"He didn't deserve that" - DeSean Jackson resurfaces old beef featuring former five-time NFL Pro Bowler
DeSean Jackson rekindled old beef during an interview on the I Am Athlete podcast regarding former NFL quarterback Donovan McNabb and the Pro Bowl. On the podcast, the former Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver discussed how McNabb told fellow quarterback Michael Vick how he didn’t deserve to make it to the Pro Bowl back in the 2009 season:
“When the ballots came out, and they found out that I was the first player in NFL history to get elected to start in the Pro Bowl for two positions, my starting quarterback tells [backup] Michael Vick, ‘Damn, I don’t think he should’ve got that. He shouldn’t have deserved that.'"
He went on:
"Like, you’re telling another quarterback, that your receiver — that you throw to, your receiver — that he didn’t deserve that.”
That season, Jackson was selected to the Pro Bowl as both a receiver and punt returner. In 2019, he had 62 receptions, 1,156 receiving yards, and nine touchdowns. As a punt returner, he had 29 punts returns for 441 return yards and two touchdowns. His average of 15.2 yards per punt return led the NFL in the 2019 season.
LeSean McCoy, who’s a co-host on the podcast and was a teammate of the wide receiver with the Eagles in 2009, also chimed in, saying the following:
“One of the most cheapest, richest motherf***ers you could know. … He’d make you pay for everything.”
DeSean Jackson and His NFL Career
Jackson was drafted by the Eagles in the second round of the 2008 NFL Draft and played the first six seasons of his career with Philadelphia (2008 – 2013). The wide receiver then joined the Washington Commanders for three seasons (2014 – 2016), leading the league in receiving yards per reception in both the 2014 and 2016 seasons.
Next, he spent two seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2017 – 2018), where he had 1,142 receiving yards on 91 receptions and seven touchdowns.
The wideout later returned to the Eagles for the 2019 and 2020 seasons before splitting last season with the Las Vegas Raiders (nine games) and the Los Angeles Rams (seven games).
In all, he had 632 receptions, 11,110 receiving yards, and 58 touchdowns while making the Pro Bowl three times.
Jackson is currently a free agent and is looking for a team for the 2022 season. We'll see if the 35-year-old gets picked up by a team this offseason.