What They’re Saying About the Eagles


Here’s a roundup of what the national media are saying about the Eagles this week.

ESPN.com has the Eagles 11th in its power rankings:

LeSean McCoy posted 162 yards from scrimmage in Week 16, and is now 92 yards shy of the Eagles’ record, set by Brian Westbrook in 2007.

Doug Farrar of SI.com has Nick Foles’ 7-TD performance vs. Oakland as one of his stories of the year in the NFL:

Peyton Manning’s seven-touchdown performance against the Baltimore Ravens in the NFL’s 2013 season opener wasn’t that much of a surprise — after all, Manning had thrown 37 touchdown passes in his first year with the Broncos, and there were question marks about the fitness of Baltimore’s secondary. However, what Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Nick Foles did to the Oakland Raiders on Nov. 3 was far less expected — he also matched the seven-touchdown NFL record, and did it in the first three quarters of Philly’s 49-20 victory before head coach Chip Kelly replaced him with backup Matt Barkley. The game effectively marked the end of the Michael Vick era — at least for the Eagles — and started Foles on a historical month. His 152.8 quarterback rating for November was the single greatest for any quarterback in NFL history over a similar period of time. Foles, a third-round pick in 2012 out of Arizona, didn’t throw his first interception of the season until the aforementioned win over the Lions, marking a streak of 237 straight passes without an interception, a franchise best.

John Breech of CBSSports.com has LeSean McCoy third on his MVP list:

There’s only one player in the NFL dominating his position this season like Peyton Manning’s dominating the quarterback position and that’s LeSean McCoy. Through 15 games, McCoy has 1,476 rushing yards, which is 14.7 percent more than his next closest competitor. To put that in perspective, Manning only has 9 percent more passing yards than his next closest competitor. The Eagles have won six of their past seven games and the only game they lost in that span was in Week 15 when Chip Kelly went crazy and decided to only give McCoy the ball eight times. Kelly must not have known that the Eagles are 1-6 since 2010 when McCoy gets 10 or less carries.

Chris Burke of SI.com has the Eagles eighth in his power rankings:

It had been three years since Matt Cassel had a performance like the one he delivered against Philadelphia in Week 15, so maybe we just chalk that whole game up as an anomaly. That’s the only time since September the Eagles have allowed more than 21 points.

Pete Prisco of CBSSports.com has the Eagles 11th:

That was a heck of a performance against the Bears. Too bad it didn’t matter.

Peter Bukowski of SI.com has Chip Kelly as his Coach of the Year:

No, Kelly hasn’t revolutionized the league like Cris Collinsworth’s occasional bouts of hyperbole would make you believe, but the Eagles offense is rolling and the defense has improved. This Philly team went from an undeniable mess to a legitimate darkhorse in the NFC with a quarterback who didn’t even start the season under center. After a trouncing of the Bears Sunday night, Philadelphia can capture the NFC East title by beating the Tony Romo-less Cowboys in Week 17. Even Kelly’s biggest supporters couldn’t have seen this coming.

Brian Billick of FoxSports.com has the Eagles 12th:

With a win next week, the Eagles will barely slide into the playoffs. But I promise you, no one wants to face this team in the postseason. They are way too explosive.

Elliot Harrison of NFL.com has the Eagles 11th:

Love how the Eagles utilize the running attack; it really is a thing of beauty. Philly came into Sunday night’s matchup leading the league with 152.9 rushing yards per game — and flat-out blew past that mark, posting nearly three bills against the Bears. Looks like Wilbert Montgomery’s single-season team record of 1,510 yards might go down. Oh, well. Who’s looking forward to Sunday night? This guy … was. #NeckBeard

Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk has the Eagles seventh:

Before Philly sends out the playoff tickets, the Eagles need to figure out how to score more than three points against the Cowboys.

Follow Sheil Kapadia on Twitter and e-mail him at skapadia@phillymag.com.
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