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Two years ago Ray Rhodes exploded on the Philadelphia football
scene like a bolt of lightning. With his uncommon blend of
passion and compassion, the first-year head coach lifted a
formerly listless team into the playoffs, where it crushed
Detroit before losing to the eventual-champion Cowboys. Rhodes's
efforts won him coach of the year honors.
By his second season, though, his approach had begun to wear
thin. On Nov. 3 of last year, Philadelphia was riding high at
7-2 and coming off an emotionally charged victory over the
Cowboys in Dallas. Then things began to unravel, as the Eagles dropped three straight, to Buffalo,
Washington and Arizona. They rebounded to defeat the Giants but
then, in a nationally televised Thursday-nighter, were
outhustled, outhit and thoroughly humiliated, 37-10, by an
injury-wracked Colts club.
On the plane home from Indianapolis, Rhodes became furious when
he spied some players laughing and chatting. He told a Philly
writer he might quit—and who knows what would have happened the
following week if his team had not staged a desperate
second-half rally to prevent an embarrassing loss to the pitiful
Jets? The Eagles lurched into the playoffs, where they were shut
out by the 49ers in the opening round.
After the season, Rhodes took a long look at the situation. What
he saw was a team with the talent to get to the postseason but not to win
there.
The quarterback situation is uncertain: Ty Detmer, this year's
appointed starter, and Rodney Peete, last year's opening-day No.
1, both run hot and cold. Ricky Watters, Rhodes's money back,
hollers about not getting enough action but wore down badly over
the course of the season for the second straight year. The top
wideout, Irving Fryar, had a terrific 1996, but he'll be 35 this
season and may not be able to maintain such a high level much
longer. Philly hasn't sent an offensive lineman to the Pro Bowl
since 1982, though this year's unit will be the best in
years—especially if 1996 first-rounder Jermane Mayberry, who
was slowed last year after suffering pneumonia in training camp,
is healthy, as expected.
The Eagles are fairly solid on the other side of the ball,
despite the departure of Pro Bowl end William Fuller, who went
to San Diego as a free agent. The defense will get a huge lift
if tackle Andy Harmon, a sack master who also excels at stuffing
the run, returns to his previous form after missing most of 1996
because of knee surgery.
The most serious issue surrounding the team, though, is Rhodes's
coaching method. "The high emotion of the Dallas game, the tough
games we'd played before that, all of it took its toll," Rhodes
says. "Looking back, you realize there comes a time to lighten
up. You've got to freshen your team during the week. Maybe there
was too much hitting in practice, too many hours on the field.
We ended up a tired football team. As a coach, I've got to look
at myself."
O.K., let's assume he solves that
part of the equation. Let's assume the team's attitude is fine,
and that practices will be less draining. Is there enough
material here to push this club to the next level? Has Philly
made the additions necessary?
The Eagles certainly didn't stand pat; as usual, they went for
the big score in free agency—which is possible if, as is the
case with Philly, a team doesn't have big bucks tied up in a
quarterback. This year's package of newcomers includes kicker
Chris Boniol, who missed just five field goals in the past two
seasons with the Cowboys; former Browns-Ravens center Steve
Everitt, who replaces free-agent departure Raleigh McKenzie; and
weakside linebacker Darrin Smith (late of Dallas), a great
open-field player who's moving to the strong side, which may or
may not suit his talents.
The Eagles said they'd draft a raw defensive lineman in the
first round and bring him along slowly, but everyone's eyes
popped when they picked 6'7", 269-pound end Jon Harris of Virginia, rated as low as 16th among
defensive ends by the handicappers. Can Harris be another
Fuller? Certainly not right away.
Philly's second-round choice, Washington State linebacker James
Darling, caused head-scratching too—and then worse. On May 6 in
Pullman, Wash., Darling, who has been projected as a possible
starter in the middle, was arrested for burglary and assault. A
trial date was scheduled for July 8.
And Rhodes thought last season was difficult.
—by Paul Zimmerman
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