There are not many people outside of Philadelphia (and maybe inside of it) who believe this 2025 Philadelphia Eagles team can make a run in the postseason.
Sitting at 11-5 and on a three-game winning streak, the Eagles still need one win and a Chicago Bears loss to move up to the number two seed in the NFC, but head coach Nick Sirianni is giving the starters rest for their Week 18 game against the Washington Commanders. Some Eagles fans feel as though the team should play to go for the second seed and pick up some momentum with a struggling offense, but left tackle Jordan Mailata actually feels the opposite.
"Our confidence is through the roof," Mailata said via The Athletic's Zach Berman. "We know who we are. We know who we have. So heading into the playoffs, it's a chance to prepare our bodies and our mental. A physical and mental rest."
Jordan Mailata and Eagles laugh in the face of adversity with confidence
Everyone wants to compare this 2025 team to the one that lost six of their last seven games in 2023, but the Eagles' late-season bounce-back in December is enough to show this is a different team. Sure, the offense looks bad right now, but the defense has been playing at an elite level as the league's best unit over the last two months.
Philly's offense is coming off a bad performance in which they were under 200 yards for the game and just 16 yards on 18 plays in the second half against the Buffalo Bills, still getting the win in the process. Mailata knows the feeling of being doubted, as the team has grown accustomed to it over the last 10 years, always the underdog and never the favorite.
"We've been here before. We've been doubted before. We had these same questions about us heading into the playoffs last year. We welcome that challenge. It's not like we're pushing it under the carpet. We're doing everything we can to get this run game going, to get this play-action game going, to give our defense a rest. But we've been here. We've been doubted. And every time. We've proven them wrong. So that's why I have confidence."
Read more: Commanders' latest injury update makes Nick Sirianni's decision look genius
Wherever Lane Johnson has the underdog mask from their Super Bowl run, it's a good time to pull it out, as it looks like it's another season of it. The Eagles won't let a string of tough performances from one side of the ball affect the fact that they are more than ready to repeat as Super Bowl champs.