Jordan Mailata takes a moment to beat his chest on Instagram

There’s an old saying that goes like this (or something similar). You never hear the mention of offensive linemen during an NFL broadcast unless they’re doing something wrong. Perhaps the originator of that theory never took into account that many moons later, the Philadelphia Eagles would take a flier on Jordan Mailata, a former rugby star that never played a down of football prior to being taken in the seventh round of the 2018 NFL Draft.

There were growing pains, as you would expect, but here we are. Mailata hasn’t just improved. He’s one of the Eagles’ best players on offense, so much so that Philadelphia saw fit to ink him to a four-year, $64 million contract including $40.85 million guaranteed.

Here’s the kicker. They made that decision before the Birds played a down of regular-season football in 2021. They just believed in him that much.

Jordan Mailata is getting the hang of social media.

As we’ve all gotten to know Mailata over the past three seasons plus, most of us have thrown him in the category of being a ‘gentle giant’, the guy everyone loves, but as is the case with most good guys, pushing them past their limit is a no-no.

We heard Mailata’s name a few times on Sunday but not because he was doing anything wrong. It was because he was mixing it up with the Saints defenders. He took exception to a shove on his quarterback that he thought was unnecessary. He’d later be seen in a scuffle with Saints defensive end Marcus Davenport, one that almost cleared the benches.

Mailata would spend the rest of the afternoon bullying anyone who lined up across from him. Later that evening, he went the ‘savage’ route on Instagram leading his teammate Lane Johnson, a bully in his own right, to give Jordan a shout-out in his post-game presser. Take a look at the highlights:

Petty? Perhaps it is, but the Australian has earned the right to beat himself on the chest some.

You have to love when your starting left tackle hands the other team its behind, and then, posts up at an IHOP to drop a few nuggets on Instagram following his performance, Ladies and gentlemen, Jordan Mailata is getting the hang of this social media thing, and from where we’re sitting, we don’t mind at all.