Since the onset of free agency a week ago, free agent fullback Jon Ritchie had his sights set on Philadelphia. The Eagles, in need of a veteran at the position, had their eyes set on Ritchie.
So it was no surprise that the two parties came together Friday and hammered out a two-year deal, the team's first signing of the NFL free agency period. The team added linebacker Mark Simoneau via a trade earlier in the week.
Philadelphia was Ritchie's No. 1 choice. Really.
The Mechanicsburg, Pa., native said he had set his sights on returning to the East Coast the moment he hit free agency.
"I was quite unwilling to travel anywhere else before I knew where the Eagles stood on things," said the 6-foot-1, 250-pound Ritchie, who will replace Cecil Martin at fullback. "I took the red eye in with the intention of hopefully being an Eagle by the time I left.
Ritchie underwent a physical, toured the NovaCare Complex, met with coaches and then signed on the dotted line.
Ritchie spent his entire five-year NFL career in Oakland after being selected in the 3rd round in 1998 by the Raiders.
With the Raiders he played in 75 games (48 starts). He served as a powerful lead blocker and valued receiving option out of the backfield, with 129 receptions for 1,026 yards and 4 touchdowns.
Last season, his blocking was key in helping to protect last season’s league MVP Rich Gannon, who headed the NFL’s top ranked offensive unit in 2002.
Ritchie said he's thankful for his time in Oakland, on the West Coast in general. After all, he's been out west since January of ’95. He went to school at Stanford, started his professional career out in the Bay area with the Raiders and met his fiancé out there.
Still, he's glad to be just an hour and 45 minute drive away from his family and friends.
"This is where I’m rooted. This is where my family is," Ritchie said. "My whole family hasn’t had a chance to come and watch me play a game for as long as I can remember. My family is important to me and now they can spend some more time with me.
"I feel like the prodigal son finally coming home to parents who love me and relatives who love me. I’m ecstatic.”
Of course, being from central Pennsylvania, Ritchie admitted that while growing up he flip-flopped his rooting interests between the Eagles and the Steelers.
But after signing with the midnight green on Friday, you can bet his loyalties lie with the Birds... at least for two seasons.
"I’m excited as heck to be back in Pennsylvania," Ritchie said. "This is a place that I’ve thought about non-stop throughout the free agency process. I’m just really glad to be around.”
