Sexy Rexy No Longer Starter In Chicago

The Chicago Bears' offense is ranked 30th in the NFL thanks to Rex Grossman, who has thrown 1 touchdown compared to 6 interceptions and compiled a quarterback rating (45.2) that is less than the amount of points the Philadelphia Eagles scored last week (56).

So in comes the 10 year veteran Brian Griese. The 32 year old quarterback has started for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Denver Broncos, and the Miami Dolphins. He has passed for 16,564 yards with 104 touchdowns and 80 interceptions and a 63 percent completion rate.

When asked by reporters regarding the status of Griese starting beyond week 4, Lovie Smith said, "As far as week to week, no. We don't do things that way. Rex wasn't under week to week: 'I have to play a certain way or I'll lose my job.' I always let a player play for a period of time to show us exactly what we are. That's how we'll look at it from here on. Brian is our quarterback. The starting rotation has been established now."

Rex Grossman's contract is up at the end of the year. Does this mean the end of the Sexy Rexy era in Chicago? Maybe or maybe not but the writing is sure on the wall.

Welcome Back Donovan McNabb

Put those jerseys on next week!

The Philadelphia Eagles whipped the Detroit Lions 56-21, no thanks to a career day for Donovan McNabb. McNabb threw for 381 yards including 4 touchdown passes, 3 of those going to Kevin Curtis. Curtis had 221 yards receiving and 3 touchdowns. And finally, Brian Westbrook looked like Marshall Faulk in racking up 100 yards on the ground and 111 yards receiving.

The Eagles who came into the game 0-2, had no offensive identity. McNabb had only 1 touchdown pass to go with a 68.8 QB rating until he posted a perfect 158.3 rating this afternoon. Today though McNabb looked as sharp as ever. Marty Mornhinweg did an excellent job today of balancing the offensive attack that took some pressure off McNabb to make plays and allow guys like Kevin Curtis to step up.

On the opposite side of the ball, the Eagles defense played well considering that Brian Dawkins and Lito Sheppard were unavailable. The front 4 were responsible for 7 of the Eagles 9 sacks. Trent Cole led the way with 3 sacks while Broderick Bunkley lived up to his 16th overall selection with 2.

The Eagles play the New York Giants in the Meadowlands next Sunday which would give them a chance to get to .500 before their 5th week bye. The Giants will be coming off a close win over the Washington Redskins that improved their record to 1-2. Someone will be coming out of that game with a .500 record and if the Eagles offense is still clicking like today, the Giants are going to be in a world of hurt.


Look forward to tomorrow's podcast in which me and Jason will rundown NFL and NCAA football scores along with another top new stories.

McNabb Sounds Off On HBO

During an interview on HBO's Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, Donovan McNabb told James Brown that African-American quarterbacks face much more scrutiny than their white counterparts.

"There's not that many African-American quarterbacks, so we have to do a little bit extra. Because the percentage of us playing this position, which people didn't want us to play ... is low, so we do a little extra."

When James Brown brought up white quarterbacks such as Carson Palmer and Peyton Manning, McNabb tells Brown that they aren't scrutinized like he is. While I do agree that Palmer doesn't get enough flak I can't say I agree that Manning was never scrutinized. Manning had people yelling into his ear ever since he got out of Tennessee that he couldn't win the big game. And then he did last year.

Personally I think McNabb is shooting himself in the foot. While I don't necessarily disagree with him about the treatment of black QB's, his decision to voice his opinion on national television wasn't a great idea. Especially considering that the Eagles are now 0-2 entering the third week of the season. It'd be different if McNabb had played well in those 2 games but he played poorly.

McNabb, my advice to you is to keep your mouth shut, start believing in your arm, and once again start playing like the quarterback that led us to a Super Bowl and 4 straight NFC championship games. Hell, we wanted the Eagles to draft Ricky Williams instead of you, and he was black! We don't care whether you're black, white, purple, or orange. Just lead us to the promised land.

The Eagles Fall To 0-2

After a lackluster performance on opening day against the Green Bay Packers, the Philadelphia Eagles lost to their home opener to division rival Washington Redskins 20-12 last night on Monday Night Football.

Donovan McNabb once again looked rusty in the first half while completing on half of his passes. Entering the second half McNabb looked much better but still overthrew receivers and beyond his receivers. For the second straight game he averaged less than 6 yard per attempt.

What was probably the most obvious display of McNabb's inaccuracy came on 3rd down when the Eagles were driving to tie the game in the 4th quarter. Kevin Curtis lined up right of McNabb and was in single coverage. Curtis ran a flag pattern and broke for the right sideline and was wide open but McNabb threw at least 2 yards ahead of him.

Not all the blame can be put on McNabb though as Ron Jaworski pointed out during last night's game. The Eagles receivers are not getting separation from DB's. They are getting held up at the line of scrimmage and by the time Donovan makes his 3 step drop the receivers are only 5 yards down field.

Once again the defense played well but didn't seem to get that much pressure on 2nd year starter Jason Campbell. The Eagles defense finished with only once sack against a team in which had 2 reserves on the offensive line.

Third down conversions were hard to come by as well. The Eagles finished the game converting only 4 of 16 3rd down conversions while the Redskins converted 8 of 15.

These were 2 games in which I thought the Eagles were going to sleepwalk through and maybe the team had the same attitude. The last time the Eagles were 0-2 was in 2003 when they went to the NFC championship game. For some reason though I don't think that the Eagles will be so lucky to make it in 2007. The season is young but the future looks bleak.

East Coast Bias- September 17, 2007

JASON MISH IS BACK!!

Today's Headlines

- NFL Rundown - Week 2

- College Football Rundown

- MLB Awards Predictions

- The Weekly Phil


On tap for the September 17th podcast of East Coast Bias we start with a rundown of all the NFL games on Sunday plus the preview of the Monday Night game, Eagles vs. Redskins. We then review the week that was in College Football with a roundup of the action in the Top 25. We hand out the hardware as we predict baseball regular season awards in our third segment and end the show with the crowd-pleaser, The Weekly Phil.

Eagles Won Super Bowl XXXIX?

Eagles corner back Sheldon Brown was a huge part of the Eagles success in 2005 when they went to the Super Bowl to play the AFC champion New England Patriots. After losing the Lombardi trophy to the Pats Brown was convinced that they just had a better game plan and executed better than the Eagles defense.

After "Tape Gate", Brown isn't so sure anymore. "Do I think about it? Mmm hmmm," said Brown. "It's crazy. I just don't know how far back it goes. Something's not right about that." Eagles defensive leader Brian Dawkins isn't even sure what to believe anymore, "Now there's always going to be questions about the situation," Dawkins said in an interview on Thursday. "Was it great adjustments at halftime or what?"

Even Pittsburgh receiver Hines Ward threw in his two cents and stated that he had suspected the Patriots in 2001 during the AFC Championship game. But, much like any other case tried in court, no one has any hard evidence to back up these allegations. Eagles running back Brian Westbrook said it's all water under the bridge, " For me to think back two years ago about something they may or may not have done, it's not worth my time."

After only gaining 45 yards in the first quarter of Super Bowl 39 Brown said that he noticed a difference in the Patriots play calling. Almost every time the Eagles blitzed the Patriots would follow suit and throw a screen. Over the next 3 quarters the Patriots gained 286 yards and a 24-21 victory. "I was like, 'Man, I never saw that many screens,' " Brown said.

Leave it to the Daily News in Philadelphia to really blow thing out of porportion though, "Counterfeit RING: Spy Scandal Helps Explain Birds' Super Bowl Loss." Donovan McNabb said that the suspicions were overblown. "One thing people are forgetting is that even if you have the answers to the test, you still have to take the test," he said. "If they have an idea of what's coming, those guys still have to be able to execute the play."

For a city who hasn't won a major championship in 25 years we've become fantastic conspiracy theorists. Maybe Roger Goodell will make the Patriots forfeit their rings......? Maybe when pigs fly.

Eli Manning Sidelined For A Month

A slightly separated shoulder will keep New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning on the sidelines for at least one month. Some people feared Eli had torn his labrum and would require season ending surgery. Giants fans were quick to exhale when an MRI showed no such damage.

In addition to Manning the injury bug also hit top defensive end Osi Umenyiora, and the Giants' new starting running back, Brandon Jacobs. Both players suffered knee injuries and are day to day.

Jared Lorenzen, aka Big Country (6'4" 285 lbs.), will start in place of Eli when the Giants host the Green Bay Packers. Fourth year starter Derrick Ward will start for Jacobs with Reuben Droughns getting more time as his backup.

Other Injuries Around The NFL

• Kevin Everett- Buffalo Bills / Suffered a severe spinal injury. Prayers and wishes that he makes a speedy recovery.
  

• Ko Simpson- Buffalo Bills / Broke his left ankle and is out indefinitely.

• Jason Webster- Buffalo Bills / Broke his forearm and is out indefintely.

• Mike Brown- Chicago Bears / Suffers a season-ending knee injury and placed on IR for the 3rd time in 4 years.

• Dusty Dvoracek- Chicago Bears / Suffered a season-ending knee injury.

• Orlando Pace- St. Louis Rams / Will miss the rest of the season with a torn right rotator cuff.

• Carnell "Cadillac" Williams- Tampa Bay Buccaneers / Bruised ribs and is questionable for next Sunday.

• Jason Ferguson- Dallas Cowboys / Tore his right biceps tendon and will miss the rest of the season.

• Lito Sheppard- Philadelphia Eagles / Out at least one game with a sprained knee ligament.

• Chester Taylor- Minnesota Vikings / Bruised hip and is day to day.
  

• Jon Jansen- Washington Redskins / Dislocated his right ankle and is out for the rest of the season.

Embarassing Loss For The Philadelphia Eagles

I can't believe I am about to say this, but Reno Mahe, if you're still around, please come back to the team. The Philadelphia Eagles lost yesterday's game to the Green Bay Packers 16-13 no thanks to special teams errors and a poor performance from Donovan McNabb. I will however give McNabb a pass only because the guy blew his knee out and still isn't 100% healthy. Watching him throw for under a 50% completion percentage was tough to stomach though.

Now, let's get into the special teams of the Eagles. Greg Lewis had 0 regular season punt returns prior to yesterday's game and was eventually replaced by J.R. Reed, who also had never returned a punt return in pre season or the regular season. Both players fumbled punt returns that led to a Green Bay Packers touchdown and a field goal.

Many fans and media alike are scratching their heads after yesterday's special teams blunders, especially after Jeremy Bloom, whom the Eagles cut, had returned a majority of the punts during the pre season. And while he didn't perform all that well, he at least held on to the ball.

The only good thing that one could take from this game is that the Eagles defense played extremely well. The Packers were held to 215 total yards, rookie running back Brandon Jackson averaged 2.7 yards per carry, and future Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre completed 23-42 passes for 206 yards, an INT and a QB rating of 58.2.

The Eagles better get it together when they play the Washington Redskins next week or they might be looking at going 0-2 to start the season.

Public Relations and Jeremiah Trotter

Mike Vick today put in his guilty plea and could spend anywhere from 1 to 5 years in prison. The most exciting athlete in football probably will never play a snap but that doesn't mean he won't have an effect on the field.

When the Philadelphia Eagles parted ways with the 4-time pro bowl middle linebacker, fans and players alike were stunned. Current starting quaterback Donovan McNabb added his own two cents during a press conference, "You get answers, you're going to get answers," he said, "but it's all in the answers you accept. I mean, what's really the true answer? You talk to players that go through it and they move on (to a) given team. You ask questions to some people around the organization, but as a player, and knowing that a player has been released and you're still trying to find out why, you never really get a full answer of why."

Perhaps the answer is something no one wanted to hear. According to sources I have spoken with, Jeremiah Trotter was apparently involved with dog fighting. Whether this is true or not is truly speculation of course. The sources said that the news (if true) would break sometime next week. Even if this information regarding Jeremiah Trotter turns out to be false other players stand to weeded out from the NFL. According to federal documents, Vick will cooperate in full with federal prosecutors to tell them everything he knows. Let the snitching begin.

The Philadelphia Eagles Release Jeremiah Trotter

After meeting with head coach Andy Reid, Trotter learned that the Eagles would be doing a youth movement at the linebacker position. The 9 year veteran and 4 time pro bowler will be seeking work elsewhere and probably will find a home due to his affordable salary ($2.6 million). With the drafting of Stewart Bradley this offseason, the improving health of Chris Gocong, and the emergence of Omar Gaither last season it was time for the Eagles to move on. In 131 games with the Eagles (1998-2001, 2004-2006) and Redskins (2002-2003), Trotter has 1,184 tackles, 12½ sacks and nine interceptions. He has notched 100 or more tackles in seven seasons, and 150+ tackles five times, and had 202 tackles in 1999.

Your intangibles will be missed and every Eagles fan loved you Trot.

East Coast Bias - August 13, 2007

Today's Headlines

- Tiger Gets Lucky 13th Major

- Yankees Playoff Chances

- Breakout Players in the NFL in 07'

The Weekly Phil

- Phillies Win Braves Series : Eagles First Preseason Game


On today's show we discuss the PGA Championship and Tiger's victory at Southern Hills. We move to the diamond to talk about the Yankees playoff hopes. Brendan and I pick some breakout players to watch for in the upcoming NFL season. And finally, we wrap the show up with The Weekly Phil.

East Coast Bias - August 3, 2007

Today's Headlines

- MLB Rundown:

Yankees, AL Central Race, Braves

- NFL Training Camp News:

Strahan, Moss, and Culpepper

The Weekly Phil

- Eagles Training Camp

- Phillies Wild Card Chances


On the podcast today, we start with news from Major League Baseball. We discuss the Yankees wild card hopes, the Indians-Tigers race, and the trade deadlines moves of the Braves. We then switch to the gridiron and get into some of the big stories from the NFL for our next topic. Strahan's possible retirement, Moss's fit with the Patriots, and Culpepper signing with the Raiders are the topics we debate. And finally, Brendan and I talk Eagles/Phillies news in a segment we like to call The Weekly Phil.

I'm An Atheist, But Not When It Comes to Sports

People in the world of sports happen to be some of the most susceptible when it comes to believing in the supernatural. Particularly, sport fans, are engrossed in curses. Whether it was Red Sox fans and the "Curse of the Bambino" or Philadelphia sports fans blame (including me) their lack of a major sports championship since the Sixers swept the Lakers in 1983 on the fact that the downtown skyline grew taller than William Penn in 1987 when One Liberty Place skyscraper went up. Coincidentally that curse is called "The Curse of William Penn". It doesn't necessarily end there however. Fans may even go so far as to have a shrine, like the one that Eagles fan had to Terrell Owens in those ESPN commercials. And let's be honest too Eagles fans, we had something similar to that.

Sport curses range from the absurd to just plain silly. In 1945, William "Billy Goat" Sianis tried to bring his pet goat, Murphy, with him into Wrigley Field for Game 4 of the World Series. Wrigley ushers at the game said the goat was too smelly and told Sianis he had to leave the stadium. Sianis then promptly cast a "goat curse" on the Chicago Cubs by saying, "Cubs, they not gonna win anymore". The Cubs lost the 1945 World Series to the Detroit Tigers and haven't made it to a World Series since. Cubs fans now refer to curse as the "The Billy Goat Curse".

One of the most well known curses is the "Madden Curse". The "Madden Curse" has allegedly claimed 10 victims since the video game started putting athletes on the cover instead of John Madden. That list of athletes includes the likes of Barry Sanders (abruptly retired in 1999 a week before training camp), Eddie George (never averaged more than 3.4 yards per carry after 2000), and Mike Vick (fractured right fibula during preseason game, only played in 5 games).

What is it about sports that make people who may not necessarily be religious suddenly start believing in a high power that is affecting their sports team? For me there always has to be a reason for something. I mean, Billy King can't really suck that bad at being a GM. There's just no way, someone or something has to be causing the man to throw money at over the hill veterans and unproven rookies. That's just one example of many in which I have blamed something involving Philadelphia sports on a higher power.

Maybe in essence sports is my religion. I mean, I can't be the only one who has some inane rituals in order to increase my team's chances of winning. For example, when the Eagles went to the Super Bowl, all the playoff games leading up to the game I ordered the same thing every time at the bar, tipped the waitress the same every time, and wore the same jersey/shorts/underwear. It's those little things that we tell ourselves will make a difference when our team, in this case the Eagles, take the field. And as always, in this case especially, we find some excuse whenever these rituals fail, as though it were not the will of the sports gods.

Much like how different regions of the world have their own religions, people from different cities of course have their favorite team based on where they live. And in cases, regardless of where they live, they attribute their love to a sports franchise because their family follows them and they grew up watching them. I suppose that if we must have a religion, sports is not the worst choice. There have been no crusades, inquisitions, witch hunts, or terrorist attacks associated with sports. And while I don't condone it, it is still acceptable to marry someone who is the fan of another team and no one will burn in hell for supporting the New York Mets or the New York Giants even though they should.......just kidding. Go ahead and share your rituals and the like.