For the first time in months, Philadelphia football fans go into an Eagles game with something to look forward to.  The Birds brought their eight-game losing streak to a merciless end on Sunday in Tampa Bay.  Even more importantly, rookie quarterback led a heroic comeback and gave his fan base its first morsel of hope since September.

Foles completed 32-of-51 passes for 381 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions.  He did this despite facing almost constant pressure, he was sacked six times, and with a running attack that was virtually nonexistent.  The slow-footed quarterback himself was the Eagles’ leading rusher with 27 yards, that’s how useless Bryce Brown and the running backs were.  Brown and backup Dion Lewis combined for just two yards on 13 carries against the Buccaneers.

Still, Foles was able to keep his team within striking distance so that when he caught fire late, the Birds were close enough to come back from a 21-10 deficit in the final seven minutes.  That performance, coupled with the 33 points he directed the Philly offense to in Dallas, when he completed 22-of-34 passes for 251 yards, one touchdown and no picks, showed two consecutive weeks of significant growth.

Truth be told, Foles has gotten better with each start since his debut against the Cowboys in early-November.  His play has earned him the distinction of the franchise’s quarterback of the near future.  If his upward arc continues over the next three weeks he will remove the word near from that previous sentence.

Wouldn’t it be ironic if, in this unmitigated disaster of a season, the Eagles found the guy that will lead the team into the future?

It is exactly this though that has people looking forward to tuning into the game tonight.  It may not quite be the exhilaration of a playoff chase, but it’s something.  And as Eagles fans can attest to after the previous eight weeks, something is definitively better than nothing.