In 1985, the Philadelphia Eagles used a second-round pick on UNLV’s Randall Cunningham. Despite signing with the USFL’s Tampa Bay Bandits that spring, Cunningham eventually landed in Philadelphia and embarked on a 16-year NFL career. With the former signal-caller turning 50 on Wednesday, we take a look at the defining moments of one of the most exciting players in NFL history. ————————————————————————————————————————————– Ready for Primetime ————————————————————————————————————————————– On Oct. 10, 1988, the Eagles were on “Monday Night Football” for the first time in seven years. Their opponent that night at the Vet were the division-rival New York Giants, a team that had won the last six meetings with Philadelphia. With the Eagles trailing by three in the second quarter, Cunningham rolled […]

Every year many of us gather around the TV to watch “It’s a Wonderful Life,” a lovely Christmas tale where George Bailey is given a second chance on life after a visit from a guardian angel. And many of you are likely a little morose after your team has failed to reach the playoffs in 2012. Well, consider me your Clarence as I show you why there is reason for hope with your favorite team. And without further ado …

The Eagles are among the league’s worst red zone teams, ranking 30th in touchdown percentage (38.7%), and dead last with 6 red zone turnovers.

The Chargers defense has played a single high coverage 76% (104/170) of the opponents drop backs. They will also be forced to stack the box due to RB Doug Martin’s presence.

The Cowboys pulled out an ugly win yesterday over the Bucs, the kind of gritty, hard-fought battle that allows you to learn about yourself. For sure, they learned about their quarterback, though it’s something they already knew. Tony Romo is a tough dude. Yesterday, he was the symbol of toughness, rising again and again despite being brutalized by the Bucs defense. He was sacked and belted, hit helmet-to-helmet and flung to the ground. He kept getting up and was perfect in the fourth quarter despite all that. Teammates were impressed, and they took notice. “Some quarterbacks who take hits like that don’t want to go back,” Cowboys WR Dez Bryant said. “Not him.” The Cowboys fed off their quarterback. The […]

As we do every week, let’s take a swing around the NFL, looking at a bunch of random things… So, what’s been up? 1. The Buccaneers have a serious challenge today in facing the Cowboys, but they will have some big-time weapons to use. One of them is blue-chip receiver Vincent Jackson, a monstrously tall former Chargers star who was the prize of this free agent class. He has nine catches for 175 yards in two games, and QB Josh Freeman seems to have already built a connection with him. As Cowboys CB Brandon Carr was telling me, Freeman is already following the lead of Chargers QB Philip Rivers. “They both have the same mentality,” Carr said. “They’re going to throw […]

As we do every week, let’s take a swing around the NFL, looking at a bunch of random things … So, what’s been up? 1. Philadelphia is the City of Brotherly Love, right? That’s what they tell me. And to be fair, I did feel the love spending four days here (though that had a lot to do with cheesesteaks). But it really should be called the City of Brotherly Love/Hate. That’s the relationship between the fans and their teams, it seems. Such intense emotion, such deep feelings, I’m blown away every time I come here. It’s one reason I love returning to Philly. But I never really had context until I talked to Eagles coach Andy Reid about it. […]

As we do every week, let’s take a swing around the NFL, looking at a bunch of random things… 1. The Cowboys play the Giants on Wednesday, the high-profile season opener for the entire league and a rematch of the 2011 finale that kick-started the G-Men on their run to the Super Bowl. It will also be the debut of the Cowboys defense that has looked really stout in the preseason under second-year coordinator Rob Ryan. Most of it came without pass-rusher DeMarcus Ware, who had 19.5 sacks last year. As a precaution, he sat out three preseason games, even though he said after the second one that if there was a real game, he’d have played. Yet if Ware is worried […]

As we do every week, let’s take a swing through the NFL to see what was going on during one of the last weeks of football before the summer. So, what’s been up? 1. I spent a few days watching the Cowboys this offseason, including two days this week. There is a lot to like about this team (as is the case every year around this time), but I feel like I’ve found the thing Dallas fans should be most excited about: Dez Bryant. I know, I know, you’ve been waiting for this for a while. Yet you’ve heard more about his off-the-field issues (money problems, jewelry) than his on-the-field stuff. But man, he has looked excellent this spring. The highlight […]