Jon Gruden says Philadelphia Eagles will reach Super Bowl if healthy

Fans of the Philadelphia Eagles are going to like what Jon Gruden had to say about their Super Bowl chances.

One of the narratives about the 2017 NFL season that has remained consistent has been whether or not the Philadelphia Eagles are the favorites to represent the NFC and reach the Super Bowl. Impressive wins over some pretty stiff competition will do that for you. The Eagles are enjoying some much needed rest after eight wins have been the result in their first nine games.

Now, the Eagles have made a believer out of a man who’s very familiar to the organization, former NFL head coach and current ESPN analyst Jon Gruden. He appeared on The Rich Eisen Show on Friday. According to “Chuckie”, the Eagles, if they remain healthy, have the best chance of all of the NFC teams to reach the Super Bowl.

Here’s a little background on Gruden.

Gruden’s familiar to the Eagles fan base for both good and bad reasons. He began cutting his teeth under some NFL coaching legends back in 1990. That eventually led him to role of Eagles offensive coordinator. He remained there from 1995 until 1997. The legendary Al Davis would hand him the reigns to the Oakland Raiders in 1998 before a string of weird events would see him replace Tony Dungy in Tampa Bay.

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It was in Tampa where he’d return to Philly and hand the Eagles one of their most crushing losses in team history. The NFC Championship Game wasn’t just a 27-10 victory for the Buccaneers. It was the final game in storied Veterans Stadium, and it punched Gruden and company’s ticket to Super Bowl XXXVII.

Gruden would eventually resign himself to analyst duties at ESPN. There have been rumors of his return to coaching, but so far, those have proved to be just rumors. Gruden seems happy now that all he has to do is talk about football. His recent comments about his old football stomping grounds will no doubt be getting some attention.

Well, it isn’t the first time we’ve heard the Super Bowl talk.

While Gruden didn’t say much that would be seen as groundbreaking information, he did reinforce what we already know. Almost every other NFC team seems to be falling apart, and the Eagles appear to be gelling. This despite having to piece together very important areas on defense, including the secondary.

Next: How does Sherman and Elliott’s absence impact an Eagles run?

Philly’s hot start hasn’t really been a matter of getting healthy. They haven’t been healthy all year. What has happened has been the early development of guys that weren’t figured into things early in the season and the continuing development of second-year quarterback Carson Wentz. He’s continued to develop ahead of schedule. Philly’s going to be good for a long time.

Fans can only hope the hot start they’ve seen in 2017 gets even hotter and the winning streak carries over until February. Only time will tell if that’s the case.

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