Tyreek Maddox-Williams started walking toward the exit of the Eagles’ locker room at the Linc when he paused, lifted his hands and gave a puzzled look.
“How do I get to where my family is?” he asked.
Maddox-Williams, 27, is a local kid. He went to Timber Creek in South Jersey and then to Rutgers and he had been to Lincoln Financial Field before. Just never as a player. So after his incredible night on Thursday in the Eagles’ preseason finale, all he wanted to do was find his family.
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When he finally got directions, he was off on his way. He probably floated the rest of the way there.
Because Maddox-Williams had quite a night in front of the home crowd. Even though he didn’t sign with the Eagles until Saturday, the linebacker put out some great tape five days later. He had 7 tackles, 2 pass breakups and a tackle for loss. But the real highlight was a fourth-quarter interception that he returned 42 yards.
“It’s amazing,” Maddox-Williams said. “I’m just honored to be able to get this opportunity from God. You don’t get to come back home and be able to do it in front of your family. It’s a blessing.”
While Maddox-Williams is obviously still an extreme long shot to make the Eagles’ roster, he got to have a magical moment on Thursday night. And, more importantly, he put out really good tape for all 32 teams in the league as he tries to keep him NFL dreams alive.
NFL
After playing at Timber Creek and then at Rutgers, Maddox-Williams went undrafted last spring. He signed with the Chargers and even after getting cut late last summer, joined their practice squad. He was with LA until less than a month ago, when he was waived.
From July 28 until Saturday, Maddox-Williams was back in New Jersey working out and hoping his next opportunity would come. Then the linebacker-needy Eagles called. Maddox-Williams passed his physical, signed with the Eagles on Saturday and practiced that very same day.
What was head coach Nick Sirianni’s advice to Maddox-Williams before the game?
“How are you doing? I’m Coach Sirianni. Nice to meet you,” Sirianni joked.
Maddox-Williams was at the NovaCare Complex for a grand total of three practices before Thursday’s game. But the Eagles knew he wouldn’t have a grasp of the entire defense and boiled it down in a way that he could just play freely on Thursday.
And Maddox-Williams made the most of it.
“Do or die,” he said. “I couldn’t make excuses for being here a short amount of time. It was now or never.”
After he was cut by the Chargers in late July, Maddox-Williams said he never doubted his abilities. He wasn’t upset about being released because he understood the business aspect of the NFL.
But when he got home and had to start waiting for the next call, he admitted it did weigh on him a bit. While he never doubted his ability, he was worried he wouldn’t get to show off that ability to the rest of the league. He wasn’t with a team for the first two weeks of the preseason.
“You get scared because if you don’t get these preseason games, people don’t get to see you,” Maddox-Williams said. “So I feel very lucky and blessed to be able to get this one, go out there and play football. I didn’t play in a year. I’ve been on the practice squad. I didn’t play in a year, live football.”
So you could say Maddox-Williams had some fresh legs and he showed them off on Thursday night. The newcomer was flying around the field from the moment he got his first snap.
And his fourth-quarter interception is something Maddox-Williams will never forget.
“Thank God I caught it because I dropped one earlier,” he said.
“Yeah, really cool any time you can do that in front of your family and friends,” Sirianni said. “Awesome. So really nice play on the ball and good return and that was great.”
Now that the Eagles have made it through their three preseason games, they will have to cut their roster from 90 players to 53 by 4 p.m. on Tuesday. But Maddox-Williams isn’t stressing.
He got to the team on Saturday, played on Thursday and turned some heads in the process. He’s a long shot to make the roster but he did all he could. He’s just going to spend the next few days with family as much as he can.
“I’m going to find out where they’re at,” he said, “and I’m going to go home.”
And off he went.
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