Eagles earn top seed in NFC while writing a familiar headline

It wasn’t pretty. Then again, most games between the Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants are ugly. All that matters is the Birds got the win… right?

One of the headlines coming out of Philly’s 14th win of the season will read as follows. You have to worry about their state of offensive and defensive readiness as the postseason looms. That sounds familiar, right? Now, where have we heard that before?

Oh yeah! We remember now! It was 2017!

Think back to that 2017 Eagles team for a second. Does that remind you of the current version?

The similarities are almost endless. The 2017 Eagles were a team that few expected to see a lot of fireworks from. They exploded out of the starting block, and despite a loss versus the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 2, they would craft one of the best starts in franchise history. They’d post double-digit wins before notching their second loss.

Again, please stop us if this begins to sound familiar.

The 2017 Birds fielded a legitimate MVP candidate at quarterback. Unfortunately, as is the case with the current Eagles iteration, he got hurt. Thankfully, Jalen Hurts was able to do what Carson Wentz didn’t, return to action to lead his team on a postseason run.

Like the 2017 Eagles, the 2022 Birds have earned the top seed in the National Football Conference and a first-round bye. This year’s team also just set a franchise record for sacks AND wins. There are several reasons why they should be proud of what they have done, but as was the case with the only team in franchise history to hoist the Vince Lombardi Trophy, there are questions about this team’s chances come playoff time.

Let’s remind you of a few things.

The 2017 Eagles weren’t hot when they limped into the postseason. There were concerning injuries and some ugly performances before the close of the regular-season campaign. You remember that Christmas Day game versus the Raiders, don’t you? Things worked out.

The 2017 Eagles were underdogs in every game during their postseason run. How did that work out? Let’s make long stories short.

We can’t ignore some of what we’ve seen from Philly during the past three weeks. To blindly ignore the red flags would make us no better than Dallas Cowboys fans, but we’re excited about the postseason. You should be too.

There is no perfect team entering the playoffs. Every team has flaws. Each team can lose at any point, but this Eagles squad a solid unit with a very good roster.

Don’t fall victim to recency bias. Don’t give up hope. This team is very capable of winning another Lombardi. There’s a very good chance of this story having a happy ending. Dust off those dog masks if you still have them.