Philadelphia Eagles RB Darren Sproles rushed for a touchdown and returned a punt for another against the New York Jets in week three. (Getty)
The NFL announced their All-Decade Team earlier this week and the Eagles were well represented. Four current or former players made the cut.
The roster was compiled by the NFL, in conjunction with the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and sought to definitively name the 52 best players in the league from 2010 until 2020. New England, to no surprise, garnered the most attention with eight current or former Patriots players on the team. Kansas City was next with six guys.
The Eagles? Well, their stars accumulated four spots on the roster: LeSean McCoy, Darren Sproles, Jason Peters and Fletcher Cox. (Editor’s note: Heavy.com compiled their All-Eagles edition of the All-Decade team last December).
Sproles, who played for three different teams in the decade, made the squad at two different positions. The versatile scatback earned the “FLEX” spot and punt return specialist job. The 36-year-old retired from the NFL after the 2019 season after racking up 19,696 career all-purpose yards, good enough for fifth-best in NFL history. He played for the Chargers, Eagles and Saints over a 14-year career.
“I owe so much to the game of football and I gave it all I had in return,” Sproles wrote in a farewell letter on the team’s official website. “I gave it everything I had on every play. I rode it until the wheels fell off. That’s the way I played and that’s the way I practiced.”
Jason Kelce Snubbed on All-Decade Team?
One name was surprisingly absent from the All-Decade roster. And it was the one player that Eagles fans wanted to see on it.
Jason Kelce, long regarded as one of the best centers in the NFL, didn’t get his name called. Instead, the league selected Steelers center Maurkice Pouncey and Falcons center Alex Mack. Kelce has appeared in three Pro Bowls during his 10-year career while being named first-team All-Pro for three years in a row. (You may recall that he also gave a pretty epic Super Bowl speech). Kelce took the high road when asked about what some have termed an “egregious” snub.
“I’m not upset,” Kelce told SportsRadio 94 WIP. “One, because the guys who were named are guys I have a lot of respect and admiration for. With myself, if I’m looking at it realistically, I don’t think I was consistent enough to get that position.”
LeSean McCoy Eyeing Philadelphia Reunion in 2020
The player they call “Shady” wants to return to his first home, to the franchise that drafted him in 2009. LeSean McCoy told reporters at the Super Bowl that he would like to sign with the Eagles in 2020. He has kept fanning those flames.
McCoy, who remains the franchise’s all-time leading rusher with 6,792 yards, posted a series of short Instagram clips last month in which he proudly stated: “PHILADELPHIA =home.” Those posts were quickly liked and commented on by current Eagles receiver DeSean Jackson. The two played together in Philadelphia for five seasons before Chip Kelly jettisoned both superstars for mere pennies on the dollar.
DeSean Jackson recruiting Shady back to Philly? 👀
McCoy played for the Kansas City Chiefs last year and saw decent production (101 rushes for 465 yards) in limited action. He was inactive (healthy scratch) for the Super Bowl. He told reporters about his desire to retire as an Eagle. He’s a free agent.
“I’m going to retire as an Eagle,” McCoy said. “Right now, I’m a Chief. I’m doing my thing here. But when it’s all said and done, that’s home for me. It’s weird because places I play at, people know that.”
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4 Eagles Make NFL All-Decade Team, with 1 Major Snub