Well I'm back from all my little excursions to bring you yet another edition of Monday Hangover. With the Phillies season officially forgotten by now, I may or may not bring it back from the dead after my little trip to the place where you'll see the Phillies next... Clearwater.
But as the weekend progressed, Philly sports were back in full spring and after the last few weeks of disappointment (the Titans game, the Phillies losing) the Philly teams turned it around a bit this week.
Colt 45
Like the malt liquor referenced above, I, and many other fans as well, thought that this week's game against the Indianapolis Colts would leave a really sour taste in our collective mouth. Instead, the Eagles squeezed out a victory after a very sloppy and poorly officiated game.
First, I just gotta say that besides the Eagles' throwbacks, I think the Colts' throwback jerseys they wore on Sunday are the most amazing throwback jersey I've seen. My only questions is why didn't they wear the throwbacks at home? And if the Colts are in throwback, then why didn't the Eagles throw on the 1960 Kelly Greens. The world may never know.
The game itself was a frustrating one. Big plays led the Eagles to early scoring drives, but the birds still settled for too many field goals. It's very frustrating to have a 94 yard field goal drive.
To make matters worse, the Eagles got called for some pretty tough penalties. Now I'm not going to defend a team that committed 14 penalties for 125 total yards. A team like that should lose the game to a team like the Colts. But there had to be at least 3 or 4 of the 15-yard variety that were just plain unwarranted. When Austin Collie went down with a concussion, Eagles safety Kurt Coleman was called for hitting "a defenseless receiver". This topic and these types of hits have been all the rage in the NFL in the recent weeks. And Collie's injury is very scary but this hit did not deserve a penalty. Collie looks like he had his hands on the ball, started to turn, and was unfortunately spun around by two clean hits. Later in the game, the Eagles looked like they sacked and forced a fumble from Peyton Manning to officially seal a victory. Nope. Trent Cole gave Peyton's helmet the white glove test and the the Colts were awarded another 15 yards. Cole was clearly going for the ball and incidental contact to the quarterback's helmet should not be a penalty.
Regardless the Eagles were able to inch out of this one and get a well deserved victory.
Four Loko Brand
The Philadelphia 76ers opened the season on very shaky ground with big losses to Miami, Cleveland, and Atlanta, but have posted a bit of a turnaround as of late. They've won two of their last three and owe it in large part to Elton Brand. Brand, labeled by many, to be a huge bust since coming to Philly a couple of years ago, has had some huge games. He posted 25 points and 12 rebounds in a huge win over Indiana in the middle of the week and contributed 20 and 7 in yesterday's win over the Knicks at Madison Square Garden. With a young supporting cast and key contributions from Jrue Holiday, Evan Turner, and Lou Williams, Elton may be finally coming around. He's scored 20 or more points in the past four games and here's hoping that the Sixers can turn some of these performances into W's.
The Sixers have also been blessed by injury. Having Andre Iguodala out with an injured Achilles tendon has let Turner and Williams turn on the jets a bit. Giving these two guys more playing time is key to the future of this team. And I hope that Iggy's injury shows the Sixers front office the solution: Trade him. Soon. Get some young players or draft picks and move this team closer to resurgence. We already have a ton of capable guards and small forwards. There really is no point to having Andre on this team anymore.
Pretty Fly for a bunch of White Guys
Oh yeah and the Flyers just ended a nice little streak too. After starting a meager 3-4-1, the Flyers ripped off six straight victories before losing to the Caps last night in overtime. The offense is finally starting to click and it looks like this team is headed into the right direction. Claude Giroux, Jeff Carter and Mike Richards are living up to their billing as the offensive gurus, while rookie goaltender Sergei "Bob" Bobrovsky has played every minute of the winning streak. So far in the early going, "Bob" is 8-2-1 with a 2.19 goals against average and an impressive 92.6 save percentage. With starter Michael Leighton almost ready to return, veteran backup Brian Boucher may be the odd man out. When it comes to goaltending, you definitely cannot sit the hot hand (or glove). Look for the 22 year old Russian to continue his play as the Flyers visit the Canes on Veterans' Day.
I Can See Clearwater Now, the Rain is Gone
Yes, I just returned from a vacation in Clearwater, FL where I enjoyed the sun, the surf, and the sand. Too bad the sand was on the golf course. I also was able to stop outside the gates of Bright House Field and reflect on when I'll see my beloved Phillies again. In just a few short months, the crowds will once again start flocking to the stadium to see the 2011 version of the Phillies. So much hope was wrapped in the Phillies this year and it was tough to see the spring training facility as the San Francisco Giants won their first world series in over 50 years.
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