Keeping score on Eagles

~BROZ of Drafttek and Bored fame axed me a question last night— what is the worst regular season W-L record ever posted by a defending Super Bowl champion in a non-strike season?

I’m not sure what his intent was— maybe to calm me down from overreacting to our current 3-4 record?

To answer his question, I THINK (I’m not sure) it’s when Denver finished last in the AFC West division with a 6-10 record after winning Super Bowl 33. Even Google doesn’t have a clear-cut category for that type of question. Maybe that’s because every SB-winning fan base thinks they’re on the verge of a dynasty? They can’t handle the truth…

I guess 6-10 is not out of the question for the Eagles in 2018, and if injuries keep piling up like the rotator cuff surgical issue for DE Derek Barnett which has just knocked him out for the season, it’s highly possible we could find ourselves struggling to finish 8-8 or worse.

Frankly for me it would seem to mostly come down to our ability to hold it together for our remaining 5 divisional games against the Cowboys, Redskins and Giants. If (and that’s a big “IF”) we could sweep those five games, we will have an excellent chance to repeat as NFC East division champs. That’s an automatic ticket to the post-season, where anyone can get hot and erase all the doubts of a rough early start.

Problem is there may be more collateral damage injury-wise just to get to that point. I don’t know how many more key players we can afford to lose before 6-10 becomes a realistic end game.

Coming back from London at 4-4 before the Bye would be a most appreciated blessing. But first we have to beat the Jacksonville/London Jaguars who are likewise seeking a similar outcome for themselves.

What is the current score on the Eagles compared to the productivity numbers of the rest of the league?

As you can see, we are not horrible—but we are not outstanding in an overall sense, either. Our defensive rushing number looks good, but it is skewed because opponents like to pass against us a lot more than usual, and go away from the run, as we have given up more than our fair share of big chunk plays in the air.

If you’re scoring by the numbers, we are currently a middle-of-the-pack team…slightly below average on offense, slightly above average on defense. In other words, we have played to a “MEH” standard so far, and our 3-4 record reflects that.

Finishing close games with a definitive offensive or defensive burst has eluded us so far in 2018. Last season that kind of finish became expected, almost automatic. It was a magical, intoxicating season in that regard. Maybe it’s asking too much to repeat that kind of magic. Maybe last season was a once-in-a-generation kind of epiphany where everything seems to come together at the right time all the time?

Who knows?

What we do know is we are about to find out just how effective the coaching staff is at motivating a team to climb from the doldrums of “MEH” into the stratosphere of “YEAH YEAH YEAH!”…

Doug Pederson: “It’s a great week to regroup, refocus, and try to get to 4-4 with a break and get some guys back healthy and we’ll see what happens the last eight weeks.”

Yes, we will see…and for me, no regrets. It’s an exciting challenge for me as a life-long fan of the franchise. Like Tina Turner once said, “we never never EVER do anything nice and easy.”

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Brisuksegg Fantasy Football League update:
It’s been the Benny and Dutch show so far this season as both the Bad Jews Bears and the Amish Mafia currently sit at 6-1 atop the Eastern Division.