National Football Post Tavern Talk

Philly last timeout.

I don't mind it. If you need time, and if the other team will run the clock down, you're better off calling timeout when they have the ball and saving a full 40 seconds than keeping it for yourself, where, because you hustle, even a pass over the middle probably only costs you 25 seconds. It's all dependent on whether they are in full run-down mode. If so, then it's best to call it when they have the ball and hustle when you have the ball - you'll gain one or two plays this way. Keeping them for yourself gets you fewer plays, though more clock stops.

I couldn't agree more on Reid's management-but according to your comrade Bowen-I should just be happy we have him. Another reason why his "open letter" sucked.

Mike, I think you're wrong on the 4th Quarter timeout (and very right on the 2Q timeout usage).

Arizona has 3rd and goal at your 8. 3 minutes left. You know you're down once Rackers hits the FG, and you need an FG (or potentially TD) to win.

Arizona, guaranteed, will use up the full clock--say 45 seconds--before 3rd down. So the TO buys you 45 seconds.

If you save the TO, how much time do you save? You save whatever amount it takes the offense to get to the ball, call a play and hike it. That's bound to be less than 45 seconds, merely b/c the team is trying to hurry.

I find it dubious that you can't use the middle of the field with 2:50 and a TO left. And the Eagles had no real issue with the clock--they threw plenty of balls in the middle and to the side.

The two-minute warning hit with them at midfield (with 1 TO). They could have completed 4 passes inbounds and still probably had 30 seconds left with the ball deep in AZ territory. The time for the last drive wasn't an issue.

That said, the 3 given up before halftime was huge. Arizona's final drive is quite a bit harder if the Eagles know AZ has to have a TD. I think it unlikely they run that screen on 3rd and goal, for example.

Mike -

I agree completely with VR. The maximum time you can gain from calling a timeout is 40 seconds (not 45)and that is what Philly gained from calling the TO. It really doesn't make any difference if that 40 seconds is saved when they have the ball or when the opponents have it or when it is before or after the two minute warning. This was a great call by Philly as there was almost definately (except for penalty) one play left for Arizona.

Mike, even though we disagree on this, I want to tell you that I love your column

I kept trying to tell cor that larry fitz was playing the best wr of anyone not named jerry rice in the last like 25 years but he kept talking up the eagles. on paper the eagles should probably win this game seeing as they have the better team but something always goes wrong for mcnabb and I dont think anyone in philly can blame mcnabb in this game like you said bad clock management and also if pitt doesnt quadruple cover fitzgerald the cards are going to do the same to them.

Sorta agree with VR. I think it comes down to what you value more, having less than 2 minutes left and 2 timeouts that you control, or having more than 2 minutes with one TO and the warning. I'd probably lean towards having the two TOs, but I don't think the call was indefensible.

As for the first half TO, it really didn't bother me as I was watching the game. You're already down 21-6 in the first half but you're driving down the field. If you have any confidence/hope of scoring here, you need to make sure you have the right play dialed up and that everyone on the offense is on the same page.

The second timeout was the curious one to me. They should feel lucky that they just made a negative play on defense and let the clock run. The first TO wasn't the problem, it was giving the Cards more time and options with the second.

As for the blitz on third down.... I guess old habits die hard. When they do it during the regular season and force a hurried throw that falls incomplete, we as fans cheer the play call. When Warner converts for a first down in the face of that blitz, what can you do? Third down blitzing in long yardage was the bread and butter of the D all season, so it's probably unrealistic to think that would be different.

VR is absolutely correct.

The end of the 1st half was brutal clock management for the reasons provided. Good analysis.

The end of the game, though, was handled correctly. Basically, facing that 3rd down with 3 minutes left, Philly knows they will be down after this play. They don't know if they'll need a TD or a FG, but they'll need to put points up. So they called a TO to maximize their time. If they don't call it, Arizona brings it down close to 2 minutes. Generally, you want to use your TO's on defense because you can better control the clock on offense by spiking it or rushing to the line.

The first half time out in question was also early into the play clock, insuring time would be given the Cardinals if you did not convert third and very, very long.

They didn't get field goal range set up out of it either? Six point turnaround. Ouch.

Your own advice is to simplify things, so they probably limit hurry up and two minute playcalls to some Donovan favorites and he uses those. The other team has less to key for those times.

What was nice is how the Eagles presented their changes. McNabb used the shotgun as an answer to the middle blitzes the Vikings had shown as Frazier's answer to limiting how Brian Westbrook could be used.

The Cards followed the same advice at times and kept Westbrook in protections at some key downs by sending people to rush. The Eagles still found ways to use him in new roles. The dual halfback set allowed them to get a halfback matched up on their worst cover man every time.

The shotgun gave them a way of using Westbrook offset(could mean tagging a safety to rotate under his side, suddenly that back gets across the formation quickly away from the help). Reid put this in very quickly, and the Eagles played well from it for the most part. On thing that changed, McNabb sometimes had a different grip for the pass attempt. Some throws were off because of it, more early in the game than late.


They worked this in on a very short schedule, McNabb still had an amazing game. The Cards did a good job taking away initial quicks, he had to hold the ball and still throw underneath. Routes that had the depth of a quick, yet still required moving levels of the defense.

It was changing what you(disguise) show to do a lot of what you do(simple rule). The Eagles had near maximum results, the margin for error was enough vs. a good Cards offense at home to see them lose despite the changes done. McNabb had several dropped passes or put the ball where it had to be and guys didn't locate or accelerate to it. So he stayed with Celek and checkdowns a lot. Throw to them, not through them, every QB this week made that error under pressure at times, McNabb and Warner were still doing a wonderful job on that item also.

The Cards borrowed from what Warner does best, and basically kept it simple as well. They would change the sets and come back to a certain route.
Replacing defenders as they trail the shallow. The Greatest Show on Turf did that a ton of times, usually using Faulk to replace whoever ran the shallow(Holt) or using Faulk from the slot on slants.
Fitzgerald was who the Cardinals put in place to do that, and they needed speed opposite him to clear the side he would run to shallow. The Eagles were jumping dig routes at the level past the shallow so they Cards ran other faster routes to turn the safeties and get Fitz his YAC chances.


Had Boldin's terrific effort on an overturned play resulted in a catch without a replay, the entire drama episode might never have become am item.

Eleven seconds off the clock following a completion for the Eagles time out. That put two plays into the Cardinals hands. All the Qb had to do was wait for the game clock to be down to :02 and give his signal. Don't let frustration determine game outcomes.

Two items above that made differences in the game. One could still continue, it is time to rally up and get focused on this game.

Changing who does the shallow or the depth it gets run may be a major item. the Steelers LB and Troy P are a lot to try and get around.

Marshall says "This was a great call by Philly as there was almost definately (except for penalty) one play left for Arizona.'

Well besides being a very big "except" (how many interference penalties do we see in the end zone every game?) how about the fact that you stop the clock and allow Arizona to regroup, catch their breath, and come up with a dynamite play call? Let's face it, the screen to Hightower was the perfect call there and maybe the extra time Philly gives Az to think about it is the reason they made the call and executed it so well.

In my mind it's like calling a timeout to ice the kicker. All your doing is giving them time to calm down, catch their breath and focus. I'd much rather have them run on to the field and at least feel rushed to some degree, feel like they have to hurry.

You're down 21-6 with 1:48 left in the first half. It's your ball, 3rd-and-14 on your own 36, and it's been a tough half of football for your team.

How can you want anything other than to get into the locker room ASAP ???!?!?

That timeout was SO SO awful, as I yelled to my girlfriend who was half-watching and grading papers. Just abysmal.

But I agree with most of these guys -- the timeout in the 4th quarter was fine. It got maximum value (the full 40 or so seconds), which I've always thought should be the main concern in such situations.

Screen to Hightower? Really? I didn't think it was that great a call at all to get 8 yards on the goal line.

I think the Eagles forced them into it--it's virtually a guaranteed completion, and hence kills clock or a TO, and has a chance of getting to the end zone. It was a call to not risk an incomplete pass.

There's a reason you don't see screens on the goal line--the short field means defenders don't get far downfield and can come back to catch it pretty easily.

Even that screen (very well executed) still should have been stopped on the 2-3 yard line. Demps did some stupid rookie "I'll hit you hard" tackle and bounced Hightower in instead of grabbing him and fighting for ground like he should have. Bad game for Demps overall.

But I'm still killed by the 3 points given up at halftime. If that doesn't happen, it's 26-21 Eagles (no 2 pt try), and it changes the whole complexion of that last AZ drive.

Mike, thanks for passing on the interesting stuff about goal setting. I love your football commentary, of course, but I really like the motivational and leadership things you pass on, too.