Philadelphia Eagles Doug Pederson approval poll: October 2017

We continue our October edition of Philadelphia Eagles approval polls with head coach Doug Pederson. If you missed the Howie Roseman/Joe Douglas approval poll from Wednesday and the Jim Schwartz approval poll from Thursday, go vote in them.

The last time we checked in on Pederson’s approval was back in January. He earned a 76% approval rating after his first 16 games with Philadelphia.

The Eagles are now 3-1 after their first four games of the 2017 NFL season. Here’s how they rank in some key offensive categories:

• 7th in points per game (14th in points per play)
• 3rd in yards per game (11th in yards per play)
• 4th in rushing yards per game (T-4th in yards per attempt)
• 11th in passing yards per game (13th in yards per attempt)
• 2nd in first downs per game
• 2nd in third down percentage
• 1st in time of possession
• T-16th in giveaways
• T-15th in penalties

In addition to these stats, the Eagles’ offense ranks 9th in DVOA.

Oh, and the Eagles have scored 20-plus points in eight consecutive games, which is the longest active streak in the NFL. And only the Patriots and the Falcons have more 20-plus point games since the start of the 2016 season.

But 4th-and-8!!!!!

Look, I’m not saying Doug is above criticism. I’m not saying I think he’s some truly special head coach. I was very skeptical of the Eagles’ hiring process last year.

But the reality is Pederson has done a good job. And I don’t think he credits enough credit for what he’s done. At the very least, he looks far from “the least qualified coach in the last 30 years.”

One of the most critical aspects of Pederson’s job is assisting and ensuring the develop of Carson Wentz. Wentz looks improved so far in Year 2, so Pederson deserves some credit for that as well.

I can’t help but feel a lot of the Pederson criticism comes from a predetermined bias against him as opposed to evaluating what he’s done. Because if you were truly doing the latter, I find it hard not to approve of what he’s done so far this season.

Now, the Eagles also got off to a 3-1 start last year before the season started to crumble. It’s up to Pederson to prevent that from happening again. The Birds are off to a good start. He needs to keep it going.

Do you approve of the job Doug Pederson is doing as head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles? Vote now in the poll below and leave your thoughts in the comments (click here if you can’t see the poll).

Pederson Approval Polls:

• January 2017: 76% approval
• December 2016: 38% approval
• November 2016: 54% approval
• September 2016: 98% approval
• May 2016: 46% approval