1997 Philadelphia Eagles season
OwnerJeffrey Lurie
Head coachRay Rhodes
Home fieldVeterans Stadium
Results
Record6–9–1
Division place3rd NFC East
Playoff finishDid not qualify
Pro BowlersWR Irving Fryar

The 1997 Philadelphia Eagles season was the franchise's 65th season in the National Football League. The team failed to improve on their previous output of 10–6, going only 6–9–1 and failing to reach the playoffs for the first time in three seasons. This was the season where the team was sponsored by the “Starters” brand. Lowlights of the 1997 campaign include a disheartening one-point loss at Dallas in Week 3, where starter Ty Detmer led the Birds on a potential game-winning drive late in regulation, only to see holder Tommy Hutton botch the hold on what would have been the deciding field goal from ex-Cowboys kicker Chris Boniol. In Week 7, the Eagles lost their first-ever game against the three-season-old Jacksonville Jaguars, and on November 10, in a Monday Night Football 24–12 home loss against San Francisco, a fan was spotted firing a flare gun in the upper deck. Six days later, at Memorial Stadium, the Eagles and Ravens engaged in a 10–10 tie. This was Eagles' first tie since 1986 against the Cardinals.

One bright spot during the year came on the Sunday after Thanksgiving, when second-year Bobby Hoying stepped in under center and threw for a career-high 313 yards and four touchdowns in a 44–42 win against the Cincinnati Bengals.

The 1997 campaign was notable in that it ended a 13-year radio partnership between broadcasters Merrill Reese and former Eagle Stan Walters on 94 WIP. Mike Quick became the color commentator the following season.

Offseason

NFL draft

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 [note 1] = Hall of Famer
ROUND PICK PLAYER POSITION COLLEGE
125Jon HarrisDefensive EndVirginia
257James DarlingLinebackerWashington State
371Duce StaleyRunning backSouth Carolina
4119Damien RobinsonFree SafetyIowa
5152N. D. KaluDefensive EndRice
5155Luther BroughtonTight endFurman
6190Antwuan WyattWide ReceiverBethune-Cookman
6198Ed JasperDefensive tackleTexas A&M
7207Koy DetmerQuarterbackColorado
7225Byron CapersDefensive BackFlorida State
7227Deauntae BrownDefensive BackCentral State (OH)

Staff

1997 Philadelphia Eagles staff
Front office

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

 Defensive coaches

Special teams coaches

  • Special teams – Joe Wessel

Strength and conditioning

  • Strength and conditioning – Mike Wolf
  • Assistant strength and conditioning – Tom Kanavy
  • Volunteer strength and conditioning – Kevin Tolbert

Roster

1997 Philadelphia Eagles roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

 Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

 Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

 Reserve lists


Practice squad

  • -- Patrick Augafa C
  • 26 Anthony Rice CB

53 active, 9 inactive, 2 practice squad


Rookies in italics

Regular season

Schedule

Week Date Opponent Result Record Attendance
1 August 31, 1997 at New York Giants L 31–17 0–1 77,344
2 September 7, 1997 Green Bay Packers W 10–9 1–1 66,803
3 September 15, 1997 at Dallas Cowboys L 21–20 1–2 63,942
4 Bye
5 September 28, 1997 at Minnesota Vikings L 28–19 1–3 55,149
6 October 5, 1997 Washington Redskins W 24–10 2–3 67,008
7 October 12, 1997 at Jacksonville Jaguars L 38–21 2–4 69,150
8 October 19, 1997 Arizona Cardinals W 13–10 (OT) 3–4 66,860
9 October 26, 1997 Dallas Cowboys W 13–12 4–4 67,106
10 November 2, 1997 at Arizona Cardinals L 31–21 4–5 39,549
11 November 10, 1997 San Francisco 49ers L 24–12 4–6 67,133
12 November 16, 1997 at Baltimore Ravens T 10–10 (OT) 4–6–1 63,546
13 November 23, 1997 Pittsburgh Steelers W 23–20 5–6–1 67,166
14 November 30, 1997 Cincinnati Bengals W 44–42 6–6–1 66,623
15 December 7, 1997 New York Giants L 31–21 6–7–1 67,084
16 December 14, 1997 at Atlanta Falcons L 20–17 6–8–1 42,866
17 December 21, 1997 at Washington Redskins L 35–32 6–9–1 75,939

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Standings

NFC East
W L T PCT PF PA STK
(3) New York Giants 10 5 1 .656 307 265 W3
Washington Redskins 8 7 1 .531 327 289 W1
Philadelphia Eagles 6 9 1 .406 317 372 L3
Dallas Cowboys 6 10 0 .375 304 314 L5
Arizona Cardinals 4 12 0 .250 283 379 W1

Notes

  1. ↑ Players are identified as a Pro Bowler if they were selected for the Pro-Bowl at any time in their career.

References

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