The Philadelphia Eagles: What Happens Now?

As a New York sports fan, I am taught two things:

No. 1: Curse a bunch.

No. 2: Hate the city of Philadelphia.

Now, I’m a (somewhat) reasonable guy. I have plenty of friends from Philadelphia and its neighboring suburbs; and they all seem to be decent people. But when you add a sports team (or a commercially created religious figure) into the equation, the city of Philadelphia appears to turn volatile.

It is appropriate to say, “He has had five chances in 10 years and has never won the big game.” But if you say that, you also have to ask, “Well has anyone else gotten us closer?”

As a Mets fan, I do hate the Phillies, but I am pretty sure I don’t hate the city of Philadelphia. I’m sure many people from Philly would say the same thing about my squad.

But there is one other thing that Philadelphia and New York City have in common…an absolutely relentless sports media. And one of the most astounding examples of this was the relentless wrath that Tom Coughlin and Eli Manning received last year from the media.

A man and his quarterback, arguably the two easiest targets in football. But don’t get me wrong. Both of these cities had reasons to be angry.

During last year’s regular season, there were all sorts of reasons that Giants fans were having seizures. And the media highlighted every angle of it. From a gameplay perspective, Eli Manning had an incredibly inconsistent regular season. And the salt on the wound were the constant rumors that the Giants’ players had finally grown weary of the coaching style of Tom Coughlin (a legendary disciplinarian).

I still believe to this day that if the Giants had not made the Super Bowl, Coughlin would have lost his job, and Eli, his starting position. Lucky for them, they won the Super Bowl and everyone in the media appeared to have a short-term memory about it.

Same story this year, just a different team. Andy Reid was questioned through the majority of the season for his questionable run calls in a traditional pass-heavy offense. And Donovan McNabb, who has had his haters annually, earned himself a few million more after the overtime debacle nearly cost the Eagles a playoff berth.

I’m certain I was not the only person who thought this year was going to be the last for Reid and McNabb. And then all of a sudden the Eagles became “this year’s Giants.” Hell, they even beat this year’s Giants.

But now, the Eagles once again find themselves at the fork in the road. After being genuinely outplayed by the Arizona Cardinals, there are serious decisions to be made about the future of this franchise.

I’m sure that this week, there will be plenty of articles calling for the heads of Reid and McNabb. And I don’t necessarily want to be an advocate for either side. But I think that it is imperative that Philadelphia realizes what they will be losing.

Reid has brought the Eagles to five NFC championship games and one Super Bowl. McNabb has been there for every single one of them. In one sense, yes, it is appropriate to say, “He has had five chances in 10 years and has never won the big game.”

But if you say that, you also have to ask, “Well has anyone else gotten us closer?” And if we are judging by the last 40 years of professional football, the answer is no.

McNabb has without questions had some bad halves, and some bad games. But he has never had a bad season. A healthy Donovan McNabb makes plays that only about 15 percent of NFL quarterbacks can make.

You need not look any further than their game against the Cardinals. McNabb single handedly brought the Eagles back in the second half. And if it weren’t for an incredible response by the Cardinals, we wouldn’t even be talking about it.

The wrath of the media, especially in a big city can be scornful. And there is no doubt that it influences the decisions of major franchises. But, I will say one thing to sum up this entire situation…

If the Eagles let go of Reid and McNabb; they need to be 100 percent certain that their new coach and new QB, are not only capable, but better than Reid and McNabb. Because if they aren’t, I can assure you that you haven’t seen anything out of a big city and its media.