Philadelphia Eagles fans are not exactly known for their kind hospitality and loving words. On the contrary, their claim to fame is pelting Santa Claus with snowballs, assaulting well-known Washington Redskins fan Chief Zee, throwing batteries at players and, most recently, punching police horses.
Any player who suits up in Philly knows what to expect, and for the most part, players have adapted to it. However, in 2004, New York Giants offensive lineman David Diehl felt like one Eagles fan took things too far.
“So, I’m coming in and I laugh, you know? I always chime in with them, tell them ‘that’s a good one’ if they say something funny. I always chime in,” Diehl said during a recent appearance on “Simms & Lefkoe.” “In 2014 in Philadelphia, we’re walking out and it’s my first year playing right tackle, and a fan grabs me by jersey and my back and he tells me, ‘I hope you break your [expletive] leg just like Rich Seubert last year.’
“So I turn around and I snatched him, and I got a good piece of that Starter jacket, and I’m going to rip [him down] and I see the hands and my security guard pulls me and says, ‘No, no, no!’ So I jam him back [into the stands] and him and his buddies. … You could see the fear in their faces.”
Seubert had suffered a career-threatening spiral fracture the year prior, which included a broken fibula, tibia and ankle. It took five surgeries to repair his leg, which eventually resembled that of Dr. Gregory House.
As it turns out, that Eagles fan was a season-ticket holder who came face-to-face with Diehl again in 2005. However, that encounter went very differently.
“The following year we go back and I turn over toward that section, ‘Great to see you, Mr. Diehl! Welcome to Philadelphia,'” Diehl recalled with a chuckle. “That’s one of my greatest memories.”
