The day after his 31st birthday, Brent Celek has another reason to celebrate. On Tuesday afternoon, he and the Eagles agreed to terms on a new three-year contract that will keep the tight end in Philadelphia through the 2018 season.
A nine-year veteran, Celek has continuously been a dominant force for his team. The tight end has 371 catches, 4,713 receiving yards and 30 touchdowns to his name, ranking him second all time among Eagles tight ends in the three categories. He trails only Philadelphia Eagles Hall of Famer Pete Retzlaff. Additionally, his receptions are also tied for fifth most in franchise history, standing as a testament to the work Celek has put in each year.
"The day I came here, I basically just told myself, 'Listen. I'm going to do everything I can every single day that I walk through these doors and try to do it with a smile on my face and do whatever the coaches ask,'" Celek said in an interview with PhiladelphiaEagles.com late in the 2015 season. "For the past nine years, that's just what I've tried to do. I think being in the same city, you've got to be a little bit lucky. So I've been a little bit lucky, but it's been amazing. Philly is now my home and I'm not going anywhere."
Celek has also been one of the most durable players on the Eagles' roster, missing only one contest throughout the entirety of his professional career. He's played in 149 games, six of which were playoff appearances, with 120 starts since the team drafted him in the fifth round of the 2007 NFL Draft.
During the 2008 NFC Championship Game, Celek set a franchise record for most receptions in a playoff contest, recording 10 catches.
However, one of the only accomplishments that has eluded the tight end is a Super Bowl. His goal remains to bring a championship to Philadelphia.
"I'm here to be the best teammate, to help be a leader to the young guys and do whatever it takes to help this team win because winning is all that matters," Celek said. "All of the personal stuff, that doesn't really mean anything. All that matters is that we win as a team. We have the ultimate goal of winning the Super Bowl. I want to do whatever I have to do to help that come to light."
The Eagles announced that they have agreed to a new three-year deal with tight end Brent Celek. Take a look at some of his best moments as a member of the Philadelphia Eagles ...
TE Brent Celek was drafted in 2007 out of Cincinnati
In his rookie season, Celek set a career-high in yards (50) against Dallas
In 2008, Celek had a career day against Seattle, catching six passes for 131 yards
Celek led the team with six receptions and had 56 yards in their playoff win against Minnesota in 2008
In 2008, Celek set a franchise playoff record with 10 catches
In the 2008 NFC Championship game against Arizona, Celek also had 83 yards and two touchdowns
Celek continued to set new career-highs in 2009 in receptions (76), yards (971) and touchdowns (8)
Celek was named to USA Today's 2009 All-Joe Team, which honors the NFL players whose work doesn't necessarily garner headlines, but is integral to the success of their football team
Celek notched two straight 100-yard receiving games in 2009, the first Eagles tight end to do so since Pete Retzlaff in 1965
In 2010, Celek set a regular season career-high with 10 catches for a season-high 97 yards against Minnesota
Celek set another career-high 156 yards against the New York Jets in 2011
In 2011, Celek ranked tied for first on the team in receiving touchdowns (5), second in receptions (62) and third in yards (811)
Celek passed John Spagnola for second place on the Eagles all-time list among tight ends in receptions with 3 catches against Dallas in 2012
Celek then passed Spagnola to rank second among all Eagles tight ends in career receiving yards in a game against Cleveland in 2012
In 2013, Celek's touchdown against Arizona moved him past Chad Lewis and into second place all-time among Eagles tight ends in touchdowns with 24
Celek marked his seventh-career 100-yard game against Carolina in 2014
Celek registered his 30th career touchdown catch against Detroit in 2015
