September Report: Philadelphia Eagles.

Here’s the first installment of the monthly reports on each of Dallas’ divisional rivals.

The Eagles were supposed to the Cowboys’ closest rival for the division title, and were considered by many to be the favorite for the division, but they’ve looked nothing like a contender for the most part through the first month of the season.

Philadelphia Eagles

So far…: The Eagles are 1-3 and last in the NFC East. They dropped their first two games, falling at Green Bay 16-13 and at home to Washington 20-12. In Week 3, the offense got going in a big way, racking up 536 yards in a 56-21 rout of the Lions.

But, it’s back to square one after a 16-3 loss to the previously defensively-inept New York Giants.

What’s Gone Right: This one is taking me a little while. The run defense has been excellent, giving up only 74.5 yards per game thus far. But, that’s the only bright spot that doesn’t have a ‘but’ that follows it. Defensive end Trent Cole has picked up five sacks.

What’s Gone Wrong: Brian Westbrook put up 514 yards of total offense in the first havthree games, but missed the last game due to an abdominal strain.

How October Shapes Up: The Eagles are off this Sunday, then return to the Meadowlands to face the Jets. Their only home game of the month is against the Bears on the 21st, and they finish out the month with a game at Minnesota.

The way the schedule shapes up, they could and should go 3-0 in October. With the Cowboys setting the pace in the division, and looking at being at least 6-1 going into November, the Eagles can’t afford to lose anymore ground going into the second half of the season.

Unfortunately, the way the Eagles are playing, they could very well be 1-6 at the end of October. The Jets and Bears are better than they’re playing right now, and any trip to Minnesota isn’t an easy one.

Grading the Eagles

Performance: D - They shouldn’t be 1-3. But, ‘should be’ and ‘is’ are two completely different things.

Offense: C - McNabb hasn’t made many mistakes, but he has been McNabb-like for only one game. And, while Westbrook has been a bright spot, and there was the Lions blowout, the offense hasn’t done much in the other three games, which is a little surprising, considering it‘s supposed to be their strength.

Defense: C- - Could be better, could be worse. The rush defense has been excellent, and the pass defense has done decently, minus the Lions game, where Jon Kitna’s 400-yard passing performance was pretty irrelevant.

Special Teams: B- - David Akers has made seven of eight field goals so far, and new punter Saverio Rocca has adjusted well to the new football, averaging 41.9 yards per kick. The kick coverage team has also not allowed any huge returns. However, the return team hasn’t returned a kick for more than 28 yards, and there hasn’t been a punt return longer than 12 yards. You’d like to see more from your return game, when good field position makes a huge difference.

Next up, I’ll take a look at Eli Manning and the 2-2 Giants.