I was pretty optimistic heading into the season.
I picked the Eagles to go as far as the NFC Championship game all the way back in May.
Now, I am even more optimistic.
Now, I am thinking if Jalen Hurts is healthy, they can win the whole thing.
But the season didn’t start off as rosy as it now appears.
The way Jalen played in the Wild Card loss to Tampa Bay did not evoke much hope in his doubters and was the cause of a long, long, off-season.
Hurts fans had to endure listening to or reading half of the fan base wanting to trade 3 first-round picks for an accused sex offender or an aging QB who didn’t have any desire to play for this franchise.
And Jalen Hurts wasn’t the only player, or coach, that some fans were complaining about.
Miles Sanders was a(non) fan favorite. Many people who follow the team wanted the Eagles to draft or trade for a running back.
“He can’t stay healthy”
“He doesn’t know where the endzone is!”
Re-signing Derek Barnett didn’t go over too well either.
“Great, we just got penalized another 15 yards when he signed his contract”
Even Head Coach Nick Sirianni was seen on the sidelines saying
“It’s always him”
Referring to a personal foul penalty Derek was flagged for.
Sadly, he was injured in week one, and nobody ever got to see what he had left in the tank in his new role as a backup/rotational edge.
Super Bowl Champion Fletcher Cox was no longer the apple of some fans’ eyes either.
“O-M-Gosh they re-signed Fletcher Cox”
Another contingency of the fan base was of the opinion that the Eagles should not have extended Darius Slay.
“WTF are they doing, Slay is old, don’t extend him, dump him!”
“Blow up the team”
Even one of all time most beloved players in franchise history wasn’t safe.
“Brandon Graham is overpaid”
“B.G. is too old!”
“You can’t bring him back if you are going to improve the pass rush”
Well, wrong, wrong, and wrong again.
And I saved the best, or worst, for last.
Let’s just say this man was the recipient of the most hate slung at any Eagles player or coach in recent memory.
Defensive coordinator, Jonathan Gannon.
And it wasn’t just fans. Former players, the local media, and some national pundits agreed as well. J.G. must go!
“Fire Jon Gannon”
“They won’t win 8 games with him as DC”
“Gannon calls a zone coverage? Cowardly call”
“Gannon has to be fired or the Eagles won’t go anywhere”
And those are the nicer comments….whew
So how did the Eagles get to where they are today?
How did a team that garnered such little confidence, lock down the number one seed in their conference and become the favorite to represent the NFC in Super Bowl 57
Well….by basically doing everything the loudest part of the fan base didn’t want to do.
They kept every player and coach I just mentioned.
Jalen Hurts, known all off-season as “noodle arm”, elevated his game right before everyone’s eyes and became a legit MVP candidate. He also led the Eagles to a 14–1 record while he was at QB and became one of the 2 most feared offensive weapons in the game. Not too shabby!
Miles Sanders has played wonderfully. He also went on to have his best season as a pro, rushing for 1269 yards and 11 TDs.
Brandon Graham, a comeback player of the year candidate, arguably had the most productive season of his career. Graham finished the season strong with the most sacks in a single season of his career. Brandon also achieved his highest win rate, while being a key cog of a defense that had more sacks than any other team in Eagles history.
They only fell 2 short of the NFL’s all-time record.
Big Play Slay, along with newly signed backfield partner, James Bradberry, was part of a pass defense that ranked number one in the league by only allowing 179.8 yards per game. The fewest yards per game since 2001. The duo ended the year as one of the stingiest pass defenses this team has seen in 2 decades.
Fletcher Cox chipped in with a solid season as well and came on hard down the stretch chipping in with 7 sacks, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery.
And Jonathan Gannon?
Well, he was the mastermind of the defense that saw the Eagles reach the aforementioned plauteus for both passing and sacks.
They were the first team to have 70 sacks in 33 years.
First in takeaways with 20
First in interceptions with 13
First in defending drives resulting in a turnover
Second in yards per game allowed
And the leader of the defense that just won the most games in franchise history
As a result of the success, by the season’s end, all of the above complaints have been forgotten, forgiven, or no longer exist due to amnesia. (I kid)
Well, everything above except the fire JG crowd. They just won’t go away. If the defense struggles in the playoffs, they will be louder than ever.
I digress, back to being optimistic.
The Eagles owner Jeff Lurie, General Manager Howie Roseman, and everyone in the front office deserves to be applauded.
The last two drafts, coupled with free agent signings that include Haason Reddick and James Bradberry and the shrewd trade acquisitions of CJ Gardner-Johnson and AJ Brown have the team exceeding almost every expectation.
The Eagles are now 3 wins away from extending this magical season and accomplishing what was unthinkable just five short months ago.
Winning a second Super Bowl championship.
This team has united all of the fans of differing opinions and will hopefully bring us together for another parade down Broad St.
Hope springs eternal!
As always, Thank You for reading!
Follow me on Twitter @PHLEaglenews @PhillyCvrCorner
David
1–19–22
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