Nick Foles, the likely quarterback in Sunday’s game, will face Mike Glennon rather than Josh Freeman in his second consecutive year of facing the team.
It’s been a strange week leading up to the Philadelphia Eagles’ game with Tampa Bay.
Mike Vick, still sporting a hamstring injury from the Week 5 matchup against the Giants, was limited in practice during the week. When asked if he would get the start against the Bucs, his answer was that he would play this Sunday if he “had to.”
Though Chip Kelly said he wouldn’t reveal whether Vick or Nick Foles would get the start in Tampa Bay, Vick’s answer said everything we need to know.
Expect to see Foles get the start.
Amid the nuttiness of non-answers to the questions of the extent of Vick’s injury and if he or Foles would be leading the team’s offense in Week 6, an issue completely out of left field: Issues with the drug-resistant infection MRSA at the Bucs’ facility. Despite two cleaning treatments from an outside company after two Tampa Bay players came down with the infection, a third was diagnosed with the infection. After a day of uncertainty, the NFLPA determined that there was no risk to other players and the game would continue as scheduled on Sunday.
The MRSA incident isn’t all that’s been odd in Tampa Bay. Josh Freeman was demoted from being a starter after subpar performance and, apparently, being late to a team picture. Then, he was made inactive the week of his demotion until, finally, he was cut from the team. Accordingly, the Eagles will face rookie Mike Glennon, who will be making only his second start in the NFL. Does that mean that Philadelphia has the clear advantage?
Not so fast. The Eagles should and I believe will win this game, but it’s not going to be the cake walk some anticipate against the winless Buccaneers. Tampa Bay is a team desperate for a win and coming off of their Bye. They have a stout pass defense. And I’m sure the team execs would like to hand Chip Kelly a loss after he denied their overtures last year.
Philadelphia’s still struggling defense should be able to rattle the rookie and Tampa’s awful offense. But the Eagles’ offense will see its star receiver, DeSean Jackson, face Darrelle Revis. Jackson said earlier in the week that he wasn’t ‘fraid of no Revis Island, but it’s going to be a stiff competition for both men. Foles will need to be on his game in order to combat a surprisingly effective defense that has only given up five TD passes this season. Thankfully, he has experience leading the Birds to victory over the Bucs, as he did it last year.
A strange lead-up will result in two teams desperate for wins. The Eagles seek to even up their record and further increase their confidence before heading into back-to-back division games, and the Buccaneers need to get just one “W” under their belts to get truly begin the Glennon era. Despite this being a matchup of two teams with losing records it will be a close game.
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Brandyn Campbell of Philly Sports Muse, for War Room Sports
Tags: All's Fair in Sports and War, Brandyn Campbell, Chip Kelly, Darrell Revis, Desean Jackson, Michael Vick, Mike Glennon, Mike Vick, NFL Football, Nick Foles, Philadelphia Eagles, Philly Sports Muse, Sports Talk Radio, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, The War Room, War Room Sports