Tim McManus of 97.5 The Fanatic got in touch with DeSean Jackson soon after he was franchise tagged by the Eagles and the WR's response was somewhat surprising.

Statement from DeSean Jackson: "I’m very excited and I’m blessed at the same time. We came a long way." — Tim McManus (@Tim_McManus) March 1, 2012

Jackson himself retweeted what McManus said, so it's clearly legit. McManus also said that there is "legit mutual interest" between the Eagles and DeSean in getting a long term deal done and that Jackson "plans to sign franchise tender ASAP."

If Jackson signed the franchise tender now, he'd be able to participate in the full offseason program with the team. That would obviously be great news for everyone involved and certainly be a big gesture on DeSean's part showing how committed he is to the organization.

The fact is, this is a pretty good day for DeSean and it's refreshing to see a player realize that. Usually these guys act like getting the tag is this major insult. Jackson was just guaranteed in one year more than triple what he's made over his entire career so far. No doubt that long term security is what any player wants, but the franchise tag is still a pretty good deal. It's nice to see the DeSean apparently agrees.