Philadelphia Eagles: Can It Get Any Worse, Andy Reid ?

When I wrote my pre-season article on five reasons why the Eagles were not a Super Bowl team, I did not realize how prophetic those words would become.

I was hoping that the Eagles would at least be able to secure a playoff spot, but after four weeks, that looks like a long shot. With three conference losses, including two at home, the Eagles have a rough road ahead to even get close to a playoff shot. With their only win coming against the St. Louis Rams, who have now lost four straight, the team is in chaos.

Last week, two of the reasons I had listed were contributing factors to the loss to the New York Giants.

Let's look at two of these reasons that contributed to this week's loss to the San Francisco 49ers. I will quote myself from the pre-season article.

"Can a rookie place-kicker be counted on to win the game? Hardly!"

Well Alex Henery had two chances to ice the game with medium range field goals, but he missed them both. And ironically, of course, it was David Akers' extra point that made the difference in the game.

"The Eagles now have an offensive line coach running the defense. Maybe Castillo can grow into the job, but this will take time."

In each of the last three games, the Eagles squandered leads in the fourth quarter as they were outscored 36 - 0. Good defenses put the other team away when they have a late lead. To put it politely, the Eagles are not a good defensive team at this point in the season. To put it more directly, Juan Castillo appears to be clueless. Opponents are making adjustments at halftime, but it looks the Castillo can't or won't do that.

If the Eagles can make a remarkable, immediate turnaround and manage to get to the bye week at three wins and three losses, then they might still have an outside shot at a playoff spot. Otherwise, the chants at The Linc in November in the fourth quarter will quickly turn to, "Let's Go Flyers!"