| | | | | | | |  Saturday, November 23, 2002
Douglas says defense will step up
By Melissa Stark
Special to ABC Sports Online
Obviously the big story heading into Monday night's game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the San Francisco 49ers is that Donovan McNabb won't be running the Eagles offense.
In the past, the Eagles have generally been labeled a one-man show. They've proven this year that is no longer true, but it is the big question mark heading into Monday night (ABC, 9 p.m. ET), as Koy Detmer makes his seventh career start, and his first since Dec. 19, 1999.
|
Monday's storylines:
|
|
1. Koy Detmer: How will he do in his first game as Donovan McNabb's replacement?
2. San Francisco's kicking game: The 49ers better hope this doesn't come down to a field goal. Rookie Jeff Chandler is going to handle the kicking duties, as Jose Cortez gets benched after missing four out of his last eight tries, including a chance to win the game last week against the Chargers. Earlier in the week, Jeff Garcia criticized general manager Terry Donahue for keeping two kickers on the roster, saying that put too much pressure on Cortez.
3. Terrell Owens We all know what Owens did his last time on Monday Night Football. What will he do this time? I'm looking forward to that. He's such an interesting character.
--Melissa Stark
|
The Eagles' players and coaches are rallying behind him, but what else are they going to say? That the season is going to go down the drain? They are saying all the right things and backing Detmer. He's been in Philly since he was drafted in the seventh round in 1997 and, as his brother, Ty Detmer, points out, he knows the West Coast offense.
Koy's laid back and very confident, but he's not your typical quarterback. He's scrawny (6-foot-1, 195 pounds) and doesn't look like a quarterback.
Ty's biggest advice for Koy was to take care of the football. Andy Reid has said they have not scaled down the playbook for Detmer and will not change the game plan, but that is hard to believe. Yet the Eagles can't just run the ball and be that one-dimensional, as the 49ers would crush them. I do expect them to take some chances, but Koy is going to be under some pressure from blitzes.
A lot will fall on the shoulders of Duce Staley. The Eagles are second in the NFL in rushing, averaging 159.1 yards per game. Some of that is inflated by McNabb's running (46 yards per game), but Duce is finally injury-free. He's averaging a career-best 4.3 yards per carry, and he has a good set of backups in Dorsey Levens and the rookie Brian Westbrook.
Philadelphia will definitely run the ball more on Monday night. San Francisco's plan is to stop it and then put pressure on Detmer. San Francisco is 32nd in the league on defense on third downs (allowing teams to convert 49.6 percent of their chances), so if the Eagles can get some good gains on first and second, they should be in good shape.
|  | | Hugh Douglas leads the Eagles with 7 sacks and 20 hurries. |
With Detmer at quarterback, the key is for the Eagles defense to make big plays. Last December when the teams met, the Eagles were trailing 6-3 in the and the 49ers had an unbelievable goal-line stand, stuffing the Eagles six times inside the two-yard line before Derek Smith intercepted McNabb in the end zone.
This year, Hugh Douglas said the Eagles are the ones who need to make the goal-line stand. Douglas said that the defense views McNabb's absence as a challenge.
Looking at the 49ers' offense, they have a triple threat in Jeff Garcia, Garrison Hearst and Terrell Owens. Garcia is a lot like McNabb -- a mobile quarterback who can hurt you with his legs and arm. Douglas said Garcia reminds many of the Eagles of McNabb because he's gutsy. And just like McNabb, he's also 23-9 in his last 32 starts.
Keep an eye on Garcia's snaps. Center Jeremy Newberry has a broken ring finger on his right hand. He is going to continue to snap with his right hand and will not wear a cast on Monday night. San Francisco enters the game with the fewest turnovers in the league (nine).
Just because McNabb is not in there, don't expect the 49ers to be overconfident. The 49ers have a two-game lead in the NFC West, but Steve Mariucci is cautioning his team to be ready.
Melissa Stark is Monday Night Football's sideline reporter and a regular contributor to ABC Sports Online.
| | |
| | | | |
ESPN.com:
HELP |
ADVERTISER INFO |
CONTACT US |
TOOLS |
SITE MAP
Copyright ©2002 ESPN Internet Group. Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and Safety Information are applicable to this site. Employment opportunities at ESPN.com.
| |
| 
|
Koy Detmer talks with ESPN's Sal Paolantonio as the Eagles prepare to face the 49ers.