Former offensive tackles Jon Runyan and Tra Thomas will go into the Eagles’ Hall of Fame during the team’s Oct. 14 game against the Buccaneers. Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie made the announcement at halftime of Thursday night’s preseason opener against the Steelers.
“Building a strong offensive line may not generate all the headlines, and those players aren’t the ones who are going to score touchdowns and gain a lot of attention, but it is absolutely essential to success in the NFL,” Lurie said in a statement. “It is something we have always valued with the Philadelphia Eagles. Together, Tra and Jon gave us every bit of confidence to execute the kind of offense we wanted. They were the perfect complement to each other. Both players were durable and consistent, and they gave us great advantages winning one-on-one battles on the edges.”
The Eagles made Thomas the No. 11 overall choice in 1998 out of Florida State. Runyan, a fourth-round choice of the Houston Oilers in 1996, joined the Eagles in free agency two years later. The bookends helped the Eagles win five NFC East titles, reach five NFC Championship Games and one Super Bowl.
Thomas earned three Pro Bowl nods – tied for second most by an offensive tackle in franchise history – and Runyan earned one.
“We all felt that when we selected Tra with the 11th overall pick that year that we had taken a step in the right direction to put this football team on a sustained winning path,” Lurie said. “Having the opportunity in the 2000 free agency period to add Jon, another huge man at 6-7, 330 pounds, gave us something we desperately needed -- a nasty disposition to really win battles in the trenches. At the time, Jon’s contract as a right tackle made him the highest-paid offensive lineman in NFL history. And he proved to be worth every bit of that investment.”
Runyan and Thomas will become the 46th and 47th enshrinees in the Eagles’ Hall of Fame.
