Eagles right guard Mekhi Becton’s inspiration fueled his perseverance from injured to integral

When seeking comfort while in the throes of his two season-long stints on injured reserve, Mekhi Becton would reach for his right shoulder.

The offensive lineman’s fingertips would brush over the first tattoo he had done when he was a 17-year-old in Highland Springs, Va. The black lines etched into his skin had faded slightly just five years later. Still, the significance of the image and the name that those lines formed remained vibrant in Becton’s memory.

The praying hands and angel wings depicted on his upper arm served as a tribute to his grandmother, Crystal Minor, who died in 2010 from breast cancer when Becton was 10 years old. He considered her his “second mom.” While nursing the injuries to his right knee in 2021 and 2022 that kept him sidelined for a combined 33 out of 34 games with the New York Jets, Becton considered her his motivation.

“I pretty much told myself everything I do is going to be for her,” Becton told The Inquirer. “She’s my why.”

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Minor was the reason he would pour into his rehabilitation, even on the days he didn’t feel up to it. She was the reason he worked his way back into a starting role with the Jets in 2023, first at right tackle and then at his natural left tackle position. She was the reason he maintained confidence that he could eventually thrive as a starting NFL offensive lineman.

That patience and persistence paid off — Becton has evolved into a stalwart on the Eagles offensive line at right guard, a position he hadn’t played before he signed a one-year deal in the offseason. From East Rutherford, N.J., to Philadelphia, his grandmother’s memory has fueled his determination to reach his potential, an undertaking that the 6-foot-7, 363-pound Becton says remains in progress.

“I would say it just taught me to keep my head down and just keep working,” Becton said. “Just keep fighting the fight. Just no matter what you do, just keep looking forward. Don’t look behind you. Don’t look to the side. No matter what you’re doing, just keep looking forward and keep running the race.”

Nearly 15 years after her mother’s death, Semone Becton wishes her son, Mekhi, could have known her the way she did.

Becton remembers some of his grandmother’s characteristics, like her sense of humor. He recalls how he would try to get her to laugh, sometimes so hard that she would pass gas. He remembers her affinity for Cabbage Patch Kids and the collection of dolls she kept close to the entrance of her home just 10 miles away from the Bectons’. He remembers her role as “the rock” of the family who took care of everyone, including himself.

But he didn’t have the opportunity to grow into an adult — and eventually a parent — under the guidance of Minor, like Semone did. Semone instilled some of the values that she acquired from her no-nonsense, hardworking mother within her three sons, of whom is Mekhi the oldest.

“I always tell them, ‘You never give them a stick to beat you with,’” Semone said. “In any situation, don’t give them a reason to say that you did something. Do what you’re supposed to do at all times.”

Semone shared that message with Becton when he was injured and sought encouragement to stay the course while in New York. But his NFL career didn’t start with those tribulations. Becton, who was selected No. 11 overall in the 2020 draft out of Louisville, had a promising rookie year as a 21-year-old starting left tackle, conceding 15 pressures in 14 games, according to Pro Football Focus.

That promise turned to peril the following year. In the 2021 season opener against the Carolina Panthers, Becton dislocated his right knee and sprained his MCL when a defender landed on the back of his leg. It required season-ending surgery.

The following training camp, then-Jets coach Robert Saleh moved Becton to right tackle. George Fant, who had filled in for Becton in 2021, kept the starting spot on the left side. Becton said he objected to the move. He worried that his right leg was more vulnerable to injury at right tackle. He would have preferred to push off with his right leg as a left tackle than use it to brace himself as his back leg on the opposite side.

Becton’s fear came to fruition later in camp when he fractured his surgically repaired knee in team drills, ending his season before it even began.

“I felt like that was ultimately why I felt like nobody had my back,” Becton said. “I felt like I was doing everything on my own. I was just drowning without a raft. I just felt like I was on my own.”

But he had the support of his family and a characteristic shared with his late grandmother. Semone said, much like her mother was, Becton is a go-getter. He split time that offseason between North Jersey and Virginia working with trainers to strengthen the muscles in his right leg and keep his knee in place.

Becton showed up to training camp 50 pounds lighter. He stayed healthy and started 16 of 17 games in 2023, first at right tackle for two games and then at left tackle for the remainder of the year following an injury to starter Duane Brown. He had room for improvement, though, and conceded 50 pressures, the fifth-most in the league, according to PFF.

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That improvement would have to happen elsewhere, as the Jets declined to pick up Becton’s fifth-year option on his rookie contract and allowed him to become a free agent. But Becton still carries with him a lesson he learned with the Jets.

“I learned that I’m unbreakable,” Becton said. “You can’t break me. They did everything in their power to try to break me, and I’m unbreakable.”

During the Eagles’ three-day mandatory minicamp in the early summer, Jeff Stoutland said Becton had a “holy cow” moment that changed the trajectory of his career.

Landon Dickerson, the Eagles starting left guard, missed those sessions because of an excused absence. In an effort to put his best five players on the field, Stoutland floated an idea by Nick Sirianni — why not try Becton, who signed a one-year deal with the Eagles under the impression that he would serve as the primary backup swing tackle, at left guard?

The longtime Eagles offensive line coach still had his reservations. Stoutland could name the mere handful of 6-7 guards who have had NFL success. Becton had the “perfect critical factors” — key traits, in other words — to play tackle, but his potential at guard required some projection.

Thanks to his lower-body flexibility, Becton could bend, allowing the quarterback to see over his tall frame. He had great foot and body quickness. Beyond the physical traits, Stoutland detected the “hungry dog” mentality within Becton.

“He really loves to be coached,” Stoutland said. “And so, really, that’s all we need here is people that want to be coached and not offended when they’re coached.”

Sirianni gave Stoutland his approval. Becton then gave Stoutland confidence that this guard experiment could lead to permanent change. On a couple of screen passes in practice, Becton could present the protection plan and instinctively knew when to release and go into the screen, much to Stoutland’s surprise.

“Without even having done it before, he actually has a good feel for that part,” Stoutland said. “Tackles are not in screens a lot. The interior player’s usually in there, and they’re getting out into the second level. And to me, that was an eye-opening moment.”

Becton continued to open eyes after winning the starting right guard job in training camp. His size — especially his 95th-percentile arm length, according to MockDraftable — proved to be a boon in pass protection. He is particularly useful to Lane Johnson on third-down “pop stunts,” in which a defensive lineman attempts to confuse the blockers by setting a pick on the tackle, helping another defender loop around and penetrate the pocket.

With his long arms, Becton can get his hands on the defender before he crashes into Johnson, blowing up the stunt. He’s continued to grow in the run game, too. Stoutland said that Becton was “super special” at the second level when run blocking against the Los Angeles Rams last week, tossing linebackers onto their backs on multiple Saquon Barkley carries. Becton’s evolution is all the more exciting to his teammates, knowing the adversity he overcame in New York to find success in Philadelphia.

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“I’m really proud for him because I know where he came from,” Johnson said. “It didn’t go the way he wanted to go. So I’m pushing him, and I want him to get everything that he’s worked for.”

When Becton arrived at the NovaCare Complex, he said the offensive line room embraced him “like brothers I never had.” That bond cultivated in the building translates on the field, leaving Becton feeling “pretty much unstoppable.”

Before the season started, Becton told Semone over the phone that he was having fun again. Not only does he relish the opportunity to contribute on the field, but he also finds joy in knowing that he has room to grow in his new role. Semone sees that joy in his smile, which she said had been absent for the last few years.

“As a mom, everybody wants to see their kids smile and know the smile is real behind it,” Semone said.

On Sunday, Semone will get to see that smile in person when she makes the four-hour trek up to M&T Bank Stadium for the Eagles’ road matchup against the Baltimore Ravens. Becton’s other “why,” his 2-year-old son Mekhi Jr., also will be in attendance for his second game.

Family fuels Becton’s purpose on the field. In October, he wore pink cleats with his grandmother’s name for breast cancer awareness month. In years past, he has participated in the NFL’s My Cause My Cleats initiative, representing organizations including the Black Women’s Health Imperative and the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

Becton aspires to start his own foundation to benefit women’s health. Until then, he’ll continue to honor his grandmother through his efforts on the field.

“I know she would be really proud of him right now,” Semone said. “Just to know that he’s doing what he loves to do.”

The Eagles play Sunday afternoon in Week 13 against the Ravens in Baltimore. Join Eagles beat reporters Olivia Reiner and EJ Smith as they dissect the hottest storylines surrounding the team on Gameday Central, live from M&T Bank Stadium.