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SPLITTING with the Cowboys sucks, but we’re still atop the NFC East by a mile. Time to punch the clock and get to work, punching the ball out of the Bears hands. Despite their winning record, on average they allow as many points (26.5) as they score (26.3). Particularly through the air. Oh, and they also give up 5.2 yards per tote, on the ground.

Don’t let their shiny record fool you. The 8 -3 Bears just beat the 6 – 5 Steelers, but otherwise, their other seven wins are over: The giants, Dallas, Oakland, Minnesota, Washington, Cincinnati, and New Orleans. Only Dallas is .500. The rest are worse.

With a win we move to 9 – 3, still atop the NFC East, and very much in the hunt for the number one seed in the conference.

With a loss we’d be 8 – 4. Still firmly atop the NFC East.

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The point of Four Things isn’t to predict a winner, it’s to discuss which tactics would give our Eagles the best chance to win this game. Often I list fundamentals, as some of the four things. BUT NO MORE! Unless something specific is needed, fundamentals like Running the ball; playing lots of Man Press; and Tackling instead of going for the strip, will be automatically included. (Like the five consonants and a vowel that Wheel Of Fortune automatically spots you.) So here are the Four Things that we need to focus on this week versus: The Bears

1) Ground and Pound: We need to get the run game going. We don’t need huge splash plays. What we need is a return to our Offensive Line smacking motherfuckers in their mouths. Be physical and help RB Saquon Barkley to get 3 or 4 yards on first down, to open up options on second down.

This cannot be yet another game where our Offensive Coordinator shelves Barkley, early. We’ve had three such games and all three have been losses. Rushing yards are not the only thing that a hand-off can produce. Run plays tire out pass rushers. Also, a balanced attack keeps the opponent guessing instead of dictating.

2) Put Their QB Down: I don’t get this thing where professional athletes who get paid here to bring down QB’s, all of a sudden seem like they don’t know how to do it. We’re not going to rattle a QB who comes into the game with impression that we can’t sack him. This is where we’d like to see OLB Jaylx Hunt. (Did you see what I did there?)

Last year DT Milton Williams 5 sacks got him a massive contract. I wonder if DT Jalen Carter knows how much money he’s leaving on the table, by only having 1 sack so far this season. Meanwhile, DT Moro Ojomo has 4, which currently leads the team.

3) Set Hard Edges: Most of the Bears success in the run game comes from run to the outside. Get our DE’s up-field so we can either expose their RB to kill-shots, or delay his approach to the line of scrimmage. The idea isn’t to shutdown their run, just make it unreliable, and put the whole offense on their QB.

4) Long, Slow Drives Due to injuries, the Bears are thin on defense. Keep them on the field and wear them down. For this week, third and two should mean we’re calling a run play. And run the Hurry-up in the second half! When the fourth quarter rolls around, we want fatigue to be setting in for them.

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If the Eagles do these Four Things, then we’ll be virtually impossible to beat. That being said…

It’s time to start imposing our will again. We don’t need another week of RB Screens, and Hitch routes. Theres been entirely to much of that already. All it’s done is hold the team back, and get the Delaware Valley calling for one guy to get shit-canned.

Perhaps it’s time to learn a lesson. To evolve. Maybe listen to an outside voice. Run the ball. Actually sack the QB. These things should be an automatic for a team with Super Bowl aspirations. No more doublespeak. No more spin. We need to bear down and get our shit together.

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WARNING: I don’t have the faintest clue as to what a point spread is, and I know even less about how it works. I know FOOTBALL and that’s it. If you use Four Things as a gambling tool, then you are a fool trying to lose your money, and will deserve it when you do.

Check back in a couple of days for Four Things Reviewed, and we’ll discuss how this game went.