McCoy, Samuel clown Asomugha’s first Eagles practice originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
The name Nnamdi Asomugha will make even the most hardened Eagles fan shiver. His time in Philadelphia was one of the biggest whiffs in franchise history, a $60 million embarrassment.
And according to former Eagles stars LeSean McCoy and Asante Samuel, they knew it was a mistake on the first day of training camp back in 2011.
The. First. Day.
On a brand new episode of the I Am Athlete podcast, Samuel and McCoy chopped it up about a ton of stuff – but one topic they were both wildly passionate about was explaining the downfall of the Asomugha Era in Philly.
Shady had a particularly piercing story about Asomugha’s first day of 1-on-1s in training camp in 2011, one that will absolutely blow your mind.
I’ll let him tell it:
“ASANTE: [Asomugha was a] guy that was just overrated and, you know, they gave a lot of pub to because of whatever. Just like a lot of overrated people.
“SHADY: You remember that one practice? So Nnamdi was like a big draw. I do remember his name, I won’t lie and say I don’t know his name. When I was in my first year, we played the Raiders. DeSean [Jackson] was becoming a superstar, right? Going up top. The whole week they were trying to find a way to get DeSean off the jam with Nnamdi. I’m young, I’m 20. I don’t know how that’s supposed to work. So that’s how I learned his name. When free agency came I was like, ‘Oh damn, we’re getting Nnamdi?’ So the whole team – that was a big deal.
“ASANTE: I already know that ain’t what it is. I already know.
“[…]
“SHADY: When we got him, the first practice everybody’s like, ‘Yo, oh my god, Nnamdi. It’s his first 1-on-1.’ He’s the only dude I’ve ever seen jam [DeSean Jackson]. He played like he ain’t looking to hit him. So when we had Nnamdi, it was his first 1-on-1 at practice. It was camp. Everybody’s like, ‘Oh we’ve got Nnamdi,’ he signed a big-ass deal, so we’re all looking. That type of stuff. But when he went against the tight end Brent Celek – Brent was a good tight end but he wasn’t a route runner, he was like this all together where he could block, run a little bit. […] The tight end hit him with, like, a post corner. We was like, ‘Awwwww.’ We looked at the GM. And you know how Asante is, he’s like, ‘Pshhh, told you.'”
YIKES.
Eagles fans all love Brent Celek, a good player and affable dude who won a Super Bowl with the Birds. He’s the man! But Travis Kelce he was not. So the idea of watching Celek put your brand new, high-priced cornerback to shame on the first day of training camp is… shudder-inducing.
Yeesh.
I respect the hell out of Samuel for never being afraid to speak his mind, even when he’s just torching someone. He’s one of the most honest players I’ve ever seen.
And here he is just completely ready to rip Asomugha’s football ability.
Asomugha’s first year in Philly was Samuel’s last year with the Eagles, the tail end of a truly dominant four-year run with the Birds that saw him rack up 23 interceptions and land on three Pro Bowl teams. He was the epitome of a star corner, the kind of guy you’ll remember watching forever.
And later in the episode, Samuel made it clear he doesn’t want people to confuse the heights of Asomugha’s career with the heights of his own career:
“Before Nnamdi Asomugha came to Philly, he was a great player right? Then he came to Philly, they start throwing the ball at him. They weren’t throwing the ball at him [in Oakland] … They ain’t gonna throw the ball at me. I done played with a lot of people, they ain’t throwing the ball at me. Because I know what’s going to happen. So they’re throwing it at Nnamdi, and now you’ve got to see the real player that Nnamdi is. You’re brainwashed because they weren’t throwing the ball at him.”
There you have it, folks. Don’t be brainwashed.
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