After hanging up his cleats, former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman considered returning to the NFL … with the hated Philadelphia Eagles.
In 2003, three years after retiring from football, Pro Football Hall of Famer Troy Aikman considered an offer to return to the NFL. The catch? It was with his longtime division rival Philadelphia Eagles.
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During an appearance on KESN 103.3 in Dallas this week, Aikman remembered a conversation he had with then-Eagles head coach Andy Reid during halftime of a game he was calling in San Diego for FOX.
The conversation came after Donovan McNabb went down with an injury and Reid asked Aikman during a game whether he would consider joining the team.
“[Reid] said, ‘Hey, did you hear what happened.’ I said, ‘Yeah, we did a game break.’ He said, ‘Well I want to talk to you about coming to Philadelphia,'” Aikman said, via The Dallas Morning News. “I said, ‘Andy, we’re in the middle of a broadcast. It’s halftime right now.’ He said, ‘I know, I’m watching the game.’ So I said, ‘OK, I’ll call you after the game.'”
Ultimately, Aikman decided it was best to enjoy the California whether and avoid flying across the country to prepare for a game.
“I got back to Santa Barbara and this was around November or whenever it was, and I woke up and I’m thinking, ‘I can either enjoy the next couple of days in Santa Barbara, California, it’s about 65, 70 degrees, or I’m going to be on a plane flying to Philadelphia and probably going to be playing on Monday night against the 49ers,'” Aikman said.
“I called Andy and I said, ‘Hey, I’m honored that you’ve called me, but I’m going to stay put.'”
Dallas Cowboys fans had to deal with seeing running back Emmitt Smith suit up for the Arizona Cardinals near the end of his career, but watching Troy Aikman suit up for their most hated rival would have been something difficult for everyone to grasp.
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