Does Jason Kelce regret retiring after the Eagles landed Saquon Barkley? ‘I want to be a part of this so bad.’

Still, Kelce said the big free agent signing isn’t enough to lure him out of retirement. He also weighed in on other offseason moves.

Center Jason Kelce retired last week after 13 seasons with the Eagles.Read moreDavid Maialetti / Staff Photographer

by Gabriela Carroll

Published March 13, 2024, 12:16 p.m. ET

In the week since Jason Kelce’s official retirement in Philadelphia, the Eagles’ roster has seen some major shake-ups. From fellow longtime Eagle Fletcher Cox retiring to Saquon Barkley joining the team to bringing back C.J. Gardner-Johnson and adding Bryce Huff, the Eagles have made a lot of big moves.

But the addition of Barkley behind the offensive line has Kelce the most excited. And while he said on the latest episode of New Heights that the star running back’s arrival isn’t enough to coax him out of retirement, it did give him pangs of regret.

“Social media has been nonstop saying, ‘Jason, are you sure you want to retire?’ ” Kelce said to his brother and Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce. “And I’m like, ‘Yeah I’m pretty positive’ even though, a little bit upset Howie [Roseman] waited until I retired to make a move like this! This is what I’m regretting. I knew when I retired that I was going to miss just an outstanding season for the Philadelphia Eagles, and it [stinks], I want to be a part of this so bad. I wish I could, but it doesn’t [stink] in a way — hey, I get to watch it and celebrate it just like everyone else, so I am excited for that.”

Roseman and the Birds also added edge rusher Huff from the Jets on the first day of free agency.

“This is a guy that’s really going to help us, and we saw it firsthand when we played the Jets,” Kelce said. “He was all over the field, gave us issues when we played them, so certainly happy we don’t have to do that anymore.”

Kelce also discussed the retirement of longtime friend Cox, who played with Kelce for 12 seasons in Philadelphia and opted to call it a career despite the tough end to the season.

“Fletch is the epitome of what it is to be an Eagle,” Kelce said on the show. “If you were to take the ideal Eagle, in my opinion, it’s Fletcher Cox. The mentality, it’s not just that he’s a good player, he’s tough, he’s mean, he’s going to physically just impose his will. In his prime, just being honest, I don’t know that I played anybody better. I really don’t.”

In Kelce and Cox, two of the longest-tenured Eagles retired this offseason, but a third, Brandon Graham, officially re-signed with the team for what he has said will be his 15th and final season in the NFL. Kelce wasn’t so sure.

“BG is going to play as long as he can,” Kelce said on New Heights. “Maybe this is it, maybe this is the one-year farewell tour, but I’ve got a feeling if he’s got more football left in him after this year, he’ll probably still play. This dude loves football, and for some reason I feel like BG’s going to play as long as they let him.”

With both Cox and Kelce retiring, Kelce said Graham’s return would be a boost to a locker room in transition, which is seeing younger players like Landon Dickerson, Jordan Mailata, and A.J. Brown come into their own as leaders alongside quarterback Jalen Hurts.

Speaking of Dickerson, Kelce celebrated the guard’s four-year extension on the show. Dickerson, who was a second-round pick in 2021 and spent the last three seasons with the Eagles, signed a new deal worth up to $84 million with $50 million guaranteed, making him the highest-paid guard in NFL history.

“He’s smart, he’s cerebral, he’s a leader, he makes other guys happy to be in the huddle and playing with him,” Kelce said of Dickerson, who like Kelce wants to play his entire career in Philly. “Watching his improvement from year one to now, year three, it’s continually happened. People don’t know, he was left on an island this year. He was a guy I very much knew was going to be in control of what he was doing, and he still graded out as one of the best offensive linemen in this league. Could not have happened to a more team-first guy.”