Philadelphia Eagles May Be Next Sports Dynasty in the Making

Any doubts people had about the Philadelphia Eagles franchise were answered on Sunday night.

A team that had been the butt of numerous sports jokes previously for never having won a Super Bowl has now proved itself by its champion status. The Eagles shockingly took down perhaps the greatest sports dynasty of the 21st century — the New England Patriots — in a 41-33 shootout. It was a perfect way to cap off a tremendous season for Philadelphia.

The Eagles were favored to win the NFC (National Football Conference) for much of the season because of their sophomore superstar quarterback, Carson Wentz. In the final month of the season, however, Wentz tore his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), causing him to miss the rest of the season.

Brought in as a replacement was Nick Foles, a 29-year-old player. With that, the team’s championship hopes plummeted. Were they really going to rely on a sixth-year player who had been benched more times than you can count? But what other choice did they have?

Ultimately, it worked out; Foles’ best games of the season all came in the playoffs. He completed 72.6 percent of his passes for 971 yards, six touchdowns and one interception in three playoff games. He even had a touchdown catch in the Super Bowl, in addition to his 373 passing yards and three touchdowns in the air.

[lz_third_party align=center width=630 includes=https://twitter.com/NFLUK/status/960318928730800128]

It certainly helped that the Eagles went up against the worst pass defense in the AFC (American Football Conference). The Patriots allowed the most passing yards (256.3) of any AFC team during the regular season, and they mysteriously benched Super Bowl XLIX hero and defensive back Malcolm Butler — possibly for a discipline-related issue. This weakened the Patriots’ secondary and allowed Foles to look even more like an elite quarterback.

[lz_ndn video=33504599]

Granted, the Eagles’ pass defense was atrocious, allowing Tom Brady to throw for over 500 yards in the big game; it was the Eagles’ men in the trenches who got the job done.

The team’s defensive line was sharp all year, which is why they’d allowed fewer rushing yards than any other team during the regular season. Getting that good rush off the snap also allowed the team to put pressure on Brady and force a fumble on what could have been a game-winning drive for the Patriots in a one-score game with over two minutes remaining.

[lz_third_party align=center width=630 includes=https://twitter.com/NFL/status/960348407855329281]

The win is major for the city of Philadelphia. Traditionally, it hasn’t been the most successful major sports city in the country, despite having four pro teams. In the past 30 years, it’s enjoyed just two major sports championships: this one from the Eagles and the 2008 Phillies World Series win.

So this could be the start of something special for the Eagles. Granted, the odds of Foles becoming the Eagles’ starting quarterback next season are slim; they’ve got Wentz coming off an injury, and he is still under contract. They could parlay Foles’ Super Bowl success and receive a big payout if they trade him, since they still have an excellent quarterback in Wentz. After all, Wentz finished third in NFL MVP voting despite missing the final three regular-season games.

The Eagles appear to have the opportunity to do something special over the next decade.

A team that beat Patriots by more than a touchdown in the Super Bowl now has to be on sports fans’ watchlists. Although this should have been the start of a Wentz run as a superstar quarterback leading a potential dynasty, his backup gave the franchise a head start. The Eagles were overdue for some success, too, as they had back-to-back losing seasons prior to this one and had not won a playoff game since 2008.

With Tom Brady aging and Rob Gronkowski already mulling retirement, the Patriots dynasty could be on its way out; the team has no obvious successors to its star quarterback and tight end. If this is any indication, the Eagles got hot at the perfect time and appear to have the opportunity to do something special over the next decade.

Related: These Were the Best and Worst Super Bowl LII Ads

The NFL always needs a great team for its fans to hate, whether that’s the Dallas Cowboys, who won three Super Bowls in the 1990s, or the Patriots, who have won five in the 21st century. Perhaps the Eagles could be fortunate enough to enjoy that level of success and be the enemy of sports fans in the rest of the country.

Tom Joyce is a freelance writer from the South Shore of Massachusetts. He covers sports, pop culture, and politics and has contributed to The Federalist, Newsday, ESPN, and other outlets.