Back in 2016- his inaugural campaign in Philly- Pederson pioneered the Eagles to a 7-9 record, despite starting a rookie quarterback and a forgetful cast of skill players. After a hot 3-0 start to that year, the patchwork Eagles remained competitive throughout the season, losing all but three of their nine losses by one possession.
Famously, in 2017, Pederson led the Eagles to their first-ever Super Bowl victory and oversaw what should have been donned an MVP season by Carson Wentz. Miraculously, the offensive-minded coach accomplished this in spite of losing future HOF left tackle Jason Peters, starting MLB and captain of the defense Jordan Hicks, former Pro Bowler and return specialist Darren Sproles and the aforementioned, should-be MVP quarterback Wentz to season-ending injuries that year. Seemingly down on his luck, Pederson spearheaded one of the most improbable, wildly successful postseason runs in NFL history, capping it off with a victory over the Patriots in the highest-scoring Super Bowl contest to date.
As if that weren’t a big enough magic trick in itself, Pederson rallied his troops once again the next season and nearly did it all again. After a rough 4-6 start to the season and once again with Nick Foles at the helm in place of an injured Wentz, the Eagles won three straight contests to conclude the regular season- and were victors of five of their final six games overall. Their impressive, resilient efforts helped them capture the NFC Wild Card slot and once again highlighted the abundant amount of fight in a Pederson-led unit.
Unwilling to relent, the Eagles managed to knock off the NFC favorite Chicago Bears and their best-ranked defense in an intense road game at Soldier Field. The following week, the banged-up Eagles battled the Saints- at the Superdome, I might add- in the divisional round and lost by a mere six points. Despite falling short of victory, pushing the No.2 seeded Saints to their limits on the road was no small feat and serves as one of the most prominent examples of just how excellent a coach Pederson is.
No matter how injured they are, or how much the media slams them, or what moves rival clubs make, etc. , the Philadelphia Eagles continue to adjust and always seem well prepared under Doug Pederson- especially in key games.
And, as if on cue, Pederson was able to stress this fact once more with a huge Week 16 victory over the Dallas Cowboys. Running with a crew of contingency plans after his opening day roster was ravished by injury, Pederson was able to craft a game-winning scheme against a team that embarrassed him earlier in the season.
Back home at the Linc- where the Birds are 23-9 in the Pederson era- the Eagles once again flashed the resiliency trait that has propelled them over the years. On the back of a great game plan by Eagles DC Jim Schwartz, the Philly defense played lights out against Dallas- finishing the game without surrendering a single touchdown.
Not to be outdone, Pederson oversaw an offensive outburst of 431 total yards and absolutely dominated the time of possession battle as well. All evening, it was evident that Philly had the more effective coach than their NFC East counterpart as Pederson routinely found innovative ways to produce offense.
Additionally, he did this despite having Greg Ward, JJ Arcega-Whiteside, Robert Davis, the facility janitor, and Howie Roseman’s nephew headlining the wide receiver depth chart. The last two names are hyperbolic, but you honestly just can’t overstate what an excellent job Pederson has done with the cast at his disposal.
“Resilient. Energetic,” said Carson Wentz of the makeup of the team following their Week 16 win over Dallas. “I think there’s been a lot of excitement with the unknown. I think with a lot of new faces and a lot of guys that maybe weren’t expected to be making these plays that unknown factor just is exciting. I think just the resiliency that I’ve seen, it’s been the next-man-up mentality from really the moment I got here in Philly. You see it over and over and it’s exciting to see these guys come to work with a sense of belief and the pride they take in their work and to get it done out here on Sundays.”
Thanks to the never-say-die attitude that Wentz alluded to and Pederson established upon his arrival in Philly, the Eagles, against all odds, are once again in a position to make the postseason heading into the final game of the season. No stranger to late-season surges, Pederson also credited their win over the Cowboys to a high level of work ethic and resiliency:
“Obviously, yeah, you don’t want it to come down to the month of December. You’d like to play a little better September, October, November.
But I just think the guys — this is the team that when their back is against the wall, they come out swinging and fighting. Whatever it takes. Sometimes it’s not pretty and it doesn’t have to be. Just put some plays together, score more points than our opponents, hold our opponents down, and play great football team. If we don’t hurt ourselves, we give ourselves a chance. That’s what happened tonight.”
With another division game on tap in the regular-season finale, the Eagles will look to remain mistake-free and capture the NFC East crown. Like any other big game, the team will have to keep their wits about them and execute at a high level to succeed. Though, with Doug Pederson leading the charge, I don’t foresee that being an issue for the laser-focused Eagles.
Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
