You know the deck is stacked against you when the head of the network airing the game is sitting with the opposing team’s owner and wearing one of their beanies. I’m just surprised Pete Morelli’s family wasn’t enjoying ice cream, cookies and a hot towel in the background.

To the Droppings!

 

Geniuses?

Voila_Capture 2015-12-07_09-16-21_AM

People ripped on Mark for his Belichick-Chip chess match post yesterday, but if the Eagles weren’t 4-7 coming in this coaching matchup would’ve been a huge storyline. Chip used to consult with Belichick on his tempo offense, and the kinship is apparent. From 2012:

Belichick and Brady, the Patriots quarterback, have won three Super Bowls together for New England. After a tip from Chip, the Patriots are now using one-word play calls to speed up their offense, much like the Ducks do.

“I was interested to hear how (Kelly) did it,” Belichick told the Boston Globe. “I would say he expanded it to a different level and it was very interesting to understand what he was doing. Certainly I’ve learned a lot from talking to Chip about his experiences with it and how he does it and his procedure and all that.”

Whatever the Eagles’ struggles, Belichick respects the hell out of Chip, and for Chip this had to be his Super Bowl. After getting crushed all season, he had a chance to beat the best. Wooooooo!


 

Boston fans

Boston fans are among the worst. Just brutal. The most insufferable bunch of sports d-bags around, and the winning has actually made it worse. Where South Philly became a sort of sports utopia during the Phillies’ run, Boston’s string of successes has bred a culture of mediocre asshats with an entitlement problem. I don’t think it’s possible for me to root any harder against a fan base than I do against Boston.

Sammy

I give Bradford 2 full headlights this week.

 

Management

Chip’s management at the end of the first half left a lot to be desired, too. He hesitated on fourth down, Belichick called his bluff, the punt was mediocre, and typically that’s the sort of situation where the Patriots insert a dagger before retreating to the locker room. Rather, blocked punt, touchdown:

https://twitter.com/NFLFrance/status/673636200624873472

Little bit of luck there. Little bit of luck.

 

Tweet of the day

 

Image of the day

https://twitter.com/TylerRickyTynes/status/673652898216017921

[I do get slightly bothered by the fact that almost all of our sports iconery is of the underdog variety and Rocky-esque. That’s why those R2C2 Photoshops worked so well in 2010– for once we were kings, swinging down, not up.]

 

Sal Pal is so full of it

Did Sal Pal ever get a hold of Chip, as per his guarantee if the Eagles won? I haven’t seen any video. That sound you hear is a bag of hot air deflating, fittingly at Foxboro.

 

Kiko

Voila_Capture 2015-12-07_09-31-41_AM

Kiko is really bad, and he kind of looks like a gay lion out there. But he has to still be injured, or out of shape due to injuries, because there’s no way he’s this horrific. Bad coverage, confusion, poor tackling. He’s a step slow, at best, all around the field. And the belly. Why? Why the belly?

 

Connor Barwin

Jim has a bonjam just thinking about having a beer with Connor Barwin.

 

Michael Barkann

https://twitter.com/PancakeCatapult/status/673663873237565440

Michael Barkann was in rare form yesterday, calling out Eagles heading into the locker room like a horse racing spotter on a coke binge. And there’s Sam Am I, followed by Invisible Murray, Mighty Mouse Sproles and The Magician. Pulling up the rear are Big Balls Chip, Byron “What Have You Done For Me Lately” Maxwell, and the man, the myth, the legend– The Barwinian Revolution! And they’re all victorious! Every one of them!

 

Chills

Pre-game:

Post-game:

https://twitter.com/jmattjmattjmatt/status/673665233676709888

Eagles Tweet game was strong yesterday. On Any Block would be an instant t-shirt if they weren’t 5-7.

 

MaraGOAT

That he did, Goodward. That he did.

 

The sounds of… harmony?

Oh you won’t see this in the Sounds of Discontent. Dave ZANGARO, writing for CSN Philly:

“I like to get coached and if I’m doing something wrong, I like it to be addressed,” Jenkins said. “So to me, it actually meant a lot to me [Chip coaching me during the week]. It really changed my mood throughout the week. It really changed my approach. And it was something, once he told me, I thought about every single day, and made sure that coming into the game it was front and center on my mind. I think he made me better this week.”

The special 1-on-1 coaching — Kelly rarely coaches the defense — came about when Jenkins dropped a couple balls early in the practice week. Jenkins has dropped several potential picks this year (see 10 observations).

Coaching wins football.

 

Hey

https://twitter.com/Eagles/status/673856525660585984

Still one of the best celebration songs around.

 

He doesn’t know what it’s like to lose

https://twitter.com/phiLLiesPhan9/status/673672635063115776

I feel like this will be a picture of my kid the next time the Eagles win a game.

LeSean next week.