How I became an Eagles fan/A little recent history

In this blog I'm going to take a step back from fantasy football and talk a little bit about me and my passion for the Philadelphia Eagles. And of course HOW I became an Eagles fan. I'm going to talk about the history of my team and shed some light on why I bleed green. With that said... Lets get at it!

So I'm entering the 30th year being an Eagles fan and boy have there been ups and downs. I've seen many 3-13 seasons. I've seen seasons where my Eagles defeated all of the odds and fought until there was nothing left just to come up short in the biggest game of all in two Superbowls (XV, and XXXIX). When I became an Eagles fan the Chicago Bears were the "Big Thing" in professional sports. My friends and I imitated Walter Payton, Jim McMahon, and William "The refrigerator" Perry while playing football in the field across the street from our house. The Bears won the Superbowl in 1985 (XX). Everyone who was alive in 1985 loved the Bears. They were on every commercial, cereal box, and lunch box you could find. Even here in Mobile Alabama. The Bears were everywhere.

One Sunday afternoon in 1986 one of my best childhood friends Bobby and I were lying on the living room floor sorting our football/baseball cards we had just gotten from the local grocery store minutes before. We had the television on over our heads. The Philadelphia Eagles were playing the Chicago Bears. I remember thinking "That Randall Cunningham guy is freaking amazing!" So while we're watching the game and seeing what cards we had in our new packs, Bobby looks at me and says "Man, Alabama doesn't have a professional team in any sport. Let's pick a team from anywhere and stick with them for the rest of our lives." I remember him saying that like it just happened five minutes ago. I looked at the television and saw Reggie White dancing after a sack. That's when I looked at Bobby and said "from this day forth I'm an Eagles fan." Bobby then said he'd pick a baseball team since I went with football. He chose the Chicago Cubs. After all these years I'm starting to think that October Sunday in 1986 cursed these teams because we're both still waiting on championships 30 years later. I remember my first purchase as an Eagles fan was visiting my uncle Charles in Atlanta. I found a Randall Cunningham poster in the mall. After I got back to Mobile I took all of my Cunningham cards, placed them in plastic cover and tacked them to my poster on my bedroom wall. I had many great childhood possessions but that was undoubtedly my favorite.

I was officially a 9 year old Eagles fan living in Alabama and I'm willing to bet if I could go back in time and ask my 9 year old self where Philadelphia even was I wouldn't be able to answer me. But I was excited. I had a team. The question I get asked most from people today is "Why not the Saints? You live in Saints country." And they would be right. I do. But please remember... This was the 1980's. No internet. Media was nowhere near where it is today. I hardly ever saw Saints merchandise anywhere. At least I don't remember seeing any. I was in a world with no local team. So I waited for my Eagles to play on Prime Time television. Which back then was really just Monday Night Football. So I rarely was able to watch. But any glimpse I could get I took advantage of. Randall Cunningham was my guy along with Reggie White, Jerome Brown, Seth Joyner, Eric Allen, Mike Quick, Keith Byers, Andre Waters. I could go on for another hour but I'll stop there. At least for now. These guys made me the Eagles fan I am today.

As time went on and I got older, the NFL was growing which meant more prime time games and more television exposure. AND VIDEO GAMES! I remember the days before Madden. I remember playing Techno Bowl with my Eagles. But it seemed the older I got the more access I had to my Eagles. The 90's were hard. Not only did we not have many winning seasons but our arch rivals the Dallas Cowboys were winning Superbowls and seemed to be on top of the world. I have to bring this up though because I hate Dallas so much... Go back and look at their loses from those superbowl years. Yes SIR! We beat'm! HA! But they still have plenty of Lombardi trophies in the trophy case. And of course most of those cowboys are in jail or have been over time... Ok, back to my Eagles. My hatred for them runs deep. Can ya tell? The 90's weren't all bad though. In 1998 after a terrible year (3-13), Ray Rhodes was fired and in came Andy Reid. In the 1999 NFL draft the Eagles selected quarterback Donovan McNabb with the 2nd overall pick. I remember watching that draft from my couch. Fans were booing because they wanted the Heisman trophy winner Running back Ricky Williams from Texas. I was totally on board with McNabb though. I liked Williams but we really needed a franchise quarterback. This is also when I started getting involved with message boards and started really getting to know Eagles fans that live in Philadelphia. I've met some really amazing people. And a few crazies too. After coming in halfway through the season in 1999, McNabb finished it on a good note. He would lead the Eagles into the new century.

The early 2000's were a good time to be an Eagles fan. We were relevant. Every year. 2004 would be the year to remember. We dominated on both side of the ball that season. Brian Westbrook, Terrell Owens, Brian Dawkins, Jeremiah Trotter, and Jevon Kearse. Just a few of the guys that made that season special. Of course we got to the superbowl. Then the best quarterback that has ever played the game did what he always does. Win. I'm proud of my team for that season. I know who beat us. Tom Brady was in his prime. But Tom Brady is another blog... Those early 2000's were great. In 2009 things started to take a turn for the worse. McNabb was traded to the Washington Redskins on Easter Sunday for a 2nd round pick in the NFL draft. The team would look to Kevin Kolb for the future but in the first half of the season opener against the Green Bay Packers Kolb was knocked out of the game due to a concussion. Michael Vick would come in, take the position, and never give it back. Michael Vick lead them to a 10-6 record that season but changes were coming. The next two years we were hyped to the extreme. The words "Dream Team" were even used after our free agency acquisitions. The Eagles would finish 8-8, then 4-12. After 14 years as Philadelphia's head coach Andy Reid was fired. I was happy with the firing. I thought it was time for a change. Reid would not be unemployed long. He would soon be the new head coach in Kansas City. In 2013 Chip Kelly was hired from the University of Oregon. He would bring his no huddle fast paced offense with him from college and try to change the way the NFL was played. He was looked at like some sort of mastermind. I never really knew where I stood with him as far as liking him or not. I wanted him to succeed. I just never really cared for his arrogant personality. He's never won a title at any level. Why was he so arrogant? Well his arrogance wouldn't be around long. He only lasted 3 seasons. But not before getting rid of all of our star players Andy had brought in. Desean Jackson, Lesean McCoy, and Jeremy Maclin (FA) just to name a few. He also let a few O'line guys walk as well. Kelly wasn't the sharpest knife in the drawer after all. He's moved on and is now the new head coach for the San Francisco 49'rs. Sorry 9'er fans. You're in for a long rough ride. Maybe he learned his lesson in Philly and can adjust. I doubt it. He's just too stuck on himself.

It's 2016 and in comes Doug Pederson. Pederson was Andy Reid's offensive coordinator in Kansas City. He was also with Reid when he was in Philly. Pederson is now the new head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles. He's a Reid clone so I have a few worries but I'm staying optimistic. We moved up in this years draft to take quarterback Carson Wentz.

I'm excited about the future of this team. I know like always with a rookie quarterback there are growing pains. Wentz has the tools to be a great one. He has the build of Ben Roethlisberger and slings the ball like Bret Favre. I think this guy is special. But then again I biased. What can I say, I bleed green. This has been my funnest blog thus far. This also would be ten times longer If I had more time and I knew you'd take the time to read it all. I hope you had as much fun reading it as I did writing it. Please "Like", "share", and add us on twitter @therealfaction. We would love to hear from you! God bless you all and have a great taco Tuesday!

-Scott Wilson