The Eagles host the Niners on Sunday. It isn’t a “must win” game, but it’s pretty darn important. The Eagles need to get back to .500 and they need to build some confidence.

Fans are looking for all kinds of answers. I’ve seen some people calling for Juan Castillo to be fired. Trading for Aaron Curry was a hot topic yesterday. People continue to ask about Lofa Tatupu. Reuben Frank called for the Eagles to give Greg Lloyd a shot at MLB. I actually did a double take on that one.

Right now the Eagles need to focus on playing more like a team. There is no quick fix to this. Watch 2010 tape of Lofa Tatupu. He just can’t run anymore. Aaron Curry seemed to play best in 2009. If you trade for him, are you getting that guy or the one who was benched last week? Lloyd? He struggled with 3rd string RBs in the preseason. If run plays came right at him, Lloyd shut them down. If they went outside or he had to adjust on the move, he struggled big time. I might try him if we faced Brandon Jacobs and Peyton Hillis all year long, but Lloyd vs any athletic RB scares the heck out of me. None of this is the real key to fixing things.

Andy Reid really got on the team Sunday. Nnamdi Asomugha said he was hard on them and let them know just how disappointing that loss was. Reid later told the team that the key to all of this is becoming more of a team. Pick each other up. When the offense turns the ball over, the defense needs to come up with a stop. When the defense allows a score, the offense needs to respond with a score of their own. The STs need to help out in any way they can. Function as a team, as one.

The Eagles were highly dysfunctional in the Buddy Ryan years in large part due to the way the team splintered into groups. That hasn’t been the case under Andy Reid. He’s good at getting all 53 men to be part of one group…the Eagles. Right now that isn’t clicking.

This isn’t a case of egos or blame or problems like that. Group dynamics is a tricky subject. Getting individuals to function as a group isn’t easy even when everyone wants to. You need something to make it work. One of the best ways is the bunker mentality…us against the world.

I’m sure Reid has talked to the team about the fact there are no magical solutions to the problems. Back in 2008 Dallas was going through a rough stretch in the middle of the season. Tony Romo was injured for a couple of weeks and the team was struggling. Jerry Jones responded by trading for WR Roy Williams and I remember Eagles fans saying “They’re going to be unstoppable”.

I wrote then that it was the wrong move and it sent the wrong message to the team.

“I think Jerry Jones erred in making the deal. The Cowboys had enough talent to win the Super Bowl without Roy. They had enough talent last year. Pure talent hasn’t been an issue recently. What the Cowboys lack is intestinal fortitude.”

Later in the column I wrote this:

“My bet is that the Cowboys don’t make it to the Super Bowl, let alone win it. They won’t lack talent. They simply won’t be able to overcome some other team that has a bit more junkyard dog than the ‘Boys. Toughness can outdo talent in the postseason.”

You may recall that the Boys and Eagles met on the final day of the season with a playoff berth on the line. The Eagles had a lot more junkyard dog and won 44-6. Ugly, ugly loss for Jerry and his Boys.

Right after the trade for Roy, Dallas lost to the lowly Rams. Here’s part of what I wrote about that:

“Tough situations call for tough teams. Dallas wasn’t close to tough on Sunday. I talked about the problem with the Roy Williams trade in a recent post. It seems as if Jerry Jones was trying to solve problems by acquiring more talent. The NFL doesn’t work like that. The coaching staff has to get with the players and get them to step up. You overcome adversity with hard work, focus, and leadership. Jerry Jones had great intentions, but I think the Williams deal was a bad move for the 2008 team. It will certainly help when TO moves on in the future. “

I’m happy to report that I was wrong about Roy Williams being the guy to replace TO. Clearly I had not factored in Miles Austin at that juncture. Anyway…my point to bringing up all of this ancient history is to focus on what the 2011 Eagles need to do. Get tough and get together.

Reid will preach this message to his team. He doesn’t want his players looking around for answers. Reid wants them to realize they are the answer. He will challenge them. Some guys will respond, some won’t. That’s how you find out who can handle pressure and who can’t.

Reid will give the players ownership of the situation. And that’s key. You make the players realize that they dug the hole and now they need to get out of it. That can be a great motivational tool. Again, not everyone will buy in, but that’s okay. You need a strong core of people to step forward, to embrace the situation.

Reid has been coach of the Eagles now for 13 years. He knows how to push buttons and try different things to get players going. This is a weird team. There are a bunch of stars and a bunch of young guys. That makes for an odd mixture of personalities. In the past Reid was able to reach his teams and get them on the right path (2005 being the great exception). This is his biggest challenge in a while. I hope he’s able to sell his message and get the players to respond.

The Falcons and Giants punched us in the last couple of weeks. We punched back until the 4th Qtr. Then we went to our corner and watched quietly. Can’t have that anymore. We need 53 guys to come together and show some sense of urgency. We need action. We need results.

Jeremy Maclin needs to catch the 4th down pass. Jamar Chaney needs to tackle Michael Turner in the open field. Shady McCoy needs to lower his head and get a yard when we give him the ball on 4th/1. DRC needs to tackle Ahmad Bradshaw for a loss on 3rd/short. Nnamdi Asomugha needs to break up the pass to Victor Cruz. And so on.

The plays were there to be made and we didn’t do it. The plays will be there in the next 13 weeks. Guys need to step up and get the job done. Forget about help, this is us against the world.

* * * * *

Now, just because Reid is preaching to the players to not expect magical answers to the problems does not mean you stay put across the board. You always look at the lineup and who’s getting it done and who isn’t. Should we make lineup changes? Will they truly help or is this change for the sake of change? If you feel changes will help, make them.

And that’s just what Reid and his staff did. Brian Rolle, aka my long lost son, is now the starting WLB. Nate Allen is taking over for Kurt Coleman.

Obviously I’m ecstatic to see Rolle getting on the field as a starter. He earned it. I thought Casey Matthews was showing progress, but Rolle is ahead of him and just looks like he belongs. Brian isn’t some game changer that will come in an dominate. Here’s what he will do:

* Play at full speed. Matthews was thinking/reacting. Rolle isn’t as hesitant. He’s seeing the field clearer and that allows him to play faster.

* Shed blocks better. Rolle has a leverage advantage. He strikes the blocker with his hands. Matthews had some plays where he was able to move off blocks, but too often was slow in doing so.

* Be there. Rolle has shown a knack for being at the right spot at the right time. Matthews hasn’t. You can’t coach this. Rolle has it…for now.

Rolle gives you a WLB with good speed and power. He is a good tackler. He diagnoses plays well. He’s got excellent closing speed. He has come coverage ability. Yes, he’s undersized, but he doesn’t play that way. Rolle acts like he’s 6’3, 250. He takes on blockers when he needs to. He also knows how to use his size wisely. He’ll move through traffic better than a big LB. He’ll slip blocks when thats the prudent move.

Jamar Chaney gets start number two in the middle. Hopefully a week of practice at the spot will help him bring out the best in his game. He’s still the key to our LB play improving.

I’m very happy to get Nate Allen back in the lineup. I know many people are down on him. I’ve been a big supporter of his for a while. Terrific draft prospect, solid rookie FS. Good ball skills. Okay hitter. Solid tackler. The question with him is his knee. The Eagles brought him back this summer and worked him on and off to see how the knee held up. They decided to sit Nate for a while. He’ll play 50 snaps on Sunday. I don’t know if he’s got 50 plays worth of action so far this year.

Kurt Coleman struggled mightily in the opener and then again last week. I still have hopes for him, but Kurt was getting stuck on blocks too much and also had the missed tackle that led to a TD on Sunday. You cannot have mistakes like that from your Safeties. Mistakes by them lead to TDs or huge plays. Safeties are supposed to clean up messes created by the players in front of them.

Are there any other lineup changes or adjustments to make? I think you stick with Jarrad Page for now. I do think you try and get Jaiquawn Jarrett on the field as a STer to get him some action and see how he responds.

I’m open to benching Moise Fokou at SAM, but I don’t feel strongly about Keenan Clayton or Akeem Jordan. Plus, you want to be careful about making wholesale changes at once. Let Chaney get used to playing with Rolle for a week or two. Fokou has the potential to be a solid OLB. Maybe the new look at LB will bring out the best in him. If not, you work someone else into his spot down the road.

Obviously I leave DL and CB alone.

A few people have suggested mixing in Joselio Hanson in at Safety. I’d stick with Page for now, but I do agree we need to play Hanson more. The Nickel defense has been up and down. See how Hanson can help. He’s our best slot guy. Use him there. At least mix him in so that teams have to consider he could be on their slot receiver.

The offense isn’t safe either. Andy and Marty need to come up with a better set of ideas for the goal line offense. Steve Smith got mixed in last week. How about Clay Harbor and Ronnie Brown this week? Maybe make Brent Celek a key receiver down there. Do something.

Keep tweaking the lineup and schemes until we find the right combination of players and plays.