CardShark
DEAL WITH IT!
POSTED 11:52 p.m. EDT, July 17, 2006
PFT PRESEASON POWER RANKINGS: NO. 16
With 16 teams in the books, at least every division -- except one -- has had at least one team on our list of the bottom half of the NFL franchises. Most have had at least two.
To date, only the NFC East has been spared. And we think it's high time to add one of the division's quartet of teams.
After all, one of them is going to finish in last place. So at least one of them, no matter how strong the division is, won't make it to the postseason.
But which?
Eeny. Meany. Miney. . . .
Philly.
The Philadelphia Eagles.
The best news? Terrell Owens is gone. The worst news? Terrell Owens is gone.
Even though he was a complete and total turd, Owens gave the Eagles something they didn't have before he arrived, and don't have in his absence: A receiver who can get behind coverage so consistently that he draws at least two defenders virtually all of the time.
Of course, there are only a handful of such guys in the NFL. Randy Moss. T.O. Steve Smith. Sanata Moss. Chad Johnson. Torry Holt, maybe.
With Owens, the Eagles were the conference's class, even when he was a pain in the ass. Without him, the best they can hope for to be is the same team that lost three straight NFC title games.
But we're far from certain that the team can get back to where they were pre-T.O. The division is significantly better than it was when the Eagles ruled the roost, quarterback Donovan McNabb is coming off of an injury-plagued season, and the natives are getting pretty damned restless.
As to McNabb, there's a broader question. Can he get past the whole Owens thing? At times, McNabb has seemed abnormally obsessed with T.O., referring at one point to Owens' treatment of him as "black-on-black crime."
Owens has stoked the fires lately with new book, which dumps even more on McNabb. For example, Sal Paolantonio of ESPN recently addressed whether McNabb is the person who, according to the T.O. tome, killed a possible return by Owens after the feces hit the fan.
So how will McNabb respond to T.O.'s presence within the same division? Though surely McNabb will seem at ease as he offers up a humorous quote or two about the situation, only Donovan knows whether the extra tension resulting from Owens playing for the Cowboys will mess with the veteran quarterback's head, which according to T.O. is something that happens in big games.
Elsewhere on offense, the team isn't much different than it was in 2005. The biggest news is that the crappy backup quarterback (Mike McMahon) has been replaced by an equally crappy backup quarterback (Jeff Garcia). Competent but not spectacular, the Eagles' offense is capable of scoring enough points to win games, but won't blow anyone away.
The defense might actually be a little bit better than it was in 2005, thanks to to arrival of defensive end Darren Howard, a solid complement to Jevon Kearse. But the key will be the middle of the defensive line, and the team still hasn't found a replacement for Corey Simon. Whether rookie Brodrick Bunkley can make an impact as a rookie will go a long way toward determining the total quality of the squad.
So even though the Super Bowl window has slid shut, the Eagles might get back to the top of the conference before too long. Of the other three NFC East teams, our guess is that two of them will do a backslide within two years. The Eagles are the best suited of the bunch to continue to be competitive well into the future.
For now, though, the reality is that the other teams in the division are too good and too much happened to the team within the past year to permit a quick turnaround.
Next, the fantasy grades.
Quarterback: Donovan McNabb's only season with a passer rating higher than 86.0 was 2004, when it rocketed to 104.7. Coincidence? Or could it be that 2004 was the only year in which McNabb had a receiver like Owens on the field -- and didn't have a piece of intestine poking through the flesh in the vicinity of "Little D"? This year, we assume that everything, um, down there is in proper working order. But Owens is gone, and so is much of McNabb's mojo. He gets a C.
Running back: Brian Westbrook is overrated as a running back, but a solid all-around contributor. He racked up more than 1,200 combined rushing and receiving yards in 12 games last year, and nine touchdowns. We like what he brings to the table, but he's not a top-tier guy. He gets a B-.
Wide receiver: Reggie Brown will be counted on to fill the void as the team's No. 1 wideout. He'll get plenty of passes thrown his way. What he does with them remains to be seen. For now, he gets a B- for potential -- and because there really isn't anyone else on the team who can make much of a difference at the position.
Tight end: L.J. Smith quietly had a solid season in 2005, catching 61 passes for 682 yards. On a team devoid of high-end receivers, he might be a good second-tier tight end option. B-.
Defense: Ranked No. 23 statistically in 2005, the Philly defense wasn't as solid as it's been in the past. Let someone else draft them higher than they merit based on reputation.
Kicker: David Akers' production slid in 2005 due to injury and some uncharacteristic accuracy issues. Coupled with the loss of Owens on offense, we'd look elsewhere at this position.
PFT PRESEASON POWER RANKINGS: NO. 16
With 16 teams in the books, at least every division -- except one -- has had at least one team on our list of the bottom half of the NFL franchises. Most have had at least two.
To date, only the NFC East has been spared. And we think it's high time to add one of the division's quartet of teams.
After all, one of them is going to finish in last place. So at least one of them, no matter how strong the division is, won't make it to the postseason.
But which?
Eeny. Meany. Miney. . . .
Philly.
The Philadelphia Eagles.
The best news? Terrell Owens is gone. The worst news? Terrell Owens is gone.
Even though he was a complete and total turd, Owens gave the Eagles something they didn't have before he arrived, and don't have in his absence: A receiver who can get behind coverage so consistently that he draws at least two defenders virtually all of the time.
Of course, there are only a handful of such guys in the NFL. Randy Moss. T.O. Steve Smith. Sanata Moss. Chad Johnson. Torry Holt, maybe.
With Owens, the Eagles were the conference's class, even when he was a pain in the ass. Without him, the best they can hope for to be is the same team that lost three straight NFC title games.
But we're far from certain that the team can get back to where they were pre-T.O. The division is significantly better than it was when the Eagles ruled the roost, quarterback Donovan McNabb is coming off of an injury-plagued season, and the natives are getting pretty damned restless.
As to McNabb, there's a broader question. Can he get past the whole Owens thing? At times, McNabb has seemed abnormally obsessed with T.O., referring at one point to Owens' treatment of him as "black-on-black crime."
Owens has stoked the fires lately with new book, which dumps even more on McNabb. For example, Sal Paolantonio of ESPN recently addressed whether McNabb is the person who, according to the T.O. tome, killed a possible return by Owens after the feces hit the fan.
So how will McNabb respond to T.O.'s presence within the same division? Though surely McNabb will seem at ease as he offers up a humorous quote or two about the situation, only Donovan knows whether the extra tension resulting from Owens playing for the Cowboys will mess with the veteran quarterback's head, which according to T.O. is something that happens in big games.
Elsewhere on offense, the team isn't much different than it was in 2005. The biggest news is that the crappy backup quarterback (Mike McMahon) has been replaced by an equally crappy backup quarterback (Jeff Garcia). Competent but not spectacular, the Eagles' offense is capable of scoring enough points to win games, but won't blow anyone away.
The defense might actually be a little bit better than it was in 2005, thanks to to arrival of defensive end Darren Howard, a solid complement to Jevon Kearse. But the key will be the middle of the defensive line, and the team still hasn't found a replacement for Corey Simon. Whether rookie Brodrick Bunkley can make an impact as a rookie will go a long way toward determining the total quality of the squad.
So even though the Super Bowl window has slid shut, the Eagles might get back to the top of the conference before too long. Of the other three NFC East teams, our guess is that two of them will do a backslide within two years. The Eagles are the best suited of the bunch to continue to be competitive well into the future.
For now, though, the reality is that the other teams in the division are too good and too much happened to the team within the past year to permit a quick turnaround.
Next, the fantasy grades.
Quarterback: Donovan McNabb's only season with a passer rating higher than 86.0 was 2004, when it rocketed to 104.7. Coincidence? Or could it be that 2004 was the only year in which McNabb had a receiver like Owens on the field -- and didn't have a piece of intestine poking through the flesh in the vicinity of "Little D"? This year, we assume that everything, um, down there is in proper working order. But Owens is gone, and so is much of McNabb's mojo. He gets a C.
Running back: Brian Westbrook is overrated as a running back, but a solid all-around contributor. He racked up more than 1,200 combined rushing and receiving yards in 12 games last year, and nine touchdowns. We like what he brings to the table, but he's not a top-tier guy. He gets a B-.
Wide receiver: Reggie Brown will be counted on to fill the void as the team's No. 1 wideout. He'll get plenty of passes thrown his way. What he does with them remains to be seen. For now, he gets a B- for potential -- and because there really isn't anyone else on the team who can make much of a difference at the position.
Tight end: L.J. Smith quietly had a solid season in 2005, catching 61 passes for 682 yards. On a team devoid of high-end receivers, he might be a good second-tier tight end option. B-.
Defense: Ranked No. 23 statistically in 2005, the Philly defense wasn't as solid as it's been in the past. Let someone else draft them higher than they merit based on reputation.
Kicker: David Akers' production slid in 2005 due to injury and some uncharacteristic accuracy issues. Coupled with the loss of Owens on offense, we'd look elsewhere at this position.
