On Sunday Night, the Philadelphia Eagles held the Lombardi Trophy for the first time in franchise history. Despite key players like Carson Wentz, Jason Peters and Jordan Hicks suffering season-ending injuries, they made things happen. And the Eagles taught the Cowboys a lesson they must learn from.
Those players will be back in 2018, and the Eagles will be a football team the NFC East should fear in the coming years. Unfortunately, it won't be just about a talented roster.
Doug Pederson proved to be a hell of a coach this year, and his aggressive coaching got the city of Philadelphia its first ring.
“You learn if you play passive, if you play conservative, if you call plays conservatively, you are going to be 8-8, 9-7 every year.” Doug Pederson to Sport Illustrated's Peter King.
As Cowboys fans, we know how painfully true these words are.
And yet, the Dallas Cowboys will go into the 2018 NFL season with Jason Garrett, Scott Linehan and Rod Marinelli in charge. Despite comments by Jerry Jones, Jason Garrett and his coaching staff will be on the hot seat next season. It'll be a determining year for this franchise. Heck, I wouldn't even be surprised to see a mid-season firing if Dallas begins its season losing.
Possibly, at some point in the season, the Cowboys will look back and realize they should've made a change at the head coach position.
One of the main reasons for this is Doug Pederson — the guy who walked into the U.S. Bank Stadium to defeat Bill Belichick and Tom Brady with Nick Foles, a back-up quarterback who became the Super Bowl LII MVP.
Pederson has everything he needs to dominate the NFC East for a long time. The way they built a quality football team, the way they kept focused, and the way they made it possible for Nick Foles to lead an offense in the postseason, is enough proof.
If Garrett doesn't prove he can beat Doug Pederson's Eagles this year, it will only give the Cowboys more reasons to fire him and look for someone new to coach the team in the future.
For Dallas, it always feels like everyone has to be 100% healthy in order to be capable of competing. After watching what Philadelphia was able to pull off, though, the Sean Lee and Tyron Smith excuses can't be acceptable.
Pederson couldn't have said it any better.
Conservative coaching will get you to an 8-8, 9-7 record every time. Garrett has had a couple of good runs for the Cowboys, but that simply isn't enough.
For now, we know who'll be the head coach for America's Team to open the 2018 season. Let's hope he and his process proves us all wrong. Even though it doesn't feel like it will.
