Andy Reid Under Increased Pressure with New York Giants Victory

Andy Reid and the Philadelphia Eagles couldn’t imagine a worse season finale one month ago, when the playoffs begun. The New York Giants went all the way to Indianapolis, the host city of the 2012 Super Bowl, and beat the New England Patriots to conquer the trophy.

That was the second Lombardi that the Giants have won in the last five years. Tom Coughlin received heavy criticism during the regular season, but yesterday became the oldest coach to ever win a Super Bowl. At 65, he is considered a legitimate Hall of Fame candidate.

During the last five years, the Philadelphia Eagles have won seven out of 10 regular season games against the Giants. They also eliminated them in the 2008 divisional playoff game. Despite that, New York’s franchise has two silver pieces in that span, while the Eagles have none.

Yesterday’s result made Andy Reid’s path rockier than it was. The Eagles won their last championship in 1960, before the Super Bowl era was established and while Reid has no blame for what happened before 1999, there are a lot of people who feel that the Eagles should have won one in the 2000s.

The Eagles could have done it between 2001 and 2004, but they came up short, losing three conference championships and one Super Bowl during that span.. The last few years, they appear to have fallen behind in terms of competition.

Last summer, though, it looked like the front office had decided to do whatever  could be done to increase the team’s chances. They signed high-profile free agents like Nnamdi Asomugha, Jason Babin and Cullen Jenkins, and never denied the rumors that this was an “all-in” season.

However, they failed in a dreadful way—they finished with an 8-8 record and missed playoffs for the first time since 2007. Despite fans calling for his head and pundits blasting his attitude and questioning his choices, Reid managed to keep his job.

Next season has been described as Reid’s last chance to prove he can be a winner. After the Giants’ triumph, even a Super Bowl appearance won’t suffice to call 2012 “a successful season." Philadelphia longs for a championship title and nothing less will quench its thirst.