WATCH: Jordan Mailata is ready to throwdown every time his QB takes a late hit
A general rule of thumb for any defender facing the Eagles offense, don’t let the 6-foot-6 Jordan Mailata get his hands on you.
Ever since earning the starting left tackle gig last year, the 25-year-old Aussie has been a force to be reckoned with. He routinely tosses defenders around and imposes his will on the opponent.
During the Eagles opening weekend contest against Detroit, it became clear that the Lions were actively targeting quarterback Jalen Hurts. On nearly every scramble, Hurts had to endure a hit after the whistle was blown.
Detroit was only flagged once for unnecessary roughness, when safety Tracy Walker inexcusably lowered his helmet into a sliding Jalen Hurts.
Originally tweeted by Brodes Media (@BrodesMedia) on September 11, 2022.
Mailata, and the rest of the team for that matter, was not happy after this dirty hit. Luckily for the Lions, the cowardly referees swarmed the 365-pound tackle, preventing him from mixing it up with the Detroit defenders.
When speaking with NBC Sports Philadelphia’s John Clark, Mailata made it known that he was looking to scrap after all of the dirty hits Detroit committed against his QB.
Mailata on why he couldn’t get his hands on Walker following the late hit on Hurts
“There was like 5 [late hits] today,” Mailata told Clark. “And for some reason, the refs were coming straight to me like, ‘Hey, it’s okay man.'”
I can only imagine the type of damage Mailata could inflict on 206-pound Walker. The refs were probably smart to stop the left tackle in his tracks, but if they would have just called the game honestly and treated Hurts like a quarterback rather than a running back, this big peaceful Australian wouldn’t have had any issues to be mad about.
“They were just looking at me every time there was a dirty hit,” Mailata explained. “I had to calm down a bit. I’m glad Zach Pascal and Dallas Goedert stepped up to protect the QB. It’s a collective effort.”
I find it kind of funny that the refs actively kept tabs on Mailata throughout the game, watching the mammoth of a man every time they decided to keep their flags tucked when a late hit occurred. Sounds like cowardly behavior to me.
Moving forward, hopefully the refs start throwing flags whenever Hurts takes a cheap shot. They may not be able to contain Mailata from getting his palms on the guilty party for much longer.
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Mailata probably hasn’t been 6’6″ since he was a teenager.