On Sunday, the Eagles lost possibly their worst game of the season, when they fell by the score of 35-31 to the 3-12 Arizona Cardinals. How on earth can that happen after having a 21-6 lead at halftime? The team played their worst second half of football for the whole season, especially the defense. I don’t know what happened to our vaunted pass rush from last year, when the Eagles set a team record for sacks with 79. This year, that level of pressure does not exist.
In order for the team to advance anywhere in the playoffs, the defensive line has to find the fountain of youth. The defensive secondary has also struggled the whole year, and on offense, sometimes the playcalling makes no sense. The most disappointing part of these most recent performances is that the team had a chance to win the division just by winning the last two games. Now they have to beat the 5-11 New York Giants, who have nothing to lose, and rely on the 4-12 Washington Commanders to beat the Dallas Cowboys in Dallas to give them the chance to win the division and be a two seed in the playoffs. It would be amazing if the Eagles advance to play in the Super Bowl again, but it's certainly looking very doubtful for now.
The two semifinals in the college football playoff helped to save the future of college football. Michigan and Washington will face off on Monday for the national championship. Both teams won in games that were decided on the last play of the game. I’m happy they’re expanding the playoffs to 12 teams starting next season, so I will pay attention to more bowl games that will actually matter. Division 1 AA has always had a playoff system in place. This change should really help college football to stay relevant. I hope it will also decrease the number of players transferring out of programs before the playoffs start. This new crazy transfer portal situation is like the old wild west. The NCAA needs to come up with some sort of regulations so it isn’t quite so easy to transfer from school to school in college sports.
Happy New Year. Sure wish this storm was bringing snow. I hope we have just one good snowstorm this winter.
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A 2002 Cape grad and 2007 UD grad, Lewes resident Sumner Spence is one of the Cape area's biggest sports fans. Although he’s used a wheelchair his entire life, he has lived vicariously through his sports-playing father, brother, and friends, who gave him his love of sports. He hopes to provide new and interesting perspectives on the sports stories and issues of the day. Email Sumner at sumspence@gmail.com.
