The Eagles 11-4 record this year has been nothing short of remarkable. No team in the NFL has been hit harder by the injury bug, and yet somehow they still keep on winning. Andy Reid certainly deserves a lot of credit for both building a deep team in the salary cap era and coaching a winning team whose offensive line and linebackers are seemingly brand new each week. The offensive line injury reports have been as thick as In Search of Lost Time. Kevin Curtis missed the majority of the season, and Jeremy Maclin missed time as well. Brian Westbrook was rendered essentially useless due to concussions. They went into the season thinking that Stewart Bradley would anchor their defense. He never played a game. It was the start of a long line of injured and ineffective linebacker play that got so bad that they re-signed Trotter, who hadn’t played since 2007. The defensive secondary tackle like they are trying out for the Lingerie Football League. The big knock on both Reid and McNabb was that they couldn’t win close games, yet they won their last four games decided by a TD or less. The simple fact is that the Eagles have been hit by both injuries and ineffectiveness, and yet have somehow found a way to win. According to football insider, about 20% of win changes year to year are attributable to injury alone, so they really should be worse than 9-6-1, not better. Keep in mind that they also lost the heart of their defense, B-Dawk, and longtime O-line stalwart Jon Runyan, before the season began. They have overcome tragedy as well as injury and defection, as Defensive Coordinator Jim Johnson lost his battle with cancer before the season began.  And yet, here they are, one win away from a first round bye in the playoffs. Nothing short of remarkable.

Of course, part of this has been an easy schedule. They are 11-1 against non-playoff teams. Meanwhile, they are 0-3 against playoff teams. So our vote for Andy Reid comes with a caveat. He must win this Sunday at Dallas. It won’t be easy, especially after losing Jamaal Jackson. But the fact is that this team has effectively fought off injuries all season long, and they will come prepared for this game on Sunday.

If Reid leads the team to victory, I don’t know of any coach in the NFL who is more deserving of the crown. Sean Payton’s team has been healthy, and yet they are floudering. Brad Childress has two of the best weapons in football, and yet they seem to be imploding down the stretch. Jim Caldwell should not win it, as it should only be given to coaches with spines. Norv Turner is a bum, and will blow it in the first round of the playoffs. The only other coach I see who really can even be in the discussion with Reid is Marvin Lewis, who has turned around a really bad franchise despite tragedy. I will understand if he wins the award. But if it’s anyone else besides Reid, it will be an outrage…provided he wins this Sunday.