Werth Watch

This offseason we will be closely monitoring Jayson Werth's free agency.  Some potential good news is that according to Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News, the New York Yankees are focused on acquiring pitching, particularly Cliff Lee, and are not planning on pursuing Jayson Werth.  With the Yankees supposedly out of the picture, the biggest threat to watch for appears to be the Boston Red Sox, who are hoping to land either Werth or Tampa's Carl Crawford to bolster their outfield.  Crawford is said to be the principle target of both the Red Sox and Angels. 

From the Phillies' perspective, we must hope for the Red Sox to sign Crawford, as it is unlikely the Phillies would outbid the kind of offer Boston would likely make.  If the Yankees and Red Sox were both uninvolved, one would hope that Werth would care enough about winning to stay in Philadelphia.

Election Update: Congrats Jon Runyan

I'm not one to interject politics into a sports blog, but I must congratulate one of my alltime favorite Eagles, Jon Runyan on being elected as the U.S. Representative from New Jersey's 3rd District.  Runyan anchored the Eagles' offensive line from 2000-2008.  His presence in the huddle will be missed, but his presence in Congress is probably for the greater good.  With the retirement of former Phillies pitcher Jim Bunning from the Senate, it is now up to Runyan to represent Philly sports on Capitol Hill.

Mediocre Middle Reliver of the Week: Peter Moylan

For this week's mediocre middle reliever of the week, we feature Atlanta Braves right hander Peter Moylan.  Moylan is coming off a solid season in which he appeared in 85 games and posted a 2.97 ERA.  Moylan is best known for his unconventional path to the big leagues.  A native of Perth, Australia, Moylan was first noticed by Braves scouts while pitching for the Australian national team at the 2006 World Baseball Classic.  Moylan has been a regular in the Braves' bullpen since 2007, and has helped open a whole new continent to mediocre middle relievers.

Where are they now? Rob Kurz

Former Notre Dame center Rob Kurz was one of the Big East's most infamous doofuses in recent years.  With teammate Luke Harongody, Kurz was part of a frontcourt not lacking in large, lumbering Caucasians.  After graduating in 2008, Kurz was signed as a non-drafted free agent by the Golden State Warriors.  In his first season, Kurz appeared in 40 games, averaging 3.2 points per game and 2.0 rebounds.  Prior to the 2009-10 season, Kurz signed with the Cleveland Cavaliers, but did not make the final roster, instead playing for the Fort Wayne Mad Ants of the NBA's Developmental League.  This season, Kurz has moved overseas, and is currently playing for Spain's CB Granada. 

Bye week review

As the Eagles go into the bye week at 4-3, it is still difficult to know what to think of this team.  My preseason prediction was that they would finish 8-8, which is still certainly possible.  However, with the lack of dominant teams in the NFC this season, the wide open playoff race can give Eagles fans reason to hope.

The most noteworthy story thus far is clearly the quarterback situation.  After Kevin Kolb was named the starter in the offseason, Michael Vick took over following Kolb's injury in the season opener.  After Vick played very well for two and a half games, he was injured himself, ceding the job back to Kolb.  Following the bye week, Vick is expected to start the next game against Indianapolis.  Kolb was considered the franchise's QB of the future and remains so, but Vick, with his form so far this year, gives the team a better chance to win right now.  With the wide open NFC, the Eagles cannot afford to not take a shot at the playoffs this year.

Celek has not met expectations

As for the rest of the offense, the wide receivers have performed as expected, but DeSean Jackson suffered memory loss and a concussion due to a hit during the week 6 victory over the Atlanta Falcons.  LeSean McCoy has performed well at running back, averaging 4.5 yards per carry and scoring 5 touchdowns, although the Eagles continue to be a pass first team.  Perhaps the biggest disappointment on the offensive end is that the expected breakout season from Tight End Brett Celek never materialized, much to the chagrin of fantasy owners everywhere.  Also, the Eagles offensive line, though finally free of the overpaid "Andrews Sisters" Shawn and Stacy, has struggled immensely.  This is another factor in favor of Vick starting; with his mobility he is less affected by the poor pass protection than a conventional pocket passer like Kolb.

Stewart Bradley

Meanwhile, the Eagles defense has welcomed back middle linebacker Stewart Bradley, who missed last season with an ACL tear.   Bradley's bolstered a shaky group of linebackers, but the defense has still had its struggles.  The biggest concern appears to be the secondary.  Corner back Assante Samuel continues to be provide sound coverage but poor tacking, but fellow cornerback Ellis Hobbs may be the weakest link of the defense.  Hobbs was exposed against the Tennessee Titans last week, allowing Kenny Britt to reach 255 receiving yards and score 3 touchdowns. Perhaps most worryingly, the defense lacks a killer instinct, always seeming to allow opposing teams to come back late in games.  It is for this reason mostly that speculation is rife over the job security of second year defensive coordinator Sean McDermott.

As for special teams, David Akers, aside from one poor performance against Atlanta, has been his old reliable self.  Punter Sav Rocca has been solid, averaging 47.1 yards per punt.

Updated prediction: Based on what we have seen so far, it is very difficult to determine just how good this team really is.  With several difficult games coming up after the bye week, we may soon find out.  For now, I stand by my original prediction of 8-8.

Scottie sent home

Just several months removed from an illustrious Villanova career in which he became the school's second alltime leading scorer, was named a first team All-American, and led to the Cats to four NCAA tournament appearances and a Final Four, Scottie Reynolds' future in basketball is at a crossroads.  After becoming the first first team All-American in the modern era to not be selected in the NBA draft, Scottie played for the Phoenix Suns summer league team before signing a contract with Prima Veroli of Italy's Serie A2 (the second highest league in the country).  Now, a mere four games into the season, Scottie has left the team.  Veroli was unhappy with Scottie's performance in relation to the lucrative contract they had given him, and were likely to cut him anyway.  According to an article in the Italian newspaper La Provincia, "In short, Reynolds gave up, threw in the towel after less than four league games, from "All American" which was to astonish Italy will be remembered as one of the biggest hoaxes of all time, a personal failure, and technical character, because if decide to do a professional player at the highest levels must deal with any difficulties of adaptation or at least longer engage in trying to do it." 

At this point, Scottie's future in basketball looks bleak.  He is likely to land a spot in the NBA's developmental league, but given his small stature, lack of speed, and defensive liabilities, the prospects of an NBA career are slim.  After the experience in Veroli, offers from European clubs will also be hard to come by, but could happen again down the road.  Despite these setbacks, Scottie continues to be an outstanding representative of Villanova, and we wish him the best.

The Evan Turner Era Begins

The Miami Heat's new big three of Lebron James, Dwayne Wade, and Chris Bosh visited Philadelphia to open the season last night, but the game was also noteworthy for being our first look at #2 draft choice Evan Turner.  Turner was a first team All-American guard at Ohio St. last season, and was voted the top player in college basketball by numerous publications.  For a team that had been mired in mediocrity for nearly a decade, Turner represents the potential to develop into the superstar we have so clearly missed since Allen Iverson's departure.  Turner failed to impress during the preseason. According to Bill Simmons, "When you talk to NBA people, they keep lobbing red flags in the air about him. Bad body language, a step slow, doesn't really have a position, bad fit with Iguodala, Doug Collins already hates him. "  Despite these concerns, Turner's performance in his first regular season game was a bright spot.  Although Miami defeated the Sixers 97-87, Turner's team high 16 points and overall performance on the court gave Sixers fans reason to be optimistic.  Turner seems to carry himself with a confident swagger that his been missing from the team for quite some time, and has made highlight reels with his sick crossover on Dwayne Wade, seen below around the 40 second mark.



Very reminiscent of a crossover from another rookie Sixers guard