PHILADELPHIA − The comparison between Eagles’ Super Bowl teams is valid even though it has only been five years since the Eagles won the first Super Bowl in franchise history.
In those five years, the Eagles changed coaches, quarterbacks, and pretty much the entire roster. Only seven players on the current 53-man roster remain from the 2017 team.
That makes the Eagles only the second team in the Super Bowl era with the same general manager leading two different Super Bowl teams with different coaches and quarterbacks.
Howie Roseman constructed the 2017 team with Doug Pederson at coach and Carson Wentz at quarterback, although Nick Foles replaced an injured Wentz to lead the 41-33 win over Tom Brady and the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LII.
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Roseman put together this team with Nick Sirianni at coach and Jalen Hurts at quarterback. They’ll face the Kansas City Chiefs, led by former Eagles coach Andy Reid, in Super Bowl LVII.
The Ravens under GM Ozzie Newsome did it with different coaches and QBs in 2000 (Brian Billick, Trent Dilfer) and 2012 (John Harbaugh, University of Delaware’s Joe Flacco).
Here, then, is a comparison by position of the Eagles 2017 and 2022 Super Bowl teams, with a verdict:
Quarterback
2017: Carson Wentz, Nick Foles
2022: Jalen Hurts, Gardner Minshew
The skinny: This is a fascinating comparison because Wentz had led the Eagles to an 11-2 record and was a frontrunner for the MVP award before tearing his ACL and missing the rest of the season. Hurts is an MVP finalist after leading the Eagles to a 14-1 record in the regular season. And while Foles will always be remembered as the Super Bowl hero, he did struggle in two of his three regular-season games while replacing Wentz before turning it around. Minshew also struggled in the two games filling in for Hurts.
Hurts is back, and he’s better.
Verdict: 2022 Eagles
Running back
2017: LeGarrette Blount, Jay Ajayi, Corey Clement
2022: Miles Sanders, Boston Scott, Kenny Gainwell
The skinny: Sanders had by far the best season, with a career-high 1,269 yards rushing. But the 2017 duo of Blount and Ajayi were a powerhouse that wore down opposing defenses, especially late in games. Even with Hurts and his 760 rushing yards in this equation, Ajayi and Blount, along with Clement, who had 100 yards receiving in the Super Bowl, are deeper. Gainwell has come on strong of late, but the running back rotation is primarily Sanders.
Verdict: 2017 Eagles
Tight end
2017: Zach Ertz, Brent Celek, Trey Burton
2022: Dallas Goedert, Jack Stoll, Grant Calcaterra
The skinny: Ertz was one of the top tight ends in the NFL that season, much like Goedert is now. But Ertz had perhaps two of the biggest, and perhaps most overlooked, catches in Eagles’ history in the Super Bowl − the 4th-and-1 conversion near midfield midway through the fourth quarter that eventually led to his 11-yard TD reception, which turned out to be the game winner. Burton, of course, threw the “Philly Special” TD pass to Foles.
Verdict: 2017 Eagles
Wide receivers
2017: Alshon Jeffery, Nelson Agholor, Torrey Smith
2022: A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith, Quez Watkins
The skinny: Jeffery and Agholor were forces that season, and both came up large in the Super Bowl, while Smith was the deep threat. Brown (franchise record 1,496 yards receiving) and Smith (1,196 yards) became the first receiving duo to each surpass 1,000 yards in a season, and they’re only going to get better.
Verdict: 2022 Eagles
Offensive line
2017: Halapoulivaati Vaitai, Stefen Wisniewski, Jason Kelce, Brandon Brooks, Lane Johnson
2022: Jordan Mailata, Landon Dickerson, Kelce, Isaac Seumalo, Johnson
The skinny: The Eagles’ success has always started with the offensive line, but in 2017, left tackle Jason Peters was lost midway through the season with a torn ACL. Vaitai did an admirable job replacing him, but he’s not Peters or even Mailata. At left guard, Dickerson in only his second season is a Pro Bowl player. Seumalo, a backup left guard in 2017, is one of the best right guards in the NFL. Even though Kelce and Johnson are five years older, they’re playing even better than they did back then.
Verdict: 2022 Eagles
Defensive line
2017: Brandon Graham, Fletcher Cox, Tim Jernigan, Vinny Curry
2022: Haason Reddick, Cox, Javon Hargrave, Josh Sweat
The skinny: Both teams had great, and deep, lines. In 2017, the Eagles rotated in rookie Derek Barnett and Chris Long at defensive end and Beau Allen at tackle. Barnett, of course, recovered Graham’s strip-sack on Brady in the final minutes. This year’s team is even deeper with Graham and Robert Quinn rotating in at DE while veterans Ndamukong Suh, Linval Joseph and young players Jordan Davis and Milton Williams come in at DT. Reddick has 19.5 sacks in 19 games, and Sweat, Graham and Hargrave are all in double digits, too.
Verdict: 2022 Eagles
Linebacker
2017: Nigel Bradham, Mychal Kendricks
2022: T.J. Edwards, Kyzir White
The skinny: The Eagles valued the linebacker position more back then as Bradham and Kendricks were both well paid, and both had a bigger roles in the defense. But Edwards finished with 159 tackles this season, the second most in team history, and White was solid. But this year’s team rarely used third linebacker Nakobe Dean, who’ll take over for whichever player doesn’t return next season.
Verdict: 2017 Eagles
Cornerback
2017: Ronald Darby, Jalen Mills, Patrick Robinson
2022: Darius Slay, James Bradberry, Avonte Maddox
The skinny: Darby was acquired that summer in a trade to be a lockdown corner. He wasn’t, but he mostly got the jobe done. The same is true of Mills. Robinson turned out to be a top slot corner, with his pick-6 in the NFC Championship game. But that group allowed Brady to throw for a Super Bowl-record 505 yards. Slay and Bradberry are each elite corners, and Maddox, when healthy, is every bit as good as Robinson.
Verdict: 2022 Eagles
Safety
2017: Malcolm Jenkins, Rodney McLeod
2022: Chauncey Gardner-Johnson, Marcus Epps
The skinny: Jenkins and McLeod were at the top of their games that season, not only for their play, but their football intelligence and leadership. But they were part of a defense that got picked apart by Brady. Still, their overall body of work was tremendous. Gardner-Johnson tied for the NFL lead with 6 interceptions despite missing 5 games. Epps was solid, but unspectacular.
Verdict: 2017 Eagles
Special teams
2017: K Jake Elliott, P Donnie Jones, LS Rick Lovato
2022: Elliott, P Brett Kern, Lovato
The skinny: Elliott was in his first season with the Eagles in 2017, joining the team in Week 2. He’s a better kicker now, but Jones was a much better punter than Kern, signed to replace the injured Arryn Siposs. As for the overall units, returners Kenjon Barner and Clement were bigger threats than Britain Covey and Boston Scott.
Verdict: 2017 Eagles
Overall
From top to bottom, this year’s Eagles team has the edge. They’re deeper at their two most valued positions, offensive and defensive lines, as well as cornerback and wide receiver. Plus, they’ll have their starting quarterback for this Super Bowl. Hurts is a “Philly Special” all by himself.
Follow Martin Frank on Twitter @Mfranknfl.
Story Credit: usatoday.com