When Eagles‘ Jason Kelce confirmed his retirement last year, there was an undeniable shift in the team. Take Dallas Goedert, for instance, who found it difficult to accept that Kelce and Fletcher Cox, too, were done with the sport. So, when Goedert sat down with us at EssentiallySports for an unfiltered, exclusive chat on Tuesday, he opened up about how their exit pushed him to contemplate retirement, too.

“Losing those two, it was… everybody was interested to see how it would go. We were obviously able to have a lot of success. And we just relied on the leaders of the team. You know, Lane Johnson, who has been there for so long, is so good at what he does. And then, we got an incredible leader in Jalen Hurts, and so many people stepped up in the defensive side,” Goedert told us. In retrospect, everything worked out fine, but seeing names like Kelce and Cox leave made Goedert wonder… How long until it was my turn? 

“A little bit [how Kelce and Cox’s retirement pushed him to ponder over his own timeline]. You know, every year that you start getting older, now that I hit 30, you wonder how much time you have left. But you know, it’s something I’m going to keep playing with passion and continue to do what I love. But yeah, I never thought I’d think about it until I was completely done. But each offseason, you start to think about what’s next a little bit more.” That being said, the player believes he has at least a couple of good seasons left and so much more to offer to the Eagles—a team he has served since 2018. No wonder when trade rumors spread online in March, he was in a dark place.

Dallas Goedert addresses ‘tough’ trade rumors…

It was a terrible time for the TE. “It was the first offseason that I really had to deal with something like that, and it was tougher than I would have expected. There were days when I would just sit and stare at the TV, wondering what was going to happen.

“Obviously, I talked to Howie [Roseman], our general manager, a couple of times, and then, just dealing with my agent about him telling me what might happen, what could happen. And as days went on, nothing happened. I was excited to leave, and then I was sad to leave. And then I was excited to stay, and there was just so much uncertainty that it was hard, but I was really happy that we were able to get a deal done. And you know, it’s exciting to be able to have the opportunity to run it back with the same team. It feels good to be to be staying in Philadelphia.”

Last month, he agreed to rework his deal. He took a pay cut to $10 million this season with the chance to gain $1 million more in incentives.

While he played just ten games last season and also had the second-worst career stats (after his rookie year), his presence in Philadelphia will give new offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo another weapon to work with. And now that his near future is secure with the team, the player got down to business, addressing the infamous tush push controversy from earlier this year.

Goedert on the Eagles’ ‘tush push’

Going back to February 2025, Green Bay‘s GM Brian Gutekunst led the charge to bury Philly’s signature play. Just weeks after confetti rained on the Eagles’ Super Bowl parade, Gutekunst pushed the NFL to ban the tush push. League meetings came and went, but the ‘Brotherly Shove’ lived on. Speaking about that issue on EssentiallySports, Goedert addressed the critics. “I’ll start with what I say to the critics. You know, I think it’s an incredible football play. Short yardage is the toughest yard to get in football, and we found a way to be very successful at getting that yard. I’m glad it stayed. We work really hard at it.” 

The numbers don’t lie. The Eagles converted 28 of 34 tush push attempts (82%) last season, making it their ultimate cheat code in clutch moments. “People try to copy it – they don’t do it as successfully as us. If they had taken it away, it just goes to show how powerful our offensive line is. And you know, kind of a disgrace to them if you would. Just because you’re successful at something, I don’t think that means you should ban it.”

In fact, Jason Kelce, an ardent supporter of tush push, even attended the NFL meetings to lobby against the ban proposal.

Dallas Goedert got tight end lessons from Travis Kelce!

Coming from South Dakota State, the Eagles’ TE didn’t have NFL connections. That changed at Tight End University – the elite summit founded by George Kittle, Travis Kelce, and Greg Olsen. “The tight end position has grown so much over the last 10-15 years,” Goedert told us. Interestingly, he will be heading to the Tight End University this year. “When they started TEU, I was glad that I was able to go and learn from the best in the position. So, I was able to take a lot of notes and add a few things in my toolbag that work for them, but it’s a lot of fun.”

But what have George Kittle and Travis Kelce taught him on the field, we asked.

“My first year there would have been 4-5 years ago. I remember talking to Travis about his thoughts when he was going up against a defender. And one thing that I would never do is put the defense in a reactionary position. I would do something and wait for the defense to do it, and then decide what I was going to do. You know, that’s what the defense is doing. They are waiting for you to do something so they know what to do. So, I just talked to Travis about always putting the defense in a reactionary position, setting them up in different ways to get your leverage and get to the spots that you need to be on.”

“Both of them, the way they do everything, starting Tight End University, it was cool to watch them do that and continue to grow the tight end position.” Now entering his eighth season, Goedert still applies those TEU teachings while watching Kittle and Kelce elevate the position.

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