Brian Dawkins said he was hurt by the Philadelphia Eagles decision to not match an offer from the Denver Broncos and keep him in Philly.
The former Eagles safety told 950 ESPN’s Jody Mac and Harry Mayes that the Eagles didn’t take his position as a leader into consideration.
“They opened my eyes right away that this was a business deal, that it wasn’t about being here…who I am to the team,” Dawkins said.
You can hear more from the interview below:
Dawkins was the spiritual and emotional leader of the team for years. He started his career with the Eagles in 1996 after being drafted in the second round.
The Eagles offered Dawkins a two-year deal worth $5 million, but would not up their offer to match the Denver Bronco’s guaranteed $7.2 million.
Dawkins has said multiple times that he wanted to stay in Philadelphia.
Young teammates of the seven-time Pro Bowl player were emotional to see their role model leave the team he had hoped to play with until retiring.
Eagles Safety Quintin Mikell was almost brought to tears when he saw Dawkins hold up the orange Broncos jersey during a press conference.
“I was shocked and then after that I was pretty angry that it didn’t get done,” Mikell told John Clark during an interview Tuesday.
Dawkins’ teammates weren’t the only people upset over his departure. Many fans think the Birds should have stepped up.
“I just can't image what the heck they were thinking letting him go... Brian IS the Eagles!” said one fan on our website.
Dawkins’ entire interview will air during the Jody Mac and Harry Mayes show starting at 9 a.m. Wednesday on 950 ESPN Philadelphia.
