PreGame Skirmish on the field!

[TexasEagle]

The Trotter thing came BEFORE the logo and please with the "don't do it on the road".

Oh, so change your entire pregame ritual, that they've been doing for years, because some whiny ass Falcons can't handle it? Puh-lease. They do it before EVERY game and a lot of teams do it at the Linc as well.

Yeah... your point? Mine was I thought they stopped doing that two years ago. Since I'm not anywhere near Philly I can't go to the games and they don't show pregame stuff like that on TV. You usually only see guys standing around sans pads or a small huddle right before kickoff in an endzone or on the sidelines. So that they still jump around on the logo is a surprise since I believe they said they were going to stop doing it at mid field on the logo after the Jacksonville game.

[TexasEagle]

anyone here would have done what Trotter did after getting hit in the face.

I would have. Anyone that says they wouldn't have I have to wonder if they've played football. I have no animosity toward Trotter, even without him the D wasn't the real problem last night. (It's like 2002 all over again. )

[SD_Eagle5]

Link

Posted on Wed, Sep. 14, 2005
Phil Sheridan | The way to beat Birds hasn't changed: Bruise McNabb

By Phil Sheridan

Inquirer Columnist


Some things don't change. You want instant, honest analysis of an Eagles game, you go find Ike Reese.

At 1 a.m. yesterday, there he was among his new teammates in the Atlanta Falcons' locker room. While various Eagles were mumbling about their disjointed performance in a 14-10 loss to the Falcons, Reese knew exactly what had transpired and why.

The Falcons were in almost the same position the Eagles were in two seasons ago, opening their season on a Monday night, at home, against the team that had beaten them in the NFC championship game.

Remember? Tampa Bay crushed the Eagles in the first regular-season game at Lincoln Financial Field in 2003.

"We came out there and we played tight," Reese said, recalling that game. "We did not play well. I knew it wouldn't be hard for these guys to get up for this game, but I was happy throughout the week because no one seemed consumed with it being a revenge game. There wasn't a lot of talk about the NFC championship game."

There was talk instead about standing up to an Eagles team that has been the class of the NFC for the last few years. It all started a half-hour before the game, when the Eagles gathered at midfield to jump up and down on the Falcons' logo.

Reese led a charge of Falcons who rushed from a corner of the field to break up the Eagles' little dance party.

"I told our players, 'We're not going to let them dance on our logo,' " Reese said. "I've been on the other side. I know the mind-set they're trying to bring there. They're saying, 'We're taking over this field. It's going to be our stadium today.' And they've been successful doing that. We were not going to let them take our stadium and dance in our stadium."

The outcome of the game had nothing to do with the gamesmanship that preceded it. Not really. The Falcons beat the Eagles because their defense was quick and relentless and determined to batter Donovan McNabb as much as possible.

"We were able to hit 5," Reese said.

As good as he has been for so much of his career, McNabb has one thing in common with every other quarterback in the history of the NFL. If he's getting hit a lot and he's getting hit hard, his performance goes way, way down.

That was true of Dan Marino and Joe Montana and Brett Favre, and it's true of McNabb and Michael Vick and Tom Brady.

Put it this way: If McNabb has to be X-rayed after a game, the Eagles probably lost. Except for that famous game he played on a broken ankle against Arizona, McNabb has been unfortunately human in games such as this.

On Monday night, the Eagles failed to protect him and they scored only 10 points. It's not all that complicated.

The first-quarter hit by Atlanta's Chad Lavalais bruised McNabb's sternum and left him in obvious pain. As always, McNabb toughed it out and stayed in the game, but the hits just kept on coming. And it seemed apparent that the injury had McNabb feeling less willing to run the ball.

Of course, that led to more hits in the pocket.

"We were able to make him uncomfortable in the pocket," Reese said. "We made him throw it quick sometimes, made him throw off his back foot sometimes. We were able to get pressure on him."

The Eagles now have a two-game losing streak in games that matter, and in both cases, McNabb got knocked around pretty good. That should raise some concerns. Maybe the blueprint for beating the Eagles has been established.

Then again, not that many defenses have the speed, the talent and the scheme to get consistent pressure on a quarterback as good and as mobile as McNabb.

"We had been very effective against pressure before," coach Andy Reid said yesterday. "We didn't do it as well as we should have, and that is where I say I have a big part of that, calling the right routes against the pressure package of theirs to get our guys in the right position."

That's typical Reid, but in this case, he's right. There were a handful of play calls Monday that looked doomed to fail from the start and simply added fuel to the Falcons' fired-up defense. The usual dearth of running plays allowed the Falcons to tee off on the wounded McNabb with impunity.

It's hard to have a champion's swagger when you're getting knocked on your rear end all night. It's hard to dance, on a logo or after a touchdown, when it hurts to breathe.

[PhillyGirl]

Point remains...Trotter still didn't throw a punch. 

[SD_Eagle5]

Point remains...Trotter still didn't throw a punch. 

Eh...I know, but it looks like Ike has completely turned to the DarkSide 

[General_Failure]

Oh Ike, how you've broken my heart.

[PoopyfaceMcGee]

Burn Ike.

[PhillyGirl]

Trotter and Mathis fined $10K each

I still think Trotter shouldn't even be in the same boat as Mathis. He never farging threw a punch.

[General_Failure]

He can afford it.

[SD_Eagle5]

Trotter and Mathis fined $10K each

I still think Trotter shouldn't even be in the same boat as Mathis. He never farging threw a punch.

At least there weren't any more game suspensions. As for Trotter, he may not of thrown a punch, but getting into that scuffle prior to a game was an idiotic thing to do. He had the guys face mask which was probably enough.

[PoopyfaceMcGee]

"I didn't expect him to throw a punch, and I would love to meet him by the parking lot."

--Jeremiah Trotter

[PhillyGirl]

"I didn't expect him to throw a punch, and I would love to meet him by the parking lot."

--Jeremiah Trotter

Tis why most of us love him. lol.

[General_Failure]

And probably why another scumbag coach will try it this season.

[ice grillin you]

if trotter even goes past the 25 yard line the rest of the season he should lose his salary

[PoopyfaceMcGee]

And probably why another scumbag coach will try it this season.

I vote we keep him in a cage until the opening kickoff.