Generation Next | Eagles 1997 Season Recap

in 1997 the philadelphia eagles did not meet their own high expectations yet the season ended with this team together facing a future more certain than when it began back in august a young quarterback was in place and his performance over the season's last six weeks left little doubt that bobby hoying is the real deal ladies and gentlemen [Music] this generation of eagles features a solid core of young veterans men like william thomas the two-time pro bowl linebacker kevin turner the throwback fullback troy vincent the big time corner [Music] red hall the team leader in quarterback sacks james willis the rapidly improving man in the middle steve everett the powerful center hollis thomas the free agent find a defensive tackle brian dawkins the young safety with an attitude and charlie garner the explosive back who gives the eagles a dimension few teams have and don't forget the old men 35 year old irving fryer the miracle man at wide receiver and michael zordich the rugged safety who's more grit than glitter more spit than polish [Music] 1997 was simply a bump in the road a detour on the path to success in the end the playoffs proved elusive but this team never stopped fighting through it all the eagles played some of the most exciting football in the nfl [Music] the philadelphia eagles look to the new season with a renewed sense of optimism and more importantly a strong nucleus of proven performers in philadelphia it's time for generation next [Music] so [Music] [Applause] the 1997 home opener matched the eagles against the super bowl champion green bay packers this team is not supposed to beat us [Music] not only would the eagles beat the packers they would hold the green bay offense without a touchdown it was the first time in 85 games that the packers did not score an offensive touchdown all the way back to the sixth game of the 1992 season brett favre's third nfl start eagles fans watch the defense forge one of the most impressive performances in recent nfl history henderson takes a dab fumbles the football and the eagles have it kate fellas on the football first and ten of the eagles [Music] and it's intercepted by hall 35 30 25 20 and all the way down to the 15 red hole in the fourth quarter with the eagles trailing 9-3 the offense started on their own 20 with more than 11 minutes remaining they would put together a 19-play drive controlling the ball for nine minutes and 22 seconds on the first play after the two-minute warning the eagles scored it fourth goal at the packers two-yard line set for back denver throws it into the end zone in the national football league there is a fine line between winning and losing never was that more evident than against the packers he missed it what i want to say guys man i'm proud as hell with all of you every one of you i'm proud of you we talked about it last night we talked about going out and doing the things we know we could do exactly nobody gave us a chance man nobody oh god but guys i'm saying we don't know how good we can be all we gotta do is stay together and keep fighting that's right we went through quarters we went 60 minutes for fighting 60 minutes nobody gave up nobody nobody a week later at texas stadium the eagles made a statement touchdown william thomas he is nfl for 59 minutes the eagles dominated the cowboys it appeared the national tv audience was witnessing the changing of the guard in the nfc east but with one minute remaining a broken play would give dallas the lead what happened next had to be seen to be believed 16 seconds remaining cowboys [Music] [Applause] [Music] spotted [Music] the cowboys escape had a heartbreaking defeat for the eagles they had victory just a 22-yard field goal away this is as tough as it gets it was clear that the eagles could compete with the best teams in the nfc and they were doing it defensively it was a unit that featured 10 starters under the age of 30. [Music] at the corner position philadelphia boasts as strong a duo as there is in the nfl bobby taylor will return from a knee injury in 1998 and troy vincent vincent solidified his place as one of the league's finest cover corners with a brilliant effort against the cowboys michael irvin in the eagles victory at the vet it was one of the highlights of the 1997 season the main man at linebacker is william thomas willie t is now a pro bowl veteran and in 1997 he again staked his claim as the most versatile linebacker in the nfl for the eagles thomas is the playmaker the impact defender who can change the floor of the game with a single play [Music] on the defensive line the strength is at the tackle position red hall stepped up to become a big time pass rusher while hollis thomas the undrafted free agent with the non-stop motor proved to be a force against the run and improving young players like 1997's top two draft choices john harris and james darling and the second round pick a year earlier brian dawkins and this is a defense fueled by youthful aggressiveness three home games in october all against nfc east opponents were dominated by this young defense even 35 year old michael zordich got into the act first it was the redskins they were held to one touchdown as the defense allowed only 228 yards of offense [Music] then against the cardinals came seven quarterback sacks arizona could not do much better than washington a couple of weeks earlier the cards produced only 235 yards of offense [Music] the following week the cowboys came to town they left without seeing the end zone [Music] the result was three victories it was vintage eagles football tough aggressive fighting for 60 minutes longer if you have to winning is an attitude a mindset it's about perseverance and resolve qualities that define the play of kevin turner against the redskins it was turner who proved to be the offensive catalyst two weeks later against the cardinals 60 minutes wouldn't be enough the fight continued in overtime led by rodney pete the eagles found a way to win [Music] of course when the dallas cowboys come to veterans stadium it's never just another game in philadelphia it's part of your birthright to have strong feelings of dislike for the boys from dallas [Music] [Music] a concussion ended troy aikman's afternoon in the first quarter on this day the vet was no place for any opposing quarterback yet again victory would rest with the offense late in the fourth quarter [Music] here it is for the second week in a row rodney pete directed a come from behind victory clock ticking 105 104 will be second [Music] down [Applause] [Music] [Applause] everybody dug down deep everybody on this team dug down deep to get this one done for us they dug all the way down to the bottom their souls pull it out cause we needed everybody we needed everybody i'm proud of you guys man got another one next week let's get ready for it the man defies logic he challenges convention irving fryer is 35 years old he has played in the nfl for 14 seasons the last two with the eagles he caught 88 passes in 1996 86 last year they are the best single season performances in eagles history fryer is the only player to have caught more than 50 passes in each of the last eight seasons and here's one more measure of his consistency and durability entering the 1998 season only eight receivers in nfl history have caught more balls than the reverend [Music] the date was november 16 1997. on that afternoon at baltimore's memorial stadium bobby hoying made his first nfl start it was a bold move by the eagles organization at four and six the playoffs still remained within reach but clearly the season hung in the balance its fate was being placed in the hands of a second-year quarterback who had taken very few snaps the expected early struggles dramatically turned to late successes as hoying battled through his inexperience to direct a game-tying fourth-quarter drive [Music] it was the first sign of the poise and maturity that would soon define the young quarterback gives the garner up the middle he's in for the touchdown charlie corner and the eagles can play it with an extra point [Music] there would now be another period to play and in overtime hawing put the eagles in position to win with the help of an outstanding catch by freddie solomon [Music] but after 75 minutes the game ended in a tie yet there was cause for optimism bobby hoying had performed well under pressure with a new quarterback the eagles would return home for three straight games the 1997 season was clearly on the line first up at the vet the pittsburgh steelers behind an offensive line that featured jermaine mayberry jerry crafts and steve everett hoying picked apart the vaunted steelers defense [Music] is [Music] and the offense gave the eagles the lead with two first quarter touchdowns it would be enough to win as the defense and the special teams produced big play after big play the result was a season-high five turnovers it was a total team victory over one of the nfl's [Music] stewart takes elite snap he's back as all day going deep down the far side and it is and it is going to be intercepted by matt stevens the 1997 eagles were fighting to the finish there would be some exciting football coming up at veterans stadium as the season hit the home stretch [Applause] bobby hoying had energized the team and the city more than anything he brought a feeling of hope and redemption to a season that had seemingly slipped away against the cincinnati bengals hawing was masterful in one stretch that spanned the second and third quarters he guided the eagles to five consecutive [Music] [Applause] he scores [Music] we're waiting for a signal and they are saying out of bounds kevin turner put it on the far sideline let's serve kevin turner's remarkable catch near the end of the third quarter highlighted 507 yards of offense in the fourth quarter deuce staley the eagle's third pick in the 1997 draft set up the final touchdown with this brilliant return it gave the eagles a 41-28 lead yet with one minute remaining they found themselves down by a point it was right of passage time for bobby hoying [Music] here [Music] this could be the eagles season right here the ball is away [Music] generation next had a ride the eagles had won the first two of their three consecutive home games as the chill of december settled in there was a warm sense of renewal at broad and patterson but against the giants the growing pains all young quarterbacks encounter seized hawing at halftime the eagles were in a 21-7 hole but this team never quite goes [Music] but philadelphia could not come all the way back [Music] the loss to the giants realistically ended any chance for the playoffs [Music] 1997 proved to be a roller coaster ride of a season the ups and downs took their toll but the struggle brought the future of this franchise into sharper focus [Music] in the national football league the reality is if you have a big time quarterback you have a chance to compete not only for a playoff spot but for a championship in his six starts bobby hoying showed dramatic signs that he could become that kind of quarterback big plays produce points in the nfl and this eagles offense has its share of playmakers with the return from injury of wide receiver chris t jones who caught 70 balls in 1996 and the increased focus on running back charlie garner the 1998 offense will be quick striking capable of that big play at any time from anywhere on the field [Music] defensively the talent is there and it's young the challenge will be to take that next step and consistently play the kind of dominating football we saw in the first half of the season before injuries took their toll ad bill johnson who with the rams last season made more tackles behind the line of scrimmage than any defensive lineman in the league and former jet hugh douglas with 18 quarterback sacks his first two seasons and this defense will be solid across the board in 1998 ray rhodes begins his fourth season in philadelphia you talk about intense this is a man who has the total respect of his they might players crazy they might say tools is loose they might say all kinds of things about them and they don't care about it but we care about it [Applause] a new season brings new challenges and owner jeffrey luery and executive vice president joe banner are committed to a future of bold aggressive leadership in philadelphia the time has arrived for generation next [Music] you

Channel: Philadelphia Eagles

Views: 3,506

Rating: 5 out of 5

Keywords: eagles, eagles football, football, bobby hoying, philadelphia, philadelphia eagles, nfl, nfl football, 1997 philadelphia eagles, 1997 eagles, nfl season recap, eagles season recap, eagles throwback, nfl throwback, eagles highlights, nfl highlights, nfl yearbook, eagles yearbook, football highlights, 1997 nfl season, 1997 nfl season recap, 1997 eagles recap, william thomas, ray rhodes, ricky watters, charlie garner, irving fryar, brian dawkins, troy vincent, bobby taylor

Id: MCGMzlj4oz8

Length: 24min 19sec (1459 seconds)

Published: Sat May 02 2020