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3-5

Just what you all want, I'm sure. A bit of Eagles commentary.

Donovan, whom I have always supported, is not getting the job done. If it's just post-surgery unreadiness, then I'm willing to wait it out and see him light up the league next year. If it's something else, then it's time to start giving the rook some snaps. Actually, either way it's time to start giving the rook some snaps. The game started fairly balanced in terms of running and passing, Westbrook was getting the job done, and the receivers were getting open. Donovan had ages to throw on most downs, and despite all these items working in his favor, still had a number of "worm burners," as some folks call them. He's just off.

While 38 points are squarely the fault of the defense, blame is more difficult to apportion there. Jim Johnson, the coordinator, is the only clear choice. The gap in coverage on TO's touchdown was a huge lapse. The run defense was actually not bad, a pleasant change from recent years. The pass defense, however, was generally awful. Much of that had to do, in my estimation, with yards after the catch and poor tackling. Poor tackling actually goes to Andy Reid, who should implement some form of quality control. Anwyay, when Mike Patterson, a defensive tackle, is your leading tackler, AND when some of those tackles were downfield against receivers, something is broken.

That said, perhaps the issue was one of momentum. When the defense has to defend a short field (35 yards or so) on the opposing team's first possession, they're bound to get somewhat deflated. The defense has generally been pretty good this year.

Overall, I'd say it's time to start shifting attention from game to game analysis and start reading 2008 draft literature.