Meanwhile, Vick managed to NOT throw an interception or fumble the football against Atlanta, with 21/35 for 191 yards passing and one TD (with three sacks taken for -13 yards) - but the Eagles lost 30-17 anyway, even without gifts from Vick to the other team. During the loss, DeSean Jackson (eight for 5/59/0), Jason Avant (seven for 4/45/0), Jeremy Maclin (ten for 6/33/0) and Brent Celek (five for 3/32/0) led the team in receiving. LeSean McCoy (three for 3/22/1) handled the TD for Vick last week.
Against the generous Saints, Vick should have a standout game in week nine.
Drew Brees got braked by the Broncos' D in week eight, managing 22/42 for 213 yards passing, with two TDs and one interception, with one sack taken for -12 yards. It was the first time over the past three week that Brees didn't throw for four TDs in a game - he's still one of the hottest NFL quarterbacks in the land despite the rather pedestrian outing at Denver. Jimmy Graham (10 for 5/63/1 receiving) led the team now that he's back to health, while Marques Colston also saw 10 balls for 5/63/0 receiving - Darren Sproles (nine for 7/56/1) was the other New Orleans player over 25 yards receiving last week.
The Eagles' pass D didn't get better under new coordinator Todd Bowles, in fact they were worse than usual with 22/29 for 246 net yards allowed, with three passing TDs given up and no interceptions generated. The Eagles did get two sacks for -17 yards, but they lost 30-17 anyway. To date, Philadelphia averages 229.1 net yards passing allowed per game (14th in the NFL), with 10 pass TDs allowed vs. seven interceptions (tied for 13th in the NFL) and just nine sacks (31st) generated.
LeSean McCoy scored twice last week despite not going over 100 yards combined (16/45/1 rushing with 3/22/1 receiving) - he's gold most every Sunday.The Saints' pass D is dreadful, so McCoy should see good results as a receiver out of the backfield this week. In the rushing phase, the Saints are equally vulnerable, averaging an astronomic 170.1 yard rushing allowed per game, with nine rushing scores allowed to date (second-most in the NFL). Last week, Denver gashed this unit for 41/225/1 on the ground. Enough said.
This is a great matchup for McCoy and the Eagles' offense in general.
The inept rushing attack of the Saints was again on display in week eight - 17/51/0 rushing for the team. Pierre Thomas was, as usual, the most effective runner, with 8/43/0 rushing (with 2/6/0 receiving), but the Saints continue to waste carries on Mark Ingram (3/7/0 rushing last week) while Darren Sproles was held to 4/-1/0 rushing by the Broncos (with nine targets for 7/56/1 receiving, though).
The Eagles' defense didn't magically improve under their new coordinator, and the Falcons ran for 37/146/0 last week. To date, the Eagles rank 17th in the NFL averaging 110.4 yards rushing allowed per game, but they do toughen at the goal line with just two rushing scores given up to date. We'll see if they can tighten things up in week nine.
GAME PREDICTION: GUYS I'M GONNA BACK THE EAGLES HERE COMING OFF AN AFTER BYE WEEK LOSS. WHICH ALMOST NEVER HAPPENS WITH AN ANDY REID COACHED TEAM. I STILL EXPECT THE IGGLES TO TURN IT AROUND THIS YEAR. THE SAINTS ARE IN COMPLETE DISARRAY ON DEFENSE AND ON OFFENSE THEY JUST DONT HAVE THAT EXTRA KICK WITHOUT COACH SEAN PAYTON ON THE FIELD. THERE HAS ALSO BEEN REPORTS THAT PAYTON WILL NOT BE BACK NEXT YEAR WITH THE SAINTS AND THAT HE WILL MOVE ON POSSIBLY TO DALLAS NEXT YEAR WHERE HE RECENTLY BOUGHT A HOME. FOLKS THE SAINTS ARE A MESS AND I JUST DONT SEE THE MOTIVATION HERE IN THIS GAME. THE EAGLES STILL HAVE ALOT TO PLAY FOR AND I BELIEVE TONIGHT THEY GET THE W HERE ON THE ROAD BEHIND A SOLID DEFENSIVE OUTPUT.
PHILADELPHIA EAGLES +3
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