You Talking to Me? Players sound so rankled, Reid may have to run for it

From: Gonzalez, John

To: Lyon, Bill; Sheridan, Phil

Subject: Dissension in the ranks?

When asked why the Eagles didn't run more against Washington, Brian Westbrook paused a second before saying: "I don't ask questions. Coach saw something that dictated that we should pass the ball."

I was standing next to Westbrook at the time. The way he said it made him seem frustrated.

Then, on Monday, Jon Runyan was on

Daily News Live

. Naturally, the panelists were trying to get Runyan to agree that the Eagles should run more. Finally, after sitting in silence for a while, Runyan tersely replied, "It's not going to happen."

Is it possible that the players are as frustrated with Andy Reid as the rest of the populace is right now?

From: Lyon, Bill

To: Gonzalez, John; Sheridan, Phil

Subject: Dissension in the ranks?

Train your binoculars off the port side. See that very small boat bobbing about in that very large ocean? It bears one solitary passenger - Capt. Andrew Reid, late of the HMS Bounty, er, Good Ship Iggles, cast adrift by a crew turned mutinous. They have cracked open the rum barrels and are chanting derisively: "Run the ball, run the ball . . ."

Are the Eagles themselves as frustrated as their fandom? you ask. How could they not be?

From: Sheridan, Phil

To: Lyon, Bill; Sheridan, Phil

Subject: Dissension in the ranks?

Well, that is a much more important issue than whether the media or the fans are confused and upset by Reid's fresh case of the Pass Fever.

One of the things I noticed during the three-game winning streak was how much the players were into the game plan. They were pumped to be going out there committed to a running game, and they played accordingly.

It isn't a reach to wonder whether they were so flat Sunday because they did not buy into what they were being asked to do. You can make a player follow orders, but you can't make him like what he has to do - especially when he's just seen his own instincts confirmed for three weeks.

This is how coaches lose teams.

On a more important note: Favorite food you get only around the holiday season? I'm going with mince pie, which I get to enjoy in abundance because hardly anyone else likes it.

From: Lyon, Bill

To: Gonzalez, John; Sheridan, Phil

Subject: Dissension in the ranks?

The coach's mantra is always that he needs to do a better job putting the players in position to win. When, week after week, he does not, surely the players grind their teeth in anguish and despair . . . making sure that their disenchantment is not viewed by the public.

The coach's tenure has reached a full decade now, far longer than the industry's norm. The problem is it's always the mutineers who are sacked, because the captain holds the keys to the rum.

Re food: No snickering at the old guy, but give me one of those much-maligned fruitcakes. You know, the shot put wrapped in cellophane. Hey, they'll keep 'til August. Of 2012. Your colon will thank you.

From: Gonzalez, John

To: Lyon, Bill; Sheridan, Phil

Subject: Dissension in the ranks?

I totally agree that the players have to buy into what the coach is asking. Otherwise, they tune out. The moment Jim Cohen fenced me into Page 2, I began sticking extra pins into his voodoo doll. I suspect Westbrook and Runyan are doing the same thing to an Andy Reid dummy as we speak.

Re food: Every Christmas Eve, my wonderful 83-year-old Italian grandmother makes sausage bread. It's a homemade roll of baked dough, sausage and cheese - similar to stromboli, but superior in quality and taste. This year, I will finally achieve my lifelong goal of eating my weight in sausage bread at the Christmas Eve dinner.

Happy holidays to you and yours, everyone.