The clock is ticking, Eagles fans.
On April 30th, the NFL Draft will kick off from Chicago, as NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell announces the latest class of NFL talent. To make sure that you're all set for when the Eagles are on the clock for the first time, we're counting down each day with look at each number from 100-1 and the significance that the number holds in Eagles history.
Without further ado, let's continue the countdown …
Quarterback Nick Foles' 80th pass attempt of the 2014 season was a pretty successful one.
In the Eagles' Week 2 Monday Night Football showdown with the Indianapolis Colts, things got off to a rocky start as the Birds fell behind, 20-6 early in the second quarter. But Foles and the Eagles rallied from the two-touchdown deficit and tied the game at 20 in the second half before Andrew Luck and the Colts retook the lead, 27-20, with 5:15 to play in the fourth quarter.
On the ensuing Eagles drive, running back Darren Sproles kickstarted the Eagles' offense by taking a screen pass from Foles 51 yards, moving the chains down to Indianapolis's six-yard line. On the very next play, Foles found wide receiver Jeremy Maclin in the front right corner of the end zone for a game-tying touchdown, slotting the ball right into Maclin's waiting arms. The touchdown pass was Foles' 80th pass attempt of the young season.
After the defense forced a three-and-out, Foles completed two more passes, for 24 and 17 yards, to put the Eagles in the red zone. As time expired, kicker Cody Parkey won the game with a 36-yard kick, a result that wouldn't have been possible without Foles' pinpoint 80th pass attempt of the season.
First Eagle To Wear No. 80: E Granville Harrison (1941)
Most Recent Eagle To Wear No. 80: WR Ron Johnson (2011-12)
WR Irving Fryar
Wide receiver Irving Fryar was an intriguing case. Fryar played 17 years in the NFL, three of which came with the Eagles, and yet Fryar played arguably the best football of his career during his three-year stint in Philadelphia. The unorthodox part of that equation is that Fryar's first year with the Eagles was the 1996 season, when Fryar was already 34 years old.
The No. 1 overall pick in the 1984 NFL Draft, Fryar spent nine seasons with the New England Patriots after they selected him. He showed promise in his first three seasons, but during his time with the Patriots he only eclipsed 1,000 yards in a season once. He was a valuable punt returner during his time in New England, returning three punts for touchdowns and leading the league in yards per return in 1985, but Fryar was never the big-ticket wideout the Patriots expected from the No. 1 overall pick.
So after nine years in the northeast, Fryar headed to South Beach and took up with the Miami Dolphins in 1993, where he promptly reeled off two 1,000-yard seasons in his first two years with his new team. He was voted to the Pro Bowl in both years.
In 1996, when he finally arrived in Philadelphia in the 13th season of his career, Fryar worked the same magic with the Eagles. His first year resulted in an 88-catch, 1,195-yard, 11-touchdown Pro Bowl campaign. The 11 touchdowns and 88 catches were both career highs. The very next year Fryar topped that effort by catching 86 passes for a career-high 1,316 yards and six touchdows, and heading back to the Pro Bowl for a fifth time.
In his third season with the Eagles, his production dipped precipitously, and after two more years spent in Washington, Fryar finally called it a career after the 2000 regular season. It was an amazing, logic-defying, three-decade-spanning career arc for the former No. 1 overall pick, and he spent his two best seasons in the City of Brotherly Love.
