I know that the reality of the Eagles quarterback is an incredibly tough pill to swallow. Unfortunately, reality has already flopped on the couch, kicked its shoes off, and planted its feet comfortably on the table. Reality is here to stay ladies and gentlemen, and the reality is that Carson Wentz is out for the remainder of the season. The news is absolutely devastating, and makes the Eagles clinching of the NFC East almost seem obsolete.
On the bright side, their solidified playoff spot is another part of this new reality. I know it’s a heck of a lot easier said than done, but the Eagles have to rally together without their captain and capitalize on their best chance to bring the Lombardi to the City of Brotherly Love in years. It’s a tall order, but this is a talented, special bunch. If any team can win the big one without their starting QB- it’s the 2017 Philadelphia Eagles.
Although this group can make a deep playoff run without their starting quarterback, that doesn’t necessarily mean they can win with ?any quarterback. I am confident that Nick Foles is a capable enough quarterback to lead the charge, but the Eagles are one unfortunate event away from handing the reins to second year QB Nate Sudfeld. Usually when you are down to your third string quarterback your season is a wash, so it doesn’t really matter who you roll out there. This is not one of those instances, however.
The Eagles are a couple games away from locking up the No.1 seed in the NFC(!) and home field advantage throughout the playoffs. Although Wentz won’t be leading the charge, beating the Eagles IN Philly is far from easy for whatever poor bastards are tasked with the job. The atmosphere of a playoff game at The Linc alone should be enough to restore some of the momentum lost in the wake of #11’s absence, but the Philly faithfuls can only carry the team so far. The Eagles MUST capitalize on the current state of the NFC and sure up any remaining weaknesses on the roster. That process starts with the glaring weakness at the backup slot of the most important position in football.
I am not trying to rain on Nate Sudfeld’s parade. He has worked hard to get to where he is at this point in his career, and the Birds seem high on him. The fact of the matter is Nate Sudfeld has made as many NFL starts as I have and most of you reading this piece. The Eagles simply cannot afford to put all their eggs in the Nick Foles basket and just cross their fingers he stays healthy. The Eagles need to bring in a quarterback with not only extensive starting experience, but a decent playoff track record. Obviously these type of players are few and far between, and many are rostered, but thankfully for the Eagles there is one primed and ready to latch on to a team. Colin Kaepernick.
I don’t want to hear a single word about him potentially being a media distraction. The Eagles have had the nation’s attention all season long for various reasons and have not wavered at all. I want to hear even less about there being better free agent options, because that is a bold faced lie. Kaepernick takes care of the ball- he has thrown for double digit interceptions just once in his career. He is a dual threat QB that would bring back some layers of the offense Wentz provided if Foles were to be injured. And above all, Kaepernick is currently the only free agent quarterback with starting Super Bowl experience.
Not only does he have Super Bowl experience, but he has taken over for an extremely talented team with SB aspirations late in the season before. Kaepernick, you may recall, was just five yards short of leading the Niners to victory in the infamous “Power Outage” SB. He is a special player that I think has the confidence and poise required to step into such a big role. I mean, this guy has had about half the country, including the President, spewing hate in his direction for almost a year now and doesn’t seemed phased at all. Testicular fortitude would be my last concern for Kaep if he had to take over in the playoffs.
He almost certainly won’t be liked by every Eagles fan if signed, but that should be the last thing on Howie Roseman and Jeffrey Lurie’s mind when he deciding how he could improve the team’s odds of making a deep playoff run.
This is not about the NFL correcting any potential wrongdoings to Kaep. Nor is it about trying to make some kind of political statement. The Eagles have a great opportunity to immortalize themselves in history, and Kaepernick greatly improves their chances of doing so. If the Eagles are serious about making that trip to Minnesota come February, I’d expect Colin Kaepernick to get a phone call this week.
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Philadelphia Eagles Carson Wentz Jersey
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