My “Eagles Mount Rushmore” – All-time Eagles (Fourth Pick)
It’s summertime and there’s not a ton of real sports topics to talk about at the moment. So, as we hope the Phillies continue their run through the “dog days” of summer, smile because the Sixers front office woke up, pray the Flyers are showing signs of life, and wait for the Eagles season to arrive, I thought I’d jump on an oldie from sports talk. Over the next several weeks, I plan to give my “Eagles Mount Rushmore.” I’ll name my top four all-time Philadelphia Eagles players.
I was 9 years old when the Birds first made the Super Bowl, and I was 40 when the Eagles exhausted my patience by keeping Andy Reid another year and I forfeited my fandom. So, my top Eagles selections will be coming from those years. While I’m looking at stats, my selections are heavily based on emotional attachment and memories. Your input, as always, is welcome in the comments. Feel free to create your own criteria and remember . . . this is just a fun exercise. No need to trash the picks of other readers or myself, though debate is encouraged.
Building up to my top pick, the fourth member of my Eagles Mount Rushmore is:
Wilbert Montgomery
This is likely my most emotion based pick of the mountain. I’ll never forget Montgomery running for a touchdown at Veterans Stadium in the 1981 NFC Championship as the Eagles finally – finally! – stuck it to the Dallas Cowboys. As I mentioned, I was 9 years old. I was surrounded by frikkin’ Cowboy fans in my family. To this day, I remember singing “Wilbert Montgomery’s moves” at a school pep rally before the Super Bowl in a parody of “12 Days of Christmas” replacing “5 golden rings.”
Statistically, though, Montgomery holds his own with the second most rushing yards in franchise history behind only LeSean McCoy. (Really?) And he’s second in rushing touchdowns behind Steve Van Buren.
I will say, Brian Westbrook made me hesitate a little bit with this selection – not that it was a “running back” spot on my mountain. I certainly saw more of Westbrook’s career, and his total yards and touchdowns (including receiving statistics) surpass Montgomery’s numbers.
Yet, that cold day in January 1981 will simply never be forgotten, and it cements the running back’s place as one of my top four Eagles.
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