December 20, 2024
ERIC HARTLINE/USA TODAY SPORTS
Eagles defensive end Brandon Graham is one of the NFL's most prolific trash-talkers. To celebrate Christmas, the team made a yule log video with a compilation of Graham yapping on the field over the years with the sounds of a crackling fireplace and bells playing in the background.
Brandon Graham has helped anchor the Eagles' defense for 15 seasons by waging relentless psychological warfare against his opponents, in addition to his tenacious athleticism.
All along, the Eagles have been archiving footage of B.G.'s maniacal trash-talk on the field during games when he's been mic'd up. The team has so much of it that they collected an hour's worth of clips for a holiday yule log video. The genre creates cozy fireplace scenes for people to stream in the background during festivities.
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The compilation of Graham bullying opposing offenses is a work of art. He cackles in players' faces, revels over big tackles and terrorizes other teams while they're in the huddle. Sometimes he even gets under the skin of his own teammates. In one game — that we know of — Fletcher Cox actually had to shut Graham up. (Note: Graham's yule log video can only be viewed by following the link to YouTube in the player below).
Graham's peers named him among the NFL's top five "most annoying" players in an anonymous survey conducted by the Athletic this fall. The No. 1 spot went to Eagles teammate C.J. Gardner-Johnson, who was named by more than 20% of the players who took the survey.
Graham's season was cut short this year after suffering a torn triceps injury in November. There's a possibility that the 36-year-old pass-rusher and Super Bowl LII hero has played his last snap in the NFL. And if he does hang up his cleats, part of Graham's legacy will undoubtedly be his supreme talent for stirring the pot without getting penalized for it.
New York TV station WPIX popularized the first Christmas yule log video in 1966, when the network broadcast a looped clip of a fireplace for three hours without commercials. Holiday programming was sparse at the time, but the station's viewers enjoyed tuning in to see the yule log every Christmas Eve. The special continued airing until 1989, when the station got rid of it because the broadcast came at a financial loss. PIX11, the successor to WPIX, now streams the video online during the holidays.
There have been a handful of other Philly-themed yule log videos released in recent years.
The Phillies put out a yule log video that features the Phillie Phanatic hanging out by a fire with the city's other sports mascots.
Instead of using a fireplace, an "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" yule log video shows a scene of a car exploding and catching fire as the gang cheers on the destruction.
And for those interested in a timeless classic, South Philly apparel company South Fellini made a yule log video of a barrel fire in the Italian Market with Christmas piano tunes playing in the background.
