Philadelphia Eagles

This summer, hair weaves are taking a turn for the kinky, the curly and the wavy. Why is this news? When black women first started sewing hair onto their scalps during the 1990s en masse, the resulting shoulder-length bobs were as much about achieving a smooth texture as it was about having length. Fabulous hair was defined as long and straight. However, as more black women have come to terms with their natural curl pattern, store-bought tresses are trending toward the fuzzy rather than the flat-ironed.

On a clear, summerlike afternoon in Miami, Eagles owner Norman Braman paused to focus on a lot more than the Atlantic Ocean glistening off the Florida coast. The subject was his 5-8 Eagles team, which Sunday could be mathematically deleted from the sorry list of NFC playoff pretenders before taking the field against the Indianapolis Colts. It will mark the first time since 1987 that an Eagles team has not had something big to play for in late December, and everywhere you turn in Philadelphia these days there is venom being spewed.

If you ever heard Jack Edelstein speak in public, chances are you didn't know what the heck he was talking about. But that's OK. Chances are he didn't either. "He was the king of double-talk," said Michael Nathanson, a nephew. "He'd start talking and you'd think he was making sense. But, after a while you would realize that he really wasn't saying anything. That was his shtick. " Edelstein, a longtime Eagles football statistician and master of gobbledygook who hobnobbed with the rich and famous and kept 'em laughing at hundreds of celebrity roasts and charity events in the Delaware Valley and elsewhere, died of liver cancer on Friday at his home.

Those who gathered in St. Joseph's Church yesterday talked of Albert "Buddy" Miley the sports hero. They laughed about Miley's flamboyant style and spoke in awe of his powerful quarterback arm. Two images of Miley emerged as mourners paid their respects. One was of a talented athlete. The other was of someone who maintained dignity despite two decades of adversity. "To me, he was a hero," said Jim Murray, former general manager for the Philadelphia Eagles. "He spent his whole life living Lent.

Eagles strong safety Andre Waters has heard one too many "insulting" contract offers from club management. Waters last night said that he wants out of Philadelphia. In an interview from his home in Tampa, Fla., Waters said he has ordered his agent, Jim Solano, to inform Eagles president Harry Gamble that he wants to be traded. "When they start comparing me to second-rate safeties, they're insulting my intelligence and showing a total lack of respect and appreciation for what I've done for the Philadelphia Eagles," Waters said.

Life isn't fair. This is an unpleasant fact we push from consciousness until a tragedy like the death of Jerome Brown reminds us of it. Brown was the Philadelphia Eagles' answer to the Chicago Bears' William "Refrigerator" Perry - a mound of potential shipped up from Florida, Buddy Ryan's first-round pick in the 1985 college draft. Arriving with post-adolescent rough edges still showing, he rubbed some folks wrong. But he grew - in girth and mouthiness at first, then in professional excellence and maturity.

James J. O'Connor, 71, a former high school football star who once played for the Philadelphia Eagles, died Saturday at his home in Bryn Mawr. Mr. O'Connor, the son of Helen and William O'Connor, was born May 15, 1920, in the Overbrook section of Philadelphia. He played end on the St. Joseph's Prep football team that won the city championship in 1939 and was graduated from the school that same year. Mr. O'Connor attended Cornell University, and in 1948 played for the Eagles.

While the rest of the kids are spending their lunch period in the cafeteria or playing out on Gaul Street, a handful of inquisitive young brown-baggers at Holy Name School in Fishtown are up on the third floor eating sandwiches with "Mr. Dolgin" and talking sports. They talk history, geography, and maybe a little English, too. No matter what they discuss, it's all part of Howard Dolgin's "Sport Geography Quiz," an amusing 45-minute break in which the kids research via phone calls, encyclopedias, public libraries, even the Internet, how sports teams got their names.

READING Bill Conlin's diatribe about "Joe Must Go" (Oct. 30), due to his recent losing record, methinks Mr. Conlin has gotten a bit too much of Florida sun. He lives in South Florida now, doesn't he? The whole Sunshine State is football addled. Winning is everything, studies are treated as an afterthought, football teams may as well be pro teams bearing the school colors. A player can go a whole year without attending class, and the state legislature can step in and influence football matters.

On the field, the Philadelphia Eagles are once again a dangerous and exciting team. Off the field, in the stands, it's exciting as well, but thankfully not nearly as dangerous. So let us praise Bobby Hoying and Michael Timpson and Chris Boniol and all the other footballers wearing the Eagles green. And let us, too, praise the thousands of fans who cheered their lungs out for the Birds on Sunday and who displayed none of the hooliganism that has marred other football games at the Vet. The game against Cincinnati was athletic drama at its crackling best with stellar performances, plot twists, minor-role characters displaying star turns and a final scene that had everyone on the chair's edge.

In addition to the champs, chumps and rebuilding Redskins, the Eagles will play 10 games against non-divisional opponents. The home highlights include visits from local boys who've done good (Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco) and the first look at Cam Newton. Among the interesting road trips, the Birds play at Pittsburgh and Arizona. And because they're also visiting New Orleans, we have imposed a restriction on that town's signature drink. The Eagles have five prime-time games, with two Sundays, two Mondays and a Thursday night game.

RE THE RECENT flurry of letters on Michael Vick: The Vick thing is getting old but one recent writer at least told the truth of what this is really about: Is it his dogs or his money? If Vick were just Joe Schmo from South Philly or Kensington, would you really be making all this fuss? What skeletons do you have in your closet that you will forever be known for? Give up your own money if you're so concerned about the dogs and stop worrying about No. 7. Or do you hate the fact that he served his time and turned his life around?

RE YOUR article last week on Philadelphia Eagle LeSean McCoy missing an event for the fans: I was willing to give him a second chance. My family and I are dedicated Eagles fans and were very excited to find out that Mr. McCoy was signing autographs at the Oaks Car Show on the weekend. As we waited to get his autograph, my young sons were eager to meet him. McCoy was very nice to them and even asked them questions. But a few minutes later, my oldest son said, "I can never be a fan of his again.

I'VE GIVEN UP on Andy Reid as coach of the Eagles. It's time to move on. No. 1 reason - he doesn't like to run the ball at all. And in the playoffs, he becomes one-dimensional. Same old story every year. He'd rather throw the ball 50 times a game. Maybe it wasn't all Donovan McNabb's fault. Reid has to take a lot of the blame for his play-calling. All good teams in the playoffs run the ball and play good defense. The writing is on the wall. The clock is ticking! Daniel Kelly Bensalem

THERE WAS a terrific scene in "Animal House" (arguably the greatest piece of cinematography ever) in which a fraternity pledge is with a date who passes out in bed. As the young man contemplates taking liberties with his guest, an angel appears on one shoulder and counsels him to act morally. On the other, a devil encourages the alternative. The would-be fraternity member is left to weigh their competing advice. I think of that scene whenever I watch Michael Vick and contemplate whether I should root for his success.

HIS RESUME READS like pure fiction, a fairy-tale checklist crafted by a dreamer yearning to make a name for himself in unique ways. Dean Schoenewald's obsessions and newfangled plans have taken him across the country for decades, and his titles are legion and legit, he claims. A Google search for Dean Schoenewald, however, offers another bio, one he claims was fabricated by "detractors" and "stalkers" who accuse him of being a master manipulator, scam artist and worse. He claims he's been accused of 652 crimes, but says the only infractions he has been guilty of are violating some traffic laws and ripping a phone off a wall in his mother's house.

This week, we talk with Maurice Nelson, Chester High wide receiver. What's your favorite pro team? Either the Orlando Magic or the Philadelphia Eagles. Do you have a prediction for Sunday's Eagles-Falcons game? I'll say Eagles 28, Falcons 7. Who is your favorite professional athlete? My brother [Orlando Magic point guard Jameer Nelson], obviously. He's my role model. Do you feel as if you have to live up to your brother's success? It's just extra motivation since he set the tone for me. Now I have to come back with another tone of my own. What's your favorite food?

EVERYBODY'S GOT an opinion as to why, of all the football joints in all the NFL world, Andy Reid decided to send Donovan McNabb to one that the Eagles have to play twice a year. Stupidity has been a popular explanation among the anti-Reid crowd, followed closely by arrogance. A few bleeding hearts like myself thought it might have had a little bit to do with Reid wanting to find a good home for the guy who helped his team get to the playoffs 8 of the last 10 years. Then again, I'm a sentimental sap who still tears up every time I watch Ollie McClellan sink those two underhanded free throws in "Hoosiers.

SHAME on you, Daily News! As a faithful reader, I was looking forward to a splashy back sports page with a clever headline about the Phillies huge sweep of the Atlanta Braves. Instead, I was greeted by the (already getting old) Eagles quarterback controversy, with a small "Phillies Sweep!" on Page 1. As a die-hard Phillies and Eagles fan, right now it's all about the Phillies. While the Kolb/Vick drama is news, and must be reported on, in Week 3 of the NFL season, it certainly doesn't deserve the prominence it's receiving when the Phillies are having a record-setting September and jetting toward another exciting, edge-of-your-seat playoff run. What I want to see on the back page of your newspaper is the Phillies getting the recognition they so truly deserve.