I’ve got a confession to make: I was not born an Eagles fan. I wasn’t raised as an Eagles fan — in fact, I was raised to hate the Eagles. As a native of the greater Washington D.C. area, I grew up cheering for a team that now only goes by a (less racist) moniker, the Washington Football Team. I jumped ship after living in the Philly area for over six years, when the Birds finally made it to — and won — a SuperBowl in 2017. I may have spent my formative years bleeding burgundy and gold for Washington, but the 2017 season team made me give up (or rather, allowed me to finally let go of) years of losing, front office scandals, bad press, a revolving door of terrible coaches and a lifetime of feeling cheated by a team I genuinely loved. Players like Chris Long, Malcolm Jenkins, Fletcher Cox, Nick Foles, LeGarrette Blount and Nelson Agholor — many of whom have retired, been traded or moved on — were the players that made me jump ship on D.C. You couldn’t ask for a more perfect team.

So why does this background matter? Because it makes my excitement at the May 17 news that former Washington edge rusher and leader in sacks Ryan Kerrigan is coming to Philly that much more relevant. Kerrigan was drafted in the first round of the 2011 draft, and I remember feverishly rushing to my computer after the draft to buy my Washington Kerrigan jersey. 

Some cynical Birds fans may have scoffed at the Kerrigan pick up, but as a former D.C. fan who watched Kerrigan very closely throughout his first few years in the league, I think he will be a powerful asset to the Birds’ defense. His experience in the NFC East alone makes him valuable. He may be a bit older now — in the 2019 and 2020 season, he got less than six sacks — and yes, he is getting paid significantly less than his tenure on the Washington Team. To be fair, he spent a majority of his 2020 season on the sidelines, but sources say he’s healthy now and has already visited the Novacare Complex more than once. 

Kerrigan will do well with the rest of the defensive ends in Philly, particularly Brandom Graham, who apparently was integral at getting Kerrigan to Philly. The Birds new defensive coordinator, Jonathan Gannon, is not Jim Schwartz when it comes to defense. I anticipate Kerrigan to be less active in terms of attacking at the snap. He was pretty versatile at Purdue, and many analysts believe Gannon will rotate him in different positions.

“With this defense, and the way we’re going to do some things, it’s going to allow us to be pretty multiple up front,” Kerrigan told nj.com. “It’s going to allow us to not do the same thing over and over again, and I think that’s going to allow us to gain an edge mentally, pre-snap.”

In typical Birds rebuilding fashion (I feel like in many ways, as a former Washington fan, my cynicism fits right in with other Eagles fans) Kerrigan has been labeled a cheap bandaid for a larger problem with our defense in general. I disagree that it’s this simplistic. If the 2017 SuperBowl run taught me anything, it’s the value of having a solid, dependable and passionate team of veterans who can guide and mold the new guys. The Eagles have some great new blood this year, especially on our offense with DeVonta Smith and in our offensive line (to plug some deep holes) with Landon Dickerson. But you can’t underestimate the power of having a core group of vets who can still play, create locker room unity and make time for the new guys to cut their teeth on the field. I know Kerrigan, and I know he’s one of those guys; he’s a Fletcher Cox, a Brandon Graham, a Jason Kelce — a ball of positive energy even when things are looking dark. 

In 2013, in Kerrigan’s second year with Washington, the team went 3-13; this was after a hell of a season with Robert Griffin III who got the team to the playoffs only to have his leg basically ripped off against the Seahawks. In that 2013 season, Washington fans were in a dark — and I mean dark place. I remember Kerrigran being one of the few bright spots that season, and it wasn’t only because he got nine sacks that season, it was because he was patting guys on the back on the sidelines, pushing through offensive lines even when Washington was already desperately losing and pushing himself at practices. After the bummer season that was 2020, that is what the Birds need most. Kerrigan can deliver.