* The Sixers lost at home last night to the awful Sacramento Kings, as the 76'ers blew a 16-point lead. They were swept by the Kings this season. And they lose yet another home game to a poor Western Conference team ( They had previously lost in Philadelphia to the Lakers and Suns).
Joel Embiid didn't play again. Back tightness and "work overload management". In other words, he is hurt and he played too much last Friday night in the triple-overtime ;loss to Oklahoma City.There has got to be concern for Embiid's fragile health ( he experienced back problems in college while at Kansas). Two winnable games- against below-average teams like the Bulls and Kings- were lost because Emniid is hurt and he played too many minutes a few days earlier?
The Sixers have a long, long way to go before they become a respectable club, let alone a playoff-caliber squad. I once again question the judgement of the Sixers' doctors. I'm also wondering if Coach Brett Brown is the right guy to lead this Sixer team in the future.
The 76'ers play another home game on Thursday night against Toronto.
* There are many theories out there about why the Eagles' defense has looked so bad the last few weeks. Travel, slacking off in practice, taking the opposition too light, injuries coming back to haunt the defense. Another thought floated around now is that the Eagles' defense is now finally starting to face good, experienced quarterbacks. Russell Wilson, Jared Goff and Eli Manning have carved up the secondary the last three weeks.
It's only going to get worse. The last two regular season games offer Derek Carr and Dak Prescott as opposition QBs. In the playoffs, the Birds potentially will see the likes of Drew Brees, Matt Ryan and/or Cam Newton. If the Eagles make it to the Super Bowl they would probably face Tom Brady or Ben Rothesberger.
The pass rush needs to put more pressure on QBs. The Defensive Coordinator needs to have better game plans and call more blitzes. The secondary needs to cover better and commit less penalties. In front of a home crowd at the Linc hopefully the defense picks it up, starts to shine, forces turnovers and takes control going into the playoffs.
The corner backs need to cover the slant pass better. The linebackers are being exposed with Jordan Hicks in the middle. If the pass rush can't put pressure on opposing QBs, the secondary is left hung-out to dry.
Is CB Sidney Jones ready to play?
The Pro Bowl selections came out yesterday, and six Eagles made the Pro Bowl: Malcolm Jenkins, Todd Ertz, Brandon Brooks, Carson Wentz, Fletcher Cox and Lane Johnson. One can make the case that Brandon Graham and Jason Kelcey could've made the Pro Bowl as well.
The great thing about the 2017 Eagles is that they are a complete team. The quarterbacks have spread the ball around; the three-headed monster of running backs, the rotation of the defensive line have all come into play. Opposing teams can't just key on one or two players.
Depending on what happens in the playoffs, one can argue that Doug Pederson should win Coach of the Year and Howie Rossman should win Executive of the Year.
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