The Real Difference between Philadelphia Eagles & Dallas Cowboys

We have all heard the phrase “If it’s not broke, don’t fix it”.  Well on the flip side, how about the phrase “If we do not learn from history then we are doomed to repeat it”?  Week Two of the NFL season embodied those phrases in the matchup between the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys.  Two long standing rivals whose organizations are in very different situations.

The Cowboys let their Pro Bowl Running Back, Demarco Murray, leave after leading the NFL in Rushing Yards.  People scoffed at them when the team put their faith in young Joseph Randle and oft-injured veteran Darren McFadden to carry the load of the running game in Murray’s absence. Also, the Cowboys have Lance Dunbar as their third down situation back. The Cowboys took this leap of faith because they have seen this story before and have spent the last few years building one of the top offensive lines in the NFL through the draft. Tyron Smith, Zack Miller, and Travis Frederick were all drafted when the so called “experts” said the Cowboys had other options to pick in the first round of the NFL Draft each year.

The Cowboys invested in depth by picking up the discarded former first round pick Brandon Weeden to be their backup Quarterback. Before Weeden got to Dallas his career statistics were 55 percent completion percentage with a 26 interceptions thrown in two seasons with the Cleveland Browns. In six games playing Quarterback for the Cowboys, Weeden has a 79 percent completion percentage with four touchdowns and only two interceptions.

This is the same Cowboys organization that invested resources into the offensive line and the backup Quarterback during the run of success in the 1990’s.  Those teams had Steve Beuerlein and Bernie Kosar as backups in case anything happened to their future Hall of Fame Quarterback Troy Aikman. Also the tactical moves by Head Coach Jimmy Johnson to build an offensive line with Pro Bowl selections Larry Allen, Erik Williams, and Nate Newton. Replicating the past with unheralded personnel moves such as these have put the Cowboys in a position as leaders in the NFC East with a 2-0 record to start the season.

On the other side of the field Sunday you have the Philadelphia Eagles who for the second straight week played underwhelming on both sides of the ball. The Eagles came into the season with high expectations after an offseason in which they overhauled the roster. The Eagles dished out 104 million dollars worth of contracts to Byron Maxwell, Demarco Murray and Ryan Mathews. Over the last couple years they sent packing Pro Bowlers Desean Jackson, Lesean McCoy, and Evan Mathis in what 20-20 hindsight says was all about Head Coach Chip Kelly not wanting certain types of personalities on his team. Kelly also traded away Quarterback Nick Foles to the St. Louis Rams for former Heisman Trophy winner and 1st round draft pick Sam Bradford to be the Eagles new starting Quarterback.

Despite all the money spent and numerous personnel moves, the Eagles have played below average for the first two weeks of the 2015 NFL season. The Eagles roster looks good on paper, but so did that 2011 Philadelphia Eagles “Dream Team” (as nicknamed by then backup Quarterback Vince Young) that had Pro Bowl offseason acquisitions Nnamdi Asomugha, Cullen Jenkins, and Jason Babin to bolster the defense.  This was to match with an offense led by Quarterback Michael Vick who re-signed that offseason with the Eagles a contract that was 40 million dollars guaranteed. Tens of millions of dollars spent to build a winning team that finished the season 8-8.

The reality is that the splashy and headline grabbing offseason moves don’t win football games. The Washington Redskins, Oakland Raiders, New York Jets, and Miami Dolphins are franchises that have won Super Bowls decades ago but did not learn from the past.  Instead these franchises have spent the last 25 years making the multi-million big free agent signings, splashy Head Coach hires, and trades for big name players.  But none of those moves have helped these teams win a Super Bowl.  In fact, only one of those franchises (the 2002 Oakland Raiders) has even reached the Super Bowl.

On the other hand, franchises such as the New England Patriots, Pittsburgh Steelers, Green Bay Packers, Baltimore Ravens, and New York Giants have put together teams that have not only reached the big game multiple times, but have won the Super Bowl multiple times over the last 20 years. These organizations have built their teams through calculated offseason signings that better the team while using the draft to build a team not just find a star. When these organizations do make mistakes, they do what is necessary to correct course, whether that be fire a Head Coach or unload a player via release or trade.  No one gets every move right, but it’s the smart organizations that learn from their mistakes and move forward to better the team for the current season and the future.

Since Chip Kelly became the Philadelphia Eagles Head Coach he has not been building a team. Instead he has been treating players like interchangeable parts to see if they fit in his system. He uses the draft to select players he thinks can fit his game plan instead of properly weighing the skill sets of these young men. When he drafted Linebacker Marcus Smith, Cornerback Jaylen Watkins and Quarterback Matt Barkley it was never to truly develop these players but instead to plug them into his system based on how he saw their potential fit. In 2015 neither Watkins nor Barkley are on the team anymore while Smith is buried on the depth chart.

Kelly has let go of players such as Wide Receiver Jeremy Maclin, Cornerback Brandon Boykin, Running Back Lesean McCoy, along with offensive lineman Evan Mathis and Todd Herremans because he claims these players did not fit “his” system. Interesting how these players are all playing for new teams in 2015 and they “fit” into other teams who have playoff aspirations.

The Eagles made a splashy move by bringing Kelly in to run their team but Kelly also has brought the wrong mentality with him. College Football has similarities to the Pro game but there is one major difference: while in college you recruit players to plug and play into your system, in the NFL you have to build a team and modify your system for the talent you have on the roster. The Cowboys after spending the first half of the 2000’s learning the hard way, have gone back to the 1990’s Jimmy Johnson model and have built a team. Free agent acquisitions are meant to add a player with a needed skill set to a team, not use signings and trades to build a roster.  We can see what works in New England, Green Bay, Seattle, Pittsburgh, and Baltimore, yet the Philadelphia Eagles insist on re-inventing the wheel.

This is the second straight Eagles Head Coach who is an “offensive guru” who has come to “change the culture”. The media buys into the story line while overlooking the facts. Both Chip Kelly and Andy Reid were in their previous jobs for short periods of time. Both men had never been NFL Head Coaches or Coordinators. Neither Kelly nor Reid had spent time working with salary cap restrictions but were asked to be major decision makers in building NFL rosters. Andy Reid and Chip Kelly had limited experience hiring coaches to work under them (In Oregon Kelly inherited most of his staff from retiring Head Coach Mark Bellotti).

So again, I re-state my opening points, “If it’s not broken, don’t fix it”, and, “If we do not learn from history, we are doomed to repeat it.”  No matter how much we debate the merits of team’s offseason activities, it still comes down to winning on the field each week in the NFL.  It’s looking like a long season for the Philadelphia Eagles and a season still ripe with potential for success for the Dallas Cowboys.

2015 College Football Preview: PAC-12

The 2015 College Football Season is this week and this will be the second year of the College Football Four-Team Playoff format.  This week I will be giving my preview of the major teams and players to watch for in 2015.  One of the elements that makes the College game so exciting is the unpredictability. There’s no preseason, always new players coming in as freshman, and past players leaving via graduation or early exit for the NFL.  Also, I enjoy watching College Football for the many different styles of offenses and defenses run on the field each week.  Unlike the NFL in which only a few different schemes are utilized each week, the College ranks over the last few decades have seen so many variants of styles and we the viewers have seen some of the greatest players succeed with these unique game plans.

Today I will highlight teams from the PAC-12 Football Conference

University of Southern California

2015 Projected Record: 9-3

Win/Loss Plus-Minus Variable: +2/-2

Make or Break Games: 9/19 vs. Stanford; 9/26 @ Arizona State, 10/17 at Notre Dame, 10/31 @ California; 11/21 @ Oregon; 11/28 vs UCLA

Synopsis: USC is coming out from the shadow of NCAA sanctions a couple years ago and has Head Coach Steve Sarkisian entering his second season as leader of the Football Team.  It has taken a few years for USC to recover in recruiting to gain more depth on their team.  As a result, they are considered one of the most talented teams in the PAC-12.  The biggest problem is that there are many talented players on this team that are not as battle tested as their opponents.   Will starting Quarterback Cody Kessler be able to put the team on his shoulders and carry them to a conference title?  Or will the team run head long into the perfect storm and come up short thanks to missed opportunities?  Playing at Oregon and Arizona State will definitively not be easy in-conference matchups.

University of Oregon

2015 Projected Record: 9-3

Win/Loss Plus-Minus Variable: +1/-2

Make or Break Games: 9/12 @ Michigan State; 10/29 @ Arizona State; 11/14 @ Stanford; 11/21 vs USC

Synopsis: Oregon, over the last several years, has raised their national profile with multiple runs at a National Title, but they have not been able to win it all.  Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Mariota is now in the NFL and Head Coach Mark Helfrich is looking for a new starter at Quarterback.  Vernon Adams, who transferred from Eastern Washington, has taken the starting job from long time Mariota backup Jeff Lockie.  Adams, a dynamic athlete with great arm talent, has the potential to put up big numbers in the Oregon Ducks fast paced offensive attack.  But can he be anywhere as efficient as Mariota was last season?  The biggest reason Oregon was able to compete for the PAC-12 Title the last few years was because Marcus minimized mistakes and kept his team in games.  In the past Vernon Adams has been known to be a risk taker and overthink when in the moment.  If Vernon Adams makes too many mistakes, I am not sure the Oregon defense is built to overcome a mistake prone offense.     

Arizona State University

2015 Projected Record: 10-2

Win/Loss Plus-Minus Variable: +1/-3

Make or Break Games: 9/5 vs Texas A&M; 9/26 vs USC; 10/3 @ UCLA; 10/29 vs Oregon; 11/21 vs Arizona; 11/28 @ California

Synopsis: 2015 could be a great year or a disappointing season for the Arizona State Sun Devils.  The good news is they play three of their toughest games at home.  The bad news is they play two high powered offenses away from home (Texas A&M and Cal).  Mike Bercovici is entering his first full season as the team’s starting Quarterback, having to lead a high powered offense against a tough schedule of opposition.  The defense may be what makes or breaks this team, with one of the best secondary units in the conference.  They will be starting two Defensive Backs that could finish the season top three at their positions, but will that be enough to slow down high powered offenses like Oregon, Cal, Texas A&M, USC, and Arizona?  

University of Arizona

2015 Projected Record: 8-4

Win/Loss Plus-Minus Variable: +3/-1

Make or Break Games: 9/26 vs UCLA; 10/3 @ Stanford; 11/7 @ USC; 11/21 @ Arizona State

Synopsis: Arizona may have the best defensive player, Linebacker Scooby Wright, and the most underrated player, Quarterback Anu Solomon, in the PAC-12 coming into 2015.  But can these transcendent talents really carry Arizona to a conference title?  Maybe, although their underwhelming out of conference schedule may help inflate their record and team statistics.  It is much easier to be a dominant team against average competition than against teams with comparable or better talent on the field.  Arizona has pulled off some big wins the last three seasons under the guidance of Head Coach Rich Rodriguez, but I am not sure they have enough talent around their superstars to take that next step to be a contender for the College Football Final Four Playoff. 

University of Stanford

2015 Projected Record: 8-4

Win/Loss Plus-Minus Variable: +2/-1

Make or Break Games: 9/19 @ USC; 10/3 vs Arizona; 10/15 vs UCLA; 11/14 vs Oregon

Synopsis: Stanford has had one of the top ten defenses in the country the last few years.  But this year, they go into the season with only two starters in place from last season.  This major turnover on defense puts Stanford in the difficult position of going head to head with high powered offenses without the experience on defense to fully handle what is coming at them.  Also, can their offense really put up enough points to keep up with offenses like Oregon, USC, Cal, and Arizona?

University of California-Los Angeles

2015 Projected Record: 9-3

Win/Loss Plus-Minus Variable: +2/-3

Make or Break Games: 9/26 @ Arizona; 10/3 vs Arizona State; 10/15 @ Stanford; 11/21 @ Utah; 11/28 @ USC

Synopsis: UCLA returns 18 starters from last year’s squad, so they are one of the top teams in the conference in terms of upperclassmen on the roster.  On top of that, their starting Quarterback Josh Rosen is one of the most talked about QB prospects entering college football in over fifteen years.  If UCLA plays up to their potential and Rosen is half as good as predicted, this team could be the PAC-12 champions.  That is a lot of ifs though; UCLA has one of the toughest inter-conference schedules in the country.  Of their away games, three of them are versus nationally ranked opponents (Stanford, Arizona, and USC) while home games versus Arizona State and California will be no easy task.  If UCLA can weather the storms of their tough schedule, they may land themselves in among the Final Four teams of this season’s College Football Playoffs.

University of California- Berkeley

2015 Projected Record: 8-4

Win/Loss Plus-Minus Variable: +3/-1

Make or Break Games: 9/19 @ Texas; 10/10 @ Utah; 10/22 @ UCLA; 10/31 vs USC; 11/7 @ Oregon; 11/21 @ Stanford; 11/28 vs Arizona State

Synopsis: I purposely listed California at the end of my highlighted team list for the PAC-12 because this team holds the destiny of the 2015 PAC-12 Conference champion with the result of their play this season.  The Cal Golden Bears will have as their starting Quarterback potentially the top QB in the conference this season, Jared Goff, who will be orchestrating one of the most high-powered offenses in the country.  Yes, that right, not just one of the best in the PAC-12 but the nation overall!  The problem for Cal this season will be how their defense improves from the last couple years of below average play.  With a difficult schedule to navigate, the Bears offense could be responsible for the downfall of many hopes and dreams of opposing PAC-12 school fans and alumni as they will most likely average around 40 points per game this season.  If their defense can play at least on par with the rest of the conference, Cal could be running to a Bowl game while the rest of the conference is licking their wounds.

The BS of the BCS

Now that the College Football regular season is over and the final Bowl Championship Series (BCS) standings have been revealed with all of the bowl game matchups, still everything is a mess.

While most people wouldn't dispute the National Title Game matchup between the two teams considered the best in Division I football, Oregon and Auburn, the rest of the matchups are bit head scratching.

Lets start with the Big East Conference Champion Connecticut facing Oklahoma (the Big 12 Champion) in the Fiesta Bowl. Some people may look at this as a "David versus Goliath" matchup, when in reality it more so resembles car race between a Minivan and a Corvette (Connecticut is the Minivan and Oklahoma being the Corvette). Connecticut won the Big East Championship because they won two close games against West Virgina and Pittsburgh, then finished the season with the best in-conference record. But they did not finish with the best overall record in the Big East (West Virgina finished the season at 9-3; Connecticut finished 8-4). West Virgina lost their three games by 6 or less points, one of those losses being to SEC powerhouse LSU. On the other hand, Connecticut lost three of their four games by 14 or more points, one of those losses being a 26-0 shutout against a Louisville team that finished the season 6-6.

There is no Big East Football Championship game, so the conference champion was awarded to Connecticut because they held the tie breaker over West Virgina since they beat them earlier in the season. As a result, Connecticut will face a Oklahoma team that is ranked 7th overall by the BCS college football rankings and has possibly four players on their offense that could be picked in the first round of the NFL draft. But because there is a rule that states that the Champion of the Big East gets an automatic berth in a major Bowl Game, Connecticut gets the opportunity to be overmatched against a very talented Oklahoma team.

Another conference that has thrown out a mess onto the college football landscape is the Big Ten. Three schools ended the season as co-Conference Champions: Wisconson, Ohio State, and Michigan State. Again, they have no conference championship game. All three schools finished with the same 11-1 overall record and the same 7-1 in-conference record. According to the BCS rules, the team that finished with the highest ranking in the final standings will get a trip to the Rose Bowl and the team with the second highest rank from the Big Ten can get an automatic berth into another major Bowl game. So Wisconson will play TCU in the Rose Bowl, Ohio State will play Arkansas in the Sugar Bowl and Michigan State gets left out of a major bowl, being selected to play Alabama in the Capital One Bowl.

And why was Wisconson and Ohio State ranked ahead of Michigan State? Beware, this gets complicated: Since Wisconson beat Ohio State and Iowa they get the highest ranking, even though Michigan State beat Wisconson they lost badly to Iowa who was beaten by Ohio State and since Michigan State didnt play Ohio State, the Michigan State Spartans get left out of the top 2 rankings of schools from the Big Ten conference. Confussed yet?

Dont worry, it gets better. The Orange Bowl will matchup the ACC Champion, Virgina Tech, against a top ranked non-conference champion, which according to the BCS is Stanford. The reason why Stanford is ranked 4th by the BCS is because their only loss was to Oregon, one of the two undefeated teams playing for the national title. Atleast this matchup is between two talented, high powered offenses and their isn't any great disparagement in talent or level of play during the season.

All of this chaos only accentuates the point that college football needs a playoff instead of this mess of bowl games that are selected matchups according to the computer results of the BCS. The BCS is basically a system that enables the universities and their conferences to make lots of money. Its not about the best matchups or the best teams playing for the title. Its not about the student-athletes, the fans, or what is fair. Its all about money. Although I love watching college football, I know that in the end, the BCS is just a bunch of BS!