Dear Diary appears on PhiladelphiaEagles.com during the 2014 season. Today: safety Chris Maragos. Follow Chris on Twitter @ChrisMaragos. Before he signed with the Eagles this past offseason, safety Chris Maragos spent three seasons with the Seattle Seahawks and was a member of their Super Bowl team in 2013 …*
It's going to be fun to compete against my former team tomorrow. We have a great matchup ahead of us. I know these guys and what they do and their personnel. They've got guys who are really fast, athletic, really competitive guys who can play really, really well. We need to bring our A game, but we have guys who are excited to go out and play against these guys and hopefully be a factor in helping our team win.
This is not about any personal rivalries or exacting revenge for me. It's about going out there and executing. It doesn't really matter who the opponent is. I just go out there and try to make my teammates better and help the team win. For me, whether it's the first preseason game or the Super Bowl, I treat every game the same regardless of circumstances or situations. I just try to stay focused on my techniques and what I need to do.
This week, I was asked if I go to the coaches to help them with gameplanning since I know the players Seahawks' players and scheme. There is no need to. I'm a player. The coaches do such a good job of breaking them down. Our offensive coaches, they're world-class coaches, so I don't think I can tell them anything that they don't already know.
Having played for both Pete Carroll and Chip Kelly, I can tell you that they both bring a lot of excitement. They're very innovative. They think outside of the box. They are really great leaders. They bring a lot of energy and get guys to play for them. At the same time, I'm so happy that I signed there. It's just so much fun being here and being a part of what Chip's trying to do. I'm just trying to get integrated and be a cog in the wheel of what he started here and help the team win. There's a great foundation here.
To experience the Eagles-Cowboys rivalry for the first time on Thanksgiving was cool. You understand rivalries because you've been a part of them before in your career, but I don't think you really start to understand the depth of rivalries until you're in them - how the fans respond, the city responds, everything. The support that we get from our fans here is simply amazing. It's a huge advantage with the excitement that they bring. It really energizes us and boosts us and gives us that extra edge.
After the win on Thanksgiving, I spent the holiday weekend in Philadelphia with my family just enjoying each other and being thankful for one another. We've made Philly our home. Wherever we are, we want to be planted there. We want to spend as much time as we can here.
