The Super Bowl champions Philadelphia Eagles were loaded with Alabama talent when they defeated the Kansas City chiefs back in January. Now, the NFL Network is reporting that one more former player for retired Tide coach Nick Saban will be joining the team in the “city of brotherly love.” Wide receiver John Metchie will join the Eagles in a deal involving a 2026 sixth-round pick from the Texans.
Seven former members of the Alabama Crimson Tide went hunting for Super Bowl rings against the Chiefs. That includes former Tide quarterback Jalen Hurts, Landon Dickerson, and five other Alabama players are on the Eagles roster. That includes Landon Dickerson who played Center but moved to be a guard after an injury. Hurts talked a lot about his teammate after winning the chance to win a super bowl ring…
“I missed Landon (during his time at Alabama,) when everybody asked me, because you got the Alabama crossover, and I missed him about a year,” said Hurts prior to the Super Bowl. “And so we got, we got a chance to do what we could have done in those times. But nonetheless, you know, Atlanta is all American Center in college. He's a hell of a player.”
Other Alabama players include tight end Cameron Latu and running back DeVonta Smith. No one from the Tide currently plays for Kansas City. Newly acquired Metchie, a 2022 second-round pick, missed his entire rookie year after being diagnosed with leukemia, and returned as a rotational player for the past two seasons. He's played 29 games for the Texans since 2023, with 40 catches, 412 yards and one touchdown.
The Eagle’s preseason saw a bump on Saturday when the Cleveland Browns chalked up a 22-13 preseason win. The Eagles tried to get by without the injured Landon Dickerson. He’s has been sidelined since he suffered a right knee injury at an open practice. The Eagles have not given a timeline for his absence or ruled him out for the season opener. In a game missing almost all regular-season starters on both sides — Jalen Hurts and Saquon Barkley sat out for the defending Super Bowl champions while Myles Garrett and Jerry Jeudy rested for the Browns — the Eagles got a better look at their draft picks fighting for playing time.
Andrew Mukuba returned an interception 75 yards for a score and recovered a fumble, and Jihaad Campbell, also a former player for Alabama, had a sack, an impressive showing for the Eagles’ top two 2025 draft picks. Maybe somewhere actor Matthew McConaughey was impressed. McConaughey, a Longhorns superfan, had a social media post in support of Mukuba when the safety was drafted out of Texas in the second round.
Mukuba missed time early in training camp with a shoulder injury and returned only in the last few days to take first-team reps. He was in the right spot Saturday to pick off a pass from Dillon Gabriel. Mukuba took it all the way for the 75-yard score and a 7-6 lead. He added a fumble recovery later and broke up a pass in the second half, the kind of plays needed to close the gap in his competition with Sydney Brown for the starting safety spot.
“Guys that have a knack for the football just find ways to be around the football,” Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said. Campbell, a linebacker out of Alabama selected 31st overall, sacked Gabriel on the second play of the game.
The Eagles just may have found two more defensive gems to make meaningful contributions in their pursuit of another title. The Eagles and Browns both played it safe with their starters after the two teams held a pair of joint practices earlier in the week. Sanders hurt his oblique in the first practice and did not play Saturday. The Browns started Gabriel, a third-round pick who worked his way back into the lineup after he had been sidelined with an injured hamstring. Cleveland coach Kevin Stefanski waited until game day to name Gabriel the starter.
