Why Jason Kelce Almost Left Eagles The Year Before Super Bowl Title

Jason Kelce is the greatest center in Philadelphia Eagles history. A franchise legend and Philadelphia icon.

Kelce's jersey will be hanging in the rafters at Lincoln Financial Field -- or the new Eagles stadium -- someday. His impact on the franchise during and after his playing career is unmatched.

The legend almost never happened.

Kelce admitted on the "Bussin With The Boys" podcast with Taylor Lewan and Will Compton this week his days were numbered in Philadelphia. His worst season in the nFL was 2w016, and the Eagles were thinking of moving on.

Jason Kelce almost left the Eagles after the 2016 season? 😳 pic.twitter.com/uolsHLLJJZ
— Bussin' With The Boys (@BussinWTB) June 22, 2026

“Listen, I didn’t play well,” Kelce said. “It wasn’t like it sucks when you’re going through it. But objectively, I didn’t have a great year. And thankfully, Jeff Stoutland, I think he was like the one guy in the building that was still like, no, Kelce is still the guy.

“He’s pretty much the reason why I was still there in 2017. And then, I personally had the best year of my career, and the Eagles won the Super Bowl.

"It was like a crazy shift of the off-season. I was like, could not have gone better. So yeah, it was very close.”

Why the Eagles decided to keep Kelce

Kelce's career certainly took a turn for the better after that 2016 season, but the start of that season was the low point of his career. The Eagles got bigger on the offensive line, adding Brandon Brooks at right guard to help out Kelce -- who was mostly a pull center in Chip Kelly's offense.

The Eagles wanted Kelce to revert back to a more-traditional center under Doug Pederson, esecially with rookie Carson Wentz in the fold. Philadelphia's future hinged on Wentz, and Kelce wa sdoing a good job of making his life easier.

“I can’t even begin to tell you how much of a benefit it is to Carson to have a guy like Jason Kelce as a center. I mean, the guy is brilliant,” Eagles offensive coordinator Frank Reich said back in 2016. “He’s absolutely brilliant in pass protection, calls and scheme and he just has this air of confidence about him that I think sets the tone for what we do in the protection world.

"And then Carson has that himself, he’s just a little bit younger than Kelce. I think those two are on the same page. I think Carson is extremely confident that Kelce is going to get the right things communicated up front.”

Kelce allowed just one sack in 1,133 offensive snaps that season after a subpar start, and his communication with Wentz is why the Eagles chose to hang on to him. He was one of the best centers in the NFL in Kelly's offense because of his size and ability to pull, yet had to learn a completely different system under Pederson.

Once Kelce did, under the tutelage of Stoutland, his career changed for the better.

The legacy fulfilled

The best decision the Eagles made was keeping Kelce heading into his age-30 season. The Eagles banked on Kelce's strong finish to the 2016 season as a reason to keep him around.

Kelce would go on to become one of the best centers in NFL history, having a Hall of Fame career in his 30s. He is the only center since the merger to earn six First Team All-Pro selections and a Super Bowl title. Kelce is the fifth center in NFL history with that many All-Pro selections.

Of the 54 players in NFL history that have earned six or more First Team All-Pro selections, all of them are in the Hall of Fame. Kelce is bound to join that list.

All of Kelce's First Team All-Pro selections have occurred after he turned 30. He earned six First Team All-Pro selections in his final seven seasons, becoming one of the greatest centers in NFL history.

The Eagles certainly made a smart decision keeping Kelce around, winning their first Super Bowl title the next year and going to two Super Bowls when Kelce was the center. -- part of the greatest stretch in franchise history.

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