Isaac Seumalo is the Eagles’ unsung hero; not that he would care

Isaac Seumalo is the Eagles’ Bobby Fischer of ping-pong.

There’s a running argument in the locker room as to which player is the best at the game. Some give kicker Jake Elliott the nod. A handful mention tight end Noah Togiai. Linebacker T.J. Edwards and rookie tight end Grant Calcaterra are also in the running. But the enigmatic Seumalo is considered the most accomplished by his closest competitors.

“He barely plays ping-pong, which is frustrating for us. We want to have more chances to beat him,” Togiai said. “But he’ll come in, beat us, just leave, and not play for three weeks.”

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While Seumalo’s ability in ping-pong may be undervalued by some of his unknowing teammates, when it comes to football, few overlook his contributions. The Eagles guard may drift under the radar outside the organization, but when players were recently polled by The Inquirer to name the unsung hero of the team, Seumalo easily finished first.

Center Jason Kelce is the maestro in the middle of the offensive line. Injured right tackle Lane Johnson is its impenetrable wall. And guard Landon Dickerson and tackle Jordan Mailata form a 700-pound combination of road graders on the left. But Seumalo has been just as instrumental to the unit’s success this season.

“He’s such an important piece to what we do,” tight end Dallas Goedert said. “Day in and day out he gets about as much recognition as he talks, and that’s not a whole lot. He was an alternate for the Pro Bowl, should have probably been in the Pro Bowl.”

Kelce, Johnson, and Dickerson got voted in, while Mailata was also an alternate. All are deserving, but only Seumalo entered the offseason unsure if he would even start. He was not only coming off a season-ending Lisfranc foot fracture, but he was also being asked to move from the left to the right.

And the seven-year veteran would have to earn the job. At the start of spring workouts, coach Nick Sirianni called the competition an open one with Jack Driscoll and Sua Opeta in the mix. But when the team broke for the summer, Seumalo had reestablished his prominence and has since made an argument as the Eagles’ comeback player of the year.

“Each year, every NFL player is coming in with something to prove,” Seumalo said Wednesday. “They’re always going to bring in guys to compete and take your spot. So I always have that mindset, whether it’s [a] reality or not.

“I know my time in the league has been longer than most, which I’m thankful for, but I approach each day as an opportunity to prove who you are and your legacy.”

Even before last year, Seumalo endured his share of setbacks. The 2016 third-round draft pick was benched early into his second season and watched from the sidelines as the Eagles won the Super Bowl. He eventually claimed his spot back, but he missed 22 games (including playoffs) because of injury from 2020 to 2021.

But the Eagles know how effective the 29-year-old can be when healthy. Seumalo’s freakish physical skills and size (6-foot-4, 303 pounds) have allowed him to play every spot across the O-line, including tight end, in his career. It’s in intelligence, though, that many cite as one of the under-appreciated reasons the offense excels.

“He’s one of the masterminds behind what we do on offense,” backup tackle Andre Dillard said. “He’s one of the smartest guys I’ve ever met in my life. He analyzes everything at light speed. He can conceptualize things and come up with ideas that help us.”

Kelce agrees.

“He’s smarter than I am,” the six-time Pro Bowler said.

Seumalo is slated to become a free agent this offseason. He could be one of many cost-cutting casualties the Eagles will have if they are to extend quarterback Jalen Hurts. Just because he hasn’t earn league-wide recognition doesn’t mean there would not be suitors.

Seumalo is on the quieter side, though, in a room of outgoing types. Kelce is the alpha male and leader. Johnson is the blunt jokester. Dickerson is the dry Southerner. And Mailata is the entertainer. Add commanding offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland to the picture and the unassuming Seumalo can sometimes get lost in the scenery.

“He’s really quiet. Doesn’t really say a whole lot, especially in meetings,” reserve offensive lineman Josh Sills said. “Coach Stout will have to say, ‘Hey, Isaac, speak up,’ or ‘Hey, Isaac, what do you think about this?’ He goes, ‘Ahhh,’ and Stout goes, ‘No, I want to hear it.’”

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Kelce typically sees it all. He’s responsible for the protections on the field and for making the calls when necessary. But Seumalo has center experience. It was once thought that he would be the future Hall of Famer’s eventual replacement.

He still thinks and views the game like a center.

“He knows the game plan inside and out,” Goedert said. “Obviously, Kelce’s the one making the calls. But Isaac makes all the points and he’ll sometimes correct Kelce when he needs it. … The amount of studying he does is just impressive. He’s doing things before they happen.”

Stoutland wanted Seumalo to speak up more this season, and he has, according to many of his teammates. He may give advice on blocking techniques. Or he may offer an opinion on a protection scheme for a certain defensive front.

He watches as much film as Kelce. And he wants to understand the responsibilities of each lineman on any given play.

“I personally feel like I have a mental capability to store a lot of information and process it real quick,” Seumalo said. “So I like to know what’s going on from a center’s point of view, I like to know what’s going on in the tackle’s head. And I think it’s a good thing I’ve played all these positions.

“I try to have everybody’s perspective going into a play and what they’re thinking. If I know what Kelce’s thinking, if I know what Lane’s thinking, it makes my job easier, too.”

In the meeting room, Seumalo sits in the back in between Kelce and Cam Jurgens, the new heir apparent at center. The rookie said he’ll lean over if he needs to bend the starting center’s ear. But Seumalo is equipped to impart as much wisdom, and it helps to be closer to the soft-spoken guard.

“Talking to him you would never guess he was in the slightest bit more than the eye,” Sills said. “Everything he says it’s real subtle, real quiet and it’s like, ‘Did he just say something?’ And you turn around and he’s back there laughing and you’re like, ‘Yep, he said something.’”

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Seumalo doesn’t suffer fools. He can come off standoffish or aloof if you don’t know him, or he doesn’t let you inside. He has a mythical quality to some of his younger teammates, but many of his long-time colleagues, like Kelce, are devout fans.

Togiai first met him when he was a freshman at Oregon State and Seumalo was a redshirt junior in his final season with the Beavers.

“He’s exactly the same way he was at college,” Togiai said. “There’s an Isaac that, if he gets comfortable with you, he opens up a little bit. He’s a very funny guy. Cool guy to be around. But he’s got to be, I guess, close to you to even show that side of him.

“But inside this building, especially, it’s all business.”

Sometimes during open locker room, as Kelce, Mailata, and Johnson are holding court with reporters, Seumalo sits sphinx-like at his stall in the middle of the furor until he gathers his fuzz of hair into a knot. He may chuckle at a question and then he gets up and departs.

On Fridays, he may agree to a ping-pong match in the game room adjacent to the locker room. He’s lost on occasion. Calcaterra, another of the top-ranked players, said he beat him once. Togiai and Seumalo have a long-running feud dating back to college.

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“Even if I beat him I still know he’s better than me,” Togiai said. “If he loses, most of the time it’s because he lost, not because the other person won.”

While Edwards is more of a power player, or Calcaterra loves to spin the ball, Seumalo can do it all, per Togiai. He has no weaknesses. And he can see how a rally may play out many moves ahead.

Seumalo’s ping-pong persona may be akin to that of Fisher, the American wiz of chess who would disappear only to emerge sporadically for matches. But it’s on the football field where he can see all the pieces like a grandmaster.

“I bet he’s good at chess,” Togiai said.

Alas, he said he doesn’t play. He rarely has time for ping-pong.

“If I have some downtime, I like to mess around some,” Seumalo said. “But I just like to play for fun. Some guys like to take it real seriously.”