fine with three points as long as they got none. Everything had a great flow to it at the start. We even saw a trick play that included four players and resulted in a touchdown. Wide receiver Jeremy Maclin took the snap in the wildcat and hands off to running back LeSean McCoy and then he tosses it to Kevin Kolb who connected with rookie receiver Riley Cooper for his first NFL touchdown. Ah sookie sookie! It looks like this is going to be a good one. I was just about ready to relax and read the flyer that my state rep left with me as we headed into the half with a score of 13-7.
Not so fast. The second half was an entirely different scenario. Enter Tennessee party boy Kenny Britt. WR Britt was benched for a quarter and a half to start the game by Coach Jeff Fisher for being involved in an altercation at a local night club. Apparently he wasn’t finished clubbing because he proceeded to club my Eagles with not one, not two, but three touchdowns and seven receptions for the comeback of the day! We had the game. They took it without apology.
Final embarrassing score: Titans 37 Eagles 19.
So what happened? Turnovers. Poor execution to close the deal for touchdowns in the red zone. Plus a breakdown on defense in the second half. It was like we got too comfortable and thought we had the game in the bag. That’s until everything changed after a fumble on a snap from Kolb to McCoy. We’d just gotten the ball via a pick from Asante Samuel and were threatening to score from the two yard line. It smelled like a sweet touchdown but ended up stinking up the rest of the afternoon. That play may as well have been the end of the game because the entire momentum shifted south to Tennessee.
It’s no secret I don’t handle our losses all that well. I probably scared the neighbors yelling at the TV as loudly as I did. But they probably just say. “Oh, she must be watching the Titans grill the Birds...no worries.” I do look for the Green lining inside the cloud but this is one that we just shouldn’t have let get away from us. Yes, it’s a young team and yes we’ve got a lot of inexperienced players but at what point do you grow up and not use that as a reason for playing poorly? The consolation prize is that we get a week to grow our feathers back and another week to get our experienced players back in the line up. We have a bye week and by then starting quarterback Michael Vick and our star receiver, Desean Jackson should be back on the field along with left tackle Jason Peters and defensive tackle Brodrick Bunkley.
The timing couldn’t be more significant since our next opponent following the bye week is Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts. And we are certainly going to need our top players back on the field in order to defeat this AFC powerhouse. But to our advantage, the Colts haven’t been playing their best ball either, especially on defense. So I’ll spend this football Sunday overindulging on Halloween candy and trying to get over the horror of the Titans game, which I will most certainly remember! I truly need a treat after that trick!
I firmly believe though, when the season is done we will be at the top of the NFC East. So enjoy it while you can NY Giants. And I have to say thanks for the loss you handed Dallas! Way to end their season!
Have a great Halloween! I’ll rest up during the bye and then I’ll see you on the sidelines when we are back in action!
Helen “Love My Eagles” Little
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