One of the most colorful characters in this game is Eagles left tackle Jordan Mailata, a converted rugby player from Australia. Mailata this week revealed his game day superstitions.
“I have a barefoot routine before every game to kind of ground me,’’ he said. “I might wear socks this time because there will be about 50,000 cameras out there. I do that to ground me. I listen to the same song over and over again. Don’t ask me what song it is, because I’m not going to tell you. I’m very superstitious. On game day, I’ve got to eat the same breakfast, sit on the same bus — left-hand side of the bus.’’
Philadelphia Eagles offensive tackle Jordan Mailata (68) warms up in his bare feet prior the NFC Divisional playoff game. Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Because he’s so new to the game, Mailata isn’t someone who has been dreaming about playing in a Super Bowl since he was a kid.
“To me, the Super Bowl dream only started four or five years ago,’’ he said. “For my fellow teammates, it’s different. They’ve been dreaming about this since they were little kids, since they were running around in nappies. If you don’t know what a nappy is, look it up. You guys call them diapers, or pampers.’’
Just six years ago, the 6-foot-9 Mailata was working in a supermarket and other odd jobs to help pay his bills. The 25-year-old is in his third season with the Eagles, playing all 16 games for the first time this year. The team moved up from No. 250 to 233 in the seventh round of the 2018 NFL Draft to selected Mailata.
He is one of the Super Bowl’s most talented players, having also appeared on “The Masked Singer.” Now fans will have to see if he modifies his very specific pregame routine with the Eagles looking to take down the Chiefs in Arizona on Sunday.
