No More Excuses for Philadelphia Eagles

You've heard it a thousand times if you're a Philadelphia Eagles fan.

After every loss, Coach Andy Reid will field questions from the media and, basically, you don't even need to hear Reid speak if you've followed him throughout his tenure.

Because what comes out of Reid's mouth is the same sad song and dance -- and it's an old act.

"I need to put my players in a better position to succeed."

"We need to do a better job."

"I didn't do enough of a job to prepare the team and that's on me. I need to do a better job."

"Obviously, we need to play better."

While the Birds enter Sunday night's game against the New York Giants at 2-1, this is a must game -- especially after last week's blowout by the Arizona Cardinals.

Like textbook Reid, the Birds usually bounce back strongly after a bad loss.

But it shouldn't have been a bad loss.

Reid could have easily prepared the Eagles against the Cardinals by focusing on a few things:

• Putting pressure on quarterback Kevin Kolb, who gets rattled when he runs out of the pocket.
• Stop main threat Larry Fitzgerald, even if it means double-teaming him.
• Put the ball in Shady McCoy's hands. With wideout Jeremy Maclin sidelined, why not give the ball to your best player and see if he can be stopped.

Of course, the Birds did none of that. And look what happened.

Reid doesn't have his team going strong out of the gate like a supposedly elite team should. He knows the clock is ticking on his tenure, yet he refuses to budge.

Maybe it's ego. Maybe its just the Reid way.

After all, he does have a solid track record. And Reid will go down as the greatest coach in franchise history.

But enough is enough. A loss against the Giants on national television may prove fatal.

This is one game the Birds can't afford to lose. Now's the time for no more excuses.