Eagles Wake-Up Call: The McCoy-Brown Combo


Philadelphia Eagles RB LeSean McCoy.Sunday could provide a glimpse of what the Eagles’ running attack might look like in the future.

LeSean McCoy returns to action for the first time since suffering a concussion against this Redskins team back on November 18. He will start, but is expected to be eased back in.

“I’m going to keep an eye on him. He’s not going to play the whole game, every snap of the game,” said Andy Reid. “We’ll monitor him as we go and see how he does.”

Usually when McCoy is active the backup gets very little work. But in this case Bryce Brown could be in heavy rotation.

“I’m excited he’s back. He’s a great player and I think him being back gives us a better chance of winning,” said Brown. “I think some things we do similar, some things we do different. But I do think we complement each other very well.”

Brown needs 110 yards over the final two games to break LeSean McCoy‘s record for most rushing yards as a rookie. The bulk of his production came in the two games immediately following McCoy’s injury, where he went off for 347 yards and four touchdowns in losses to the Panthers and Cowboys. In the two games since he has run for 40 yards on 28 carries (1.4 average). With his production down, more focus has gone to his four fumbles on the year.

“I am and the rest of the coaches are emphasizing the ball security to the point of ridiculousness right here,” said Marty Mornhinweg. “I will tell you this and make sure I’m clear: there’s nothing that’s emphasized more than that on a daily basis in general here in any way. That’s our mentality: to keep emphasizing and drilling it.”

Brown agreed that the coaches have been “hounding” the players about holding onto the ball. It is critical for Brown to show some improvement in that area if the Eagles ever want to make him a regular fixture in this offense.

Brown said McCoy has been helping to guide him through his up-and-down rookie campaign.

“He’s taken a big role. He’s helped me out a lot with just how to deal with the game, off the field, a lot of things,” said Brown. “He’s helping me out in all areas, besides [just] football.”

WHAT YOU MISSED

Michael Vick tells Birds 24/7 that he is a “full-fledged starter” and addresses his time in Philadelphia.

Sheil looks back at what was said about Nick Foles leading up to the draft. Pretty interesting now that we have a small sample size to work off of.

Reid says that Donovan McNabb, like Foles, struggled with the deep ball early.

The latest coaching buzz has notes on Mike Pettine and Nick Saban.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING

Reid told Washington beat writers that the 2012 quarterback class could be the best ever:

“Listen, when it’s all said and done, I think this will be if not the best, one of the best,” Reid said in a conference call with Redskins beat writers. “I would tell you that because colleges are throwing the football more is why you’re seeing it. These guys are good players, don’t get me wrong there. They’re coming in more experienced than what you’ve seen in the past. They’re throwing the ball all over the place. These kids understand how to read the field and coverages and have a good feel for it.”

Two of those rookie QBs, RGIII and Foles, will square off Sunday.

Gary Myers of the New York Daily News is not a fan of the idea of Vick going to the Jets.

The Daily News has learned the Jets will explore the trade market for Sanchez now that he has lost his job to third-stringer Greg McElroy, who has seven career passing attempts and 29 yards on his quarterback resume, turning the decision by GM Mike Tannenbaum to guarantee Sanchez’s $8.25 million salary for 2013 as a makeup call for pursuing Peyton Manning into even more of a mistake than when he did it back in March.

And they could be ready to throw good money after bad and create even more chaos by replacing Sanchez with Vick, who is expected to be cut by the Eagles in early February when $3 million of his $16.5 million salary for 2013 becomes guaranteed if he’s still on the roster. Rex Ryan is a big Vick fan. The Daily News has learned Vick will consider the Jets if Sanchez is gone – guaranteeing him the starting job — and that Vick is on the Jets’ list as their potential starting quarterback for 2013.

Here’s our message to Johnson and Tannenbaum (assuming he still has final say on personnel decisions) regarding Vick: Don’t do it. Absolutely don’t do it.

COMING UP

The Eagles have a mock game in the morning, their last piece of work before the Redskins.