By KO Kelly
The kick-off to the 2018 season is less than 24 hrs. away. The 7-month drought of meaningful football is finally over! While there were some bright spots this preseason - DeAndre Carter (read his story and just try not to root for him), Shelton Gibson, Jordan Mailata, etc. - in general it was certainly one to forget.
Just imagine for a second how unbearable we Eagles fans would be right now if we were not still basking in Super Bowl glory. I shudder at the thought of that level of discontent - over meaningless games! Luckily, tonight we will watch a Super Bowl banner being unfurled at the Linc and any lingering grumblings from the past 4 weeks will be completely jettisoned from our memories.
Speaking of memories, do you remember how you felt at the beginning of last season and probably most seasons before it?
If you are like me, then you knew last year - like all other years before it - was finally going to be our year. Any green-blooded fan worth their weight in cheese steaks knows it is their civic duty to believe this year things will be different. This time of year is when the city’s hopes and dreams for the upcoming season would rise like the Phoenix out of the ashes of five decades of disappointment. Even Septa would start sounding like Confucius with their inspirational “Every Fall, We Rise” banners emblazoned on their trains and buses.
But last year was different - it actually was our year! Did it play out like any of us dreamers expected? No - it played out better. For the city of Rocky to live through their own Rocky moment - there could be no better story.
With that said, I wasn’t going to let that perfect storyline stop me from attempting to write a better story arc for this season! That is until I realized it would ultimately just end up being me predicting a 19-0 season, which is fun to dream about but tedious to read.
[Although, to be completely honest, I really do think they have a shot at running the tables and pulling off an even more improbable Super Bowl run than last year. They will be doubted throughout the season due to injuries, personnel changes, and other weak excuses they steam-rolled over last year. This will fuel their fire to repeat and make them eager to shutdown doubters at every turn of the road. So just remember where you heard this wholly-unsupported and completely outlandish prediction first!]
So instead, as our fearless leader Doug would assert, let’s take it one game at a time.
The first game in our campaign to defend our title is against a familiar foe: the Atlanta Falcons.
After falling short in January, the Falcons will try to make an early statement - both to the Eagles and the NFC in general. However, the energy in the Linc after they drop the Super Bowl banner will ignite the defense as they begin their night-long shellacking of Ryan, Jones, and any other Falcon who has their eyes set on the endzone.
Foles will continue to knock off some rust in the first quarter but with support from our stable of running backs, any early misfires will be neutralized. And remember, no booing - Foles is the reigning Super Bowl MVP after all.
Throughout the rest of the game, Foles will rely heavily on Ertz and Goedert, hitting both of them for jaw-dropping TDs. We will see some good runs from Clement and Ajayi but it will be mighty mouse - Sproles - who gets the TD in his triumphant return to the field.
It will be a hard-fought game with points left on the field and missed opportunities but the score will send the message that the Eagles are a force to be reckoned with this season. There will be no doubt they are ready to fight tooth and nail to defend their title. And we are not even at full health yet!
Eagles win 21 - 6
Record (1 - 0)
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