tr1 Posted September 9, 2005 Share Posted September 9, 2005 One big happy family...no mention of yesterday's WB development... :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: Andy Reid's job is made weightier by loss in Super Bowl, offseason filled with turbulence By LES BOWEN http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/sports/football/12598021.htm bowenl@phillynews.com ANDY REID lost a lot of weight this offseason, but it wasn't from worry over the soap-opera headlines his team was generating. The Eagles' coach has dropped more than 40 pounds, he said recently, because he felt he'd let his weight get away from him and needed to get it back under control. He saw a problem, he formulated a plan and he addressed it, in the same reasoned, matter-of-fact way Reid addresses all problems. As the Eagles prepare to open their 73rd season on Monday in Atlanta - the seventh season of the franchise's all-time winningest coach (71-37, including 7-5 in the playoffs) - there is little question about the team's talent level. On paper, this bunch certainly seems capable of returning to the Super Bowl and actually winning it. Middle linebacker Jeremiah Trotter said recently that this is the most talented defensive unit he has ever played on. The offense still has Donovan McNabb, Terrell Owens, Brian Westbrook and a solid, stable offensive line, regardless of how any of those people might be feeling about one another or the organization at any given time. The main question - other than what might happen with injuries, of course, which is always a big unknown entering a season - seems to be whether Reid can hold it all together. The Eagles have seen a fair amount of controversy over the past 3 years or so; there was Trotter's messy 2002 departure, the Duce Staley rift and holdout the next year, bad blood with standouts such as cornerback Bobby Taylor in 2003 and defensive tackle Corey Simon last year, running right up to Simon's recent release. This rift with Owens is different, though Reid says he is making a point of not handling it any differently. The Eagles already faced a formidable task to get to Super Bowl XL, given that no runner-up has returned the next season since the Bills in 1994, and no team has rebounded from losing to winning it in 1 year since the unbeaten 1972 Miami Dolphins. Owens has a much higher talent level and profile than any previous disgruntled Eagle. He seemingly can snap his fingers to summon cameras and sycophantic interviewers from ESPN whenever he feels the need to vent about any of the tangential issues that have sprung up around his displeasure over not getting a new contract. He presents the most serious threat to Reid's authority the coach has ever faced. Not that you would ever get that sense from talking to Reid about it. "I like T.O.," Reid said a few weeks ago, not long after he welcomed Owens back from a 1-week training-camp banishment that some observers felt would lead to the end of the wideout's Eagles career. Instead, Owens returned, apparently accepted Reid's terms for remaining on the team, and the situation stabilized. "I've enjoyed having him here... T.O., he's a very visible guy and a great player. Those things happen. That comes with the territory." Hey, planes circling the practice field trailing "T.O. Must Go" banners, the wide receiver calling his quarterback "a hypocrite" on national TV - these things happen. Just another day at the office. Reid said he doesn't worry about what Owens says on TV, or with whom he might or might not be speaking, as long as Reid and Owens are communicating. "T.O.'s a good person. I'm concerned about when T.O. and I are face-to-face and talking," Reid said. "Things happen in this business. You work through it, and that's what we did." Asked if this has been his most difficult offseason, Reid shrugged. "I look at it as part of the job," he said. "Tough is going one-on-one with a defensive lineman. This is just things that happen. Things get magnified a bit when you've been successful." Eagles players say that if any of this offseason's turmoil has really bothered their coach, they certainly haven't seen it. When Reid sent Owens home from training camp, defensive end N.D. Kalu found out about it by watching the news, he said. And having known the coach since 2001, Kalu understood why he'd been kept in the dark. "It sounds kind of cold or whatever, but it's business as usual," Kalu said. "Sending Terrell home from camp didn't have anything to do with me rushing the passer, so I guess Andy takes the approach, why bring it up to the whole team?" Free safety Brian Dawkins, an Eagle since 1996, hasn't been surprised to see Reid get Owens at least somewhat back in line, while not fueling any public spats. "He's handled it the way he's handled every situation since I've been here," Dawkins said. He said that meant he handled it privately, with little fuss from Reid's end. Trotter has had a long and complex relationship with Reid, parting angrily when the Eagles removed the franchise tag, returning 2 years later after reconciling with the coach on a cell-phone call. Trotter, who tried to function as an emissary between the team and Owens early in training camp, says he feels that he and the coach are alike in some respects. "He's a guy that he'll respect you if you show respect. That's kind of the way I am," Trotter said. "I think he values good leadership; that's important to him. He knows he can only do so much as a coach, that it takes good leaders on the team to go that extra mile." Trotter said he really came to appreciate Reid when he went to Washington and found the Redskins in chaos, under the much less discipline-oriented Steve Spurrier. "When you go through a situation like I was in in Washington, it makes you appreciate a coach who's strict on discipline," Trotter said. Offensive tackle Tra Thomas, like Owens, hired agent Drew Rosenhaus this past offseason, hoping to get his contract revised. That hasn't happened. But Thomas said he respects his coach as a former offensive lineman, which Thomas said translates into a "tough guy." Offensive linemen are accustomed to attending to mundane details, maintaining focus, dealing with what's right in front of them and letting the big picture take care of itself. "Some things you just can't help, so you just keep pushing," Thomas said. "You don't worry about it, you don't let it affect you. You do what you have to do." Reid said he doesn't worry about what might happen with Owens after, say, a nasty loss in November in which McNabb and Owens fail to connect very often. "It's like I told the team about the season: 'Don't worry about the Super Bowl so much that you forget the process,' " he said. "You don't control the future. You control right now, so take care of that." Obviously, you also don't control the past, but you can learn from it. Reid's shortcomings were on display in the team's 24-21 Super Bowl loss to New England; although McNabb's apparent problems recovering from a couple of hits had a lot to do with the Eagles' disastrous clock management down the stretch, improvising never has been Reid's strong suit. When the Patriots made adjustments at halftime of a 7-7 game, the Eagles faltered. Asked what he learned from studying film of the game, Reid said: "I could have done a better job there. We take a lot of pride in playing good defense; the second half, we could have done a better job there. I probably could have put our quarterback in a better position the last part of the game, with some better protections, to help him out." There was no epiphany, no magic key Reid uncovered that will help him get back to the Super Bowl and win it. The key is handling the details better. He has studied the fates of many of those Super Bowl losers who didn't return the next year. Other than injuries, there are few common factors, Reid said. "You need some luck in there," Reid said. "It's not just the injuries. I think continuity is a big part of it, maintaining continuity. Young guys stepping up and improving... There's always something that comes up that you have to overcome. You hope that everything lines up right, where you're relatively healthy and you move on. "I think the most important thing is that you go through the process and you work hard. If you do that, usually good things will happen." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Westbrook36 Posted September 9, 2005 Share Posted September 9, 2005 You are one pitiful human being. :laugh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerpsEagles Posted September 9, 2005 Share Posted September 9, 2005 You are one pitiful human being. :laugh: 3.....2.....1...... "typical Eagles fan respones.... don't like the message.. attack the messenger" there, I saved you the trouble tr1. YAWN. One trick pony says what ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JiggaManDC Posted September 9, 2005 Share Posted September 9, 2005 no team has rebounded from losing to winning it in 1 year since the unbeaten 1972 Miami Dolphins. Sounds like the Birds are goin' 19-0 to me! Thanks for the support tr1! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tr1 Posted September 9, 2005 Author Share Posted September 9, 2005 You guys should be happy I posted such an Eagles homer article... Luv you guys...no, really I do...but then again, I'm easily amused. :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Westbrook36 Posted September 9, 2005 Share Posted September 9, 2005 You guys should be happy I posted such an Eagles homer article...Luv you guys...no, really I do...but then again, I'm easily amused. :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: Sounds like the typical behavior of a troll. But, since you readily admit you are trolling, we'll just take every word you post in that light. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tr1 Posted September 9, 2005 Author Share Posted September 9, 2005 Sounds like the typical behavior of a troll. But, since you readily admit you are trolling, we'll just take every word you post in that light. I've said it before, just put me on ignore... Imagine, a Redskins fan posts things that aren't flattering to the Eagles...shocking! This article was posted verbatim. I noted that the Westbrook negotiations (or lack of negotiations) had been omitted. But is someone didn't know I was a Redskins fan, they might think it was posted by an Eagles fan! And the response to the article is an attack on me. I know you don't like to read negative things about he Eagles, TO and the Eagles FO, but I like to keep up and share with those who do, too. So stop breaking the rules...I know it must be frustrating... :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Westbrook36 Posted September 9, 2005 Share Posted September 9, 2005 totally retarded one, if a journalist was writing an article on Reid's weight loss, WHY ON EARTH would he mention the Westbrook contract situation? See, not everyone in the world has such a short attention span that they must flail out and go into their well rehearsed routine whenever another subject comes up. You don't want me to put you on ignore for you are a troll. You post simply to get a response from Eagles fans and then play the "What, me?" game when called on it. I'm not a psychiatrist but I'm a bright guy and I'd venture to say that there is something missing in your life when a 49 year old man must resort to internet messageboards for attention. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Number5 Posted September 9, 2005 Share Posted September 9, 2005 I've said it before, just put me on ignore...Imagine, a Redskins fan posts things that aren't flattering to the Eagles...shocking! This article was posted verbatim. I noted that the Westbrook negotiations (or lack of negotiations) had been omitted. But is someone didn't know I was a Redskins fan, they might think it was posted by an Eagles fan! And the response to the article is an attack on me. I know you don't like to read negative things about he Eagles, TO and the Eagles FO, but I like to keep up and share with those who do, too. So stop breaking the rules...I know it must be frustrating... :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: Why are you crying now? "Daddy tell the bad people to stop messing with me!" Come duke.......you are really running the rules thing into the ground. There was no such personal attack by my fellow "700 Level" resident! So stop playing the MAN who CRIED WOLF already! Your act is really running thin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tr1 Posted September 9, 2005 Author Share Posted September 9, 2005 You don't want me to put you on ignore for you are a troll. You post simply to get a response from Eagles fans and then play the "What, me?" game when called on it. I'm not a psychiatrist but I'm a bright guy and I'd venture to say that there is something missing in your life when a 49 year old man must resort to internet messageboards for attention. LOL! You really should spend less time reading my posts! :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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