Jeremiah Trotter Jr. was engulfed in the culture of the Philadelphia Eagles, long before he knew where or what it was. Trotter Jr. was on the field as his father, Jeremiah Trotter Sr., helped the Eagles win the 2004 NFC championship.
The son of the Eagles legend was just two years old at the time, the start of a life anchored in football. Trotter Sr. helped his son become a star while growing up in Philadelphia, being a higher-ranked recruit than high school teammate Marvin Harrison Jr. (another son of an NFL star) at St. Joseph’s Prep .
That star continued at Clemson, as Trotter earned second-team All-America honors in each of the last two seasons. He is the only FBS player with more than 5 sacks and 2+ interceptions in each of the last two seasons, totaling 12 sacks, 28 tackles for loss and four interceptions during that span.
The pressure has always been on Trotter’s son, especially in Philadelphia. He lived up to the hype, which is about to get even bigger now that Trotter Jr. is playing for the same franchise his father played with.
“Honestly, for me, I didn’t feel like there was any pressure,” Trotter Jr. said after being drafted by the Eagles. “My dad would always talk to me and tell me there’s no pressure. ‘You’re your own player, your own man. You have your own journey.’
“We’re different, in the way we play the game. And I just have to go out there and be myself, use the tools that God has blessed me with and use them to the best of my ability and try to be the best player I can be as an individual.
Trotter Jr. will carry on some of his father’s namesakes. He wore number 54 in high school and college and hopes to wear the same number in Philadelphia (number 54 is available). As for their games? There is a difference in play style as the game has evolved over the years.
“I would probably say unequivocally the size, the nature of our bodies and the way we play the game,” Trotter Jr. said. “He played a game where he was more trying to – widen the gap, widen the gaps , running, going down and just blasting the linemen In today’s game, I’m more of a run around, a sideline to sideline run.
“So I feel like that’s the biggest part of our games that are different and the style of play that we have.”
Trotter Jr. was a fifth-round pick, but he has the option to start immediately at linebacker. The position isn’t exactly the strongest on the Eagles roster, which gives Trotter a chance to have a good summer and get on the field.
Whatever happens, Trotter Jr. doesn’t feel any added weight on his shoulders paying off in Philadelphia. Trotter Sr. is an Eagles legend, but his son is blazing his own trail.
“I don’t think there’s any pressure to live up to his legacy or anything,” Trotter Jr. said. “I don’t feel like I have a weight on my back .I’m just trying to go to work and be the best I can be.”
