Brandon Graham had his storybook ending.
He made it 15 seasons in the NFL, and all with the Eagles. He shed the draft bust label and persevered to steadily become one of the franchise's all-time greats, even through several major injuries. Then in the end, he went out a champion – a once thought impossible two-time Super Bowl champion – chasing down Patrick Mahomes and another ring all on his terms.
It was perfect. Graham's long-advertised farewell tour made its final stop atop the Art Museum steps at the end of a Super Bowl parade attended by millions of fans who have grown to adore him, and with the torch set to be handed off to the next generation of young Eagles pass rushers in Nolan Smith and Jalyx Hunt.
But the reality, as it turns out, was that Graham didn't want to close the book just yet. He still wanted to play, but just didn't if there wasn't any path to do so for the Eagles.
There is now.
Graham officially ended his retirement on Tuesday morning. He signed a contract to rejoin the Eagles for the rest of the 2025 season, his 16th, and will be stepping in mid-year to try and reinforce an Eagles edge rush that, so far, has been spread thin.
The Eagles are 5-2 after seven weeks, and in the lead in the NFC East, but they have some glaring problems. They need help. They're hoping a familiar face can potentially fix one of them on the field, while at minimum, serve as a boost for a locker room that has long appreciated his infectious, joyous presence.
And Graham wants to be a part of the solution.
The book on the 2025 Eagles is far from over, and as it turns out, neither is Graham's.
"I really didn't want to retire in the beginning," Graham said on his "Unblocked" podcast with AllPHLY on Tuesday morning, where the edge rusher confirmed his Eagles return. "It was kind of tough, but it was like 'Hey, Philly right now, they got everything they need.' So it's like 'Alright, well, I don't see myself on no other team. I think this is the best way to do it, just go out on top.'"
But the itch to still play, Graham explained, was still there, and for the Eagles, well, little in the NFL ever goes according to plan.
One last ride 💚
Brandon Graham is returning to the Eagles #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/GyaVuxMEnA— PHLY Sports (@PHLY_Sports) October 21, 2025
Nolan Smith re-injured his own triceps and went on Injured Reserve, and Azeez Ojulari and Ogbo Okoronkwo got hurt, too. Za'Darius Smith, the original veteran presence brought in from the outside, suddenly retired last week, and Jalyx Hunt and Josh Uche, as the edge rushers who were left, were struggling to generate pressure by themselves week-to-week.
All the while, Graham said he was working out and staying in shape, not to a regular NFL grind, granted, but to enough of a point where if GM Howie Roseman came calling, the conversation for a comeback could be there.
And Roseman did check in with Graham and his agent before the season, Graham revealed on "Unblocked." He felt, though, that he wasn't ready yet. He had to be sure that a return was what he really wanted, that it wasn't just a struggle to adapt to a new life after decades of dedicating himself to football.
So the Eagles went with Za'Darius Smith. A few weeks went by. Smith retired. That locker at the NovaCare Complex and at Lincoln Financial Field opened up, and the itch to play for Graham was still there.
The stall was his if he wanted, and with support from his wife, Carlyne, he made his decision. He's coming back. His book as an Eagle isn't closed just yet.
"I don't know what this is gonna be," Graham continued on his podcast. "I don't have no expectations with it. It's just more like I'm gonna come in, just bringing myself and bringing the energy, going out there first play, 'Oh, you thought you wasn't gonna have to deal with me!' All that little fun stuff."
Patrick Mahomes couldn't escape Brandon Graham and the Eagles in the Super Bowl.
Who knows how it really goes once Graham steps onto the field again.
He still looked like he had a bit of gas left helping to punish Mahomes and the Chiefs in the Super Bowl, even with a re-torn triceps.
But he is 37, does have to ramp back up to the NFL pace after missing the first chunk of the season, and won't solve all of the defense's problems by himself.
And Graham does seem to know that, but just as much believes that he still has a bit left to offer the Eagles.
"Hey, I don't want to have no regrets either," Graham said. "I said 'If an opportunity comes up, I'm gonna do it.' This is the only time in life where you could do it, because after a while, ain't nobody calling no more, then it's really over. So I was flattered and thankful that it came back around."
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And his Eagles teammates, though they couldn't say it yet, couldn't really hide how happy they are to be getting him back when word started going around about his imminent return on Sunday.
"Shoutout BG!" Hunt said with a smile from his locker after the Eagles' win in Minnesota when reporters asked him about the buzz that was building around Graham.
"The energy that BG brings is unparalleled," linebacker Nakobe Dean added. "So just to have a guy in the locker room like that, it'll be great…and he can still ball."
Quarterback Jalen Hurts was sitting at the press conference podium when his final question involved the Graham reports.
He didn't say anything, though.
He leaned back with the biggest grin on his face, then stood up and walked away. But that response said all it needed to.
The book on Brandon Graham as an Eagle isn't closed just yet.
Brandon Graham will be running out of the Eagles' tunnel at Lincoln Financial Field again soon.
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