I know, I know. You looked at the title and said to yourself: "Michoel Botwinick, you heartless S.O.B., Kevin Curtis is unquestionably the Eagles' best wide receiver and is extremely vital to the team."
But is he?
True—he's been the Eagles' best wideout since T.O., but what exactly has he done in terms of creating matchup problems or stretching the field for D-Mac? While Donte Stallworth didn't exactly put up the numbers that Curtis did, he did make the other receivers next to him better.
Why?
Because he spread out the field, created matchup problems, and generally took some of the pressure off his fellow wide receivers. Remember, that was the year in which Reggie Brown had a breakout season.
In other words, he made the whole corps better, something that Curtis did not do.
Furthermore, Curtis would be a second or third wide receiver with most teams, where he would be largely ineffective. Remember St. Louis, when he played behind Torry Holt? And those years were supposed to be the prime of his career.
But still, what does Curtis's injury do in terms of helping the Eagles' already shoddy wide-receiver corps?
Here are the top three possibilities:
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1. First of all, DeSean Jackson will have to be utilized more. I know Andy Reid has an unpleasant habit of not playing rookies, but how can you ignore this guy?! Already a standout wide receiver at Cal—in addition to his electrifying punt returns—he is clearly the playmaker that McNabb has been asking for. And the more touches that D-Jax gets, well, we'll see...But I see great things coming.
2. Reggie Brown came to the Eagles with high hopes three years ago, but he hasn't quite been what he was cracked up to be when the Eagles' drafted him in the second round in 2005. He did, however, have a great year in 2006, playing behind Stallworth, but he received diminished attention with the arrival of Curtis in the next year.
Now, we will see what he can do in a starring role, and if his college tapes prove correct, he may be in for an excellent year. The talent is definitely there, that's for sure.
3. Unless you hadn't been listening to Philly sports radio around the time of training camp, you may have heard rave reviews about Hank Baskett's red-zone capability. I mean, you look at a guy who is 6'4" and can jump seven-feet high, and you see the potential.
While he may not be a major factor in the offense, other than the red zone, he can definitely be a huge asset in terms of getting six points on the board.
The basic premise of these three points is that, by the time Kevin Curtis does come back, in about a month or so, Donovan McNabb will have greater confidence in his current set of wide receivers. And then McNabb will depend on Curtis less, spread the field more, and correctly implement the West Coast offense.
And if not?
Well, one of these two things will have to happen.
1. The Eagles will have to finally get a true No. 1 wide receiver. And that's always a good thing!
2. The Eagles will have to give the ball to Westbrook more. Which, of course, is fine with me, as that would mean a more balanced attack. Just makes you wonder how much longer Westbrook can accommodate being the centerpiece of the Eagles' offense.
Or...
The injury plain sucks, and we have another wasted season. Oh well.
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2 months ago
So, in other words, your logic is: Because the Eagles' best receiver is out, the other receivers on the team will have better numbers. Therefore, their offense will improve.
Sorry, it doesn't matter WHAT team it is, running a West Coast Offense or not, a good receiving corps always has one, true number one. Otherwise, defenses don't have to worry about paying extra attention to one receiver, which hurts a quarterback's ability to spread the ball. Right now, EVERY active receiver on the Eagles' roster is worthy of a number three spot or a spot on the bench on most other teams.
And, I think it is a big deal if Westbrook is forced to receive more attention. He had 1,300+ yards rushing last year. The Eagles' offense is already balanced. Giving the ball to him more makes the offense more one-dimensional, which always makes defenses happy.
from 2 months ago
First of all, my logic is that while, in my opinion, the Eagles are a playoff team anyway, by the time Curtis returns, McNabb will have a higher comfort level with his other wideouts. And when Curtis DOES come back, defenses will be more focused on him while D-Mac gives other receivers -- which he has confidence in -- some extra touches.
And by the way, the Eagles defense is far from balanced. Although I know you pay a lot of attention to the Eagles here on B/R, you probably have not watched too many games. The Eagles run about a 60/40 passing attack.
And last but not least, I think it is worthy to note that EVERY current Eagles wide receiver would have a No. 1 spot on your Redskins team.
Good luck tonight, because I hate the Giants more!
2 months ago
First of all, I'd like to second what Michoel said...
Secondly:
After seeing tonight's game (skins vs nyg) i know the Iggles will have at least 4 conference wins this regular season.
from 2 months ago
I'm sure the Eagles were thinking the same thing when the Giants started off 0-2 last year while being widely regarded as having one of the worst defenses in the league.
Look how that one turned out. The Giants beat the Eagles twice...
from 2 months ago
True, but the Giants did succeed in putting up more than 7 points in both those games.
I mean, ONE touchdown scored, how pathetic. *GASP*
2 months ago
You make good points. Baskett and Jackson will get more chances now (especially since Brown is doubtful now).
But I would still rather have Curtis in the lineup because you can never have too many WR's.
from 2 months ago
Agree completely. There's still no official word as to when he'll be back, but he said he's feeling a lot better.
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