Before the world knew his name, Boston Scott was quietly washing cars in a Ford dealership, his high school state powerlifting trophy forgotten in pursuit of a football career. Standing at just 5-foot-6, Scott refused to believe he wasn’t elite. College football coaches begged to differ. The result? Zero scholarship offers, and a herculean task of holding onto an impossible dream. But Scott never gave up. He used student loans, money from academic scholarships, and personal income to the point of being broke. Only, even that wasn’t enough.

He eventually received a scholarship as a junior, but the big league wasn’t convinced. With an NFL Combine snub and the 2018 NFL Draft Day 2 over, Scott’s “physical limitation” stood guard. Until the phone rang and the Saints picked him at 201st. As you can guess, it’s not a Boston Scott story unless it takes a detour. The RB was waived that summer. Instead, he joined the Philadelphia Eagles for six seasons, earning the moniker ‘Giant Killer’. But like they say, even the most patient reach their breaking point. Scott reached his on March 17.

“I thought it would be after a Super Bowl win, where I rode off into the sunset. I thought it would be an injury where the cons outweighed the pros,” he shared on social media on Tuesday, announcing his retirement. “I thought it would be my body starting to wear down and slow down. But I remembered that God is the one who placed me there. Not me. We don’t get to determine how he wants to refine us. We have to walk by faith and not by sight.

“I’m thankful for everything the game has given me and my family. I’m thankful for the coaches, teammates, and staff throughout my career that believed in me even when it wasn’t popular. Looking back at my career, I’m just in awe of what God was able to accomplish from a walk-on who almost dropped out of college to many years at the highest level. As a competitor, it hurts because it felt like I never got a full season of opportunity to showcase everything I’m capable of.”

The 30-year-old, who hasn’t played since 2023, further shared how he thought he was wronged.

“The NFL is an ever changing landscape and if you’re on the wrong side of it, it can be damning,” he wrote. “I didn’t reach the accolades or accomplishments that I felt would’ve cemented my legacy really at any level of football. But as I’ve taken time to reflect there’s no better life lesson. You can give everything. Leave no stone unturned, and still not reach your goals.

“There is so much I’m proud of. I don’t feel sorry for myself in the slightest. There is anger, bitterness, but also joy, and happiness.. plenty of things to feel. But even if you work your hardest to accomplish something and fall short, why can’t the next that you invest in do great things? There’s joy in that too.”

Even though he was signed by teams like the New Orleans Saints, the Los Angeles Rams, and the Pittsburgh Steelers, he only took the gridiron as an Eagles player, featuring in 75 games. He started 12 of those games, and throughout his career, amassed 1,295 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns. He didn’t play the last two seasons after signing with the Rams and Steelers’ practice squads. But while Scott had a lot left to be accomplished in his own eyes, by NFL standards and fan sentiment, he was already a respected player, primarily known for turning up the torture quotient on the New York Giants as the “Giant Killer”.

In his first five seasons with Philadelphia, Scott’s career almost felt like two completely different stories: eight games where he tormented the New York Giants, and 52 others where he blended in as just another backup across the league. There is no easy way to make sense of the fact that a third-string back accounted for 34 percent of his rushing yards, 43 percent of his receiving yards, and a staggering 59 percent of his touchdowns against the Giants. That, too, while playing under three different play-callers.

Notably, Scott first turned heads during the 2019 season when he recorded 245 rushing yards and five touchdowns, four of which came against the Big Blue (including in Week 17 when we earned the NFC Offensive Player of the Week honor), along with 24 catches for 204 receiving yards. To give you a better sense, among of his 20 total touchdowns including the playoffs, Scott scored 11 of those against the Giants in six seasons.

What’s more, after his fanbase in Philadelphia began expanding, Scott also received a ‘Giant Killer’ decal in Rocket League, a popular game of car soccer. But his impact went far beyond.

The legacy of the “Giant Killer”

At just 5-foot-6, the shortest running back in the NFL, Boston Scott built his career as a fearless change-of-pace weapon, never shying away from contact. And when it came to the New York Giants, his impact was so consistent that betting on him to score ‘an anytime touchdown’ became a regular feature at online sportsbooks every week up until 2023.

In fact, in January 2023, as the Eagles and Giants faced off once again, the then-defensive coordinator of New York riled up Philly fans by claiming that Scott wasn’t a ‘Giant killer.’ This was the NFC divisional playoff game, but here’s the thing: the Eagles utilized Scott to the best of his ability.

The Philadelphia team had the ball on the New York 3 and gave Scott the ball. He scored yet another TD against the Giants and gave his team a 21-0 lead.

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In the end, the Eagles won 38-7. And it was proved once again that Scott’s nickname was no exaggeration.

“To have him out there, I know this is high praise, it’s like having Michael Jordan out there,” coach Nick Sirianni once said about him. “He’s your leader. He’s your guy. That’s the biggest respect I can pay to him.”

While his career stats may not jump off the page, for Eagles fans, Boston Scott’s legacy is cemented not in numbers but in the consistent torment he inflicted on a bitter rival. The ‘Giant Killer’ may have hung up his cleats, but his legend lives on in the NFC East.