Our First Look at the Eagles

Last night at Lincoln Financial field, the Philadelphia Eagles and the New England Patriots gave us a preview of what they have been working on during the offseason for the first preseason game. Despite the 27 -25 loss, I think the eagles looked alright out there for their debut. David Akers spoiled their win with a missed field goal late in the fourth quarter. It was a 43-yarder that went just wide, which was a shocker because he had the first nine points for the eagles, but missed the winning three.

The Eagles this season will have to stay healthy with a number of players hurt including Brian Westbrook, Trent Cole, Stewart Bradley, Shawn Andrews and a few more the Eagles could most certainly use.  Running Back Lesean McCoy had 10 carries for 55 yards  as he showed some liked abilities of Westbrook, but who I believed stood out the most was running back Eldra Buckley, the 24 year old from Charlestown, MS.  He had two touchdowns and seemed almost flawless during the second half. He’s only 5′9″ 207lbs that is absolute power who reminds me of Ricky Watters with his agile movement.  The leader of them all, Donovan McNabb, may have look like he had a good game on paper completing 11 of 18 pass attempts, but did not connect for any touch downs. With the signing of Michael Vick for a two year deal, I hope that puts some pressure on McNabb to play to his potential.  Vick can play numerous roles on this Eagles offense and I am excited to see how they are going to use him as a weapon.

Without Brian Dawkins in the backfield and with Line Backer Stewart Bradley out, Quintin Mikell showed us his leadership role on the field making the defensive calls and being all over the ball.  The defense struggled a little bit and seem confused at times; this is what happens when you have a lot of rookies playing in a real situational game for the first time. What hurt the Eagles the most this game was their penalties. They have to work on cutting down their penalty yards because that is going to hurt them, especially with so many people injured they do not have that much room for error.  It was an overall good game, but I would have liked to see more out of McNabb.  I am excited to see how the team reacts with the new addition Mike Vick.

How do you think the Eagles looked on Thursday night?  Do you think the addition of Michael Vick was a smart move?  Have your say below!