On Sunday night, the Eagles squared off against the rival Cowboys
with the fate of the division hanging in the balance. While this is far from the
first time the two storied franchises did battle over the NFC East crown,
Sunday’s bout seemed extra special considering everything the Eagles
endured so far this season.
Having officially been stripped of their reign as Super Bowl champs
earlier this year, the Eagles were hungry to regain their glory. Frankly, after
a slew of offseason moves by the ever-savvy Eagles GM Howie Roseman, it
seemed like the Birds were well on their way to doing just that.
Former Pro Bowlers Malik Jackson, Zach Brown, and DeSean Jackson
were all brought in to the City of Brotherly Love- D-Jax making his
triumphant return to Philly for a second stint- to bolster an already strong
Eagles unit. Furthermore, homegrown talents Brandon Graham and Jason
Kelce were signed to extensions- increasing the Super Bowl legends’ odds of
finishing their careers in Philly.
The talented additions to the team, coupled with a strong pre-existing
roster and a version of Carson Wentz that would be another year removed
from his devastating knee injury seemed to spell trouble for rival clubs.
Strangely enough, even the national media held the Eagles in high-regard
entering this season, ranking them close to or atop virtually every preseason
Power Ranking- a complete anomaly for the oft-criticized Philly franchise.
For once, the tea leaves signaled smooth sailing for the Birds.
Not dissimilar to most lofty aspirations, however, dreams of a stainless Eagles campaign quickly evaporated. Beginning in the season opener, the Eagles suffered through a bout with injuries.
Acquired to be the lightning to Fletcher Cox’s thunder on the d-line, former Pro Bowler and DT Malik Jackson was lost for the year following a severe foot injury in the season opener. In the very next game, starting wideouts DeSean Jackson and Alshon Jeffery were bitten by the injury bug as well- initiating the nagging injuries that ultimately landed each of them on IR.
Understandably so after losing so much premier talent so early on in
the season, the Eagles struggled to find their footing and found themselves
at 4-4 halfway through their season. A Week 9 victory over the Bears
propelled the Eagles over .500 for the first time in over a month, but even
that was short-lived, as the Eagles went on to lose their next three contests-
including a mind-boggling loss to the hapless Dolphins - dropping them to a
lowly 5-7 record.
Around that time, the vibes around the team were completely flipped
on its head. The national media that briefly spoke glowingly of Philly
reverted to their usual habits of bashing the Birds. Doug Pederson and the
Eagles were no longer viewed in the same class as their contending NFC
competitors, and even former players were going on live television to mock
their shortcomings.
Still, with four straight division games on tap, the Eagles were down,
but not out- a place they have grown accustomed to in the Doug Pederson
era. And, in true Eagles fashion, the team turned it on when it was needed
most.
“This team’s resilient,” said Carson Wentz of the heart of his Eagles
team. “We realized we have our backs to the wall, just like last week. You
know, it's do-or-die right now. It’s make or break and guys stepped up and
kept making plays. And, you know, through the good, the bad, and the ugly,
guys just kept believing.”
Despite lauding his teammates for their play in the must-win affair, it
was Wentz who shone brightest in the victory. The former second overall
pick was masterful against Washington, dissecting their defense to the tune
of 266 yards, 3 TDS, and 0 INT on the day- including a 79-yard
game-winning drive late in the fourth quarter.
Though some would credit the Eagles offensive explosion to a lifeless
Washington defense that allows the eighth-most yards per game this
season, Eagles HC Doug Pederson attributes his unit’s spectacular play on
intense training throughout the week:
“I think sometimes you don’t realize how much
these guys put into a week of practice and preparation,” Pederson stated
when asked about the lack of explosiveness from his unit in the first half.
“We played until about 11:30 pm on Monday night. Over 90 plays on
offense..defense was close 60 plays, 50-something plays. And that’s a tough
thing. Physically, that’s a tough thing.”
As it's been every campaign since he was hired as head coach in 2016, work ethic continues to be a staple in the Pederson-led locker room. Through a tireless work ethic, both on and off the field, Pederson has quickly established a winning culture capable of regularly overcoming severe circumstances.
Continued on the page below.
Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Back in 2016- his inaugural campaign in Philly- Pederson pioneered
the Eagles to a 7-9 record, despite starting a rookie quarterback and a
forgetful cast of skill players. After a hot 3-0 start to that year, the
patchwork Eagles remained competitive throughout the season, losing all but
three of their nine losses by one possession.
Famously, in 2017, Pederson led the Eagles to their first-ever Super
Bowl victory and oversaw what should have been donned an MVP season by
Carson Wentz. Miraculously, the offensive-minded coach accomplished this
in spite of losing future HOF left tackle Jason Peters, starting MLB and
captain of the defense Jordan Hicks, former Pro Bowler and return specialist
Darren Sproles and the aforementioned, should-be MVP quarterback Wentz
to season-ending injuries that year. Seemingly down on his luck, Pederson
spearheaded one of the most improbable, wildly successful postseason runs
in NFL history, capping it off with a victory over the Patriots in the
highest-scoring Super Bowl contest to date.
As if that weren’t a big enough magic trick in itself, Pederson rallied his
troops once again the next season and nearly did it all again. After a rough
4-6 start to the season and once again with Nick Foles at the helm in place
of an injured Wentz, the Eagles won three straight contests to conclude the
regular season- and were victors of five of their final six games overall. Their
impressive, resilient efforts helped them capture the NFC Wild Card slot and
once again highlighted the abundant amount of fight in a Pederson-led unit.
Unwilling to relent, the Eagles managed to knock off the NFC favorite
Chicago Bears and their best-ranked defense in an intense road game at
Soldier Field. The following week, the banged-up Eagles battled the Saints-
at the Superdome, I might add- in the divisional round and lost by a mere
six points. Despite falling short of victory, pushing the No.2 seeded Saints to
their limits on the road was no small feat and serves as one of the most
prominent examples of just how excellent a coach Pederson is.
No matter how injured they are, or how much the media slams them,
or what moves rival clubs make, etc. , the Philadelphia Eagles continue to
adjust and always seem well prepared under Doug Pederson- especially in
key games.
And, as if on cue, Pederson was able to stress this fact once more with
a huge Week 16 victory over the Dallas Cowboys. Running with a crew of
contingency plans after his opening day roster was ravished by injury,
Pederson was able to craft a game-winning scheme against a team that
embarrassed him earlier in the season.
Back home at the Linc- where the Birds are 23-9 in the Pederson era-
the Eagles once again flashed the resiliency trait that has propelled them
over the years. On the back of a great game plan by Eagles DC Jim
Schwartz, the Philly defense played lights out against Dallas- finishing the
game without surrendering a single touchdown.
Not to be outdone, Pederson oversaw an offensive outburst of 431
total yards and absolutely dominated the time of possession battle as well.
All evening, it was evident that Philly had the more effective coach than their
NFC East counterpart as Pederson routinely found innovative ways to
produce offense.
Additionally, he did this despite having Greg Ward, JJ
Arcega-Whiteside, Robert Davis, the facility janitor, and Howie Roseman’s
nephew headlining the wide receiver depth chart. The last two names are
hyperbolic, but you honestly just can’t overstate what an excellent job
Pederson has done with the cast at his disposal.
“Resilient. Energetic,” said Carson Wentz of the makeup of the team following their Week 16 win over Dallas. “I think there’s been a lot of excitement with the unknown. I think with a lot of new faces and a lot of guys that maybe weren’t expected to be making these plays that unknown factor just is exciting. I think just the resiliency that I’ve seen, it’s been the next-man-up mentality from really the moment I got here in Philly. You see it over and over and it’s exciting to see these guys come to work with a sense of belief and the pride they take in their work and to get it done out here on Sundays.”
Thanks to the never-say-die attitude that Wentz alluded to and
Pederson established upon his arrival in Philly, the Eagles, against all odds,
are once again in a position to make the postseason heading into the final
game of the season. No stranger to late-season surges, Pederson also
credited their win over the Cowboys to a high level of work ethic and
resiliency:
“Obviously, yeah, you don’t want it to come down to the month of
December. You’d like to play a little better September, October, November.
But I just think the guys -- this is the team that when their back is against
the wall, they come out swinging and fighting. Whatever it takes. Sometimes
it’s not pretty and it doesn’t have to be. Just put some plays together, score
more points than our opponents, hold our opponents down, and play great
football team. If we don’t hurt ourselves, we give ourselves a chance. That’s
what happened tonight.”
With another division game on tap in the regular-season finale, the Eagles will look to remain mistake-free and capture the NFC East crown. Like any other big game, the team will have to keep their wits about them and execute at a high level to succeed. Though, with Doug Pederson leading the charge, I don’t foresee that being an issue for the laser-focused Eagles.
Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
