Andy Reid coached his way into this situation. Starting Sunday, he faces a 10-game pass/fail exam to see if he can coach his way out of it.
No matter how it goes, it will be a memorable period in Eagles history. Either the team will pull together, make a run through the regular season and deep into the playoffs to extend Reid's tenure - or we will witness the final days of a reign that has lasted three and a half presidential terms.
Pass or fail - and we know how Andy Reid loves to pass.
The exam could not be more fair. The problems that have plagued the Eagles through the first six weeks are products of Reid's decisions. It is reasonable to expect him to solve them.
His biggest move during the bye week was the dismissal of defensive coordinator Juan Castillo. Reid handed his new defensive guy, Todd Bowles, a daunting challenge. With one week of practice, Bowles had to mold the same players into a unit able to disrupt Matt Ryan and the Atlanta Falcons.
Bowles has three things in his favor.
First, those players will be motivated to prove Castillo was to blame for their infuriating inconsistency and failure in the clutch. That doesn't mean the deposed coach really was the reason, merely that his firing represents a reset button for a sackless defensive line and back seven incapable of making big plays. For Bowles' purposes, that is enough.
Second, Bowles has a rare chance to spring midseason surprises on an opponent. In a league where coaches compete to spend more time grinding video for tendencies and weaknesses, the Falcons have no idea what to expect. They can look at the Eagles personnel under Castillo and at other Bowles-coached teams, but they can't be sure what this defense will look like.
That makes all the talk from Bowles and the players last week even emptier of meaning than usual. They kept saying they wouldn't change much, this is a wide-nine scheme, and Bowles can't "reinvent" football in one week.
There are two possibilities: The Eagles will come out with a completely different defensive scheme, or Bowles will simply try to launch some surprise blitzes and disguised coverages from the same old look. The Falcons have no idea which, and that gives Bowles at least a temporary edge.
Finally, there are the fans. The Linc will be filled with thousands of people aching for a reason to get behind this team. Bowles can and should use that to his advantage. Be aggressive right away. There's nothing quite like a pillaging defense and a deafening, fired-up crowd feeding off each other.
During the Lions game, Reid was waving his arms, trying to get a rise out of fans who had been lulled into a funk by the Eagles' performance. It is much more effective to fire up the crowd with results on the field than with gestures from the sideline.
The same logic applies to Reid's offense. A strong start would go a long way toward getting the crowd into the game in a positive way. The last thing Reid or Michael Vick needs is to hear boos after another early three-and-out.
The Eagles have scored exactly one first-quarter touchdown this season, and it came after a turnover gave them the ball at the Baltimore 15-yard line in Week 2. Week after week, the offense has looked overmatched early in games. It seems to take until well into the second quarter to get the blocking schemes adjusted and some kind of rhythm established. And that's not even factoring in Vick's killer turnovers.
Reid and offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg, who pride themselves on scripting the opening possessions, simply have to be better at anticipating the opponent's game plan. And - as you may have read in this space once or 5,000 times before - they have to find ways to dictate the action rather than merely reacting all the time.
Reid alluded to that last week when he pointed out that Vick has been much better in the second half of games.
"He's the same guy in there," Reid said. "We've got to make sure we're feeding him the right things [early in games]."
Reid also said defenses are playing the Eagles differently, eliminating the big plays that defined their offense in recent years. But he has LeSean McCoy, DeSean Jackson, Jeremy Maclin, and Brent Celek on his team. Reid has to find ways to use those weapons.
That is what coaching is.
Preparation and adjustment. Creating mismatches and attacking weaknesses. Knowing your players and getting the most of them.
Reid has 10 games. If he can't coach this team to seven or eight wins, then it will be time to find someone better.
It's a pass or fail exam. Sharpen your pencils.
Contact Phil Sheridan at psheridan@phillynews.com, or on Twitter @Sheridanscribe. Read his blog, "Philabuster," at www.philly.com/philabuster. Read his columns at www.philly.com/philsheridan
