Welcome to Other View, a perspective from members of the media, celebrity Eagles fans and Eagles alumni on the state of the 2014 Eagles that runs here weekly during the season. Today: former Eagles cornerback Herman Edwards, who had 33 interceptions in 135 career games with the Eagles from 1977-85. Edwards has also been a head coach in the NFL with the Jets and Chiefs and is currently an analyst for ESPN. You can follow him on Twitter @HermEdwardsESPN ...*
I feel like I owe a lot to the City of Philadelphia and these fans. Being an Eagle was the right fit for me. I'm a passionate person and the fan base here has that same kind of enthusiasm and love for the team, so it was always special for me to come to work.
I come back to Philadelphia now and everything is so much different. Lincoln Financial Field is a gorgeous stadium. Head coach Chip Kelly has his way of doing things and he's been successful in his time here, with many more wins to come. The game in the NFL is different than it was in my day – and yes, when I played we did wear helmets! With all of that said, what remains the same is the love the fans of Philadelphia have for this team. And it's not just Philadelphia, because I run into so many fans everywhere I am who love the Eagles, who remember the years when I played with the team and who live and die with the results every week now.
What made my time so remarkable and memorable were the ups and downs of the football team and the way we built under Dick Vermeil into a team that went to the Super Bowl. It takes time in this league to put the pieces together. By the time I became an Eagle, we were forming a playoff team. You could see the foundation building. Then we had a taste of success and we were able to keep moving it forward. It required some patience. We built camaraderie together and learned to win, step by step.
Playing in the Super Bowl was a special experience that I can't quite explain and I treasure that. But it doesn't last for long, as we found out when Coach Vermeil left a couple of years later and we went into rebuilding mode with a new coaching staff and a lot of new players.
What stays with me is how the fans were always there for us. Having the chance to come back as the Alumni Captain was an honor. Seeing all of these fans and some people around the building brought back a lot of memories. I'm thankful for the chance to come back and I'm thankful to have some time with the great Eagles fans who have been there and who will always be there for this football team.
