The Eagles struggled early and never recovered. A four-game winning streak at the end came too late and they finished 8-8, missing the playoffs for the first time since 2007 and just the fourth time in coach Andy Reid’s 13 seasons.

“It’s going to motivate us to work harder,” quarterback Michael Vick said Monday. “It’s very disappointing.”

After an offseason spending spree brought several accomplished players to Philadelphia and added to a roster that already featured Vick, LeSean McCoy and DeSean Jackson, the Eagles were the talk of the NFL. They were defending NFC East champions and seemingly on the rise.

So when Young compared his new teammates to the Miami Heat, some people scoffed but most expected the Eagles to make a serious run at the first championship since 1960. Even team president Joe Banner declared the Eagles “all-in” and called this a Super Bowl-or-bust year.

But the team quickly imploded.

“There were definitely red flags,” said defensive tackle Cullen Jenkins, who won the Super Bowl with Green Bay last season. “A lot of people see Super Bowl, or I think they let the fact that the Super Bowl is there, and so many people talk about it right away. You can hear people nowadays, they come out of the draft talking about Super Bowl and I think it kind of gets thrown around too loosely now.

“It’s obviously the ultimate goal in where you want to get to, but you have to understand that you have to work hard. It’s something that is a process and you have to take it each step at a time to get to it and I think a lot of time people just want to jump from preseason to the Super Bowl without doing what it takes in between.”

Various factors contributed to a four-game losing streak that dropped the Eagles to 1-4 and doomed them from the beginning. Vick couldn’t finish two games in September because of injuries, the offense made critical turnovers and the defense struggled mightily as new players tried to adjust to new defensive coordinator Juan Castillo’s system.

Finishing games was a problem, too. The Eagles lost five games in which they led in the fourth quarter. One play could’ve made the difference in a season where the division was mediocre. The Eagles weren’t eliminated from playoff contention until right before their next-to-last game kicked off and they ended up second behind the New York Giants (9-7).

“It will be tough to sit at home and watch the playoffs, but we have to maintain a positive outlook about what we could be and go into the offseason knowing that we can play with the best teams in the league,” wide receiver Jeremy Maclin said. “Philly is not used to not being in the playoffs. I think guys will be hungry. This offseason will be very critical for us and I think it will be good.”

It’s uncertain whether the team will make major changes. Reid was criticized heavily this season and many fans want him gone. They chanted “Fire Andy!” during a loss to New England. Reid refused to discuss his future after Sunday’s game and wasn’t available to reporters on Monday. He’s expected to return, but his coaching staff may look different.

Read More: Michael Vick (QB – PHI), Brent Celek (TE – PHI), Jason Babin (DE – PHI), Miles Austin (WR – DAL), Tony Romo (QB – DAL), DeSean Jackson (WR – PHI), Jeremy Maclin (WR – PHI), LeSean McCoy (RB – PHI), Stephen McGee (QB – DAL), New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Washington Redskins

By the time the Philadelphia Eagles scored their first touchdown on Saturday early in the first quarter, they had already been eliminated from the 2011 playoffs, thanks to the New York Giants’ 29-14 victory over the New York Jets. But the Eagles played hard, and benefited from a hand injury to Dallas Cowboys QB Tony Romo, in a 20-7 victory that helped them complete a season sweep of Big D.

The Eagles got on the board on their first drive of the game after Michael Vick hit Brent Celek in the back of the end zone for a 13 yard touchdown. On the Cowboys’ ensuing drive, Tony Romo crushed his throwing hand on the front of the helmet of an unblocked Jason Babin. The hand immediately swelled up, and Romo was taken out of the game and into the locker room for x-rays, which came back negative. There has been no word from Dallas on the severity of Romo’s injury, which is currently being called a “right hand contusion,” but Romo was seen on the sideline toward the end of the game telling a Cowboys staffer that he’ll “be fine.”

His replacement, back up QB Stephen McGee, was efficient and careful with the ball, going 24-38 for 182 yards and a garbage time touchdown to Miles Austin with seven seconds left in the game. But the Eagles defense continued its stellar end of the season, holding the Cowboys to only 238 total yards, some of which came long after the game was decided.

The Eagles were led on offense by QB Michael Vick, who was 18-32 for 293 yards, with two touchdowns and no interceptions. Desean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin both contributed five catches on the day, with Jackson going for 90 yards and a touchdown and Maclin for 72. Running back LeSean McCoy was mostly neutralized on the day, running for only 35 yards, and he left the game temporarily with a left ankle injury before returning for one carry in the fourth quarter.

The Eagles will end their 2011 season next week at home against the Washington Redskins. Philly will have a chance to finish 8-8, which is pretty good considering where they were a month ago, but pretty disappointing considering the preseason expectations for the team.

For more coverage of the Eagles vs. Cowboys, stay tuned to our storystream. For more Philadelphia Eagles coverage, visit our team page, or our blog Bleeding Green Nation.

The Philadelphia Eagles were eliminated from NFL playoff contention after the New York Giants beat the Jets on Saturday.

The 29-14 win by the Giants took the Eagles out of the playoff race.

The Dallas Cowboys will play the Giants next weekend for the NFC East title, which the Eagles won last season.

The Eagles beat the Cowboys 20-7 in a game played later on Saturday.

Philadelphia came into the 2011 regular season with a huge amount of hype with a slew of free agent signings.

But the Eagles became unhinged quickly as the team couldn’t put together consistent games and lost big leads in the fourth quarter with regularity.

What’s next for the Eagles is unclear, starting with the fate of head coach Andy Reid and his staff

Reid is expected to return as he has two years left on his contract with the Eagles

Defensive coordinator Juan Castillo was under fire all season.
The Eagles never had a winning record after week one of the season, and the team struggled at home.

And while LeSean McCoy, Jason Peters and Jason Babin had Pro Bowl seasons, DeSean Jackson, Michael Vick and Nnamdi Asomugha didn’t.

The fate of receiver Jackson is also unknown. Jackson becomes a free agent in the offseason after a poor year in Philadelphia punctuated by a contract dispute.

The Eagles also need to sign McCoy and Jeremy Maclin to long-term deals and need to shore up a leaky defense, so Jackson’s return is unlikely.
 

Read More: Asante Samuel (CB – PHI), Philadelphia Eagles, Dallas Cowboys

The Philadelphia Eagles all-pro cornerback Asante Samuel was held out of practice Wednesday as they begin to prepare for the Dallas Cowboys on Saturday.

Per NFL.com on Samuel’s hamstring issues:

Samuel, who sat out the team’s first practice of the week, left last Sunday’s win over the New York Giants with a hamstring injury and didn’t return. Eagles coach Andy Reid said Monday the injury didn’t appear serious and indicated the three-time All-Pro would play against the Dallas Cowboys.

Full participants in practice:

• Defensive end Darryl Tapp (broken ribs)

Limited participants in practice:

• Defensive tackle Trevor Laws (knee)
• Defensive end Cullen Jenkins (groin)

Full participants in practice:

• Quarterback Michael Vick (ribs)
• Wide receiver Jeremy Maclin (hamstring, shoulder)
• Right tackle Todd Herremans (ankle)
• Running back Ronnie Brown (hamstring)

For all news and information regarding the Dallas Cowboys, please visit Blogging the Boys. Go check out all things Philadelphia Eagles at Bleeding Green Nation.

With an 8-6 record that has them a game up on the New York Giants and two on the Philadelphia Eagles, the Dallas Cowboys remain in the driver’s seat in the NFC East.

Cowboys owner/general manager Jerry Jones, however, admitted to a Dallas radio station that he’s a little anxious about his team’s Week 16 home game against the 6-8 Eagles.

“Because it is the Eagles and after the butt-kicking they gave us up in Philadelphia, I’m scared,” Jones told KRLD-FM on Tuesday.

Jones is referring to the teams’ Week 8 game, when the Eagles throttled the Cowboys 34-7 in a front of a national audience on Sunday night. Jones has four good reasons to still be spooked by the team that gained 495 yards against his team on Halloween eve:

QB Michael Vick. It’s not a coincidence Vick’s two most efficient games of the season came against defenses coached by the Brothers Ryan. Cowboys coordinator Rob must go back to the drawing board after Vick picked his group apart (21-for-28, 279 yards passing, 2 total TDs, 50 yards rushing). And last week, Vick torched Rex’s Jets for similar stats (15-for-22, 274 yards, 2 total TDs, 32 yards rushing). Vick struggles more against cover 2 type defenses (see Chicago) than those that aggressively come after him, because he makes big things happen when he’s chased out of the pocket.

RB LeSean McCoy. The Cowboys’ run defense has been pretty good all season, with one notable hiccup. McCoy burned them for 185 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 30 carries in the first meeting. He now owns the Eagles’ record for touchdowns in a season (20 overall), and he has found the end zone in every game other than Week 11 against the Giants. McCoy causes Dallas problems because of the speed he has to consistently turn the corner.

TE Brent Celek. Like Vick, the Eagles’ tight end has made a living off of Ryan defenses this season. He had seven catches for 94 yards and a touchdown against the Cowboys in Philadelphia, and trumped that with five catches for 156 yards and a TD against the Jets. Looking at the challenges wide receiver DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin will present outside for the Cowboys’ cornerbacks, Celek should see the middle of the field open up for him again.

DE Jason Babin. Babin, whose troika against the Jets gave him a league-leading 18 sacks, was able to drop Tony Romo twice in Week 8. With DeMarco Murray (ankle) out and Felix Jones (shoulder) banged up, Romo may not be able to lean on the running game much in the rematch. That should allow Philadelphia to go into tee-off mode off the edge, with Babin working often against rookie tackle Tyron Smith.

–Story originally appeared on SportingNews.com.