EAGLES BALL SECURITY KEY TO SUCCESS OVER BEARS
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Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher will be looking to ruin the Eagles plans for a winning streak.
For the Eagles, it’s simple: The only option is winning. They dug themselves a big hole losing four consecutive games after their season opening win over the St. Louis Rams and have very little room for error.
The Eagles (3-4) take on the Chicago Bears (4-3) Monday night on national television (ESPN 8:30 PM ET) in an effort to gain ground on the New York Football Giants and distance themselves from the Cowboys and Redskins.
That task will be tougher now with both team posting victories Sunday.
According to “Mike” linebacker Jamar Chaney, the task at hand is just as simple as their path: Stop all-purpose back Matt Forte. Going into this weekend’s play, Forte leads the NFL in total yards from scrimmage with 672 yards rushing and 419 yards through the air.
“First and foremost, you’ve got to stop Forte in the passing game and the running game,” Chaney said. “That’s main thing, to stop him. He has a long stride, he’s got real good vision. When he’s making his long runs he’s not looking to go out of bounds, he keeps looking for a cutback or running into somebody.”
Chaney started the season as the “Sam” or strong side linebacker but was moved back to the middle when rookie Casey Matthews did not perform well as the man in the middle.
Since returning to the “Mike” the Eagles defense stopped hemorrhaging.
The result is a two-game winning streak and a renewed feeling of confidence in the Eagles locker room.
Chaney said it was just a matter of time before the Birds started to come together.
“I think it was just everybody getting comfortable with everybody,” Chaney said. “We didn’t have any mini-camps and all that to learn the defense. We just had to learn on the run. That’s mo excuse on how we started the season, but we’re just getting comfortable with each other.”
The Eagles enter the game with the top-rated offense in the NFL producing 449.3 yards per game.
The difference between a losing streak and a winning streak has been turnovers. Now that the Eagles offensive line has been stabilized, the Eagles offense is virtually unstoppable if they protect the ball.
Quarterback Mike Vick was one of the worst offenders with ball security. With Bears super pass rushers Julius Peppers and Brian Urlacher on the prowl Monday night, Vick said how the Birds handle the ball could be the difference.
“We have to be fundamentally sound,” Vick said. “We have to be smart with the football. We have to see what they try and do, and we have a pretty good plan so we feel confident. They have a good pass rush. Julius Peppers and Brian Urlacher lead that defense and they get a lot of pressure. We just need to play good football. They’re great football players, and this is what this game is all about, it’s the best against the best. We’ll see what happens.”
Notes: On Saturday, the Eagles announced they have activated DE Brandon Graham from the Reserve/PUP list. To make room on the 53-man roster, the team has released G Kyle DeVan. Originally a first-round draft choice of the Eagles in 2010, Graham played in 13 games (6 starts) during his rookie season, registering 3.0 sacks and two forced fumbles. He was placed on the Injured Reserve list on 12/14/10 with a knee injury, and the Reserve/PUP list on 9/4/11. Graham (6-2, 268) played in 46 games at Michigan, and recorded 138 tackles, 29.5 sacks eight forced fumbles and two blocked punts.
The Eagles media relations department contributed to this report.
