DeSean Jackson to retire as a Philadelphia Eagle, will be honored Sunday at Linc
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Former Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver and punt returner DeSean Jackson is hanging up the gloves and plans to retire as an Eagle, the team announced Wednesday.
Jackson, 36, is officially retiring on Friday, Dec. 1 - his 37th birthday. The team plans to honor him at Lincoln Financial Field Sunday, before the game against the San Francisco 49ers.
One of the most dynamic Eagles receivers in recent memory, Jackson caught or ran for several key touchdowns you can still see on highlight reels today.
By far the most memorable was Jackson's 65-yard punt return for a touchdown in the "Miracle at the New Meadowlands."
In the Dec. 19, 2010 game, the Eagles were trailing 31-10 with just over eight minutes remaining - but then scored four unanswered touchdowns to beat the Giants 38-31.
Once the NFL Playoffs rolled around, the Eagles and Giants were both 10-6 - but the Eagles got into the playoffs due to winning the division tiebreaker.
Jackson went to three Pro Bowls for the Eagles in 2009, 2010 and 2013. He ranks third all-time among Eagles in receiving yards with 6,512 and is tied for the team's all-time lead in punt return touchdowns with Darren Sproles. Both have four punt return TDs.
He played for the Birds from 2008-2013 before he was released in the Chip Kelly era.
After his release, Jackson went on to play for Washington and then Tampa Bay before returning to the Eagles for the 2019 and 2020 seasons. He then had stints with the Los Angeles Rams, Las Vegas Raiders and most recently played for the Baltimore Ravens in 2022, getting 153 yards on 17 targets.
Jackson later ripped Kelly on a podcast for breaking up the core of the team that also included Jeremy Maclin and LeSean McCoy.
"What he did bro, you can talk to anybody that was ever a Philadelphia Eagle fan and they'll tell you the same thing. There was no way you get rid of a DeSean Jackson, a LeSean McCoy, a Michael Vick, a Jeremy Maclin...you really broke down the team bro, and we were Philadelphia," he said.