71st season in franchise history; third consecutive NFC Championship game appearance and loss
2003 Philadelphia Eagles season
Owner
Jeffrey Lurie
General manager
Andy Reid
Head coach
Andy Reid
Home field
Lincoln Financial Field
Results
Record
12–4
Division place
1st NFC East
Playoff finish
Won Divisional Playoffs (vs. Packers) 20–17 (OT) Lost NFC Championship (vs. Panthers) 3–14
Pro Bowlers
QB Donovan McNabb DT Corey Simon CB Troy Vincent
← 2002
Eagles seasons
2004 →
The 2003 Philadelphia Eagles season was their 71st in the league. They matched their previous season's record, going 12–4,[1] however, they were again upset in the NFC Championship Game. The team made the playoffs for the fourth straight year, won its third straight NFC East division title, and had the NFC's top record for the second straight season.
After losing their final game in Veterans Stadium to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 2002 NFC Championship Game, Philadelphia looked to turn the page with the opening of brand-new Lincoln Financial Field, but the stadium got an inauspicious start when the Eagles dropped their first two games there, with a season-opening loss to Tampa Bay and a crushing loss to the New England Patriots. The Eagles, expected to compete for the Super Bowl, were left at a precarious 2–3, and it looked to be 2–4 before Brian Westbrook returned a punt for a touchdown to shock the New York Giants in the closing minutes of their Week 7 contest. The play turned the Eagles' season around and they won their next nine games, finishing with a 12–4 record. In the playoffs, the Eagles needed a miracle conversion on 4th and 26 to defeat the Green Bay Packers, but the magic had run out by the next week and the team fell 14–3 to the Carolina Panthers at Lincoln Financial Field in the NFC Championship Game.
A preseason holdout by running back Duce Staley resulted in a running back by committee situation by Staley, Westbrook, and Correll Buckhalter. The trio rushed for a combined 1,613 yards and 20 touchdowns and became known as "The Three-Headed Monster" of a rushing attack that passed 2,000 total yards and averaged 4.8 yards per carry.
The rushing attack, which also benefited from 355 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns by quarterback Donovan McNabb, carried the offense, which featured a weak receiving corps that did not record a touchdown until Week 9. There were calls early in the season to replace McNabb with backup A. J. Feeley, but McNabb would find his rhythm and enjoy a great season. The defense weathered early injuries to defensive backs Bobby Taylor and Brian Dawkins to eventually surrender the seventh-fewest points in the league. Cornerback Troy Vincent, in his final season as an Eagle, was elected to the Pro Bowl. The weakness in the defense would be in stopping the run, something the team struggled with even at the height of their nine-game winning streak.
^2003 Philadelphia Eagles
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