Brent from Eagles Rewind shared his thoughts on the Eagles game vs the Panthers.
– Both QBs look really good. It looks like everyone is jumping on the Vick train, but I’m sticking with Foles. Given the performance of both QBs, this is turning into a fairly simple decision. If you want the highest upside for this season, Vick’s your guy (though he likely doesn’t offer as big an advantage as most seem to believe.
On the other hand, I don’t understand how anyone can watch Nick Foles and not get at least a little excited about his potential in the NFL. Last night, Foles finally put a stake in the heart of the “too slow, not mobile” argument. I’m not even talking about the TD run. Watch him move in the pocket and avoid the rush. He consistently helps his O-Line by sliding away from pressure while keeping his eyes downfield. Most importantly, each of his throws was about as accurate as they could possibly be.
– I’ve mentioned it a few times (including yesterday), but last season the Eagles offense started their drives, on average, nearly 7 yards behind where the opposing team did. It doesn’t sound like much, but its a huge disadvantage. A big reason for that was terrible Special Teams.
Perhaps the biggest preseason development is how improved the STs look. I’ve talked about how improvement was assured (by virtue of how bad the team was), but we might have to actually raise those expectations. Punt return/coverage, the biggest weakness from last year, looks really good. That should lead to a lot more points scored, regardless of whether the offense itself improves.
If Foles is the backup, he might be rated as one of the top backups in the entire league. That’s good. You need 2 QBs these days, unless you have a freak like Manning or Brady.
And Brent is dead on the money about STs. So great to see them as key contributors so far. That can make a huge difference to a team that isn’t good enough to just overwhelm opponents. For instance, those hidden yards are can be the difference between a punt and a long FG attempt. And think about how often a game comes down to a difference of 1, 2 or 3 points.
