Philadelphia Eagles: Chad Johnson names himself an honorary Eagle

The Philadelphia Eagles have a very expansive fanbase composed of all sorts of people from all walks of life.

There are life-long fans who grew up across the street from Veterans Stadium, international fans who discovered the team during their Super Bowl run, and everyone in between regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, or religious affiliation. Though all fandom isn’t celebrated equally, it’s a pretty incredible thing that a football team that plays no more than 22 games in a season can capture the hearts, attention, and admiration of literally millions of fans the world over.

Well, as of today, make that millions plus one, as the Eagles might just have a new fan; a fan who was once one of the most impressive wide receivers in the NFL.

Chad Ochocinco, Philadelphia Eagles fan?

There was a time in the not-too-distant past when hearing Chad Johnson calling the Philadelphia Eagles “we” would have been a pretty incredible thing.

Assuming he wasn’t playing a game of Madden or was referring to some other team with an identical name that I don’t know about, Johnson’s comment would mean he was traded to or signed with the Eagles, which, in turn, would mean the team secured the services of the six-time Pro Bowler who averaged 1,161 yards per season from 2002-2010.

Unfortunately, Johnson hasn’t been that guy since 2010, and no matter how many times he’s teased a comeback, his days of being that guy are thoroughly in the past. But hey, according to his Twitter activities, Johnson appears to have fully embraced being an Eagles fan, as he loves our fair city, loves the people, loves the pairing of A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith, and loves that they both eat at McDonald’s, which, if you’re a long-time reader of Section 215 you already know from this story.

Of all the reasons to be a fan of a football team, McDonald’s is certainly… one of them.

If the man formerly known as Ochocinco wants to spend his time in Philadelphia, embrace the Eagles as his post-retirement team, and become to Birds Twitter what Halsey is to Lakers fandom, who is anyone to say no? I mean, Johnson knows more about playing wide receiver than 99 percent of people in the world and could at the bare minimum be good for a few nice nuggets of information about Brown, Smith, and company.

The beauty of fandom is that it’s a very personal thing with no real barrier to entry. Sure, it can feel like there’s a barrier to entry at times, as gatekeeping is a very real thing, but no one is stopping a long-time Cincinnati Bengals fan from rooting for the Philadelphia Eagles in their middle age or jumping from team to team as he sees fit. If anything, Howie Roseman’s decision to assemble a wide receiving corps so good it draws the attention of a Hall of Fame-level talent is a testament to his team-building philosophy and an exciting sign of things to come.