Philadelphia Eagles fans will spend at least a generation or two picking apart their team’s curious clock management late in the Super Bowl. But after having a night to think it over, coach Andy Reid said Monday that he already had forgotten many of the details.
“I’m trying to remember back on that; I’ve put that away a little bit,” Reid said when asked to explain quarterback Donovan McNabb’s assertion that the Eagles tried to get into the hurry-up offense with 5 minutes 40 seconds left and trailing by 10 points but struggled to do so.
“We did try to get it going, and I can’t tell you in detail the circumstances of why it didn’t work as well as it should have,” Reid said.
The Eagles drove for a touchdown that cut their deficit to 24-21, but the 13-play, 79-yard drive took 3:52, leaving only 1:48 left. The offense huddled after most plays, even one on which center Hank Fraley appeared to urge players to get to the line quickly.
After a failed onside kick, the Eagles did not get the ball back until there were 46 seconds left and they were at their 4-yard line with no timeouts. Their first play: a 1-yard completion to Brian Westbrook that wasted 24 of those seconds.
Asked if he wished he had handled the next-to-last possession differently, Reid said he might have “in hindsight,” but he did not specifically address the clock strategy. Instead, he mentioned Josh Miller’s punt that pinned the Eagles near the goal line. They had hoped for a block and did not attempt a return.
“The punter did a great job. We made an attempt to . . . try to block the punt and put ourselves in even better position to get a field goal or touchdown,” Reid said. “It didn’t work out.”
After the game, tackle Jon Runyan said, “If you hurry up, you start making mistakes. We knew that we had plenty of time.” McNabb said the team was slowed by having to wait for receivers to return from running deep routes.
Reid said he was aware of the recent history of Super Bowl losers flopping the following season but said his team is positioned to avoid that trap.
Asked how much better the team’s personnel must get for it to take the next step, he said, “About three points. We’re right there. We eliminate those turnovers, then we become the best team in football. We’ve got the players right here to do that.”
The Eagles have most key players under contract. One exception is defensive tackle Corey Simon, whom Reid would like to re-sign but who could attract interest elsewhere, including from the Giants
The best news to come out of the Super Bowl for the Eagles was that receiver Terrell Owens performed well seven weeks after suffering a severe right ankle injury, catching nine passes for 122 yards without any apparent ill effects.
Trainer Rick Burkholder said postgame X-rays showed the two screws in his ankle were in place and that his fractured fibula was properly aligned. Burkholder said Owens will attend the Pro Bowl on Sunday but not play, and will have the screws removed within the next few weeks.
“I thought maybe we’d get 20 plays out of him, and I think he had more than that at halftime,” Reid said. “Amazing guy.”
