Not picking Jefferson causing “Rift” in Eagles Organization

Joe Johnson |

Dec 4, 2020

Some say revenge is a fish best served cold and, apparently, a couple years after someone embarrasses you on the way to their first Super Bowl championship ever.

As every Vikings fan (wishes they couldn’t) remember(s), the Minnesota Vikings were the ones who were embarrassed by the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Championship after the 2017 season. After a trade in the off-season, though, the Eagles and Vikings found themselves back-to-back in the 2020 NFL Draft, which once again linked these two NFC squads for reasons that Eagles fans may wish to forget now and for the next decade plus.

It’s been widely reported that those in Philly wish they’d drafted breakout rookie superstar wide receiver Justin Jefferson instead of Jalen Reagor, something that became front page news a week or so ago (I’ve lost all track of time thanks to COVID) when the video of Vikings general manager Rick Spielman and head coach Mike Zimmer reacted thusly when they’d learned the Eagles took Reagor over Jefferson…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVQcZSRwhd4

Reagor was asked about reactions like the above and essentially said “JJ hasn’t been injured, I have”, but as the season has gone and Jefferson has shown that he may be a once in a generation talent, apparently people within the Eagles organization have begun to argue over the fact that some wanted Jefferson but were overruled.

NFL Insider John Clayton reported an “internal rift” inside the Eagles organization, saying some wanted to draft Jefferson over Reagor.

“They’ve done a terrible job as far as drafting wide receivers,” Clayton said. “I was even hearing last week that’s there been internal rifts about drafting Jefferson versus Reagor with some wanting Jefferson, and Jefferson being one of the best rookies in the league this year and Reagor just starting to come around but not doing well.”

This is a season after the Eagles used their second-round pick on a receiver called J.J. Arcega-Whiteside instead of DK Metcalf, who has emerged on the scene as one of the most talented receivers in the league (perhaps ever).

While it is not technically “classy” to gloat when something like this happens, keep in mind that Eagles fans literally threw unopened cans of beer at Vikings fans during the aforementioned NFC ‘Ship in 2017.

So, instead of taking a high road over a city that’s main export is stabbing, let us celebrate that their team is struggling to stay relevant in a division that is the COVID of divisions as people like that don’t respond to the high road by putting down their cheesesteaks and saying “Wow, that guy I threw that cheap beer at showed me by not responding”. Instead, they interpret the high road as them winning.

So. Enjoy your cadre of bad picks, heart-clogging food and armpit of the East Coast status. We’ll just enjoy of our high road status (you know, by being this far from Philly), Jefferson, and your 5-11 divisional champ.