Eagles

Reed Blankenship Says DeMeco Ryans Call was First Time “That Somebody Really Wanted Me as a Player and as a Person”

By Kevin Kinkead

Published: Mar 19th, 2026 · 3:09 PM EDT

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Reed Blankenship talking to Houston media:

New #Texans safety Reed Blankenship said DeMeco Ryans' phone call with him was key factor in free agency decison 'I could tell he really liked me as a player' After call, he told his wife this was the most he has felt wanted as a player in #NFL former #Eagles captain went… pic.twitter.com/JVW2gVUNWE

— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) March 18, 2026

“That honestly felt like the first time in my whole career, NFL career, that somebody really wanted me as a player and as a person, to come and perform for them.”

This is going to be viewed as an Eagles diss, as though the Birds didn’t want him and discarded him. Only Reed knows for sure, but it doesn’t seem like a shot at Philly.

Let the record state that he was given an opportunity here as an undrafted free agent and went on to win not only a starting job, but a Super Bowl as well. Howie Roseman gave Blankenship a one-year extension in April of 2024 that added almost $4 million in guaranteed money and bolstered his RFA season in 2025, which led to him hitting unrestricted free agency this offseason.

Blankenship doesn’t seem like the type to dump all over Philly. It seems to me like he’s saying this is the first time a coach or a team really made it a priority to bring him in and give him a big contract, as opposed to having to fight his way in and prove himself as a long shot or underdog type of player.