We all knew the Eagles had no intentions of winning Sunday night’s game against Washington from the outset. Half of the team’s starters weren’t even dressed.
Yet, national pundits and fans are somehow beside themselves after what they saw from the Eagles last night, especially with Doug Pederson benching Jalen Hurts in the second half. Let’s not act like Hurts was playing well enough to warrant staying in the game. He went 7-for-20 for 72 yards with no passing touchdowns and one interception, to go along with a passer rating of 25.4.
Sure, Hurts did some nice things with his legs, so maybe Doug should’ve just ran the read option every single play. Would these national analysts call it tanking then?
The fact of the matter is, winning this game would’ve done nothing for the Eagles except give them a worse draft pick. Losing this game and solidifying the 6th overall selection was a smart business decision. Teams make business decisions all the time.
The Jaguars have essentially been tanking for the better part of this season to ensure they got the first overall pick. Last year, ‘Tank for Tua’ was a rallying cry for the Miami Dolphins. If you want to talk about respect for the game and organizational integrity, stick to college football. The NFL is a business first and foremost, and the Eagles were simply doing what’s best for the organization moving forward.
Once the playoffs roll around next week, most people will forget about this ever happening. Except for maybe Giants fans.
Is it how I wanted to see my team finish their season? Not exactly, but I also wouldn’t have been excited about winning a meaningless game and adding one more win to this pathetic season.
Just be glad the 2020 season is over for the Eagles. This offseason should be much more exciting.
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