9 Reasons Why Philadelphia Eagles Fans Are The Best Fans On Earth
By Kim Magaraci|Published January 26, 2018
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Kim Magaraci
Author
Kim Magaraci graduated Rutgers University with a degree in Geography and has spent the last seven years as a freelance travel writer. Contact: kmagaraci@onlyinyourstate.com
Well, Eagles fans, we’ve got another chance. With the impressive win over Minnesota last week, we somehow managed to not burn our city down in celebration, and the Eagles are off to a Super Bowl against the dynasty of the New England Patriots.
Videos of the Philly celebrations have gone viral and some critical people are complaining that Philly fans are the worst. Yes, we were rowdy. Yes, we were loud. But what the rest of the country doesn’t understand is just what it’s like to be an Eagles fan. To live and die by your team every single year and not have a Super Bowl ring to show for it. To watch the Giants win four Super Bowls. Nobody really considers our side of the story, so here are a few reasons that we know we’re the best fans on earth.
Other fans have their hotdogs, their cheese hats, their chips, and their burgers. In Philly, we do it right. Local brews from the best breweries in the country, cheesesteaks, hoagies, crab fries, pretzels... there's nothing that comes close to an Eagles tailgate.
Yes, the Eagles have won NFL Championships, but that was before the leagues were merged, and it was years before the first Super Bowl. We've dying to have a Super Bowl ring to hang in the hall of Philadelphia sports accomplishments.
Yeah, we have a mascot, but other teams out there have special sections of the stadium for amped up fans, rally calls, rally towels, or other gimmicky things so that fans can show their loyalty. None of that is needed in Philadelphia - the entire stadium is one big, intense, fan section. In fact, Sports Illustrated polled more than 300 NFL players, who all agreed that Eagles fans are the most intimidating in the sport.
4. It's easy to love an underdog...
Photo Courtesy of Anthony Magaraci
After all, if Rocky IV isn't your favorite anti-communism sports movie of all time, you've clearly got no heart. Surprise surprise, it was written about a Philadelphian.
We finally have a winning season... and our quarterback goes down with a knee injury. We bounce back from that, and we're the underdog in every playoff game. Now, we're on our way to the Super Bowl, and we have to play the Patriots? Not that we're intimidated, but come on...
If the Crisco Cops hadn't spend all day greasing the poles, we probably would have left them alone. But that became a challenge... and clearly it didn't work. Thousands of Eagles fans flooded the streets to cheer on their team with fellow fans, to make friends with strangers, and to celebrate in the weird ways that only Eagles fans can do. Did you see the guy who drove up the Rocky Steps in a dune buggy? That's not going to happen anywhere else but Philadelphia.
Year after year, we pack the stadium, even if the Eagles have no shot. We've sold out every game since 1999, we travel to nearby stadiums, we travel to far away stadiums. We risk frostbite on the coldest stays, and stay out there in the snow. It doesn't matter how well the Birds are playing - we're there.
Philadelphia fans get a lot of heat for being intense, but our hearts are in the right places. We've been living and dying by this team for generations, but we keep it in perspective. Eagles Offensive Tackle Lane Johnson created charity underdog t-shirts with all proceeds donated to Philly schools, and fans have pressued the NFL to donate their proceeds from similar shirts to charity. We'll always be there to help our city out... when the game's not on. For more details on where to find this awesome shirt, click here.
There's nothing that brings Philadelphians together quite like the Eagles. When you want to see the City of Brotherly Love come together, start talking football.
