Can Nick Foles spark Philadelphia Eagles' Super Bowl spirit?
Eagles play Redskins with season on the line - and need Vikings to lose
Sunday 30 December 2018 15:44, UK
With two straight wins, Nick Foles has brought back memories of last year's Super Bowl run.
Just a short time ago, it appeared the Philadelphia Eagles - defending champions - had suffered the defeat that would signal the end of their season.
A Week 14 win over the Cowboys would have brought both team's records to 7-6 and given Philadelphia a strong chance of taking the NFC East. Instead, a heart-breaking overtime loss dropped them to 6-7 while the Cowboys moved to 8-5
However, after upsets in Los Angeles and at home to Houston, they are now 8-7 and one win - and a Minnesota Vikings loss - away from reaching the postseason and having the chance to defend their title.
With Super Bowl LII MVP Foles back at the helm, do the Eagles really have a chance of doing it all over again?
The disappointing sequel
They say the sequel is never as good as the original, and after Philadelphia finally ended their 57-year wait for a title last year, they came into the season as division favourites and were seen as a team that could challenge for a rare repeat.
The return of quarterback Carson Wentz, as well as Jason Peters, Jordan Hicks and Darren Sproles were expected to provide a boost. 2017 second-round pick Sidney Jones came back from injury, Michael Bennett was acquired from the Seahawks, and move after move signalled the Super Bowl win was not just the end, but instead the start of a special era.
But as is the norm in the ever-changing NFL, it did not come to fruition. The Eagles have 14 players on injured reserve. Wentz, initially expected to be ready for the start of the season, missed the first two games. And last week, it was revealed he has been playing with a fracture in his back.
Hicks and Sproles have missed a lot of time, as has Jones and seemingly every cornerback on the roster. The offense has spluttered, averaging just 22.2 points per game compared to 28.6 last season. The team's 31 takeaways ranked fourth in the NFL in 2017, but they have managed just 15 this time around (21st).
Is it simply the injuries? Or the personnel and coaching losses (Frank Reich, John DeFilippo, Patrick Robinson, Mychal Kendricks, LeGarrette Blount and more)? Or it is what five-time NBA title-winning coach Pat Riley described as "the disease of me"?
Head coach Doug Pederson, known for his aggressive, do-or-die coaching style - he even released a book in the summer titled 'Fearless' - has seemingly taken his foot off the gas as a play-caller. Players who excelled last season have taken a step back.
Did the team spend too long looking in the mirror rather than looking ahead? If they did, the 48-7 drubbing at the hands of the New Orleans Saints - the worst loss by a Super Bowl winner in the following season - woke them up.
In their four wins out of the last five games - and the second half of the demoralising defeat in Dallas to Amari Cooper's deflected touchdown - the Eagles have shown what they are capable of, and drawn comparisons to last year's group.
But if they want to go on another playoff run, they will require some luck.
Need some help
After the Seahawks and Cowboys won last week, there's now only one scenario in which the Eagles can make the postseason - a Vikings loss to the Chicago Bears in Minnesota.
The Bears 11-4 have both a playoff berth and the NFC North title wrapped up, but they are still playing for home-field advantage, which they could steal from the Rams. If Los Angeles beat San Francisco, it is out of Chicago's hands. If the 49ers win, a Chicago victory propels them to the No 2 seed.
With all three games happening at the same time on Sunday, there could be a trickle-down effect as each score happens in LA. If the Rams are up comfortably by half-time, Chicago could decide to pull their starters, and Minnesota's job gets a whole lot easier. If it stays close, the seedings could hang in the balance until the final seconds come off the clock.
What are they capable of?
This is not the same team as last season. In 2017, everything clicked. As the team was struck by injury after injury, the pieces were in place - as was the belief - so much so that when Wentz went down in December, just like this year, the Eagles quickly regrouped.
On last year's run, Foles went 3-0 in the playoffs, completed 72.6 per cent of his passes, threw six touchdowns to just one interception, had a 115.7 passer rating, and was named Super Bowl MVP.
In his latest outing this season, he threw for 471 yards - breaking an Eagles franchise record - and four touchdowns. Big-game Foles was back.
Perhaps more impressive in the last two weeks have been the performances of everyone but the quarterback. Pederson called a more balanced game, the play-makers have stepped up - particularly wide receiver Alshon Jeffery with his 11 catches for 242 yards - and the team look like they believed again.
This is not a question of 'Foles versus Wentz'. When healthy, the 25-year-old third-year star is the man who will line up behind center. But for now, he is on the sidelines and the team will rally around their back-up.
How far can the Eagles go? As they proved last year; all the way. But it will be a huge mountain to climb. Last year's home field advantage at Lincoln Financial Field was a difference-maker, but this time, their path could feature road games in Chicago, New Orleans, and Los Angeles; a near-impossible three-game stretch.
Philadelphia need things to fall their way to even get there, but their fans will be hoping 'Saint Nick' can bring the Christmas cheer yet again.
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