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Philadelphia Eagles roundup: Wishing Avonte Maddox, Jordan Mailata happy birthdays

By Geoffrey Knox

PHILADELPHIA, PA - AUGUST 09: Ola Adeniyi #92 of the Pittsburgh Steelers rushes into Jordan Mailata #68 of the Philadelphia Eagles in the third quarter during the preseason game at Lincoln Financial Field on August 9, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Steelers defeated the Eagles 31-14. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - AUGUST 09: Ola Adeniyi #92 of the Pittsburgh Steelers rushes into Jordan Mailata #68 of the Philadelphia Eagles in the third quarter during the preseason game at Lincoln Financial Field on August 9, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Steelers defeated the Eagles 31-14. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /
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Two fan favorites on the Philadelphia Eagles roster, Avonte Maddox and Jordan Mailata, are preparing for sophomore seasons in the NFL, and they just celebrated birthdays recently.

Year one in the NFL for both Avonte Maddox and Jordan Mailata showed how different two paths could be. Both joined the Philadelphia Eagles during the 2018 NFL Draft, Maddox in Round 4 at pick 125. Mailata was Philly’s final selection 108 picks later in Round 7.

Maddox made his debut in the season opener versus the Atlanta Falcons on special teams. He made his first career interception versus the Tennessee Titans three weeks later in an overtime loss. He’d go on to record 35 tackles, a forced fumble, four pass deflections and two interceptions in his rookie campaign.

His consistent play and hardworking nature has already earned him a place in the hearts of Eagles fans already, and his versatility may have earned him a spot on this roster for the foreseeable future. That brings us to Jordan Mailata.

No man since Moritz Böhringer had been selected to play in the NFL without a high school or collegiate resume until Philly took a chance on the former South Sydney Rabbitohs standout.

On September 1st, Mailata made the final 53-man roster and signed a four-year, $2.5 million deal. His rookie season ended with him appearing in no games and being placed on the team’s IR (injured reserve). He’ll be back, and he’ll have another chance to make the team in 2019.

On March 31st, Maddox celebrated his 23rd birthday. Mailata turned 22 years young one day later on April 1st.

Take a look:

We, at ITI, hope both of them partied like rock stars. Before you know it, the next crop of Eagles will be taken in the 2019 NFL Draft, just like Maddox and Mailata were a year ago.

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Maddox and Mailata will shed the term rookie from their names, become the elder statesmen, help the young guys get up to speed, and, hopefully, be important cogs in quite a few championship chases for years to come.

That thought should make Eagles fans very happy.

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