Now with Eagles, former Chiefs pass rusher happy to be on 'right side' as Philly attempts Super Bowl repeat

PHILADELPHIA -- Josh Uche painted the picture the best way he could, a scenario Philadelphia Eagles fans have all been a part of. Some of those fans may have even partook in his story. 

On the weekend of Super Bowl LIX, Uche's father, Emmanuel, traveled to New Orleans to see his son play in the biggest game of his life. Uche, who was playing for the Chiefs, receives all the support he can from Emmanuel -- who has become a passionate football fan over the years.

There was Emmanuel, wearing a Uche Chiefs jersey walking down Bourbon Street on Super Bowl Eve. Eagles fans crowded the streets of New Orleans that weekend, so Uche had to paint the picture of the scene that was to come. 

"Mind you, my dad is a Nigerian immigrant, still heavy accent, right?" Uche said with a smile as he was telling the story. "And you got guys from Philly just giving him the business."

The story didn't end on Bourbon Street, either. Eagles fans took over the Caesars Superdome for Super Bowl LIX, a precursor for what was to come. 

"He's a no-nonsense guy, so he comes up to me and he says, 'I got into it with these Philly guys and one of them was standing up in front of me the whole game, I couldn't see … duh, duh duh duh duh,'" Uche said, laughing. "I was like, oh shit, maybe it wasn't the smartest thing to have my dad come out. 

"But now we're on the right side and we have his intensity, his passion and his high energy now on the right side."

Emmanuel Uche is an Eagles fan now, as his son has ventured into the midnight green for the 2025 season. This season is a big one for Josh Uche, as he's playing under a one-year deal with the chance to prove he still can play at a high level in the NFL.

That journey begins Thursday night against the Dallas Cowboys, whom Uche has quickly discovered are the Eagles' biggest rival.

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Facing the Cowboys in an Eagles uniform 

Uche spent the first five seasons of his career with the New England Patriots, so facing the Cowboys wasn't common. The Patriots only faced the Cowboys twice when Uche was there, both under Bill Belichick. 

Even though the Cowboys were in another conference, playing them was a big week. 

"The Cowboys are a team that -- everything's bigger in Texas, right?" Uche said. "I remember going there two years ago. We prepared pretty hard for that game. They have great players on both sides of the ball, and I remember Bill being really dialed in on that game and doing the best he could to come out with a win."

So why were the Cowboys a big deal in New England? The Patriots were one of four franchises with five Super Bowls, having six Super Bowl titles to the Cowboys' five. It was a matter of historical pride. 

"It's more so organizational rivalry with Dallas being one of the biggest organizations at the time and New England at the time being one of the biggest," Uche said. "So we wanted to make it a good game."

The Patriots lost, 38-3, in that 2023 matchup. Two years prior, they suffered a 35-29 defeat in an overtime thriller in Foxborough. While the Cowboys were a big game, Uche knew who the Patriots' rival was when he played there -- the game circled on the calendar. The Buffalo Bills have won the past five AFC East titles, but it wasn't them.

"Mind you I got there post-Brady era, so things were a little different," Uche said. "Each week, I know when we played the Jets, there was a big emphasis."

Perhaps it was Belichick's past endeavors with the Jets that stirred the pot for that rivalry, or the history between the Patriots and Jets in general. But Uche knew that was a big week. 

In Philadelphia, facing Dallas is a big week for the fanbase. Inside the building? Uche can already tell Dallas is just another opponent on the schedule.

"Here, I think this organization does a good job focusing on whoever's in front of us," Uche said. "It doesn't matter if it's division or not division. Whoever's in front of us, that has to be the best game we play."

The challenge that comes with playing for the Eagles

Uche was one of the best players on that 2023 Patriots team, an organization trying to find its footing again after a subpar season. In Week 1 at Gillette Stadium, the Patriots drew the Eagles, a team coming off an NFC Championship and looking for even bigger things that year.

No matter how the Patriots season turned out, though, Belichick made sure his team was going to give the Eagles their best game. 

"We were, I don't want to say nervous, but you guys came off a Super Bowl and we didn't have the best year before so we wanted to put our best foot forward that game and we were preparing a lot," Uche said. "It's not an easy team to prepare for."

Teams are going to be like the Patriots were that season, giving the Super Bowl champions their best game. There won't be an easy out for the Eagles this year, but Uche already understands the organization knows how to handle this situation. 

Just like the Cowboys this week, each game is just another one on the schedule. There isn't a bigger game because of the opponent.

"The Super Bowl is a thing of the past, just from the workouts that Nick [Sirianni] puts up through, to the meetings, to everything," Uche said. "It's ground zero. Everything is ground zero. It's a whole new year. It's crazy. 

"This was a tough training camp. I've been in New England with Bill for years, and this was a tough training camp. You can tell that last year was last year and this is a whole new slate."

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Being one of 20 new faces on the 53-man roster, Uche is already seeing how strong the Eagles' culture is. It doesn't matter if he has something to prove on a one-year deal or not; he understands why many players succeed in Philadelphia.

Uche is hoping to be the next success story. 

"You can't control the past, you can't control the future, all you can worry about is right now," Uche said. "I feel this is a complete team. You look at every phase of it. It's a complete team. That has to give you confidence."