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Born In The USA
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Author Archives: gordonglantz
Spirits In The Night
By GORDON GLANTZ
Gordonglantz50@gmail.com
@Managing2Edit
GORDONVILLE – The dogs on Main Street are howling. Hungry hearts are starving. It’s getting harder to be saint in the city. Glory days are getting a little gory these days.
Bruce Springsteen is under attack for his alleged offensive song choices during the Veterans Day “Concert For Valor” in Washington, D.C. Tuesday.
But don’t go hiding on the backstreets just yet. No need to feel like rider on a downbound train. There is a lot of light on this right now, but no need to be blinded by it.
It is not something new for Springsteen, as a proud disciple of the Woody Guthrie lineage of singer-songwriters speaking for the people not the ones who take their voices away, to be under fire.
If you are a power lifter when it comes to having strength in your convictions, you can weather these storms on your own.
Springsteen did this years back when his song “American Skin (41 Shots)” was first performed in concert in 2000 – later to appear on a 2001 live album (“Live In New York City”) and eventually a studio release – and the subject matter, the 1999 shooting of an unarmed African immigrant under unclear circumstances, irked the law enforcement community to the point that a boycott of concerts was urged.
His first dalliance with national controversy was in 1984, when the song “Born in the U.S.A.” – from the album of the same name – was taking the country by storm. Misunderstood – or misinformed by his advisers – Ronald Reagan heralded the song that is more of a rant than an anthem.
Inspired by his friendship with Ron Kovic (the real-life character of the 1989 “Born on the Fourth of July” film starring Tom Cruise, Springsteen wrote “Born in the U.S.A.” about how a large number of veterans of the Vietnam War were scattered to the wind and forgotten.
He hadn’t forgotten them, though. Another song that didn’t make that album, “Shut Out The Light,” further illuminated Springsteen’s empathy – and some modicum of guilt for being from that generation but having not served (he failed his draft physical because a recently broken leg from a motorcycle accident had yet to heal) – on the topic that had been swept under the rug in terms of national dialogue.
He not only called attention an issue no longer chic for the anti-war protestors who had gone on to cut their hair and become cocaine-snorting yuppies. He put his money where his mouth was by donating time and money to the cause without fanfare and photo opportunities.
When he hit the stage Tuesday, I kind of cringed to see him come out alone with just an acoustic guitar and a neck harmonica holder. After Metallica had just rocked the house down, an acoustic Springsteen set was not going to bode well.
I admit, even as a devotee who rarely criticizes the only person I called Boss (aside from the wife), what followed was not a career highlight.
I don’t say this because of the three songs he did – “The Promised Land” and then “Born in the U.S.A.” and “Dancing in the Dark” – but the way he played them. If he was going to go it alone, without the E Street Band in tow, at least have another picker or two – Nils Lofgren, Steven Van Zandt, Tom Morello or just someone from a band already there – and play the acoustic versions a little more straightforward and hard-driving to engage a crowd that was too large for a coffee house approach.
And that was it, in terms of criticism.
The song selections, in and of themselves, were fine.
“The Promised Land” is more of a social statement than it is overtly political, while “Dancing in the Dark” was a just pure pop song.
As for “Born in the U.S.A.,” causing conservatives to go apoplectic, it was more of the aforementioned style in which it was played to a crowd looking more to cut loose and pump fists that was a cause for pause.
As Springsteen said when he introduced it, “Born in the U.S.A. remains as relevant today (after the Vietnam-like quagmires in Iraq and Afghanistan, followed by inconsistent treatment of returning veterans) as it was when it first came onto the landscape and confused Ronald Reagan.
That is the real shame, and not addressed that self-evident truth is nothing more than a diversionary tactic by the right.
The sobering statistics on suicide for veterans — estimated at more than 20 per day — solemnly speak for themselves.
Having seen enough, I turned off the television after the three songs. My wife was at a late meeting and Sofia hadn’t started her homework. It dawned on me that Springsteen might come back out and join in some jam session later in the show but, honestly, I didn’t really care that much.
With the invention of DVR, and On Demand, I knew I could dial it up again.
Turns out, what I missed was Springsteen and Dave Grohl joining the Zac Brown Band for a rendition of the Creedence Clearwater Revival classic “Fortunate Son,” which stood out from a litany of anti-war songs from the Vietnam era in that it came from the perspective of the pool of largely poor kids being sent to fight in a rich man’s war of folly.
Apparently — with those in the crowd, the ones for whom the concert was taking place — it struck a chord and went over well.
With the naysayers on the right, who probably think anything less than “God Bless America” in a post-9/11 world is strategically deemed an act of treason and the performer labeled a heretic to be blacklisted like in the McCarthy era.
I was hit with the news on social media the next day, and disgusted by the right-wing’s righteous indignation.
The good news amid the bad was that most of the venom was directed Springsteen, the biggest name, not Brown or Grohl.
The other guys may react with less tact, and make a bad situation worse.
But this is par for Bruce’s course since getting in touch with his inner Bob Dylan after more of a John Steinbeck approach in his coming-of-age run from 1975-1980.
He’s been there, done that.
It’s not that he is looking for trouble – if he were, there were other songs from his catalogue that could have really made the heavens heavy in Brill Cream – but he isn’t running from it, either.
Just since 9/11, the date where those who decry political correctness set strict boundaries when comes to wartime etiquette – we must thank soldiers for their service to our country but repeatedly support policies that do them and their families a disservice – Springsteen has, and will continue to, write songs to expose those bitter ironies.
He started on his first release since 9/11, 2002’s “The Rising,” with the first song, “Lonesome Day,” that included lyrics such as “better ask questions before you shoot.”
Not a popular sentiment back then, but he was seeing through the smoke and mirrors. He was a step ahead of the curve about what he termed the “seeds of betrayal” about the selling of the Iraqi War were self-evident.
He went on the stump for John Kerry in 2004 and for Barack Obama in 2008.
The title track of his “Devils & Dust” release in 2005 was written from the perspective of a front-line soldier in Iraq. He continued decrying the injustice of war with no draft – making it a silent class war (the point of the song “Fortunate Son”) by definition – on “Magic” in 2007.
The title track spoke directly to the deception involved in putting the country into war and included war-related songs such as “Last To Die” (featured the refrain “who’ll be the last to die for a mistake”), “Gypsy Biker” and “Devil’s Arcade.”
The economy ravaged by George W. Bush going to war but no raising taxes, something unheard of in modern history, was illuminated in the song “Long Walk Home” and remained a theme up through current releases.
If Springsteen really want to be controversial, he could have played any of these songs instead.
If the wrong-wing pundits knew this – which would mean they knew what they were talking about before letting actual words fall from their tongues – they wouldn’t look quite as idiotic as they did Wednesday morning.
But we have the option to rise above.
We were born in the U.S.A., making us fortunate sons.
A musical journey from Springsteen to ‘Springhouse Revival’
By MIKE MORSCH (vinyldiaologues.com)
One of the first guys I met when I started college in the fall of 1977 at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa, was an upperclassman by the name of Duane Morrison. A bespectacled Iowa farm boy, he was at an agriculture school to study . . . agriculture. Go figure.
Duane and his roommate, another upperclassman named Al Steinbach, lived right next door to me and my roommate Billy, in the dorms. A native New Yorker, Al apparently had decided to go to college in the heartland to study – best I could tell as a young, impressionable freshman – hillbillies. Since I lived right next door and appeared early on to be one of the new subjects of his study, he was in the right place.
The thing about Duane was that he had an advanced appreciation of music in 1977, especially vinyl. Duane and Al had the best record collection on our dorm floor, and whenever I happened by their room and the door was open, they’d invite me in to listen to records.
And nearly every time I went in there, Duane had a particular artist on the turntable that he was absolutely enamored with. I had never heard of the guy, some dude from the East Coast. I’d listen to the record, but it really didn’t do much for me. I’d shrug my shoulders and politely shuffle my hick behind toward the door as Duane would encourage me to listen more closely and appreciate the music.
“You wait, this guy is going to be a big deal,” Duane would say.
The artist was Bruce Springsteen. The album was “Born to Run” from 1975.
I didn’t pay any attention then to Duane, and for many years after, on the topic of Bruce Springsteen.
Moving east in 2000 and a renewed interest in music over the past 15 years brought me to the Springsteen party quite late. And with the encouragement of a few close friends who happen to be Springsteen diehards, I’m now all in for The Boss. In fact, Steven Van Zandt of Springsteen’s E Street Band was interviewed for The Vinyl Dialogues.
One of those Springsteen devotees is my friend Gordon Glantz. He and I have been colleagues in the media business for years. Gordon is a brilliant writer so I am not unbiased when it comes to his work.
And now Gordon is in the music business himself. He and his song-writing partner, Terri Camilari, call themselves SpringHouse Revival and have just released their first album “Return to Nothing.” Gordon penned the lyrics, as well as arranged and co-produced with Glenn Barratt of Morningstar Studios in East Norriton, PA. Meanwhile, Terri composed the music and handled the vocals on this record.
If you’re in the suburban Philadelphia area, there is a “listening party” to debut the album on Sunday, Nov. 9, from 6 to 9 p.m. at Greco Roman Restaurant on West Main Street in West Norriton, PA. The public is invited.
I’ve come to appreciate the Philadelphia music scene over the years. There are a lot of great local artists putting out some pretty good stuff. They don’t get the recognition of the big-name artists, but they’re inspired people who are working hard, living their dreams and putting their creative efforts out there for people to see and hear. And I try to support their efforts by buying their CDs and attending their concerts.
I’m not a record reviewer, but I know what I like. And I like “Return to Nothing.” The release, which is available on iTunes and numerous other sites (CD Baby, Amazon.com. Google Play, Spotify, etc.), features 14 original songs. Gordon’s lyrics are mature and sophisticated and Terri’s compositions and vocals perfectly complement the material. And they’ve hired some ridiculously talented musicians – such as guitarist Tom Hampton (another friend of mine), drummer Grant MacAvoy, cellist Michael G. Ronstadt, viola player Larry Zelson and Barratt on keyboards and bass – to help them make their dream come alive.
Gordon helped me see the light when it came to Springsteen, and that gives him musical credibility with me. So I’m happy to be in on the ground floor of support for his project.
Check it out when you get a chance. The SpringHouse Revival website is http://www.springhousesongs.com. There is a Facebook page was well that you can “like” for updates.
Eagles Winning, But Need Winning Formula
By GORDON GLANTZ
Gordonglantz50@gmail.com
@Managing2Edit
GORDONVILLE — Former Eagles coach Buddy Ryan had a saying that stats were for losers.
In a way, the cartoonish caricature of a coach had a point.
In football, perhaps more than any of the other major sports, there is no cause to pause in the heat of battle to play actuary. It detracts from zeroing in on the intense chess match between coaches and coordinators to get the edge in match-ups.
Even an era when playing stat-based fantasy football seems to be a court-ordered activity, doing so could be paralysis by analysis.
But the problem with Ryan’s hypothesis was that he didn’t even want to address questions about the stat sheet after the game was over, let alone when trends were forming over the marathon that is a season.
Stats are for losers?
Could be why Ryan lived up to his “you got a winner in town” self-billing, but also why Buddy Ball did not equate to any triumphs in three postseason tries.
There is a time and a place for an in-depth look at the numbers.
Merrill Reese going apoplectic because LeSean McCoy just went over 100 yards in a game very much in doubt? Not the time or place.
After the game? Sure.
At the midway point of the season, when enough water has passed under the bridge to discern between anomalies and trends? Not even a question.
First and foremost, the Eagles are 6-2 halfway in to what has been a somewhat surreal 2014 season. Winning more than losing is the most important number (and Ryan’s point, had he been more eloquent).
It is a mark achieved despite two season’s worth of adversity, mostly in the form of injuries to vital personnel, and puts them on a pace to finish 12-4 – a good two to three games ahead of the projections of pundits.
Unless the Eagles lose twice to the Dallas Cowboys, who sit a half-game back in the NFC East at 6-3, a 12-4 mark would easily mean a repeat as division champs and a probable first-round bye.
But it’s not that simple.
As we crunch the numbers with more of a jackhammer, we realize the Eagles will need to raise the bar – on both sides of the ball – in order to maintain the current bottom-line pace.
Turning over new leaf
The most glaring statistic is their 21 turnovers – succinctly termed as “living on the edge” by current coach Chip Kelly. At minus-10 in giveaway-takeaway, they are the company of the league’s bottom feeders (tied for second-to-last with winless Oakland, one notch ahead of the one-win New York Jets).
Turning the ball over more than you get it back is a recipe laced with toxins in the NFL, and yet the Eagles have managed to eke by and defy logic.
The Eagles have compounded the issue with only four interceptions. Three came in the first three games from free safety Malcolm Jenkins, who took one to the house. The only since was when DeMeco Ryans picked off Houston’s Ryan Fitzpatrick and proceeded to fumble it right back in the midst of tearing his Achilles in what could be a career-threatening injury.
In order to break even, the Eagles will need to force 10 more turnovers than they commit in the final eight games. It would be encouraging if some came by way of interceptions from the cornerbacks. For example, slot corner Brandon Boykin had six picks a year ago. He, along with starters Cary Williams and Bradley Fletcher, has yet to commit a theft.
Unacceptable. Period.
Almost as much so as how generous the Eagles have been with the pigskin.
Last year, they gave it away a grand total of 19 times. A big part of that was Nick Foles (left) throwing just two interceptions, against 27 touchdown passes, after he took over as starting quarterback for Michael Vick.
This year, as Foles exits for as long as six weeks with a broken collarbone, he has thrown 10 interceptions (against 13 touchdown passes) and has also fumbled the ball away three times.
In last week’s win in Houston, Mark Sanchez threw two touchdowns but also two picks. There is a collective sigh of relief that a more-than-competent quarterback takes the helm in Foles’ stead. And yet, the sobering reality is that Sanchez has thrown more interceptions (71) than touchdowns (70) in a career that saw him take the Jets (coach by Ryan’s son, Rex) to a pair of AFC title games before being run out of the Big Apple.
The Eagles, if they are to get where they want to be by season’s end need to take much better care of the football. It would be fair to say that anything more than 4-6 total turnovers in the last eight games would spell doom and push them over the “edge.”
They may have to take a bit of air out of the ball in order to protect it.
Band on the run
With the offensive line as intact as it is going to be. Evan Mathis and Jason Kelce are back from the MASH unit, but Todd Herremans in done for the season, meaning either Matt Tobin or Andrew Gardner will play right guard while the other will be the first man off the bench for all spots except center, and the Eagles are going to have to get back to basics and run the ball.
While it could be argued that Sanchez does some things better than Foles, who seemed have lost last year’s confidence as a passer and reader of defenses, he lacks Foles’ arm strength on deep throws and doesn’t have the same touch.
Kelly’s offense is practically scripted for the quarterback to have a QB rating in the ballpark of 100, particularly with the return of Kelce taking the wraps off a screen game that had been practically shelved.
That will be where Sanchez will need to go after a passer rating of 89.6 last week.
The receivers are currently on pace for big numbers. Jeremy Maclin, a leading candidate for NFL Comeback Player of the Year, is on pace for 90 catches for 1,580 yards and 16 touchdowns. Although it appears Riley Cooper isn’t the same player as last year, he is also on pace for a career-high 62 catches. Rookie Jordan Matthews is on pace for 64 catches and 6 touchdowns.
Other than maybe Cooper (left) upping his touchdown projection – after eight last year, he is one pace for just two – it may not even be healthy for those projected numbers to be reached in the season’s back end.
Instead, increased touches from the backs – running and in the aforementioned screen game – could lead to more consistency and cohesion and fewer struggles in the red zone.
That would mean McCoy, currently on pace for 1,244 yards, finishing with more than 1,400 yards and getting into the end zone a few more times (he has just one touchdown this season, as compared to 11 last year (9 rushing, 2 receiving).
It means Chris Polk, who scored his first touchdown on the season last week, getting increased work as a power back when defenses are worn down from trying to corral the elusive McCoy. Kelly hinted at Polk’s hidden value after the win in Houston, but that pesky heat-of-the-battle thing could cause amnesia, particularly in the red zone.
At present, at 53.2 percent (even after going 3-for-3 last week), the Eagles still rank next-to-last in the league in red zone efficiency.
And then there is the X-factor, all-purpose back Darren Sproles. Despite missing a game in the Arizona that the Eagles may have won with him, Sproles projects to 456 yards and 6 touchdowns, along with 40 catches. Maintaining those numbers, along with his conference-best punt-return average of 15.4 would be crucial in terms of moving the chains and taking pressure off of Sanchez.
Additionally, the return of Mathis and Kelce might take the reins off the tight ends a bit. Zach Ertz was expected to have a breakout year, but fellow tight end Brent Celek has played an equal number of snaps so far before of his superior blocking skills. A big second half from Ertz – currently on pace for a middling season of 50 catches for 716 yards and four touchdowns – would balance out the attack, and help in the red zone, even if it means less dink-and-dunk grabs for the receivers.
Case for the defense
Going the other way, the Eagles have been sacking the quarterback well. Perhaps a few more putdowns from the down linemen – only Vinny Curry has more than 1.5 sacks (from another reserve, Brandon Bair), with four – would be nice, but outside linebacker Connor Barwin is on pace for 14 sacks while the platoon of Trent Cole and Brandon Graham is on pace for a combined 13 sacks and 12 forced fumbles.
It remains to be seen if the devastating loss of inside linebacker/spiritual leader DeMeco Ryans will mean more or less blitzing from emerging star Mychal Kendricks from the inside linebacker spot. Despite missing a good chunk of the first half of the season, Kendricks has two sacks. It is not unrealistic for him to have at least a half-dozen by season’s end.
On special teams, it is hard to ask for much from rookie Cody Parkey, who has been next to perfect (15-for-16). The concern would be the colder weather and swirling winds. The Florida native kicked at Auburn in the state of Alabama. Punter Donnie Jones remains the consummate professional.
Rookie Josh Huff seems to be returner at present on kickoffs, even though Polk took one 102 yards to the house and averages 40.4 yards on 5 returns (Huff averages 22.3 on three tries).
At some point, after two blocked punts for touchdowns on successive weeks for touchdowns and returns for touchdowns by Polk and Sproles, one would have to hope that the special teams units top off their steady play with another score or two.
Meeting the statistical standards, with a difficult stretch of road laid out by the league’s schedulers, is difficult.
But not impossible.
Not if you strive to be winners.
With a winning formula.
This article originally appeared at http://www.phillyphanatics.com
Heaven A Place On Earth For GA’s Fenerty
By GORDON GLANTZ
GordonGlantz50@gmail.com
@Managing2Edit
GORDONVILLE — When Jim Fenerty was first invited to tour the Fort Washington campus of Germantown Academy, the then head basketball coach at Bishop Egan was a reluctant visitor.
Though not winning much in Bucks County, he was content where he was — often pinching himself that he was a head coach, matching wits against legends, in the storied Philadelphia Catholic League – but still made what he figured was a polite courtesy call to a school whose athletic department had been impressed with his style during a holiday tournament.
But during the visit, something strange happened.
“I felt like I had died and gone to heaven,” said Fenerty, who is going to be inducted into the Montgomery County Coaches Hall of Fame two nights before Thanksgiving at Westover Country Club (For more information, call 610-279-9220 or e-mail Gordonglantz50@gmail.com or tleodora@aol.com).
“There were 10 to 12 in a class. I thought, ‘this would be a great place for my kids to go to school.’”
And in the intervening years – dating from the 1989-90 season to the present, which have netted 13 Inter-Ac League titles in 23 years for a program that was previously often the Washington Generals to the Harlem Globetrotters of the circuit — his initial instinct was correct.
Almost too correct.
In the winter of 2012, Germantown Academy was almost where he died and went to heaven.
And it was his daughter, Erin, who may have saved his life.
Fenerty was teaching his senior-elective class in constitutional law when he went numb on his right side.
“I tried to teach the class,” he said, which is held around a big round table. “We had a big game that day with Malvern Prep. I thought it was just nerves.”
But for those in the class – specifically Erin and fellow history teacher Peter McVeigh, who likes to sit on the discussions for edification purposes – something serious was going on.
“My daughter broke school rules, but if she didn’t, I might not be here,” said Fenerty. “She texted the school nurse, saying ‘something is wrong with my dad.’”
Although some of the feeling had returned enough for Fenerty to finish the class, he found the nurse, Lori Andress, waiting for him at the bottom of a set of stairs.
She took his blood pressure, which was “off the charts.”
Fenerty protested any talk of going to the emergency room, citing the big game with Malvern Prep, but was told the rival school had already been called and agreed to a postponement.
At Abington Hospital, initial suspicions of a stroke were ruled out.
“They said something was wrong with my blood,” recalled Fenerty.
As fate would have it, a specialist Dr. Peter Pickens, was in the building, teaching other doctors about rare blood disorders.
And now they had a live case on their hands.
The diagnosis was Polycythemia Vera (PV).
Fenerty’s blood was tested at 19.8.
“Pickens said that if you get to 20, you’re not going to see the next day,” said Fenerty, who then underwent four hours of treatment and spent four days in the hospital before the wonders of insurance dictated that he then be treated as an outpatient.
At the time, Fenerty’s win total sat at 499.
Obeying doctor’s orders not to coach “under any circumstances,” Fenerty sat behind the bench while loyal assistant, Mike Hannigan, guided the Patriots to a one-point win.
The following day, a Saturday, was Senior Day. Erin, the team’s scorekeeper, was among those to be honored at halftime of a non-league game against the Peddie School.
Fenerty decided to coach.
“The next day, while at church with my family, the same thing happened,” he lamented. “My wife, Mary, and kids knew, right away, what was happening.
“This time, I was in Abington for a week.”
And when he exited the hospital, he agreed to take a coaching hiatus.
“My part of the deal was that I couldn’t coach the rest of that year,” said Fenerty, who has his doctor’s blessing to keep on coaching, as long as he follows the protocol of having his blood checked every week during the season and every two weeks the rest of the year.
He is back in the saddle, back in heaven.
“(God) wasn’t ready to take me,” he said. “I feel very fortunate.”
Taking A Sad Song And Making It Better
By GORDON GLANTZ
GordonGlantz50@gmail.com
@Managing2Edit
GORDONVILLE — Former Eagles head coach Andy Reid had a saying – on those rare occasions when he decided to speak in full sentences – that nothing happening was as good or as bad as it seemed.
Sounded a bit like fortune-cookie wisdown, which “Big Red” is surely using on the unsuspecting Kansas City media, but it made more sense that “I need to do a better job.”
Or so it seemed.
That was until the era of enlightenment that is the tenure of second-year coach Charles “Chip” Kelly. Now, you can take the baby that was one of Reid’s more semi-lucid comments and throw it out with the pickle juice.
With Kelly bending and breaking unwritten rules of pro football, we have learned that we can have both extremes.
And it can still be all good.
Look no further than the breather that is the bye week in a schedule that is about to become a lot more relentless for the next half-dozen games, which will then set the stage for December homestretch of what will surely be four telltale clashes.
There were times when the pre-bye set of six games seemed as bad as it could get for the Eagles.
The question of whether or not Nick Foles could continue to be nearly flawless at quarterback was quickly answered as a nay (a lower-rung QB rating of 82.0 after a league-best 119.2 in 2013). The team’s strength – the offensive line – was so ravaged by the types of injuries that kill seasons that even defending rushing champion LeSean McCoy looked more like Heath Sherman for whole games.
Defensively, the play in the secondary remained, to be kind, inconsistent.
With all that as the back story, one would think that Kelly’s apparent beginner’s luck from the previous season had run out.
You would think they would be off the pace.
And yet life in the Eagles Nation could not be any better.
Most residents of Expertville had the Birds – even with Foles picking up where he left off, and McCoy still running like the wind behind an injury-free offensive line – sitting at 4-2 right now. It was reasoned that they would drop road games in Indianapolis and San Francisco and win the others, or maybe steal one of the perceived tougher games but come up short in another.
Either way, 4-2 at the break would put them on schedule to finish in the the 9-7/10-6 range seemingly required to take what we all expected to again be the lamest division in the league.
And here they sit, not only at 5-1, but less than two yards away from 6-0.
Yes, the same Dallas Cowboys the Eagles had to beat in the season finale to take the division a year ago are keeping pace, but it is too early for scoreboard watching.
The Eagles are already 2-0 in the division, having outlasted DeSean Jackson and the Washington Redskins in a shootout and spanking the New York Giants. The Birds control their own destiny, with two meetings remaining against a Cowboys team that has a recent history of implosions during the second half of seasons.
How and why did the Eagles arrive at the station a game ahead of schedule?
You could point to a lot of players who have led the way – like running back/return man Darren Sproles and left tackle Jason Peters on offense and safety Malcom Jenkins (3 interceptions, including a touchdown) and a young-and-hungry defensive line on defense – and not be wrong.
But the kudos should really go all the way to the top.
General Manager Howie Roseman and Kelly and his assistants are, plain and simple, head and shoulders above Joe Banner and Andy Reid and the likes of the assistant coaches who moved on when the new staff arrived.
Kelly, who says his team “trains” more than it practices, gave the players a few days off to self-scout the roster and evaluate.
It would seem the best self-scouting took place in the offseason. While fandom pined for big-time safeties, the Eagles went right to Group B and grabbed Jenkins, who is doing all he can without much around him – save nickel back Brandon Boykin.
The other signees were not starters, but top-notch special teamers like Chris Maragos and Bryan Braman. For the price of a fifth-rounder, Sproles was acquired from New Orleans and has been the Eagles’ most explosive player thus far, as a mercurial change-of-pace back (6.6 yards per carry, 3 TDs) and punt returner (15.6 yards per return, TD).
Before the season, Roseman sent a sure-to-be-cut running back named David Fluellen to the Colts for the rookie kicker Cody Parkey who, through six games, is on a Pro Bowl track. He has made 12 of 13 field goals, including a game-winner against the team that traded him away, and has been a touchback machine on kickoffs.
The special teams units are probably at their best since maybe the Dick Vermeil era, and credit has to go to the unit’s coordinator, Dave Fipp, for making the pieces fit. Those pieces include the likes of undrafted rookie tight end Trey Burton, handyman Brad Smith and many others.
In addition to Sproles’ punt return for a touchdown, Chris Polk returned a kickoff for a score and two blocked punts have been turned into touchdowns.
And then you have to give kudos to the coaching staff. Behind Fipp, you have offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland.
The offensive line began the season without right tackle Lane Johnson, who was suspended for the four games. His backup, Alan Barbre, was lost for the season. All-Pro left guard Evan Mathis went on the shelf for eight weeks. He was followed to the M.A.S.H. unit by high-end center Jason Kelce.
Matt Tobin, who was the best offensive lineman in the preseason, was injured in the final preseason game wasn’t able to immediately help in Mathis’ spot until the last two weeks. David Molk, who was out of football last year, has held down the fort at center. Games were won with the likes of Dennis Kelly and Andrew Gardner starting.
While the defensive line – with starters Fletcher Cox, Cedric Thornton and Bennie Logan backed up by designated pass rusher Vinnie Curry (4 sacks), role player Brandon Bair and rookie Beau Allen – has thrived under Jerry Azzinaro, defensive coordinator Billy Davis, and inside linebackers coach Rick Minter, have made it work with Mychal Kendricks out of the lineup since the second game of the season.
The much-maligned Casey Matthews had fallen off the radar quicker than a Malaysian airliner, and may not have even made the team if Travis Long were not injured, has played his best football as the primary replacement for Kendricks, recording 17 tackles (10 solo) along with a half-sack and a fumble recovery. Emmanuel Acho , who began the season on the practice squad, and work-in-progress first-round Marcus Smith II have been pressed into service, particularly when DeMeco Ryans got dinged up as well.
Meanwhile, Bill McGovern is getting the most of out of the outside linebackers. Connor Barwin (6 sacks, 2 passes defensed, forced fumble) is playing at a Pro Bowl level and the combination of Trent Cole (3.5 sacks, 3 forced fumbles) and Brandon Graham (2 sacks, 3 forced fumbles) are solid on the other side.
All a coincidence, or has the old axiom about it never being as good or bad as it looks given way to something more indicative of the regime that took over a program lost at sea and turned around?
Is it truer that even when it looks as if it couldn’t get any worse – vital players dropping like flies to injury, the star running back average two inches per carry until a breakout game before the break, the quarterback proving to be fallible – it couldn’t be any better?
So far, as we arrive at the Bye Week Station ahead of schedule, the latter explanation would seem to be the case.
This column first appeared at http://www.phillyphanatics.com.
Striking Gold
By GORDON GLANTZ
@Managing2Edit
GORDONVILLE – With a little help from a lot of friends, old and new, I’ve made a gold record.
No, the debut CD by SpringHouse Revival (songwriting partner/vocalist Terri Camilari and myself, accompanied by the best studio musicians we could find), has not met the industry standard of selling 500,000 units.
At present, we’re about 490,00 — give or take — shy of that mark.
And that’s cool.
Totally cool.
All through the process, before the songs were ever mixed and mastered, the music – four years since the stork delivered UPS boxes weighing about 100 pounds each to my front door this past Monday –this music has been Sofia’s choice.
Her favorite song on the CD – “Prayin’ Kind” – even bumped both versions of “Let It Go” from the “Frozen” Soundtrack from the top of her hit parade.
But she’s not just in love with one song.
When she says “put your music on, daddy” – sometimes when even a self-indulgent narcissist such as I aches for a break for some Springsteen or U2 or sports talk – it’s all 14 tracks she wants to hear.
She sits in the back, in her little booster seat, and sings the songs with all heart.
That heart is my own flesh and blood.
And that’s cool.
Totally cool.
Along the way, when a new song was written and its scratch demo (that’s music talk) was recorded, I’d ask Sofia’s opinion while on the way to school.
I do this because I know that she, like most second-graders, is a straight-shooter.
More often than not, she’ll say, emphatically, “I like it.”
There are critiques, like the voice isn’t loud enough in the early mix – hindering her ability to sing along – but I’ll explain the process and that it will be taken care of once mixed.
Or she’ll say she likes song X, but not as much as song Y.
Sometimes, as the primary producer/arranger, I will take these suggestions to heart.
It’s not that we’re trying to appeal to the grade-school crowd. Some of the topics of the songs – drug abuse, the Holocaust, lost souls slipping through the unforgiving cracks of our society – are more geared to college-aged ears and beyond.
But a hook is a hook – and Terri has a knack for taking my words and giving them musicality – and Sofia is, well, hooked.
Sofia has been involved in music programs since she could barely walk. She dances three days a week and plays piano.
My wife, Laurie, insists she stick with piano – even on the many weeks when there is a better shot of FOX News saying something positive about the president than there is of getting her to practice – because it develops a part of her brain.
More practically, I feel it is early training for the singer-songwriter I sense is burgeoning within her (she has already made up songs).
Sharing this amazing ride with her.
I did it as much for her as it was to scratch my itch and eliminate an item from the bucket list – more music is coming, as we are a few songs into the next project already and some of the new songs are scary-good.
Gold can mean a lot of things to a lot of people.
It can mean bling adorning your body.
It can mean fat paychecks.
It can mean a record in a frame on the wall.
For me, it is something wholly different.
It is when my 79-year old mother rides shot gun playing air guitar while Sofia belts out the words. It is when Laurie believes in it enough to not pressure me too much into getting a real job, while also looking into educating her attorney self on the dark side of the music business so that Terri and I get what we have coming to us.
On the assumption, of course, that anything comes at all.
If it does – in the form of a song being placed in a TV show or movie, or another artist with a bigger name wanting to record a song – it will be the kind of high you can find without the legalization of marijuana.
If not, I can listen to my daughter sing my words – some of which were written 20-25 years before she was a glint in my eye – and now that it’s all good.
And gold.
Taking Flight, The Sequel
By GORDON GLANTZ
Gordonglantz50@gmail.com
@Managing2Edit
GORDONVILLE — And, now, for the encore.
Looking back on last season – the first for Chip Kelly after what seemed like an eternity of peaks, which included being turned away at the gates of the Promised Land, and valleys of falling off the map under Andy Reid – the new coach’s papers were stamped with a free pass.
Coming from the collegiate ranks, with as much NFL experience as a beer vendor going up and down the aisles plying dime-store experts with libation, he was bringing in a system and approach from Oregon that many doubted would work –at least without serious modification – in the big time.
The general vibe was that Kelly would need to find his players to fit in and fall in line, which would likely mean roster turnover – before, during and after a season of trial by fire and error.
But, as long as he spoke in full sentences and showed more emotion than Mr. Spock during press conferences following agonizing losses, the restless Eagles Nation was going to go easy.
Even another 4-12 campaign would have felt like a breath of fresh air.
Anything above and beyond that was a true fall romance novel for those aching to fall back in love with their football team.
In the Nick of Time
After stunning the Washington Redskins to open the season, the Eagles fell to 1-3 after the first four games and were 3-5 at the midway point.
Although Michael Vick went into the season at the starting quarterback, the all-too-familiar injury bug led to Nick Foles moving into the limelight and becoming one of the league’s surprising story lines as a second-year quarterback.
Foles threw 27 touchdown passes (29, counting the postseason) against two interceptions and led the entire league in passer rating (119.2). He had the luxury of handing the ball off to LeSean McCoy, who led the league in rushing (1,607 yards) and yards from scrimmage (2,146), and throwing to reborn mercurial wideout DeSean Jackson (career-best 82 catches for 1,332 yards and nine TDs).
Up front, Foles benefitted from an offensive line that avoided injuries and asserted its will on opponents. Left tackle Jason Peters and left guard Evan Mathis were All-Pros. Center Jason Kelce seemed unscathed from the knee injury that shelved him in 2012. Veteran Todd Herremans slowly adjusted to right guard playing alongside rookie Lane Johnson, who had the best year of the three rookie tackles taken high in the draft.
In the process of posting an 8-2 regular-season mark (as opposed to 2-4 for Vick), Foles developed instant chemistry with receiver Riley Cooper (left), who was kept on the team after a controversial off-field incident involving Copper using a racial slur was caught on video.
Cooper, who had a grand total of 46 catches and five touchdowns his first three years in the league, overcame a slow start to collect 48 catches for eight touchdowns. He was among the league leaders in yards per reception (17.8) and, along with hauling in some highlight-reel catches, pulled in a five-year deal worth a reported $25 million to stay put.
Foles also developed a feel for rookie tight end Zach Ertz as the season progressed. Ertz is being looked upon to have a breakout year in 2014.
The defense, initially a sieve that couldn’t get off the field with much success on third down, improved from awful to acceptable as the season wore on.
After taking the division with a 10-6 mark, a crown even more fulfilling because it was captured in Dallas on the last night of the season with the division on the line, the same team that no one expected much from was hosting New Orleans in the first round of the playoffs. After Foles rallied the Eagles from behind, the Eagles fell, 26-24, on a last-second field goal.
Greater Expectations
A season later – with a vital loss from the core and two key additions, ironically from New Orleans – the expectations couldn’t be any different.
Foles is expected to pick up where he left off at the controls of an attack that, because of its dizzying pace, appears more complex than it is.
The defense is expected to improve from the confidence it gained the second half of last year, but more from the presumption that players like defensive end Fletcher Cox and inside linebacker Mychal Kendricks will evolve into stars while veterans such as outside linebacker Trent Cole and inside DeMeco Ryans don’t decline.
Last year, there may have been some modicum of beginner’s luck – or it was case of karma being overdue.
Aside from Vick going down – a blessing in disguise, as it paved the way for Foles – the Eagles were not beset with an unusual amount of injuries. Yes, accomplished receiver Jeremy Maclin was lost for the season with a knee injury, but that torn ligament was sustained early in training camp, with plenty of time to circle the wagons.
And the Eagles seemed to catch some fortuitous breaks. Opponents came into games battered and bruised, and the bounces – the fumbles, the ball dying near the goal line on punts – seemed to go their way.
While you could argue that you make or break your fate by making your own luck, there is no automatic reset button from year to year.
But don’t tell that to the average diehard.
Don’t dare say that this remains a young team – one with only nine players, including punter Donnie Jones and long snapper Jon Dorenbos, above the age of 30 – even though there are 35 players (including nine rookies) with three, or fewer, years of NFL experience.
And even though Kelly is a second-year coach that the league has had a full offseason to figure out, the expectation level is now as high as it had been in the best of the Reid era.
There will be no free passes this time around.
Ramblin’ Gamblin’ Man
At the barest minimum, failure of another repeat performance with what looks – on paper – to be a more troublesome schedule, will give life to second-guessing.
This will come even though the Eagles remain, on many levels, a work in progress.
This is still a franchise with a rabid following that is 54 years removed from a championship.
The dice has been rolled, and a vibe of self-love is starting come off of Kelly. It is still endearing, but duly noted by wolves dressed in the midnight green clothing.
The Eagles restrained themselves from chasing after prime-time free-agent safeties, including some with the Oregon connection, to fill the glaring weakness present since Brian Dawkins left after the 2008 season (an eternity in football years). Instead, they sold Malcolm Jenkins of the Saints as the ideal fit to settle down a secondary where the corners were often left without timely help downfield.
While the Eagles also brought in vintage utility back Darren Sproles from the Saints for the price of a fifth-round pick, it seemed to pale in comparison to letting Jackson walk – for nothing – to the rival Redskins for reasons that have yet to be sufficiently explained/revealed.
Any dreams of a three-head receiver tandem of Jackson, Cooper and a fully recovered Maclin were dashed.
Come the draft, Kelly & Co. continued using “My Way” as its theme song. Instead of filling the void of Jackson with someone like receiver Marqise Lee in the first round and coming back with Jordan Matthews in the second, the Eagles rolled the dice with outside linebacker Marcus Smith in the first round (but still took Matthews, the team’s prized rookie, in the second).
The ripple effect of tabbing a player who cannot be cut but can’t help out this year, put them into a box when it came to shaping a final roster that will feature one more gamble – an undrafted rookie kicker, Cody Parkey, supplanting veteran Alex Henery on the basis of one good week of practice and a strong showing in one preseason game.
They also raised eyebrows by keeping only two healthy running backs – the potential lethal tandem of McCoy and Sproles – on the roster, as third back Chris Polk nurses a troublesome hamstring. Two backs that stood out in the preseason, Matthew Tucker and Henry Josey, were both jettisoned. Tucker was signed to the practice squad, while Josey joined the practice squad of the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Difficult Road Ahead
The Eagles open at home with those Jaguars, who are coached by the same Gus Bradley who would have been hired here if Kelly hadn’t reversed his field and accepted the Eagles’ overtures.
Jacksonville started last season 0-8, won four of its next five and then ended the season with three straight losses.
Playing at the Linc, with stop-gap quarterback Chad Henne under center, the Jaguars shouldn’t be much of a test. Then again, the first week of the season usually features plenty of upsets. The Eagles are living proof. A year ago, in Washington, they were a nonentity playing a playoff team with high expectations.
To put it more succinctly, the Eagles need to soar out of the gate because the first six games – heading into the bye week – include a Monday night challenge at Indianapolis and, after a home meeting with the mysterious Redskins and Jackson, a trip to the left coast to face San Francisco. The first six games conclude with visits from a Rams team that lost starting quarterback Sam Bradford for the season but features a defense that could keep the Foles-led Birds in check, and then the New York Giants.
Anything less than 4-2 after the first six games would be a bad omen.
Following a bye week, during which is realistic to expect suspended right tackle Johnson to resume bookending that top-shelf offensive line, comes a difficult six-game stretch that begins on the road at Arizona and then at Houston.
They return home to face Cam Newton and his Carolina Panthers on a Monday night, and then travel to Green Bay on a short week before coming home to play Tennessee and then playing at Dallas on even shorter week in a Thanksgiving Day tilt.
Realistically, it may be hard to find three wins in that stretch, making the first half-dozen games all the more important.
The last month of the season? Home on a longer rest with Seattle, the defending Super Bowl champ, and then Dallas again. The season ends on the road with two more divisional foes in the Redskins and Giants.
Two of four in December, again presuming at least four wins in the first six, would mean a 9-7 mark that should give them at least a one-game edge on any team in what projects to be another down year for the NFC East.
That would mean a home game in the playoffs, assuring an encore performance.
But the “ifs” – some self-created by calculated risk – remain as prevalent as cheez whiz dripping from a cheesesteak.
This article originally appeared at http://www.phillyphanatics.com
Trouble in Double Time
Cuts? It’s Complicated
By GORDON GLANTZ
Gordonglantz50@gmail.com
@Managing2Edit
GORDONVILLE — For fans, training camp is a chance to attend open practices and take selfies on their cells phones with their heroes practicing on the background.
It is a chance to see football again in a town that was forced to become fixated on a Little League team because the Major League Baseball team’s only form of consistency was its brutal play.
But the preseason, for coaches, is a little more complicated.
The decisions made during scrimmages in the heat and disjointed preseason games could directly correlate to cold days in November when the goal is to have the right pieces on the chess board to match wits with opposing coaches.
It is a three-pronged process, and a balancing act.
The first is the development of the cohesiveness of the starters, which seemed slow to come around for second-year Eagles coach Chip Kelly prior to Thursday night’s 31-21 calling-card victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Eagles, who saw their second string work against the Steelers’ starters for a quarter and the deep reserves against the Steelers’ second string, built a 17-0 lead by halftime and a 31-7 lead by the end of the third quarter.
The second part of the process involves the back end of the roster, trying to answer who is going to beat out whom – and what positions to go long at – for the final 53-man roster. (And which 10 players are worth keeping around for the practice squad, a unit Kelly takes seriously for reasons of development.)
Lastly, there is the middle of the roster, where coaches evaluate which players are best suited to key situational roles.
While the starting units have likely allayed any major fears for Kelly and Co., sorting out the depth chart and the final cuts remain at issue with the sands running through the hourglass.
Although some moves had already been made – linebacker Jason Phillips was cut and his spot was filled by running back/returner Kenjon Barner, acquired via trade, while running back David Fluellen was swapped to the Indianapolis Colts for kicker Cody Parkey – the first official cuts need to be made by 4 p.m. Tuesday.
While it is seemingly simply to take a sharpie and cross off no-names from your roster, the process can often become more complicated in the chambers of the coaching staff.
Draft picks, for better or worse, get some modicum of preferential treatment. Ditto for free agent signees and veterans who have spent more time during camp in the training room than on the practice field.
Versatility also has to be examined.
Here’s an example of the banter that might be going down: If this guy and that guy go down, who can also slide to another position to get us through a game?
It is not uncommon to issue walking papers to a player good enough to make a team somewhere in the first round of cuts as a humanitarian gesture to improve that player’s chance of catching on with another team, and, at the same time, doing a favor to another player with less of chance by letting the league – or other leagues (Canadian, Arena, etc.) – see him stick around until his name turns up on the final list of cuts.
Cornerback Curtis Marsh, who was singed last week in New England and played so-so against the Steelers, would be a likely candidate for a late sendoff.
Also, don’t be stunned if a player or two cut Tuesday – say fourth quarterback G.J. Kinne or defensive end/war hero Alejandro Villanueva – resurfaces on the practice squad while those cut at the end of the process do not.
This is done because warm bodies at other positions, like offensive line and linebacker, might be needed just to get through practice.
That said, we can logically deduce the following:
- Kicker: “Murder Leg,” we hardly knew ye. Kicker Cary Spear, after doing decently in OTAs after being signed post-draft out of Vanderbilt, struggled in camp to the extent he didn’t even get to boot an extra point in live game action as a keepsake of his visit. Alex Henery, who purportedly has been so accurate in practice that it was embarrassing to watch Spear, continues missing kicks in games. Parkey, who was more highly touted coming out of Auburn than Spear, will get a long and serious look. He booted one point-after kick Thursday that, for what it’s worth, split the uprights.
- Cornerback Nolan Carroll, signed away from Miami as a free agent, is going to play a key role in the defense. He introduced himself to the faithful with an athletic interception Thursday, in what was his first action of the preseason, but he is slated to be a pseudo linebacker on passing downs while Brandon Boykin mans the slot and Cary Williams and Bradley Fletcher take care of the outside. Because he can also play in the slot or outside, this plan might allow for one less linebacker to be kept.
- Running back: It is going to be real interesting what the Eagles do at running back, especially after acquiring Barner, the former first-team All-American under Kelly at Oregon. Matthew Tucker and undrafted rookie Henry Josey have had excellent preseasons. Tucker scored twice against the Steelers, giving him four preseason rushing touchdowns, and gained 46 yards on 10 carries. Josey had a long touchdown run negated by a holding penalty on Will Murphy that was hard to detect in super slow-motion. He still led the team in rushing, for the second straight week, with 48 yards on only four carries. Chris Polk, automatically presumed to be the third back behind McCoy and Sproles, has not played a down yet because of nagging injuries. With McCoy nursing his thumb, and no real reason to expose Sproles next Thursday against the Jets, look for the battle to continue. For sure, the Eagles will keep four backs on the active roster. Josey could be placed on the practice squad, but could be targeted by teams thin at the position. If Barner can distinguish himself as a returner, and if Turner can continue to run hard as a power runner, might Polk be in jeopardy of being cut or placed on injured reserve?
- Receiver: Like running back, it will be interesting to see what happens at wide receiver. With the return jobs still in question, the two correlate. If Barner stays, for example, one less receiver – i.e. Damaris Johnson or Brad Smith, both with some return-game chops – could be kept. All Kelly would say, when asked, was that five receivers are needed to suit up on game day. Three spots are filled by Jeremy Maclin, Riley Cooper and rookie Jordan Matthews. There is no way rookie Josh Huff is jettisoned, but his rather severe shoulder injury, suffered after a foolhardy attempt to return a kickoff from deep in the end zone, is likely to land him on IR to start the season. B.J. Cunningham, a practice squad player dating back to the Andy Reid era, has seemingly played his way ahead of likely practice squad assignee Ifeanyi Momah and into the picture with the likes of Smith, Johnson, Jeff Maehl, oft-injured Arrelious Benn (left Thursday’s game with a “head injury” and has concussions on his long medical chart). These are the candidates – along with me, you and a dog named Boo – for the final receiver spots. It’s not really a plethora of talent as much as it is a bunch of guys with similar, albeit marginal, skill sets.
- Tight end: A surprise name in the cuts, unless he’s traded, could be tight end James Casey. He makes a decent salary after being signed as a free agent last year and then being reduced to a small role in the offense after the drafting of budding star Zach Ertz. While he has contributed on special teams, starting the season with two tight ends – Celek and Ertz – would allow room for kick-coverage mercenary Bryan Braman, who is not really an option to play at linebacker, to stick as a special teams specialist. And the encouraging play of rookie free agent Trey Burton has likely earned him a spot on the practice squad, meaning a third tight end is available if Celek or Ertz were to be sidelined for an extended period of time.
- Defensive line: While the offensive line looks settled – with guard/tackles Matt Tobin and Dennis Kelly, along with center David Molk, playing well enough to secure backup jobs (along with tackle Andrew Gardner, at least until Lane Johnson returns from suspension after four games) – the defensive line bears watching. Behind starters Fletcher Cox, Bennie Logan and Cedric Thornton, there are as many as six ascending talents vying for three or four jobs. Vinny Curry, who recorded a sack against the Steelers, remains a man possessed. Rookie Beau Allen, though drafted in the seventh round, is more of a prototypical nose guard than Logan and has played his way onto the active roster. Brandon Bair, after a year of seasoning on the practice squad last year, started strong and keeps getting better. Another former Oregon Duck, he has height (6-foot-7) and a nose for the ball, traits that can’t be taught. If those six make it, what becomes of second-year man Damion Square, a blue-collar type who made the squad last year as an undrafted rookie from Alabama? Last year’s seventh round Joe Kruger, who is also 6-7 and has made some plays in the preseason, might be a practice squad stash – but one that other teams would have on their radar. And they have likely seen enough positives from fifth-round pick Taylor Hart not to cast him aside easily. Villanueva, away from football for several years, is also trying to learn a new position (at 6-9, he mostly played receiver at Army before going into active duty). All in all, he has held his own and shown hustle. He is worth the practice squad, but the question would be if he would ever crack this young lineup anyway. Ditto for rookie free agent Francis Mays, who is also 6-9.
- Linebacker: Linebacker and secondary come down to numbers and how to get to 53 with what’s left. Behind inside linebackers DeMeco Ryans and Mychal Kendricks, perhaps only one backup is needed. With Phillips gone, it leaves three guys – Casey Matthews, Najee Goode and Emmanuel Acho – in the mix. All have NFL experience. Matthews, with the Oregon advantage, is also from the famous football-playing Matthews family, and pedigree is weighed heavily in the NFL. To that end, Acho is the brother of Arizona’s Sam Acho. Goode was trusted to start last year and seems to be the most athletic, but the fact is that – like backup receiver – none seem like burgeoning talents. The Eagles have worked Travis Long, a head-hunting outside linebacker, on the inside recently. On the outside, behind starters Connor Barwin and Trent Cole, there is also a logjam. They are locked into work-in-progress first-rounder Marcus Smith, and Brandon Graham has played too well to ignore. He remains the most trusted to start in the event of injury to Barwin or Cole. Then there is case of Braman, who looks lost in the defense but is needed on special teams. And what of Jake Knott, who is suspend for the first games? Unlike Lane Johnson, he has barely practiced because of injury. Cut him now with an injury settlement or wait until four weeks into the season and survey the landscape then?
- Secondary: The biggest issue in the secondary is safety, as the five corners – Williams, Fletcher, Boykin, Carroll and rookie Jaylen Watkins – are set in stone (sorry Curtis Marsh fans). Realistically, only four safeties are needed but five names are in the mix. Neither Nate Allen nor Earl Wolff has claimed the starting job alongside Malcolm Jenkins. From the naked eye, it would seem that Wolff is more active and willing to stick his nose into the fray while working with the second team than Allen is with the first. Hard to say what the coaches see, but they seem to remain supporters of Allen. Chris Maragos is similar to Braman, in that he was signed to primarily help on special teams. However, he is a viable option to play some safety in a pinch. The Eagles also have fifth-round pick Ed Reynolds, who got a late start because he missed OTAs while finishing up his schooling at Stanford. Given that obstacle, he has shown up reasonably well, albeit in garbage time, of preseason games.
PREDICTION: Expect these 15 names on the cut list by Tuesday (*practice squad possibility): Spear (K), Murphy (WR) *Kinne (QB), Blake Annen (TE), Kadron Boone (WR), Roc Carmichael (CB), Josh Andrews (OG), Emil Igwenagu (TE), Josh Kaddu (LB), *Davon Morgan (S), *Quron Pratt (WR), Julian Vandervelde (C, injury settlement), Karim Barton (OL), Keelan Johnson (S) and *Wade Keliikipi (NG)
This analysis originally appeared at http://www.phillyphanatics.com
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