Recency bias is rampant in the NFL. The way the Philadelphia Eagles will be talked about this week, you might think their record is 0-1 instead of 12-3.
THE The Eagles lost on Sunday. They allowed Jayden Daniels to throw five touchdown passes. The last one came with six seconds remaining and won the game for the Washington Commanders. This was not a good result for the Eagles. But losing in the final seconds, on the road to a 10-win team, with quarterback Jalen Hurts sidelined with a concussion after an early hit, is not so serious. It was Philadelphia’s first loss since September 29.
Here is a list of all the teams that have lost at least once since the beginning of October: all of them. The Bills lost in Week 14. The Lions lost in Week 15. The Vikings lost to the Lions and the Chiefs lost to the Bills. Any team’s resume will have flaws.
Philadelphia still has one of the best defenses in the NFL, despite a bad game on Sunday. Would the Eagles have won if Hurts was there to make one more play than Kenny Pickett? Probably. The Eagles would have won if DeVonta Smith had caught a late pass on third down that he almost never drops. It’s hard to be perfect over a long season, and all we learned Sunday is that the Eagles aren’t perfect. Philadelphia is the most balanced team among the contenders. There are no glaring weaknesses. A loss doesn’t change that just because it’s the most recent thing we’ve seen. And this defeat does not change Philly’s position at first place in the power rankings.
Here are the power rankings after Week 16 of the NFL season: