Flashback Friday: Philadelphia Eagles become a legitimate contender

For many, it was their first prime time game in 2017 where most of the NFL universe realized the Philadelphia Eagles had a realistic shot to be something special.

Every winning record isn’t created equally. Some are the product of an easy schedule or catching teams at the right time. Others come from good teams showing that they’re ready for the rigors of a long NFL season. A month had expired in the 2017 campaign for the Philadelphia Eagles when they headed to Charlotte for a clash with a legitimate playoff team in the Carolina Panthers. The stakes were high.

The winner would have a leg up in the NFC’s standings and an early lead in playoff positioning. League offices cashed in by making this one a prime time game on Thursday Night Football. Fans were ready to see how good both of these teams were, and they tuned in to CBS and the NFL Network for the festivities. Philly proved to be up for the challenge.

A young team grows up.

The Panthers would convert more first downs, throw for more yards and run 19 more offensive plays than Philly would. It wouldn’t be enough as ‘The Birds’ would average 5.2 yards per play, force three turnovers and win the most important statistical category of them all, points scored.

Take a look at the highlights:

Video courtesy of the NFL’s official YouTube page

So, what did we learn exactly?

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The game answered two questions that fans had all off-season. One, could Zach Ertz take the next step and be more consistent? Second, were Nelson Agholor‘s struggles behind him?

Both scored touchdowns. Ertz scored two, and Philly looked their best in a road win against the best competition they had played all season.

Sure, they had a winning record coming in, but they had fought tooth and nail to a last-second victory over a division rival that they should have blown out, the New York Giants.

Then, there was a game that made all of us sweat, the one against the Los Angeles Chargers (it’s still tough to remember to call them that) and a blowout win over a team that had no shot to be anything great, the Arizona Cardinals.

This was the game where it became official. The Eagles were for real. They were ready for the spotlight. They were ready to play and win in big games. This was the game where it became official and fans woke up for real.

Next: Flashback Friday: Eagles continue to soar versus the Cards

We knew, after this one, that the Eagles had a shot to make a charge for the playoffs and maybe win a few games while they were there.

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