Before we jump into playoff football, it’s important for Eagles’ fans to take stock of where we are, where we’ve come from, and where this team seems to be headed.

Six months ago, we were looking forward to a shortened preseason of what many thought would be a lost season for our beloved Philadelphia Eagles. After that, we wondered whether Sirianni’s decision not to play the starters on either side of the ball would squander any possible wins the Eagles could accumulate early in the season before we prepared for the draft.

Throughout it all, we were in the throes of a very public discussion around trading for another quarterback while thinking that the best the team would do is 5 or 6 wins. Chris Simms famously didn’t rank our QB even within the top 40 NFL QBs. Many Eagles fans agreed with him, conceding that we would continue the post-McNabb quarterback carousel.

Six months later, we are looking forward to Wild Card weekend that our Eagles are involved in. The Eagles rested their starters in Week 18 because their playoff seeding was safe and there was only something to lose by playing Jalen Hurts!

If Jalen Hurts has more than 2 completions for 4 yards on Sunday vs. Tampa Bay, he'll have more postseason completions and yards than Carson Wentz in 6 seasons.

— Matt Rogers (@Politidope) January 14, 2022

Pinch yourself. This is real. You’re not being Punk’d!

Yes, the Eagles are headed to Tampa Bay to play the defending Super Bowl Champs, who will be quarterbacked by (arguably) the greatest of all time. Yes, the Vegas line has the game at Tampa as TB -8.5. Yes, the Bucs are getting Gronkowski and “Playoff Lenny”, Leonard Fournette back.

Would this City really have it any other way? We’re not front-runners; we’re over-achievers! That’s exactly what this team is as they roll down to Raymond James Stadium playing with house money. No one expected us to be here.

The Bucs are the ones who will be playing under pressure. They’re the ones who stand to be embarrassed – even simply by the game being close in the second half. They’re the ones who are playing without two of their top three pass-catching targets: Chris Godwin and Antonio Brown. Speaking of Antonio Brown, they’re the ones dealing with possible dissension in the locker room.

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Not just because a player that Coach Bruce Arians stated (before caving in) that he had no place on the team, but because they have numerous key starting players with expiring contracts. Chris Godwin, Jason Pierre-Paul, Ryan Jansen, Ndamukong Suh, William Gholston, Carlton Davis, the aforementioned Leonard Fournette, and Ronald Jones – who could be looking to secure a more extensive role and a better pay-day than the $1.8 million that the Bucs are currently offering him at 25 – will all have one eye on the Eagles and one eye on free agency.

If you’re one of those fans that have to convince themselves we’re going to get blown out 48-3 to stave off any lingering disappointment throughout the week when we win, that’s your right. Have at it. But seriously, you should be proud of your Philadelphia Eagles – no matter how it goes on Sunday.

Nick Sirianni is the only rookie head coach to make the playoffs! pic.twitter.com/JHFoBtxAFK

— PFF PHI Eagles (@PFF_Eagles) January 10, 2022

You should be looking forward to Sunday because we have a puncher’s chance of winning this game and heading up to Lambeau for a chance at yet another NFC Championship appearance in the new millennium.

They have three first-round picks, whether or not the Eagles head to Lambeau next week. (Thanks, Indy! Thanks, Carson!) They will have four picks in the first 64 and potentially three in the first 20. If they restructure the contracts of aging Philadelphia icons like Fletcher Cox & Brandon Graham, among others, they could be sitting on $30 million in cap space to fill holes on the team before or after the draft.

When you sit down in front of your TV or in Raymond James Stadium to watch the Birds play on Sunday at 1:00 PM EST, know that your team’s future is bright.

Just enjoy this sh**.

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Mandatory Credit: CBS Sports