Rich Kotite RVR Photos-USA TODAY Sports

Things could be worse for the Philadelphia Eagles

By Bruce Ewing | Last updated 1/8/24

Some see Philadelphia’s 1-5 finish to end the regular season as the worst collapse in Eagles history but it’s not. The year was 1994…

After inheriting a roster built by the late Buddy Ryan, Rich Kotite went 29-19 in his first three seasons as head coach of the Eagles. He also had a playoff win, something Ryan was unable to do in five years with the team. Kotite has the team out to a 7-2 start but seemed more worried about his contract than winning games.

Former owner Norman Braman had just sold the team to Jeffrey Lurie and the coach’s contract was set to expire the following year. Kotite had no problem discussing his contract situation in public but Lurie wanted to evaluate Kotite’s performance before talking about any new deals.

Lurie’s position didn’t sit well with Kotite, who told the media, “I might do some evaluating of my own,” adding, “I believe my record speaks for itself.” It certainly did. Philadelphia wouldn’t win another game all year, losing seven straight including a 14-3 loss to the Steelers in which the Eagles posted just 105 yards of total offense.

Last time the Eagles blew a 15 point or bigger lead at halftime was 12 seasons ago

Last time they blew a lead this big at halftime against a team with a record as bad as the Cardinals at 3-12 was a loss to the Bengals in Rich Kotite’s last season 1994 pic.twitter.com/JwlnQnCSko
— John Clark (@JClarkNBCS) January 1, 2024

In doing so, the Eagles became the only team in NFL history to open a season 7-2 without winning another game. Kotite was fired and spent the next two years as head coach of the New York Jets where he went 4-28.

So while the 2023 Eagles fell apart down the stretch, Philly fans of a certain age have certainly seen worse. Besides, unlike Kotite’s 1994 unit, this year’s team can always redeem themselves in the playoffs.

Philadelphia’s playoff record against Tampa Bay isn’t great, but the team beat the Buccaneers 25-11 in Week 3 on “Monday Night Football” and are slight favorites (-2.5) for this Monday night’s wild-card game.

Of course, beating Tampa won’t be easy. Unlike Philadelphia, the Bucs won five of their last six games and allowed 6.1 fewer points per contest in 2023. Eagles coach Nick Sirianni better figure things out because the Jets don’t appear to be hiring.

More must-reads: