Panthers thrown in a wild comparison after final wild-card game of the NFL playoffs
No one believes a 2-15 season is worthy of much praise. And, after the Philadelphia Eagles lost embarrassingly, 32-9, Troy Aikman, the Panthers became the butt of another jab. "Having been on this end of it, when you get to the postseason, and you lose the first round, it is an empty feeling,” Aikman said […]
No one believes a 2-15 season is worthy of much praise.
And, after the Philadelphia Eagles lost embarrassingly, 32-9, Troy Aikman, the Panthers became the butt of another jab.
"Having been on this end of it, when you get to the postseason, and you lose the first round, it is an empty feeling,” Aikman said during ESPN’s NFL Wild Card broadcast. “And, when you had the expectations that the Eagles had this year, you’re no different than the New England [Patriots], Carolina [Panthers] or any of these other teams that didn’t have near the season, didn’t win near the games. But the only thing you have to say for your year is you got to play one more game than they did.”
The Eagles, who melted down at the tail end of the season, still had a better year than the Panthers. But Aikman does have a point.
When a team's goal is winning the Super Bowl, anything that is short of that is a failure. And man, the Eagles didn't even get close.
Where Aikman misses on his comparison is the Eagles' problems are far easier to fix than the Panthers.
Carolina is forced to build around Bryce Yong, who had an awful rookie season, and they have no first-round draft pick to do so.
Players like Brian Burns and Jeremy Chinn are looking for a payday or greener pastures.
The Panthers would love to be in the position the Eagles are in – making the playoffs with prominent playmakers at nearly every important position.
So, though the Eagles' season may have ended with a similar result to the Panthers, there is more to the comparison than what meets the eye.
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