Dallas Cowboys offensive lineman Jason Peters made headlines earlier this week for his description of the Philadelphia Eagles’ fanbase, and fellow veteran Jason Kelce has returned fire — sort of.
Peters, who spent 11 seasons with the Eagles, will return to Philadelphia on Sunday as a member of the Cowboys. The nine-time Pro Bowl offensive tackle discussed the Philadelphia-Dallas rivalry this week, and he described Eagles fans as “f—ing idiots” who “pride themselves on being nasty” when it comes to their rivals. You can read the full comments here.
While it may not seem like it on the surface, Peters was complimenting Eagles fans for their passion. Kelce understood that. The Eagles lineman was asked about his former teammate’s comments during a Thursday morning appearance on Audacy’s SportsRadio 94WIP. Kelce said Peters is a “huge fan of the Philadelphia fanbase.” He also shared some of his own thoughts on Eagles and Cowboys fans.
“These are two polar opposites that have been in the same division and played so many meaningful games of football together,” Kelce said. “You have the Philadelphia fanbase, which is an extremely localized, diehard fanbase that is authentic to, you know, all of them growing up together in this community and this environment that breathes authenticity. And you have the Cowboys fanbase, which they have that in Dallas, but the majority of the fanbase is built on commercialism and pop culture fandom like the Yankees and Lakers, which I think is the total opposite of what the Philadelphia Eagles’ fanbase stands for.”
Kelce was spot on, but you can bet Cowboys fans will interpret it as a slight. That is why the rivalry is so great.
Even though Peters is wearing a Cowboys uniform now, Eagles fans should still give him a warm reception. He is one of the best players in franchise history. He may have flip-flopped on some of his former remarks about Dallas, but he certainly does not deserve boos after all he contributed in Philly.
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