A Stunning Conclusion
If anybody remembers the early years of defensive end Brandon Graham’s run with the Eagles, few would have envisioned that he would become among the more popular players in team history.
During his first few years, Graham was referred to by fans as a wasted draft pick.
He was the No. 13 overall selection in the 2010 draft out the University of Michigan.
How long ago was that?
Quarterback Tim Tebow was also taken in the first round that season, No. 24 overall by Denver. Tebow hasn’t played in the NFL since 2012.
Graham was taken one pick ahead of safety Earl Thomas, who was selected 14th overall by Seattle.
For years, the Eagles were criticized for not drafting Thomas.
Thomas did enjoy a great career, with eight Pro Bowl selections, two Super Bowl appearances and one title, but he was out of football after the 2019 season.
Graham never achieved the extended greatness of Thomas, but it turns out that the Eagles won’t apologize for drafting him.
Actually, the best players from the draft were tackle Trent Williams, taken No. 4 overall by Washington and tight end Rob Gronkowski, a second round pick by New England (42nd overall). Both players will eventually take up residence in Canton.
What Graham turned out to provide was consistency and leadership. He played 206 games, the most in franchise history and competed for 15 seasons, tied for the longest among Eagles.
Graham was named to the All-Pro second team in 2016 and earned his lone Pro Bowl berth in 2020.
Graham struggled his first two seasons. He made six starts in 13 games as a rookie before tearing his ACL. He was limited to just three games his second season while recovering from the injury.
During the next three seasons, he would play 16 games each year, but made seven total starts.
So, in his first five years, he started a total of 13 games.
Yet Graham kept plugging away and became among the most dependable Eagles.
In one nine-year period from 2012-2020, he missed a total of one game.
The only game he missed was a meaningless regular season finale against Dallas in 2017 when the Eagles rested many of their starters. They would later win their first Super Bowl that season.
Graham is third on the Eagles all-time sack list (76.5).
He appeared in 12 playoff games with the Eagles and will always be most noted for his strip sack of Tom Brady in the Eagles’ 41-32 win over the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LII.
That is considered one of the biggest plays in team history.
The Eagles have won two Super Bowls and Graham has played in both.
This past season he was expected to miss the rest of the year after tearing his triceps in the 11th game, but returned to the Eagles 40-22 win over Kansas City in this past season’s Super Bowl.
Graham had just one tackle in the win, but the fact that he defied the odds to return, no doubt was inspiring to his teammates.
Besides providing so much veteran leadership, he was among the most popular players with the fans (and if they admit it, the media as well).
There were some radio commentators last week suggesting he should be placed on the Mount Rushmore in Eagles history.
That’s getting carried away, because his career was more about consistency than overall greatness, but his impact was enormous.
The outpouring of emotion from his teammates once his retirement was announced, showed how much respect he earned and how he will be missed by teammates and fans alike.
Photo Courtesy Eagles X/Twitter
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Author: Marc Narducci
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