The Eels entered 2020 among the premiership favourites with talk of ending a 34-year title drought simmering away.
The hype increased when Parramatta found themselves in second place - one point behind ladder-leading Penrith - after 10 rounds.
But while Brad Arthur's team were an attacking juggernaut in the first half of the campaign, scoring 39 tries in 10 games (fifth most), their ability to find the stripe nosedived as the year wore on.
The blue-and-golds managed just 28 tries in the final 10 regular-season matches - only out-performing wooden spooners Brisbane (24).
To their credit, Parramatta won seven of the aforementioned fixtures despite not being at their best. However, they went try-less in two losses (38-0 v Rabbitohs in round 16, 20-2 v Panthers in round 18).
It's worth noting key halfback Mitchell Moses was hampered by a calf injury and five-eighth Dylan Brown missed the final four rounds with an ankle problem.
The Eels, who finished the regular season a commendable third, went out in straight sets in the finals but recaptured their attacking mojo with four tries against both Melbourne and South Sydney.
In the aftermath of their semi-final loss to the Rabbitohs, Arthur rejected claims Parramatta had peaked too early.
And he focused on the positives from the second half of their season when speaking to NRL.com recently.
The Eels' 2020 season review
"We spoke to the boys and got their feedback," he said.
"They said there was nothing wrong with the program. It got us off to a very good start (11-2 either side of the COVID-19 break).
"In the second half of the season, we won a lot of tight games that we wouldn't have been able to win in 2019.
"We won by two and four points, we hung onto tight leads, we fought back and won in golden point when we were down a half, there were a lot of things we improved on."
