7 Pro Football Hall of Famers who could have been Philadelphia Eagles

Ronde Barber (Class of 2023), Jason Taylor (Class of 2017)

The Eagles fan base consists of people from all walks of life. We come from different families and upbringings. We are members of different races and faiths, but there are certain truths that we all share.

Here's one. We can all remember where we were during that NFC Championship Game when Ronde Barber picked off a pass from Donovan McNabb and took it in the other direction to ensure it would be the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, not the Philadelphia Eagles, that represented the NFC in Super Bowl XXXVII.

What if we told you that he could have been an Eagle and that this nightmare didn't have to happen?

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers selected Barber with the 66th draft choice during the 1997 NFL Draft. That was nine spots after the Birds took a linebacker, James Darling, at 57.

Sure, some of you are probably throwing the challenge flag. After all, Philly didn't need Ronde. They already drafted Bobby Taylor in 1995. They also already had Troy Vincent on the roster, but here's the kicker. They also missed an opportunity to take Jason Taylor.

Again, the NFL Draft is a crapshoot. Hindsight is seen in 20/20 vision. No one really knew Jason Taylor would wind up in the Pro Football Hall of Fame or they would have drafted him higher. He was taken two spots after the Eagles selected Duce Staley71st overall in Round 3. Sure we'd keep Duce, but we'd certainly swap Taylor or Barber for James Darling.