After a miserly start to the season, it is time to reset expectations around the Philadelphia Eagles. Pederson & Co. marched into Fedex Field to face a nameless Washington Team whose hopes are in the hands of Dwayne “this guy is a patently bad quarterback” Haskins. Instead of returning home victorious, they spent the long bus ride home brainstorming excuses as to why the entire City of Philadelphia did not get free coffee.
Goff tosses 3 TD passes to Higbee, Los Angeles Rams beat Philadelphia Eagles 37-19 – 6abc Philadelphia
Via Laurence Kesterson, AP Photo
This last week invited in a legitimate foe, albeit a beatable one. Every season that passes feels like further evidence that Jared Goff is an overrated quarterback, and now he lacks the rushing attack to trip up opposing defenses. NFL-poster-child Sean McVay, the former Coach of the Year who had never beaten Doug Pederson, had all the answers. After spending an offseason struggling to convince ourselves the Jalen Hurts pick was not a complete mistake, Eagles fans sat idly by as the linebacker corps from Little Giants was picked apart.
Heading into Week 3, calls for Pederson’s resignation, Wentz’ benching, and Howie’s head on a pike echo through the streets of Philadelphia, and justifiably so. Philadelphia is not known as a championship city, but it is not a city of losers, either. Save for the Phillies, each major sports team has maintained a reputation of a competitive, playoff-caliber organization. The Sixers’ infamous Process has been the recipient of scathing punditry, but the team is still the third winningest team in NBA history behind the Lakers and Celtics. The Flyers are legendary for their role in making hockey the bloodbath it has become. Just a decade ago the Phillies were winning division titles like they were the Patriots. Hell, even the Union are good now.
The Eagles have yet to recover from their Super Bowl hangover. Since 2017 the Eagles have sat atop “Best Teams Over the Next 5 Years” lists and annual power rankings, but in reality, Frank Reich convinced us we were champions.
At the hands of Jim Schwartz and Doug Pederson, we are not.
Fumble feast in Philadelphia: Seahawks pounce on miscues to beat Eagles on road and improve to 9-2 | The Seattle Times
Via Dean Rutz / The Seattle Times
Football is a unique sport insofar as the competitive weight of every game. The Phillies could hypothetically drop back to back games every week and still sit atop the National League, but with a 16-game season, the Eagles are not so lucky. Starting 0-2, particularly after a division loss, is a damning start to the season. The Phillies, teetering at the edge of playoff contention, can finagle their way into a wild card slot with the kind of bullpen that begs the question, “Et tu Bruté?” Meanwhile, the Eagles cannot muster more than 17 points against 2019’s NFC East Sacko Champion or that little runt McVay.
Carson Wentz is still our QB1. This team has every chance to turn this season around. Frankly, if the last four games of last season are of any indication, Wentz can carry my high school’s JV team to a division title if the Cowboys play badly enough. But the last three years of mistakes have been glossed over because the team brought home the first Lombardi Trophy to Philadelphia. It is beyond time to give Pederson, Schwartz, Roseman, Wentz, and the entire franchise, top to bottom, the criticism they deserve.
Until the team proves it can perform the way it did during the Super Bowl run, the Eagles will remain the worst team in Philadelphia and living evidence that we are not a City of Champions.
Coming into the 2020 NFL season, the Philadelphia Eagles were being hyped up. In a game where the excuses were limited for the Eagles, the team went on the road and actually got out to a sizeable lead, jumping ahead 28-14 early in the third quarter. However, Philadelphia’s often suspect defense showed up in the worst way, giving up 23 straight points to Ryan Fitzpatrick and the Phins, digging Philly a hole they could not climb out of.
With the Dallas Cowboys leading the NFC East entering the week, everyone has been waiting on the Eagles to turn it on. They’ve remained within a game of their division rivals — a rival that beat them earlier in the season — and eyed an easy finishing stretch to help them catch up. The Dolphins, however, were part of that easy stretch.
Excuses have been made time and again for this group out of Philadelphia. Whether it’s been injuries on both sides of the ball, the offense having hiccups, or the secondary performing poorly, the narrative has always painted the picture of a squad on the cusp of turning it on.