When an NFL team suffers a historically bad season like the Jacksonville Jaguars and New York Jets did in 2020, it often takes a while to climb back up the standings. But sometimes, those dreadful seasons can turn into something remarkable.
For the Philadelphia Eagles, one of their best one-year turnarounds in history ended with the sweet victory of a Super Bowl. Let’s take a look at some of the worst seasons and greatest comeback seasons in Eagles history.
What was the worst season in Eagles history?
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In the Super Bowl era, the Eagles have had two seasons with only two wins apiece, both back when seasons were 14 games long (1968 and 1972).
The worst season in which 16 games were played was the 3-13 1998 team, which also scored the fewest points per game in the 16-game era at 10.1. Duce Staley was a rare bright spot that year, racking up 1,057 rushing yards despite the team’s dreadful offense.
Ray Rhodes was fired as head coach, but the Birds weren’t much better the next year, going 5-11.
What was the Eagles’ best one-year turnaround in history?
NFL
Three times in their franchise history, the Eagles have won six more games than they did the year before. Most recently, the 2016 Eagles finished 7-9 and last in the NFC East in Doug Pederson’s first year as head coach, only to turn it around in the magical 2017 season. Aside from winning the team’s first Super Bowl with the Philly Special, the 2017 Eagles also tied the franchise record for wins with a 13-3 record.
The other two times the Eagles improved by six games were from 1999 (5-11) to 2000 (11-5) and from 2012 (4-12) to 2013 (10-6). The 2012 season was Andy Reid’s last. Under his successor, Chip Kelly, the Eagles won the NFC East, and LeSean McCoy rushed for an NFL-leading 1,607 yards.