By Blake McQueary
Medill Reports
NEW ORLEANS — After the Philadelphia Eagles beat the Los Angeles Rams in the playoffs, Mekhi Becton cried. And after the NFC championship win against the Washington Commanders, Becton cried some more.
And if the Eagles beat the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX on Sunday, two years after losing to them in the Super Bowl, the emotions will be the same as they were in recent weeks.
“I’ll drop to my knees and cry. I won’t even lie to you,” Becton said. “That’s gonna be the first thing.”
Three years ago, Becton stood in front of New York reporters. The then-New York Jet gave off a message that was non-verbal. He wore a blue T-shirt with the words “Big Bust” in orange lettering.
Surrounding those words were smaller words on the outside: “Fat, lazy, out of shape, injury prone, bum, sucks, overweight,” in the shape of a circle. All words that ridiculed the 6-foot-7 left tackle on social media.
Becton was drafted by the Jets in 2020. Coming out of Louisville, he was filled with talent as he was selected as the 11th overall pick. There were flashes of his potential that year while he battled with injuries. Then in 2021 he suffered a season-ending knee injury during the season opener.
Becton suffered a dislocated kneecap during training camp while ramping up for the 2022 season. He was practicing as a right tackle. It led to yet another year of rehab and sitting around. During the 2023 season, Becton was finally healthy. He played 16 of 17 games that year, but things didn’t go well as he allowed 12 sacks, tied for the most that year among linemen.
After becoming a free agent, Becton signed with the Eagles on a one-year, $2.75 million contract in April 2024.
“We signed him as an offensive tackle, but then we asked him if he could play right guard,” Eagles left tackle Jordan Mailata said. “Without any hesitation, he said yes.”
Eagles run game coordinator and offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland revealed at Monday’s opening media night it was coach Nick Sirianni’s idea to move Becton to right guard. Sirianni won’t take the credit though, as he called the move a collaborative effort.
“We all saw that Mekhi had a lot of talent,” Sirianni said. “We knew we were pretty set at the tackle spot with Jordan and Lane (Johnson). … We had a battling spot at guard, and we talked about it as coaches and with Howie (Roseman, the general manager). Every good idea comes from collaboration and communication with each other. I can’t say that ‘Hey, that was my idea.’”
The move worked. Becton became a force for one of the best offensive lines in the NFL, playing the position he once vetoed as a Jet.
“Everyone talked bad on him when he was in New York,” Eagles running back Saquon Barkley said. “He faced adversity and battled some injuries. For him to come here and switch positions, he never complained. He just put his head down and went to work.”
This season, Becton has allowed just five sacks. Things were rocky to begin with, allowing three through the first four games, but since then it’s been all work. He did allow two sacks against the Rams, but he bounced back in the NFC championship game, allowing just one pressure and zero sacks in 33 pass-blocking snaps.
According to Pro Football Focus, Becton has produced an overall block grade of 75.2 (his highest grade), a pass block grade of 63.6 and a run block grade of 74.7. All of these grades are out of 100 and are given based off of blockers moving a defender well out of a gap or how well they held their block on a pass play.
“He never complains. He takes coaching. And that’s one thing we love, especially coach Stoutland,” Mailata said. “As hard as (Stoutland) is on Mekhi, Mekhi doesn’t complain. He just takes the belting and says, ‘Yes, coach.’”
Barkley referred to his electric 62-yard run against the Rams in the snow during the divisional round and a key block Becton made, planting Rams linebacker Christian Rozeboom to the cold turf.
“Now everyone is able to see how great of a player he is, all the things he’s able to do and what he means to our offensive line,” Barkley said. “I’m just happy for him and happy to be a part of the journey.”
It worked because people inside the organization in Philadelphia, from ownership to the coaches to the players, instilled confidence in Becton. The Eagles knew what they were doing, and Becton bought in.
“They’re very confident,” Becton said when asked about the difference between the Jets and Eagles organizations. “They know what they’re about to do, what they’re gonna do, and they’re going to go do it.”
Becton, in turn, pays attention to the stuff the stat box and people at home don’t see.
“What I love about Mekhi is his personality off the field, because he cares,” Mailata said. “He cares a lot about you as an individual, so we’re extremely lucky to have him here.”
Becton became a father to a baby boy, Mekhi Jr., in May 2022. After all of the struggles, he credits his son for his journey and the transformation.
“When I had my son, it made me do a 180 a little bit,” Becton said. “It made me do things differently in life, and he’s my why. So everything I do in life is for him.”
He came from an organization that hasn’t seen the playoffs in 14 years, and now he’s thriving with one that is appearing in its third Super Bowl in seven years.
“I can’t do nothing but thank the man above for allowing me to keep going, working and not letting me give up,” Becton said. “Those things are most important to me.”
Blake McQueary is a sports media graduate student at Medill. You can follow him on X at b_mcqueary6.
