Eagles QB Gardner Minshew offers his fond farewell to Mike Leach

One of the reasons the 2022-2023 Philadelphia Eagles are so easy to like is they’ve never lost sight of who they are. They’re authentic. Brandon Graham never stops smiling or laughing. Jalen Hurts is laser-focused regardless of whether or not Philly is down by ten points or up by 21. Howie Roseman trusts his plan, and head coach Nick Sirianni is still rocking his t-shirts and hoodies. Then, there’s Gardner Minshew. What can we possibly say about this young man?

There’s ‘keeping it real’, and then, there’s Mr. Minshew. Philly’s QB1 of the moment isn’t just authentic. He’s almost helped in redefining the term. Whether we’re discussing post-game celebrations with his father, his decision to reside in a bus during the most recent offseason, or his classic mustache with no beard look, Gardner is, has been, and always will be comfortable in his own skin.

He’s long credited his former head coach, the late Mike Leach for assisting in giving him to confidence to be so. Recently, he took an opportunity to say thank you.

Gardner Minshew offers a heartfelt and fond farewell to Mike Leach.

With the Eagles playing on Saturday, everything is moving a little more quickly at the NovaCare Complex. As a result, the first injury report of the week came on Tuesday, not Wednesday. Minshew was listed as one of the non-participants (personal) at Philly’s walkthrough.

We knew why that was the case almost immediately. Gardner was one of the speakers at Mike Leach’s funeral. As always, he was true to himself.

Be forewarned. This clip contains some strong language.

Note to self: depending on the background of the bereaved, you may want to think twice about asking Gardner to perform the eulogy at a loved one’s funeral. Was that an F-bomb? But, again, that’s why we love this guy. He’s always been himself regardless of the surrounding factors.

This may be seen as being offensive to some, but if you know anything about the guy that made the phrase ‘Minshew Mania’ famous, you understand.

Many of us were introduced to Gardner Minshew (and reintroduced to jorts) during his final season at the collegiate level. After two seasons with the East Carolina Pirates, he packed his bags and headed to the Pacific Northwest to join Leach’s Cougars.

In 2018, he tossed 13 TD passes and ran for four more. He finished fifth in the Heisman voting. That’s when the Jacksonville Jaguars took notice. They selected him 178th overall during Round 6 of 2019’s NFL Draft.

Nick Foles got hurt in the Jags’ first game that season. Minshew stepped in. Most of you know the story from there.

While Gardner’s career as a starting NFL quarterback won’t continue long-term in Philly, he will start for the Birds on Christmas Eve… We think.

We expect more Minshew Magic and an Eagles win. We’ll see where the road leads him from there. Wherever he winds up, we know two things: He might be on a bus. It most certainly will be fun to watch.