When last season started, quarterback Nick Foles was on the bench for the Eagles. When it ended, he’d established the best touchdown to interception ratio in league history by throwing 27 touchdowns and just two interceptions.
Anyone who believes that Foles is going to have a difficult time doing that again has company in Foles himself. Foles knows that last year’s results have no bearing on how he’ll play this year, but he also knows that he can throw two interceptions in the first week of the season and still wind up as a better player by the end of the year if he leads the Eagles to more success.
“Our team isn’t measured by my 27-2,” Foles said, via the Philadelphia Inquirer. “Can I be a good-enough leader to where I can make these guys better players around me to where it makes the team better and we win? Now, I might not ever reach those [statistics] again. ... I hope I do. I want to get better and I want to be a better player. But if you’re just looking primarily at statistics, you might not ever.”
Foles threw seven touchdowns in a game last season, something that also may never happen again and something that also doesn’t have any bearing on whether or not he’ll go on to a long and successful career as an NFL quarterback. Given the talent on the Eagles offense and Foles’ comfort level after a year running the show, he’s well-positioned to take the Eagles to the playoffs again even with a less remarkable stat line.