1978 Philadelphia Eagles season
Head Coach Dick Vermeil
Home Field
Results
Record 9–7
Place 2nd NFC East
Playoff Finish Lost Wildcard
Timeline
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Next season
1977
1979
The 1978 Philadelphia Eagles season
Off Season The Eagles held their last training camp at Widener University in the city of Chester, in Delaware County, Pennsylvania)
NFL Draft The 1978 NFL Draft The draft was held May 2–3, 1978. The league also held a supplemental draft after the regular draft and before the regular season. The draft was 12 rounds long with a total of 334 players selected.
The Eagles, because of previous trades made, had to wait until the 3rd round for their first pick. They would only have 7 picks and of these 7 players selected, 5 made the team and played during the season. With the 66th pick the Eagles as their first pick in the draft the Philadelphia Eagles selected Reggie Wilkes a Linebacker out of Georgia Tech.
The number 1 overall pick in the draft was taken by the Houston Oilers who selected the 1977 Heisman Trophy winner, Earl Campbell [1] Running Backout of the University of Texas
Future Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee, in 2006, Warren Moon , a Quarterback from University of Washington, went undrafted. He is also in the Canadian Football League's Hall of Fame.
Player Selections The table shows the Eagles selections and what picks they had that were traded away and the team that ended up with that pick. It is possible the Eagles' pick ended up with this team via another team that the Eagles made a trade with.
Not shown are acquired picks that the Eagles traded away.
Rd
PICK
PLAYER
POS
SCHOOL
1 8 Pick Traded to Cincinnati Bengals
2 35 Pick Traded to
3 66 Reggie Wilkes Linebacker Georgia Tech
4 92 Dennis Harrison Defensive tackle Vanderbilt
5 118 Pick Traded to
5 130 Norris Banks Acquired Pick Running back Kansas
6 145 Pick Traded to
7 176 Pick Traded to
7 186 Greg Marshall Acquired Vikings Pick Defensive tackle Oregon State
8 204 Pick traded to
9 230 Charles Williams Defensive back Jackson State
10 261 Pick traded to
11 288 Bill Campfield Running back Kansas
12 315 Mark Slater Center Minnesota
Pre Season On August 5, the NFL played its first game in Mexico City. The New Orleans Saints beat the Philadelphia Eagles by a score of 14–7.[3] Regular Season The Miracle at the Meadowlands is the term used by sportscasters and Philadelphia Eagles fans for a fumble recovery by cornerback Herman Edwards that he returned for a touchdown at the end of a November 19, 1978 NFL game against the New York Giants in Giants Stadium . It was seen as miraculous because it occurred at a point in the game when the Giants were easily capable of running out the game's final seconds. The Giants had the ball, and the Eagles had no timeouts left. Everyone watching expected quarterback Joe Pisarcik to take one more snap and kneel with the ball , thus running out the clock and preserving a 17–12 Giant upset. Instead, he attempted to hand it off to fullback Larry Csonka and botched it, allowing Edwards to pick up the ball and run 26 yards for the winning score.
Week
Date
Opponent
Result
Attendance
1
September 3, 1978
Los Angeles Rams
L 16–14
64,721
2
September 10, 1978
at Washington Redskins
L 35–30
54,380
3
September 17, 1978
at New Orleans Saints
W 24–17
49,242
4
September 24, 1978
Miami Dolphins
W 17–3
62,998
5
October 1, 1978
at Baltimore Colts
W 17–14
50,314
6
October 8, 1978
at New England Patriots
L 24–14
61,016
7
October 15, 1978
Washington Redskins
W 17–10
65,722
8
October 22, 1978
at Dallas Cowboys
L 14–7
60,525
9
October 29, 1978
St. Louis Cardinals
L 16–10
62,989
10
November 5, 1978
Green Bay Packers
W 10–3
64,214
11
November 12, 1978
New York Jets
W 17–9
60,249
12
November 19, 1978
at New York Giants
W 19–17
70,318
13
November 26, 1978
at St. Louis Cardinals
W 14–10
39,693
14
December 3, 1978
at Minnesota Vikings
L 28–27
38,722
15
December 10, 1978
Dallas Cowboys
L 31–13
64,667
16
December 17, 1978
New York Giants
W 20–3
56,396
Game Recap Week 1 vs LA Rams
Week 1: Philadelphia Eagles vs Los Angeles Rams
1
2
3
4
Total
Rams
3
3
0
10
16
Eagles
0
0
0
14
14
at Veterans Stadium on AstroTurf,
Date : Sunday, September 3, 1978Game time : 1:00 p.m. EST Game weather : 76 degrees, wind 9 mph[1]
Game information
1st quarter
Rams – Frank Corral 29 yard field goal, Rams 3–0
2nd quarter
Rams – Frank Corral 47 yard field goal, Rams 6–0
3rd quarter
4th quarter
Rams – Nolan Cromwell 0 yard fumble return (Frank Corral kick), Rams 13–0
Eagles – Ken Payne 24 yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Nick Mike-Mayer kick) Rams 13–7
Eagles – Wally Henry 57 yard punt return (Nick Mike-Mayer kick), Eagles 14–13
Rams – Frank Corral 46 yard field goal, Rams 16–14
Passing
Eagles – Ron Jaworski: 7 of 17 for 102 yards, 1 TD, 1 ints
Rams – Pat Haden: 14 of 33 for 154 yards, O TD, 0 ints
Rushing
Eagles – 30 Att, 128 Yards, 0 TDS
Wilbert Montgomery, 12 Att, 46 yards, 1 TD
Rams – 33 Att, 103 Yards, 0 TDS
Wendell Tyler – 10 Att, 36 yards, 0 TD
Receiving
Eagles – Harold Carmichael: 1 rec, 32 yards, 0 TD
Rams – Willie Miller: 3 rec, 44 yards, 0 TD
NFC East Standing
Dallas, New York & Washington (1–0); Philadelphia & St. Louis (0–1)
Week 9 vs St Lou Cardinals The St Louis Cardinals come into the game with a win less record of 0–8 against the 4th place 4 wins and 4 loses Philadelphia Eagles.
Week 1: Philadelphia Eagles vs St Louis Cardinals
1
2
3
4
Total
Cardinals
0
13
0
3
16
Eagles
0
10
0
0
10
at Veterans Stadium on AstroTurf,
Date : Sunday, September 3, 1978Game time : 1:00 p.m. EST Game weather : 52 degrees, wind 8 mph[2]
Game information
1st quarter
2nd quarter
Eagles – Nick Mike-Mayer 25 yard field goal, Eagles 3 – 0
Cardinals – Jim Otis 7 yard rush (kick failed) Cardinals 6 – 3,'
Eagles – Harold Carmichael 33 yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Nick Mike-Mayer kick), Eagles 10 – 6
Cardinals – Dave Stief 55 yard pass from Jim Hart (Jim Bakken kick) Cardinals 13 – 10
3rd quarter
4th quarter
4th Cardinals – Jim Bakken 31 yard field goal Cardinals 16 – 10
NFC East Standing
Washington (7–2)
Dallas (6–3)
New York (5–4)
Philadelphia (4–5)
St. Louis (1–8)
Passing
Eagles – Ron Jaworski: 21 of 40 for 231 yards, 1 TD, 1 ints
Cardinals – Jim Hart: 12 of 24 for 260 yards, 1 TD, 3 ints
Rushing
Eagles – 28 Att, 132 Yards, 0 TDS
Billy Campfield, 10 Att, 74 yards, 0 TD
Cardinals – 35 Att, 94 Yards, 1 TDS
Jim Otis – 22 Att, 72 yards, 1 TD
Receiving
Eagles – Harold Carmichael: 7 rec, 126 yards, 1 TD
Cardinals – Mel Gray: 2 rec, 76 yards, 0 TD
Team Stats STL PHI
First downs STL 15 – PHIL 19
Rush-yards-TDs STL 35–94–1 – PHIL 28–132–0
Comp-Att-Yd-TD-INT
STL 12–24–260–1–3
PHIL 21–40–231–1–3
Sacked-yards STL 0–0 – PHIL 2–11
Net pass yards STL 260 – PHIL 220
Total yards STL 354 – PHIL 352
Fumbles-lost STL 4–0 – PHIL 4–2
Turnovers STL 3 – PHIL 5
Penalties-yards STL 7–53 – PHIL 6–45
Week 11 vs NY Jets
Week 11: Philadelphia Eagles vs New York Jets
1
2
3
4
Total
Jets
0
3
6
0
9
Eagles
0
7
3
7
17
at Veterans Stadium on AstroTurf,
Date : Sunday, November 12, 1978Game time : 1:00 p.m. EST Game weather : 50 degrees, wind 9 mph[3]
Game information
1st quarter
No Scoring
2nd quarter
Rams – Frank Corral 47 yard field goal, Rams 6 – 0
Eagles – Harold Carmichael 18 yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Nick Mike-Mayer kick) Eagles 7 – 3
3rd quarter
Eagles – Nick Mike-Mayer 39 yard field goal Eagles 10 – 3
Jets Kevin Long 5 yard rush (kick failed) Eagles 10 – 9
4th quarter
Jets – Pat Leahy 41 yard field goal Jets 3–0
Eagles – Harold Carmichael 6 yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Nick Mike-Mayer kick) Eagles 17 – 9
NFC East Standing
Washington (8–3)
Dallas (7–4)
Philadelphia (6–5)
New York & (5–6)
St. Louis (3–8)
Other Teams
Los Angeles (9–2) Leads NFC West
Atlanta (7–4)
Green Bay (7–4)
Minnrsota (7–4)
Passing
Eagles – Ron Jaworski: 13 of 23 for 135 yards, 2 TD, 1 ints
Jets – Matt Robinson: 10 of 23 for 143 yards, O TD, 2 ints
Rushing
Eagles – 43 Att, 154 Yards, 0 TDS
Billy Campfield: 22 Att, 92 yards, 0 TD
Jets – 33 Att, 108 Yards, 1 TDS
Kevin Long: 15 Att, 62 yards, 1 TD
Receiving
Eagles – Harold Carmichael: 3 rec, 45 yards, 2 TD
Rams – Willie Miller: 5 rec, 88 yards, 0 TD
Week 12: at NY Giants The Miracle at the Meadowlands is the term used by sportscasters and Philadelphia Eagles fans for a fumble recovery by cornerback Herman Edwards that he returned for a touchdown at the end of a November 19, 1978 NFL game against the New York Giants in Giants Stadium . It was seen as miraculous because it occurred at a point in the game when the Giants were easily capable of running out the game's final seconds. The Giants had the ball, and the Eagles had no timeouts left. Everyone watching expected quarterback Joe Pisarcik to take one more snap and kneel with the ball , thus running out the clock and preserving a 17–12 Giant upset. Instead, he attempted to hand it off to fullback Larry Csonka and botched it, allowing Edwards to pick up the ball and run 26 yards for the winning score.
Week 12: Philadelphia Eagles at New York Giants – Game summary
1
2
3
4
Total
Eagles
0
6
0
13
19
Giants
14
0
3
0
17
at The Meadowlands on AstroTurf,
Date : Sunday, November 19, 1978Game time : 1:00 p.m. EST Game weather : 49 degrees, wind 14 mph[4]
Game information
1st quarter
Giants – Bobby Hammond 19 yard pass from Joe Pisarcik (Joe Danelo kick), Giants 7–0
Giants – Johnny Perkins 30 yard pass from Joe Pisarcik (Joe Danelo kick), Giants 14–0
2nd quarter
Eagles – Wilbert Montgomery 8 yard rush (kick failed), Giants 14–6
3rd quarter
Giants – Joe Danelo 37 yard field goal, Giants 17–6
4th quarter
Eagles – Mike Hogan 1 yard rush (kick failed), Giants 17–12
Eagles – Herman Edwards 26 yard fumble return (Mike Michel kick), Eagles 19–17
Passing
Eagles – Ron Jaworski: 15 of 31 for 164 yds, 0 tds, 3 ints
Giants – Joe Pisarcik: 13 of 23 for 181 yds, 2 tds, 1 ints
Rushing
Eagles – 45–150–2, Wilbert Montgomery, 22 Att, 88 yards, 1 TD
Giants – 31–100–0, Doug Kotar – 13 Att, 36 yards, 0 TD
Receiving
Eagles – Harold Carmichael: 5 rec, 105 yards, 0 TD
Giants – Jim Robinson: 4 rec, 73 yards, 0 TD
Giants – Johnny Perkins: 3 rec, 65 yards, 1 TD
NFC East Standing
Dallas (8–4)
Washington (8–4)
Eagles (7–5)
Giants (5–7)
Cards (4–8)
Week 13 at St L Cardinals After the games of week 11 the Philadelphia Eagles look out of being an NFC playoff team were slim. They were in 3rd place in the NFC East and behind 4 teams for a Wild Card team spot. That was some of the reasoning why the place kicking duties were given to the punter Mike Michel when regular kicker Nick Mick-Meyer got hurt. At the end of week 13 the Eagles find themselves trailing division leading Dallas by 1 game, and tied with the Atlanta Falcons and Washington Redskins for 1 of 2 Wild Card team playoff spots.
Week 12: Philadelphia Eagles at St Louis Cardinals – Game summary
1
2
3
4
Total
Eagles
0
7
0
7
14
Cardinals
3
0
0
7
10
at Busch Memorial Stadium on AstroTurf,
Date : Sunday, November 26, 1978Game time : 1:00 p.m. EST Game weather : 43 degrees, wind 15 mph[5]
Game information
1st quarter
Cardinals – Jim Bakken 32 yard field goal, Cardinals 3 – 0
2nd quarter
Eagles – Charlie A. Smith 22 yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Mike Michel kick) Eagles 7 – 3
3rd quarter
4th quarter
Eagles – Mike Hogan 2 yard rush (Mike Michel kick), Eagles 14 – 3
Cardinals – Pat Tilley 1 yard pass from Jim Hart (Jim Bakken kick), Eagles 14 – 10
NFC East Standing
Dallas (9–4)
Eagles (8–5)
Washington (8–5)
Giants (5–8)
Cardinals (4–9)
Other Teams
Atlanta (8–5)
Minnesota (7–5–1)
Green Bay (7–5–1)
Passing
Eagles – Ron Jaworski: 15 of 31 for 164 yds, 0 tds, 3 ints
Cardinals – Joe Pisarcik: 13 of 23 for 181 yds, 2 tds, 1 ints
Rushing
Eagles – 45–150–2, Wilbert Montgomery, 22 Att, 88 yards, 1 TD
Cardinals – 31–100–0, Doug Kotar – 13 Att, 36 yards, 0 TD
Receiving
Eagles – Harold Carmichael: 5 rec, 105 yards, 0 TD
Cardinals – Jim Robinson: 4 rec, 73 yards, 0 TD
Team Stats
First downs PHIL 15 – ST L 17
Rush-yards-TDs PHIL 37–95–1 – ST L 25–102–0
Comp-Att-Yd-TD-INT
PHIL 13–25–156–1–0
ST L 20–37–197–1–2
Sacked-yards PHIL 1–7 – ST L 1–5
Net pass yards PHIL 149 – ST L 192
Total yards PHIL 244 – ST L 294
Fumbles-lost PHIL 1–0 – ST L 2–1
Turnovers PHIL 0 – ST L 3
Penalties-yards PHIL 8–74 – ST L 3–25
Standings The Eagles were hampered by the loss of their placekicker (Nick Mike-Mayer) in the closing weeks of the season and his replacement (punter Mike Michel) was unable to make several extra point kicks and missed all field goal attempts.
1978 Roster + After name means 1st team selection
NO.
Player
AGE
POS
GP
GS
WT
HT
YRS
College
Dick Vermeil 40 Head Coach 3 San Jose State
38 Larry Barnes 24 RB 7 0 220 5–11 1 Tennessee State
66 Bill Bergey* 33 LB 16 16 243 6–4 9 Arkansas State
34 James Betterson 24 RB 9 0 210 6–0 1 North Carolina
25 Bill Bryant 27 DB 3 0 195 5–11 2 Grambling State
95 John Bunting 28 LB 6 6 220 6–1 6 North Carolina
67 Lem Burnham 31 DE 15 0 236 6–4 1 U.S. International
37 Billy Campfield 22 RB 16 2 200 5–11 Rookie Kansas
17 Harold Carmichael* 29 WR-TE 16 16 225 6–8 7 Southern
71 Ken Clarke 22 NT-DT 16 0 268 6–2 Rookie Syracuse
46 Herman Edwards 24 DB 16 16 194 6–0 1 California and
13 Rick Engles 24 P 6 0 177 5–11 2 Tulsa
30 Cleveland Franklin 23 RB 16 4 216 6–2 1 Baylor
53 Dennis Franks 25 C 16 0 241 6–1 2 Michigan
64 Ed George 32 T 16 0 270 6–4 3 Ferrum,Wake Forest
33 Louie Giammona 25 RB 7 0 180 5–9 2 Utah State
78 Carl Hairston 26 DE-DT-LB 16 16 260 6–3 2 Md-Eastern Shore
68 Dennis Harrison 22 DE 16 6 275 6–8 Rookie Vanderbilt
89 Wally Henry 24 WR 3 0 175 5–8 1 UCLA
35 Mike Hogan 24 RB 14 12 213 6–2 2 Tennessee-Chattanooga
23 Bob Howard 34 DB 10 6 174 6–2 11 Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo and
7 Ron Jaworski 27 QB 16 16 196 6–2 4 Youngstown State
65 Charlie Johnson 26 NT 16 16 266 6–3 1 Colorado
49 Eric Johnson 26 DB 16 0 192 6–1 1 Washington State
72 Wade Key 32 G-T 13 12 245 6–5 8 Texas,Texas State
84 Keith Krepfle 26 TE 10 10 227 6–3 3 Iowa State
88 Bill Larson 25 TE 5 1 225 6–4 3 Colorado State
55 Frank LeMaster 26 LB 16 16 232 6–2 4 Kentucky
41 Randy Logan 27 DB 16 16 195 6–1 5 Michigan
63 Tom Luken 28 G 16 6 253 6–3 6 Purdue
32 Herb Lusk 25 RB 3 0 190 6–0 2 Long Beach State
54 Drew Mahalic 25 LB 9 8 225 6–4 3 Notre Dame
2 Mike Michel 24 P-K 10 0 177 5–10 1 Stanford
81 Oren Middlebrook 25 WR 16 0 185 6–2 Rookie Arkansas State
1 Nick Mike-Mayer 28 K 12 0 186 5–8 5 Temple
31 Wilbert Montgomery* 24 RB 14 14 196 5–10 1 Abilene Christian and
50 Guy Morriss 27 C 16 16 255 6–4 5 TCU
57 Mike Osborn 23 LB 16 1 235 6–5 Rookie Kansas State
86 Richard Osborne 25 TE 16 7 230 6–3 2 Texas A&M
20 John Outlaw 33 DB 14 8 180 5–10 9 Jackson State
83 Vince Papale 32 WR 13 0 195 6–2 2 St. Joseph's (PA)
82 Ken Payne 28 WR 16 9 185 6–1 4 Langston
69 Woody Peoples 35 G 15 14 252 6–2 10 Grambling State
52 Ray Phillips 24 LB 10 4 224 6–4 1 Nebraska
26 John Sanders 28 DB 15 15 175 6–1 4 South Dakota
21 John Sciarra 24 DB-QB 16 2 185 5–11 Rookie UCLA
76 Jerry Sisemore 27 T-G 16 16 265 6–4 5 Texas
79 Manny Sistrunk 31 DT-DE 16 10 269 6–5 8 Ark-Pine Bluff
85 Charlie A. Smith 28 WR 14 5 185 6–1 4 Grambling State
58 Terry Tautolo 24 LB 16 2 232 6–2 2 UCLA
75 Stan Walters* 30 T 16 16 275 6–6 6 Syracuse
11 John Walton 31 QB 4 0 210 6–2 2 Elizabeth City State
51 Reggie Wilkes 22 LB 16 13 235 6–4 Rookie Georgia Tech
47 Charles Williams 25 DB 7 1 180 6–1 Rookie Jackson State
53 Players 26.7 16 217.9 6–1.8 3.1
Postseason NFL Wild Card Game The Falcons won their first playoff game in team history after they overcame a 13–0 deficit by scoring 2 touchdowns in the final 5 minutes of the game. Punter Mike Michel, who took over placekicker duties when regular placekicker Nick Mike-Mayer got injured in week 12, missed a possible game winning field goal in closing seconds.
Awards and honors Pro-Bowl Selections
Bill Bergey – LB
Harold Carmichael – WR
Wilbert Montgomery – RB
Stan Walters – Tackle
League Leaders [5]
Harold Carmichael, NFC Leader, Receiving Yards – 1072 [6] Wilbert Montgomery, NFC Leader, Rushing Avg – 4.6
References
↑ Earl Campbell, 1977 Heisman Trophy winner "Heisman Trophy" . http://www.heisman.com/winners/e-campbell77.html . Retrieved 2008-08-04 .[dead link
↑ Players are identified as a Pro Bowler if they were selected for the Pro-Bowl at any time in their career.
↑ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2 , p.284
↑ Players are identified as a 1978 Pro Bowl.
↑ http://www.databasefootball.com/leagues/leagueyear.htm?lg=nfl&yr=1978 ↑ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2 , p. 452
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