Eagles history: The 10 most versatile players in franchise history

[time2rock]

Eagles history: The 10 most versatile players in franchise history

Some of the best Eagles in history have been guys who can do a little bit of everything. A running back who just runs? A quarterback who just passes? A safety who just safeties?

Boring.

We set out to find the 10 most versatile Eagles in history, and we came up with a list of 10 guys from throughout the franchise’s colorful past who fit the bill.

We stuck to players only, which disqualifies someone like Greasy Neale, who won a World Series playing for the Reds before coaching the Eagles to the 1960 NFL Championship and someone like Tim Tebow, who can do a lot of different things but never actually played for the Eagles in a regular-season game.

Here’s our 10 most versatile players in Eagles History. Who’s missing?

 

 

BY REUBEN FRANK - 

23H AGO

USA TODAY IMAGES

Randall Cunningham

 

 

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1 / 10

Cunningham could have been a star running back in the NFL if he wanted. Older brother Sam was a Pro Bowl running back with the Patriots. He could have been a Pro Bowl punter if he wanted to. But instead he became SuperBack, a guy who could do anything and everything. Cunningham, who spent his first 11 years with the Eagles, threw for nearly 30,000 yards and ran for 5,000 yards in his brilliant career, and only Cam Newton has as many rushing and passing yards as Cunningham (although a much lower yards-per-carry). Even without his punting prowess, Cunningham is one of the most versatile players in Eagles history. But here’s a guy who averaged 44.7 yards per punt, including the legendary 91-yarder that sailed over Dave Meggett’s head at the Meadowlands in 1989. At the time he retired in 2001, Cunningham had the 4th-highest punting average in NFL history (minimum 20 punts). Truly one of a kind.

Chuck Bednarik

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2 / 10

Chuck Bednarik was the last of the two-way players, a Hall of Fame-caliber talent as both a middle linebacker and a center. Concrete Charlie, a decorated B-24 Army waist gunner during World War II, spent most of the 1949 through 1957 seasons playing both ways before focusing on center starting in 1958 to slow down the wear and tear on his body. A month into the 1960 season, linebacker Bob Pelligrini broke his leg, and coach Buck Shaw asked the 35-year-old Bednarik if he’d consider playing both ways again. Of course he agreed and wound up leading the Eagles to the NFL Championship at Franklin Field over Vince Lombardi’s Packers.

Bill Bradley

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3 / 10

Eagles fans remember Bill Bradley as an all-pro safety on some pretty bad teams in the 1970s, but Bradley was much more than just a safety. He was the Eagles’ punter for most of the 1969 through 1973 seasons and he also returned kicks and punts. In fact, his 11.8 punt return average in 1973 and 1974 was 8^th-highest in the league. He’s the only player in the last 50 years with 100 punts and 100 punt returns. On top of that, he was a three-time Pro Bowl safety and a member of the Eagles Hall of Fame. He led the NFL in interceptions in both 1971 and 1972 and still holds the franchise record with 34 interceptions, a mark he shares with Eric Allen and Brian Dawkins.

A

Keith Byars

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4 / 10

Keith Byars, the Eagles’ 1^st-round pick in 1986, is one of the greatest receiving backs in NFL history. His 610 catches were 2^nd-most in NFL history when he retired after the 1998 season and more than two decades later are still 6th-most ever. He also rushed for over 3,000 yards and had 23 TDs rushing and 31 receiving. He’s one of only 15 players in history with at least 23 TDs both rushing and receiving. What truly sets Byars apart from the others is that he threw six TD passes, including four (in four attempts) in 1990. He’s one of five players in history with 3,000 yards rushing, 3,000 yards receiving and six TD passes. In 1990, the left-handed Byars was 4-for-4 with four TD passes. The same year, Stan Humphries started five games for Washington, threw 156 passes and had just three TD passes.

DeSean Jackson

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5 / 10

We know he’s one of the greatest deep threats in NFL history. But what made D-Jack unique is that he was able to use that explosiveness in so many ways. Jackson’s 25 career touchdowns of 60 or more yards are the most in history, two more than Jerry Rice’s 23. But think about how he got those touchdowns. Twenty were receptions, four were punt returns and one was a running play. Going into 2021, Jackson is averaging 17.4 yards per catch and 9.4 yards per punt return. Hall of Famer Bob Hayes is the only other player in history to average at least 17 and 9 (minimum 100 catches and returns). Factor in D-Jack’s 6.5 yards per carry – 19^th-best in history by a non-quarterback (minimum 50 carries) – and you have one of the most versatile players football has ever seen.

Brian Mitchell

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6 / 10

Even though he only played 48 games here, Brian Mitchell is one of only four Eagles in history with TDs via punt return, kick return, rushing and receiving. The others were all before 1970 (Bosh Pritchard, Steve Van Buren, Timmy Brown). He’s also the only player in NFL history to average at least 5 yards per carry, 9 yards per catch, 10 yards per punt return and 23 yards per kick return (minimum 100 of each) and the only player in NFL history with at least four TDs rushing, receiving and on kick and punt returns and threw a 57-yard TD pass to Brian Dawkins against the Texans in 2002. Mitchell’s 12 combined punt and kick returns are 2^nd-most in history behind Devin Hester’s 19 (five KR, 14 PR). B-Mitch was only here for three years, but he made quite an impression on the Eagles’ record book. 

 

Vince Papale

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7 / 10

Before he even joined the Eagles, Papale was a good enough decathlete to score nearly 7,000 points in the grueling two-day 10-event track and field test. Although Papale’s exact marks have been lost to time, an article in the Daily News by Jim Murray in 1977 credits him with a 16-foot pole vault, 23-foot long jump, 9.7 100-yard dash, 14-something in the high hurdles and 49-something in the 440. The St. Joe’s track media guide still lists Papale as the school’s indoor pole vault record holder at 14-6 from 1968 but doesn’t show any other PRs. In any case, Papale could do a little bit of everything, and he was the same way during his three years with the Eagles, when despite never playing college football he played some wide receiver and lots of special teams for the Dick Vermeil Eagles. It’s a wild story. Would make a pretty good movie! 

John Sciarra

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8 / 10

Sciarra was a good enough athlete coming out of high school outside Los Angeles that he was recruited to play both big-time college baseball and football. He wound up playing quarterback for Dick Vermeil at UCLA and then was drafted in the 4^th round by the Bears and the 3^rd round by the Cleveland Indians. He bounced around for a bit and by the time he joined the Eagles in 1978, Vermeil’s third year in Philly, he was no longer a quarterback. Sciarra played some receiver and running back for the Eagles, returned punts and starred on cover teams. He was the Eagles’ special teams MVP in 1979 (and had two interceptions) and averaged 9.2 yards on punt returns during the 1980 Super Bowl season. He’s one of only two NFL players in the last 45 years with multiple interceptions and rushing TDs.

Darren Sproles

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9 / 10

It’s easy to think of Darren Sproles solely as one of the greatest returners in NFL history. And he was. His nine combined TD returns in the kicking game (two KR, seven PR) are tied for 6^th-most in NFL history. But he was so much more than that. Sproles piled up over 3,500 rushing yards with a 4.9 average and nearly 5,000 receiving yards with an 8.8 average. He’s one of only 14 players in history with 3,000 rushing yards and 500 catches, and his 4.9 average is highest of those 15 (LeSean McCoy is 3^rd on that list). Sproles and Hall of Famer Bobby Mitchell are the only players in NFL history with 8,000 scrimmage yards and at least nine returns in the kicking game. Even though Sproles only spent six years here and was only a regular player for three of those seasons, he’s one of only four players in Eagles history with 2,500 scrimmage yards and four return TDs. The others are Timmy Brown, DeSean Jackson and Steve Van Buren.

 

Brian Westbrook

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10 / 10

Westbrook did it all during his nine-year career. He rushed for over 6,000 yards, caught 442 passes, threw a TD pass to Todd Pinkston against the Cowboys in 2002 and was as tough a blocking back as you’ll see. Forget the returns for a second. Westbrook’s 4.6 rushing average is 3^rd-highest in NFL history among running backs who gained 6,000 yards and caught 400 passes (behind Tiki Barber and one-time Eagle Charlie Garner). And even though he was only a regular punt return for one year, he’s one of just 11 players in history with 10,000 scrimmage yards and multiple punt return touchdowns.

https://www.nbcsports.com/philadelphia/eagles/eagles-history-10-most-versatile-players-franchise-history?fbclid=IwAR1zCn4xWq3fFaLQA3JNLVQbjW94bD2JmKlK-WPjvaexwPKW8bk5lPJAMfU

 

[brkmsn]

Good to see Byars getting a little recognition. When Keith Jackson left us as a free agent, Byars was able to step in at TE and, honestly, he was better. He was a tremendous blocker, very physical. His hands as a receiver were amazing. He may have actually had better hands than even Cris Carter. He won't be remembered much as a runner, unfortunately, since he had to play behind one of the worst O-lines in NFL history.

 

[Procus]

Would be nice if Jordan Mailata's name could be added to that list.  Why not give him some work as a TE.  He'd be a blocking beast, but if he could be a threat to catch and hold onto the ball, imagine the damage he could do in the open field.