After seven years of almosts, Philadelphia finally got the chance to again celebrate a national championship on Friday with the Eagles’ Super Bowl 59 victory parade.
It was the Birds’ second Super Bowl title in seven years, and the team’s third Super appearance over that span, plus a powerhouse Phillies squad that has become a perennial World Series contender, raises a question: Can Philly’s fanbase honestly claim the title “underdogs”?
We asked some of the million-plus who came out for Friday’s celebrations what they thought.
“We are the underdogs,” said Stephanie Cohen, 31, from Philly. “Nobody will believe in us, but we always gonna believe in us.”
For 20-year-old Xavier Campbell, from Newark, Del., it isn’t about if the team makes the postseason consistently. The underdog label carries over into the playoffs, when most people still don’t see Philly teams as the favorites.
“Everybody knows they’re gonna make it to the playoffs, but they think [we’re] a first-round exit every year,” Campbell said. “And they really showed them with their domination against the Chiefs. They really put out there how much they want to win.”
Fans from older generations — those who waited 52 years to win a first Super Bowl and suffered through the long stretches of hard-to-watch teams — said these days are differemt. Mark Werley, 54, of Greenwich Township, N.J., said that the underdog label doesn’t fit anymore.
But he still said Philly teams should keep it.
“As you saw in the Super Bowl, everybody was talking about the Chiefs, and we were the underdogs,” Werley said. “So I think as a city — with ‘Rocky’ — we thrive by that term, underdog, and we like it. But the way we’re going, I think the underdog’s off the picture now. We’re the premier sports team.”
67-year-old Joe Ruffo, from Washington Township, N.J., agreed that the label can serve as otivation.
“In order to be a winner, you have to want it,” he said. “And as an underdog, you’re the guys that want it. You want it more. I think that goes back to what [Jason] Kelce said at the art museum in 2018, ‘A hungry dog runs faster.’ ”
For one younger fan, the recent prosperous years ARE the truth, and maybe it’s time to embrace the new identity.
“I’m only 24, so all I know is winning,” said Andrew Wallace, who flew in from California to watch the parade with family and friends outside the Linc. “We had a couple bad seasons when I was growing up, but we’re blessed right now. All we’re seeing is winning.”
“It was different in 2017-2018, winning Super Bowl 52, like the team was, that was just a crazy year. But now, we might be growing up in a dynasty right now,” Wallace said. “Honestly, everybody’s young — [Jaylen] Hurts, Saquan [Barkley], the whole offense — everybody’s locked up … We’re looking at greatness right now. The city is at an all-time high.”
Billy Penn’s Meir Rinde contributed to this reporting.
