By: Jesse Larch, Sports Talk Philly editor 
The Eagles tied their best regular season record in franchise history in 2017, signaling a turning point for a franchise that many believed was still rebuilding. Vaulting themselves into the conversation as a team that will contend for years to come, the Eagles have plenty of players and staff members to thank.
Below I will single out just a few of the many deserving people who turned around the Eagles in one short offseason.
Man of the Year
Each year the NFL gives out the Man of the Year award to a player who makes an outstanding impact in their community. The Eagles have two players who deserve consideration for the award not only in the Eagles community, but consideration for the league-wide award.
Malcolm Jenkins and Chris Long have brought not only great leadership to the locker room this season, but also tremendous character.
Jenkins is known for his social activism for which he appeared on CNN to publicly discuss, and also runs his own philanthropy, The Malcolm Jenkins Foundation. The Malcolm Jenkins Foundation is committed to youth development in under-served communities through programs and initiatives that emphasize education, character development, leadership, life skills, health and recreation.
Jenkins also led a players coalition with former NFL wide receiver Anquan Boldin to address the much publicized player protests with the league and its owners.
Jenkins was named as the Eagles nominee for the league's Walter Payton Man of the Year award.
Chris Long also made huge contributions this season by playing all 16 games for free. Long decided to donate his first six game checks of the season to a scholarship program in his hometown of Charlottesville, VA following the tense protests between opposing political groups that resulted in one protester using a vehicle as a weapon to ram through a crowd.
After these six games passed Long decided to donate his remaining 10 game checks to a new initiative called "Pledge 10 for Tomorrow." Long opted donate all of his 16 game checks to improving access that less fortunate children have to adequate education.
Long and Jenkins, joined by teammate Torrey Smith, went to Harrisburg to meet with legislators and advocate the passing of the Clean Slate Act, a bill that seals non-violent misdemeanors from employers during background checks, allowing people who normally would be turned down from a job to have a reasonable chance of finding work.
Malcolm Jenkins and Chris Long are both the Eagles' Man of the Year.
Rookie of the Year
The Eagles received contributions from Derek Barnett, Rasul Douglas, and Mack Hollins throughout the season, but one rookie shines above them all.
Jake Elliott is easily the Eagles' rookie of the year. Elliott was called into action off of the Cincinnati Bengals practice squad after incumbent kicker Caleb Sturgis suffered a leg injury. Elliott had a rocky start for the Eagles with a plethora of missed kicks but righted the ship to become reliable, especially from 40 or more yards away.
Elliott finished fourth in the league in percentage from 40-49 yards of kickers with at least 10 attempts. He was also seventh in percentage from 50 or more yards among kickers with at least four attempts. Elliott was a combined 17-for-19 from 40 or more yards.
His long-range kicking also led to the Eagles' play of the year.
Play of the Year
The Eagles' play of the year is a no-brainer. It is Jake Elliott's franchise-record 61-yard field goal that sealed a victory over the New York Giants. The play was talked about for weeks and made Elliott and instant legend in Eagles' lore. You can relive the kick below:
Coach of the Year
Doug Pederson deserves to win coach of the year this season. But he has not accomplished it alone. Pederson has had a fantastic staff behind him from defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz to quarterbacks coach John DeFilippo (who are both receiving head coaching interest) the supporting cast has done as much to get the Eagles to the top seed.
With as great as the whole staff has been, one assistant rises above all, and that is Duce Staley. Staley has been tasked with managing a stable of running backs and pleasing egos along the way, especially after the Eagles acquired Jay Ajayi who was reportedly a player with major character concerns.
Staley put those concerns to bed quickly and his running backs did not miss a beat after acquiring Ajayi, just like they did not miss a beat after lead back Darren Sproles was lost for the season in week two.
The Eagles offense third in the league in rushing with 132.2 yards per game on the ground. The rushing attack has allowed the Eagles to consistently move the ball and control the clock all season long, and without Duce Staley's work with the running backs it would be a very different scenario.
Comeback Player of the Year
With the number of season-ending injuries that the eagles faced this season it will be easier to pick a comeback player after next season, but there is one player who rebounded not from injury, but rather a dismal season in 2016.
Mychal Kendricks went from being rarely used in 2016 under Jim Schwartz to often supplanting Schwartz-favorite Nigel Bradham in two-linebacker sets in 2017.
Kendricks had just 20 tackles and eight assists in 2016 to go with zero sacks in 2016. This season Kendricks approved across the board with 51 tackles, 22 assists, and two sacks. He also defensed six passes.
The biggest leap is in Kendricks's number of snaps. In 2016 he received 273 snaps on the season, which equals 26.79% of the team's total defensive snaps. In 2017 Kendricks received 613 snaps, putting him on the field for 59.57% of the team's defensive snaps.
Defensive Player of the Year
The Eagles rode a strong defense all season long, and there are many candidates to be the team's defensive player of the year. There are the obvious choices like Malcolm Jenkins, or Brandon Graham, but for this award I went with an unsung player.
Patrick Robinson is the team's defensive player of the year.
Robinson brought low expectations with him when the Eagles signed him in free agency, with many thinking that he would be Leodis McKelvin all over again, but Robinson turned in one of the most efficient seasons of any cornerback in football in 2017:
The top graded CBs this season 🔒 pic.twitter.com/cIQeXLWA06
— Pro Football Focus (@PFF) December 27, 2017
Robinson was not only exceptional in pass coverage, leading the team with four interceptions, but he was also outstanding in run support, being a major contributor to the Eagles' rush defense that finished ranked as the top unit in the entire NFL allowing 79.2 yards per game on the ground.
In addition to pacing the team in interceptions, Robinson also led the team with 18 passes defensed and finished fifth in tackles with 38. He also picked up a sack.
Robinson also demonstrated versatility by stepping up and starting eight games for the Eagles after Ronald Darby dislocated his ankle in week one. Without Robinson, the Eagles' difference would have looked very different in 2017.
MVP/Offensive Player of the Year
There is only one player worthy of this honor: Carson Wentz.
Wentz was the league's front-runner for MVP virtually all season long before a torn ACL ended his season three games short.
In 2017 Wentz broke Sonny Jurgenson's franchise record for passing touchdowns in a season with 33 in just 13 games. Wentz displayed his toughness by throwing the record breaking touchdown after he tore his ACL just a few plays earlier. That toughness gave the Eagles an edge all season long that filtered throughout the roster.
Wentz led the Eagles to an 11-2 record by making highlight-reel plays regularly. In just his second season he finished second in the NFL in passing touchdowns, one behind Russell Wilson in three less games played.
Wentz was the engine of the team's offense, the unquestioned leader in the locker room, and without a doubt the team's most valuable player.
