Palace were fifth in the Premier League at the end of December but are now 13th after a run of nine games without a win.
"I said to the players: 'Look, in recent weeks we've obviously been a bit down on ourselves and got a bit stressful in games, which I think is part of the reason we haven't had a result'," Pardew told reporters after the win at Spurs.
"The Cup's different though. We can still have the best season Crystal Palace have ever had in the Premier League. We can still come higher than 10th and we're in the quarter-finals of the (FA) Cup.
News that makes sense
Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.
"At the start of the season if you'd offered me that I'd have taken it."
Palace's highest Premier League finish was 10th, which they achieved last season.
They trail ninth-placed Watford by four points with 12 games to play.
(Reporting by Simon Jennings in Bengaluru, editing by Ed Osmond)
