Just two weeks ago the Philadelphia Eagles were left for dead. Andy Reid, fired. Donovan McNabb, traded for a bag of footballs. And the inevitable handing of the torch to Kevin Kolb was the only logical choice. This team could never win with McNabb as quarterback and had no chance of making a deep playoff run.
Boy, how quickly things can change in the NFL…
The Eagles are now heading into the second round of the playoffs to face the hated New York Giants in New Jersey (pretty odd if you think about it); a team the Eagles beat on the road less than two months ago. This rematch was set up by the Eagles winning their first round playoff game in Minnesota against the Vikings. Surprisingly, the Eagles have never lost a playoff opener under Reid, going on 7-0 in those games.
So how can a team that has had such an up-and-down season and tied the Cincinnati Bengals (yes, there are ties in football), bring so much confidence to a city and fan base? It is a direct result of the Philadelphia Phillies winning the World Series!
—a World Series win that not only ended one of the worst championship droughts for a major metropolitan area, but also changed the mentality of the Philadelphia Sports Fan. Instead of trying to figure out how the team will find a way to lose and break their hearts, fans are now looking at ways the team can win and bring back the joy they felt during the Phillies’ miracle run last year.
In previous years, most Eagles fans would have written this team off even after they made the playoffs, pointing to such obvious facts like:
McNabb has never won “The Big Game,” or that they were the lowest seed in the playoffs, or that they could never win 3 Road Games in a Row…
Instead, this year, Philadelphia fans and the media are pointing out similarities between the Eagles and last year’s Giants–the team that made a miracle run through the NFC playoffs and upset the mighty New England Patriots in the Super Bowl.
Instead of “waiting for next year,” people believe that their team has a chance to win and enjoy the ride in the playoffs, rather than wearing blinders during the good times and waiting for the inevitable collapse…
The Phillies did this city a great service; not only by bringing us a championship, but also by bringing back our confidence in our sports teams. I believe this confidence will be transferred through osmosis to the professional teams and take the proverbial monkey off their backs.
Who knows? Broad Street may be able to host another parade sooner than expected…
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The best thing about the Phillies pwning last season was when all the guys would sing “Auld Lang Syne.”
I just realized how appropriate that was, even though I didn’t think of it at the time.
Essentially, we were singing the following about the Phillies’ victory:
Should old aquaintence be forgot and never brought to mind? Should old aquaintence be forgot in days of long long ago?
Seems appropriate to commemorate the first major win for Philadelphia in a long long time…
Also, as a side note…if the Eagles manage to defy the odds and win the Super Bowl, I’ll probably have to opt out of the parade.
The Phillies parade was crazy and fun, but I don’t give enough of a shit about the Eagles to risk my overall well-being.
^_^
SAILOR TWIFT BLOG 
I can’t stand football. I never liked the sport. But for some reason I watched the entire game on Sunday (as well as the week before) and actually enjoyed it. Why? Not becuase there was absolutely nothing on TV, but because I’m a front runner. Jimmy Rollins was right. And I’m not ashamed of that. But one thing I will never do is yell that stupid chant for the Birds. Look – everyone knows how to spell “Eagles” – do you really need to shout it to the whole city and waste 8 seconds of our precious lives?
P.S. I might become a Rays fan next year because I love Pat the Bat. ❤
I don’t know, I’m not getting my hopes up just yet. It would be phenomenal if the Eagles pulled off a Super Bowl Championship. I’m still nervous about how the overall season went. I put too much faith in them and then they choke. At the same time I’m not saying they couldn’t. I think I’ll just play it by ear beforel I turn into a super fan.
PS: If you become a Rays fan, I’m moving out.
PPS: No, not really. I don’t care that much.