Jason Peters named a Top 10 player over the age of 35 in 2018
The Bodyguard’s still got it according to Pro Football Focus.
The 2017 season was a rough road for Philadelphia Eagles star left tackle, Jason Peters. The 36-year-old lineman who is also known as “The Bodyguard” spent more than a half of the season on the injured reserve due to a torn ACL. It would be one thing if Peters were struggling. But the unfortunate fact about his recent injury was that Peters was still performing like a top ten lineman in the NFL.
Peters joined a list of Eagles veterans who were expected to be released for the last couple of offseasons. Along with his fellow lineman Jason Kelce, Peters was often called washed up at times due to his age and injury history. But after seeing him dominate in 2017 before his injury occurred, it was clear that Peters still has what it takes to perform like the All-Pro tackle that he is.
Heading into 2018, Peters carries a cap hit of over $10 million. That’s quite a lot for a guy who’s 36-years-old coming off of a significant injury. Considering that the Eagles are starved for cap space, everybody expected Peters to be one of the tough releases this offseason. But once again, Doug Pederson and the Eagles assured the fan base that Peters would return in midnight green for 2018. And because of that, the Eagles have one of the best veterans over the age of 35 in the game.
Looking at the list:
Pro Football Focus continues to put out their annual lists ranking players heading into the 2018 season. Now that the Eagles are Super Bowl Champions, they are being honored more often with a ton of appearances on power rankings. Recently, PFF praised Eagles defensive tackle Fletcher Cox as an elite pass rusher. Now, it’s Jason Peters turn to get some credit.
Related Story: Fletcher Cox named an elite pass rusher by PFF
The most recent list PFF put out to the public was the top ten players over the age of 35. Naturally, New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady was number one. We can’t really argue that considering he is the reigning MVP from 2017 (Not Super Bowl MVP, though, because that’s Nick Foles.) New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees came up with the silver medal on this list after his stellar season as well.
Now, in comes The Bodyguard. Yes, Peters was named the third-best player over 35 in the NFL. Not bad for a lineman considering he was in front of big names like Ben Roethlisberger and Larry Fitzgerald.
Here’s what PFF had to say:
"While injury cut his 2017 season short, Peters still had significant success in his 423 offensive snaps before tearing his ACL and MCL in Week 7. And his play in seasons prior has been among the best despite his older age.Through Week 7, Peters tied to rank second among qualifying offensive tackles in overall grade (86.4). He also allowed just seven total pressures (six hurries, one sack), which was good for the second-ranked pass-blocking efficiency (97.7) among offensive tackles with at least 100 pass-blocking snaps in that same span.Even at 36 years young, Peters is a top-five talent at the tackle position when healthy."
Some kind words from the analysts over at Pro Football Focus. It is evident that Peters can still block up there with the best of them. Although the Eagles had a reliable backup in Halapoulivaati Vaitai on their road to Super Bowl LII, it was clear that they were missing one of their best players with Peters out. Now, Peters gets his shot at redemption in 2018 as he will return on the Eagles roster, thankfully. Hopefully, he is injury-free throughout what could be his final season.