The Eagles Rule the NFC East -- Again

Okay, I've avoided posting about the Eagles for sometime now, mostly due to the simple fact that there's no reason to jinx a good thing. Then again, I posted about them during the first few weeks, and they responded by breaking out to a 7-0 start.

The team has now clinched the NFC East by Week 11, the earliest they've ever clinched the division, and tying the league record set by the 1985 Bears and the 1997 49ers. Unfortunately, Andy Reid's Eagles will not be reprising the Super Bowl Shuffle, but the world is far from perfect.

But Reid is pretty damn close to as great a regular season football coach can get in the NFL, and it's about time that the fans in Philadelphia acknowledge how great a job Reid does every year. The Eagles organization deserves the plaudits it receives for brilliant managment of the salary cap and their ability to draft players that fit their system, but Reid is the architect of the system, and also the head coach at the ground level. When things go wrong -- as they did at the beginning of last season, when the team faced a slew of injuries and a horrific start by the franchise QB -- Reid still rights the ship, always taking the blame for his players. It's a fact of life in the NFL today that free agency and the salary cap means teams don't stay together -- but it also says something about the culture Reid has put in place that veterans like Hugh Douglas, Jeremiah Trotter and Dorsey Levens eagerly jump at the chance to return. Yes, they needed the paycheck, but all of them want to be here more than anywhere else, particularly Douglas and Trotter, both of whom left on less than ideal terms with the coach.

Reid has now won 66 games and lost 34 in the regular season, which includes a 61-23 mark after his first season. He's also won four division titles in a row, for a franchise that had won three division titles since 1950 before his arrival. He's won five playoff games, which is more than any other Eagles coach. And if you're an Eagles fan, like me, it's almost odd to watch games and feel a sense of security about winning games aginst inferior opponents like the Giants today. Reid's teams win the games they're supposed to win, which is more important than folks realize in today's NFL.

Ah, but we all know about the big hole on the resume. You know, an appearance and victory in the Big Game. Yes, I'm one of those who will condemn Reid mercilessly if the Eeagles choke in the playoffs-- but I'd still rather have him at the helm of this franchise more than anyone not named Belicheck. And for him, all Eagles fans should say a big thank you.