Eagles
Eagles Offensive Line Well Represented in Final Portion of PFF’s All-Decade Top 101
Penn State Great Valley MBA, Penn State Berks Undergrad, Eagle Scout and Vigil Honor, IT Service Manager. I joined Sports Talk Philly in 2017 and root for all the Philly teams (as well as their minor league counter parts).
All posts by Paul BowmanPublished14 May 2020
By Paul Bowman, Sports Talk Philly Editor 
On Monday, Pro Football Focus began their All-Decade Top 101 list and just one Eagles player made the portion of the list between 101 and 74.
On Tuesday, they released the second part, featuring two more Eagles offensive linemen.
Wednesday’s release of numbers 49-25 saw the first, and only, two Eagles defenders on the list.
Thursday saw the final spots, from 24-1, released and two more Eagles offensive linemen were named to that top tier, though neither is currently with the team.
The first of the two Eagles to appear on the list should come at no surprise.
The sure-fire Hall of Fame tackle Jason Peters appeared on the list at 19.
No. 19 on the #PFFAllDecade101
Jason Peters pic.twitter.com/uqF5gwG5F8
— PFF (@PFF) May 14, 2020
The Bodyguard is a nine-time Pro Bowler and two-time All Pro that has started 140 games for Philadelphia over the past 11 seasons.
He is a slam dunk Hall of Fame candidate and very well may even get in first ballot.
PFF states that Peters had three season graded over 90 in the begining of the decade and, despite his rising age and loss of some quickness, he has still performed among the best since then.
Much of what Eagles fans have concerns with about Peters are his false starts and injuries, but, injury-wise, Peters has missed just three games over the past two regular seasons and has missed more than three games just one time – in 2017.
Penalty-wise, Peters has actually had just 12 false starts in 29 starts over the past two seasons. Many Philly fans may expect that number to be higher.
Jason Peters remains a free agent and has reportedly turned down other offers in the hopes he can re-sign with Philly. Philly, for their part, has remained in contact with The Bodyguard, so it would not be a surprise to see him brought back, though Andre Dillard would likely still need to play when Peters suffers an injury.
The final Eagle to appear on the list is one that may surprise more fans than any other Eagles selection.
Coming in at 14 is Evan Mathis.
No. 14 on the #PFFAllDecade101@EvanMathis69 pic.twitter.com/ZISwCwueUg
— PFF (@PFF) May 14, 2020
Mathis is a bit of an oddity across the list, especially this high up. The guard played only four of his 12 seasons in Philadelphia, but that is more time than he spent with any other team.
He was cut by three different teams after becoming a bust of a third-round pick. Then he joined the Eagles in 2011.
He built a name for himself in Philadelphia as one of the most dependable guards in the league and that is essentially what PFF says.
They say that while he may not have been a splash player, Mathis had five of the six highest grades for guards that they’ve given over the decade in a six-year span where he graded out over 90 each year.
His time as a bust came in the late 2000’s while his dominance came in the early 2010’s, making his career nearly perfect for this type of recognition.
Mathis was offered a contract extension during the 2014 season, but declined the offer. In the offseason, he looked to accept that original offer but the deal had been revoked and then self-appointed ruler Chip Kelly ostracized the guard and eventually cut him.
Mathis played the next season with the Broncos and earned himself a Super Bowl Ring.
At 35 in 2016, Mathis sustained another injury, missing the last 12 games of the season and retiring from the league.
All in all, Mathis and Peters make it so that five Eagles offensive linemen were named to the All-Decade Top 101 with one player at each position. Right tackle Lane Johnson, right guard Brandon Brooks, center Jason Kelce, left guard Evan Mathis and left tackle Jason Peters.
