By Tucker Bagley, Sports Talk Philly staff writer 
Going Deep
Year One of the Doug Pederson era is officially in the books. It had ups, it had downs, and outside of the debut of one Carson Wentz, most of us will probably forget everything about it by the end of the decade.
But for the future of the coach and the future of the franchise, 2016 serves as a baseline for Pederson's success. In February, I wrote about how Pederson should be given three years to turn the Eagles into a solid playoff contender. At 7-9, the Eagles winning percentage for 2016 sits at .438, roughly one win behind the .503 winning percentage Super-Bowl-winning coaches have averaged during their first seasons with their championship franchises.
Considering what little talent Pederson had to work with at certain positions, one more loss isn't too much to bicker over. However, the Eagles will need to make a big jump next season. Of the 27 coaches who didn't win a Super Bowl in their first season, 17 made the playoffs in the second campaign, with eight hoisting the Lombardi Trophy at the end of their sophomore season.
Expecting the Eagles to win the Super Bowl next year seems to be out of the question. There are just too many holes on their roster and with little cap flexibility, they don't have the resources to plug them all at once. But it isn't too much to ask for them to improve by three wins and make the playoffs.
With Lane Johnson expected to play 16 games, the offensive line should be better, but the Eagles need to get Wentz some weapons and shore up their secondary if they want a chance at competing for a division title in the near future.
Trends and precedents aren't an exact science. Pederson and the Eagles could go their own way, buck the trends and make this whole thing seem like a colossal waste of time. But understanding the paths that the previous Super Bowl Champions have taken can help us understand whether or not the Eagles are headed in the right direction.
As of today, the Eagles remain in good shape, but going 7-9 is the easy part. What happens next is what separates the average teams and the forgettable teams from the champions. Good moves by Howie Roseman and smart coaching by Pederson, combined with the development of Wentz will decide this regime's fate.
Injury Report
Did Not Play: Jordan Matthews (ankle), Mychal Kendricks (quad)
Nelson Agholor: With Matthews already out, the Eagles receiving corps was thin, but Agholor went down with an ankle injury of his own in the second quarter and never returned. X-rays were negative, which means Agholor won't have to worry about missing any part of the Eagles offseason workouts. So that's good, I guess.
Numbers Game
34: The Eagles finished 2016 with just 34 sacks, two less than they had a season ago. When snaps are factored in, the Eagles pass rush was a bit more efficient than they were last year, but it's safe to say it was a rather disappointing season for the Birds' front seven. Jim Schwartz's defense was suppose to increase the production of everyone by putting them in their more natural positions, but that really wasn't the case.
Sack numbers were down across the board and Fletcher Cox and Vinny Curry didn't exactly live up to their new contracts. Maybe another season in Schwartz's scheme will help everyone settle in and production will rise.
9: Before yesterday, the Eagles had gone nine years without having a quarterback start all 16 games in the regular season. Donovan McNabb started all 16 games in 2008 and led the Eagles to the NFC Championship Game against the Arizona Cardinals. Wentz didn't have that kind of success this year, but his ability to stay healthy behind an offensive line that was banged up for the majority of the season was impressive.
The stability the Eagles now have at the quarterback position is a luxury they haven't had since McNabb's prime. That is certainly a huge step in the right direction.
4: Four of the Eagles' seven wins came against teams that ended up winning 11 games. Nine of the Eagles games were played against a playoff team and the fact that Wentz was able to win four of them bodes well for the future.
Quotables
Lane Johnson, via text message, after the #Eagles game: pic.twitter.com/VyibjJnXqD
— Jeff McLane (@Jeff_McLane) January 1, 2017
There's no doubting Johnson's talent and his impact on the Eagles offense, but it's hard for a right tackle to seriously change the outcome of the four games the Eagles would've needed to win in order to make the postseason.
Ertz: "We're confident that Doug is going to be here for a long time. Guys love playing for him. Really excited about our future with him."
— Tim McManus (@Tim_McManus) January 2, 2017
Say what you want about Pederson's coaching ability, but the team really has stuck behind him all year. Even when Pederson questioned his team's hustle in Cincinnati and they disagreed, everyone seemed to come back together and the team has fought hard, even though they've had nothing to play for.
I always laugh at people in Philadelphia who call Kelly (10-6, 10-6, 6-9) a disaster with a 55% win rate. https://t.co/3xjDdJ4xcy
— Peter King (@SI_PeterKing) January 1, 2017
I love Peter King. If it wasn't for him, you wouldn't be reading this. But this is the worst take ever. The 2015 Eagles were a complete dumpster fire and they quit on their coach. How many players came to Kelly's defense when he was fired? Zero. That's a major issue.
Three-Step Drop
1. Zach Ertz is once again enjoying his late-season surge in production and I think this may be the year where he's able to carry that over into the next season. This will be the first year Ertz will have the same quarterback in back-to-back years and an entire offseason to build off this momentum with Wentz should pay huge dividends in 2017.
2. Jordan Hicks is simply tremendous. The guy is a certified playmaker and him remaining healthy for the entire year is a huge step for a guy who has been labelled as injury-prone for the majority of his career. Hicks has seven interceptions. Read that again. Seven interceptions. With just 24 games under his belt, Hicks has a chance to grow into the anchor of the Eagles defense. On a team with so little young talent, he's a huge bright spot.
3. With yesterday's results, the Eagles will possess the 14th overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft. They will send the 12th overall pick to the Cleveland Browns. Roseman receives a lot of criticism for some of his moves, but the fact that he was able to move up 11 spots in the draft and not go one year without a first-round pick is impressive. According to the Jimmy Johnson draft chart, the value difference between those two picks is equivalent to the 100th overall pick in the draft. The Eagles were able to get that value for a guy who had no future here in Sam Bradford. Good work, Mr. Roseman.
Who's Next
No one. 🙁
