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1991 Philadelphia Eagles season

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1991 Philadelphia Eagles season
OwnerNorman Braman
General managerHarry Gamble
Head coachRich Kotite
Home fieldVeterans Stadium
Results
Record10–6
Division place3rd NFC East
Playoff finishDid not qualify
Uniform

The 1991 Philadelphia Eagles season was the franchise's fifty-ninth season in the National Football League.

Despite having a 10–6 record and finishing with the top-ranked defense in the NFL, the Eagles failed to make the playoffs. During Week 1, quarterback Randall Cunningham was lost for the season with a knee injury.

Background

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Statistics site Football Outsiders ranks the 1991 Eagles, coordinated by Bud Carson, as the greatest defensive team in its ranking's history.[1] According to Football Outsiders:

The 1991 Eagles completely lap the field in terms of defensive DVOA. Only the 2002 Bucs had a better pass defense, and only the 2000 Ravens had a better run defense, and the Eagles were much more balanced than either of those teams.

It's crazy to imagine how few points the Eagles might have given up if they were playing with a halfway-decent offense instead of losing Randall Cunningham to a torn ACL in the first game of the season. The Eagles were stuck depending on an over-the-hill Jim McMahon for 11 starts, plus Jeff Kemp for two and Brad Goebel for two. McMahon actually wasn't half bad ... but the other two quarterbacks were awful, especially Goebel who had no touchdowns with six interceptions. And the running game was dreadful, with 3.1 yards per carry as a team.

Still, the Eagles were fifth in the league in points allowed, and first in yards allowed by nearly 400 yards – and the team that was second in yards allowed is also on that top-ten defenses list, the 1991 New Orleans Saints. The Eagles allowed 3.9 yards per play, where no other team allowed fewer than 4.5. As bad as their running game was, their run defense was even better, allowing 3.0 yards per carry. Three-fourths of the starting defensive line was All-Pro (Reggie White, Jerome Brown, and Clyde Simmons). Linebacker Seth Joyner and cornerback Eric Allen made the Pro Bowl as well.

Overview

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A "real" fresh start

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On January 8, team owner Norman Braman opted not to renew the contract of Buddy Ryan, the Eagles' head coach since 1986. On the same day, Braman promoted then-offensive coordinator Rich Kotite, making him the eighteenth head coach in the club's history. The team opened with a 3–1 mark, its best start since 1981, despite having lost Cunningham for the year due to a knee injury that was sustained in Green Bay thanks during an opening day-hit by Bryce Paup. After taking over and leading the Eagles to a solid start, backup QB Jim McMahon was also injured in Game 5 during a shutout loss to the Redskins.

A winless October

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With McMahon sidelined, the Birds offense stalled completely during a stretch of eleven straight quarters without scoring a touchdown that culminated in a four-game skid. By mid-season, Philadelphia had used five different quarterbacks, including rookie Brad Goebel, former Jets backup Pat Ryan and former Niners third-stringer Jeff Kemp in eight games and saw its record sink to 3–5. Bleeding Green Nation ranked it as one of the worst Eagles backup QB seasons in the team's history, illustrating how the defense would have supported better quarterback play to several victories.[2][3]

A relatively healthy McMahon returns

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Week ten saw McMahon return to the lineup for a Monday night, 30–7 victory over the defending Super Bowl Champion New York Giants at Veterans Stadium; however, the following week at Municipal Stadium proved to be a tighter-scoring game. The Eagles won 32–30 as Philadelphia spotted Cleveland a 23–0 lead early in the second quarter, before staging a comeback behind a battered McMahon (passing for 341 yards and three touchdowns). Before the game, McMahon's elbow was so swollen, his roommate Ron Heller had to tie his ponytail for him, and then told his lineman he wouldn't be able to play. But Birds trainer Otho Davis used a concoction he calls "Grandma's Goop" on the elbow, enabling McMahon to play.

These wins resurrected the season, and the Birds continued to surge into contention for a playoff berth with a six-game winning streak (the club's longest since the start of '81). This upped the team's record to 9–5.

The signature win of the run was a 13–6 Monday night victory against the Oilers in Houston on December 2, later dubbed the "House of Pain" game for the Eagles' defense-punishing Warren Moon and his teammates.

Heart of a champion

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"In '91, I broke five ribs off my sternum in New York and bruised my heart. I could've punctured it, but it just bruised." -Jim McMahon, 2014

The season-ending rib injury to McMahon in week fifteen (a 19–14 win against the Giants) made way for a devastating loss at home to Dallas in week sixteen, ending Philadelphia's playoff hopes; however, the season was saved by a 10–6 record, allowing the Eagles to join the 49ers as the only NFL clubs to post ten or more wins in each of the last four seasons. Both teams missed the postseason in 1991, despite winning ten games.

A defense that rewrote the record books

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Philadelphia's defense finished the season ranked first in the NFL in fewest passing yards, rushing yards, and total yards allowed. As such, the Eagles became only the fifth club in NFL history and the first since 1975 to accomplish this rare triple.

Five members of that defensive unit represented the Eagles in the Pro Bowl – DEs Reggie White and Clyde Simmons, DT Jerome Brown, and LB Seth Joyner were selected as starters while CB Eric Allen also made the NFC squad. The selection of White, Simmons, and Brown marked only the sixth time in NFL history that three defensive linemen from one team were elected to the Pro Bowl.

In addition, the Eagles' defense led the NFL in sacks and fumble recoveries and tied for the league lead in takeaways. The Eagles' forty-eight defensive takeaways in 1991 tied for the highest number of defensive takeaways in the NFL during the 1990s.[4]

Offseason

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NFL draft

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Main article: 1991 NFL draft

The 1991 NFL draft was held on April 21 and 22, 1991 at the Marriott Marquis hotel in Manhattan, New York. The Eagles with a 10–6 record in 1990 had the nineteenth or twentieth picks in each round. They also held the number eight pick of the first round, choosing Antone Davis, an offensive tackle from the University of Tennessee. The team's first round pick at number nineteen was traded away earlier and acquired by the Green Bay Packers. Over the course of the twelve-round draft, Philadelphia made twelve selections.

1991 Philadelphia Eagles draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 8 Antone Davis  Offensive tackle Tennessee Pick acquired from San Diego Chargers
2 48 Jesse Campbell  Defensive back North Carolina State
3 75 Rob Selby  Guard Auburn
4 104 William Thomas *  Linebacker Texas A&M
5 131 Craig Erickson  Quarterback Miami (FL)
6 156 Andy Harmon  Defensive tackle Kent State Pick acquired from Seattle Seahawks
7 187 James Joseph  Running back Auburn
8 216 Scott Kowalkowski  Linebacker Notre Dame
9 242 Chuck Weatherspoon  Running back Houston
10 271 Eric Harmon  Guard Clemson
11 298 Mike Flores  Defensive end Louisville
12 327 Darrell Beavers  Defensive back Morehead State
      Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

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Other notable events

Following the previous season, head coach Buddy Ryan was fired and replaced by their offensive coordinator Rich Kotite, a position Kotite would hold for the next four seasons.

Personnel

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Staff

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1991 Philadelphia Eagles staff

Front office

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches

Special teams coaches

  • Special teams – Dave Atkins
  • Special teams assistant – Peter Giunta

Strength and conditioning

  • Strength and conditioning – Jim Williams


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Roster

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1991 Philadelphia Eagles roster
Quarterbacks (QB)

Running backs (RB)

Wide receivers (WR)

Tight ends (TE)

Offensive linemen (OL)

Defensive linemen (DL)

Linebackers (LB)

Defensive backs (DB)

Special teams

Practice squad

Reserve


47 active, 10 inactive, 3 practice squad
Rookies in italics


Preseason

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Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance
1 July 28 vs. Buffalo Bills L 13–17 0–1 Wembley Stadium 50,474
2 August 3 at New York Jets W 24–10 1–1 Giants Stadium 31,577
3 August 10 at Cincinnati Bengals W 29–24 2–1 Riverfront Stadium 56,390
4 August 17 Pittsburgh Steelers W 21–20 3–1 Veterans Stadium 55,764
5 August 23 Indianapolis Colts W 23–21 4–1 Veterans Stadium 52,687

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Regular season

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Schedule

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Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance
1 September 1 at Green Bay Packers W 20–3 1–0 Lambeau Field 58,991
2 September 8 Phoenix Cardinals L 10–26 1–1 Veterans Stadium 63,818
3 September 15 at Dallas Cowboys W 24–0 2–1 Texas Stadium 62,656
4 September 22 Pittsburgh Steelers W 23–14 3–1 Veterans Stadium 65,511
5 September 30 at Washington Redskins L 0–23 3–2 RFK Stadium 55,198
6 October 6 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers L 13–14 3–3 Tampa Stadium 41,219
7 October 13 New Orleans Saints L 6–13 3–4 Veterans Stadium 64,224
8 Bye
9 October 27 San Francisco 49ers L 7–23 3–5 Veterans Stadium 65,796
10 November 4 New York Giants W 30–7 4–5 Veterans Stadium 65,816
11 November 10 at Cleveland Browns W 32–30 5–5 Cleveland Municipal Stadium 72,086
12 November 17 Cincinnati Bengals W 17–10 6–5 Veterans Stadium 63,189
13 November 24 at Phoenix Cardinals W 34–14 7–5 Sun Devil Stadium 37,307
14 December 2 at Houston Oilers W 13–6 8–5 Astrodome 62,141
15 December 8 at New York Giants W 19–14 9–5 Giants Stadium 76,099
16 December 15 Dallas Cowboys L 13–25 9–6 Veterans Stadium 65,854
17 December 22 Washington Redskins W 24–22 10–6 Veterans Stadium 58,988
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

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Week 1: at Green Bay Packers

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Quarter 1 2 34Total
Eagles 0 13 0720
Packers 0 0 303

at Lambeau Field, Green Bay, Wisconsin

  • Date: September 1
  • Game time: 12:00 p.m.
  • Game weather: 60 °F (16 °C), wind 11 mph (18 km/h)
  • Referee: Pat Haggerty
  • TV announcers (CBS): Brad Nessler and Dan Fouts
  • Pro-Football-Reference.com
Game information

Week 3

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1 234Total
• Eagles 7 1007 24
Cowboys 0 000 0
  • Date: September 15
  • Location: Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas
  • Game start: 12:00 p.m.
  • Game weather: 81 °F (27 °C); wind 13 mph (21 km/h)
  • Referee: Gerald Austin
  • TV announcers (CBS): Dick Stockton and Merlin Olsen
Scoring summary
Q1PHIFred Barnett 11 yard pass from Jim McMahon (Roger Ruzek kick)PHI 7–0
Q2PHIRoger Ruzek 42 yard field goalPHI 10–0
Q2PHIRobert Drummond 1 yard run (Roger Ruzek kick)PHI 17–0
Q4PHIKeith Byars 6 yard pass from Jim McMahon (Roger Ruzek kick)PHI 24–0

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Week 14

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See also: 1991 Houston Oilers season
Philadelphia Eagles (7–5) at Houston Oilers (9–3)
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Eagles 0 0 10313
Oilers 0 3 306

at Astrodome • Houston, Texas

Game information

The Eagles defense shut down the Oilers' run-and-shoot attack with four sacks, six forced fumbles (five lost) and 21 yards rushing on 11 attempts. Jerome Brown said after the game, "They brought the house, we brought the pain."[9]

Standings

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NFC East
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
(1) Washington Redskins 14 2 0 .875 6–2 10–2 485 224 L1
(5) Dallas Cowboys 11 5 0 .688 5–3 8–4 342 310 W5
Philadelphia Eagles 10 6 0 .625 5–3 6–6 285 244 W1
New York Giants 8 8 0 .500 3–5 5–7 281 297 W1
Phoenix Cardinals 4 12 0 .250 1–7 3–11 196 344 L8

Awards and honors

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NFL Comeback Player of the Year – Jim McMahon QB

UPI NFC Defensive Player of the Year – Reggie White DE

References

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  1. ^ Football Outsiders: 1991 DVOA Ratings and Commentary
  2. ^ Stolnis, John (August 20, 2019). "These are the best (and worst) backup QB seasons in Eagles history". Bleeding Green Nation. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  3. ^ Stolnis, John (May 13, 2020). "What if... Randall Cunningham never got hurt in 1991?". Bleeding Green Nation. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
  4. ^ Pro-Football-Reference.com: In a single season, from 1990 to 1999, in the regular season, sorted by descending Takeaways, tied with the 1991 New Orleans Saints.
  5. ^ "1991 Philadelphia Eagles draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 8, 2014.
  6. ^ 1991 Philadelphia Eagles Media Guide. pp. 3–15.
  7. ^ "1991 Philadelphia Eagles (NFL)". Pro Football Archives. Retrieved November 11, 2023.
  8. ^ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2014-Apr-06.
  9. ^ "Eagles Top 15 Monday night games." Philly.com. 2011 Nov 3.
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