When our own Sean Selby released his book, “No One Likes Us, But We DO Care” in October of 2024, the Eagles were in the midst of a season for the ages. When the dust settled from the Saquon Barkley infamous reverse hurdle, domination from the best defense in the NFL, and the offensive show the team put on in the playoffs, the Eagles became Super Bowl Champs once again. Sean quickly realized that it would only be right to add on to the book with some quick thoughts on what had transpired.
Below is the full epilogue, which is now included in the new edition of the book which can be purchased on Amazon in hardcover, paperback, and Kindle!
Just four months after this book was originally published and released, green and white confetti cascaded onto the field of the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans in celebration of the NFL’s newest Super Bowl Champions, the Philadelphia Eagles. In Super Bowl 59, the Eagles had completely dismantled the Kansas City Chiefs, 40-22. And to be fair, the score didn’t reflect how lopsided the game was.
The Eagles aggressively attacked the Chiefs from the opening kickoff and only took their foot off the gas with a few minutes remaining in the game. The Eagles’ approach and game plan was a masterclass on every level from the way the offense executed, especially in key situations early in the game, to how the defense swarmed Chiefs star quarterback Patrick Mahomes and took advantage of mistakes and miscues by Kansas City.
This was a Chiefs team that was going for the NFL’s first-ever “three-peat”, but this did not faze this Eagles team at all. Instead, they were the hunters. Just one year prior, they had been a team left with humiliation and unanswered questions following a historical late-season collapse that left many pundits doubting the future of head coach Nick Sirianni. But on February 9th, 2025, as he was showered with Gatorade, the only question that remained was what day of the week the parade was going to be held on Broad Street.
For Philadelphia fans, if 2023 was the year of the collapse, then 2024 was the year of redemption.
Going into the offseason, General Manager Howie Roseman knew that the team had weaknesses, especially on the defensive side of the ball. The team had hired two new coordinators, Kellen Moore on offense, and Vic Fangio on defense, but now it was up to Roseman to provide them with the proper weapons to succeed. He went out and signed star running back Saquon Barkley from the rival Giants. He also took a chance on Zach Baun, a player primarily used as an edge rusher and special teams his whole career to play linebacker for Fangio. In the NFL Draft, the Eagles decided to add youth to a much-maligned secondary by taking Quinyon Mitchell out of Toledo, and Cooper DeJean from Iowa. Roseman added other pieces to the puzzle like one-time hopeful Mekhi Becton to compete for a spot on the offensive line. The Eagles also brought back safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson who played for the Lions for one season.
Sometimes when things come together and work out in your favor, you may look back and think about how miraculously all the pieces fit perfectly. In this case, all the players that I just mentioned paid huge dividends for the Philadelphia Eagles during their championship run. Baun was named to the Pro Bowl. Mitchell and DeJean finished 2nd and 4th respectively in Rookie Defensive Player of the Year. Becton revitalized his career with a very solid season after being labeled as a draft bust. And Saquon Barkley? Well, he had one of the greatest seasons by a running back in the history of the NFL. With 2,504 yards rushing, he set the record for the most yards ever in a campaign, including the playoffs.
When the season started for the Eagles, it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows. With people still feeling uneasy about how the previous season ended, the Eagles had an up-and-down start out of the gate. The offense was inconsistent at times and showed signs of repeating its inability to take care of the football by turning it over. The defense was showing flashes of being effective, but they were throttled by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers heading into an early bye week with their record at 2-2.
As good teams do, the players and the coaching staff took a hard look at themselves and their schemes and made the necessary adjustments to play to their strengths. With one of the best offensive lines in football, the team took more of a run-first approach. Instead of throwing the ball 30 to 40 times a game like they had been doing up to that point, they would run Saquon Barkley behind that big line and control the game clock. On the other side of the ball, Cooper DeJean was put into the lineup in the secondary. The team also decided to cut ties with free-agent acquisition, linebacker Devin White and allowed one of their young linebackers Nakobe Dean to play more freely. This was now a new-look team coming out of their break, and they never looked back. The Eagles would win a franchise-record 10-straight games, and 16 out of their next 17 matchups.
Head coach Nick Sirianni wasn’t the only person being criticized early in the season. Quarterback Jalen Hurts was also facing difficult questions, mostly due to his turnovers, but following the bye week, he became one of the most efficient quarterbacks in the league. Although he wasn’t asked to drop back and throw as much as many other play callers, he was making the plays that needed to be made to win the game. If the team needed to make a clutch first down, he would run for it. If the team needed to convert a 3rd down, he would make the big throw. And if the ball was near the goal line, there was no doubt that Hurts was going to get into the endzone with the “Brotherly Shove”, (which is essentially a quarterback sneak with the help of players pushing the quarterback into the line). During the team’s last 17 games, Hurts accounted for 42 total touchdowns with only 6 interceptions, which included his masterful performance in the Super Bowl.
Redemption for the 2024 Eagles team wasn’t just about the collapse from the year before. For Jalen Hurts, it went back to losing Super Bowl 57 to the Chiefs. Despite outplaying Patrick Mahomes in that game, he was left to walk off the field, with red and yellow confetti showering down on him, watching as Kansas City celebrated. It was well-known that Hurts had taken a screenshot of that exact moment and kept it as a wallpaper background on his cellphone to remind himself of what that night felt like. He used it as fuel to keep the fire inside burning. He did not want to let those feelings of disappointment reemerge the next time he had a chance to compete for the Lombardi Trophy.
Just two years later, he was able to avenge that loss with a Super Bowl MVP performance. Hurts accounted for 3 total touchdowns, which included a now classic play that many call “The Dagger”. Late in the 3rd quarter with the Eagles ahead by a score of 27-0, many thought they would just run the ball and take as much time off the clock as possible. Instead, Jalen Hurts launched a perfectly thrown ball down the middle of the field for a 46-yard touchdown to DeVonta Smith, which pretty much sealed the game.
With help from six quarterback sacks, a huge interception returned for a touchdown by Cooper DeJean (on his 22nd birthday), an acrobatic interception by Zach Baun, and complete dominance by the defense, the Eagles raised their second Lombardi Trophy. Jalen Hurts and Nick Sirianni, targeted often by many, had etched themselves onto a very short list of Philadelphia figures who can be called champions in this town. And now, they were going to be a part of a huge parade celebrating among some of those who previously wanted them out of town.
Often very serious, Jalen Hurts smiled quite often following that Super Bowl win – more than he had during his whole time here. Other players like AJ Brown, who was heavily criticized during the team’s tough times in the previous year, were now world champions. Brandon Graham, in his fifteenth season, had missed most of the year with a torn tricep muscle but came back to play in the Super Bowl. Jake Elliot, the Eagles kicker, who had arguably his worst season as a professional, set a Super Bowl record for the most points with 16. Then there’s defensive tackle Jalen Carter, who was two years removed from a car accident in which his college teammate and an athletic staff member were killed during a race. The tragic event had affected Carter emotionally, and it had affected his draft stock coming out of the University of Georgia. The Eagles, with much credit to Howie Roseman and owner Jeffery Lurie, had taken a chance and selected Carter with the 9th overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, and he evolved into one of the best interior linemen in football.
Redemption.
I stood there, facing the gates at Lincoln Financial Field waiting for the parade to begin. I looked around at all the fans who were dancing around, chanting the “E-A-G-L-E-S” cheer. I looked at the newly hung banner on the stadium displaying the words, “Super Bowl Champions” with two Lombardi Trophies displayed on it. It was surreal that we were about to enjoy our second parade in the last seven years. To some, this may not seem like a big deal, but as I mentioned several times in this book, this isn’t something that we get to experience often. I try to explain to my kids how lucky they are to witness this and how I had to wait 24 years to see the Eagles at least make it to the Super Bowl. It was 28 years for me to celebrate my first championship thanks to the Phillies! But they don’t understand – at least not yet. And I hope they don’t have to go through the drought that many of us have had to endure. For their sake and the newer generations, I hope that celebrating our teams becomes a familiar tradition because we truly deserve it as a fanbase!
Corner Pub Sports 