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Philadelphia Eagles talk: Brandon Graham doesn’t feel he’s behind

By Geoffrey Knox

MINNEAPOLIS, MN - FEBRUARY 04: Brandon Graham #55 of the Philadelphia Eagles celebrates with teammates after forcing a fumble by Tom Brady #12 of the New England Patriots (not pictured) during the fourth quarter in Super Bowl LII at U.S. Bank Stadium on February 4, 2018 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MN - FEBRUARY 04: Brandon Graham #55 of the Philadelphia Eagles celebrates with teammates after forcing a fumble by Tom Brady #12 of the New England Patriots (not pictured) during the fourth quarter in Super Bowl LII at U.S. Bank Stadium on February 4, 2018 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /
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We’re talking about practice man, and we’re talking about Philadelphia Eagles defensive end Brandon Graham. The vet shared a few thoughts after being activated from the PUP list on Monday.

Defensive end Brandon Graham doesn’t feel like he’s behind schedule after missing the Philadelphia Eagles‘ first two preseason games. He just feels like everyone else has gotten more reps. That’s it. That’s all.

They say you can’t teach an old vet new tricks. The 2018 NFL season won’t just be Graham’s ninth in the league. It’s also his third season in his defensive coordinator’s system.

According to what Jim Schwartz said in his most recent presser on Monday morning, no coach or defensive coordinator is ever going to complain about having too many good players at one position. Well, the Eagles are quite wealthy at defensive end.

There’s Michael Bennett, Chris Long, second-year standout Derek Barnett and rookie Josh Sweat in the mix. Then, the Eagles have a very talented Steven Means who’s trying to fight his way onto the 53-man roster. Graham, who had undergone ankle surgery on May 16th of 2018, was just activated from the PUP (physically unable to perform list) on Monday.

Things just got a whole lot more interesting at the Novacare Complex. Take a look at his most recent sit down with a few members of the Philly media:

Video courtesy of the Philadelphia Eagles official YouTube page

Yep. He’s ready to go.

Now here’s what’s interesting.

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There’s one more thing of note to consider when discussing Mr. Graham. This is one you’ll hear all season. 2018 is a contract year.

All of the 277 tackles, the 39-and-a-half sacks, the 17 forced fumbles and the five pass deflections ‘Number 55’ racked up over the last eight seasons have come while in an Eagles jersey. So far, Philly and Graham haven’t ironed out a deal that keeps him in Eagles green past the 2018 campaign.

Are we able to say we’re certain that Graham should feel comfortable that a deal can get done, or should we acknowledge that, with Sweat and Barnett in the mix, Philly might be looking at getting younger on the edges?

No one knows the answer to that yet, but first thing’s first. Let’s get ’55’ in some pads and a few games first. Then, we’ll see what happens.

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