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Hey!
Let’s take a break from tearing ourselves apart after the Jalen Hurts pick and unite to kick back, relax and watch some good ol’ Eagles football. Two weeks ago, Bleeding Green Nation hosted an Eagles watch party to get us through the quarantine. Well, with the 2020 NFL Draft in the bag, I’d love to do it once again on Friday May 1 at 7:00 p.m. EST.
The website we used to watch old games on YouTube is called Watch2Gether, where we can all do a live-running text thread discussing the game as the video plays. While there are a ton of old Birds games available to watch on YouTube, a lot of them are copyright-protected, meaning that we won’t be able to view them through Watch2Gether. Based on that criteria, here are four games I found that could be fun as hell to look back on:
1995 Wild Card Round against the Detroit Lions
This was a wild one (pun intended), as the Birds defeated Detroit by an outrageous score of 58-37. That mark stood as the highest scoring playoff game in NFL history until January 2010, when the Cardinals beat the Packers 51-45 (though that game went into overtime).
For younger Eagles fans like myself (I turn 26 next Wednesday), this would be a cool opportunity to experience a game I never saw with my own eyes.
2000 Wild Card Round against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
In the first playoff game of the Andy Reid and Donovan McNabb era, the Eagles pulled out a 21-3 win over the Bucs. McNabb threw for a pair of touchdowns and ran for another as the Birds cruised on the road to victory. Hugh Douglas led a ferocious defense that night with two sacks.
Coincidentally, this was actually the Eagles’ first playoff win since that 1995 contest against Detroit,
2001 Week 16 against the New York Giants
At home at Veterans Stadium, the Eagles knocked off the reigning NFC Champion Giants 24-21. This marked the first time the Eagles had beaten Giants under Reid and gave the Birds their first NFC East crown since 1988. McNabb threw for three touchdowns, including two to Chad Lewis, who was a damn cheat code for the Eagles way back when.
You may remember this game as having an anxiety-inducing ending, as a lateral play by the Giants on the final play of regulation for a 76-yard gain almost gave the Giants an insane win. Luckily, Damon Moore tackled Ron Dixon at the Eagles’ own four and preserved the victory.
This was also literally the first Eagles game I have concrete memory of, so it’s quite special to me and I haven’t watched it in its entirety in almost two decades. If you wanna give me a nice early b-day gift, vote for this game.
2004 Divisional Round against the Minnesota Vikings
In the first of many playoff wins over Minnesota in the 21st century, the Eagles advanced to their fourth-straight NFC Championship Game after beating the Vikings 27-14. Freddie Mitchell miraculously had two touchdowns in this game. This was the lone two-touchdown performance of FredEx’s incredibly odd career.
Thi win, obviously, was a stepping stone on the path towards the Birds’ first Super Bowl appearance since the 1980 season and is definitely a favorite of Eagles fans of all ages.
So, what are you all feeling this week? I may choose from these games for future installments of our Quarantine Watch Party series, but let’s see how everyone wants to start out. There will be an article later in the week with more details about the party after we’ve decided on a game.
Go Birds!
Poll
What game should we watch for the 2nd Quarantine Watch Party?
This poll is closed
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39%
1995 vs. Lions
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9%
2000 vs. Bucs
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25%
2001 vs. Giants
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26%
2004 vs. Vikings