Recency bias is widespread in the NFL. The way the Philadelphia Eagles will be talked about this week, you’d think their record is 0-1 instead of 12-3.
The Eagles lost on Sunday. They allowed Jayden Daniels to throw five touchdown passes. The last one came with six seconds left and won the game for the Washington Commanders. That wasn’t a great result for the Eagles. But losing in the final seconds, on the way to a 10-win team, with quarterback Jalen Hurts sidelined with a concussion after an early hit, isn’t so bad. It was Philadelphia’s first loss since September 29.
Here’s a list of every team that has lost at least once since the beginning of October: Everyone. 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 some flaw.
Philadelphia still has one of the best defenses in the NFL, despite Sunday’s poor game. Would the Eagles have won if Hurts had been there to make one more play than Kenny Pickett did? Probably. The Eagles would have won if DeVonta Smith had caught a late third-down pass that he virtually 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 obvious weaknesses. A loss doesn’t change that just because it’s the most recent thing we saw. And that loss doesn’t change Philadelphia’s position as number one in the power rankings.
Here are the power rankings after Week 16 of the NFL season: