From the Desk of Jay Vaidya
I purposely arrived late at camp today (around 8:30am) so that I could go through the trials and tribulations of parking far away and making the long walk with other Eagle fans to the Lehigh practice field. Today, Saturday July 26th, marked the first day that the entire Eagle team (including RB Brian Westbrook and CB Lito Sheppard) practiced in full contact drills in front of more than 15,000 passionate and die hard Eagle fans. As I sauntered through the crowds making my way to the main practice field where the offense was going through some drills, I stopped and talked to some of the Philly faithful about their thoughts on this glorious day. “I’m here with my boys to finally see some hitting. We have all waited long enough to see some football,” said Dave of Wilmington, DE. The nest was surely a buzz. Angela from Philadelphia added, “This is my first year ever coming to camp. It reminds me of a Woodstock-like concert. There are so many people here. My boys and husband are happy that they are able to see some of the new players on the team. This Eagles camp is probably the best professional training camp in the country. Don’t you think?”
Angela could not have been more right in her assessment of Eagle camp. Eagles training camp is not probably, but definitively the best NFL camp in the nation. Where else can you find passionate fans in the tens of thousands, driving up to 5 hours from their homes in places such as Virginia Beach (VA), Wilmington (DE), Lancaster (PA), Harrisburg PA), etc. just to see some guys they cheer for on weekends practice? I mean…we’re talking about practice. Not the game, not the game….but practice. (Thanks again for those words A.I., you are truly missed)
The first thing I saw as I reached the stands to watch the actual practice was Donovan McNabb throwing a dart across the middle to a cutting Hank Baskett in stride for a 15 yard gain. McNabb looked great and poised, and so did this year’s probable receiving corps of Kevin Curtis, Reggie Brown, Greg Lewis, Jason Avant, Hank Baskett, as well as new comers DeSean Jackson, Shaheer McBride, and Bam Childress. Not only that, but our secondary looked great as well. Led by Brian Dawkins, the corners and safeties also put in great work picking off and deflecting numerous passes from our QBs (this is not to say that the QBs played poorly). For example J.R. Reed made a great read on a McNabb to Curtis route and jumped the route to pick of Donovan and take the ball back 20 yards. This play was then immediately followed up by a delayed handoff to Brian Westbrook, who received a clamorous cheer from the gallery as soon as he touched the ball. B-West was cutting and weaving past the linebackers and headed directly for the secondary before he decided to get out of bounds on many of his touches. What followed was truly amazing. Fans began to stand and yell comments from the gallery such as “Don’t worry Brian, we will pay you”, “Don’t hold out on us Brian”, “We need you Brian”, and “We love you Brian” for about 3 minutes after his 7 second run. This got me thinking. Should the media saturate the airwaves with talk of holdouts by Lito Sheppard and Brian Westbrook (as once reported here by me) along with contract disputes, rather than talk about other more pressing issues (i.e. what to make of an offense who struggled to score touchdowns in the red zone) surrounding the team and the players who are content with their roles on the 2008 Eagle squad. So, to get an idea of what Eagle nation thought about this issue I decided to ask some fans for their thoughts on the subject and then relay their thoughts to you the reader. What I found was that there were two schools of thought regarding this matter. On one hand we had Eagle fans that were fed up and disgusted with the media who at times made more of these distracting contract issues then the players themselves did. Conversely, on the other hand we had fans that were adamant that contract “hoopla” is important for fans to know about and discuss as part of Eagle nation. “I’m tired of all this contract stuff,” complained Joe of Malvern, Pa, “If I hear that garbage on TV or the radio, I simply switch the station. Fans shouldn’t have to worry about that stuff.” When asked specifically about the B-West and Lito contract disputes Will of Lancaster, PA replied, “The media makes more of it than they do. It’s all infuriating.” Rob of Bethlehem, PA agreed with Joe and Will but also added, “All these NFL guys are way overpaid. I honestly don’t think any of them are worth even a million dollars. I mean, it’s a million dollars we are talking about here!” Not all fans, however, saw the media’s role as “distracting” to the real issue at hand; getting to the Super Bowl. “The players and the media are only as noticeable as the fans want them to be,” explained lifelong Eagle fan Nate L. of Sicklerville, NJ, “Take a look around. How many #5, #20, and #36 jerseys do you see walking around? We (the fans) all pay upwards of a $100 for tickets and jerseys and most other Eagle paraphernalia, and take more than 3 hours plus a week cheering on the team during the regular season. Don’t you think, especially in today’s economy, that that money could be spent in other places? But no, we the loyal Eagle fans see ‘being a fan’ in a different light. In a way, through spending our hard earned money on the Eagles franchise, we become shareholders of this company called the Philadelphia Eagles. When they win, we win. When they lose, we lose. It’s a mindset and a lifestyle each one of us has chosen. Therefore, when asked should the fans care about contract ‘stuff’ and the media’s role in telling us about that ‘stuff’, I think we the fans must have a say, and be fully briefed on what is happening. In a way, these players are being paid with our money.”
It was now 10:15am, and I turned away from the practice field to take a minute in the shade to reflect on what I had heard from you, the Eagle fans, and also gather my thoughts and then jot them down in a notepad. My attention was then suddenly taking away by the joyous yelping of young Bird fans playing in the designated play section located about 100 yards away from the practice field. Every little kid’s face I observed playing on the moon walk, participating in kick, pass and punt competitions, or simply eating Italian ice was one of delight and happiness. This is what it should all be about I thought, Happiness. These kids probably cheer our team, the Eagles, just as hard as you and I. When we (adults) concern ourselves with contract disputes, what player said what, and who is hurt or not, we take away the element of happiness from our lives. Rather than concern ourselves with the above mentioned distractions, we should all learn from the children and just enjoy. We have a great team and a great fan base, and that alone should make us all happy.
– Jay Vaidya
(Thanks to every fan and person that took time out of their day to stop and talk to me. I learned a lot from you guys and appreciate it.)
QUICK EAGLE NOTES:
– Shawn Andrews is still a no show at practice, citing personal reasons. There is no word on when he will arrive at Lehigh.
– Asante Samuel’s practice was cut short when he re-aggravated his hamstring. This injury has plagued the $10mil a year Pro-Bowl cornerback ever since his arrival in Philadelphia. No further information was given about this injury.
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