FanNation | Rampage23's Blog | Five Questions: Philadelphia Eagles Training Camp Preview

It's that time of the year. With baseball into their second half, and NASCAR heading into their chase for the cup....FOOTBALL SEASON is almost here! I make it no secret that I am an Eagles fan, I mean have you even seen the main picture on my profile? If not look closely, I am a die hard.

But like everyone else, there are questions that has to be answered for many teams heading into this 2007-2008 season. I have five set of questions that I feel must be answered before the Eagles play at Lambeau Field the first weekend of the season. Answering these questions are criticial if the Eagles are go back to the Super Bowl. Here's what I must know heading into this season.

Can Takeo Spikes still play at a Pro Bowl level again or did the Eagles get damgaged goods? Acquiring Spikes was easily the best pickup this offseason, a former Pro Bowler who is a beast between the takles. But Spikes is also still coming off an achilles tendon injury two years ago. He played real well for the Bills towards the last 10 games of the season as they made a run. The key is for him is to carry that over to a defense that needed an upgrade at the position. With Trotter slowing down to who starts on the weakside between Chris Cocong and Omar Gathier, Spikes has to deliver. If he plays at that Pro Bowl level. This defense got even better and shall I say nastier.
Is Tony Hunt finally the power running back that we have been dying for...well forever? I am not the only one Eagles fans, when I say it's about time that we got that North/South runner that fights for the short yardage when we really need it. Look at the Giants, they had Brandon Jacobs when they needed him to get that 3rd and 1 or 4th and inches to get them a first down. Who did we have? Correll Buckhalter! Tony Hunt is a traditional power running back that goes into the tackles and fights for extra yards. I saw him play at Penn State and he is the first or second all time leading rusher in Penn State history. He will have to earn reps with Buckhalter, Moats and Westbrook. If he can earn that, he can contribute in a big way this season. If not, we have to deal with Buckhalter for the short yardage situation.
Did Jevon Kearse put on any weight or what? There is no doubt that Jevon was playing at a pro bowl level during those first two games of last season. Three sacks in two games before he went down with another injury. His rehab went well ahead of schedule but did anyone see the guy when he help introduced those retro jerseys earlier in the year? The guy is a defense end, not a strong safety. He must live up to the contract this season because guys like Jaqua Thomas and Trent Cole contributed to the point where his position is up there for the taking. The same goes for Darren Howard, he played well in the beginning of the season but also wore down as the season went on. If Kearse stays healthy which is a big IF, the defense like I stated earlier will be easily one of the top 10 best defenses in the league.
Will the offense stay balanced or is Reid going back to passing 75% of the time? Brian Westbrook was robbed of a Pro Bowl spot last season because once the offense became balanced with McNabb out, he became a force. Reid must give up the offensive playcalling to good ol' Marty for this offense to flourish. Westbrook proved his worth as an every down back, as the Eagles made a push to the playoffs. Reid has to know by now that the more that the offense stays balanced, the more games McNabb will be able to play. It's as simple as that. With Kevin Curtis along side of Reggie Brown, Brian Westbrook and a HEALTHY Donovan McNabb the Eagles should go deep into the playoffs.
Donovan McNabb....enough said? Ladies and Gentleman, it's as simple as this: Donovan McNabb must stay HEALTHY. Only Donovan can keep Kevin Kobb off the field. As I stated earlier, the offense must stay balanced to protect McNabb from getting hurt. Think about it; when the Eagles got to the Super Bowl in 2004, McNabb played the entire season. Since then, you do the math. He hasn't played a full season since. McNabb must stay all season for the Eagles to make a SUPER BOWL run and not a playoff push. Would I worry about Kevin Kobb? No because he will not be the starter of this team until the 2010-2011 season if you ask me. Reid is determined to win the Super Bowl with number 5 as his quarterback. I'm a full supporter of McNabb, through the ups and downs. He plays all 17 games, the Eagles win 11 to 13 games. If he doesn't, expect 9-10 games people. It's as simple as that.