The All-Pro Philly Players Show w/ Thomas Booker - 01/27/25

Jerrold Colton and Jon Jansen are LIVE from Chickie's and Pete's in Marlton, NJ with special guest, #Eagles DT Thomas Booker! THE EAGLES ARE NFC CHAMPIONS!

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:02):
Coming to you live from Chicky's and Pete's in Marlton,
New Jersey, every Monday night. It's the All Pro Philly
Players Show. Now Here are your hosts, Gerald Colton and
Eagles inside it.

Speaker 2 (00:15):
Dave SPADERA but.

Speaker 3 (00:54):
Oh we're sorry, Lute.

Speaker 4 (01:04):
Right now, I am Gerald Colband, Glorious Monday and Les Rally.

Speaker 5 (01:08):
It is Victory Monday, number sixteen out of seventeen, and
we are following just an incredible performance just today by
our NFC championship Phildelphia Eagles in a fifty five twenty
of the Washington Commanders and advancing to Super Bowl fifty nine.

Speaker 4 (01:25):
We've had an.

Speaker 5 (01:26):
Incredible year here at Chickie's, a piece to the season,
and just week after week the victories have mounted up,
and now the big one or the next, a big
one that will put them in the super Bowl in
two weeks. We are going to be joined by Thomas
Booker of the NFC champion Philadelphia Eagles.

Speaker 4 (01:42):
He got a little bit stuck in trafficking.

Speaker 5 (01:44):
I can't get mad at anybody on this Eagles team
after the season we've had. I've got John Jansen here
with me normally Dave Spadaro's with me.

Speaker 4 (01:52):
He had a kid.

Speaker 5 (01:53):
A couple of engagements have to have you to do
with the upcoming Super Bowl and the excitement around the Eagles.

Speaker 3 (01:57):
John press Free is that one.

Speaker 5 (01:59):
I'll take it, you know, John, It's amazing, And I
never want fans to take anything for granted.

Speaker 4 (02:05):
I've been in Philadelphia my whole life.

Speaker 5 (02:07):
There was a long time, most of the time without success,
and most of the time seasons ended in the basement
and looking forward to the draft and we're almost over
before they started, and you'd watch other teams go and
play the postseason and play for the championship. We have
one Vincentbardi Trophy and that happened after the twenty seventeen season.

(02:28):
And I don't want fans to take for granted what
the philadelph Eagles franchise has done over these last seven
eight years, which is constantly being it host three NFC
championship games, which is just tremendous. You know, there's only
one out of sixteen teams and each conference get to
do it, and Eagles have gotten to do it now
three times. And John, on all those occasions over these

(02:49):
last basically seven seasons, the Eagles have blown out their
opposition in the championship game. It first was Minnesota after
the two thousand and seven teen season, then it was
San Francisco after the twenty twenty two season, and it
was yesterday Washington, which.

Speaker 4 (03:05):
Is just unheard of.

Speaker 5 (03:08):
But the Eagles were that much better than their opponents
each day. They owned one and one of those following
Super Bowls. But to do that on that stage, to
set an all time record of points in a conference
championship game, an all time record. These conference championship games
have been going on for almost sixty years, so that's
one hundred and twenty games, and they scored the most
of anybody, And just so many things about that performance yesterday.

(03:31):
And I know a lot of people were nervous. You
and I were not two of those people nervous Going in.
The Philadelphia Eagles were better than the Washington Commanders. Now
that doesn't mean you always win. Strange things can happen,
but it is also Washington had gone as far as
it should. They overachieved kind of for the year. They
had the rookie quarterback and Jade and Daniel's number two
pick who exceeded even the expectations of a number two

(03:53):
pick will be named the Rookie of Year for sure
when the.

Speaker 4 (03:55):
Awards are handed out.

Speaker 5 (03:57):
And they had a great run, including upsetting the best
team during the regular season Detroit Lions before playing Eagles,
but it was time for them to go home.

Speaker 3 (04:05):
Yeah, and it's it's credit.

Speaker 6 (04:07):
I think those two NFC championship games are credit to
how good the roster's been and how much better. I mean,
this isn't a gap of like the Eagles and the
rest of the league. The Eagles are so high up
there in terms of talent level that there's only a
couple of teams that could really match them. And we're
not even talking teams in an NFC Championship game that
can match that. So the fact that you can see

(04:27):
the talent gap, the skill gap, the coaching gap, all
of it on display in the last two Super Bowls,
that to me is all credit to Howie Roseman, all
credit to the Eagles organization that they can continue to
build consistently rosters this good well and even the twenty
twenty two NFC Championship game a couple of years ago,
it just rosters this good that are so much better

(04:49):
and so much so much of a gap between them
and even the second best team in the NFC.

Speaker 5 (04:54):
And that's why all year long, as people are challenging,
well who have they played? Who have they beaten, They've
beaten everybody that's in front of them that they have
to play. And the bottom line was, I think they
were that much better all through the season. Now, the
Lions were the one team out there that you thought,
may you know, they're tough, but they suffered some injuries
and you know, obviously, had the Lions won the week before,

(05:14):
the Eagles would have had to go on the road
for the NFC championship game. That didn't scare me as
it would have played out. I don't think they would
have lost to the Lions then either. But they aren't
just that much better and in the elite teams of
the league year after year lately and in my opinion,
get team better. Also, This team, I believe is is Look, John,
I've watched a lot of Eagles teams. I believe it's

(05:36):
the best Eagles team ever. Now it has to win
a Super Bowl to really walk away with that award
because they want it. Just a few years ago, I
remember the night they wanted I was with in Minnesota
with a bunch of guys who.

Speaker 4 (05:45):
Had been on the Andy Reid Are the two.

Speaker 5 (05:47):
Thousand and one through two thousand and four to four
straight conference championship in which Airly made it to one
super Bowl and lost that to the Patriots. And even
those guys conceded that the twenty seventeen team they had
won the super Bowl has to be considered better because
they on the super Bowl. Now, I don't actually think
it was necessarily better those four straight teams, they just
didn't win one, but they were really good and kept
it going for a big err.

Speaker 4 (06:08):
But this team I believe is the best team ever
in Eagles history.

Speaker 5 (06:12):
But you got to finish it to actually have that declaration.

Speaker 7 (06:16):
Yeah.

Speaker 6 (06:16):
Absolutely, And that team a couple of years ago probably
statistically better. That is still statistically maybe the best year
in Eagles franchise history.

Speaker 5 (06:24):
The way they played, well, you can't you can't negate
the first defense across the board that we did this year.

Speaker 6 (06:29):
Those Yeah, but the defense was great that year as well.
It's they put up so many franchise record breaking numbers.
But what I like more about this team, it feels
like a mature version of that team. It feels like
a matured version of Okay, we understood that was great.
We built this great roster, but we understood sort of
the things where we went wrong. They've been trying to
fix those. They bring in two veteran coordinators now this year.

(06:52):
Also they get a running back like sa Kwon Barkley.
They worked on line backing play, and line backing play
got better. It just seemed like there were a lot
of change that they made that have made the difference
and kind of again, I think made them a more
mature version of that.

Speaker 5 (07:06):
Well, it's interesting, John, you point out the coordinators, and
to me, that can never be overlooked. We are one
year away from people wanting to fire the head coach
in Nick Sirianni to where he now has done something
historic in the NFL, not just for the Eagles. He's
a first coach in history to make the playoffs off
four of his first years and go to two Super Bowls,
first coach in NFL history in his first four years.

(07:28):
No matter how what people want to think of him,
no matter what his foibles or kind of idiosyncrasies or weirdness,
this guy has been extremely successful as a philed Oflph
Eagles coach and I got to also point out, you
know how many people wanted to run Andy Reid out
of town. You know, he was the best coach in
Eagles history all the time, had an unbelievable run and
has only won three Super Bowls.

Speaker 4 (07:47):
Still credit they do.

Speaker 5 (07:49):
I was with one last night, a guy who works
with the Eagles Party. Oh and he reached sixties since
he left here, He's won three super Bowls.

Speaker 4 (07:55):
Will be facing him where he tries to.

Speaker 3 (07:57):
Be one of the most successful coaches of all time.

Speaker 5 (07:59):
There's no question about he's up there and wins. He's
going to be up there in super Bowls. He's going
to be a Hall of Famer the second he's eligible.
But so people never gave him his credit. I mean
in Philadelphia sometimes we actually, you know, don't appreciate what
we got till it's gone. But Nick Sirianni has certainly succeeded.
But the thing that happened in the organization, and they
had just a spectacular draft last year. Mitchell in the

(08:19):
first round, the Jane in the second, and a lot
of these guys were guests of the show here during
this year.

Speaker 4 (08:24):
We had to go quite a run.

Speaker 5 (08:25):
And then and the signings of Saquon Barkley. They've also
and not just that. I mean they made some mistakes,
but they hit on so many things so well that
they made up for the mistakes. And you talk about
the roster being better, it's just so deep. You know,
the guy who's going to join us today, Thomas Booker,
and he'll be here in a few minutes, traffic permitting.

(08:47):
But you know, this is a Stanford guy. He's really smart.
But I'm hoping that Thomas is a really smart guy.
He was here early in the year with us and
and well you'll see in a few minutes and he
gets here, how bright and unique and great and individually
is as the team is full of.

Speaker 4 (09:04):
Guys who are sort of like that.

Speaker 5 (09:06):
But he was drafted in the fifth round by the
Texans in twenty twenty two, so this is third year
in the league. We got him off of waivers from
the Texans, so they saw enough of him to draft him.
He was he was rated highly, and they let him go.
Their loss is our game. Zach Bonn, drafted in the
third round by the New Orleans Saints. Never recognize his
potential or even the correct position. The guy goes out

(09:28):
and he was, without question, in what I watched, the
best linebacker in the NFL this year.

Speaker 4 (09:33):
That just and.

Speaker 6 (09:35):
Even I think Aaron Burke is a good credit to that. Well,
now we lose to Kobe Dean. And here's a what
is a special teams guy primarily in San Francisco, turns
out to be a great legitimate NFL linebacker.

Speaker 3 (09:46):
But he did start, that's Vic Fangio.

Speaker 4 (09:48):
Well it is, and but he did start in the
Super Bowl last year.

Speaker 5 (09:51):
So they're grabbing these great talents from other clubs they
want to they want to cut up, you know, test
him aside, and in the NFL you do have to
turn over your roster. But Howie Roseman's eye for talent,
I'm sure these are guys that they had good grades
on when they came out the draft. And then you know,
with Burks, the Eagles played against him in the Super
or the NFC Championship in two year seasons ago.

Speaker 4 (10:13):
The next year San Francisco came here.

Speaker 5 (10:15):
Kind of started the downward spiral of the Eagles season
last year and he was a big part of the
San Francisco team he became available.

Speaker 4 (10:21):
Now he's a big part of the phildelph.

Speaker 5 (10:22):
Eagles team and it just goes on and they you know,
they let CJGJ go over a few reasons after the
twenty two season, saw that they missed him, brought him
back and he was great. But then it's also the
development of these draft picks that you know, they kind
of went all in on the Georgia kids. It was
when you've got the two great big tackles in Davis
and Carter, you had an Olen Smith and a whole

(10:44):
bunch of other things, and it's taken a little bit
of time, but they're all coming to fruition and it's
just a jeling of everything.

Speaker 3 (10:50):
Yeah, it is.

Speaker 6 (10:51):
And it's not only a jeling of defensive line and
getting there, but to hit on two secondary players in
the same draft in your first and second round picks.
That changed, I think everything because it helped even Darius
Slight get better. There were a lot of things that happened.
Once that's the secondary got those two game changing players,
everything else really fell in the place fell into place.

(11:13):
For the defensive line, linebackers playing better. It's a lot
better when you are so secured and locked up in
the secondary. Well, that was game changing for that.

Speaker 5 (11:22):
Well we are being joined right now by our very
very special guests, and we appreciate them coming up here
so much. You listen, a lot of guys probably celebrated
last night and deservedly so. And now we have a
member of the NFC champion Philadelphia Eagles, number fifty nine.

Speaker 4 (11:42):
Earl Thomas Booker, the four you're one day later the celebration. Hey,
we are chickens beat some morrow to New Jersey.

Speaker 5 (11:52):
You can still got time to get down here and
see the member of the Philadelphia Eagles NFC champion team
heading to Super Bowl a couple of weeks in New Orleans.
We're gonna talk about a whole bunch of things in
the meantime. Give this to mister Booker and see if
you'd like to order while while we wait, and then
you can get years to go. You can stick around
stick Thanks for joining us, and I appreciate it so much.

(12:15):
You came here earlier in the year and we loved it.
I got so many great comments about it. It's so
great to have you back. First of all, congratulations on yesterday.

Speaker 7 (12:23):
Thank you. I appreciate it. It was an.

Speaker 5 (12:24):
Unbelievable season and we do this every week and we
we you know, some Monday and we've had sixteen out
of seventeen victory Mondays. Now none sweeter than today. But
it has been such an unbelievable season. I don't know
if you guys know this, but you're not supposed to
win an NFC championship that easily, and you're not supposed
to score fifty five points It's never been done before

(12:46):
in the championship game. And you're not supposed to get
contributions from everything, and you're not supposed to lose your
starting center. Put it in all like, there's so there's
so much stuff and you guys just have it going
on at every single facet of football.

Speaker 8 (12:58):
Man, I think that that's just a testament to the
coaching staff and the guys that just the organization in
general and the standard that we have set for ourselves.
You know, I think that we definitely do embrace that
next man up mentality and the fact that, like truly,
whenever you're out there, you're a starter. So you know,
you look at Landing adjusting having to do that, Cam
doing his thing, Like, there's so many different guys that

(13:20):
find ways to contribute when they're out there, just because
that's again the standard that we hold ourselves too.

Speaker 5 (13:25):
It's everybody, and we have been so fortunate and blessed
to have so many of you come join us here
this year. And pretty much everybody has played some significant
role somewhere along the line.

Speaker 4 (13:36):
I mean, Will Shipley was here a couple of weeks ago. Now,
I love Will Shipley, I love all of you.

Speaker 5 (13:40):
Yeah, but you know, Will Shipley, a fourth round pick
running back of the Eagles, has succeeded at every flashing
chance he got, just like everybody else. And then yesterday
in the NFC Championship game, he's ripping off a run
like he did Yep, he carries a whole drive literally
on his back and finally gets in the end zone
because he's come close a bunch of times and I

(14:00):
got cheated on a holding call and stuff like that.
There he is in the NFC Championship game, a rookie
who you know, played a nice role of special teams
and they saw, but playing a significant role. It's just
part of what this team is. And then I'm watching.
I always watch for different things while the game's going on. Yeah,
and I watched the sideline and I watched the reaction
of your team to this guy who's your teammate, who
I'm sure all year long was doing everything necessary to

(14:23):
help the team even if he wasn't getting on the field.

Speaker 8 (14:25):
No, absolutely, I think that that's why you see guys
like Saquon like putting this.

Speaker 7 (14:28):
Helmet on and running out there.

Speaker 8 (14:30):
I think it happens with us, like when JD got
his sack yesterday, Like we're just so happy to see
everybody's success because first off, we're a team and we
vote for each other's success, but also just because we
see the work as being put in on a week
two week basis to do that, you know, and even
though everyone else might not see it, or they might
not get as many opportunities to do it on the
game field, when they do, like it's just like a
celebration for all of us.

Speaker 5 (14:51):
We got to talk about all this stuff because there
are so many things the public doesn't see. The NFL
is so almost perfect in its structure, which is one
game a week.

Speaker 4 (15:01):
You and I went to a Sixers game.

Speaker 5 (15:03):
You know, they don't even care game to game because
they got eighty two games.

Speaker 4 (15:06):
Every one of your games matter.

Speaker 5 (15:08):
You saw it, I mean you and I were sitting
right near the bench you're you're like kind of in
disbelief that a guy making sixty million is not even
dressed or you're hanging out.

Speaker 7 (15:16):
Yeah, I mean the NBA and the NFL are definitely different.

Speaker 8 (15:19):
You know, having eighty two shots plus a postseason versus
seventeen plus what a potential for There's definitely a different
dynamic for sure.

Speaker 7 (15:29):
Yeah, two different leagues.

Speaker 4 (15:31):
Tom.

Speaker 5 (15:31):
With regard to the NBA versus versus football and every
other sport, here's also a huge, huge part of it,
and it just makes the playoffs so incredible, both good
and bad. To some stand it is that every playoff
game is Game seven. There's one game and it's sudden
death every time. It's the NCAA Tournament's I mean, it's

(15:53):
this is your one chance and so your whole season
can go great and three hours later it's over. And
that's always a risk and skin to something saying you
can't think about it, but it's always possibility and you
see it, you know. The Detroit lines. I do feel
for Detroit Lion fans. They have suffered since nineteen fifty seven,
which is a long time.

Speaker 4 (16:10):
That's even before I was born. That's how long ago.

Speaker 7 (16:14):
You know.

Speaker 4 (16:14):
I just found out recently.

Speaker 5 (16:15):
By the way, the modern era of the NFL is
considered from nineteen seventy to you know, the modern r
nineteen seventy, which means I was looking at your father
because I think hep proceeds in nineteen seventy. Yes, as
do I, and I can't believe that my life is
now the ancient error part of my life. The things
that you guys see is grainy blackaway film was my life,

(16:36):
and it was actually in color when I saw it
lit No, but anyhow, with the suddenness of it and
you put it all in and what people don't see.

Speaker 4 (16:45):
We see guys on Sundays, and.

Speaker 5 (16:47):
They've been great Sundays, just great Sunday and in so
many ways.

Speaker 4 (16:51):
But there is so much work that goes into it.

Speaker 5 (16:53):
You work in the off season when you god willing
win in a couple of weeks. Okay, you're not going
to get that much time off because it's already going
to be mid February.

Speaker 7 (17:01):
Everyone.

Speaker 4 (17:02):
I also stopped.

Speaker 5 (17:02):
Playing for a month and a half, and you're going
to come back and you're going to hit the spring
workouts and then the season will go in the rhythm again.

Speaker 4 (17:08):
But how far away. How long ago does Brazil?

Speaker 2 (17:11):
See?

Speaker 8 (17:12):
Man, it's it's crazy because I think the statement is
the days are long, but the years are short.

Speaker 4 (17:19):
You know, great statement. Who made that?

Speaker 7 (17:21):
Is that? A Stanford guy? You know what? You will
claim it. I don't think it's us, but we'll claim that.

Speaker 8 (17:26):
But that's kind of how it feels where it's just
like it does feel like a long time ago, but
also it feels very very close at the same time.

Speaker 5 (17:34):
That is amazing, and you're right while you're in it,
it probably feels fast when you look back.

Speaker 4 (17:38):
Everything condenses anyhow.

Speaker 7 (17:39):
Yeah, absolutely.

Speaker 5 (17:40):
I mean when you think about it, how fast is
your first three years in the NFL going?

Speaker 8 (17:45):
Oh my gosh, it's crazy for me to think that I'm,
what now, seven years out of high.

Speaker 4 (17:49):
School and you're a Grizzly veteran now.

Speaker 8 (17:51):
Yeah, oh my gosh. Hopefully not Grizzly. I'll take betteran.
You gotta ad a couple of years for the Grizzly bar.

Speaker 4 (17:58):
But it just it just all flies by.

Speaker 5 (18:00):
And for most of us people and not the guys
that are fortunate enough are good enough to play, we
kind of live for the NFL season. So it's like
it goes so fast to me because then from February
until September, everyone's waiting for the NFL season, right right right.

Speaker 8 (18:17):
It is kind of crazy, you know, just like the
focus that you have from week to week and how
present minded you have to be makes it go by
so so quickly. So like during the week, it seems
like it might be drudging on, like in the day
to day sense, but all of a sudden, you came
in on Tuesday to do your lift or Monday to
do your lift, and all of a sudden, it's back
to it being Saturday night getting ready for the.

Speaker 2 (18:39):
Game, just like that.

Speaker 5 (18:40):
And that is that's part of to me, the perfectness
of the league in that it just has such a
rhythm to it that you know the pace, especially as
an athlete, you know what each day brings you. Your
season started really weird because you start in Brazil on
a Friday night taking a trip like that, and they
had a Monday night game founded up and they.

Speaker 4 (18:58):
Had a bye week, girl, and it's hard to get
in that rhythm.

Speaker 5 (19:00):
But once you guys got in that rhythm, you didn't
look back, and it was unbelievable how solid it was.

Speaker 8 (19:05):
No, absolutely, I think that, you know, being able to
stick to your routines, having that rhythmic pattern of what
you're gonna do, how you get your body prepared with
film you're looking at all the rest of it is
super helpful when you're trying to get into groove.

Speaker 5 (19:17):
So I want to talk a little bit of a
few facets of your team. We don't need to break
down yesterday's game. Washington broke it down for us already.

Speaker 4 (19:23):
Let me let you know what.

Speaker 5 (19:24):
Let me set to stage on some stuff. First of all,
is I'm going to backtrack the drought. There's a guy
named Jim Solana who passed away yesterday. Jim Solana was
an agent of a lot of former Eagles guys in
the seventies who was a really really big agent, a
local guy, and just a wonderful guy. Funny guy, great guy.
And I've been in the agent space myself for a

(19:46):
long time. Jim was an account I'm an attorney, but
I've known him a long time. And you know, it's
a little bit of a competitive business, and people genuinely,
genuinely don't.

Speaker 4 (19:53):
Like each other. But I really like Jim Solana.

Speaker 5 (19:56):
And I don't know if you know any of these guys,
but Howard Carr, Michael, he's, you know, a Hall of
Famer for the Eagles, and Seth Joiner and Clyde Simmons
and a whole bunch's and he was even Buddy Ryan's agent,
who was a coach when he was here. And that
shows he was a coach of the guys, and and
and he in the old days. And you don't know
this because it's been knocked down, but Veteran Stadium was

(20:17):
a stadium.

Speaker 7 (20:18):
It was one of those multi you've heard of it probably, yeah,
I believe I have.

Speaker 5 (20:21):
And it's where the Eagles played up until the late nineties,
where actually two thousand and three was when they first
moved into the Link and it was it was a
multipurpose stadium that so it was the Phillies and the
Eagles playing the same thing on this horrible turf. And
they were converted and Pittsburgh had the same type stateium.
So ours was called Veterans Stadium, theirs was called Three
River Stadium. They both opened in about nineteen seventy seventy

(20:43):
one and then closed at the same time.

Speaker 4 (20:44):
So Pennsylvania passed the bill that the.

Speaker 5 (20:47):
State would pay for a third the city would pay
for a third in the clubs, for a third for
two new stadiums, the baseball stadium here that became City
Backpark and Lincoln Financial Field. But in the old days
when they played at the Vet, look, you can't imagine
no one had. There wasn't a dom then to protect
you guys a like that. They actually had a parking
lot that was open to the public. There's same one

(21:08):
in the parking lots for the players and the Eagles
practice field.

Speaker 4 (21:11):
There was no there was no Nova Complex. Novacare Complex was.

Speaker 5 (21:15):
A bubble and a fenced in area in the parking lot,
and the players would literally walk from the locker room,
which was in veteran stadium.

Speaker 4 (21:22):
You didn't have their separate facility.

Speaker 5 (21:23):
So in the stadium that they played and was also
their practice facility, and they would walk across the parking
lot into the practice field. And Jim Salona started by.
You had the big snicker bars, and the linemen loved
those big snicker bars, and that's all you would salon
in him was a perfect agent, and what a what
a compliment. And they were friends. I talked to Harold today.
You know, sad to loses his friend and his agent
of over fifty years. And to me, that kind of

(21:46):
relationship is so important. I bring this full cycle to
your game this weekend. So one of my classes was
a guy named wi William Gay who played his career
for eleven years of Pittsburgh Steelers in the cornerback you remember,
number twenty two.

Speaker 4 (21:57):
One of my favorite people of the planet.

Speaker 5 (21:58):
And just just to tell his story for a second,
because my cause, my cleats is because of William Gay. Really,
his father, stepfather, you know, tragically killed Will's mother when
will was eight years old and then killed himself. So
when will was eight years old, he lost both parents
and one tragedy, but his family never told him exactly
what happened. He came up from school and he bounced

(22:19):
from family member to family member, and he didn't find
out really till he was about twenty years old. So
when he got to the NFL by way of Louisville,
he knew then at that point he had just found out,
and he would go every Friday to the shelters.

Speaker 4 (22:34):
Were battered women and spend time with them.

Speaker 5 (22:36):
He called him his heroes, and the league found out
about it after many years and made him almost sort
of the poster person against domestic violence because they started
have some issues in the league, and he was such
a positive influence and he's just such a genuine greet guy.

Speaker 4 (22:52):
He really didn't want people to know about. He just
wanted to help people.

Speaker 5 (22:54):
But so when you have the October which they wear
pink cleats they allowed out in the NFL, well, he
decided where purple, which is a which is for domestic viands,
we got to find letter. He got to find letter
because he wasn't because that wasn't the approved color. And
I thought that, like crazy, I go listen. Breast cancers
are wonderful cause, but other people have wonderful causes too,
and you can't determine that every player I support this

(23:16):
but can't support their own.

Speaker 4 (23:18):
And they added might cause my tee.

Speaker 7 (23:19):
That's so interesting, But.

Speaker 5 (23:20):
They did not Nobody knows that that wasn't my fight
with the league. But they did not recent his fying either.
They cut it a little bit. But ayay, I bring
that up because he's now a cooked from the Washington Commanders.
So I spent my Saturday night with him having a
wonderful dinner stake forty eight and you know it's but
it's a divided loyalties also, and he understands it because
when you're in the business as you know, I mean,
you were Houston Texan. Your father probably was wearing Houston

(23:43):
Texan year three years ago. Now you're a Philadelphi Eagle, right,
That's how it goes. So it's really about the people.
But for us in this region, it's about the Philadelphia Eagles.

Speaker 4 (23:52):
And it's been handed out from generation to generation.

Speaker 5 (23:55):
And this was as good a day as we've had
except for championships, and that is championship. You know, in
the old days, this would have been there was only
the you know, there wasn't the two conferences and stuff.
Sixteen teams there was more than they were in the
league period back in the day until they merged with
the AFL in the mid sixties and then became.

Speaker 4 (24:12):
What it is in the Super Bowl.

Speaker 5 (24:14):
Anyway, there weren't even playoffs in the old days, just
a championship game. Actually at the beginning of the league
in nineteen twenty and in the earlier days they didn't
even have a championship.

Speaker 4 (24:22):
The coaches were like both who got.

Speaker 7 (24:24):
Some who won?

Speaker 8 (24:24):
How many games were there in the start of the
league back in the nineteen twenties.

Speaker 5 (24:30):
The first year, it was like eight or nine games, okay,
then and they build up over time, and now we're
up to seventeen and we're just paused at seventeen.

Speaker 4 (24:37):
We're hitting eighteen. And you know, they literally were.

Speaker 5 (24:39):
When I was a kid, it was a fourteen game
regular season and they played six exhibition games and they
actually played. It was so imagine that what a waste
that was of people. But here we are. Now we
are in twenty twenty five, and it's a new world
in the new league, and I don't know, and you
don't have to walk across the parking lot to go
to your practice facility with all the fans there.

Speaker 7 (24:59):
Well.

Speaker 8 (25:00):
Actually, funny in Houston that was kind of like the
setup a little bit like the way that it's set
up there is that they have the stadium right there,
and then you actually do walk through the parking lot
over a bridge, and they have their outdoor facility like
two or three fields, and then they have an indoor
bubble right over there.

Speaker 7 (25:16):
So it's kind of a different deal.

Speaker 5 (25:18):
But the fans aren't like they are here anyhow, right, Yeah,
it is different. They're not quite as passionate or no, I.

Speaker 8 (25:23):
Mean Texas, Texas like football is gospel, you know, but
it is just different in.

Speaker 5 (25:27):
Philadelphia, different than anywhere, yeah, absolutely, And different than Northern
California and all that stuff.

Speaker 8 (25:33):
Yeah, yeah, it's different than northern California. Shout out to Stanford.

Speaker 5 (25:36):
But as I was watching everybody, I was having dinner
with will Gay, the Dbacks coach for it the Commanders
on Saturday. First of all, people in the restaurant embarrassed themselves,
coming over saying stupid stuff.

Speaker 7 (25:50):
What was the stupidest they say?

Speaker 5 (25:52):
All right, I ran into a guy who works for
the Philadelphia Eagles. He had a guest with him. I
introduced him to listen, this is William Gay. Memory he
played on Pittsburgh.

Speaker 4 (26:01):
He's now coaching Dbacks with Washington. You're you're pulling tomorrow.

Speaker 5 (26:04):
And they just started saying stuff that you don't say,
like it's talking trash to the fan of the street.

Speaker 4 (26:09):
And you know what I mean, it's like just saying stuff.

Speaker 5 (26:11):
At dinner to the guy who's coaching against the United
States a little respect.

Speaker 7 (26:17):
People tend to get off some of their agreements.

Speaker 5 (26:19):
Says stupid, stupid stuff, and then you know, people all
think they know and can talk football, but they.

Speaker 4 (26:26):
Don't know it like you guys know it. It's very,
very different.

Speaker 5 (26:30):
It's like you know, in other professions, people don't presume
to understand and football everyone knows, they think.

Speaker 4 (26:35):
But they don't know what they don't know. So anyway,
Well is just the coolest guy there is. He like,
he lets it roll. But I also he said some
interesting comments.

Speaker 5 (26:45):
And I didn't really talk much about the game with
him get in advanced, because that's.

Speaker 4 (26:48):
Not what we do.

Speaker 5 (26:51):
But he talked about how he was watching film and
Jalen didn't look hurt to him, he said, he said,
everyone's talking about him. I watched him even after he
got you know, twisted, he goes. He looked like he
was moving better after that. So so I.

Speaker 7 (27:06):
Think Jalen is just a competitor at the end of
the day, you know.

Speaker 8 (27:09):
I think that he's proven in this league time and
time again that he does whatever he needs to to
win games. You know, I think he said in a
press conference, like it's not about stats, accolades, it's literally
just about like do we have more points than them
at the end of the game.

Speaker 4 (27:21):
He is such a winner and he has proven that
through his whole life. It's incredible.

Speaker 5 (27:26):
And you know, you guys are doing some historic things
that I meant to John before he walked in here.
Nick Sirianni, who people wanted to run out of town
a year ago.

Speaker 4 (27:33):
You know, that's just Philadelphia. You don't win the super Bowl.

Speaker 7 (27:36):
It's it's it's you.

Speaker 4 (27:37):
Know, it's victory or death.

Speaker 5 (27:38):
And but he is a first coach in NFL history
to make the playoffs, his first for years ago, to
two super Bowls, the first in the history of league.
I mean, that's quite an accomplishment.

Speaker 8 (27:49):
That is that is as a great set of accolades.
And I think Nick is somebody that if you're in
the facility again, you look at him the same way
you look at Jalen.

Speaker 7 (27:56):
He's a winner.

Speaker 8 (27:56):
You know, he puts us in great positions to be successful.

Speaker 7 (28:00):
I think that shows with the record.

Speaker 5 (28:01):
Well, and that's what I want to say about about
Jalen because I do think he's underappreciated as well, and
because all he does is win and all he and
and and his personality is very different than a lot
of starting quarterbacks, star quarterbacks. It really is a lot
of them are more outgoing and we're you know, grabbing
the media. He's he's subtle and quiet and doesn't look

(28:22):
for the spotlight.

Speaker 4 (28:23):
He just does what it takes.

Speaker 5 (28:24):
And your team has evolved over the years where I
think they're asking different things for him than they once did.
I mean, this Saquon Barklay an offensive line thing you
got going on is so is so crazy. So it
becomes where don't make turnovers, which he doesn't make and
hasn't made. And you won the turnover a battle or
for nothing yesterday and we could break down that game

(28:45):
any which way, but you win the turnover battle for nothing,
you're going to win the game. And you score four
touchdowns on those four turnovers, you're going to win the game.

Speaker 8 (28:53):
Usually unless there's some kind of statistical you know thing
that goes on. But yeah, usually it's going to be
a pretty good, pretty gooday for you.

Speaker 5 (29:00):
And you've won the turn of a battle all through
the plays, all through the season, and significantly, like ever
since that two and two start.

Speaker 4 (29:06):
It was unbelievable you guys have done.

Speaker 5 (29:08):
And I mean, that's a testament testament to everybody, and
I want to, uh, but but when Nick Sirianna got
up there, guess the first thing he said was how
about our quarterback? Like, hey, how about some attention to him?
Because everyone else is going to get the attention, and
Saquon deservedly so. Because I will say this about Saquon
Barkley and I've seen a lot of filled up Egal seasons,
it is the best offensive season any filled up egle

(29:31):
I ever had it.

Speaker 8 (29:33):
I could, I could, I could concur with that, and
you you just haven't history, so you know your history.
I may not have watched as many seasons as you,
but I could tell you right now just seeing it firsthand,
it's pretty hard to be.

Speaker 4 (29:43):
And it's it's not just the two thousand yards.

Speaker 5 (29:46):
He hits a home run at a record pace, and
when the season ended, he did it again in the
playoffs every single game.

Speaker 4 (29:54):
I've just I've never seen anything like it.

Speaker 5 (29:56):
And from what I can see from the outside, you
couldn't askwer better take teammate, a more humble guy, and
it is just.

Speaker 8 (30:04):
I think the Saquon like the thing that we love
about Sequon outside of so many other things, it's just
that again, he's selfless and he understands that, like his
job is made easier by Landon by Mackay, by Lane
by Jordan, by Tyler Steen, by Cam Jurgens, by Kenny Gamwell,
by Dallas Goddard. All these guys, you know, Aj Brown,
DeVante Smith, all these people like we all kind of

(30:26):
play an integral role in each other's success. And I
think that we truly understand that on that team. So
you know, it's why we just role each other on
so much.

Speaker 5 (30:34):
I mean, you mentioned the receivers because Davante has not
gone a lot of spot like this year. And I
love Davonte Smith because because those are the guys that
help you win so much. I mean, AJ's a little
bit different personality, but you've got to really number one receivers.
I think Dallas is so good and I love the
game he had yesterday. You know, obviously he's had a

(30:55):
few injury problems, but all he does is everything you
wanted to do, which is everything.

Speaker 4 (31:01):
Every time you throw him, he catches it.

Speaker 5 (31:03):
He runs over people, he blocks like crazy, He's he's
one of the keys to the tush push.

Speaker 4 (31:07):
I mean, the guy is just a baller.

Speaker 7 (31:08):
Yes, he is straight up just a football player, and
I love I love watching him.

Speaker 5 (31:12):
But before we take a break, because I'm I've gone
way over waiting for you knock. There's so much I
want to talk to you about this. It's just so
many subjects. But I think it's the best right tackle.

Speaker 4 (31:24):
I've ever seen.

Speaker 5 (31:25):
And you've you've interchanged a few right guards, but they're
all good. And back ten is another tribute to Howie
Roseman and staff as to how good he is.

Speaker 4 (31:33):
And then Stoutland and because he.

Speaker 5 (31:34):
Just takes these guys puts him in a position, I mean,
you got you got your buddy Fred Johnson, who has
been a great guy who's played multiple positions for this
team as a backup instead and then at center.

Speaker 4 (31:45):
You know, look you and Jason.

Speaker 5 (31:47):
Kelsey, who will go to the Hall of Fame pretty
soon as if not immediately, went eligible very soon there after.
He's a definite Hall of Famer. He retired, he played
on this team last year.

Speaker 4 (31:56):
He's retired.

Speaker 5 (31:57):
He lost a Hall of Fame center, and you would
draft to the guy in Jurgens to replace that Hall
of Fame center. Well, he still had the Hall of Fame center,
so he played right guard instead of center. Then next
to him is an all Pro Dickerson, who's, in my opinion,
maybe the best left guard in the league is right
in there no matter what. And then you've got this
thing at the left tackle. And I say thing not derogatory.

(32:20):
He's the nicest guy you could ever beat. But Jordan
may a lot. And I saw me after the game yesterday.
Every time I see him again him, you know, wrap
it up with him.

Speaker 4 (32:28):
I've been around a lot of big people.

Speaker 7 (32:30):
Those are some really really big people.

Speaker 5 (32:32):
Specifically, and that is just a mountain because he's he's
sixty eight, really about four hundred.

Speaker 8 (32:38):
And we did, like I actually did like a calculation
on the sideline. I was trying to figure out, like
what the total weight was of the offensive line, and
I think I think it's around like fifteen hundred pounds.
I think wow, because I think, you know, you think
my lot is probably around three sixty three eighty. You know,
you just keep on going through and you're like, wow,
there is legitimately fifteen hundred and sixteen hundred pounds like

(33:00):
this smaller missiveness.

Speaker 5 (33:02):
And they are and they are strong, and they are
great and they but but here's the other And Statlin
has to get credits as good of a position coach
as there is in the league.

Speaker 4 (33:12):
It's just an incredible unit.

Speaker 5 (33:14):
They've continued and he's lost guys and replaces them with others,
and it's just you know, turned of my ally.

Speaker 4 (33:19):
I didn't know how to play football when he got here,
you know.

Speaker 7 (33:23):
To find out how that is now? You know what?
Was he the highest graded player.

Speaker 5 (33:27):
In an athlete I mean at that size, the way
he the way he moves in athleticism.

Speaker 4 (33:32):
But but so so.

Speaker 5 (33:34):
With Dickerson as your great left guard in trench there,
Jurgen suffers an injury and what do you do? You
move this all pro left guard to center that he
doesn't even play, which is not simple.

Speaker 8 (33:46):
But he also did play center in college, so he
had some experience with that. But still it's not usual
that you can just slid somebody in like that.

Speaker 5 (33:52):
Okay, but you're not snapping, and you're not and you're
not calling you know what, because the center's calling the blocking.

Speaker 4 (34:00):
Schemes for the for the offensive line and all that.

Speaker 5 (34:02):
I mean, it's just there's a lot of mental things
as well as physical because and I was watching him
carefully on the shotgun because even I mean, you got
a shotgun and block, and you know you haven't been
doing that at that level, you're doing the NFC championship game.

Speaker 4 (34:14):
That's unbelievable.

Speaker 5 (34:15):
So and then he gets hurt, So Jergens dresses for
the game as an emergency replacement. Well that emergency game
and once he do he stepped in, he didn't look
like he was hurt. He was unbelievable. So explain this
to me, man.

Speaker 8 (34:27):
It's again, I think it's more of that, like just
the standard than the next man of mentality that we have.
You know, whoever comes out there like they understand, this
is what we expect, this is what we know you're
capable of. So it's not a surprise when you produce
like that. Well, it's been doing it all year long.

Speaker 5 (34:42):
And we could go on and on because d Kobe
Dean had an unbelievable Nikobe Deane comes into this year
and the talking side was he might not make the
team because he had a rough first two years with injuries.
Now you're probably looking at me like, are you kidding me?
N Kobe Dan not make the team. They're around pick
three years ago a beast. But if you're hurt in
the NFL, they hold it against you, and he hadn't
able to stay on the field and really get on
the film. He goes out and has a monster yr

(35:03):
I tholt he should have been an All pro pro bowler,
but he went down. So what what happens? They had
picked up a guy, another guy that was something you know,
dumped by somebody else who was super good. Burks and
and literally have started in last year's Super Bowl, and
and and has been incredible and filling into I mean,
the guy is so good. You look at him and look,

(35:25):
you're gonna have problems in the future, which may may
help you, but that is that you've got so many
guys and so hard in the NFL because you got
you're gonna have to pay a lot of guys.

Speaker 4 (35:33):
And make decisions. There's a tough decisions.

Speaker 5 (35:34):
But the bottom line, the depth of this team has
been incredible and part of your your tremendous success. So
which includes the Kakataras filling and when Dallas.

Speaker 4 (35:42):
Was hurt, absolutely and and on and on.

Speaker 7 (35:45):
It every at every position.

Speaker 4 (35:46):
So listen, we got to take a break.

Speaker 5 (35:47):
We got a lot more to talk about and not
a lot of time, but it's just been so exciting.
I wanted to more talk in general about this fantastic team.
You're a part of and that has given Philadelphia so much,
so much joy, and we'll give us an incredible anticipation
over the next two weeks, and there'll be a whole
lot of us, myself included, flocking down to New Orleans

(36:09):
to be there to support you, to do a takeover
of the super Dome, and to hopefully usher in the end.

Speaker 4 (36:14):
We don't get ahead of ourselves, but we love.

Speaker 5 (36:17):
You and we believe in Yeah, and we'll be back
on the All Pro Philly Players Show along with our
special guest, Thomas Booker. I'm Gerald Colton talking to the
NFL our NFC champion, mister Booker about this great season
and a couple weeks ahead heading to New Orleans. We'll
be back right after this.

Speaker 4 (36:42):
Oh yeah, we're gonna fly like a fifty nine on
February nine.

Speaker 5 (36:49):
I'm Gerald Cole and welcome back to the All Pro
Philly Players Show along with Thomas Booker. Number fifty nine
of the Eagle is one of the great members of
the defensive line of the phillip Eagles, the best defense
in the NFL and one more step to go.

Speaker 4 (37:03):
We are also going to be joined by someone who
goes by Tom Booker.

Speaker 5 (37:06):
Yep, and they are both Earl Thomas Booker, who got
the third and the fourth in Roman numerals in Super
Bowl fifty nine, which is a lot of Roman numerals.

Speaker 4 (37:16):
I was wondering how long they keep going with the
ro manuerals, but they're still doing it.

Speaker 8 (37:19):
Yeah, it's it's actually kind of shocked in me how
many people like don't know, like the like how to
do Roman numerals.

Speaker 7 (37:24):
I think, what is fifty nine? Is it L?

Speaker 5 (37:25):
I X Well, it's fifty is L, Yes, it is,
it is L. So it's the one before the ten
for the nine. So actually fifty nine is actually a
lot easier than a lot of the other ones.

Speaker 4 (37:34):
It's the ones that get to like A which is
a V one one one Yeah.

Speaker 8 (37:38):
Yeah, well, because we've thought about that too, because if I,
if I happen to be blessed enough to have a
son at some point not now, then it would end
up being the fifth. So V would be kind of cool.

Speaker 5 (37:48):
The V is cool. The V is absolutely cool, and
you're the ivy. So and speaking of which, two years ago,
I just did the show with one guy for the
whole year, and that was t J. Edwards, who you
didn't get to play with, but an unbelievable person and
ironically a Wisconsin here with me and he were number
fifty seven and went to Super Bowl fifty seven and

(38:10):
here here we always fifty nine. Going to do it
at fifty nine is going to be a popular number
around Philadelphia.

Speaker 4 (38:15):
Yes, so let's get it.

Speaker 5 (38:17):
And we are here now with Earl Booker for it's
Earl Thomas Booker, the third. Welcome Tom, thank you. We're
really happy to hear you. Make sure that that's turned off.
Jed John Chansen takes care of everything, so he would
have done a sound check if it throw you in
the worse. But you welcome, And you don't come that

(38:40):
far to come to Philadelphia, do you know?

Speaker 9 (38:42):
We we I reside in Baltimore, so it's it's a
much easier ride than going to California, Texas.

Speaker 4 (38:50):
So you've been a part of obviously every step of
this journey. And you know, one of the things that that.

Speaker 5 (38:56):
You love so much as a pair and is watching
your kids partici paying activities, and in my.

Speaker 4 (38:59):
Case so it was sports.

Speaker 5 (39:00):
Also though clearly you gave him better jeans than my
kid's father gave them.

Speaker 7 (39:05):
I don't know.

Speaker 5 (39:08):
He got he got athletic genes from somewhere because guys
at his sides generally don't move that way.

Speaker 4 (39:12):
You have the size and that kind of athleticism. But
so before he came to Philadelphia, what were your thoughts
about this town.

Speaker 9 (39:20):
Well, so I've been I'd been done business in Philadelphia
for a number of years. I used to work with
the Federal Reserve for a number of years. When I
work with the IBM Company, and then when I worked
for Fannie May, I used to get up here quite
a bit as well. So Philadelphia to me is probably
one of the best food towns that people don't know
is there.

Speaker 4 (39:39):
Including chickens and peach right here, right here.

Speaker 7 (39:41):
Here, right here. That is not a setup, that's the truth,
but it is true.

Speaker 5 (39:46):
And that's you know, Thomas is finding his way in
this community very well in his second year here, and
I see him around, he gets to know people, and
he gets outside the Philadelphia Eagles. I actually had him
do a single singlers mingle event for Divining as an appearance,
and the.

Speaker 4 (40:02):
Problem was with having him there.

Speaker 5 (40:03):
And he doesn't know this, but every woman there who's
there to meet the other singles wanted him and that
was a problem for the matchmakers. But anyway, tough to compete.
But anyway, I'm glad you enjoyed. And where'd you celebrate
last night? So we went to element Oh it's a
spot in a fishtown, really good. Shout out to all

(40:24):
the people at element O. It's like pretty close to
where I live.

Speaker 8 (40:27):
So it was me, my dad, my mom, my uncle,
just had some tacos and just showed that it was cool.

Speaker 5 (40:33):
And how do you find the fans when you're in
the stands here animated?

Speaker 9 (40:39):
I'd say, there is no lack of passion, there's no
lack of sharing that passion.

Speaker 7 (40:44):
But it's all good. It's all very constructive. I mean,
this is a spirit of sports. Sound.

Speaker 4 (40:48):
Well, were you a Ravens fan at all? I kind
of was a Ravens I.

Speaker 5 (40:52):
Mean, I know they came later because you know, it's
not like you grew up at the Ravens. They were
with the Cleveland Browns till the late nineteen nineties.

Speaker 9 (40:59):
Well, I grew up as a you know, good guys
wear a black Oakland Raiders fan.

Speaker 7 (41:03):
Wow.

Speaker 4 (41:04):
Wow, that's they just had a press conference today. They're
not longering Oaklan Riers.

Speaker 5 (41:07):
Of course, they're Las Vegas, but introduced their new coach
and their new general manager with spy tech came over.
He was the assistant general manager in Tampa, and they
brought Pete Carroll over from Seattle, and that's a place
that has had a really bad culture. We talked about
the Eagles culture where you have all such wonderful, intelligent, great,
great people and it's part of you know, not just
are you guys great football players, it's so beyond that.

(41:29):
And the Raiders over the years really digressed. Now it's
really interesting, Tom that you mentioned.

Speaker 4 (41:33):
The Raiders, because because when the.

Speaker 5 (41:35):
Eagles first went to the culture thing and and and
real high character, I thought.

Speaker 4 (41:39):
They were making a mistake. And the reason was I grew.

Speaker 5 (41:41):
Up the same general years as your father and and
and the Raiders were the bad boys, and you know,
they would get arrested and then then Joe drunk and
fight and stuff. And they won three Super Bowls in
that era. And we also had the Cowboys weren't always
choir boys and things like that.

Speaker 4 (41:58):
So it's funny, but the.

Speaker 5 (42:00):
Raiders have They had Al Davis running them for years
and now his son is in charge, and his son's
not his father, but fortunately it looks like for them
that he made he went in the right direction. Anyway,
enough on the Raiders, because we're talking green and you
gotta like the Kelly Green over there.

Speaker 7 (42:16):
Oh I love it. Yes, you got that. He has
a Kelly Green jersey act.

Speaker 4 (42:26):
Do you have the Roman roll in the back?

Speaker 7 (42:28):
No, I don't.

Speaker 4 (42:30):
He gets that, but you do have it?

Speaker 7 (42:31):
Yeah, I do. I do.

Speaker 2 (42:32):
So.

Speaker 7 (42:32):
I actually didn't get it in college.

Speaker 8 (42:35):
I'm not exactly sure why, but it was cool because
my last year I got number four, so I ended
up just reading out booker four on the back.

Speaker 5 (42:42):
Oh that's perfect you You and your numbers have some symmetry,
all right. So let's talk about what's ahead. And actually,
before I do that, I got to do this. And then
that is because I I can't leave yesterday yet without
a few things. First of all, Tom, that's senior, it's
your booker. You're not seeing it.

Speaker 7 (43:01):
But the father.

Speaker 5 (43:02):
Yes, I love days like yesterday in Philadelphia, and we've
had a lot of them. Obviously, when it's the NFC
Championship it's a little bit bigger. But those Eagles Sundays
and the tailgating, the pageantry.

Speaker 4 (43:15):
Of this whole town and the whole region.

Speaker 5 (43:17):
Swept up in it. It's like nothing else. It doesn't
feel great being a part of it.

Speaker 9 (43:21):
I gotta tell you. It makes you want to be
a part of football game. I mean it's interesting. People
have different thoughts about whether you introduced this to your
children or not. I never worried because I understand it.
But I also understand the people who are around the game.
And you see it. You saw it yesterday. I walked
to the stadium. It was beautiful walking.

Speaker 4 (43:39):
And you played at Wisconsin.

Speaker 2 (43:41):
Yes, sir.

Speaker 4 (43:41):
When you play outside linebacker, that's crazy.

Speaker 5 (43:44):
You fit right in with the Philadelphia Eagles or our
tradition of Wisconsin linebackers.

Speaker 4 (43:49):
That is crazy. And what years are you there?

Speaker 9 (43:51):
I was there from nineteen seventy nine through nineteen eighty four.

Speaker 4 (43:55):
We are really basically the same exact age. I gotta
take it.

Speaker 5 (43:59):
I did not play football, but wow, and I've.

Speaker 4 (44:03):
Been there for the fifth quarter and all the story
really really great.

Speaker 7 (44:07):
You have pictures directed in the band.

Speaker 5 (44:09):
Oh yeah, I think I said that, which is quickly
just so people who don't know know that what I'm
talking about when I say in the fifth quarter.

Speaker 9 (44:15):
Well, so Wisconsin's got a the Marching four hundred. They're
like a Southern school in that way. All the big
ten schools have big bands and at the end of
the game, the band plays serenades the crowd that's there,
and it's a big deal. People dance on the field,
they come out, players come back out out of the
locker room.

Speaker 7 (44:32):
It's a big deal.

Speaker 4 (44:33):
It's really fun.

Speaker 5 (44:34):
And obviously alcohol feels a lot of it in Wisconsin.
But I mean, it's a great school. And you obviously
raise the son, who's a pretty pretty intellectual young man.
And when he was here the last time, he explained
to me how he chose his college really had to
do more with the academics and all the apps and
really the brain power of Stanford what they.

Speaker 4 (44:54):
Appeal to as opposed to just the football side of things.

Speaker 5 (44:57):
And you mentioned though you never had any thoughts about
your son play football. I guess the game was really
good to you.

Speaker 9 (45:03):
Let me tell you, I used to call football church
on Saturday. Because you've learned so much from your behaviors,
your interactions, the people you're around. I had to be
I must have been a wonderful program, because that was
what it left me with.

Speaker 5 (45:17):
I was a tennis player prior to that, and that's
an individual support yeah, for yourself. Yeah, it's interesting also
because I do feel it's the ultimate team game, absolutely
and as a result, it teaches you so much about life.

Speaker 7 (45:31):
Right and all that cause of life.

Speaker 8 (45:33):
I feel like people get put in very like strenuous situations,
especially in like a group setting where you're relying on
other people too.

Speaker 7 (45:40):
So it forces you to trust people.

Speaker 8 (45:42):
It forces you to hang out with people outside of
this to build that trust and build the ability for
people to hear you when you're being like critical of
them in a way that's positive and not tearing them down.
And it's just so many like team building and other
skills that can be used outside of the game. And
this is a person as a friend, a significant other,

(46:02):
whatever else.

Speaker 7 (46:03):
There's so many other areas that canna use then.

Speaker 4 (46:05):
And Thomas teams.

Speaker 5 (46:06):
This is talking to the fourth because I know you
go by time he goes by Thomas.

Speaker 7 (46:10):
I'll just add the.

Speaker 4 (46:13):
Radio on the radio card. But you've been a part
of a lot of teams. You grow up playing football,
you go to college and play football. You start with
the Houston Texans. You've been a part of two Eagles,
playoff teams.

Speaker 5 (46:27):
Now one NFC champion, where does his team rank compare
to all the teams you've played.

Speaker 8 (46:31):
With, It's got to be the top of the list
for me personally. I just think like in terms of
the closeness of the guys and the roster from you know,
the guys that are the marquee guys like Saquon, like Chalin,
like Aj all those guys you know, to everybody like
everyone's so cool with each other, you know, And I
think that shows the way that we play. You know,
guys can walk from the offensive side of the bench

(46:53):
to defensive side of the bench, but we need to stop,
you know, just get us the ball back right and
we know exactly what they're about to do because as
we spent time on practice fields drilling stuff with them,
and we've seen what it's done time and time again.
So I just think like the cohesiveness of like our
unit in general is something I've never seen, especially at
this level.

Speaker 5 (47:11):
And you see that from the outside. You feel it
as a fan and I tell everybody, and I get
the privilege of sitting with you guys each week, but
this is a team you can feel good about rooting
for these are.

Speaker 4 (47:21):
This is a team you feel.

Speaker 5 (47:23):
Good about your kids liking and even hero worshiping and
all that stuff. I interrupted before I just shifted directions
when I said, it's such a thrill in life of
watching your kids participate whatever that activity was. I didn't
have dancy stitles because I had boys, and I was
actually okay with that. But I spent that on my
friends who had that stuff. But you know my name

(47:45):
do it, and I knew would end a certain times.
Sports were great in my kids' lives, but they didn't.
They weren't college athletes, and they'd have to play at
the small college and went different directions.

Speaker 7 (47:53):
Because I'm flying all over the I've been you know,
it's interesting.

Speaker 9 (47:57):
His mother and I've flown all over the country to
see him play, and it's been one of the greatest joys.
And it's permism is what I would describe permise.

Speaker 4 (48:07):
Ma that is amazing.

Speaker 5 (48:09):
And you going through this, like you probably realize how
means to your parents, But is the greatest gift as
a kid you could give until you give a child
and all that it's the greatest gift that the meeting
that continues to give to your parents' life and the
interaction together.

Speaker 4 (48:26):
And so this time you spent together.

Speaker 8 (48:28):
It's absolutely I mean for me, it was like it
was so cool before the game getting to see both
of them and just being able to be like, wow,
like you guys have been.

Speaker 7 (48:36):
With me literally every step of the way.

Speaker 8 (48:37):
I gotta see if I have my phone, this is
literally like Stanford, that's me, my dad, my mom, you know,
And I keep that on my phone And it's just
cool because it's basically like another kind of full circle
moment like that that was just getting played out of a
larger scale and it's just cool to be able to
have that moment and share that moment with your parents.

Speaker 7 (48:55):
Wow.

Speaker 5 (48:55):
And that's when Stanford actually was part of a Western conference.

Speaker 7 (48:59):
It was conference.

Speaker 4 (49:02):
But that's a lot of frequent flyer miles.

Speaker 5 (49:05):
But I gotta believe every week is just so exciting
wherever you're going.

Speaker 9 (49:08):
To watch your son play. Hey, then I've gone to
all the away sights. I've been up to Oregon, I've
been to you know, I've done the whole pack. Ten
I've been in Arizona, I've been the one. Plus I
haven't been at Utah. Yeah, only played there one time,
I think. And then COVID had it messed up. You
usually would play there twice in my four years, but
only played there once.

Speaker 5 (49:25):
And that is a beautiful place. Oh it is, But
you're not going to get there in the NFL.

Speaker 7 (49:30):
A fact, all right.

Speaker 5 (49:32):
I went through our last break and we'll just take
it to the end of the show. This pretty sorry,
John's that?

Speaker 7 (49:35):
Okay?

Speaker 5 (49:36):
Okay, great so because I go on for hours with
you guys, but I want to wind down where we're going,
which is New Orleans and all the trips you've taken,
this is probably the most exciting.

Speaker 7 (49:47):
Tell you what.

Speaker 9 (49:49):
You can't I said to Thomas today, I said, you know,
I played a lot of football. I'm sure there's been
a lot of sports played in our family, but I
think you're the first man in the book of family
to both one being on an NFL team because I
didn't play in the NFL, two win the conference championship,
and three go to a Super Bowl.

Speaker 7 (50:08):
I mean, what's not to like? They could have this
thing on the moon.

Speaker 4 (50:11):
I'd be trying to find way take us in that
locker room yesterday. When you're a conference champion.

Speaker 8 (50:17):
Man, it's just I feel like it's just jubilation you know,
but also like kind of a calmness that we know
that there's more to be done, you know. I think
that this is we're happy, but we you know, we
expected to be here, and we put the work in
to be able to expect to be here, and we
know there's more in front of us, you know. So
it's great because you feel happy, you have a lot

(50:37):
in front of you, but it's a tunnel vision of
just knowing that we had one more.

Speaker 7 (50:40):
We didn't get this far, to just come this far.

Speaker 5 (50:42):
And it's funny because it's such a great accomplishment and
you don't want to overlook it because it's, you know,
to win the super Bowl. You start out wanting to
win the division, win the conference championship, but you've made
those if you've accomplished those things, and then of course
win the big one, but you.

Speaker 4 (50:59):
Don't also want to dwell in it or pause or
enjoy it too much.

Speaker 5 (51:03):
And and I saw everybody handle that acceptance speechless.

Speaker 4 (51:06):
I don't know if you're listening, because you're probably were
down and listen.

Speaker 5 (51:11):
You guys have got me choked up a couple of
times today just picturing those moments.

Speaker 4 (51:15):
As a parent, you shed any tears.

Speaker 5 (51:17):
Oh okay, good, good, because because I don't want to
be the only soft how about you, Thomas?

Speaker 8 (51:24):
So I didn't get in So I have I have
a weird thing. I feel like I have weird like
triggers for crying. I won't cry it like the big moment,
and then like something little that you would never think
would make me cry will just get me. So that
little trigger hasn't happened yet, but I have a feeling
that it'll probably.

Speaker 7 (51:38):
Happened after all this is done. You know what?

Speaker 4 (51:40):
And I'm going to ask your father.

Speaker 5 (51:42):
As I got older, I cried more and kind of
only at happiness and on sadness. And you get really
really emotion emotional as you know a lot of things
coming to play and and real the reality of life
and just to to.

Speaker 4 (51:58):
Have your dreams come true.

Speaker 5 (52:01):
All the effort and energy and the most support thing
in the world is raising your kids and that they
turn out okay.

Speaker 7 (52:06):
And then you turn out more than okay.

Speaker 5 (52:08):
You win a conference championship and have that thrill that
people just don't get to have it.

Speaker 4 (52:13):
It's story book.

Speaker 9 (52:14):
Did I catch you have characterized it extraordinarily?

Speaker 2 (52:18):
Well.

Speaker 9 (52:19):
I feel the same thing as a matter of fact,
the tough stuff doesn't even really get on the radar
that much because you got a whole life of tough stuff.

Speaker 2 (52:25):
Right.

Speaker 9 (52:26):
It's those moments when you can see something come together.

Speaker 7 (52:30):
That you never thought was. This was not let me
be clear, did not have this plan for myself.

Speaker 4 (52:36):
It wasn't. It wasn't Tom it's a boy. It wasn't like, Okay, well,
I don't want a conference championship.

Speaker 8 (52:41):
But I mean, at the same time, while this might
not specifically, like explicitly have been planned from him, like
you know, between him and my mom and my sister, like,
excellence is just kind of what we what we do,
you know, it's a standard. That's what they have poured
resources into me for. And so like when we get
to these moments, while yeah, we might not have put
out on the you know, you might have a wrote
out you know, my son's gonna be in the NFC Championship,

(53:02):
going to the New Orleans for the Super Bowl, doing
these kinds of things that the scale was what they
prepared like me and my sister for. So you know,
we were ready to kind of sit in that and
be present in that moment because we felt like We've
been prepared and invested into and poured into to do that.

Speaker 5 (53:15):
And I've always believed that if you succeed at what
you have in sports, you can succeed at anything.

Speaker 4 (53:20):
It will succeed the women. I want to give shout
out to the women.

Speaker 9 (53:23):
Oh yeah, oh yeah. My my number one is his sister.
He was born first, nine years in advance.

Speaker 7 (53:29):
So we had a yeah.

Speaker 9 (53:31):
Same her name Sydney Booker, Sidney Raven Booker. She is
a new mom, six month baby.

Speaker 4 (53:37):
Is that your first grandchild? That's my first brand, So
that's a whole different I mean, crime, puddy in the floor,
what's your grandchild's name?

Speaker 9 (53:45):
Asa, Milo Freezing my Booker Freezing as Milo Booker.

Speaker 5 (53:50):
Freezing book Congratulations my third son. I had three sons
get engaged within the last year, so you've got a
little half step on me on this stuff. But I'm
at the same stage of life where it's good stuff.
It's good stuff.

Speaker 4 (54:03):
So it's being a grandfather as good as everyone.

Speaker 7 (54:06):
Said, you know what, I'm just learning.

Speaker 9 (54:08):
So so I'm not really a grand I'm kind of
a grandfather in training because once you can start talking
to me, he's actually gonna know what I'm doing. I
don't know who I am right now, I'm getting I'm
getting a few lexens, all.

Speaker 4 (54:18):
Right, shout out to your wife.

Speaker 9 (54:19):
Yeah, Eve alias Booker, Hey's going.

Speaker 8 (54:23):
But yeah, i'd say I'm also an uncle in training too.
You know, I kind of look at it the same way.
Once you can start having a conversation, that's what I'm like, Okay,
we're in this. We're in like the we're in the
training wheels period. Right now, he's going to New Orleans. Shoot,
I think my sister, her husband, my dad, my mom, god, family,

(54:44):
we'll see, we'll see who else.

Speaker 4 (54:45):
And it's a great time. Have you ever been to
Super Bowl?

Speaker 7 (54:47):
Yeah? Yeah, I went.

Speaker 9 (54:48):
I went when the Ravens played, actually played the forty
nine Ers.

Speaker 7 (54:52):
That was in New Orleans too.

Speaker 4 (54:53):
That was in New Orleans and the blackout and everything.

Speaker 8 (54:56):
And it was the coltson one too, that's what. Yeah,
I remember that one because he's a big Prince Prince guy. Yeah,
Prince was the halftime performer there.

Speaker 5 (55:03):
So that was the clothing malfunction the year before they
were on Prince who was wild He wasn't even a
wild thing that show, even though he wasn't supposed to
be no one noticed some of the stuff he did
so subtle anyway, can't be more excited for you, But
you gotta keep your head, you know, straight and calm.

(55:26):
What's the next couple of weeks? Did they give you
a schedule yet?

Speaker 8 (55:29):
So we've gotten like a preliminary schedule. I think it's
still kind of like in the works right now. But
I know, like tomorrow we're gonna go in and lift,
you know, do a meeting about all the logistics about
the Super Bowl, because it kind of gives you back
that like Bowl, like College Bowl feeling of being somewhere
for like a couple of days, you know, having all
the events around it.

Speaker 7 (55:48):
So it's been a while since I've had that happen
for me. So it'll be a cool kind of thing
to come back to.

Speaker 5 (55:53):
But if they take good care of the families too,
They take very good That's what I've heard, Jeff Way.
You know, this is three and seven years and overall
for under the Lorry ownership. And there was one in
ninety eight, which also was in New Orleans. Didn't go
well then. That was because the Eagles were so tight
down there and the Raiders they lost their raiders and
there is wrap party on Bourbons in Lockdown their hotel

(56:16):
and lead and they all right, listen, thank you so
much for joining us, Thank you for giving us your son.

Speaker 7 (56:21):
Thank you, and well it's.

Speaker 5 (56:23):
Really my pleasure in my honor, and it'll be half
of the city of Philadelphia, the region of Philadelphia. Thank you,
Thomas Booker, thank all your team teammates for giving us
so much joy, so much pleasure. And we will be
with you in so much heart, spirit and soul as
you go on the field for Super Bowl fifty nine
in the Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana, on February ninth.

Speaker 8 (56:44):
So excited, go Burds. You know, at least got one
more locked in or just where our feet are, you know.

Speaker 5 (56:50):
Hey man, Thank you guys both. Thanks to Gerald John Jansen,
thanks for doing a great job back there. I rambled
in a little longer than I should have it.

Speaker 4 (56:58):
I cut it right on time.

Speaker 5 (56:59):
And I want to thank Chickis and pizza Is always
for putting himself for taking care of us. So well,
you're gonna get a nice meal from from Chickens and
Pizza and Pete Shuroki and his staff. They care about
the Eagles, so much. A lot of your teammates were
there in South Philly after the game. Yes, Oh yeah,
I pretty much a whole offensive line, and I think
ate him out of food.

Speaker 7 (57:16):
But I was about to say, I was about to
say it was the inventory empty after.

Speaker 5 (57:19):
The It was some cruel and now, like happens when
you have success, we get celebrities jumping on a brad
Bradley Cooper has been with you all the way. He's
a Philadelphia He's always been an Eagles fan.

Speaker 4 (57:29):
But where the heck did Pete Davidson come from?

Speaker 1 (57:34):
Oh?

Speaker 7 (57:35):
I just saw like a video of him on the field.
I didn't know that he was there.

Speaker 5 (57:38):
He's now everywhere around here. Kevin Hark, thank you'll be
having to the city Philadelphia. Thank you for joining us,
and we wish you all the best in Super Bowl
fifty nine.

Speaker 7 (57:46):
Appreciate it.

Speaker 4 (57:47):
Thanks everybody for listening.

Speaker 5 (57:48):
We missed Dave Spadero, but we will be here hopefully
celebrating after about two weeks from now with what hopefully
is another victory Monday, maybe after Gerald Colton, thanks for
listening to you, all Pro Philly players show on Fox
Sports of Gambler.

Speaker 4 (58:02):
All the best, Go Birds.