Eagles Notebook: Jason Peters wants to return to Eagles

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - Jason Peters doesn't know who his new head coach will be, doesn't know who will be coaching the offensive line. But if those guys have any sense, Peters will be back for an eighth season as the Eagles' left tackle at age 34, Peters said.

"I want to be here. I still got gas in the tank," said Peters, who made his eighth career Pro Bowl and his sixth as an Eagle, despite being in and out of games with injuries all season.

Would Peters consider moving inside to guard, where he'd have more help and spend less time trying to pass block in space against players 10 years younger?

"I can still play tackle. I'm the best we've got. Who they going to put there? Who's better than me in this locker room? Nobody. Who can they draft, better than me? Nobody. Who can they pick up, better than me? Nobody," Peters said.

"You're going to get beat, here and there. That's part of it - part of this offense. I'm one-on-one every play. Ninety plays, 80 plays. Get beat one or two times, that's just part of it."

Peters said from the Oct. 25 Carolina game, when he aggravated a chronic back problem, he was "a little banged up." He said that was no excuse. "I was out there trying to get to the playoffs."

Peters said the new system won't matter.

"I can adjust to whatever. I adjusted to the read option, this hurry-up offense we've been running for three years now . . . Any offense will fit."

Peters left the lineup early in the loss to Washington that took the Eagles out of playoff contention. A source with knowledge of the situation said that though he'd hyperextended his elbow earlier, leaving for a few plays, Peters sat himself down later, with the game out of reach, saying he wasn't going to risk injury for a team that wasn't going to the postseason.

Peters denied that Sunday, but also confirmed that the fact that the Eagles were getting blown out factored into his departure. He said he didn't sit out because of any antipathy toward Chip Kelly, who was dismissed Tuesday evening.

"I banged my elbow up. I didn't want to go out there and continue to hurt it . . . Sproles chipped me - he wasn't trying to chip me, but he chipped my elbow. It swole up on me. We were getting blown out, so I just - they sat me down."

Peters hadn't commented on Kelly's firing. Asked about it Sunday, he said: "It was shocking. I didn't think there were going to do it that fast . . . Players get replaced, coaches get replaced. We're just renting a locker, they're just renting a space."

Peters has a $9.3 million cap figure for 2016, vs. a $3 million charge if he's released.

Tom Coughlin didn't want to talk about his future after Sunday's loss, but the 69-year-old coach could have been scowling on the sideline for the final time, after his team finished 6-10 and missed the playoffs for the fourth year in a row.

Various reports have said Coughlin will step down.

"I'm going to give myself a little bit of time," said Coughlin, winner of two Super Bowls with the Giants. "I'm sure we'll talk with ownership and then we'll go from there."

The Giants lost six of their last seven games. The 442 points they allowed is the second-most in franchise history to the 501 allowed in 1966, in a 14-game season.

The Eagles converted 10 of 13 third downs . . . They have won 13 of their last 16 against the Giants, two of the last three being meaningless Week 17 games . . . The Giants rolled up 502 net yards and 30 first downs . . . Sam Bradford's 346 completions and 65 percent completion rate this season were franchise records.

On Twitter: @LesBowen

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