Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images
No matter where you go, it is easy to spot a Philadelphia Eagles fan.
They stand with their chest puffed out proud and they can withstand any critical comments made about their beloved Eagles or the city of Philadelphia.
Eagles fans are a special breed. They have the rare ability to sniff out Cowboys, Giants, or Redskins fans and lambaste them with insults that have been known to make grown men either blush or cry.
But once they huddle up with each other, they admit the Eagles really are a sad sight for sore eyes and then these four words are usually uttered: "Andy Reid's gotta go."
Truth be told, not every fan has these feelings about Andy Reid, but it is safe to say the majority of the fans feel this way.
But why?
Why, in a city that yearns for winning, do they shun a coach who has the most wins in franchise history?
How can fans who hate Dallas more than out-of-town imitation cheesesteaks be infuriated by a man who is 13-8 against their archrival?
And doesn't he deserve a ton of credit for turning around a rather dull franchise?
Yes, I am taking a knock at the Eagles franchise for not being all that exciting and for being rather pedestrian.
The Eagles were established in 1933 and success was not their forte.
Actually, winning and the Eagles were rarely synonymous.
The Eagles experienced only 25 winnings seasons between their inception in 1933 and the year Reid arrived, 1999.
That means Philadelphia Eagles fans experienced a winning season only 38 percent of the time.
To take it a step further, the Eagles only made 14 playoff appearances before Reid's arrival. That calculates to the fans watching their team in the playoffs only 21 percent of the time.
And if you really want to get down in the dumps about the Eagles, then all you have to do is look at the nine playoff games they won in the 65-year gap.
Reid obliterates all of those numbers and makes you wonder why fans could hate him.
In his 10 full seasons here, Reid has racked up seven winning seasons. The 70 percent clip nearly doubles the 38 percent mark established before him.
Reid has also made the playoffs in seven of his 10 seasons. This means Eagles fans were treated to playoff football 70 percent of the time. This is astounding considering what the fans used to witness every year.
Even more remarkable is the number of playoff wins under Reid. In 65 years, the Philadelphia Eagles won an astonishing nine playoff games, while Reid already has 10 playoff wins in 10 years.
It is extraordinary to think about the kind of success Eagles fans have experienced under Reid.
And he is not winning because he inherited a great team.
In the two years before Reid took over at the helm, the Eagles were 6-9-1 and then 3-13.
In his first season, he watched his team go 5-11, with Doug Pederson making a majority of the starts.
Things looked bad.
He lost to Dallas twice that year and his rookie quarterback, Donovan McNabb, was not a fan favorite.
And then he started to win.
Not only did he make the Eagles winners; he made them Super Bowl contenders.
Yet none of that matters.
Why? How can a city of losers hate a winner? It makes no sense.
Ah, but there are two records missing. There are two incriminating facts that have been left out.
The first is that Reid is a pathetic 1-4 in NFC Championship games. You want percentages? I got your percentages right here. He's won 20 percent of the time in Conference title games.
Wanna make it sound worse?
He’s lost 80 percent of the time his team was in the NFC Championship.
He would get a pass if the Eagles were favored in only one of the five, but as fate would have it, the Eagles were a favorite four times.
We're going to send you the most entertaining Philadelphia Eagles articles, videos, and podcasts from around the web.
2 Comments
Loading more comments...
This comment and all replies have been deleted This comment has been deleted Undo delete