Posted on 01/24/2005 6:26:36 AM PST by Dr. Scarpetta
The Eagles' faithful suffered through three consecutive losses in the conference championship game, and when their football team made it to the Super Bowl on Sunday for the first time in more than 20 years, they erupted in joy.
"I've been to all the championship games, and this, I can't explain," said Easton resident Felipe Garcia as he sniffed back tears. "It's priceless. We deserve it."
Garcia was one of about 200 Lehigh Valley residents who rode one of four Trans Bridge Lines buses to the landmark game at Lincoln Financial Field.
"This was history today," said Jack Trimble of Bethlehem Township. "It was long overdue."
Fans counted down the seconds as the game clock expired to a thunderous cheer. Strangers high-fived outside the stadium as cars blared their horns.
Bethlehem Township resident Pat Wagner was there. He hasn't missed a game in the past four years.
"Finally, we won something," Wagner said. "It was awesome. There isn't much else to say."
Snowfall from the previous day and a half didn't affect the bus tour. The group traveled in style. One busload consumed six pizzas and an unspecified number of cases of beer while watching a DVD of Super Bowl highlights.
Wagner is following the Eagles to Jacksonville, but he won't be traveling quite as luxuriously. He will be one of 40 people crammed into two recreational vehicles.
"It only sleeps about five, so I'll be sleeping on the kitchen counter," Wagner said. "Go Birds!"
Wagner's sister, Julie, was "sick as a dog" but braved the frigid temperatures and made the trip.
"I'm proud of them," Julie Wagner said of the Eagles. "Finally, they broke the curse, or whatever it was."
Fans wore layers of clothing to brace themselves from the fierce winds and low temperature.
"It was very cold, but the energy kept us warm," said Scott Wolbach of Walnutport. His 9-year-old son stood on his seat for the entire game and postgame celebration.
"There was all kinds of fireworks and confetti flying around," Scott Wolbach said.
What a change from the past two years.
"I didn't eat solid food for a week the first year," said Denny Snyder of Macungie, who was referring to his diet after the Eagles lost the NFC Championship Game to Tampa Bay in 2003.
Garcia said he was offered $1,000 for his pair of tickets, but he turned down the offer and has no regrets. The longtime fan in the green and white wig said he's going to frame one of the ticket stubs and hang it on the wall in his garage.
"I cried at halftime," Garcia said. "I cried at the end of the game. I had a great feeling inside me that they were going to win this game."
Since week 8 in 2003 (the week after Rush's critcism), McNabb is 25-3 as a starter, has a 118.5 QB Passer rating, a 63% completion percentage, 7051 passing yards, 51 TD's and just 16 INT's, 555 rushing yards and 6 rushing TD's.
The only QB's with comparable records over the same period recently are Brady and Manning.
As to being mediocre and overrated, how have they made the playoffs 5 years in a row, gone 7-4 in the playoffs, and accumulated the best five year winning record @ 59-21 since the Cowboys in 1992-1996 (59-21) and the 49ers in 1994-1998 (61-19)? Do you realize that the only coaches with winning playoff records and at least 10 games played in the salary cap era are Belichick (9-1), Reid (7-4), and Shanahan (7-4)?
What will it take for you to acknoledge greatness?
That is a Patriot shill site.
Hmmm ... over one whole year? That isn't a very large sample. Maybe if he took back the method to 1992 with the start of the second wild card game and free agency and the salary cap.
How then, did the Carolina Panthers outplay them in the 2003 Super Bowl? Carolina gave you guys the win by not kicking extra points and failing on ill-advised duece conversions?
How then, did the Carolina Panthers outplay them in the 2003 Super Bowl?They didn't.
They got lucky late with a couple hail-mary's.
Watch that whole game from start to finish, and you'll see the Pats DOMINATED Carolina for much of the game.
A Superbowl ring would help.
From that site: "No team in NFL history has more total wins (33) or more victories against winning teams (19) than the 2003-04 Patriots over a two-year period."
How soon we forget the 1997-1998 Broncos - 33 total wins also. And how soon we forget the abysmal 2002 Patriots/Brady/Belichick season.
I wonder how all those quality New England wins will stack up against the Eagles top league-wide scoring defense?
And to think it all started with the infamous tuck rule play.
I grew up a Philly fan, my wife a Cleveland fan ... what a union!
Is it the Eagles fault that there were only two good teams in the entire NFC this year (Philly and Atlanta)?
No, no, he's always said he liked that Willie Bruschi linebacker fellow and his Touchdown catch in the World Series last year ...
;-)
I wonder how all those quality New England wins will stack up against the Eagles top league-wide scoring defense?Pfffft! That's a skewed statistic given that the Eagles played inferior competition. Six games against the Cowgirls, Deadskins, and Gints hardly makes them a defensive juggernaut!
How many teams with winning records did the Eagles beat this year? Two? Three?
Blacks are something like 70% of the players in the NFL. Therefore, 25% representation (actually much lower - few back-up QB's are black) is rather abnormal if we assumed that the same percentage will be found everywhere.
That's not to say there is necessarily something wrong with the percentage, only that it does seem clear that only the best of them get to play that position. Just like only the very best white guys get to play wideout (Brandon Stokely, Drew Bennett).
I've noticed, and sometimes wonder why, that white guys only seem to play a handful of positions nowadays - O-Line, Quaterback, Fullback, Kicker, Punter, and Tight End. There are next to no white Wide Receivers, Running Backs, Defensive Backs, D-Line, or Linebackers. There is probably a very interesting study waiting to be done here.
Like that Tom Brady to David Givens pass against the Steelers last weekend?
All luck right?
Or maybe its because the Pats weren't prepared to contest the Panthers passing game fully because they had come to shutdown the Davis/Foster running game?
Somehow, I doubt it.
Green Bay and Baltimore. That's IT!
ROTFLMAO, wow the Eagles sure are impressive. I'll bet McNab even completes a few passes against the practice squad.
New England got to plays such juggernauts this year as the Dolphins (twice), the Bills (twice), the 49ers (once), the Seattle Chickenhawks (once), the Cardinals (once), the Bengals (once), the Browns (once). Is that schedule really so much better?
How many teams with winning records did the Eagles beat this year? Two? Three?
Minnesota @ 9-9 (twice), Baltimore @ 9-7 (once, Westbrook injured), Green Bay @ 10-6 (once), Atlanta @ 12-6 (once), Pittsburgh @ 16-2 (once - loss, Westbrook injured), St. Louis @ 9-9 (once - loss by 2nd & 3rd stringers).
Again, is it our fault that other NFC teams sucked this year?
If the Eagles really aren't that great, how did their starters only give up more than 21 points two times (Cleveland and Pittsburgh, when our running back was injured)? Surely some other teams should have been able to score considering the time advantage we frequently gave them in time of possession (see the Carolina, Baltimore, and Minnesota games, for example).
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