The 10 Best Individual Eagle Seasons of the 2010s
The 2010s saw some Eagles players evolve into superstars. All it takes is one amazing year to change the narrative on a player's entire career. The following article will talk about 10 of the best individual seasons, and review why they were impactful for the Eagles.
*Note, these seasons are not ranked in order from worst to best individual season. This list is in chronological order.
Michael Vick 2010
2010 was supposed to be the year Kevin Kolb became the franchise quarterback in Philadelphia. The Kevin Kolb Era lasted about one half, as he suffered a concussion and Michael Vick never let him take back the offense. Vick was named the NFC Offensive Player of the Month for September, and continued his hot play throughout the entire season.
His biggest game was the Monday Night Massacre, in which he connected on a 88-yard touchdown on the very first play of the game in route to a 59-28 win. Vick was named the NFC Offensive Player of the Week following his performance, and the Pro Football Hall of Fame took his game jersey to display in Canton, Ohio since he became the first player to pass for three touchdowns and rush for two touchdowns in the first half of a game. The most memorable game for that season was the Miracle at the New Meadowlands, in which Vick led the offense to three consecutive touchdown drives in the final eight minutes of the game to tie it, and allow DeSean Jackson's punt return to be the game-winner.
Thanks to Vick's offensive explosion that season, the Eagles won the NFC East, and Vick was named NFL Comeback Player of the year. He was also selected to his 4th career Pro Bowl for his accomplishments in that season.
LeSean McCoy 2011
LeSean McCoy was fresh off of a 1,000 yard and nine touchdown season heading into 2011. He wanted to continue his great start to his career and make a name for himself across the entire NFL, and that is exactly what he did.
McCoy went on to rush for 1,309 yards in 2011, which at the time was the 5th-most in a season in Eagles history. He rushed for over 100 yards in six different games. His biggest accomplishment was his 17 rushing touchdowns that season, which remain as the most in a season in the franchise's 86-year history. He added three more touchdowns through receptions, which brought his total touchdowns that year to 20. He scored a touchdown in 14 out of the 16 games in a year most fans try to forget because of it being the disappointing "Dream Team" year.
For his accomplishments in 2011, McCoy was selected to the Pro Bowl and was also named First-Team All-Pro. "Shady" became a household name across the entire NFL by the year's end.
DeSean Jackson 2013
Chip Kelly ended up not being good for much, but the one thing he was good for was the team's offensive explosion in 2013. One of the beneficiaries from Chip Kelly's arrival to the NFL was DeSean Jackson. After Michael Vick suffered an injury, he created a great chemistry with Nick Foles, and the two connected plenty of times for catches and runs.
Jackson's 2013 season resulted in the 2nd most receiving yards in a season in Eagles history (1,332). At the time, it was also the 3rd most receptions in a season by an Eagles wide receiver (82). He had five 100-plus yard receiving performances in the season. Two games that year resulted in Jackson having some top-10 receiving yard games in Eagles history (193 yards - 10th-most, 210 yards - 3rd-most).
The Eagles made the playoffs that season with the help of Jackson's vertical threat. Thanks to his production that season, Jackson was rewarded with his 3rd Pro Bowl nomination. The Pro Bowl game that season was the final game he played as an Eagle, as Chip Kelly decided to cut him from the team.
LeSean McCoy 2013
Chip Kelly's offense not only helped the passing game, but it also helped the rushing game reach its absolute peak. Kelly relied heavily on McCoy, who reached career highs in rushes, rushing yards, rushing yards per game, touches, and yards from scrimmage.
McCoy's 1,607 yards is still the franchise-best mark for rushing yards in a season. He rushed for over 100-plus yards in seven games, and AVERAGED more than 100 yards/game on the ground. He set an Eagles franchise-record for rushing yards in a game when he scampered for 217 yards in the Snow Bowl.
The Eagles won the NFC East while riding the coattails of McCoy's rushing attack. McCoy was rewarded with a Pro Bowl selection and was named First-Team All-Pro, solidifying himself as arguably the best running back in the NFL.
Nick Foles 2013
With a 1-3 start to the season, the Chip Kelly Era didn't get off to a great start. When Michael Vick went out in Week 5 with a hamstring issue, Nick Foles was pressed into the starting QB role and was tasked with trying to save the season. Not only did he save the season, he ran Vick out of town.
The Eagles went 8-2 with Nick Foles as their starter, and won the NFC East in a dramatic Week 17 win over the Dallas Cowboys. One of the most memorable games from that season was when Foles tied the NFL record for most passing touchdowns in a game against the Oakland Raiders. Foles also set an NFL record for best touchdown to interception ratio when he threw 27 touchdowns with just two interceptions.
Foles broke many Eagles records too, including: best completion percentage in a season (64.94%), lowest interception percentage (0.63%), fewest interceptions (two), and best QB rating (119.2). His 428 yards in a game against the Vikings are the 7th-most in a game in Eagles history.
For his incredible season, Foles was named to the Pro Bowl, and his great play continued in that game as he was named Pro Bowl MVP. As mentioned earlier, his performance that year made the team move on from Vick as starting quarterback. This was Foles' team moving forward from that point.
Brandon Brooks 2017
It's hard to measure successful seasons for offensive lineman because they don't have any real stats and they don't really make the highlight reels. However, Brooks was an absolute beast for the Eagles during their Super Bowl run. Cemented at right guard, Brooks did not allow a single sack in 2017 (in fact, he only allowed one sack in 2016 -- the season opener, meaning, including postseason games, he gave up one sack in his first 35 games as an Eagle.
His excellence that season was apart of a solid offensive line group that allowed Carson Wentz and Nick Foles to form an aerial attack while also allowing the running game to wreck havoc. If the Eagles don't have him that season, the team likely doesn't come home with their first ever Super Bowl trophy.
For his dominance in 2017, Brooks was rewarded with a Pro Bowl selection, and debates started as to whether he is the greatest free agent signing in Eagles history.
Carson Wentz 2017
After a rookie season filled with wild up-and-down play, no one was really sure what 2017 would be like. Wentz made it know from the opening drive of the season that he wasn't messing around, as he ran all over the pocket to extend the play to connect with Nelson Agholor for a deep touchdown. From that point on the 2017 season essentially became the Carson Wentz show, and Eagles fans had a front row seat to watch their quarterback shine and impress the rest of the league.
Wentz broke the Eagles single-season touchdown record with 33 touchdowns in just 13 games.He threw at least one touchdown pass in every game he played in that year. His 101.9 QB rating and interception percentage (1.59) were the 3rd-best in a season in Eagles history.
He helped lead the Eagles to an 11-2 record in games he started in, and put the team in a position to clinch home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. He was recognized for his greta play with a Pro Bowl nomination, and the backup quarterback helped make sure Wentz got the Super Bowl ring he deserved for his MVP-like season. We'll be discussing that quarterback's performance as well...
Nick Foles 2017 (Postseason)
When Carson Wentz went down with his season-ending knee injury, most analysts (and even a good portion of the Eagles fan base) assumed the Eagles would not be able to make a postseason run; certainly not with Nick Foles running the offense. Boy did he prove everyone wrong.
Nick Foles' first-half in the NFC Divisional Round against the Atlanta Falcons did not get off to a hot start. He needed a lucky deflection off the knee of a defender to help get the Eagles offense rolling. Once that deflection took place, the Eagles offense was able to put together three drives that ended in field goals, which ended up being enough for the Eagles to advance to the NFC Championship Game.
Going into the NFCCG, the Vikings essentially had the best defense in football. Foles did not care about that, and he threw for what was then the 4th-most yards in a playoff game in Eagles history with 352. He also tied the mark for most touchdown passes in a playoff game with three scores through the air. He was so much in the zone, that Doug Pederson decided to call a flea-flicker, which resulted in a 41-yard bomb to Torrey Smith for a touchdown. Heading into Minnesota for Super Bowl LII, Eagles fans everywhere started to believe in St. Nick.
Super Bowl LII was Foles' masterpiece. Once again, he was in the zone and made throws that were better than the five-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback he was playing against. He also being a part-time offensive coordinator during the game when he asked Doug Pederson to call The Philly Special. Foles became the first quarterback to catch a touchdown pass in Super Bowl history. He tied the franchise-mark for passing touchdowns in a playoff game once again, and completed the 2nd-most passes in a playoff game (28). His 373 passing yards were the 3rd-most by an Eagles QB too. When trailing with nine minutes left in the game, Foles kept his cool and led the offense down the field with a touchdown drive that lasted seven minutes.
For his historic performance in the Super Bowl, he was awarded Super Bowl MVP. He was also sculpted into a statue along with Doug Pederson in front of Lincoln Financial Field, cementing his status as a Philadelphia Eagles legend for what he was able to do in such a short period of time.
Zach Ertz 2018
Ertz Finally had a breakout performance that Eagles fans were waiting for in 2017, but in 2018 he took "breakout performance" to the next level.
Ertz set a NFL record for most receptions by a tight end in a season with 116. He also set the Eagles single-season records for receptions with that mark. His 1,163 receiving yards were the 10th-most by an Eagles receiver (and 2nd-most by a tight end). Ertz had five games with 100-plus receiving yards, and 10 games where he recorded 10-plus receptions. His 12 receptions against the Houston Texans are the 8th-most in a game in Eagles history, while his 14 receptions against the Dallas Cowboys are the 2nd most.
For some reason, Ertz was not selected as a First Team All-Pro, but he did make the Pro Bowl at least. Thanks to his production in 2018, Ertz established himself as among the elite at the tight end position.
Fletcher Cox 2018
Cox has been a pretty consistent problem in the middle of the trenches for offensive lineman, but in 2018 he took his play to the next level.
The veteran set new career-highs in sacks, tackles for loss and QB hits. If you think that is impressive, Cox also did it without a significant contributor next to him at the other defensive tackle position. Tim Jernigan missed pretty much the entire season, which meant the Eagles had to use the unproven Trayvon Hester and undrafted rookie Bruce Hector next to him. Cox has to face double-teams much more often that season, and yet he was still the most productive he had ever been.
To reward his accomplishments on the field, Cox earned a Pro Bowl selection and was also named First Team All-Pro. He solidified himself as the second best defensive tackle in all of football, behind just future Hall of Famer Aaron Donald.
