Weekend Notes

The Foreskins Exposed

A friend who's an Eagles fan and I were taking the other day. We don't agree on much. But we agreed on this. The Fraudskins were all smoke and mirrors. Their defense is solid. But with Portis banged up, any offense with Mark Brunnell leading the way was on borrowed time. We agreed that Washington was the weak sister of the division and it was only a matter of time before they were exposed as the frauds they are.

A 36-0 beating at the hands of the Giants good enough for you?

Sunday, as the G-Men were playing in memory of their patriarch Wellington Mara, provided the perfect backdrop for Joe Gibbs' gang to be embarrassed as the imposters they are. 36-0 doesn't really you a clear idea of how badly the Skins were dominated. Were it not for their defense who held the Giants out of the endzone several times and forced them to settle for field goals, this could have easily have been 56-0. Eli Manning had an off day, but Tiki Barber ran for over 200 yards and outgained the entire Washington offense for the afternoon. Mark Brunnell reminded of something Phil Simms once said a couple of years after he retired. He said that he could still make all the throws he used to. He just couldn't get hit. That's where Mark is in this stage of his career. If his protection holds up, he still has enough arm strength to get the ball down the field to Moss and company. But he can't withstand the beating an NFL QB has to take to be successful. And Strahan and Umenyiora proved that theory Sunday. They battered him all afternoon thanks in part to a secondary that remembered how to cover the receivers.

It was a great win for Big Blue that put them in first place. But it was only one win. The division is wide open and for the taking. As hard as it might be for the nay-sayers to believe, the Giants have as good a shot of winning the NFC East as anyone. Does anyone really believe that Bledsoe can get it done for Dallas? He's a disaster waiting to happen. The Eagles? Well read the next paragraph...

Filtha-Delphia

In the same conversation with my Iggles buddy, I told him after the win versus San Diego, that he can't be happy with what he saw. That it was only a matter of time before they got exposed. He agreed.

Thankfully, I didn't talk to him today.

The Eagles were taken back to the Woodshed by the Broncos today 49-21. And it should have been worse. The Broncos were up 28-0 late in the second quarter until the McNabb finally got them on the board. He was actually able to make a game of it for a little while, pulling within a touchdown. But the Broncos were able to hold on and wear them down and score three late touchdowns. Only McNabb and Owens were make this into some semblance of a competitive contest. The Broncos dominated every facet of the game and exposed the Eagles banged up defense and offense.

Speaking of McNabb, anyone who questions his courage is an idiot. This guy clearly should be on the shelf recovering from Sports Hernia surgery. Instead he puts the surgery on hold and soldiers on. He's not half the player he usually is. But he's still dangerous. Teams know that they can't run, so they dare the Eagles to throw, knowing that there are certain throws that he can't make. But he still finds a way to keep his team in the game. But the injury is clearly catching up to him. With their defense banged up, it's only a matter of time before this team completely falls apart. They got blown out by an average Cowboys team. Got a gift win versus San Diego and got their doors blown off by the Broncos. If Donovan was healthy, I'd have to say that they were the favorites. Now, It's the Giants and Cowboys division to lose.

I don't know what to make of the Broncos. World-beaters one week. Wife-beaters the next. If they could maintain any sort of consistency, with their running game and skill players, I'd have to make them the favorites to challenge the Colts for AFC dominance. But I don't know if any team with Jake Plummer as their QB can get past the second round of the playoffs. He's looked good so far but there's a lot of season left for him to revert back to his wishy-washy form.

Darth Visor Triumphs Again Knoxville

This was my guilty pleasure moment of the weekend. I've always been partial to the old ballcoach Steve Spurrier. He always good for a couple of great quotes each season. My favorite was when he was with Florida and he beat Manning and the Vols once again. When asked about spoiling Tennessee's season again, he said, "You can't spell Citrus without UT". Indicating that there's where the Vols were headed in January. Priceless. By beating Phil Fulmer again last night, Steve might guaranteed his team a bowl bid and jeopardized the Vols chances at one.

If you happen read my post from last Monday, you know I enjoyed the hell out of watching the Gamecocks win on Saturday....

Spurrier has now won in Knoxville with Duke, Florida and South Carolina. I don't know if he's a gambling man, but if he has some numbers to play in the Tennessee lottery....

Little Tuna Gets An Extension

After seven games, Charlie Weis got an 10 year extension from Notre Dame last week. Now I hate Notre Dame but I like Weis because he's a former Giant and Jet coach. I'm happy for him. But two things about this bug me. Does anyone think that this extension will keep Weis in South Bend if he wins a National Title or two and someone like the Jets or Giants come callling for him to come home? It gives him the financial security, yes. But the only reason he's not coaching in the pros is because noone offered him a job. If he puts Notre Dame back on the map, what could possibly keep him in Indiana? He's already shown that he can coach in the pros. I'd gather that the chance to coach in the big leagues would be too tempting to pass up.

And while he is a great coach, he hasn't shown that he can recruit yet. These are all Ty Willlingham's kids. It seems a little odd that they're giving this guy the store after seven games and he hasn't recruited one kid to the cause. I know he's one of them (Class of 78), but I still think race has something do with it. It's not Charlie's fault. But it still stinks. One of many reason that I'll never root for the Irish.

By the way, USC will be number one in BCS polls on Monday. Bank on it....