It was something Head Coach Nick Sirianni stressed when the Eagles reported to the NovaCare Complex way back in the spring. "Last year is last year," was his message, meaning that the team of 2022 was unto itself something unique.
The 2023 team would be as well.
So, with Monday night's game at Kansas City obviously one that is attracting a lot of hype, the Eagles – wall to wall, collectively, no exceptions – say that what happened on February 12 can't be changed and that nobody is looking back.
All eyes are on Monday night.
Cornerback James Bradberry, at his locker on Thursday afternoon at the NovaCare Complex, was asked by a reporter how many conversations he'd had about the Super Bowl during the week. "I didn't have any conversations until just now," he said.
Offensive tackle Jordan Mailata said that Monday night was "one of 17 games, it's as simple as that."
Defensive tackle Fletcher Cox said that watching film was "watching two different defenses. They got different receivers. They got a different offensive line. We can't go back in time."
You get the point. The Eagles are solely focused on winning on Monday night and advancing to 9-1 in this 2023 season. When asked about the feeling he had walking off the field at the end of the Super Bowl, Cox said, "I was already in the locker room. I didn't have any chance to see the confetti fall, none of that. I don't get into all of that.
"I know what it was like to walk off the field a couple of weeks ago at the Linc (after the 28-23 win over Dallas). It felt good. It was a big win for the team, so that was good, and now we move on to the next game."
The Eagles have done a masterful job of avoiding what some have dubbed a "Super Bowl hangover." They have the best record in the NFL and they are a team that used its bye week wisely, sending the players away and giving them needed time off. The health situation is improved, even with tight end Dallas Goedert likely to miss some time with a forearm injury suffered in the win over Dallas.
As they do every week, the coaches and players have watched film and, yes, that included Super Bowl LVII. As Sirianni noted, there was no emotion.
This is, truly, business as usual.
"No. You do that with every game, and there's going to be things that you say, 'Oh, man, that was a really good play.' Or, 'Oh, man, I wish we could have that one back.' Do you find yourself sometimes doing that? Yeah, but you've got to remind yourself that, 'Hey, our job is to get prepared for this game.' What happened in the past happened in the past," Sirianni said. "We'll learn from our mistakes. We'll get better from the things that we did well.
"I'd be lying to say, if I'm like, 'Oh, if this would have just happened or that would have just happened' every once in a while, but we're not dwelling on it."
Thinking about last season would be foolish with a very strong 7-2 Kansas City team waiting. The Chiefs have new players, new schemes, and the same winning record. While the national television audience will be treated to a litany of stories – the Kelce Brothers, the rematch of Jalen Hurts and Patrick Mahomes, the Super Bowl angle, Andy Reid against his former team – all that matters to the Eagles is finding a way to win the game.
"I said it's personal to me because I hate to lose," Mailata said. "That's all. I hate to lose and I'm going to do everything I can to win this game, just like every. We prepare the same way every time we play. We have 17 games and we treat them all the same."
