[admin’s note – This classic was written by Bry between the SB 52 and the subsequent parade. Posting now because it belongs here on BSB, despite the phrase “almighty Carson Wentz” haha.]<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Great masterpieces are created by great people standing on the shoulders of other great people. Well, the masterpiece on Sunday, February 4, 2018, was no different. And, this celebration is for everyone who shared in this dream. Everyone. As much as it\u2019s for the IMMORTAL Nick Foles, Brandon Graham, <\/strong>and Doug Pederson<\/strong>, it\u2019s also for Steve Van Buren, Concrete Charlie, <\/strong>and Greasy Neale<\/strong>. It\u2019s for the \u201cPhilly Special,\u201d <\/strong>the \u201cFog Bowl,\u201d <\/strong>and a pair of \u201cMiracles at the Meadowlands.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s absolutely for the newly-minted gold jackets of Brian Dawkins <\/strong>and Terrell Owens<\/strong>, the old school gold jackets of Tommy McDonald<\/strong> and \u201cThe Reverend\u201d Reggie White<\/strong>, and the future gold jackets of Jason Peters <\/strong>and Fletcher Cox<\/strong>.It\u2019s for the would-be gold jacket and Super Bowl birthday boy, Jerome Brown. <\/strong>\u2013everyone, take a second\u2026\u2026\u2026okay\u2013<\/p>\n\n\n\n This one is most certainly for Darren Sproles<\/strong> and Jordan Hicks, <\/strong>but, don\u2019t worry because this one, the next one, and the decade of trophies to come will be for and the almighty Carson Wentz.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This one is for the true Eagle veteran on their first ever Eagles Super Bowl team, Brent Celek, <\/strong>but it\u2019s also for his superstar understudy, Zach Ertz<\/strong>. It\u2019s for the newly-drafted Derek Barnett, Rasul Douglas, <\/strong>and Mack Hollins<\/strong>. It\u2019s for the welcome-aboards like Alshon Jeffery, Timmy Jernigan, Jay Ajayi, <\/strong>and Ronald Darby, <\/strong>along with extra sweet welcomes for Chris Long<\/strong> and LaGarrette Blount<\/strong>. Hell, this one can also be for \u201closers\u201d Patrick Chung,<\/strong> Eric Rowe<\/strong>, and Dion Lewis<\/strong> \u2013 boom!<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s for Corey Clement <\/strong>\u2013the undrafted rookie free agent, who grew up an Eagles fan and then caught a touchdown in the Super Bowl wearing midnight green. It\u2019s for another lifelong Eagles fan and now Super Bowl champion, Vinny Curry<\/strong>. It\u2019s for Jake F\u2019ing Elliott <\/strong>\u2013 the 69-inch man who kicked a 61-yard field goal. It\u2019s for the much-maligned 7th<\/sup>-round draft pick, Jalen Mills<\/strong>, the \u201cHuman Trade Rumor,\u201d Mychal Kendricks,<\/strong> the guy with the biggest interception in Eagles history, Patrick Robinson,<\/strong> and the only Eagle who has ever thrown a 4th<\/sup>-down TD pass in the Super Bowl, Trey Burton<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s for Nigel Bradham<\/strong>, who is very good, and Najeh Goode<\/strong>, who isn\u2019t very good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s for the second-best offensive line in team history \u2013 Tra Thomas, John Welbourne, Hank Fraley, Jermane Mayberry, <\/strong>and Jon Runyon<\/strong>. And, of course, for the best offensive line in team history \u2013 Halapoulivaati Vitai, Stefen Wisniewski, Jason Kelce, Brandon Brooks, <\/strong>and Lane Johnson<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s for great men like Connor Barwin, Troy Vincent, <\/strong>and one of the greatest men of all, Malcolm Jenkins<\/strong>.It\u2019s also for not-so-great men, like Josh Huff<\/strong>, Dont\u00e9 Stallworth<\/strong>,and maybe the \u201cnot-greatest\u201d man of all, Riley Cooper<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s for Chris Carter<\/strong>, Keith Jackson<\/strong>, and Wes Hopkins<\/strong>. It\u2019s for Brian Mitchell<\/strong> and Brian Westbrook. <\/strong>It\u2019s absolutely for Randall Cunningham<\/strong>, but it\u2019s also for Bubby Brister, Bobby Hoying, Kevin Kolb, Chase Daniel, Matt Cavanaugh, Rodney Peete, <\/strong>a pair of Detmers, <\/strong>a pair of McMahons, <\/strong>and a Super Bowl champion named STUD-feld<\/strong>. And, of course this one is for our enigmatic relationship with a guy named Donovan<\/strong>. After all, Number Five will always love us, so there\u2019s that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There\u2019s a little piece of this for Jason Babin<\/strong> to complain about like a snotty child and an even smaller piece for good ole Nnamdi <\/strong>to enjoy in his car by himself. <\/p>\n\n\n\n And, I don\u2019t care what anyone says, this one is for the great and misunderstood Michael Vick<\/strong> and the greatly misunderstood Chip Kelly<\/strong>. This is not for Marcus Mariota, but it is for Sam Bradford\u2019s <\/strong>sleeves, Demarco Murray\u2019s <\/strong>workload, Kiko Alonso\u2019s <\/strong>athleticism, Brandon Boykin\u2019s <\/strong>size, and Demeco Ryans\u2019s <\/strong>\u201dMufasa-ness.\u201d And, let\u2019s not forget that this is for all three of Chip\u2019s Matthewses (Ryan, Jordan, <\/strong>and Casey<\/strong>), his Maxwell<\/strong> (Byron)<\/strong>, and his Jenkins (Cullen)<\/strong>. This is definitely for the \u201cobvious\u201d gang ties of DeSean Jackson<\/strong> and LeSean McCoy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s for Bryce Brown, Sheldon Brown, Ronnie Brown, <\/strong>and Reggie Brown. <\/strong>It\u2019s for Marcus Smith <\/strong>and Torrey Smith<\/strong>. It\u2019s for Nate Allen, Eric Allen, <\/strong>and Allen Rossum. <\/strong>It\u2019s for Donnie Jones, Dhani Jones, Sidney Jones,<\/strong> and Chris T. Jones. <\/strong>It\u2019s for Shawn Barber <\/strong>and Allen Barbre<\/strong>. It\u2019s for Cary Williams,<\/strong> Charley Williams<\/strong>, Clyde Williams, <\/strong>and Calvin Williams.<\/strong> It\u2019s for 1942 3rd<\/sup>-round pick Ted Williams, <\/strong>1947 first-round pick Neill Armstrong<\/strong>, 1970 4th<\/sup>-round pick Spike Jones<\/strong>, and 1960 undrafted free agent tackle, Ezra Eugene \u201cGoose\u201d Gossage<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s for the greatest kicker ever, David Akers<\/strong>, but it\u2019s also for Gary Anderson, Norm Johnson, Eddie Murray, Matt Bahr, Chris Boniol, Luis Zendejas, Alex Henery, Caleb Sturgis, <\/strong>and Cody Parkey. <\/strong>It\u2019s for Feagles<\/strong> on the Eagles, Sav Rocca, Mitch Berger, Chas Henry, Dirk Johnson, <\/strong>and even Tommy Hutton <\/strong>(though, more for his punting than his holding).<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s \u201cfor who, for what\u201d and for Ricky Watters<\/strong> and his \u201cLightning\u201d sidekick, Charlie Garner. <\/strong>It\u2019s the awesome Andre \u201cDirty\u201d Waters <\/strong>\u2013a guy who was born to tackle \u2013 and the awesome Asante Samuel<\/strong> \u2013 a guy who was born NOT to tackle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s for great leaders like Byron Evans, <\/strong>\u201cThe Axman\u201d Jeremiah Trotter,<\/strong> and Takeo Spikes.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s for under-appreciated special teams aces like Tim Hauck, Chris Maragos, Colt Anderson, <\/strong>and Bryan Brayman<\/strong>, but it\u2019s also for over-appreciated QB divas like Mark Sanchez, Vince Young<\/strong>, Tim Hasselbeck,<\/strong> and \u201cSenator\u201d<\/strong> Trent Edwards<\/strong>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s for Mike Ditka, Bill Cowher,<\/strong> and Herman Edwards<\/strong>. It\u2019s for invincible (and overrated\u2026oops) Vince Papale.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s even for pass interference penalties from Bradley Fletcher, Leodis McKelvin<\/strong>, and especially the most head-scratching of all pass interferers, Al Harris<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s for champions with small, but important roles like Beau Allen, Corey Graham, <\/strong>and Kenjon Barner<\/strong> and for champions with small, unimportant roles like Wendell Smallwood, Isaac Seumalu, Dannell Ellerbee<\/strong>, and Will Beatty<\/strong>. It\u2019s for the young guys like Donnell Pumphrey, Elijah Qualls, Nate Gerry, <\/strong>and Shelton Gibson, <\/strong>who watched and learned how to be champions in their first foray into professional football.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s for all the first-round disappointments like workout warriors Mike Mamula, Antone Davis, <\/strong>and Brodrick Bunkley<\/strong>, the injury-riddled Jerome McDougle, <\/strong>the underappreciated Jermaine Mayberry<\/strong>, the over-appreciated Leonard Renfro<\/strong>, the kind-of-crazy Bernard Williams<\/strong>, the probably-crazy Stacy Andrews, <\/strong>his definitely-crazy brother, Shawn<\/strong> Andrews<\/strong>, the on-another-planet-crazy Fred-Ex<\/strong>, andthe guy with the crazy wife, Hank Baskett. <\/strong>But,It\u2019s also for projected \u201cscrubs\u201d like Clyde Simmons<\/strong>, Seth Joyner, <\/strong>and Mike Golic<\/strong> \u2013 all parts of the greatest defense in NFL history and all drafted in rounds that no longer exist. It\u2019s for pleasant surprises like Trent Cole<\/strong> and Andy Harmon. <\/strong>But, it\u2019s also for total letdowns like Na Brown, Jaiquawn Jarrett, Winston Justice, <\/strong>and Curtis Marsh<\/strong>. It\u2019s for the 26-year old firefighter, Danny Watkins,<\/strong> and the 24-year old snowboarder, Jeremy Bloom<\/strong>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s for Moses Fokou, Roman Gabriel, <\/strong>and the 1958 2nd<\/sup>-round pick, Proverb Jacobs<\/strong>. It\u2019s for Earl Wolff, Dustin Fox, Leon Seals<\/strong>, Brandon Bair<\/strong> and Rabbit Keen. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s for the amazing wide receiving duos of Stinkston & Trash<\/strong> and Small, Johnson<\/strong>. It\u2019s for Arkansas Fred, Toast, Mighty Mouse, <\/strong>and The Freak.<\/strong> It\u2019s for Eric \u201cSleeping With\u201d Bienemy<\/strong>, \u201cWho Framed\u201d Roger Ruzek, <\/strong>and Blaine Bishop, \u201cOld School.\u201d <\/strong>It\u2019s for \u201cHe Hate Me\u201d Rod Smart, <\/strong>and it\u2019s definitely for Super Bowl champion, Steven Means Business! <\/strong>It\u2019s for Juqua Thomas, Juqua Parker, <\/strong>and Juqau Thomas-Parker<\/strong>. It\u2019s for Dorial Green-Beckham, Max Jean-Gilles<\/strong>, and special teams ace turned kickoff-specialist, Kamu Grugier-Hill<\/strong>. It\u2019s for quarterback Adam Joshua \u201cA.J.\u201d Feeley<\/strong>, safety Herbert Lee \u201cJ.R.\u201d (???) Reed, <\/strong>defensive end Ndukwe Dike \u201cN.D.\u201d Kalu, <\/strong>andtight end Little John \u201cL.J.\u201d Smith.<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s for all the greats for other teams who couldn\u2019t rest peacefully until they wore Eagles green \u2013 Tom Dempsey,<\/strong> Herschel Walker, James Lofton, Mark Bavaro, Bill Romanowski, Antonio Freeman, Erik McMillan, Ken O\u2019Brien, Irving Fryar, Kurt Gouveia, Sean Landeta, Mark Ingram, Ken O\u2019Brien, Roy Green, <\/strong>and the one and only William \u201cThe Refrigerator\u201d Perry<\/strong>. But, it\u2019s also for those that started here, but went on to greater things (sort of) elsewhere, like Derrick Burgess, Kevin Finneran, Kurt Coleman, <\/strong>and Chris Clemons.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s for Vaughn Hebron <\/strong>and Correll Buckhalter<\/strong>, Ryan Moats <\/strong>and Chris Polk, Amp Lee <\/strong>and Reno Mahe<\/strong>. It\u2019s for Jeremy Maclin <\/strong>and Jason Avant<\/strong>, Kevin Curtis <\/strong>and Greg Lewis<\/strong>. It\u2019s for the incredibly underrated duos of Stewart Bradley <\/strong>and Carlos Emmons<\/strong> and Damon Moore <\/strong>and Quentin Mikell<\/strong>. But, also for the appropriately lowly-rated duos of Chris Gocong <\/strong>and Mark Simoneau <\/strong>and Joselio Hanson <\/strong>and Quentin Demps<\/strong>. It\u2019s for Corey Simon<\/strong> and Hollis Thomas<\/strong>, Jerome McDougle <\/strong>and Victor Abiamieri<\/strong>. It\u2019s for the often overlooked career of Mike Pitts.<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s for Ike Reese, Jon Ritchie<\/strong>, and Brian Baldinger<\/strong>.It\u2019s for Vai Sikahema<\/strong> punching the goalposts and then anchoring the news.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s for Jaws, Wilbert, <\/strong>and Harold<\/strong>. It\u2019s for Bill Bergey <\/strong>and Norm Van Brocklin. <\/strong>It\u2019s for Pete Pihos, Alex Wojchiechowicz, <\/strong>and the half-blind NFL Championship and Pro Bowl QB Tommy Thompson.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This is for the sad life and death of Kevin Turner<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is for the great WR Mike Quick <\/strong>and it is absolutely 100% for his second-act partner Merrill Reese <\/strong>\u2013 the only non-player or coach in this montage, and as deserving as anyone on the planet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But, in the end, this one is for us. It\u2019s for you and me and everyone that has lived and died with this team from the moment we can remember. This isn\u2019t a collection of talented men from around the country that just happen to be wearing the same jersey colors on Sunday. This is the vein that pulses through our city and through the lives of anyone that understands what Philadelphia is about. This city, this team, these colors, they \u2013 for better or worse – are a part of what makes us who we are. Outside observers don\u2019t get it, and I don\u2019t blame them. I wouldn\u2019t get it either if I hadn\u2019t lived it. Watching the Lombardi Trophy march down Broad Street on the warmest 20-degree day in Philadelphia history wasn\u2019t just the coronation of a football team; it was the coronation of an overly-deserving fanbase. A fanbase that has been \u2013 and will continue to be \u2013 maligned by national observers in what is nothing more than a thinly veiled expression of misunderstood jealousy. People put us down because they want to believe the way we believe. They want to feel the way we feel. We aren\u2019t Yankees fans who have tasted a title enough times to consume every generation with spoiled privilege. We aren\u2019t Lakers fans who only care about the team when they\u2019re good, which is more often than they deserve. We are Eagles fans. We are fans who spend our lives having the final score on Sunday dictate our personal happiness. And, never have we tasted what we tasted on February 4, 2018. And, never will that taste leave our mouths. The downside of being who we are is that we feel every loss to our bones \u2013 it rattles us to our core. And, since, by definition, 31 NFL teams will end every season in disappointment, we are set up to suffer. We are set up for heartbreak. We are set up to fail\u2026\u2026\u2026except when we don\u2019t. And, THIS is why we invest our emotional capital into this team. THIS is why we suffer so badly and pick ourselves up and do it all over again. We do it all for THIS. And, that is why we thank those who delivered it and respect those who came before. THIS is the only rational reason to be how we are. And, I can\u2019t possibly think of a better one. In the words of the great Malcolm Jenkins, \u201cWe all we got. We all we need.\u201d Fly, Eagles, Fly!!!<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" [admin’s note – This classic was written by Bry between the SB 52 and the subsequent parade. Posting now because it belongs here on BSB, despite the phrase “almighty Carson Wentz” haha.] Great masterpieces are created by great people standing … Continue reading