Jalen Mills' rookie season certainly had its share of ups and downs, but when it was all over, the Eagles' cornerback felt as though he had proved he belonged in the NFL.
"It's been a long, long dream of mine ever since I was a little boy, so that was a big thing for me for sure," Mills said before packing up his locker at the NovaCare Complex on Monday.
Mills probably drew more attention in 2016 for being just another leaky hole in the boat that was the Eagles' secondary than he did for being a promising young prospect. Yet just think about everything the 22-year-old accomplished in his first year as a professional.
A seventh-round draft pick, Mills earned a spot on the 53-man roster, beating out Eric Rowe, who started five games for the Eagles the previous year. Then, when Ron Brooks was struck down by a season-ending injury, Mills was pressed into a situation where he had to play a prominent role in all 16 games.
Simply appearing in every game is more than most rookie cornerbacks can say, let alone Day 3 selections. Not only did Mills hold up, but he also gained valuable experience that can only make him better down the line.
"Really just the mental aspect of the game," Mills said of what he learned in Year One.
"Me being a rookie, and having these veteran guys help me and coach me up as far as just how guys prepare. Mentally, whether it's the playbook, recovering your body from a hard practice or a long week of practice, and then going into a game, how do you attack the game and the game plan?"
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Truth be told, a case could be made that Mills was the Eagles' best corner in 2016, or at least the most talented.
According to Pro Football Focus, Mills finished tied for 53rd out of 79 qualifying NFL cornerbacks with an opponents' passer rating of 97.7. By comparison, fellow Eagles corners Nolan Carroll and Leodis McKelvin ranked 58th and 75th, respectively.
Which is not to say Mills is a finished product by any means. Now that the calendar has flipped to 2017, the development needs to continue.
"I want to be a guy next year to be able to put the offense in as many positions as possible to score, whether that's making a play on the ball, a great tackle here and there," Mills said. "So whatever I can do in my offseason workout to have my body right, that's what I'm doing."
Mills probably performed about as well as any of the veteran corners on the Eagles roster, when he had every excuse not to. It's been a whirlwind 18 months, beginning with a broken fibula his senior year at LSU to now, his first significant break since.
"Just coming out with the injury from college and then going into the season, Senior Bowl, combine, pro day, OTAs," Mills said. "It's been a long, long season."
Then Mills made a surprising admission — he was already wearing down very soon into his first NFL season.
"A lot of people don't know, I hit the wall kind of early, like Week 5," Mills said. "I've just been grinding throughout the whole season, so rest is a big thing for me.
"I just woke up one day and I was just dragging. Out of nowhere, I had no energy, was sleeping nine hours, getting in the cold tub for as long as I could."
All things considered, Mills handled all of the adversity well, from making the team to suiting up for all 16 games. He's a potential building block, one of many the Eagles uncovered this year.
The 2017 draft wound up producing a bunch of immediate contributors, from the obvious in Carson Wentz, to Isaac Seumalo, Halapoulivaati Vaitai and Wendell Smallwood. Count Mills among the group, which he feels should give the Eagles a leg up on their competition in the future.
"I think it's very important," Mills said of the experience. "Our rookie class, we did well. We have a lot to grow on, we have a lot to get better off of for sure.
"As a young group, I think the more we progress with the young guys, the better the team is going to do."