From the Desk of Eagles Outsider Barry Bowe
Who’s In? – Who’s Out?
Several quarterbacks will draw the attention of this Eagles Outsider – along with a host of Eagles fans – as the 2015 NFL season unfolds. So I’m keeping my eyes on them as the season progresses.
As we all know by now, Tim Tebow was cut by the Eagles, returned to the SEC broadcast booth, and was thus removed from the list. In his place went Stephen Morris, who is now the third-string quarterback for the Eagles and will probably never see action.
I’ve also added Johnny Manziel and Jameis Winston to the list because, in my opinion, they both stink. Had I been GM of the Cleveland Browns or Tampa Bay Buccaneers, I never would’ve drafted either one.
But I’m focusing on Manziel and Winston to see if I was right or wrbks wrnty wrong. Sorry, but it’s difficult for me to type that last word because, well, because I’m rarely off-base when it comes to player evaluations.
So my QB Watch List now consists of:
- Sam Bradford
- Nick Foles
- Marcus Mariota
- Mark Sanchez
- Matt Barkley
- Stephen Morris
- Johnny Manziel
- Jameis Winston
Mark Sanchez and Matt Barkley dressed for the Eagles and Cardinals respectively, but didn’t play. And as just suggested, Stephen Morris didn’t dress for the Eagles. So that leaves me with five quarterbacks to watch and evaluate in this first week.
MARCUS MARIOTA
Marcus Mariota looked brilliant in his NFL debut.
He threw for four TDs in the first half – and on the road, by the way – and he made it look easy. And another by the way, the 42-14 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers ended the Tennessee Titans 10-game losing streak from last season.
Mariota went 13-for-16 for 209 yards, those four TDs, and no interceptions – which earned him a perfect 158.3 QB rating.
He ran twice for six yards and was sacked twice.
The only thing detracting from his performance is that he played against the Bucs.
NICK FOLES
I already wrote about Nick Foles premier with the Rams – “Foles Foils Seahawks.” Check it out for details, or suffice it to say that Nicky Football engineered a 12-play, 84-yard drive during the last four minutes of the fourth quarter that tied the score 31-31 and sent the game into overtime.
In overtime, Foles put the Rams in position for the 37-yard game-winning field goal off the foot of Greg Zuerlein.
By the way, the Rams played the Seattle Seahawks – who appeared in the last two Super Bowls. Those same Seahawks are regarded to be the best defense in the NFL.
Foles’ numbers for the day:
- 18-for-27
- 297 yards
- One TD
- Zero INTs
Why did Chip Kelly trade him?
SAM BRADFORD
Sam Bradford looked like your run-of-the-mill NFL quarterback in his first game with the Eagles. In case you missed the game, the Eagles lost to the run-of-the-mill Atlanta Falcons 26-24 and I’m still trying to figure out who should get more of the blame for the loss:
- Sam Bradford?
- Chip Kelly?
- Billy Davis?
- Byron Maxwell?
- Cody Parkey?
From where I’m sitting, the Eagles are a good team, but Chip Kelly is the Achilles heel that will prevent the Birds from being a Super Bowl contender. Ain’t gonna happen unless Chip amends his ways somewhat. Unfortunately, I don’t see that happening soon enough because he’s such a hardhead – but that’s another story for another day.
Getting back to Bradford, sort of, Chip had him throw the ball 52 times last night. Now, remember, that’s with this year’s reincarnation of the three-headed monster in the backfield featuring:
- DeMarco Murray
- Ryan Matthews
- Darren Sproles
Yep, 52 passes – of which Bradford completed 36 for 336 yards. He threw for one TD – but two costly INTs.
My sources inform me that Bradford had his ankle X-rayed after the game, but the results were negative – much like both his and the coach’s performances against Atlanta.
Up next week: the Dallas Cowboys on a short week.
After watching the Cowboys-Giants game on Sunday, this looked like an easy win. Now, I’m not so sure.
JOHNNY MANZIEL
Johnny Manziel is not an NFL quarterback – as I’ve proclaimed all along. If I were a GM, I never would’ve even considered drafting him. Forget about the fact that he’s a shrimp and a knucklehead; he lacks sufficient talent and brainpower to be any good. A flash now and again but nothing substantial or lasting.
Looking at his numbers in the 31-10 loss to the Jets, Johnny Won’t-Make-It went 13-for-24 for 182 yards. He threw one TD and one INT and the “mobile quarterback” was sacked three times. Oh, yeah, the “mobile quarterback” racked up 35 yards on the ground on five carries.
Too bad I wasn’t the Browns GM. Drafting Manziel set the hapless Browns back another three or four years.
JAMEIS WINSTON
Jameis Winston stepped onto the field for his first NFL drive already trailing 7-0 to Marcus Mariota and the Titans. After handing the ball off on the first two plays, Winston was looking at a 3rd-and-3 on his third play.
And that’s when he reinforced my opinion of him.
On his first pass in the NFL, Winston not only made a poor decision, but he also threw a lazy pass into the awaiting arms of Coty Sensabaugh.
Problem was: Coty Sensabaugh plays for the Titans and Sensabaugh turned the interception into an easy six points with an untouched 26-yard return for a touchdown.
You can watch that interception from three different angles on the video below.
Oh, yeah, I already heard it. Brett Favre was the last NFL quarterback to throw a pick-six on his first pass in the NFL. Trust me – there’s won’t be any positive comparisons between Brett Favre and Jameis Winston.
Stinks.
Winston finished 16-for-33 for 210 yards, two TDs and two INTs. He was sacked four times.
If I were the Bucs GM, Marcus Mariota would’ve been my pick and the Bucs would be 1-and-0 to start the season insteada the other way around.
In addition to being an official Eagles Outsider, Barry Bowe is also the author of:
- Born to Be Wild
- 1964 – The Year the Phillies Blew the Pennant
- 12 Best Eagles QBs
- Soon-to-be-published novel Caribbean Queen
- Soon-to-be-published novel Stosh Wadzinski
- Soon-to-be-published novel Polish Widow
- Soon-to-be-published Birth of the Birds
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