Tekeya Cook had mixed feelings two weeks ago when her son, Shareef Miller, was selected by the Eagles in the fourth round of the NFL draft.
A part of her was excited that her baby was going to be staying close to home, playing for the team he grew up rooting for, playing for a team whose Super Bowl victory two years ago brought the 6-foot-4, 254-pound defensive end from Penn State to tears.
But another part of her _ a big part of her _ wished that the Frankford, Pa., native had been drafted by somebody _ anybody _ other than the Eagles.
"It's like a gift and a curse," Cook said in an interview this month. "I don't want him to be in Philly a lot. He's just going to have to balance it out.
"He's going to have to take it seriously because it's very dangerous in Philly. Too dangerous."
When Cook refers to "Philly," she isn't talking about Rittenhouse Square or Queen Village or Northern Liberties or the corner of Broad and Pattison, where the Eagles' training facility is located.
She's talking about Frankford, where, as a single mother, she raised Shareef and his five brothers and sisters and where even a football star doesn't have to go far to find trouble. Or have it find him.
Cook already has lost one of her children to the streets. Shareef's older brother Mikal was shot and killed in West Philadelphia in 2015.
"I told one of his friends, 'Don't make me kill you. Stay away from my son,'" Cook said. "Shareef is a good dude. Everybody has their own life. But if you're really his friend, don't bring that around him and try to bring him down."
While he described being drafted by the Eagles as "a dream come true," Miller understands the concerns his mother has about his playing and living in Philadelphia.
He wants to be a role model for the kids in the city, like the ones who play for his old Pop Warner team, the Frankford Chargers. He wants to be there for them and inspire them and let them know that, regardless of their circumstances, anything is possible.
But he also knows that there are going to be people looking to drag him down.
"To be able to just come home and play for the Eagles is great," Miller said after he was drafted. "Obviously, it's different now. I'm a professional football player now, so you never know what type of people, (what their) mind-sets (are).
"But I feel like I have the right people around me. I surround myself with the right group of people that support me and want the best for me. So I don't think staying home in Philly will be a distraction because of the type of people I have around me."
