For football players, all that needs to be said to opposing players is done on the field. Once that’s done, there’s always Twitter to add insult to injury.
Enter Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Emmanuel Acho, who provided simple commentary on former teammate DeSean Jackson’s return to the Linc.
This man right here? Do not mess with him…Or his quarterback.
Sunday’s 37-34 Philadelphia Eagles victory over the Washington Redskins showed just why divisional matchups in the NFL are so anticipated-because they are so heated. There is pure hatred in the veins of the players for their opponents.
With WR DeSean Jackson’s return to his former home of the Linc as a backdrop, the sheer dislike that these teams have for each other was evidenced in the fourth quarter of the game. Things got “chippy” (I hate that word) when Redskins defensive lineman Chris Baker planted a late, ugly hit on Eagles quarterback Nick Foles. Philadelphia All Pro tackle Jason Peters was having none of that, and went after Baker for the cheap shot on his quarterback.
A full-scale brawl ensued, clearing both team’s benches. WATCH:
When it was all over, both Baker and Peters were ejected from the game. And thankfully, Foles got up to finish the game and seal the victory for his team.
While a fight is never the finest moment of any team or player, Foles has proven that he is incredibly tough. He was literally laid out by the hit, but found a way to get back up to and finish what he had started. And Peters, apologetic post-game for his role in the scuffle, became an all-out hero to Philly fans for the loyalty he displayed in going to any lengths to protect his quarterback.
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Teams have personality. Between the owner, the coach, the players, and the fans, a team develops certain behaviors. As we approach the official beginning of the NFL season, WingFan would like to countdown to kickoff by walking you through each team and our assessment of their persona. Let’s forget about draft picks, free agents, and statistics for a moment and just focus on each division, each team, and each personality. Imagine Wendy Williams, Jay-Z, Hulk Hogan and Pam Anderson sitting down to dinner together – what a show right? Well, that’s the NFC East right now. Let’s take a look at what each team brings to the table:
Team: Philadelphia Eagles
Persona: Wendy Williams
With no Super Bowl titles to speak of, the Eagles still manage to have one of the biggest personalities in the league, much like Wendy Williams, who has one of the biggest personalities in entertainment. No Super Bowl wins doesn’t mean “no championships.” The Eagles have actually won 3 NFL championships prior to the Super Bowl era. Wendy Williams has never won an Oscar either, but she was named to the Radio Hall of Fame. Radio – you know the media that existed before the television era?
The similarities continue. The ex-shock jock’s most infamous moment was an interview with Whitney Houston where she hammered Houston on questions of drug use; ruthlessly digging into Whitney’s emotional wounds on-air. Now, would you believe that the Philadelphia Eagles fans hammered Santa Clause with snow balls and booed him at the halftime of a December game in 1968? Ruthless is, as ruthless does. Williams actually broadcast her radio shows out of Philly’s own Power 99 FM – a station she helped take from #14 in local ratings to #2 during her time there. Coincidentally, during the 2000s, former head coach Andy Reid took the Eagles all the way to the Super Bowl where they lost the big game and finished the season as the #2 team in the league. The key to staying relevant for the Eagles and Williams seems to be their willingness to speak to the public about private matters. Stories about Terrell Owens, Michael Vick, and Riley Cooper have littered the headlines in Philadelphia for almost a decade. Williams shared stories on-air about her drug use, her breast implants, and even her miscarriages.
Recent years have been more about transformation for both Williams and the Eagles. The Eagles are now the slimmed down version of Wendy Williams with the extra long weave. New head coach, Chip Kelly, gave the Eagles offense a makeover last year, and drafted leaner players who have more speed and endurance than your average NFL athletes. With the liposuction and new look, the Eagles surprised critics last year by winning the NFC East and making it to the playoffs. Perhaps, this year, they will follow Wendy’s recent big screen appearances with some big game appearances of their own.
Team: Dallas Cowboys
Persona: Hulk Hogan
The Dallas Cowboys are often dubbed “America’s Team” and Hulk Hogan used to enter the ring to a song titled “I am a Real American”. These two deserve each other. For decades these two entities have both entertained the American public. The Cowboys won two Super Bowls in the 70’s and established a dynasty by winning three Super Bowls in the 90’s. Hogan carried professional wrestling from the late 70’s, through the 80’s, and into the late 90’s. Around 1997, the two entities managed to fly off into obscurity, only to be revived every now and then by reality TV and good marketing.
Hogan made a comeback in the new millennium when he landed a reality show called “Hogan Knows Best”. Meanwhile, the Cowboys became a featured team on HBO’s new reality show “Hard Knocks.” The publicity kept them both relevant, even though they were still living in their pasts. Each received the benefit of the doubt from media outlets, while their fans blindly routed for their success and celebrated their celebrity. Recently, both have managed to let their status go to to their heads – literally and figuratively – as infidelity and scandal abound.
Hogan’s wife divorced him after she found out the Hulk was sleeping with his daughter’s BFF; while photos recently surfaced of Cowboys owner, Jerry Jones, posing provocatively with younger woman. In the wake of the NFL’s lenient two-game punishment for Ray Rice who hit his wife, Jones’ behavior isn’t exactly the kind of leadership the NFL might want on display. In the coming weeks, we will see how things turn out for Jerry Jones, but one thing is clear, this is American Beauty.
Team: New York Giants
Persona: Jay-Z
You might think this mash-up lacks creativity because New York is Jay-Z’s hometown, but that’s more of the icing than the cake. The Giants are known for not just winning, but winning with a little bit of magic – some would call it luck. Both the Giants and Jay-Z have legitimate titles on their resume: the Giants’ first Super Bowl win in 1986 was a 39-20 thrashing of the Denver Broncos, and Jay-Z’s debut album, “Reasonable Doubt”, is an undisputed hip-hop classic that most fans only started to appreciate years after it was released.
The Giants second, third, and fourth titles required some magic: a field goal miss from Buffalo’s Scott Norwood, a clutch catch off of David Tyree’s helmet on 4th down, and a perfectly placed Eli Manning pass to Mario Manningham with virtually no time left. Jay-Z’s career has all of that: becoming one of the only links to Notorious BIG after his untimely passing, becoming the focal point in hip-hop’s “beef” era (an era where artists challenged each other song for song), and of course, becoming Beyonce’s fiancé (and husband) really didn’t hurt. Some might call these occurrences “luck”. But if you ask the Giants and Jay-Z, they’d say you “Can’t Knock the Hustle.”
Team: Washington Football Team
Persona: Pamela Anderson
No…this combination has nothing to do with a sex tape, but, then again, you never know what’s coming out of Washington these days. With all due respect, the Washington Football Team won three Super Bowls – two in the 80’s and one in the 90’s. Let’s call these the “Baywatch Days”. The Washington Football Team were as pretty as Pamela Anderson bouncing down the beach in a little red bathing suit – they were all put together. Things started to change once Pam left Baywatch and the same thing happened in Washington when ownership changed from Jack Kent Cooke to Daniel Snyder.
Celebrity and branding became a larger part of the picture when both Pam and Dan started to tinker with their already established products. Dan moved the team to the suburbs, while Pam moved from TV to movies. Then the face lifts and plastic surgery ramped up for Pam and Dan. Dan brought in celebrity coach after celebrity coach, celebrity athlete after celebrity athlete, and a carousel of quarterbacks that might finally stop with RGIII. Same thing happened to Pam – her chest got more and more inflated, her face got more and more distorted, and her hair got more and more blonde.
Washington has only been to the playoffs four times in 22 years; and no one has featured Pam Anderson on the silver screen since Barb Wire (appearances aside). It’s almost comedic. Washington just signed their 8th new head coach since the year 2000 and Robert Griffin (RGIII) is their 15th quarterback in the same time period. If there were a team that deserved to sit in the hot seat and get roasted like Pam Anderson, it would be the Washington Football Team. Their current name is a joke in and of itself.
UP NEXT: AFC East Personas
AFTER FURTHER REVIEW #485 SHOUTOUT to you PETR KLIMA….((MLB)) DODGERS 3 PADRES 2….ASTROS 6 YANKEES 2….MARLINS 4 ROCKIES 3….BLUE JAYS 4 RAYS 2….RANGERS 3 PHILLIES 2….BRAVES 5 BREWERS 2….DIAMONDBACKS 5 GIANTS 4….MARINERS 8 ANGELS 3….INDIANS-ATHLETICS(postponed)……CC SABATHIA (yankees) got shelled last night in his first start….AFR said last year his fastball had slowed down….161 to go……DEREK JETER (yankees) gets hit in the hand in his first AB of season…..think MIGUEL CABRERA (tigers) gonna be hungry..he gets $2M for every MVP award he receives……nice ..but it has no “ring” to it (get it….LOLski !!!!)…we talked a lot of MLB among other things on THE BIGGER SHOW last night….SHOUTOUT to the HOMIE …..SATCHEL PAGE for checkin in….KIA and SLATE came thru…..it was real live…no really it was live ….8-10pm on tuesday nights **GEEQUE PALACE RADIO**…((NBA)) NETS 105 (JOHNSON 32) ROCKETS 96 (HARDEN 26)…..WARRIORS 122 (CURRY 23/10A) MAVERICKS 120(OT) (NOWITZKI 33/11)….BLAZERS 124 (ALDRIDGE 31/15) LAKERS 112 (YOUNG 40)….congratulations…BROOKLYN NETS are in 2014 NBA PLAYOFFS !….((NCAAHOOPERY)) NIT—-MINNESOTA 67 (hollins 17) FLORIDA STATE 64(OT) (white 16/12)…..SMU 65 (kennedy 21) CLEMSON 59 (hall 18)….MINNESOTA GOLDEN GOPHERS will play SOUTHERN METHODIST MUSTANGS for NIT CHAMPIONSHIP on thursday nite at MADISON SQUARE GARDEN !!!!!…..ladies side ELIGHT EIGHT—-MARYLAND 76 (thomas 22/13) LOUISVILLE 73 (schimmel 31)….STANFORD 74 (ogwumike 20/10) NORTH CAROLINA 65 (gray 19)…***WOMENS FINAL FOUR—-CONNECTICUT…MARYLAND…NOTRE DAME…STANFORD***……((NHL)) winners include SABRES(SO)….MAPLE LEAFS…ISLANDERS…HURRICANES…STARS…AVALANCHE(OT)…LIGHTNING…BLUES(SO)…RANGERS…JETS(SO)….SHARKS…..say hello to PLAYOFFS…MONTREAL and TAMPA BAY !!!!!…..((NFL)) DESEAN JACKSON agrees to deal with WASHINGTON…he just made my FANTASY SQUAD and I hope he does BIG numbers v EAGLES…….MINNESOTA wants to host SUPER BOWL in 2018…..they play outside now and you think they was shook about NY/NJ SUPER BOWL ????…..((umm they goin’ up against NEW ORLEANS and INDIANAPOLIS))……..((BOXING)) KENNY BAYLESS will referee MANNY PACQUAIO v TIMOTHY BRADLEY JR on april 12…….JUDGES will be GLENN TROWBRIDGE/GLENN PERNICK/JOHN KEANE……BRADLEY says he won last fight “eight rounds to four”…..he must STILL not have any socks on…….MANNY PACQUAIO won that fight straight up !!!!……((TENNIS)) JANA CEPALOVA over SERENA WILLIAMS (6-4.6-4) in second round of FAMILY CIRCLE CUP….VENUS WILLIAMS over BARBARA ZAHLAVOVA STRYCOVA (6-3.0-6.7-5)……((SOCCER)) FIFA has banned BARCELONA from signing players for next two transfer periods…they should so something like that in U.S. sports…….but oh well….NBA GAME of the day NETS (40-33) v KNICKS (32-43)……NHL GAME of the day COYOTES (36-27-130 v KINGS (44-26-6)…..MLB GAME of the day BLUE JAYS (BUHRLE) v RAYS (MOORE)……TRUE SCHOOL JAM of the day “BOP GUN (endangered species) – PARLIAMENT…..its HUMP DAY…….be nice to each other……”we gotta get over the HUMP”….the BALLISTICS have been kicked !!!!!!……AFR.
Christopher “The Mayor” Dinkins of GeeQue Palace Sports, for War Room Sports
It was a rough return for Robert Griffin III on Monday night.
(Photo via WashingtonPost.com)
Having lived in the Washington, DC area for the past 18 years and interacting with droves of fans, radio personalities, and other folks that cover the Washington Redskins, I would say that I have a pretty good finger on the pulse of this franchise and its fan base. Monday night’s season-opening 33-27 loss to the rival Philadelphia Eagles has raised some questions amongst the optimism that has surrounded this team since their 7-game winning streak to end the 2012 regular season with the team’s first division title in the new millennium and first playoff appearance since 2007. But for some, the second half performance of the team on Monday night, especially by its young, stud quarterback, eased the blow from an unexpected loss and has allowed them to remain confident and retain their optimistic views about what this season may yield for the burgundy and gold.
Personally, I wouldn’t place too much stock into the second half of Monday’s game if I were a Redskins fan. It is no different than what we often see in the NFL. One of the oldest sports clichés in the book lends that “the hardest thing to do is play with a big lead”. Teams fall behind, then begin running a desperate, pass-heavy offense against soft nickel coverage, with the defense’s main objective being to keep everything in front of them and the offense’s main objective being to milk the clock; usually by running conservative rushing plays. More times than not, a team trailing big and facing these conservative methods of offense and defense suddenly look like world-beaters in the passing game and brick walls on defense, and this is usually fools gold. Fools gold reminiscent of the aforementioned SPECTACULAR 7-game winning streak that earned the Redskins a rare playoff berth last season. These are the types of things you cannot hang your hat on as a fan of an organization because they are fluke occurrences. In my experiences with Redskins Nation, many folks seem to only dwell on the positive and choose to carry on as if the negative never took place. It is the age-old battle of norms vs exceptions. Because they finished the way they did last season, all of Redskins Nation now KNOW without a shadow of a doubt that a run like that couldn’t possibly mean anything less than the Skins are a great team and NFC East foes should settle in for burgundy & gold dominance for the foreseeable future. In their minds, there’s nothing more to it.
The only problem however, is that NO ONE has stopped to wonder why they started Monday’s game down 33-7 or why they began last season 3-6 in the first place. Most fans assume that the 2013 Redskins are more representative of the team that went 7-0 down the stretch in 2012 more so than the team who started 3-6. Many pundits outside of the DC area believe they may fall somewhere in between. Since NONE of us REALLY know, wouldn’t this season be the proving ground for whichever of those teams they really are? Judging by my interactions with one of the most loyal fan bases in sports, I’d say the answer to that question is a resounding NO. They certainly saw enough last year, and because of it, many think this season will feature the Super Bowl run that has alluded them since the early 90’s.
The Skins had no first round pick in this year’s draft due to the RG3 deal. Considering they weren’t able to snag any perceived “franchise-changing” talent as they did in the first round last year, I would say that they had a fair to pretty good draft. They also couldn’t add much in the way of free agency due to the penalties levied upon them and the Cowboys by the NFL. So besides getting some injured players back, how did this team improve itself over the offseason? Despite the issues mentioned above, along with shaky depth along the offensive line, a fairly weak secondary, and uncertainty about the franchise quarterback’s knee and/or mental health surrounding that knee, the team has garnered the confidence of its fans that it has stepped into the realm of the NFL’s elite. I’m glad they see it. I may need to clean off my eyeglasses to get a better view.
In my preseason predictions, I had the Washington Redskins fighting it out with the Philadelphia Eagles to stay out of the NFC East basement this season. Nothing about the opener has told me that my prediction will turn out wrong. However, it has only been one game and even I think the Redskins are a better team than they showed on Monday night. “How much better” is the question. I guess we’ll all have to sit back and wait for that answer.
Devin McMillan of The War Room, for War Room Sports
Philadelphia Eagles football is back. It’s a celebration!
It’s finally here. Game day for the Philadelphia Eagles. It’s like Christmas in September.
It’s a great matchup to launch the season’s Monday night games. Chip Kelly’s NFL debut versus the unveiling of Robert Griffin III following 8 months of rehab. Is he truly healthy? Who will prevail?
The innumerable questions about the Birds from the offseason finally begin to get answered tonight. How will Kelly’s offense transition to the NFL? Will the transition to a 3-4 defense serve to address some of the challenges the D has had the past several seasons?
Both the Eagles and Redskins had the other’s number last season when playing with a healthy starting quarterback. Will Mike Vick and RG3 make the difference this game or will Philadelphia need to rely on the yet-to-be proven defense?
Both team’s defenses will face significant threats from the air and the ground. LeSean McCoy remains one of the most significant weapons on offense in Philadelphia’s arsenal. And Washington has the talents of 2nd year breakout Alfred Morris.
One of the biggest questions that remains for the Birds is how Philadelphia’s secondary–underwhelming in 2012 and the 2013 preseason–will perform. Is the unit still a work in progress or will they begin to make a turnaround?
To be sure, one game won’t answer every question definitively. But it’s a start, and closer than we’ve ever been before.
A new era begins today in Philadelphia Eagles football. That’s no small fact. A new coach, new players, new philosophy.
Let’s get this party started.
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The Philadelphia Eagles will reportedly face a healthy and recovered Robert Griffin III during their season opener at FedEx Field.
The Philadelphia Eagles have one final preseason game to put behind them before the 2013 season begins, but news about their season opener against the Washington Redskins is already making headlines.
Why? Because the dynamic Robert Griffin III, who will be entering his second year in the league and is recovering from an ACL injury, has been cleared to play and will be the starting quarterback for Washington come September 9, according to a report. Since we are talking regular season play, the test might as well be as challenging as possible in order to truly gauge where this Eagles team lies this season in terms of talent. The defense has much to prove overall this season, and it will be put to the test early on as it tries to contain the multiple threats that RGIII provides.
Griffin proved to be more than the 2012 Eagles defense could handle, as he led Washington past Philadelphia and into a playoff spot in two commanding performances in Andy Reid’s final season as head coach. Will he and the Redskins once again have their way with the Birds, this time in front of a Monday Night Football audience?
With Mike Vick named the starting quarterback for the Eagles, defenses of both NFC East teams will have their hands full with offenses lead by standouts who are proven threats on the ground as well as in the air.
Will Griffin face a sophomore year slump, and if so will it begin at the hands of the Eagles? That question is just one of many, many reasons why the 2013 NFL season can’t get here soon enough.
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Brandyn Campbell of Philly Sports Muse, for War Room Sports
Mike Vick is ready to compete for the Eagles’ starting job.
As Eagles training camp gets closer to being in full swing, more players are appearing—and talking to the media—each day. Tuesday saw Mike Vick hold court with the press and talking about what will be the hottest topic this summer until the matter is settled—who will be the Philadelphia Eagles starting quarterback heading into the 2013 season.
Vick now says that he’s all about the competition.
“I love the competition. I embrace the competition. I really do. It makes all of us better quarterbacks. It makes all of us better football players. It definitely pushes me.”
Vick went on to comment on the advantages competing will yield for himself and his teammates.
“If you get something handed to you, you could get lax in your approach. If you have it handed to you, you could take things for granted and not put in the work that you need to.”
Since his dynamic debut for the Eagles following the injury of Kevin Kolb in the 2010 season, Vick’s record as a starter has been decidedly disappointing. And he is very aware that fans are still waiting for him remain healthy throughout a season.
“I’ve been doing a lot of curls and a lot of bench presses [during] the offseason, just trying to put my body in the best position possible to withstand the hits.
Everybody says I’m injury prone, so I’m trying to fight that. … You have to stay on the field, and that’s what I’m working on.”
Should he be the starter, let’s hope this fitness regime works as the Great Sliding Experiment of 2012 was a complete failure.
Despite the unfamiliar situation for Vick—not entering camp as the named starter—his trademark confidence remains.
“I’m confident in myself. I’m very confident. That’s the only reason I’m standing here. I believe in me. I know what I can do. I know I’ve got a lot of years left to play this game. As long as I continue to stay in shape and continue to train and … take care of your body and give yourself the maximum opportunity to go out and be the football player that you want to be, then the sky’s the limit for me.”
With his quarterbacks at the NovaCare, Kelly is sticking to his script about the plan for his QBs: The best will ultimately prove himself through his performance and rise to the top. When asked how he will split snaps between Vick and Foles, Kelly said, “I don’t know until a starter emerges.”
When the subject of Barkley entered the conversation, Kelly continued,
“Everybody gets a chance, and everybody has an opportunity to show us what their resume is, and your resume is what you put on tape every day. If somebody continues to make plays and someone doesn’t make plays, that guy is going to move up and the other one’s going to move down.”
As for a timeline of when a starter will be named? Kelly said it will be more than a day before the Birds’ season opening game against the Redskins….but not by much.
“We’ll have a starting quarterback named before we get our game plan in for the Redskins.”
So there’s that.
In other news to get you excited: Pads and hitting will make their debut at practice on Sunday, just in time for the first open practice for fans. Oh yeah.
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Brandyn Campbell of Philly Sports Muse, for War Room Sports
The Philadelphia Eagles 2013 schedule.
(Image via the Eagles’ Facebook page)
We’re in the heart of the long, cold, lonely offseason but there are signs that the light that is professional football will one day return. That light on Thursday night came in the form of the release of the Philadelphia Eagles’ 2013 schedule.
The first helping of regular season Eagles football will come on September 9 via a Monday Night matchup against the Washington Redskins at FedEx Field. That will be one of only two primetime games for the Birds, which is a marked decrease from recent seasons.
The Eagles will have an intense opening to their schedule, featuring three games in the first ten days. That stretch will be highlighted by a huge game: Andy Reid’s return to the Linc with the Kansas City Chiefs on September 19. How “Big Red” is greeted upon his big return to his former home will surely be the major storyline of that game.
Other highlights include a matchup with the Denver Broncos in the Mile High City on September 29 and versus Aaron Rodgers at the Green Bay Packers on November 10.
The team has a late Week 12 bye, the latest since 2000 when Philadelphia’s bye week feel on Week 16.
NFC East action continues after the opener on October 10 against the Cowboys at the Linc, with the regular season ending at Dallas on December 29.
Ready to make your predictions? I’ve seen some out there. But for now, here’s the full schedule for your perusal:
How much longer until September 9? Oh wait. Nevermind.
Want more Philly Sports Muse? You can find me on Twitter at @sports_muse and on Facebook.
The Philadelphia Eagles continued to make moves to shore up their new defense by acquiring DE Clifton Geathers from the Colts on Thursday in a trade, giving up fullback Stanley Havili.
Geathers’ (6-7, 325) collegiate career
Clifton Geathers
was spent at the University of South Carolina, where he played in 36 games and finished with 72 tackles, 12 tackles for a loss, 6 sacks, and 2 forced fumbles. He was a sixth-round draft pick of the Cleveland Browns in 2010. Since that time, he has spent time in the NFL with Cleveland, Miami, Seattle, Dallas and Indy. The 25-year old Geathers has appeared in 15 total games during his three years of playing professional football. He played in eight games for Indianapolis in 2012, recording five tackles and a sack. Geathers will bring his run-stopping skills to Philadelphia’s new 3-4 defensive front.
Havili is in his second year in the NFL. With Philadelphia acquiring fullback/tight end James Casey and retaining Emil Igwenagu, the Birds have options to fill the fullback role typically featured in head coach Chip Kelly’s offenses.
Tapp moves South
DE Daryl Tapp, a member of the Philadelphia Eagles for the past three years, is now a member of the NFC East rival Washington Redskins. Tapp signed a one-year deal with the team. Prior to his time with the Eagles, Tapp spent four seasons with the Seattle Seahawks. Tapp played in 13 games for the Eagles in 2012, accumulating 17 tackles in 257 snaps.
Want more Philly Sports Muse? You can find me on Twitter at @sports_muse and on Facebook.
