Jason Peters plans to play in 2018 and head coach Doug Pederson is of the belief that it will be with the Eagles. On Wednesday, Pederson said that he expects the veteran to serve as the team’s starting left tackle next season.
“This guy is a Pro Bowl left tackle,” Pederson said (via Matt Lombardo of NJ.com). “Guys like that, in my humble opinion, they can go out whenever they want to go out. I respect him, and what he’s done, and how he’s working right now through injury. If you had to hold a gun to my head right now, I’d say ‘yeah, he’s my left tackle.’”
Of course, that is a decision that will be made by top Philadelphia exec Howie Roseman, not Pederson. Given Peters’ monstrous cap hit for 2018 and the team’s very limited amount of room, it’s far from a given that Peters will be stay on board. Philadelphia is projected to be more than $10MM over the cap in 2018, and Peters will count for roughly $10.6MM of the team’s total commitments. If Peters were released, the Eagles would create ~4.3MM in cap space (or $7MM if he’s designated as a post-June 1 cut).
Peters, who has already said he plans to continue his career next season, only played in seven games in 2017 before tearing his ACL, but still graded as the NFL’s No. 4 offensive tackle, per Pro Football Focus. If Peters isn’t around, the Eagles would likely turn to either right tackle Lane Johnson or swing tackle Halapoulivaati Vaitai (the latter of whom struggled early but improved down the stretch) to man the blindside.
One of those tough decisions that has to be made but I see them moving on due to the salary cap. Also think they trade Foles for the same reasons.