BLUE 1,026 Posted November 25, 2015 (edited) By JUSTIN EINHORN STATS Senior Editor (AP) -- The Philadelphia Eagles seem to be in disarray following back-to-back home losses, and now they must go on the road coming off a short week. Amazingly, they could be in first place by the end of it if Chip Kelly finds a way to pull his team together. It remains unclear whether Sam Bradford will return to help make it happen, though the Eagles do bring the NFL's best Thanksgiving Day record into Ford Field as they try to slow down the Detroit Lions' attempt at returning to respectability. "We lost two games. I think sometimes people panic and throw the baby out with the bath water," Kelly said. "I think we have a really good football team, and I'm very confident in those football players." Rumors have swirled that the jobs of Kelly and Lions coach Jim Caldwell could be in jeopardy, though both can gain a lot more security depending on what happens in the next six weeks. Whereas Philadelphia (4-6) is only a game off the NFC East lead held by the New York Giants - who visit Washington on Sunday - Detroit (3-7) no longer has a share of the league's worst record after pulling off consecutive victories. "Everybody thinks it's magic," Caldwell said. "I think you guys look at it as if there's some huge thing that happened that all of a sudden catapulted this cataclysmic change, and the fact of the matter is, it isn't. It's just playing better football." The Eagles played their worst football of the season Sunday, losing 45-17 to Tampa Bay. The defense gave up 283 rushing yards - a franchise-worst since 1973 - and let rookie Jameis Winston throw five touchdown passes, while the offense was held to a field goal over the final 36 minutes and committed four turnovers. Three of those were interceptions by Mark Sanchez and one was returned for a touchdown, leading to an on-field screaming match between him and running back Darren Sproles. "We both are competitors, we both are trying to win and emotions kind of get going in a loss like that," said Sanchez, who insisted the situation was cleared up. Yet, doubts about team unity remain prevalent, especially with a report this week that one Eagles player was questioning the effort of running back DeMarco Murray. He's averaging 3.7 yards per carry - one yard worse than his career mark - and is on pace to finish with less than half his 2014 league-best total of 1,845 rushing yards. "No one is happy about what our record is right now, and all we can do about it is prepare and get ready to play Detroit," Kelly said. Bradford is preparing to play after passing the league's concussion protocol, though he's been limited in practice. Also with an injury to his non-throwing shoulder, Bradford missed the Bucs game after possibly having turned the corner in his first season with Philadelphia. He completed a combined 73.1 percent of his passes for 531 yards in 6 1/2 quarters with two TDs and no interceptions in his last two games - a win over Dallas and a loss to Miami which he left with a 16-13 lead. "I'd like to be out there, but right now it's going to be in the coaches' and trainers' hands," said Bradford, realizing the short week doesn't help his cause. "... Sunday would have given me three more days to be ready. We just have to see how it goes." The Lions are the ones who should be more comfortable Thursday with their on-going tradition of hosting Thanksgiving Day games, having gone 35-38-2. However, it's the Eagles who have flourished the most, improving to 6-0 after beating Dallas last year. They're the only team to have played more than twice on Thanksgiving and won every time. Detroit defeated Green Bay and Chicago by a combined 74-27 score on the last two Thanksgivings, but those Lions teams were in the playoff hunt and this one is all but out. That doesn't mean the Lions are throwing in the towel, having halted a 24-game road losing streak to the Packers in Week 10 before beating Oakland 18-13 on Sunday. "We haven't given up yet," defensive end Ziggy Ansah said. "We might've started 1-7, but we're going to finish strong." The Lions defense has surrendered only 97 rushing yards over the two wins, but it's the run offense which remains a problem and might struggle to exploit a major Eagles weakness. As Ameer Abdullah, Joique Bell and Theo Riddick continue to share carries, Detroit is averaging a league-low 71.1 yards on the ground and an NFC-worst 3.4 per carry without a 100-yard rusher. Philadelphia has allowed three in its past four games after previously ranking second against the run. "We've got to do a better job tackling," Kelly said. "We've got to do a better job in our fits in terms of where we're going to be in gap defense." The Eagles are 6-1-2 at Detroit going back to 1949. They've won seven of the past eight meetings overall starting with a wild-card playoff win in 1995. Source: Hosted.Stats.com Edited November 25, 2015 by BLUE Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RazorStar 4,025 Posted November 25, 2015 (edited) Mark Sanchez vs. Matt Stafford, is it the first time the top two QB's of the 09 draft have played each other? It's not, sorry to ruin your fun. Edited November 25, 2015 by RazorStar Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Vin+ 3,121 Posted November 26, 2015 Eagles declared RB Ryan Mathews, TE Zach Ertz, QB Sam Bradford, DE Brandon Bair, WR Jonathan Krause, CB Denzel Rice and OL Tanner Hawkinson inactive for Week 12 against the Lions. Bradford, Mathews and Ertz are the big names here, and all three are recovering from concussions. Bradford has already been cleared, but he is also dealing with a shoulder issue. He should be fine for Week 13. Ertz is progressing through the protocol well and should be back for Week 13. Mathews' status is more up in the air. With Mathews sidelined, DeMarco Murray should handle at least 20 touches in a decent matchup. Brent Celek will pick up the slack with Ertz sidelined and is a nice streaming option. Mark Sanchez will start at quarterback. Calvin Johnson (ankle) is active for Thanksgiving Day against the Eagles. Johnson was limited in practice on a short week, but he should be all systems go. He is a solid WR1 against the Eagles' collapsing secondary. Breakout CB Darius Slay is also active. Detroit declared WR T.J. Jones, TE Tim Wright, OL Corey Robinson, OT LaAdrian Waddle, DL Gabe Wright, DB Isaiah Johnson and DL Jermelle Cudjo inactive for Week 12 against the Eagles. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DonovanMcnabb for H.O.F 2,241 Posted November 26, 2015 LIONS!!! GET WRECKED ROWE!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DonovanMcnabb for H.O.F 2,241 Posted November 26, 2015 MEGATRON!!!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BwareDWare94 723 Posted November 26, 2015 Whose intolerable caterwauling was that singing the National Anthem? And the bitch didn't even have the courtesy to take off her hat. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Vin+ 3,121 Posted November 26, 2015 Stafford and Megatron. Sproles. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SteVo+ 3,702 Posted November 26, 2015 So long, Chip. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Vin+ 3,121 Posted November 26, 2015 https://twitter.com/SBNation/status/669978738533249024 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BigBen07 285 Posted November 27, 2015 Trainwreck Central for the Eagles. What a mess. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
OSUViking 505 Posted November 27, 2015 Chip Kelly is pointless. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Favre4Ever+ 4,476 Posted November 27, 2015 I think Stevo? (maybe not) said it last week. But this team has quit on Chip. They don't believe in him or his ways right now and may never regain it. Time to move on. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
