Thomason feeling super again

Rick Devereux

Jeff Thomason will be using his two weeks vacation time from his

project manager job at a construction company in New Jersey to go to

Super Bowl XXXIX in Jacksonville Feb. 6.

Actually, he will be in the Super Bowl.

Thomason, a former Corona del Mar High standout football player

and swimmer in the late 1980s, signed a one-game contract with the

Philadelphia Eagles as a backup tight end. Starting tight end and pro

bowler Chad Lewis broke his foot in the NFC championship game against

the Atlanta Falcons and will be unavailable for the big game in two

weeks.

“Chad called me [Monday night] and told me he wanted me to take

his spot,” Thomason told the Daily Pilot Tuesday. “He is a dear

friend of mine because we played together for three years [with the

Eagles].”

Thomason had been out of football for two years. The 1988 Athlete

of the Year at CdM was a 10-year veteran of the NFL after beginning

his career with the Cincinnati Bengals in 1992.

He played five seasons with the Green Bay Packers, for whom he

played in two Super Bowls and earned a championship ring in 1996.

He signed with the Eagles in 2000 under Coach Andy Reid, his

position coach with the Packers, before being cut in 2002. He has 67

receptions for 650 yards and 10 touchdowns in 10 seasons. He caught

25 passes for 207 yards and seven TDs in his three years with Philly.

“It’s incredible to think about the fact that I’m [playing in the

Super Bowl],” Thomason said at his press conference. “The whole

thing, I’m absorbing the whole thing minute by minute. I’m probably

the luckiest guy in the world today and I realize it.”

Thomason’s familiarity with Reid and the Eagles’ offense should

make the transition from construction project manager to Super Bowl

tight end easier.

“I got a playbook [Monday night] and went over it,” Thomason said.

“I’ve been in this offense for 10 years so I know it very well.

Little things and formations have change, but overall it shouldn’t

take me a lot to grasp.”

The Eagles had lost the last three NFC championship games,

including a 29-24 loss to the St. Louis Rams in 2001 and a 27-10 loss

to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2002. Thomason was with Philadelphia

in those two losses.

“I was with this team for three years, so I feel like I’m part of

the building process,” Thomason said. “The older guys who were on

those teams with me know how important this [Super Bowl] is.”

Thomason, 35, tried out for an NFL team last year when he worked

out for the Carolina Panthers, but was not signed. He figured his

playing days were behind him.

“I thought I was truly done,” he said. “I never would have thought

this would happen and now I realize how hard it is to earn a buck in

the real world.”

Thomason said he puts in long hours at the construction job,

longer than the hours he dedicated to football.

“Once I get back [to the construction job] I’ll be working a year

straight without any vacation time,” he said. “I’ll probably get paid

more money on my vacation time than I get during my annual salary.”

Thomason has no illusions about a comeback.

“This is going to be it,” he said. “I’m thrilled to have it. This

is a great way to go out, so I’ll take it.”

He will play a limited role in the Super Bowl. Second-year tight

end L.J. Smith will start in Lewis’ absence. Thomason will be brought

in for certain situations on offense and to give Smith a breather,

but his main contributions will come on special teams.

“I hope I play like I did when I was here back in 2002, 15 to 20

plays at tight end and help [special teams coach John] Harbaugh on

the special teams as much as he needs me,” Thomason said. “That’s

what I did for 10 years. I got about 20 plays a game and then played

special teams. Wherever I can fill in on any of those roles I’m more

that comfortable.”