Here Comes the Rant...

I'm a few days late, but you knew this was coming...WHAT HAPPENED SUNDAY!? Eagles, come on! Do you really call that football you were playing? I was at the game, freezing my butt off, but it was okay because I was watching my loves, the Philadelphia Eagles, play the Greenbay Packers in the playoffs.
    It started out as an amazing event you just have to experience for yourself to understand. The feeling of Philly pride was oozing from every inch of the city and it was awesome. I've been to games at the Vet before, but I've never seen Philly fans so hyped up for a game like they were on Sunday. Maybe it's because it was a playoff game, or maybe everyone was just trying to stay warm, but the adrenaline that was pumping throughout the parking lot and the stadium was intense. I almost started to understand why outsiders consider Philly fans to be some of the craziest fans out there. The second we got to our seats, everyone in the stadium started chanting the Eagles fight song in unison as loud as they could. Fireworks shot out from the top of the stadium and a thunderous roar exploded from the fans as the Eagles ran through the giant, inflatable bald eagle's beak from the locker room to the field. I felt like a teeny-bopper at a Justin Bieber concert screaming at the top of my lungs and jumping up and down as DeSean Jackson took the field, followed by the unstoppable, Michael Vick. Soon after, the field was covered from corner to corner by an American flag as the entire stadium stood in silence as a lone trumpet player performed the National Anthem. Screams and fireworks followed and then it was time to play ball...at least that's what I thought I came there to watch.
   First of all, the love of my life, DeSean Jackson, was injured in the first quarter of the game with a knee injury. Fortunately, he was back before the end of the second quarter, but by that time the Birds were already down 14-0. The Packers defense looked good, but there was no excuse for Philly being down two touchdowns by halftime. For the most part, the Eagles offensive line is to blame. They never offered Vick the protection he needed. Luckily, Vick is a quarterback who can run the ball, which he did, in and out of trouble, countless times throughout the game. Another problem at Sunday's game: kicker David Akers. He missed two, yes two, field goals. The first was 41-yards; okay, we'll let that one slide, even though he's made field goals farther than that. But the second missed field goal was 34-yards, a distance that should have been easily made for veteran Akers. If he made both field goals, as he should have, and the game played out exactly, and horribly, as it did, the Eagles would have won the game. As for the Eagles defense, they could have been out there scratching their butts for all we know, because they certainly were not out there playing defense. The lack of pressure put on the Packers, made quarterback Aaron Rodgers look practically flawless. The mistakes just continued to add up; on top of everything else that happened, or didn't happen, Brent Celek stepped out of bounds prior to making the catch for a 2-point conversion and Jason Avant dropped a key pass. But there was still an glimmer of hope left as DeSean Jackson prepared for a punt return in the fourth quarter. Fans once again rose to their feet, jumping up and down, cheering and waving their complimentary white Eagles towels that read "Heart," in anticipation that Jackson would make a play like he did in the Meadowlands just a few weeks ago, coming back and winning the game against the Giants. But we all know how this story ends; there was no miracle this time. The game ended in a 21-16 loss for the Philadelphia Eagles, and an advance to the next round of playoffs for the Greenbay Packers.

Now that my Birds are out of the playoffs (tear), I'm putting my hope in the New York Jets. I think they have the goods to be the team to beat if they play their cards right, and, I would LOVE to see the New England Patriots lose in the next round. Plus, Mark Sanchez is way hotter than Ken Barbie Doll, I mean Tom Brady.