Eagles history: The 5 greatest NFL Draft steals since 1970
. Seth Joyner. 59. player. 54. .
An important piece of the late 80s-early 90s Eagles defense was also a late-round addition.
The 1986 draft wasn’t as long as the 1971 event, but it was still a 12-round doozy. Philly took linebackers in back-to-back rounds (Round 7 and Round 8). The seventh-rounder was Byron Lee. Seth Joyner, a University of Texas at El Paso prospect was the choice made in Round 8.
Joyner collected 44 tackles, one interception, one forced fumble, and two sacks in 14 games during his rookie season.
Over the next seven years, he wasn’t exactly someone opposing offenses enjoyed playing. 718 tackles, 37 sacks, 21 forced fumbles, eight recovered fumbles, 17 interceptions, and two pick-six scores were the result of his 120-game career. He was named to the Pro Bowl twice in an Eagles jersey for his efforts.
Joyner was one of the stars of the House of Pain Game versus Houston in Week 14 of the 1991 season where he famously told the Oilers bench “Y’all are getting your people killed out here”. Despite playing with a fever of 102, Joyner brought the pain to the Oilers, recording eight tackles, two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, and two sacks.
He finished his career with three seasons as a member of the Arizona Cardinals (he followed Buddy Ryan there), one season with the Green Bay Packers, and a Super Bowl-winning season with the Denver Broncos in 1998. Joyner is the owner of the second-most tackles in franchise history (875).