PHILADELPHIA -- What a difference a year makes.
The Philadelphia Eagles are flying high heading into this year's playoffs, winners of 12 of their last 13 games en route to a 14-3 record -- just one of four 14-plus win teams in the NFL.
Last season heading into the playoffs, the Eagles were reeling. They lost five of six games after a 10-1 start and were in the midst of one of the biggest late-season collapses in NFL history.
So what changed from 2023 to 2024? Obviously, the Eagles hired veteran coordinators in Kellen Moore and Vic Fangio. They added Saquon Barkley and C.J. Gardner-Johnson as playmakers and leaders on an already talented roster, but there was a measure that couldn't be quantified.
"It's the team. It's the team," Eagles defensive tackle Jordan Davis said. "I think about everybody else. You can't be selfish and play in this game, especially if you wanna go far. I think we have taken those steps in getting rid of the selfishness, playing together, playing as a team."
The team aspect of the Eagles was noticeable in Sunday's win over the New York Giants. With a majority of the starters resting, many of the players who don't see a lot of regular-season action were in. They were making plays on both sides of the ball, and Davis was the first to notice who was celebrating the most.
Sure, the veterans may have wanted to get up from the cold, but they wanted to see their teammates shine in an NFL game that counted.
"When somebody makes a play, everybody celebrates," Davis said. "When those young guys make plays, the first to celebrate are the older guys. A lot of teams you won't see that. That just shows how tight we are and the brotherhood that we built. We put in a lot of work for that."
Some were waiting for the roof to collapse on the Eagles, despite the wins piling up week by week. This year was different than last year, when the Eagles did seem at times like a bunch of individuals. There has been no indication of the sort this year, as this group has benefitted from the leaders in the locker room -- and the head coach having a different role than years past.
The formula for winning games has worked in the regular season. The Eagles are banking on that same equation to make a deep postseason run as well.
"It's the feeling. It's the feeling. The momentum that we have," Davis said. "Just the brotherhood. It's a special group. I think y'all can tell it's a special group.
"To see everybody reap the fruits of their labor of the work they put in (and) how they shine on game day, there's no better feeling. I'm just excited to see how this team balls out. We got a lotta work to do, but at the end of the day it's playoff time and we're gonna get it."
