As I sit here thinking about how the Eagles are World Champions , I find myself reflecting on the reasons I became a die hard Eagles fan. One era comes to my mind, The Buddy Ryan era. I’m a 46 year old man who grew up in the Somerton Section of NE Philly. My first experience as a football fan came in 1986 as a brash, cocky, and as some would say, a little arrogant defensive coordinator named Buddy Ryan came to Philadelphia to be the Head coach of the Eagles. Ryan was riding high as the architect of the famed “46” defense, which the Chicago Bears used to win the 1985 Super Bowl. That defense was arguably the greatest in NFL history as they led the league in forced turnovers and surrendered the fewest yards, points, and first downs. The “46” struck fear into many opposing QBs and took the league by storm. Ryan’s aggressive style and loyalty to his defensive squad made them love playing for him. After the SB victory the defense carried him off the field, the first for an NFL coach.
While the Chicago success allowed Buddy to be noticed enough to get the head coaching job in Philadelphia, Ryan had a long and illustrious career beforehand.
Ryan’s career started in College at the University of Buffalo. Ryan became the defensive line coach from 1962 through 1965. His defense would post 12 shutouts in that time. Ryan was offered a job to coach the defensive line of the AFL’s Buffalo Bills in 1964 but he decided to stay with UB collecting a 2,000 dollar raise.
Ryan’s first pro coaching job came with the New York Jets of the AFL in 1968. He would come on as the defensive line and linebackers coach. He and Walt Michaels defensive game plan was credited with holding the vaunted Colts offense to 7 points in Super Bowl III and allowing the Jets to complete one of the greatest upsets in SB history. Ryan would remain with the Jets through 1975.
In 1976 and 1977 Ryan was the defensive line coach for the Minnesota Vikings. The Vikings defensive line were known as the “purple people eaters.” The Vikings made the SB in 1976 and the championship game the following year. While he was titled defensive line coach, head coach Bud Grant let Ryan run the defense. It was in Minnesota that Ryan started working on the nickel scheme that was the early basis of the 46 defense.
Ryan left the Vikings for the division rival Bears in 1978. This was his first gig as defensive coordinator. It was in Chicago where he perfected the 46 defense. The defense was named after Bear’s safety Doug Plank but really wasn’t polished until the great Mike Singletary became the middle linebacker in 1981. Singletary became one of the greatest middle linebackers in NFL history and allowed Ryan’s Defense to excel. When Head coach Neill Armstrong was fired in 1982 the players spoke up and urged ownership to keep Ryan on as defensive coordinator. Mike Ditka was hired as head coach and kept Buddy on staff. At times, the two had a rocky relationship and almost came to blows at halftime during the Bears only loss in 1985 to the Miami Dolphins. The two may not have always seen eye to eye but no one can argue the results as the 1985 Bears are revered to this day for their dominant season.
On January 28th 1986 the city of Philadelphia was introduced to Buddy Ryan. Ryan was hired as head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles replacing Marion Campbell. The Eagles had been struggling in mediocrity since their last playoff appearance in the 1981 season. Gone were the glory days of the Vermeil era and the trip to the 1980 Super Bowl. Campbell had been a successful defensive coordinator under Vermeil but he struggled as head coach. The 1985 Eagles had a 7-9 record which in the NFL is about as bad as can be. The Eagles weren’t bad enough to get a top draft pick but weren’t good enough to compete. In fact, the state of the team was so down that the franchise almost moved to Arizona in 1984. Former owner Leonard Tose had a bad gambling problem and nearly sold the team on the condition they moved to Arizona. Norman Braman stepped in and bought the team in 1985. Braman had his flaws and wasn’t a very good owner, but at least he kept the team in Philadelphia. Braman would own the Eagles till 1994 when he sold them to the current owner, Jeffrey Lurie.
Ryan came to Philly and immediately made his mark. He released running back Earnest Jackson who had rushed for 1,000 yards in each of the previous 2 seasons. He also limited the playing time of veteran QB Ron Jaworski in favor of playing 2nd year QB Randall Cunningham. Jaworski was a great Eagle but the team was going nowhere. These moves were very bold at the time, but Buddy was looking at the bigger picture. It was time for a brand new start and a new direction. While the team lacked a lot of talent, Ryan did inherit a few star players in DE Reggie White, WR Mike Quick, and though it wasn’t known yet, QB Randall Cunningham. Ryan gave the keys to Randall which changed the fortunes of football in Philadelphia. Due to Randall’s exciting style of play, many people from around the country became Eagles fans based off of watching his electric talents. Randall would become nicknamed “The Ultimate Weapon” thanks to his dual threat abilities as a runner and thrower. Randall helped revolutionize the QB position into what It has become today. Many kids throughout America watched Randall play, which influenced future stars like Michael Vick and Donavon McNabb to realize they too could lead a franchise at the QB position.
1986 is the year where I fell in love with sports, football, and in particular Ryan’s Philadelphia Eagles. My uncle Mark had season tickets in the famous “700” level at the vet. I’ll never forget my first game vs the Detroit Lions. Both teams struggled in 1986, but I’ll never forget the thrill of walking up all those ramps to get to our seats. I was only 8 years old but I still remember the excitement! Plus the 700 level gave a boy a certain education about life. The Eagles weren’t ready to win in 1986 as they finished with a 5-10-1 record. Technically a step back record wise, but the team had built a solid foundation going forward. The 1986 draft brought great talent. In the first round the Eagles selected RB Keith Byars from Ohio State as the 10th pick overall. Byars had a foot issue and never became the great runner many expected, but he had a great career as a blocker and receiver. Ask any Eagles fan about blocks and immediately Byars hit on his good friend Pepper Johnson of the Giants in 1990 comes to mind. The team also added RB Anthony Toney in the second round and starting T Matt Darwin in the 4th round. It was later in the draft where Ryan’s keen eye for defensive talent would show. In the 8th round they drafted LB Seth Joyner and in the 9th round DE Clyde Simmons. Both Joyner and Simmons would be star players of what would become the famous “gang green defense” in Philly. Both players would have long careers in the NFL. Simmons would go on to have 121.5 sacks in a 15 year career. Seth Joyner would become one of the best LB’s in football during that era. Seth could do it all. He could blitz, cover the TE or a RB, and he was sound against the run. Joyner’s performance in the 1991 Monday night game in Houston still sticks out to me as one of the top LB performances in a single game I’ve ever seen. He was all over the field that night and I vividly remember Dan Dierdorf gushing at his performance.
In 1987 Ryan’s team started to improve and show they were close to competing with the big boys soon. The draft netted great talent again in DT Jerome Brown at 9 overall from the University of Miami, MLB Byron Evans in the 4th round, starting center David Alexander in the 5th round and WR Chris Carter in the 4th round of the supplemental draft. Carter would have a few good years in Philly through 1989 but then was cut in 1990. Carter was a great talent but had a drug problem in Philly. Buddy Ryan was criticized at the time for cutting Carter, famously saying all he does is catch Touchdowns. According to Carter Buddy may have saved his life. In my opinion the 87 season was the springboard for the future playoff success to follow. Randall was now the full time starter and had some impressive wins. One in particular was at the vet where the Eagles beat the eventual world champion Washington Redskins. 1987 was also the year where the great Reggie White had his best season as a pro. Reggie is the only player in NFL history to have over 20 sacks in only 12 games. Reggie was a great player, but Ryan’s 46 Defense allowed White to line up over the center, which created a mismatch. That combined with Jerome Brown playing on the same line made the defensive line a force. Reggie only played 12 games because of the player strike in 87. This was another turning point for the era. The NFL had teams play replacement players for 3 games in weeks 4, 5, and 6. Ryan, known for being a player’s coach, was loyal to his guys. The Eagles would go on to lose all 3 games with the replacements, but Buddy’s players forever would have his back for the loyalty he showed them. Dallas had a bunch of players cross the picket line in the first matchup vs the Eagles and they demolished the Birds replacement players 41-22. Ryan was furious, especially since Dallas was coached by long time coach Tom Landry. Landry had a great reputation for being classy so this fired Buddy up. In Week 7 Buddy got his revenge on Tom Landry and the Cowboys. With the game already decided Buddy had Randall fake a knee and throw a deep pass down the field. Pass interference was called, the Eagles scored a TD and the crowd went nuts. It was pure Buddy, pure Philly, and the city loved it. Philly hates Dallas and Ryan loved to stick it to the Cowboys any time he could. My friends and I thought it was the greatest thing in the world. Screw Tom Landry, screw Dallas! The Eagles were on the way to contention.
1988 was the year where the Eagles finally made it back to the playoffs, winning the NFC East with a 10-6 record. They also appeared on Monday Night Football for the first time since 1981 as they hosted the New York Giants on the national stage. This game and season propelled Cunningham to stardom. The Giants game is where Randall eluded a sack from the Giants Carl Banks and hit TE Jimmie Giles for the TD. The whole nation was able to see what Philadelphia had been witnessing previously. As in the 2 years prior the draft served the Eagles well. TE Keith Jackson was selected at 13 overall from Oklahoma and CB Eric Allen was picked in the 2nd round. The team also drafted CB Izel Jenkins in the 11th round. Jenkins had the nickname toast as he was often the target for the opposition instead of Eric Allen, but in all fairness, to be a starter as an 11th round pick wasn’t that bad. In my opinion the 1988 Eagles were the biggest missed opportunity of the Ryan Era. The Eagles lost to the Chicago Bears in the divisional playoffs in the famous “Fog Bowl.” That week was already crazy as Ryan had the team blare the bus horns going into Chicago as he took on his former team. The Eagles dominated the first half, moving up and down the field but a few costly penalties ruined drives. The Eagles would go on to lose 20-12. The Bears would lose to the eventual SB champion 49ers the following week. The 49ers would go on to win their 3rd SB of the 80’s beating the Bengals. I contend that this was the weakest of the 49ers dynasty and the Eagles would’ve had more than a puncher’s chance of winning even in San Francisco. To this day, just thinking about that fog bowl game makes me mad. It was such a golden opportunity.
After finally breaking through in 1988, there was a ton of optimism for the 1989 season. The league knew the Eagles were on the rise. The draft wasn’t as great as previous years. They did add a few solid pieces in LB Jessie Small in round 2. Special teams LB and part timer Britt Hager in round 3 and RB Heath Sherman in round 6. Sherman really wouldn’t contribute for a couple of years but as a 6th rounder was a solid pro. The Eagles traded their first round pick in1989 to the Colts for Guard Ron Solt. Solt was a major disappointment and the trade never worked out. This was Ryan’s first real attempt at upgrading the offensive line. In his tenure they never used a high pick on an offensive lineman. In my opinion it was the offensive line weakness that kept this team from achieving playoff success. As talented as the Eagles were defensively, the offensive line held them back. In 1989 the team would go 11-5 but finish 2nd to the Giants in the East. They would lose at the vet to the Los Angeles Rams 21-7 in an ugly, rainy New Years Eve day game. The offense was totally stymied and for the first time I really started to see the warts of not putting enough resources on the offensive side of the ball. As much as I loved Buddy, his blind spot of just telling Randall to make a few big plays was costing the team. Owner Norman Braman was also becoming tired of being called “the guy in France,” as Buddy would refer to him. Going into 1990 Buddy was on the last year of his 5 year contract and the pressure was on.
In 1990 The Eagles did add some resources to the offense. They had a great draft. In the first round they added DB Ben Smith at number 22, but they added two starting WR’s in Fred Barnett in round 3 and Calvin Williams in round 5. Both WR’s would have years of success in Philly. Ironically the team missed on WR Mike Bellamy from Illinois in round 2 as he never panned out. The 1990 season started off rough. The Eagles lost the first two games and many wondered if Ryan would’ve been fired with a week 3 loss in LA at the Rams. The team rebounded and won, ultimately winning 10 games and hosting the Redskins in the wild card game. Randall had his best season as a pro despite having two rookie starting WR’S. 1990 had many great memories and moments. Randall had the iconic TD pass to Fred Barnett in Buffalo after eluding a sack from future Hall of Fame DE Bruce Smith. Who can forget the Body Bag game vs Washington. Eagles fans still smile when thinking of that game. Ultimately the season ended the same as the previous two, a first round playoff loss. This one was really brutal because you just knew the era was about to come to an end. Washington beat the Eagles 20-6 at the Vet. Randall was benched during the game. It was only a matter of time before the “guy in France” fired Ryan. With Ryan’s firing, the era was over.
While the Era didn’t bring the playoff success I wanted, I can’t help but smile when I think of those teams. Ryan came at the exact right moment in time. He brought a swagger and confidence to this city. Sports Radio was new, but it was a must listen to for Philly sports fans. His words were back page headlines. The Body Bag game, The Pork Chop Bowl, The Fog Bowl, Randall signing a huge extension in 1989, and bringing the team back in Washington to win in RFK. Ryan put together an all time great defense. Even though he wasn’t here in 1991, the defense put up an all time season finishing number one in yards against, rushing yards and passing yards. I contend that in 1991, had Randall not gotten hurt, the Eagles would have won the Super Bowl. I also think that if Jerome Brown had not tragically died before the 1992 season, that they would’ve won it all. I also wonder what could have been if Jeffrey Lurie owned the team back then. Braman was known as “Bottom Line Braman” and didn’t invest in the team or the players. It’s rumored the players had to buy their own socks.
While I recognize the Lurie era from 1994 to current day has been much more successful, I will always love the team that made me fall in love with the sport and the Eagles. Buddy Ryan may not have obtained the ultimate glory in a Super Bowl win, but the man brought a lot of smiles and memories to this area. He will go down as one of the greatest defensive minds to ever coach.
Thank you Buddy and Go Birds!!!
