Seth Joyner Defines No. 59 for Eagles
The legend is true, the Eagles -- and everyone else in the NFL -- once valued linebackers and Seth Joyner was one of the best to play the position for the franchise, developing from a long-shot eighth-round pick out of UTEP into a two-time All-Pro and an organizational legend.
It’s been nearly 35 years so few remember that Joyner was actually cut in training camp as a rookie before being brought back. By late in his rookie season, Joyner was inserted into the starting lineup and we were off in running with the next seven seasons being the domain of Joyner as a signature part of Buddy Ryan- and Bud Carson-led legendary defensive units.
In 1991 Joyner was so dominant he was named NFL Player of the Year by legendary Sports Illustrated reporter Paul Zimmerman and also was the runner-up for the official Defensive Player of the Year award behind Pat Swilling.
A ferocious blend of size, speed, strength, and athleticism when intimidation was still a big part of the NFL, Joyner was at his best with the Eagles but needed to wait for his final season to reach the ultimate team goal winning Super Bowl XXXII as a member of the Denver Broncos even though he didn’t suit up for the big game.
Joyner remains a big part of the local landscape to this day as an analyst for NBC Sports Philadelphia and various radio outlets.
From now until the Eagles begin the season at Washington on Sept. 13, SI.com EagleMaven will do a jersey countdown, listing the current Eagles player to wear the corresponding number to the days left before the season opener. As a bonus, we will list the top three players in team history to have that number.
Current number 59:
Unassigned. Because of the strange offseason, the Eagles have yet to officially assign numbers to their undrafted free-agent class and rookie LB Dante Olson could be in the mix for the number.
Top 3 to wear number 59:
3. DeMeco Ryans. A solid professional Ryans was a second-round pick of the Houston Texans in 2006 out of Alabama and developed into a very good selection quickly, earning Defensive Rookie of the Year honors. He was also a two-time Pro Bowl player in Houston and was an All-Pro in 2007 by his sophomore season.
By 2012, however, the Texans had Brian Cushing and he was tabbed to take over for Ryans so Houston dealt him to the Eagles for a swap of third-round picks which interestingly turned out to be Brandon Brooks for the Texans and Nick Foles for the Eagles, as well as a fourth-rounder (Ben Jones for Houston).
Ryans immediately took over in the middle during Andy Reid’s final season with the Eagles and was the leading tackler and among the team’s top defenders despite the lack of team success (4-12). By 2013, Chip Kelly was in town and the shift was made to a 3-4 front and less of an emphasis on defense as a whole with Kelly’s tempo-based offensive philosophy. Ryans was still a leader, however, as an ILB and among the team’s best defenders earning the nickname Mufasa as the mentor to Jordan Hicks (Simba), who arrived in 2015.
A torn Achilles in November of 2014, ironically against the Texans in November of 2014, was the beginning of the end for Ryans. He returned for the 2015 season and started 13 of the 14 games he played in but that ended up being the final season of Ryans’ career.
Always a smart, instinctive player, Ryans quickly transitioned into coaching as a defensive quality control coach with the San Francisco 49ers. He was quickly promoted to inside LBs coach after one season and still holds that title under head coach Kyle Shanahan and defensive coordinator Robert Saleh.
2. Mike Mamula. Let’s get one thing straight, Mike Mamula was not a bust. He certainly didn’t live up to the hype as the No. 7 overall pick out of Boston College in the 1995 draft and one of the first “combine stars” but he was an effective pass rusher at times during five seasons with the Eagles.
Mamula’s football legacy is really tied to being one of the first prospects to train specifically for combine drills, a common practice today but a quarter-century ago players tended to just show up after worrying about more football-centric work. Needless to say, Mamula was an athletic marvel and shot up the draft board with the Eagles being enticed and taking the lure of the high-ceiling.
Mamula was no star but was a starter at weakside end for four seasons and a rotational player for his fifth and final campaign with Philadelphia, amassing 31.5 sacks in 77 games. Everything is relative obviously. If that kind of production comes from a fourth-round pick, it’s a home run but from No. 7 overall it’s a disappointment.
1. Seth Joyner. Joyner was honored as a member of the Eagles 75th Anniversary Team and is also a member of the franchise’s Hall of Fame. After leaving Philadelphia Joyner finished his career with three seasons in Arizona before single seasons with both Green Bay and Denver.
Runner-up:
Nick Cole. A versatile, interior blocker, Cole was another undrafted free agent hit that Andy Reid and Co. had on the interior of the offensive line. He made the team in 2006 as a backup on the interior and played in every regular-season game over the next four seasons, ultimately developing into a stater in 2009 jockeying between all three interior positions due to injuries to Todd Herremans and Jamaal Jackson. Cole is maybe best remembered for being a lead blocker in goal-line and short-yardage situations as a rookie but he played 84 games with the Eagles, including playoffs.
Others: Joseph Wendlick, Mike Evans, Tom Ehlers, Al Chesley, Joel Williams, Carlos Bradley, Derek Burgess, Mike Labinjo, Dedrick Roper, Brian Rolle, Joe Walker, and B.J. Bello.
John McMullen contributes Eagles coverage for SI.com's EagleMaven and is the NFL Insider for JAKIB Media. You can listen to John every Monday and Friday on SIRIUSXM’s Tony Bruno Show with Harry Mayes, and every Tuesday and Thursday with Eytan Shander on SBNation Radio. You can reach him at jmcmullen44@gmail.com or on Twitter @JFMcMullen
