Kelce to return for 13th season
Hargrave, Edwards leaving as Eagles’ shakeup begins
With 18 free agents and a Jalen Hurts contract extension looming, the Eagles were certain to feel pain when the NFL’s legal negotiation period began Monday at noon.
In a matter of minutes two key defensive starters were essentially gone once the clock struck 12.
Defensive tackle Javon Hargrave agreed to terms on a four-year, $80-million contract with the San Francisco 49ers. Linebacker
T.J. Edwards agreed on a threeyear, $19.5-million deal with the Chicago Bears.
They are the first but won’t be the last free agents to move on from the group that lost to the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LVII.
In time the Eagles will thank them for their service, tell them it’s just business and something that had to be done because the priority is signing Hurts to a megabucks deal.
What the Eagles were ecstatic about on the first day of legal tampering was 35-year-old center Jason Kelce’s decision to return for a 13th season. Of all the team’s free agents, he was indispensable to Hurts, the offense and the way the Eagles win football games.
“I have put much thought into whether it makes sense to play another season,” Kelce tweeted Monday. “After talking it over with my wife and many other friends and family, I have decided to return for another year. Thank you to all my supporters and detractors for fueling me, I ain’t … done yet!”
Much as Hurts has become an MVP-caliber quarterback, he would not be the consummate touchdown-maker without Kelce and the offensive line. Same with A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith, who had 1,000-yard receiving years, and free agent running back Miles Sanders, the 1,000-yard rusher.
It starts up front for the Eagles. Score points, get double-digit leads and let the defense rush the passer. The formula worked remarkably well until the second half of the Super Bowl. The Eagles still aren’t equipped to beat a top-notch quarterback.
That could happen this year. With the confidence of Hurts already soaring, the quarterback gets his MVPback in Kelce.
How valuable is Kelce? Eagles general manager Howie Roseman publicly saluted Kelce’s decision to return with a round of shots.
Don’t see that every day, do you?
Kelce also brings valuable leadership, along with veteran Brandon Graham to a team that will be relying on younger players in 2023.
It was anything but a surprise when Eagles free agent in waiting Graham agreed to terms on a one-year contract to return to the Eagles.
Graham had spoken at length about matching the late Chuck Bednarik’s longevity record with the Eagles. Bednarik’s 14 years with the Eagles is a club record. Graham is about to share that legacy. Bednarik, Graham, football immortality.
“Man, that sounds great,” Graham said.
This is also a legacy season for Kelce, who has made 139 straight starts, second among active players. Kelce is just five starts shy of the Eagles’ record of 144 straight starts by ironman Jon Runyan, who played right tackle for the Birds from 2000-08.
Additionally, Kelce has made All-Pro five times, one short of matching the all-time NFL mark for centers held by Hall of Famer Dermontti Dawson.
What Kelce does better than any pivot in the game is get the line in the proper position and off the ball quicker than any group in the league.
Kelce also has a technique for gripping the ball before a snap that is both legal and perplexing for opponents.
Sometimes Kelce palms the ball with no sleight of hand. In short yardage situations Kelce uses a flick of the hand here or there to turn the ball in the direction he wants that causes defensive linemen taught to watch the ball to false start, as the Chiefs did in Super Bowl LVII.
Sometimes Kelce quick snaps the ball looking to one side much like a look-away pass in basketball.
Those techniques take years to perfect. Cam Jurgens, the center apparent, certainly isn’t ready to do it.
Nobody on the Eagles can. Kelce one day will wake up and realize he’s done, that the pain is too much and he wants to spend time with his wife and three daughters.
For now, with Kelce getting ample time off through head coach Nick Sirianni, the offseason isn’t as arduous as when he first snapped for the Eagles in the summer of 2011, a sixth-round pick out of Cincinnati.
Painful as free agency will be for the Eagles, with Kelce and Graham shouldering the leadership and Hurts making plays, the Birds figure to have a shot at matching their 14 victories from last year and securing another NFC title.