Hall of Famer Thinks Delayed Ring Ceremony Will be a Huge Jumpstart for 2025 Eagles

The Philadelphia Eagles will have to wait just a little longer to get their hands on the bling that symbolizes their dominant Super Bowl LIX championship.

Originally slated for June 6, the Eagles’ Super Bowl ring ceremony has officially been rescheduled for July 18, just four days before the team reports for the start of training camp on July 22.

The reason? Perfection takes time.  Jostens, famous jeweler tasked with crafting well over 150 ultra-ornate rings, each filled with hundreds of diamonds, personalized engravings, and intricate design elements.

According to industry insiders, these rings typically take eight weeks to finalize the design, and another four to six weeks for production. Every single ring must be polished, sized, and flawless because this isn’t costume jewelry, this serious authentic bling, symbolizing blood, sweat, and ultimate glory.  If just one ring is off the whole batch gets held back.

Last year, the Kansas City Chiefs hit a snag when an incorrect inscription needed to be corrected before their rings could be distributed. When you’re dealing with hundreds of custom high-value pieces, mistakes are unacceptable and even small errors can cause big delays.  This isn’t former Boston Bruin Brad Marchand getting a tattoo with “Stanley Cup Champions” spelled incorrectly, this is serious business.

Cause for Concern?

At first glance, the timing might seem counterproductive for this Eagles team.  Head coach Nick Sirianni said that he started thinking about the 2025 season moments after last February’s Super Bowl ended. The ceremony was supposed to close the book on the 2024 Super Bowl run so the team could put their epic season behind them and now its being held on the brink of training camp, when the team is supposed to be laser-focused on defending its title.

Could it be a distraction or detrimental at all for the team’s mindest? Not according to Philadelphia Hall of Fame writer Ray Didinger, who joined the WIP Morning Show this past week and had a very sage and positive take.

“I’ve been to a couple of those ring ceremonies when I was at NFL Films. We used to shoot them. They’re something, boy. They really are… That moment when they hand it to you and you open it up – it’s powerful.

I kind of think it’s cool that you’re getting it right on the eve of training camp. I think that’s a huge jumpstart for this team. Right there on the eve of when all of the sweat and all the hard work and all the pain of training camp begins, this is a wonderful thing to have right before you go.

For a lot of these guys, it’s their first one. It’s a tremendous way to kick off what’s going to be a very challenging season, but I think a season where this team has a chance to do something that hasn’t been done since the days of Steve Van Buren and Chuck Bednarik, and that’s win it back-to-back.”

Since everthing that comes out of Ray Diddy’s mouth is gospel, I’m going to go with him. But some critics, who are just lip puppets in comparison, are suggesting that pushing the ring ceremony this close to training camp could hinder the team’s ability to “turn the page” on last season. But anyone who understands the DNA of this team and its head coach Nick Sirianni, knows that this ceremony won’t be a distraction, it’ll be fuel.

I have no doubt that the moved ring ceremony, if it has any effect at all on Sirianni’s team (other than a few mild hangovers), puts bookends on a championship mindset heading into the grind. The timing ensures that every player, coach, and staff member will be present, fully focused, and reminded of exactly what they’re playing for.

Worth the Wait?

Well, you be the judge.  Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie bought the team back in 1994 for $185 million.  Championship teams annually order any where from 300-700 Super Bowl rings, depending on the generosity of their owner.  For our purposes let’s say Eagles’ owner Jeffrey Lurie ordered 500 rings from Jostens – and that encompasses bling for players, coaches, staff, front office executives, practice squad players, training staff, equipment managers, stadium staff, team legends, honorary recipients, cheerleaders, the scouting department and friends and family.  Oh, and because of some limitations Swoop gets a beak ring.

Now bless their heart, the NFL covers $6,000 per ring (up to 150 rings), and Mr. Lurie covers the rest.  The total cost per ring typically averages out to about 40k per ring.  So the NFL paid about $6,000 × 150 = $900,000 and the big boss man paid the rest, roughly $20 million.

So Mr. Lurie dished out about $20 million for the team accessories and in return his team’s valuation jumped up about half a billion or so, far outweighing his investment.  Not too bad J.L.

Breaking it down even further, Jalen Hurts and Saquon Barkley will go home with a ring that likely costs $45k+ and probably looks more like a door knob.  Assistant coaches and top trainer’s rings cost in the neighborhood of $20k and the rest of the other fortunate recipients about $5k each.  Swoop’s beak ring cost about $2.5k – righteous bucks. 

I’ve seen Swoop struggle with a 30 yard-out when slingin’ it on the sideline but the winged rescue mascot, wearing a number that’s banned in two leagues, including his own, can definitely and proudly rock some rocks while repping the incumbent Super Bowl champions.

From Lombardi trophies to bedazzled diamond studded beaks, the message is clear – In Philly, everybody eats.

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