Eagles C Jason Kelce announces retirement

Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports

The center spent every year of his 13-year career with the Philadelphia Eagles

After 13 years in the NFL, Philadelphia Eagles C Jason Kelce is hanging up the cleats.

The face of the Philadelphia Eagles announced in a press conference on Monday that he was retiring, ending one of the most improbable careers in NFL history. Entering the NFL as a sixth-round pick from Cincinnati, there was no reason that a 265-pound center who walked on in college should’ve been a multi-year starter in the NFL. Yet, Kelce never missed a game and went on to revolutionize the sport and how we evaluate center play. His ability to pull and reach the second level is what made him a six-time First-Team All Pro, tied with Dermontti Dawson for the most of any center in the modern era.

Even more than that, Kelce is one of the greatest Philadelphia Eagles players of all time. Being the face of a team that he helped lead to a Super Bowl in one of the most improbable upsets in NFL history. The fact that a center can be the face of a team, the one jersey that fans wear out is incredibly special. His Super Bowl speech, with the costume he was wearing, is one of the most iconic in Philadelphia sports:

Happy trails, Jason Kelce. The NFL won’t be the same without him.