Stepping Up

Jeremy Maclin and LeSean McCoy were selected in the first two rounds for a reason. The rookies showed just how far they’ve grown and matured during the course of the season against their NFC East rivals. McCoy caught a couple of short swing passes and added a short run as the Eagles moved 90 yards in 10 plays to score a touchdown. They had to go for a 2-point conversion so after a timeout, Donovan McNabb shoveled a pass to McCoy, who used solid second effort to keep from going down to score the 2-point conversion. Next it was Maclin's turn with the big play by hauling in a 35-yard pass from McNabb. After McCoy ran twice, Maclin caught a 6-yard pass and McCoy finished off the drive with two more runs to get the ball into field goal range.McCoy finished with a game-high 76 yards rushing on 17 carries and snared four passes for 25 yards. Maclin grabbed five balls for 63 yards. It was pretty huge of them to step it up since star receiver DeSean left the game with a concussion.

McCoy Looking to Fill-In

LeSean McCoy should be headed for some good numbers again as the Philadelphia Eagles' starting running back, based on how he's done knowing he's starting going in. Coach Andy Reid pointed out last week how McCoy, a rookie who's been spelling injured Brian Westbrook for most of the season, does better when he spends the whole week of practice beforehand with the first team. This is another one of those weeks as the Eagles prepare to play the Washington Redskins. "It means a lot for Coach Reid to say that," McCoy said. "It means he has a lot of confidence in me. I just think it's the norm. You play, get some carries, get some reps. You know that mistake or no mistake, you're going to be out there and perform. "And also, when you're a backup, you don't know when you're going to go in, what quarter. So I think just knowing you're going to be in the game make it a lot better."

Philly "Egos"

Andy Reid is in the unaccustomed position of having to juggle some big-time offensive talent - and the egos that come with that talent. Reid and Donovan McNabb said after Sunday's win that the Bucs rolled their coverage to Jackson, a big part of why rookie Maclin always seemed open, to the tune of six catches for 142 yards and his first two NFL TDs. "It's definitely frustrating to go from a situation where you're getting all those catches, and then you have a game with one catch," Jackson said last night on ESPN 950's "DeSean Jackson Show." He has 13 catches for 260 yards in four games. "There's going to be times when the other team is going to try to take me out of the game. It was good to see Jeremy go over the top and make those catches ... Jeremy just came up huge ... As long as we're winning, everybody's happy." The other position, running back, Westbrook made it clear afterward that eight touches a game is not what he has in mind, now that he feels his ankle is healthy.Reid said the Eagles would rotate Westbrook and McCoy "as long as we need to, and as long as [Westbrook] feels comfortable with his foot. We can increase things, but right now, that's where we're at, and we'll see how it works this week."

Philly Update

A few Eagles update: With Michael Vick on the exempt list, Eagles offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg said a position player would be the third quarterback but declined to say who. Mornhinweg also acknowledged that he has not gone into a season with as many untested parts as he has this season. The goal for the offense is to “get a little better each game,” he said. Mornhinweg hinted that we shouldn’t expect rookies Jeremy Maclin and LeSean McCoy to have large roles right away. “He’s ready to help us a little bit, at least situationally,” Mornhinweg said of Maclin. With Brian Westbrook healthy, McCoy likely will have a role similar to what Correll Buckhalter did last season, he said.

As for the defense, coordinator Sean McDermott said rookie starting free safety Macho Harris is “a guy that’s battled all through the spring and training camp,” and is “a natural football player.”

LeSean Learning

The running part of being a running back, McCoy seems to have a pretty good take on. The pass-catching part, important when you play for the Eagles, he looks even more smooth at that. But the blocking part, well, that's kinda new. McCoy said a few times he felt he tried to do too much, carrying the ball, often with the first unit, with Brian Westbrook sidelined following ankle surgery. One other adjustment: McCoy slipped after taking a handoff, touched a knee down, and stopped, as you would in college, where a ballcarrier is down if his knee is down. Defensive end Chris Clemons did not stop, this being the NFL. McCoy was blasted. Eckel said, protectively. "He's improving, he's going to improve, and he wants to improve."

Deal Done

Eagles that second-round pick LeSean McCoy has signed a four-year deal. His signing leaves first-round pick Jeremy Maclin as the only draft choice without a contract as the opening of training camp comes late next month. McCoy is expected to battle Lorenzo Booker for the primary backup role behind Brian Westbrook

Predicted Season

Whatifsports has simulated this NFL season and their results were that the Super Bowl will be a repeat of Super Bowl XXXIX which was the Pats vs Eagles. The results were that the bonus McNabb received help motivate him to win his first Super Bowl. The game was a high scoring game that went to the wire with the Eagles pulling out the win 34-31. The Pats trailing 34-31 with 1:21 remaining and the ball on their own 34, Brady helps New England pick up 37 yards in less than a minute. Facing a fourth and four with 33 seconds to go, another Philadelphia rookie, defensive back Victor "Macho" Harris, blitzes from the blind side and gets to the frantic quarterback before he can release the ball. The Eagles had other rookies like McCoy and Cornelius Ingram to step up and score touchdowns. The playoffs look similar to last year but you have [what I feel] 3 surprise teams [Cowboys, Texans, & Saints]. The seedings are as follow:

NFC AFC

1. Steelers 1. Eagles

2. Pats 2. Cards

3. Colts 3. Vikings [w|o Favre]

4. Chargers 4. Saints

5. Jets 5. Cowboys

6. Texans 6. Giants

Oh and they predicted the Lions to win actually 5 games this season.

MVP - Adrian Peterson

Off POY - Drew Brees

Def POY - DeMarcus Ware

Off ROY - Michael Crabtree

Def ROY - Aaron Curry

Coach - Rex Ryan

Starter down=More reps

With star running back Brian Westbrook going down, this opens the door for the other backs to step up. Westbrook had surgery on his ankle to clean out somethings that he sprained last season. Booker is receiving most of the first team reps, as LeSean McCoy still tries to learn the offense. At times he seemed lost during practice as they went at 70% speed-wise. Since Westbrook will not be participating, he will be able to give McCoy a lot of advice [which will be much needed]. His biggest problem is still not picking up blitzes. He will really have to fix that in order to play. With Westbrook, McCoy's learning curve should go up and he should be ready to become the team's backup to Westbrook.

Note: Westbrook is not to miss any time because of the surgery.

Immediate Impact

My boy out of Pittsburgh [LeSean McCoy] is looking to make an impact for the Eagles this season. Right now he is the 2nd string back behind Brian Westbrook. Running back Lorenzo Booker is right behind him for that position though. I cannot see that happening because they are trying to fit him into the offense already. McCoy feels that they are trying to practice him at the speed of him being an every down back. Although he has a few things to learn, he is learning at a good pace. With McCoy coming in giving Westbrook a break, this should help him become more productive. His big thing is changing his blocking technique.