When the Philadelphia Eagles picked Brandon Graham in the 2010 NFL Draft in the first round, he was shocked. The then 22-year-old defensive end was shocked and “never in a million years” expected the Eagles to select him. Now, after 16 seasons with the franchise, Graham has decided to hang up his cleats.
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“Brandon Graham announced that he is officially done this morning,” NBC Sports Philadelphia’s John Clark wrote on X. “He is retired after 16 seasons. He said this at a Jefferson Health event this morning in Philly.”
Per the reports, Brandon Graham was attending the “Breakfast with the Birds” pep rally at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia. As an official community ambassador for Jefferson Health, Graham was there to help kick off the upcoming NFL season and build community excitement ahead of the Eagles’ Week 1 opener.
However, instead, he used his time at the podium during the rally to surprise the crowd by officially announcing his retirement from the NFL.
Graham had a 16-year-long career and will finish it as the longest-tenured player in the Eagles’ history. Chuck Bednarik stands at the second position with 14 seasons (1949-1962). And for a career that long, it has been filled with several moments that arguably defined Graham as one of the franchise legends.
He had 215 games (franchise record) under his belt with 79.5 sacks (3rd in Eagles history), and 495 total tackles in the regular season. In his tenure, Graham has delivered many show-stopping moments for Philadelphia.
Back during Super Bowl LII, the Philadelphia Eagles faced the New England Patriots. In that game, with just over two minutes left, Brandon Graham made a strip-sack on Patriots quarterback Tom Brady. As a result, the fumble was recovered by the Eagles, sealing a 41-33 victory and capturing the franchise’s first-ever Lombardi Trophy.
Then in 2020, at age 32, Graham was named to his first career Pro Bowl after racking up 8 sacks. A season later, the now-retired Eagles DE suffered a setback when he tore his Achilles in 2021. However, he bounced back in 2022 to log a career-high 11.0 sacks.
By then, Brandon Graham had already built his stature as one of the standout leaders in the Eagles locker room. However, following the Super Bowl LIX victory, he further elevated his reputation. Graham played through a torn triceps muscle to help the Eagles defeat the Kansas City Chiefs 40–22 in that game.
This isn’t the first time Brandon Graham is retiring
Following the Super Bowl LIX victory, Brandon Graham announced his retirement from professional football after 15 seasons.
“I could not be happier with the way my career played out, the love I’ve gotten, and the success the Eagles have had as an organization,” Graham said during his first retirement announcement. “For real, it has been a dream come true… While my time on the field is coming to an end, my love for this team and city will never fade. Philadelphia and everybody from the bottom of my heart.”
However, he stayed away from the game for roughly seven months. In October 2025, after the Philadelphia Eagles’ defensive line was hit hard by injuries early in the 2025 season, general manager Howie Roseman reached out to Graham.
Eventually, Za’Darius Smith’s sudden retirement convinced the defensive end to un-retire and re-join his lifelong franchise for one more year, yielding three more sacks and just as many QB hits that were added to an already legendary tally.
As a true Eagles player, he came out of retirement, signed a contract, and played nine additional games, even becoming the oldest player in franchise history to record a sack at age 37.
After that contract expired, Graham became an unsigned free agent and was not part of the Eagles’ training camp this offseason before announcing his retirement.