EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. ? The suffering ends today for the Eagles.
Win, lose or draw, the latter a vexing footnote of the Andy Reid era, the worst Eagles season in at least 14 years will be over after they oppose the New York Giants (1 p.m., Fox 29, WIP 94.1-FM) at the Meadowlands.
The following day an announcement is anticipated on the future of Reid, who has one year and more than $6 million remaining to be paid on his contract as head coach/executive vice president of football operations.
On various levels, a source explained, the Eagles have cut ties with employees and probed others about their loyalty to the culture he established since coming on board as head coach in 1999.
In the organization it?s largely assumed ? if unofficial ? that the Eagles intend to go in another direction.
Owner Jeffrey Lurie said before the season that he wanted substantial improvement over the disappointing 8-8 finish of 2011. He?s since remained in the background.
Reid says he hasn?t discussed those issues with Lurie. The coach has been unwilling to address the rumors.
?I haven?t gone there,? Reid said. ?I?m not going to go there. I?m going to get through this game, make sure my team is ready to play.?
The Eagles (4-11) are seven-point underdogs versus the defending Super Bowl champion Giants (8-7), who to reach the playoffs need to beat the Eagles and cross their fingers that Washington defeats Dallas, Green Bay tops Minnesota and Detroit beats Chicago. There?s a 9 percent probability all of that falls into place for the Giants, who have won just two of their last seven games.
?Obviously guys aren?t excited and aren?t thrilled about our position right now and the way we?ve been playing these last couple of weeks,? wide receiver Victor Cruz said. ?We?re definitely not excited about it. So obviously guys are a little bit down on themselves and down on this year?s opportunities, and lack of opportunities. So we?re approaching this last game as must-win for us.? Continued...
Quarterback Michael Vick makes what could be his last start for the Eagles. While Vick downplayed the importance of the game, he needs to prove he?s fully functional after being sidelined five weeks by a concussion.
?He doesn?t know his future here,? teammate Jamar Chaney said. ?So I?m pretty sure he?s going to go out there and have the best game of his career. If his career is here, it will set the stage for next year. If it?s somewhere else, he can put some tape out there and let people know that he?s a guy who?s still an efficient starter in this league.?
The Eagles took their time bringing back Vick partly because of the seriousness of his injury and because they wanted to assess rookie quarterback Nick Foles.
Had Foles not broken a bone in his throwing hand, Vick wouldn?t be making more than a ceremonial appearance today. It?s hard to imagine Vick being part of the next regime with his base salary of $15.5 million. That?s a starter?s pay.
That said, in his last road game against the Giants, Vick sparked the Birds to a 38-31 victory so dramatic it became Miracle of the Meadowlands II. DeSean Jackson?s 65-yard punt return as time expired completed a four-touchdown explosion in the final 7:29. That was the final month of the 2010 season. Jackson is sidelined by injury, as are Eagles starters Jason Peters, Mike Patterson, Todd Herremans and Jason Kelce. All but Kelce played in that game.
?Last time I played in New York we had a lot to play for,? Vick said. ?We?ve still got a lot to play for. But it was a great game. It will be exciting. It?s the Big Apple. You can?t ask for too much more.?
The same can be said of Reid, who after reaching the playoffs in five of his first six seasons, has missed them in four of the past eight seasons, including two straight years.
?When you don?t win,? Vick said, ?you know what comes along with it.?
Or in the case of coaches and players, who goes along with it.
Source: http://delcotimes.com/articles/2012/12/29/sports/doc50dfa61f48213283880378.txt
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