Philadelphia Eagles: Nick Sirianni’s call on Jason Kelce worked

The Philadelphia Eagles are a better team when Jason Kelce is on the field.

Now granted, the sample size to back up that statement is rather small, as the pride of Cincinnati has started every Eagles game since 2014, but for the three or so percent of each season’s snaps that Kelce has missed over the past seven seasons, the results haven’t exactly been glowing.

I mean, come on, need I say more than Nate Herbig‘s airballs?

Mind you, eventually, the Eagles will have to find a proper replacement for Kelce long-term. They drafted Isaac Seumalo with that intention in 2016 and again addressed the position with Landon Dickerson in the second round of the 2021 NFL Draft, but through it all, the final player to ever wear a midnight green 62 jersey has stuck it out and played like the best center in the NFL.

And guess what? In 2022, the Philadelphia Eagles will have Jason Kelce back yet again, thanks in no small part to head coach Nick Sirianni.

Nick Sirianni’s players-first mentality pays dividends for the Philadelphia Eagles.

At 6:04 PM EST, Jason Kelce officially announced his decision to retire… from hosting WIP, as he’ll need the time to prepare for another season with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2022. The video, which is comically shot with a vertical orientation, features a beer, a beard, and a peach-colored Toasted Mango Cafe hat and is the perfect way to get Philly fans hyped up heading into the first week of free agency.

But in my humble opinion, this video (watch it here) is the key to Kelce’s offseason decision-making. No, that piece of media actually came one day before, when “Nick from South Philly” called into WIP to see if he could persuade Kelce to make a return to the field this fall.

What? You didn’t capture this two-minute piece of radio gold? Fortunately, WIP uploaded it online, and needless to say, it is very popular.

Did Kelce know his head coach was going to call into his guest-hosting gig at WIP? Maybe, but I sort of doubt it. While Sirianni gave up on his bit pretty quickly, the hosts of the show sounded genuinely surprised to hear the head coach call in, but this particular interaction is so crucial not because of the heartwarming nature of two friends that genuinely seem to enjoy each other’s company interacting, but because it highlights just how wanted the entire Eagles organization has made Kelce feel.

Granted, will the Eagles eventually have to move on from Kelce? Sure. Would they hold up alright in 2022 if Kelce had opted to hang up his cleats for good? Yes, I would imagine between Landon Dickerson, Isaac Seumalo, free agency, and the draft, the Eagles would have made it work at a pretty high level, but with Brandon Brooks retiring from the game of football to pursue a degree from UPenn, having a 12th-year veteran anchor the middle of the offensive line will help to both ease that transition, and keep the offense buzzing in a pivotal year for Jalen Hurts and company.

Considering Kelce ranked third among 39 qualifying centers in overall grade according to Pro Football Focus, it’s clear the 34-year-old can very much still go.

Was Nick Sirianni’s call into the “Jason Kelce show” – trademark it now, WIP – the deciding factor in Philly’s favorite Mummer coming back for the 2022 season? No, probably not; while the call certainly addressed his decision-making process head-on, I doubt Kelce left the studio, drove home, cracked a beer, and shot a video announcing his return. But in that video, a video not even two minutes long, fans got a first-hand look into the relationship between the Philadelphia Eagles’ head coach and their most-tenured player and how the fruits of that effort have started to flower.