Philadelphia Eagles Fans: The Grass Isn't Always Greener

How quickly we forget.

The drumbeat to fire Andy Reid is getting louder. I'm getting petitions from angry Eagles fans to can "Big Red." Friends are telling me it's McNabb's fault.

Why do we always do this?

Is our thirst for a championship so great that at the first sign of trouble we're ready to abandon ship?

Let's all take a deep breath and think about this rationally for a second. I know, I know, that's not our strong suit, but humor me for a minute.

Andy Reid is the winningest coach in the history of the Eagles*, both in wins (88) and winning percentage (.611). He received Coach of the Year honors in 2000 and 2002. His Eagles have played 14 playoff games and won eight of them. Oh yeah, he led the Birds to the Super Bowl—and lost by three points.

Our beloved Dick Vermeil, who also lost a Super Bowl, won 54 games for a .535 winning percentage and got Coach of the Year honors in 1978 and 1979. Vermeil coached seven playoff games and lost more than he won (3-4).

The last Eagles coach to win a championship was Buck Shaw (1960). Shaw went 19-16-1 (.543), and, in his only postseason appearance, gave Vince Lombardi the only blemish on his championship record.

Greasy Neal won back-to-back titles in 1948-49, going 3-1 in the postseason, and amassing a 63-43-5 (.594) in the regular season.

And that's it. Those are the only coaches in Eagles history to have success in the postseason.

Buddy Ryan went 0-3. Ray Rhodes: 1-2. Rich Kotite: 1-1.

And nobody else has gotten them there.

Do you remember Marion Campbell?

Look at the Oakland Raiders. The coaching carousel has turned a once-proud franchise into a laughing stock.

Now turn your attention to the other side of the Keystone State, to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Since 1969, they've had three coaches: Chuck Noll, Bill Cowher, and Mike Tomlin. They've won five Super Bowls and have hosted more conference championship games than any other NFL franchise.

Why?

Great players, for sure. But stability cannot be underestimated.

Now, granted, Reid has not won a Super Bowl.  His play-calling can be suspect, and at times can make you throw things at the television. 

But the man wins football games. 

Buddy Ryan ran Cris Carter out of Philadelphia with the now-infamous line, "All he does is catch touchdowns." As fans, consider all the great players we've either run out of town or let get away: Charles Barkley, Reggie White, Allen Iverson, Scott Rolen, and Eric Lindros, to name a few.

J.D. Drew didn't even want to play in Philadelphia, forced his way back into the draft, and now patrols the outfield up at Fenway.

Yes, Philly fans are passionate. Yes, we want to win. But, geez, let's chill the [bleep] out for once.

The best thing that could happen to Andy Reid is a World Series parade for the Phillies.  That—short of a Super Bowl—might be the only thing to get the fans off his back.

And you can bet the respite would short lived.

*Statistics from Wikipedia—list of Philadelphia Eagles head coaches