Reality sets in for playoff hopes

Mathmatically, the Phillies are still alive in the wild card.

But I know the truth. I am just not ready to fully admit it yet. The chances of the Phillies making it to the playoffs are very slim.

Los Angeles and San Diego are tied for first in the NL West and wild card, two games ahead of the Phils. A win or a Phillies loss would clinch a plyoff spot for either. So for Philadelphia to make it, they would have to win both and one of the other teams would have to lose both.

Not going to happen.

Maybe the Phillies win their final two games over the Florida Marlins. But no way the Padres lose two to Arizona or the Dodgers lose two to San Francisco.

While I am close, I have not fully given up hope. There is still a small chance.

I know, I know - I am just clinging to something that is not going to happen. But after years and years of suffering through seasons that did not extend into the postseason, I can't help but hope.

Phillies will come up short again

Forgive me if I don't have confidence in the Philadelphia Phillies making the playoffs. Can you blame me?

It's been 13 years since the Phils last appeared in the postseason. That is a long time of suffering. Last year, they came up one game short. This year, they practically gave up, dumping players and salary at the trade deadline. General Manager Pat Gillick even publically stated that they would not compete until 2008.

But here they are, just one game out of the wild card lead with 4 games remaining.

Two small issues though.

First is that the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres keep winning. San Diego leads the NL west by 1/2 game and are 7-3 in their last 10. LA leads the wild card and are also 7-3 in their last 10. They won on a walk-off grand slam the other night, gave up 11 runs today and still won by eight. How in the world can the Phillies catch that?

Second issue is that the Phillies don't seem to want it enough. They did everything in their power to lose last night, blowing save opportunities in the 9th and 10th innings. Luckily they finally won in 14 innings to keep pace. But they had lost two in a row prior to that.

But they still trail by a game, which means they have to win at least one more than LA in order to force a one-game playoff and win two more to win the wild card outright. There is no way they win two more than the Dodgers. LA only has three games left (in San Francisco). After tonights game with Washington, the Phillies travel to Florida.

Sorry to say, but it's not going to happen. They will once again finish just short.

Big weekend for Eagles and Phillies

It's almost the end of September, and well, every game is a big one for the Philadelphia Eagles. Surprisingly at this time of the year, so is every game for the Phillies.

The Eagles sure look good against the San Francisco 49ers, leading 24-3 at halftime. What a way to start the game with a 50-yard flea flicker. Their offense is dominating, with 338-yards of offense, including a 71-yard TD run by Brian Westbrook. And all of this without their top receiver, Donte Stallworth, who is out with a hamstring injury.

But there is a bigger game in town today. The Phillies finally moved into the wild-card lead yesterday after Los Angeles lost to the Arizona Diamondbacks.

One week left in the regular season and the Phillies could actually be playing playoff baseball for the first time since 1993.

They lead Florida 10-5 right now in the bottom of the 8th. I thought Florida would give the Phillies more of a headache. LA is tied 1-1 with Arizona.

We were in Hocking Hills this weekend and I caught myself, even away from my normal life, really wanting to check the scores and see how the Phils were doing.

Only time will tell but I sure hope to be watching them in the postseason.

In other news in the NFL, boy is it great to see the New York Giants losing 35-0 to Seattle. Imagine what could have been had the Eagles beaten them last week. New York would be 0-3. I definitely believe the Eagles are the far superior team.

It's a big day in Philadelphia. And so far, it's been a heck of a day.

Could the Phillies actually make the playoffs

Could it be - the Philadelphia Phillies in the playoffs?

They were sellers at the trade deadline. Their General Manager said they would not be competitive until 2008. They were out of the race.

It's hard to believe, but the Phillies are tied with the Los Angeles Dodgers for the wild card lead.

Yeah, Philadelphia finished one game out of the wild card last year. But they stumbled out of the gates this year. They got hot for a while and actually hung in the thick of the NL East with the New York Mets, but then they plumeted and were not even close to contending for a playoff spot.

So what in the world happened?

Ryan Howard is what happened.

He has carried the Phillies on his back since they traded Bobby Abreu. He has gotten big hit after big hit. Howard has dominated this year, hitting .312 to this point with 57 home runs and 140 RBI. He is having an MVP year.

The Phillies are in this thing. They have a ligitimate shot at making the playoffs for the first time since 1993. Get in and anything can happen.

Their quest continues tomorrow night as they begin a three game series vs the Florida Marlins. While Florida has fallen out of the race, they are a scary team. They have won a lot of games over the past month and could easily spoil the Phils playoff hopes. Phily will end their season with a three game set in Florida.

Besides these six games, they have one with Houston and three in Washington.

The Dodgers play Pittsburgh tonight, then Arizona, Colorado, and San Francisco.

San Diego, who leads the NL west by 1/2 game could fall into the wild card race. They have games remaining with Arizona (one), Pittsburgh, St. Louis, and end with Arizona.

The Phillies have had great starting pitching. They have had timely hitting. They are 7-3 in their last 10.

It's simple - stay hot for another week and they will be in.

A tale of two different teams

One thing is obvious about yesterday's game against the New York Giants - the Eagles played like two drastically different teams.

At one stretch, the Eagles outgained the Giants, 378 yards to 20. They led by 17 points heading into the 4th quarter and completely dominated up until that point. The Eagles looked to be back as kings of the NFC East, manhandling last year's division winner.

But the final 19 minutes were a different story. Eli Manning and the Giants outgained the Eagles 314 yards to 45. Philadelphia's offense was terrible. So was their defense.

In the fourth quarter the Eagles had four possessions and produced two first downs. Only one of those possessions ate up more than two minutes of clock.

With 8:49 left in regulation. The Eagles had a fourth-and-one at the Giants' 38. They did not send David Akers out to try a field goal and instead of playing for field position and punting the ball, Andy Reid decided to go for it. It was a poor coaching choice.

Even so, the right play would have been a QB sneak from Donovan McNabb. But instead, they tried to run with Correll Buckhalter. He was stuffed for no gain and the Giants got the ball.

On a play deep in Eagles territory in the final quarter, Giants receiver Plaxico Burress fumbled the ball. Michael Lewis had a chance to recover the fumble but it squirted out and into the endzone where Tim Carter recovered the fumble for a touchdown.

The Eagles next possession resulted in a Brian Westbrook fumble at their own 33-yard line.

Even so, the Giants were at their own 20 with 56 seconds left and behind by three. But they completed pass after pass and tied the game with 7 seconds left. Eagles lineman Trent Cole committed a horrible penalty on the drive and was called for a personal foul, putting New York in better field goal range.

The Giants got the ball in OT and the Eagles actually stopped them, but went three-and-out. New York scored on its next possession on a TD pass to Burress.

It's cant't get much worse than the Eagles played in the final quarter and overtime.

Plain and simple, they stunk.

Eagles, not Phillies, can't close the door

Today was a tale of two totally different outcomes for Philadelphia's football and baseball team.

The Phillies have been hanging out in second and third place in the NL wild card race. They have been winning some games but have not been able to close teams out to make a strong push for the wild card lead.

Both the Phillies and Eagles had chances today to close out their opponents. The Phillies did, the Eagles did not.

With wins on Friday and Saturday over the Houston Astros, the Phillies completed a three game sweep today, behind two home runs from catcher Mike Leiberthal. The win moves them to within one game of the Los Angeles Dodgers, who lost their division lead with a loss to San Diego today.

The Eagles on the other hand, had a 17 point lead over the New York Giants heading into the fourth quarter. Horrible execution, or lack there of, cost them the game and the chance to close out the Giants and take an early two game lead in the division.

It's funny, the Phillies are so close to a playoff spot, yet I am more bumed out today over the Eagles loss than I am excited about the Phillies win. You would think that any positive out of a Philadelphia team would excite me.

But there is something about the Eagles and all of the disappointments they have had this century. Maybe it is the fact that I don't expect much out of the Phillies. Year in and year out, they come up way short. I don't expect them to catch the wild card lead. And if they do, I don't expect them to hold onto it.

But I expect more from the Eagles. They blew those expectations today. They could not close the door, and it cost them.

Eagles blow lead, game

It's amazing how, as a fan, I can feel so rejected after an Eagles loss.

It's more than just a game. It's part of my life.

So after the New York Giants overcame a 17-point deficit to defeat the Eagles in overtime today, I am very bummed out.

They had this game. All they had to do was put it away. But New York scored 17 points in the 4th quarter to tie the game. Philadelphia, meanwhile, could not move the ball.

Letting up a 17-point lead in the last quarter is ridiculous. The offense going into a shell as well is not what the Eagles needed.

There is no excuse for this loss. No way, it was a very important division game that should have given the Eagles an early two game lead over New York.

Leading 24-7 heading into the last quarter, the Giants completed a pass deep in Eagles territory. Plaxico Burress fumbled the ball into the end zone and Michael Lewis had a chance to recover, however, Tim Carter pounced on the ball in the endzone for a touchdown.

On the ensuing drive, Eagles running back Brian Westbrook fumbled, which led to an Amani Toomer TD. Jay Feely tied the game with a field goal with 15 seconds remaining.

The Eagles stopped the Giants on their first posession of overtime and after a nice return by Dexter Wynn on the punt, Phiadelphia failed to capitalize, going 3-and-out.

As they did in the 4th quarter, the Giants moved the ball at will, leading to a 31-yard touchdown to Burress to win the game.

The Eagles should be absolutely ashamed at their second half performance.

There was no way they should have lost this game. They blew a big opportunity to pull out in the NFC East.

This is a costly loss. No doubt.

This one hurts. Not only is this a loss, but it is a division loss. And a game the Eagles should have won with ease - not because the Giants are not a good team, because they are. But because the Eagles had this game in their hands.

It was painful last year to see the Eagles fall apart. It was just as painful today to see them fall apart again.

Unlikely source provides heroics

With the likes of Ryan Howard, Chase Utely, and Jimmy Rollins, Pat Burrell's name often gets lost in the shuffle.

It doesn't help that the Phillies slugger has been in a major funk. He is hitting only .255 with runners in scoring position this season, and only .157 with runners in scoring position with two outs.

That didn't matter last night, as the Phillies left fielder hit a two out grand slam in the first innning to stake Philadelphia out to a 4-0 lead over the Houston Astros.

But the Phillies did not have killer instinct. Instead, they held on for dear life and a 4-3 win.

Coupled with loses by San Diego and San Francisco, Philadelphia now stands alone in second place in the wild card, 1 1/2 games behind the Padres.

Opponents have caught on. There is no reason for them to give good pitches to Utley and Howard with Burrell following them, not the way he has been hitting. But if Burrell is able to come through like he did last night, that could dramatically change how this season turns out.

If by chance, Burrell continues to hit, pitchers will have to pitch to Utley and Howard.

With only 15 games remaining, the Phillies need to make a run.

Their destination could rest more on the shoulders of Pat Burrell then they would like to admit.

Phillies need to learn how to finish

Playing mediocre baseball down the stretch is not going to cut it.

The Philadelphia Phillies have a chance to take control of their own destiny and make the playoffs for the first time in 13 years.

But they have been unable to finish. The Phillies are 5-5 in their last 10 games.

They won the first two games of a four game series with the Florida Marlins, but failed to knock the Marlins out of playoff contention, losing the next two. They swept a double-header against Atlanta, but failed to complete the sweep with a 4-1 loss last night.

Mediocrity down the stretch is not going to cut it. If the Phillies keep playing this way, they do not deserve to be in the playoffs.

San Diego, the wild card leader, is making the most of this opportunity, winning seven of their last 10. They are even shooting for first in the NL West and are 1/2 game behind the Dodgers heading into a 4-game series. San Francisco has also won seven of their last 10 and are tied with Philadelphia, 2.5 games out.

The Phillies have 4 gamaes against Houston left, three with Chicago, three with Washington, and six against Florida.

Time is running out. They must get on a roll now.

Giants vs Eagles - as big as a week 2 game can be

It's time for the Philadelphia Eagles to go out and take what is their's to take - a two game lead in a very tough NFC East.

With a win over the New York Giants, the Eagles would stand alone atop the division and be two ahead of the Giants and either the Dallas Cowboys or Washington Redskins (they are both 0-1 and play each other this weekend).

Make no mistake, this is a huge game for both Philadelphia and New York. It's early, but every single division game matters.

After a promising win over the Houston Texans, Philadelphia now needs to prove they can compete in the division, a year after going 0-6.

A Philadelphia win would be huge and give them a chance to go 4-0 with San Francisco and Green Bay next on the schedule, before a big division game against the Cowboys.

A New York loss would be huge because they play defending NFC Champion Seattle in week 3 and could easily go to 0-3.

The Giants looked really good against Indianapolis in week 1, but made a lot of mistakes, which cost them the game. Philadelphia will need to pressure Eli Manning into making mistakes, as well as stopping the always dangerous Tiki Barber.

Philadelphia will counter with Donovan McNabb, who accounted for 314 yards and three touchdowns in week 1. If McNabb continues to connect with new receiver Donte Stallworth to the tune of eight catches for 141 yards, the Eagles will be in good shape.

The national media picked the Eagles to finish last in the East. Now is their chance to prove them wrong.

But even more important, now is their chance to take a huge step towards getting back to where they belong - competing for a Super Bowl title.

Eagles all alone in first place - "I told you so"

Ok, I know it is only the end of week 1. And I know the Eagles played Houston. But I can't help feel a little bit of "I told you so" against the national media.

The Philadelphia Eagles have been given little respect by the national media heading into this season. But they played very well in week 1. The Cowboys dominated early but lost to Jacksonville. The Giants played well but killed themselves with mistakes in a loss to the Colts. And the Redskins, very overrated in my opinion, lost to the Vikings tonight.

So after week 1, Philadelphia sits by its lonesome atop the NFC East.

Sure, the NFC East is going to be a very tough division. But how can the media count out the Eagles?

They have so much firepower on offense. The D-line is fantastic and had five sacks against the Texans.

Why the media always counts out the Eagles, I have no clue. But they are way wrong with their opinions this year.

This upcoming Sunday should be a good measuring stick, as the Giants come to town.
Philadelphia can hang with anyone in the league. And they will have a good shot to send the Giants to 0-2.

Maybe then, the media will give them the respect they deserve. And if not, then the Eagles will continue to fly under the radar, which is fine by me.

Funny comment from Sunday's game: Did anyone see Andy Reid's comment right before the touchdown pass to Donte Stallworth? You could read his lips say, "watch this, watch this." Then McNabb hit Stallworth for a a long TD.

Opening weeked in NFL full of surprises

Up until this point, everything was speculation. But today, the truth was told, and full of surprises. Here is a run down of week 1 in the NFL.

Biggest surprise game: Atlanta beats Carolina, 20-6. Many picked the Panthers to win the Super Bowl, but they weren't so super against the Falcons. Not having star receiver Steve Smith didn't help the Panthers. After not making the playoffs last year, the Falcons made a statment that the Panthers are not going to run away with the NFC South.

Another surprise in the NFC South: A year after dominating throughout the season and making it into the playoffs, the Tampa Bay Bucs were manhandled by the Baltimore Ravens, 27-0 on their own turf. Baltimore jumped out to a 17-0 lead at halftime. Chris Simms threw 3 interceptions and Baltimore held Cadilac Williams to only 22 yards on the ground.

Manning against Manning: The biggest story of week 1 was older brother Peyton vs younger brother Eli. The oldest brother won, 26-21. The Giants ran all over the Colts with 186 yards on the ground, but mistakes and penalties killed the Giants. Peyton threw for 276 yards and 1 TD and Eli threw for 247 yards and two touchdowns.

Another surprise: The Denver Broncos went to the AFC Championship game last year, but they sure did not look like the team from last season against the Rams today. Jeff Wilkins kicked six field goals and St. Louis beat Denver, 18-10. Jake Plummer threw three interceptions.

The debut of Reggie Bush: When the Houston Texans passed on drafting Reggie Bush, the New Orleans Saints jumped on the chance to add the most electrifying player in the draft. Bush finished the day with 61 yards on the ground, eight receptions for 58 yards and three punt returns for 22 yards as the Saints held on to beat the Cleveland Browns, 19-14.

And the team that did not draft Bush: The Houston Texans made a huge mistake on passing up on Reggie Bush. Mario Williams, the top pick, finished with three tackles in a 24-10 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. Donte Stallworth made Eagles fans forget all about T.O. with six receptions for 141 yards and a score. Donovan McNabb looked great, tossing three touchdowns.

Speaking of T.O.: The Dalls Cowboys jumped all over the Jacksonville Jaguars early, but the Jags came storming back with 24 unanswered points and held on to win, 24-17. Drew Bledsoe threw three interceptions. Oh yeah, Owens had 6 catches for 80 yards and a TD (with no dance).

What happened to Seatlle's offense: Only nine points against the Detroit Lions! The Seahawks, one of the most powerful offenses in the league, won with a last second field goal over the lowly Lions.

In other scores: New England 19, Buffalo 17; Cincinnatti 23, Kansas City 10; NY Jets 23, Tennessee 16; Chicago 26, Green Bay 0; Arizona 34, San Francisco 27; Pittsburgh 28, Miami 17.