The Ultimate Good News/Bad News Day

I'm pretty sure we all had a similar day on Sunday. We are all left totally and utterly confused and exhausted after a strange three hour journey from 1 to 4 pm this afternoon. My emotions ran the gamut of just about everything you could go through in a sporting event.

Also, did anyone else find it strange that both games ended at almost exactly the same time. What a difference between the two endings. In Milwaukee, you had jubilation and excitement. In Philly, you had a stadium full of annoyed, frustrated people marching towards the exits wondering if the true nature of the 2008 Eagles had been revealed.

I think you would like to read about the good news first, so let's talk about the Phillies. Today, Joe Blanton entered the Phils pantheon of unexpected big time post season pitching performances. Unfortunately, that list is pretty small in my life time and before today only consisted of Bob Walk in the 1980 World Series and Danny Jackson in the 1993 NLCS. Did anyone expect Joe friggin' Blanton to pitch 6 innings of one run baseball? I surely did not. Other than his two masterful starts in early August, I thought he was pretty average and not the "innings eater" he was advertised as. Today, he had command, got in front of hitters early and showed more velocity than I've seen lately. He was absolutely not intimidated by the moment, which is something we surely do not see enough of in the City of Philadelphia. I'm not sure if we can count on him to deliver a similar performance in the NLCS, but it's sure comforting to know he's capable to locking things down in a postseason start.

The other hero was everyone's favorite whipping boy, Pat the Bat. I would have been shocked by him stepping up, but my new buddy John Smoltz told us how Pat has owned Jeff Suppan over the years right before the game changing blast. Part of me is happy for Burrell. He's been here for years and years (9 altogether) and his days on this franchise (God willing) are numbered. He deserved a little enjoyment for all the years of putting up with underachieving teams. His second home run was pure gravy, but it was much appreciated as it allowed us to breath a bit easier in the last couple innings. Let's hope Pat keeps up this hot streak in the next round as there are a couple guys in this lineup that are killing us, which brings us to.....

What the hell happened to Chase Utley? I never in a million years thought he'd appear gutless, but that's what we've seen the last couple months. Seriously, does anyone have any theories? There were whispers that he is hurt, but if so, why would he be able to move around so well on defense? I truly don't get it, but we need this guy to return to form. We really need him.

In any event, the Phils took care of business and won a series against a team which was not as good as they are. I was happy to see them win, but there is still work to be done. This team can beat the Dodgers. It will be much tougher, but it can be done.

Although, did anyone else think the celebration was a bit excessive? Was champagne really warranted? Ok, maybe I am being a killjoy because of....

We all realized today that the Eagles just aren't good enough. They are clearly the worst team in the "toughest division in football". The sad part is that they might be a winning team this year, but from what we've seen, they aren't beating out the G Men, Skins or 'Boys. They can't get off the field on third down, they can't stop the run when it counts, their offense goes into long funks for way too long.

After opening up the season scorching hot, the offense has scored only 5 offensive touchdowns since the second half of the Dallas game. I think the WR's have come back to Earth. The Greg Lewis', Hank Baskett's and Jason Avant's are doing nothing. For some reason today, DeSean Jackson caught only one ball. Donovan also appears to be hurried and inaccurate. I can't tell if it is the talent, execution or if the coach isn't putting his players into position to make plays, which brings me to......

Andy Reid has lost it. I don't think he has the drive or innovation necessary to get this team back to the top. I really can't remember the last time he called a play that made think, "wow, that play worked because of the design of the play" or "wow, Big Red really fooled the defense there." It's time for him to go. I really want to see a new era in Philly. (Am I over reacting?)

By the way, LJ Smith is a turd. Eskin just announced on Sports Final that the 3rd and 1, late in the 4th quarter didn't work because LJ lined up in the wrong spot. What an idiot. He really needs to go.

Overall, I'm just annoyed. Today's game announced that this team is done. They pretty much have no shot at the playoffs. It's just sad to see your season over in early October, but that's what today's loss did to them.

Honestly, I was pretty much watching the Phils all day. I don't have a real good feel for what happened today. I suspect that I'll have to watch the NFL Network Replay to get an idea as to what really happened. It just seemed that every time I looked up, the Birds were punting, Clinton Portis was abusing our run defense, or Jason Campbell was converting another third down to Chris Cooley (Christ, will this team ever cover a TE?). As much as I want to see it, is this really a smart thing? Why should I subject myself to such punishment, when there are other things to be excited about, which brings me back to....

Game One for the Phils is Thursday. I have the opportunity to buy 3 tickets at $140 a pop, but I have to get an answer to my buddy by 7 pm tomorrow. If you are interested, email me, text me, etc.