Just a couple of questions?

[Maikeru-sama]

Okay, when I was watching the game at Texas Stadium, there were a couple of things that I just can't understand.

My first question.

If you give your first pick in the draft last year a 13 million dollar signing bonus and lock him up for a while, why wouldnt you put him on the best receiver on the field? Yeah, I know if you play left you play left and right you play right but there were far too many times where Newman would be on #97 (pinkston I think) and either Frazier #30 or Jaques Reeves was left to cover Terrell Owens. Yeah I know they are getting help over the top, but that doesnt help you underneath and to the sidelines, and that is how T.O. scored on his first touchdown. Pass underneath and he did the rest. I asked an old Eagles fan about Jim Johnson and his schemes. He said definitely they move their corners around the field and sometimes they will even put Mike Lewis, who they say is alot better than Dawkins in more of a FS role and Dawkins in more of a SS role to protect those who are not as great in coverage.

My second question.

Whose idea was it to put Eddie George in the slot? Why not give Lee that opportunity to catch? The Eagles fans would tell me that Lee was impressive and they were puzzled as to why he wasn't getting in the game more.

Last but, you gotta believe me when I say it is not the least.

I just dont understand why Zimmer/Parcells wants to play Cover 2. It is absolutely predicated on the fact that you can generate pressure with your front four or get to the quarterback. Who does Zimmer think is going to responsible for the deep skinny, post, dig or slant if one, the Line doesnt get to the quarterback and two, the corner doesn't get a good jam on the reciever? It is going to Roy Williams and Tony Dixon, the safeties, who are vulnerable in pass coverage. When Owens ran that deep out, Williams (and Frazier, I think ) were nowhere near the ball.

What are your thoughts on this. The one I have the most problems with is question number 1. I just dont understand why Newman cant be on Owens the entire time. Not this he could stop him, but heck, I would think you would just do that by default.

- Mike G.

[Chocolate Lab]

Mike, I could be wrong, but I thought that after Owens caught his second TD sometime in the mid-second quarter, they did put Newman on Owens fulltime. That was about the time I noticed Newman lining up on Owens even on the right side, and shadowing him when he went in motion. I don't think Owens caught a pass when they did that until the third, when he caught an out on the sideline that was overturned by an Eagles penalty, and then of course the TD pass.

Again, the tape-watchers can check that, but I'm fairly sure that's what was happening at least a good portion of the time.

[Maikeru-sama]

Not sure.

I remember telling the Eagles fans and my cousin who was lining up against Owens every play. When Owens was on the left, Newman was covering him, when he was on the right, at the begining Frazier was covering him and then later Reeves.

I know Newman was on the coverage of the jump ball, but alot of the time it was #30 and #35 that was covering T.O.

I remember telling the Eagles fans he should be catching on a 7th round pick and a guy we just picked up off the Ravens practice sqad.

- Mike G.

[Hostile]

Mike, when Emmitt was being interviewed on the sidelines was that you in the background mugging for the camera?

If not, I apologize.

If so, I was yelling hello MickGreen58.

[Bluefin]

If you give your first pick in the draft last year a 13 million dollar signing bonus and lock him up for a while, why wouldnt you put him on the best receiver on the field?
I didn't notice if they ended up locking T-New on TO as Lab suggested may have been the case and I don't have the heart to go back and watch at this time.

But Mike Zimmer is opposed to locking his corners on opposing receivers.

He feels it makes the defense too predictable.

Is our scheme based on shadow games and keeping offenses off guard?

They know what's going on and have no problem exploiting it.

A good coordinator could lock his best corner on a certain receiver and still not tip his hand, IMO.

Moving Newman to the other side of the field doesn't prohibit playing zone coverage does it?

Doing so would make the offense think man before the snap and be surprised to see zone after it.

Isn't that what we want?

Schemes could also be devised to allow Newman to move with a player in motion and still play zone or blitz out of the slot.

Zimmer just doesn't think outside the box.

He looks at situations and seems to see what he can't do instead of finding creative ways to help his struggling defense.

Whose idea was it to put Eddie George in the slot? Why not give Lee that opportunity to catch?
The tried and true line would be that Parcells doesn't trust Lee to run proper routes or identify what the defense is doing and adjust on the fly if needed.

[Chocolate Lab]

Yep, up until that second TD they were definitely playing him with their standard defense. It wasn't until that time that they put Newman on him all over the field. It's like they went to the old playground style and said, "Screw it... #41, you cover #81." :)

I thought they did mix in some more cover-2 in the second half. That TD was one of the few times they were in zone against him IIRC. It's like Zimmer chose to do that as they got closer to the endzone. I wish Newman had batted away that TD pass -- that's a play I think he can make and expect him to make. But in the time he was manning up on Owens, he did limit him, I think... Unless McNabb just decided to attack our seventh rounders and undrafted guys and didn't need to look his way.

But I agree on one point: Is beating rookie seventh rounders and practice squad guys really something to be so proud of? For TO it is. He'd make a spectacle of himself after outrunning my grandma.

[te0002]

The "locking on CB's" is Zims call and it seems you would want your 1st rd. $13M CB on the best WR, but when you think about it, why?

I mean wasn't the reason Newman was drafted that high was b/c of his return game combined w/being a real good college CB? Yet can anyone recall EVER seeing Newman return a punt or kick?

And why, why, why, is Newman on the punt return team, but not the punt returner?? Is there that much more of a chance of injury being the returner than being the guy blocking for the returner?

[joseephuss]

The "locking on CB's" is Zims call and it seems you would want your 1st rd. $13M CB on the best WR, but when you think about it, why?

I mean wasn't the reason Newman was drafted that high was b/c of his return game combined w/being a real good college CB? Yet can anyone recall EVER seeing Newman return a punt or kick?

And why, why, why, is Newman on the punt return team, but not the punt returner?? Is there that much more of a chance of injury being the returner than being the guy blocking for the returner?

I don't get that either. I am happy that Crayton is finally returning punts, but I will never understand why Newan was never given the chance to handle the duties full time.

These young corners have to do a much better job of jamming the recievers. Too many times, the recievers are getting clean releases. That puts the safeties at a disadvantage and since they are already poor in coverage, it really hurts the team. Dixon was out of position on the first Owens TD, Roy was lost on the second Owens TD and Dixon again was out of position on the last TD which was a straight zone coverage.

[OLDSCHOOL]

Something was said last night and it ogt me to thinking more about it. Did the we reach when we drafted Newman in the first round? Is he really a first round draft pick.

I did not and I still do not believe the Bengals would have drafted him in the first round.