NFL Eagles' Marketing Campaign Can Win Over Fans If Team Wins

By Scott McLean

In 2005 the Philadelphia Eagles championship hopes were over long before the season ended. The one player blamed most for the team slipping from the top of the NFC was superstar wide receiver Terrell Owens, now a member of the Dallas Cowboys.

Subtract "one" major distraction, and a year later the Eagles are opening the 2006 season with a new marketing campaign the "Power of One", unvailed on PR Newswire.com, which refers to the team's close relationship with the fans. I like the idea and hope it works for them, but it will take some effort to win back the fans after the disastrous 2005 season.

Now the Dallas Cowboys, a strong favorite to win the NFC East this year, will find out whether Owens makes them that much better. It's my opinion, but Cowboys coach Bill Parcells is going to reward players for making plays, as he has a history of doing with other winning teams. He's a great coach. That's one reason his teams win divisions and championships.

Owens is going to continue to be a flashy kind of player. That's cool. However, to keep his job, he will have to play within the Cowboys offense, and not question team leadership. If the Cowboys get the best Owens has to give, they could find their way to the Super Bowl.

The Eagles don't seem to be a contender if you look at last year's inability to get the ball in the endzone, and keep opponents from crossing the goal line.

For Philadelphia to get back to the playoffs and possibly regain their earlier championship form, some holes will have to be filled, which remains to be seen. And quarterback Donovan McNabb will have to become the kind of team leader that has been expected of him. Throwing the football won't get the job done unless the Eagles improve their running game to provide a more balanced attack on offense.

Last season, the New York Giants and Washington Redskins had the NFC East's best combination of running and passing the football. Of course the Pittsburgh proved to have the most balanced offense in the NFL, plus a tough defense, as they clobbered playoff opponents, and won it's first Super Bowl since the Steelers football dynasty more than a quarter century ago.

The best marketing strategy in the NFL or any sport for that matter is called winning, which leads to increased ticket sales. If the Eagles play as "One" and win games, they will get increased support from fans. The same can be said of the Cowboys and the rest of the NFL teams, about to begin the football season with the goal of getting to the playoffs and winning the Super Bowl.