On Thursday night, the Philadelphia Eagles agreed to a five-year deal with first-round pick Brandon Graham. The former Michigan standout becomes the seventh first-round pick from this year’s class to reach a deal with his team and he’s expected to report to training camp at Lehigh University on Friday.

Graham was selected by the Eagles with the 13th overall pick in this year’s draft after an impressive four-year career with the Wolverines. He was considered one of the top defensive lineman in from the 2010 class and talented enough for Philadelphia to trade up 10 picks just so they could acquire him.

Throughout his high school and college career, Graham has always played football in the state of Michigan. Now that he’s officially come to terms with the team, Graham is ready to take that next step in his football conquest–playing professional football for the Eagles.

“It’s been a long journey with long days and hard nights,” Graham explained about his road to the NFL. “But it’s been a great experience and I wouldn ’t trade it in for anything. The dedication I’ve put into this sport is finally starting to pay off. Now, I can finally show everyone what I’m made of—and that’s the exciting part.”

If any player knows the definition of hard work, it’s Graham. Not only was Graham honored with numerous awards during his final two years as a Wolverine, but he became the first player in Michigan history to win defensive MVP twice and led the nation his senior year with 26 tackles for a loss.

Rookies missing part of training camp has become a common theme for most teams over the years–especially with this year’s class. Of the 32 picks from the first round, 25 remain without deals as of Friday—which is why it came as no surprise Graham was still unsigned prior to Thursday night.

The Eagles and Graham knew it was all a matter of time before both sides came to an agreement. While the veterans were scheduled to report to camp for the first time on Friday, the rookies reported to camp on Monday—which means Graham missed four days of practices. Despite his absence, Graham is eager to get on the field and show everyone how far he’s come as a rookie.

“The biggest thing is to let them know that I haven’t fell off since minicamps ," Graham said. “I still know everything they’ve taught me and I want to go in there and keep learning as much as I can—especially when it comes to technique.”

Ask any rookie; the transition from playing at a college level to a professional level can be difficult and can seem overwhelming at times.

Some players from smaller schools have to adjust to playing in front of larger crowds at the professional level. Lucky for Graham, playing in front of 68,000+ fans at Lincoln Financial Field should be easy for him, considering the Big House at Michigan holds over 100,000.

While playing in front of large crowds each Sunday won’t be an issue, there is one adjustment that Graham will have to get used to now that he’ll be participating in Eagles Training Camp: practicing while thousands of fans watch as spectators.

“I know they’re excited and I’m excited for them to see me on the field. That’s going to be the fun part. Going to training camp everyday and practicing in front of 20,000 fans. That’s one of the greatest things to be a part of since I never got to experience that at Michigan because we had closed practices. It’s going to provide me with extra motivation when I’m out there.”

Like most athletes in this generation, Graham loves to connect with his fans through popular social media networking sites like Facebook and Twitter . One of the best experiences for Graham as an athlete is the way he gets to interact with his fans on these sites, which is part of the reason why he’s excited to see some of them at camp over the next few weeks.

The city of Philadelphia has every reason in the world to be excited about Graham during his rookie season. Not only has he shown what he’s capable of doing during his time at Michigan, but just from speaking with him it’s clear Graham has a strong work ethic and enough determination to play a key role in the Eagles’ defense during his rookie season.

Sure, he may see a few bumps along the way while he makes the transition to the NFL, but most rookies do. If anything, Graham contains the right mentality to work his way through the process.

“It’s something new and you want to go out there and give it your best,” Graham said about the transition to the NFL. “You know you’re going to go out and make a lot of mistakes, but at the same time, as long as you capitalize the mistakes—that’s all you can ask for.”

A special thanks to Brandon Graham for taking the time to talk with me after announcing his deal with the Eagles.

Dan Parzych is the Eagles Fan Voice for NFLTouchdown.com.

He is also the founder of the new NFCEastFootball.com.

Questions or comments, feel free to email Dan: djp746@gmail.com

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Graham was the last of the team’s draft picks to sign after they agreed to terms with second-round pick Nate Allen on Tuesday. He was selected by the Eagles—who traded up to acquire the effective pass-rusher—with the 13th pick of the 2010 NFL Draft after an impressive career at Michigan. During his senior season, he led the nation with 26 tackles for a loss and was ranked 14th with 10.5 sacks.

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However, a statement released by Cornwell a few days after the arrest showed a different side of the story that made many believe the incident wasn't as bad as reports first indicated. Still, Bengals fans should just be relieved with how productive the meeting between Benson and Goodell was.

"The Commissioner and Cedric had a frank and productive discussion regarding the benefits of playing in the NFL as well as the price to enjoy those benefits," Cornwell wrote in a message to Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com . "Cedric is his best advocate and I believe the Commssioner was pleased with their discussion."

Despite the productive meeting, there's still no exact time line of when Goodell plans on making his decision on whether or not Benson will be suspended during the 2010 season. Cornwell was unsure of whether or not Goodell will make the decision prior to the start of the regular season or if he will wait for the case to be resolved in court.

For now, Benson and Cincinnati fans continue to wait for a final decision and whether or not this incident will affect the 2010 season. Not only are the Bengals looking to repeat as AFC North Champions, but are also looking for their first back-to-back winning seasons in 28 years.

Benson was the main factor behind Cincinnati's 128.5 yards-per-game average last season—ranking them ninth in the NFL. With the fourth toughest schedule in 2010, the Bengals may rely on him even more this season.

On the bright side, at least last year's 26th ranked passing game should be more reliable if needed.

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The potential is there with Kevin Kolb, but many are hesitant towards saying the former Houston standout is ready to take on the full-time job at starting quarterback due to lack of experience.

The Eagles have high expectations for their new franchise quarterback, but he’s started just two career games—both at the beginning of last season against the New Orleans Saints and Kansas City Chiefs.

He became the first quarterback in NFL history to throw for over 300 yards in his first two career starts, thanks to a strong supporting cast including DeSean Jackson and Brent Celek.

There’s no question how difficult it will be to fill McNabb’s shoes after the type of numbers he displayed during his 11-year career in Philly. Not only is "No. 5" the franchise’s all-time leader in wins, but he holds the record for most passing yards (32,873) and touchdowns (216).

Difficult to live up to?

Obviously. But with the type of work ethic Kolb possesses, the Eagles and their fans should have all the faith in the world for him to succeed in 2010—especially with the type of weapons he has on offense.

Since joining the team in 2008, Jackson’s clearly emerged as the top go-to guy for the Eagles’ offense. He’s coming off a a phenomenal sophomore season, where he became the first player in NFL history to make the Pro Bowl for two positions—a wide receiver and punt returner.

The coaching staff realizes the importance of Jackson in the offense, which is why they’ve been pushing hard for him and Kolb to establish a strong chemistry during the offseason.

Along with Jackson, Kolb will have a number of other options on offense to make his first full season as the starter easier. Kolb and Celek are already close friends off the field, and with the chemistry shown in the two games against the Saints and Chiefs last year, these two should make a dynamic duo in 2010.

In fact, many analysts are predicting Celek to emerge as one of the top pass-catching tight ends in the NFL after he caught 76 passes for 971 yards and eight touchdowns in 2009.

As long as Jackson and Celek manage to stay healthy, the Eagles and their fans have every reason to believe Kolb will succeed next season. While both players will most likely be the top receivers for the Birds next season, don’t be surprised if second-year wideout Jeremy Maclin plays a key role in the offense as well.

Maclin is coming off a rookie season in which he caught 55 passes for 762 yards and four touchdowns. He also recorded a 76-yard touchdown reception in the Eagles 34-14 loss to the Dallas Cowboys during the Wild Card round of last year’s playoffs.

After a stellar career at Missouri, Philadelphia traded up to select Maclin in the first round of the 2009 NFL Draft. With his blazing speed and quickness, he resembled a wide receiver the Eagles selected the previous year in Jackson.

The two stars realize the importance of maintaining that positive relationship not just on the field, but off as well as they look forward to providing the Eagles with a deadly duo at wideout.

Kolb will definitely feel the pressure now that he’s officially the full-time starter in Philadelphia. On the bright side, at least the transition process will be easier with the help of players like Jackson, Celek, and Maclin by his side.

Dan Parzych is the Eagles Fan Voice for NFLTouchdown.com.

He is also the founder of the new NFCEastFootball.com.

Questions? Comments? djp746@gmail.com

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