Brandon Graham’s season, and perhaps his career in the league, has been cut short.
The Philadelphia Eagles veteran defensive end went down with an injury early in their 37-20 win over the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday night. After the win, Graham confirmed that he tore his left tricep and will be out for the rest of the season.
Graham was incredibly emotional in the locker room at SoFi Stadium when speaking with reporters, and said he had been dealing with a tricep issue for quite some time.
"At the end of the day, it is what it is," Graham said. "No sense in crying about it, just gotta know that I put everything into it. It hurt, but I'm telling you, I'm gonna be better from it."
Graham had two total tackles and a sack in the win on Sunday night. He officially moved into third on the Eagles’ all-time sack list when he brought down Matthew Stafford in the second quarter, too. That brought Graham to 76.5 sacks in his career. Only Trent Cole and Reggie White have more.
Graham finished the season with 18 total tackles and 2.5 sacks.
Graham got his start in the league with the Eagles, who selected him with the No. 13 overall pick in 2010 out of Michigan. He’s been a staple in the team’s defense ever since, and he became the first player in team history to appear in 200 regular season games.
Graham is perhaps best known for sealing the Eagles' win at Super Bowl LII. He got to New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady late in the fourth quarter and forced a perfect strip sack, which gave the Eagles the ball back. It was the first turnover of the game, and it couldn't have come at a better time.
The win on Sunday night moved the Eagles to 9-2 on the season. They hold a solid lead in the NFC East heading into next week’s matchup with the Baltimore Ravens, where they’ll attempt to pick up an eighth-straight victory.
While he didn't commit to anything — Graham said he was still trying to process the news — the injury may mark the end of his career as a whole. The 36-year-old said before the season that he wanted this to be his "farewell tour," and he signed a one-year, $4 million deal to return to the team this past offseason.
"If I had to go out like this, I gave it everything out there on the field," Graham said, via <a data-i13n="cpos:3;pos:1" href="https://x.com/JamesPalmerTV/status/1860915796735926289">Bleacher Report's James Palmer</a>. "All I know is, they ain't done with me yet … I'm content where I'm at."