Brandon Graham receives some high praise from Joe Thomas
![PHILADELPHIA, PA - SEPTEMBER 11: Brandon Graham #55 of the Philadelphia Eagles asks the crowd to get loud in the fourth quarter against the Cleveland Browns at Lincoln Financial Field on September 11, 2016 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Eagles defeated the Browns 29-10. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) PHILADELPHIA, PA - SEPTEMBER 11: Brandon Graham #55 of the Philadelphia Eagles asks the crowd to get loud in the fourth quarter against the Cleveland Browns at Lincoln Financial Field on September 11, 2016 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Eagles defeated the Browns 29-10. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape/cover/sport/6e3d128cadf85e301c37621bf714ad6694995fcdf576f8d8b8f461c76bc0d2ff.jpg)
According to the highly-respected offensive lineman Joe Thomas, Brandon Graham is much more than what his sack numbers indicate.
The Philadelphia Eagles took care of one of their own this week. As the veteran defensive end, Brandon Graham was set to test the Free Agency market this month, there was a lot of doubt surrounding his return. Fortunately, Howie Roseman would never let him go.
Knowing that Graham would take a bit of a hometown discount for the team, Howie got on the phone with Graham’s agency and made a deal happen. With that, Graham’s back in Philly for the next three seasons now, and he will be $40 million richer when his time is up in a few years.
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There were a lot of people questioning the Eagles decision to re-sign Graham at the age of 30. Especially for the amount of money that they got him for. Sure, he was the Super Bowl hero in 2017, but what about that ridiculous drop off in sacks for 2018? Four sacks, and he gets $40 million? How does that make sense?
Well, by now we should all know that Graham’s purpose on the Eagles defense goes beyond his sack numbers. His pressure on opposing quarterbacks is key. Sure, we would all like to see him finish those pressure more often than not, but the pressure inevitably disrupts the backfield and causes a lot of negative plays that don’t show up on the stat sheet.
It’s alright to question the Eagles decision here considering their cap space situation. But don’t knock the decision based solely off of Graham’s lack of sacks. He’s a problem up front and his highly respected by his peers around the league. And to solidify that statement, here’s what legendary offensive tackle, Joe Thomas had to say about the Eagles decision to re-sign Graham.
Joe Thomas sends high praise to BG
.@brandongraham55 was one of the most underrated players I’ve ever played against. Competing against him for the first time was a total “WOW” moment because he plays so much tougher than the stats show. Congrats on the new deal, well deserved! @Eagles have a great one! https://t.co/aKsT2SmU1r
— Joe Thomas (@joethomas73) March 1, 2019
Joe Thomas is a former Cleveland Browns offensive lineman that genuinely needs no introduction. Although he’s no longer balling out in the NFL, he hasn’t been away from the game for too long. Therefore, he’s had the opportunity to go against Graham during his career. Apparently based off of his tweet, Graham was one of a few players who has left quite an impact on the legend.
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