Graham announced during a Tuesday press conference that he is retiring. This past summer, he indicated the 2024 campaign would be his last, and as a result his decorated Philadelphia run appeared to be over when he suffered a biceps tear in November. The 36-year-old managed to return in time for Super Bowl LIX, however, and he played a rotational role in the team’s victory.
“I could not be happier with the way my career played out, the love I’ve gotten, and the success the Eagles have had as an organization,” Graham said. “For real, it has been a dream come true.”
A first-round pick in 2010, Graham only occupied a rotational role for the first three years of his career. He was a mainstay along the edge for six straight seasons after that, however, a period which included his first Super Bowl win. A Graham forced fumble during the fourth quarter of that contest was key in the Eagles’ win.
The Michigan product was limited to only two games in 2021, the first season of his final multi-year contract. Graham played out one-year pacts in 2023 and ’24 with questions about his future looming. The most productive campaign of his career (in terms of sacks) came in 2022 with 11, a sign of his continued importance during the waning stages of his career. While his playing time dropped to the level of a rotational contributor rather than a full-time starter in recent years, Graham remained a key presence on and off the field for Philadelphia.