Philadelphia Eagles: Merry Christmas to everyone but Josh McDaniels
Josh McDaniels certainly isn’t on the Philadelphia Eagles’ Christmas card list.
Ah Christmas, ‘the most wonderful time of the year.’ A time for retrospection, anticipation, and most importantly of all, appreciation. For fans of the Philadelphia Eagles, there’s actually a lot to be thankful for.
In a weird twist of fate, the Birds are actually playing their best football down the stretch, have a legit potential franchise quarterback in Jalen Hurts to push their other franchise quarterback, Carson Wentz, and a can’t lose playoff situation.
If the Eagles win out and Washington loses out, they’re in the playoffs. And if they lose either game? Well, the Eagles land an all but guaranteed top-10 pick and a shot at landing a massive piece for their future.
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While it’s not the outcome many initially hoped for when the Eagles were parading down Broad Street a few short years ago, it’s one the majority of the fanbase has come to terms with and accepted – which honestly is half the battle.
*sigh* to paraphrase the great Tiny Tim, as played expertly in ‘The Muppets Christmas Carol’ by Robin the Frog, “Marry Christmas to all… except Josh McDaniels.”
For those in the know, you already know, but for those who don’t allow me to elaborate.
A few years back, the Eagles had it all. They were Super Bowl Champions, had one of the best rosters in the NFL, and an exceptional coaching staff. The word ‘dynasty’ was being thrown around without barely an ounce of cynicism, and the future looked about as bright as at any point in the franchise’s storied history.
Josh McDaniels ruined that.
You see, after being a popular name in the coaching market thanks to his tenure offensive coordinating for Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots, McDaniels had finally landed his next head coaching opportunity with the Indianapolis Colts. He was set to inherit an impressive roster featuring such household names as Andrew Luck, T.Y. Hilton, and Quenton Nelson, that had vastly underperformed under Chuck Pagano, and after a gradual string of decreasingly successful seasons, things were looking up for the Boys in Blue.
… at least until they weren’t.
In a move many still claim to this day was a Belichick sabotage, McDaniels opted out of his commitment at the last second, and the Colts had to scramble to find their new head coach with all of the ‘good’ candidates off the board.
They settled on Eagles offensive coordinator Frank Reich… and the rest, unfortunately, is history.
Now to be fair, we have absolutely no idea what would have happened to the Eagles’ fortunes if Reich – and QBs coach John DeFilippo – would have stuck around post-Super Bowl LII. Maybe they’d still be a championship contender today with Carson Wentz under center; maybe their roster would have still buckled under the weight of bad drafting/contracts/free agency additions – unfortunately, we’ll never know.
Because of McDaniels’ decision to return to the Pats – a move that hasn’t looked great based on his offense’s post-Brady badness – the Eagles’ future will forever have an asterisk based on what could have been.
To make matters worse, not only do the Colts have a better overall record since Reich took the reigns, but they’re the consensus favorites to land Wentz via trade during the forthcoming offseason – leaving the Eagles not only on the outside looking in but with their potential future playing out in Indianapolis.
Sorry to be a Christmas bummer.
Next. DeSean Jackson deserves a proper Philadelphia Eagles send-off. dark
The Philadelphia Eagles are in a weird spot going into Week 16. Their bout against the Dallas Cowboys could be for the soul of the NFC East or a complete waste of time depending on factors completely out of their control. In a way, that feels oddly representative of just how things have been going since Frank Reich left town and will continue to be until they find a legitimate offensive coordinator moving forward. At this point, it’s pretty safe to say Josh McDaniels isn’t featured prominently on their wish list, as he might just be the most hated man in the City of Brotherly Love.