Buying a jersey is an important event. It's like a marriage. You can't just pick any person and expect to be happy. You need to find someone committed to you and someone that won't let you down. Go ahead, laugh... but ask any Eagles fans with a Terrell Owens jersey in their closet if they think I'm being funny. Getting the right player is almost as important as getting the right team...
Here are the guidelines when picking out the right jersey.
Don't pick a player that probably won't be here - Hey, it's the NFL and every year guys get cut or move on. So it's important not to buy someone a jersey of a guy that could possibly be on the Cowboys or something next year. Some names to avoid - Kearse, Howard, McNabb, Spikes, Thomas, LJ Smith.
Up & coming players are risky, but cool - Got to any Eagles game and it will be obvious who the common jerseys are, the established stars. However, it's always cool to be one of the first people to be wearing the jersey of the guy on the verge of his first pro bowl. That said, the guy could always end up as a bust(there's still people wearing Mamula jerseys) but at least busts aren't hated as much as guys who go on to play elsewhere... Some names to look for - Bunkley, Gaither, Kolb, Cole, Curtis & Andrews(not really an up and comer anymore but still fits here)
When in doubt, always go with the stars - These are the guys whose jersey everyone already has. In fact, if you plan on getting one of these you might wanna make sure the recipient doesn't already have it. The names to look out for - Westbrook, Dawkins, Akers, Sheppard(not quite a star, but fits here best)
Even though I'm not a huge fan of the personalized jersey you can always do that. Or, if you want to spend some real money on a jersey, you can always get a throwback from Philly's own Mitchell & Ness.
Finally, an interesting gift for the many Eagles fans that do have a TO jersey sitting in their closet collecting dust. Since current Eagle and good guy Jason Avant wears TO's old #81, how about a Jason Avant nameplate that can be put right over top of the "Owens?" Nice.
I'm actually wondering what jersey you guys wouldn't mind getting this year?