Philadelphia Eagles Top 10 Individual Offensive Seasons (Gen X Edition) Part 10 of 10
1 Wilbert Montgomery 1979
Although there is very little to separate from Westbrook's 2007 campaign, the nod here goes to Wilbert Montgomery by the slightest of edge for his 1979 accomplishments. Wilbert gave every ounce of his 5' 10", 196 pound body on every play and the Eagles rode him all the way to their first ever NFC Eastern Division Crown.
Montgomery rushed for a team record 1,512 yards on 338 carries for a 4.5 yard average. He also turned 41 receptions into 494 yards for an amazing 12.0 yard average– an unheard of number for a running back.
And, with his darting, cutback runs and determined demeanor he pounded the ball across the goal line 14 times. Montgomery was the first Eagles player to eclipse 2,000 combined yards from scrimmage in a season, setting a team record that stood until Westbrook broke the mark in 2007.
More than any player, Montgomery's brilliance keyed the Eagles transformation from a last place team to a Super Bowl contender in the Dick Vermeil era. He was a clear difference maker that other teams feared. In fact, the soft spoken running back was arguably the single most influential player in turning a perennial loser into a winning franchise during the Gen X/ Super Bowl era.
Additionally, he was the perfect role model and embodied everything in a player that Vermeil valued. Besides being tremendously talented, Wilbert was hard working, gave maximize effort on every play, unfailingly put team over self, and was abundantly humble. In many ways, he was the consummate all-time Eagle.
Rushing: 338-1,512 yards, 4.5 Avg, 9 TD
Receiving: 41-494 yards, 8.6 Avg, 5 TD
Scrimmage Yards: 2,006 yards, 14 TD
Honorable Mention:
Harold Carmichael- 1973
Brent Celek- 2009
Randall Cunningham- 1987, 1988
Irving Fryar- 1996, 1997
Keith Jackson- 1988
Donovan McNabb- 2001, 2007, 2008, 2009
Mike Quick- 1985
Duce Staley- 1999, 2002
Ricky Watters- 1995
Let me know what you think? Did I miss a great individual season in this era? Would you have ranked them differently?
Its been fun.
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