The Philadelphia Eagles didn't leave their underdog mentality at home.
At Super Bowl Opening Night on Monday, a myriad of Eagles coaches and players reiterated that they are taking umbrage with being pegged underdogs for the third consecutive week.
"We've been the underdogs. I think that's the mentality of our football team. I think that's the mentality of our city, and I'm OK with that, I'm fine that," Eagles coach Doug Pederson told a gaggle of recorders. "I've been an underdog my whole career, my whole life. Everything I've done, I either haven't been good enough or something negative has been written or said, and I just blow it off. I have confidence in these guys and this team."
Eagles defensive lineman Brandon Graham went as far as to wear the "underdog" mask for the prying cameras.
And then there was this from Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins: "Everybody's just starting to label us underdogs since we got in the postseason. But to be honest, we felt like underdogs our entire lives and all season. Most of the guys who've come here have been cut, traded, or drafted too low, and everyone's had a chip on their shoulders. Really, we've been given the short end of the stick the entire year."
Philadelphia's "underdog" narrative is a swell storyline and an inspiring rallying cry for Pederson's young, hungry team. But perhaps the top-seeded Eagles are taking it a bit too far. After all, they did make it past two of the NFC's top clubs with a backup quarterback at the helm. Is anyone still disrespecting their postseason acumen?
As Tom Brady -- the sport's most infamous underdog, the poster boy for "drafted too low" and the quarterback of the overlooked 2001 Patriots -- said Monday night, "There's no underdogs in the Super Bowl."
"They're the first seed in the NFC, man," Brady told NFL Network's Willie McGinest. "They're 13-3. They had an incredible season. I don't buy into any of that."
