Eagles Christmas Wishlist for 2021
2020 has been a wild season for the Philadelphia Eagles.
They’ve gone through massive injuries, tons of controversy, and eventually a quarterback change.
It’s been the worst season in the Doug Pederson era, mounting the question of how much will change in the offseason. Although they are still alive to win the division, it’s a serious question as to whether or not a playoff spot will benefit this team in the long-term.
Should they hope to win now with a depleted roster, or should they sit out the playoffs this year and get a higher draft pick? Whatever they do, it’s not a question that change needs to be made, and a little luck has to fall their way going into next year.
In the spirit of the holiday season, here are the three things that are on my Eagles Christmas wishlist this year going into 2021.
A Healthy Offensive Line
This is one of the most obvious things I wish for this Christmas. The Eagles offensive line was destroyed this year with injuries to starters and depth pieces all season long. Brandon Brooks missed the whole year. Andre Dillard missed the whole year. Lane Johnson came into the season injured and will only end up playing half of the season. Jason Peters was brought back but will miss half of the season. Isaac Seumalo missed significant time.
This is the most we’ve seen a whole unit on the Eagles be decimated in a long time, and we saw just last year our whole receiving corps be injured.
The injuries to the offensive line played a part in Carson Wentz being the most sacked, most hit quarterback in all of football. Sure, Jalen Hurts being inserted can mask that up a little, but it still isn’t going to hold up in the long term. The offensive line had a very down year in 2020, and we can all wish for that group to get healthy this Christmas season.
A Real Offensive Coordinator
Photo: Jim McIsaac/Getty Images
Sticking with the offensive side of the ball here because the offense hasn’t been great this season. Sure, you can say the offense was so bad because Carson Wentz played like one of the worst quarterbacks in the league this year. Not going to deny any of that. But that doesn’t fault the man that was calling the plays in those games and not calling a good game plan, and that man is Doug Pederson. Instead of hiring a real OC last offseason, the Eagles decided to bring in many offensive minds and work them around Pederson, who would serve as the play-caller in 2020. It hasn’t been good. When Wentz was starting, Pederson never called a game that put his players in the best position to produce.
The lack of rolling Wentz out of the pocket, Miles Sanders’ under-utilization, and not scheming receivers open was on full display. Even when they switched to Hurts, the passing game still shows a work in progress. It’s also been noted that the lack of adjustments in the second halves of games is still an issue. In both of Hurts’ starts, the offense has put up seven and six points in each second half.
I don’t think Pederson will be fired or not the Eagles head coach in 2021, but a real OC needs to be brought in to figure out how to put these players in the best position to produce. We should all have this on our wishlist this holiday season.
No More Quarterback Controversies
This is probably the easiest one myself or any Eagles fan could wish for this Christmas. In the last few years, us fans have dealt with an unnecessary amount of quarterback controversy talk with the Eagles. For what felt like forever, we had the Foles vs. Wentz debate, which really wasn’t a debate but some people, specifically the media, wanted to make it close. After going with Wentz, all we heard after every loss was that they should’ve stuck with Foles, and he was better for this team.
That finally got put to bed when Wentz took over last December and carried this team to the playoffs. We finally got away from the controversies, right? Wrong. The talk spurred back up after Hurts was selected in the second round in 2020. Even before the season started, the talk was heavy around the football world when Hurts would take over. After poor play from Wentz and a spark of hope from Hurts, the controversy is as alive and toxic as it’s ever been.
I get it; doing this is good for media and ratings and drawing a crowd. But it’s not fun for the fans. We just got out of this limbo of not having security at the quarterback position and not knowing what the future is. All I wish for this Christmas is that the Eagles end the quarterback controversies for good. It’s not fun for the fans, and it’s not fair to the players either. Pick one, let them have the best opportunity to succeed, and invest in resources to build around them.
That’s all I ask for this Christmas. Not too much, right?
Merry Christmas, everyone, and Go Birds!
Featured Image: Jim McIsaac/Getty Images
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Categorized:Eagles