Thanks to their opponents’ collective .563 winning percentage (highest among NFL clubs!), the Birds slip behind the Cardinals, Vikings, and Texans (each of whom, like the Birds, finished 8-8) in the 2008 NFL draft order, and will pick 19th in the first round.

Pretty lame, though it could be worse — at least the Birds didn’t win 10 games and miss the playoffs like the Browns.

Link:
2008 NFL Draft Order [NFL.com]

Very out-of-character slip from Andy Reid in his Monday press conference. In responding to a question about Donovan McNabb’s evolving mobility over the course of the season, he admitted that (a) he knew that McNabb was significantly less than full speed when the season kicked off and (b) he was semi-happy to have McNabb struggle in order to become a better player in the long run. Huh? Really?

According to Big Red,

“I think it was a great experience for him to have all mobility taken away early. Where, in his mind, he had to become an in-pocket passer. He didn’t have 100 percent of his capacity to run. For somebody in his ninth year to have a chance to be even better than he was is a great thing. Now he’s getting the mobility back and he’s becoming an even better thrower than he was before-and I think he was pretty good before.”

So it was good for him to be limited (even if it meant that the team suffered) so that he could become a better player? Did the rest of the team agree with that? (Read the rest of this story.)

I know we’re supposed to pretend that this final win is bittersweet (since the Eagles aren’t going to the playoffs and will finish last in the NFC East), but whatever. It was still a real football game with real NFL players, and thanks to the cruelty of player contracts in the NFL, guys will play hard (with the possible exception of guys who’ve signed contracts in the past 18 months) even if the playoffs aren’t on the line.

And I certainly enjoyed it. This is my favorite TV show, and it brings me much delight when the good guys win. My quick hits from the game today: (Read the rest of this story.)

Savor the next 24 hours, all ye Giants fans in my life!

For a limited time only, I shall be rooting for the Giants to actually win an NFL football game. Not “win in order to improve the Birds’ playoff chances,” not “win but sustain major injuries to key offensive and defensive players,” just win.

Such is my deep spiritual ennui with the New England Patriot blathermonkey hype machine. Enough with the perfect season nonsense. I don’t mean to be a hater, but there are still a bunch of games to play, and I’d prefer to talk about the actual playoffs and not how the Pats stack up against the ‘85 Bears. If they lose now, we can just have the playoffs without the endless Pats hype. (Read the rest of this story.)

The most exciting news in the NFL this week doesn’t actually have to do with football, but rather my consumption thereof. The oft-maligned-and-full-of-crap-but-still-essential-despite-it-all Profootballtalk.com has finally upgraded their site.

And by “upgrade” I mean “added all the features that every version of freeing blogging and content management software has offered for years.” While we could complain that this is about three years late, but instead we’ll focus on why it’s acutally pretty awesome: (Read the rest of this story.)

A lot of people are going to try to call today’s win over the Saints a meaningless victory. While it may have been meaningless in re: the Eagles’ 2007 season (specifically regarding the postseason continuation thereof), it definitely meant a lot to the Saints.

And the Birds whupped ‘em.

In so doing, the Eagles came close to ending the season of the team who ended their season last year. I know it doesn’t get the Birds any closer to the Super Bowl this year, but it sure makes me feel good about (a) the team generally and certain embattled stars and/ or coaches and (b) serving a 12-inch Hoagie of Revenge (double meat, extra mayo) to smug-ass Sean Payton (oh, swoon, he’s such a GENIUS!) and the Saints.

You’re telling me that’s meaningless? I think not!

Quick hits from the game:
(Read the rest of this story.)

For the record, I definitely resisted the urge to go down this route earlier in the week. But thanks to the proud efforts of Ashley Fox, the door is open for what would have otherwise been a semi-innappropriate path of speculation in re: Embattled Eagles Quarterback Donovan McNabb.

I’m referring to Ashley Fox’s piece in this morning’s Inky, in which Mlle. Fox describes the unique challenges of being a female sports reporter (beyond gaining lots of weight and breathing through your mouth like the men):

Now, as a female reporting on sports, the issue gets even trickier. Men, be it athletes or executives, often tell us different things - and tell us things differently - than they tell other men. They can be more willing to show their emotions or to let their guard down because they aren’t threatened by a woman. Sometimes they think a woman is more sympathetic or less judgmental.

And sometimes, they have other motives.

What’s that you say? OTHER MOTIVES? You mean, like, um, that the boys on the team might, um, you know, want, to, you know, get witcha?

For the record, in re: Dunavin’s most recent “controversy,” other motives would be about the most awesome possible thing I could imagine happening. (Read the rest of this story.)

More real-time goodness from the PhiladelphiaEagles.com staff with a Pro-Bowl-themed splash page honoring Shawn Andrews and Brian Westbrook.

Good stuff — nice to see Dave Spadaro’s boys on the web staff working hard for their 43K/ year.

Link:
PhiladelphiaEagles.com

Just in case you want to relive that special moment.

The fact that you see three (3) flags enter the frame immediately is especially charming.

…I would recut this United Way ad so that instead of gently pushing each of those seven-year-olds on the swings, Roy Williams would instead make his way down the swingset yanking each of the children down to the ground by their little collars.   

Kind of like the Peyton Manning SNL spot, only significantly more mean-spirited.