Reid Out of Answers

Andy Reid has lost control of his team. As Head of Football Operations for the Philadelphia Eagles, Reid is in total control of the players he brings in to the team as well as what happens throughout the season on the field. For the first 10 years(1999-08) of his head coaching career, he was one of the best at both getting the most out of his players and managing his team throughout the week. He won 5 NFC East titles, went to 5 NFC Championship games and one Super Bowl. He had a formula for winning and with Donavan McNabb and Brian Dawkins leading his offense and defense respectively, the team was one of the best in the league over the 10 year stretch. Since then, Reid hasn't won a playoff game.

Andy Reid is doing the same thing he has been doing since he was hired in 1999 but now, its no longer working. He has always been criticized for passing too often, has been inefficent with timeouts, and been mum to the media about what goes on behind closed doors, but before he was winning. Over the past four years(and especially the last year in a half) Andy Reid has become worried for his NFL life because he hasn't changed what he has done for so many years, but he is no longer producing dominating teams. He has brought in marquee free agents, tried to build through the draft, and made changes in almost every positional coach, but many have resulted in disasters. He is questioning everything he does because he has no explanation why things aren't turning out successful for him and his team.

All of the mistakes Reid has made over the past four years has led him into the hole finds himself in and unfortunately for Reid, the hole is becoming too deep to climb out of. Reid has become incredibly indecisive with his decision making, going back and forth on issues, mainly that of quarterback play and issues surrounding the defensive coaching staff. Yesterday Andy Reid fired defensive coordinator Juan Castillo, replacing him with secondary coach Todd Bowles. During his press conference, Reid left the door open for more changes to be made, including that of turnover machine, Michael Vick. Replacing Vick would come at cost to Reid's reputation as he would again be admitting that he made a mistake, like the one he made with hiring Castillo for the defensive coordinator position.

Standing at 3-3 going into the Bye Week, things are not all bad for the team. There are still ten games to be played and the team could rally around the changes Reid is making. Team owner Jeffrey Lurie has made it clear however, that Reid is skating on thin ice. Andy Reid is running out of excuses, running out of people to fire, and running out of time. Without drastic improvement from the mediocre first third of the season, Reid could be the one that gets axed.