For the last time this magical year, the hours are waning where fans can still say "Philadelphia Eagles...reigning Super Bowl Champions!"
Around 10:00 pm tonight we will have a new world champion in pro football, either the upstart Los Angeles Rams or the ever-present, annoying New England Patriots. Nick Foles will be a former Super Bowl MVP. Foles will be traded soon. Life goes on.
Before that happens, time to reflect on the past year and the special times that I will always remember of the Eagles winning their first Super Bowl.
- We need to start with the great regular season. Going 13-3. Winning nine games in a row at one point. Not only capturing the NFC East but getting home field advantage thru-out the NFC playoffs.
Despite going 13-3 there were concerning times too. Carson Wentz going down for the season with a knee injury in L.A. was key. Even though the Birds had officially locked up their division with the clutch win over the Rams, doubts of how far they would go in the upcoming postseason persisted with Wentz out and the unsure Nick Foles taking over at quarterback.
It was an awesome feeling all year, knowing the Eagles were the most powerful, cruised over their NFC East rivals, and seemed pretty much invincible.
- The playoffs were a different animal. Starting with the tight home win over favored Atlanta. That's when the Eagles donned their underdog masks and the community came together. Everywhere fans went- from the supermarket to merely walking on the street- people who were fans and not fans talked Eagles, wore green gear and smiled while greeting "Go Birds!"
- I was at the NFC Championship Game between the Eagles and Vikings. Once again, the Eagles wer eunderdogs, even at home. Even local writers like mike Sielski claimed the Eagles had no home field advantage. But the fans proved the local media, the national media and Las Vegas wrong.
I clearly remember being in the men's room just before halftime at the Linc on the mild January afternoon, and the spontaneous "E-A-G-L-E-S!" chants that broke out. It was unreal just being there, the pre-game hype, the unbelievable feeling that either this could finally be the year, or we fall short once again.
We watched the AFC Championship Game on the scoreboard before the game, and the fans knew our opponent would be the evil empire patriots if the Eagles did their part.
The fourth quarter was anti-climatic as the Eagles rolled over Minnesota. We partied in the stadium just waiting for the time to tick down. An unreal feeling when the two-minute warning finally arrived, knowing the Vikings had no chance, knowing the birds just needed to run out the clock.
The post game celebration was only a taste of things to come. The Fox broadcasting crew presenting the NFC Championship trophy to owner Jeff Lurie on the field. The fans not wanting to leave the Linc, savoring the moment, celebrating now because who knew if there would be a Super bowl celebration?
Outside the stadium i was surprised how well-behaved the notorious Eagle fans were. Sure, it was a different story in Center City, where fans climbed light poles and climbed on parked cars to party.
- The two weeks leading up to the Super bowl were fun but in the end, we just wanted the game to be played already. Enough hype. But it was cool to see the Eagles as part of the hype, the interviews and features, again, everyone talking Birds and wearing midnight green or kelly green.
- The game itself was magic. The Philly special. The fact our Eagles, underdogs once more, were going head-to-head with Tom Brady and New England. The Brandon Graham fumble. The great catches by Ertz, Agholor and Jeffery. The replays and controversy. The idiot Cris Collingsworth. The great, unreal play of Nick Foles. The gutsy moves by coach Doug Pederson.
I don't even remember who played the halftime show. Who cares? Even the Super bowl commercials were an afterthought.
The last play, holding my breath as Brady's Hail Mary pass finally hit the turf in the Eagle end zone and Philadelphia had won. It seemed like time froze and it took a few seconds to comprehend that the game was over, the birds had won and they were world champs.
The post game celebrations were unforgettable. Ray Didinger hugging his son on camera. Foles and Lrie holding up the Lombardi Trophy, sought after and fought for so long. Texting and calling relatives and friends,. sharing the joy. Fireworks going off in the neighborhood. Knowing what was ahead- the parade, all the glory, the year ahead.
- The parade was four days later but it was worth the wait. I didn't go to the parade so the game meant more to me, but it was fun to watch, all the speeches at the Art Museum, the unbelievable crowds everywhere.
- Going through spring ( David Akers proclaiming the Eagles as champs at the draft in April-in Dallas!). and summer, never wanting the party to end, not wanting to start a new season. The first game of the new season against the falcons, the championship banner hoisted to the rafters at Lincoln Financial Field. All of the forthcoming books about the unforgettable year, the gear out that said loud and clear: Super bowl Champions!
Tonight it officially ends. Hopefully it will happen again, hopefully as soon as next year. It won't be as special as the first time, after waiting over 60 years. Tonight I'll watch the Rams and Pats, happy for last season but sad the Birds didn't get back to the Super Bowl as New England did. Still, the future is bright and instead of a rebuild, the Eagles are in position to make a run and recapture the magic again.
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