1978 Philadelphia Eagles season

1978 Philadelphia Eagles season
Head coach	Dick Vermeil
Owner	Leonard Tose
Home field	Veterans Stadium
Results
Record	9–7
Division place	2nd NFC East
Playoff finish	Lost Wildcard

The 1978 Philadelphia Eagles season was the team's 46th season in the National Football League. The Eagles reached the postseason for the first time in eighteen years, which ended the longest postseason drought in the franchise’s history and one of the longest in the history of the NFL.

The Miracle at the Meadowlands

Main article: Miracle at the Meadowlands

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.

The Eagles were 6–5 going into this game, and the win was crucial in that it ultimately allowed the Eagles to get the fifth-and-final playoff spot in the 1978 playoffs.

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 a 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.

	= Pro Bowler			= Hall of Famer

Rd	PICK	PLAYER	POS	SCHOOL
1	8	Pick Traded to Cincinnati Bengals
2	35	Pick Traded to Cincinnati Bengals
3	66	Reggie Wilkes	Linebacker	Georgia Tech
4	92	Dennis Harrison	Defensive tackle	Vanderbilt
5	118	Pick Traded to Kansas City Chiefs
5	130	Norris Banks Acquired Pick	Running back	Kansas
6	145	Pick Traded to Buffalo Bills
7	176	Pick Traded to Oakland Raiders
7	186	Greg Marshall Acquired Vikings Pick	Defensive tackle	Oregon State
8	204	Pick traded to Minnesota Vikings
9	230	Charles Williams	Defensive back	Jackson State
10	261	Pick traded to Cleveland Browns
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.

Regular Season

Schedule

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: September 3, 1978
• Game 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 No Scoring 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: October 29, 1978
• Game time: 1:00 p.m. EST
• Game weather: 52 degrees, wind 8 mph
• [2]

Game information

1st quarter No Scoring 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 No Scoring 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: November 12, 1978
• Game 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: November 19, 1978
• Game time: 1:00 p.m. EST
• Game weather: 49 degrees, wind 14 mph
• Referee: Cal Lepore
• [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: November 26, 1978
• Game 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 No Scoring 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.

NFC East
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Dallas Cowboys(2)	12	4	0	.750	7–1	9–3	384	208	W6
Philadelphia Eagles(5)	9	7	0	.563	4–4	6–6	270	250	W1
Washington Redskins	8	8	0	.500	4–4	6–6	273	283	L5
St. Louis Cardinals	6	10	0	.375	3–5	6–6	248	296	W1
New York Giants	6	10	0	.375	2–6	5–9	264	298	L1

1978 Roster

1978 Philadelphia Eagles Team Starters

'Offense

7   Ron Jaworski        QB
31  Wilbert Montgomery  RB
35  Mike Hogan          FB
17  Harold Carmichael   WR
82  Ken Payne           WR
84  Keith Krepfle       TE

75  Stan Walters        LT
72  Wade Key            LG
50  Guy Morriss         C
69  Woody Peoples       RG
76  Jerry Sisemore      RT

Defense

79   Manny Sistrunk     LDE
65   Charlie Johnson    NT
78   Carl Hairston      RDE

51   Reggie Wilkes      LB
66   Bill Bergey        LB
55   Frank LeMaster     LB
54   Drew Mahalic       LB

20   John Outlaw        LCB
46   Herman Edwards     RCB
41   Randy Logan        SS
26   John Sanders       FS

Kicking Team

1   Nick Mike-Mayer    K
2   Mike Michel        P
21  John Sciarra       DB/PR
37  Billy Campfield    RB/KR

= 1978 Pro Bowl Selection

= Hall of Famer

• + 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 San Diego State
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 San Diego State
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 Jackson State
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) Played no college football
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 Team Average	26.7		16		217.9	6–1.8	3.1

Postseason

NFL Wild Card Game

Atlanta Falcons 14, Philadelphia Eagles 13

	1	2	3	4	Total
Eagles	6	0	7	0	13
Falcons	0	0	0	14	14

at Atlanta Fulton County Stadium, Atlanta, Georgia

• Date: December 24, 1978
• Game time: 12:30 p.m. EST
• Game attendance: 49,447
• TV announcers (CBS): Gary Bender and Hank Stram

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

• UPI Coach of the Year: Dick Vermeil

Pro-Bowl Selections

• Bill Bergey – LB
• Harold Carmichael – WR
• Wilbert Montgomery – RB
• Stan Walters – Tackle

League Leaders

• Harold Carmichael, NFC Leader, Receiving Yards – 1072
• Wilbert Montgomery, NFC Leader, Rushing Avg – 4.6

References

• Eagles on Pro Football Reference
• Eagles on jt-sw.com
• Eagles on Eagles.net