Frank: Jason Peters Should Be Back
- Jason Peters has one more season and a $10.66MM cap number left on his Eagles deal. The reigning Super Bowl champions are navigating the NFL’s worst cap situation, being one of two teams projected to be over the cap (at $14MM-plus over). Despite the team being able to save $8MM by releasing Peters, Reuben Frank of NBC Sports Philadelphia expects the Eagles’ longtime left tackle starter to be back for one more season. Noting seventh-round project Jordan Mailata being too raw to deploy in Peters’ place, Frank sees the Eagles cutting costs elsewhere and bringing back Peters for his age-37 season. While Andrew Whitworth turned 37 last month, no other NFL tackle has played past his 37th birthday since Ray Brown — a full-time guard starter until age 42, when he shifted to tackle, who retired at 43 with the 2005 Redskins.
Eagles Could Franchise Foles
- We’ve heard a lot about how it’s pretty much a foregone conclusion that Nick Foles won’t be back in Philadelphia next season, but there’s one scenario that hasn’t been getting much attention. The conventional wisdom has been that the Eagles will pick up his 2019 option and then Foles would pay the $2MM buyout to become a free agent, but the Eagles could choose to decline the option, then franchise tag and trade him, according to Chris Mortensen of ESPN (Twitter link). Mortensen thinks the Eagles will want to avoid Foles signing with a rival like the Redskins, and would prefer to control where he lands in addition to landing some potential draft compensation. The Eagles have until February 11th to pick up the option, so we should know more within the next couple of weeks.
Carson Wentz Expected Healthy For Offseason Program
For the second consecutive season, an injury kept Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz out of the postseason in 2018. Unlike last season, however, the team’s franchise signal-caller is expected to be ready for the team’s offseason program in 2019, ESPN’s Adam Schefter writes. 
A stress fracture in his back sidelined the third-year quarterback for the final five games of the season. The Eagles once again rallied behind Nick Foles, however, made it to the playoffs and downed the NFC North champion Bears in the Wild Card round.
Though he will be healthy enough to take the field for the program in April, it remains to be seen if the Eagles want to run him back out there.
Schefter notes that some in the organization believe his back injury is related to the knee issues he had in 2017. There is no definitive proof to those theories, however.
With Foles expected to be starting in a new locale in 2019, the Eagles will not have the luxury of having arguably the league’s best backup should Wentz sustain another major injury in 2019.
Wentz looked the part of franchise quarterback when he was healthy in 2018. He finished the campaign with 3,074 yards and 21 touchdowns with a 69.6 completion percentage in 11 games.
Latest On Nick Foles, Eagles
It is all but certain that the Eagles will part ways with Nick Foles this offseason, and there has been plenty of speculation as to how that might happen given Foles’ present contract situation. The most-discussed scenarios involve the team basically forcing Foles to buy his way into free agency for $2MM, and even then, the Eagles could put the franchise tag on Foles and trade him, thus eliminating any voice that Foles might have in the matter.
But as Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports writes, Foles and the Eagles have an excellent relationship, as evidenced by the team’s most recent gesture of goodwill. As such, JLC suggests that Philadelphia could pick up Foles’ 2019 option, thereby triggering a $20MM salary, and then orchestrate a trade to a team of Foles’ liking. Realistically, there are only a handful of teams that will be in the market for Foles, so by going that route, Foles could keep the above-referenced $2MM and still end up with a team that he would have signed with anyway (and he and his new team would likely enter into a long-term pact whether he is traded or signs as a free agent). As La Canfora observes, the Dolphins and Jaguars are the two clubs who have been linked to Foles thus far.
NFC Notes: Wentz, Foles, Packers
Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz won’t get into details about the stress fracture in his back that has cost him time over the last two seasons. Apparently, GM Howie Roseman isn’t willing to discuss specifics either, as Les Bowen of the Daily News writes.
“Carson talked about the injury [Monday] and coach [Doug] Pederson has talked about it, as well. I kind of stand by what they said,” Roseman said this week. “When we talk about injuries, injuries are of a personal nature. I don’t want to get involved in timetables or going backwards about it. We feel very good about where Carson’s going to be and having a full offseason, and we’re excited for him to have that.”
Wentz was on the official injury report with a back problem for two weeks in October. After that, he was off the injury report, until his back problems returned later in the year and ultimately shelved him. Many are left wondering whether the Eagles handled Wentz’s back problems appropriately and wondering if Wentz will be good to go for the 2019 season.
Here’s more from the NFC:
- The Eagles paid quarterback Nick Foles a $1MM signing bonus to account for the incentive he missed out on by just four snaps, Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Foles technically needed to play in 33% of the team’s snaps in order to cash on in the playoff bonus, but the Eagles decided to do right by their Super Bowl hero. Unfortunately for Philly, the good will gesture probably won’t be enough to keep Foles in the fold next year. Several teams are desperate for QB help and free agent riches await the veteran.
- Matt LaFleur‘s desire to call plays and advance his career led him to leave a comfortable job with the Rams to become the Titans’ offensive coordinator. That initiative impressed GM Brian Gutekunst, which helped LaFleur land the Packers‘ head coaching job earlier this month. “Most of that was just talking to people who had coached with Matt, worked with him,” Gutekunst said (via Pete Dougherty of the Press-Gazette). “Then his presence in the (interview) room was positive as well. He had the whole offense (while) working for a defensive head coach this past year in Tennessee. Him actively seeking that opportunity and doing that this year made me feel pretty good about it.”
Latest On Foles, Eagles
- Another quarterback to monitor this offseason is Nick Foles. It’s been made clear that Foles won’t be back in Philadelphia next season, but it remains to be seen whether or not he’ll be traded or able to pick his own destination in free agency. Zach Berman of the Philadelphia Inquirer broke down all the scenarios for this spring, and included some telling quotes from Foles. The Eagles can exercise an option to keep Foles under contract for next year, which Foles could then void if he pays the team back $2MM, “essentially buying free agency” as Berman points out. Foles recently said “having the option to be a free agent is extremely important” indicating he would much prefer to choose his own landing spot rather than be dealt somewhere. But even if he does pay the voiding fee, the Eagles could still franchise tag him and then attempt to trade him. We should know a lot more by the start of free agency.
Eagles Part Ways With Three Coaches
- After losing to the Saints in the Divisional Round, the Eagles have begun to experience staff turnover. The contracts of defensive line coach Chris Wilson and assistant offensive line coach Eugene Chung have expired, while wide receivers coach Gunter Brewer has been told he can leave for other NFL opportunities, report Geoff Mosher and Adam Caplan of SiriusXM NFL Radio (Twitter links). None of three coaches will return to Philadelphia in 2019. Wilson and Chung had been with the Eagles since 2016, while Brewer just joined the club this past offseason.
Brandon Graham To Explore Free Agency
Although he hinted earlier in the week that he’d accept less money to remain with the Eagles, defensive end Brandon Graham does plan to test the market, as he explained to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk.
“I love Philly but I owe it to myself and my family to explore free agency,” Graham said. “I’m in the business of doing what’s best for my family. I need to explore the market.”
Graham, who’s been with the Eagles since 2010, inked a four-year deal in 2015 that is set to expire in March. As Graham admits in his interview with PFT, he and Philadelphia have discussed a potential extension on numerous occasions since then, but no deal has ever come to fruition. The Eagles added extra incentives to his pact heading into the 2017 campaign, but did not otherwise amend his deal over the past four years.
If he does hit the open market, Graham could be joining a class of free agent edge defenders that’s overflowing with talent. However, players such as Jadeveon Clowney, Frank Clark, DeMarcus Lawrence, Dee Ford, and Trey Flowers are all candidates for the franchise tag, meaning Graham could be one of the best pass rushers that’s actually unfettered come March. Graham earned $6.5MM annually on his last contract, and — given his continued production and the NFL’s rising salary cap — should be in line for a substantial pay bump in 2019.
Graham is entering his age-31 campaign, but his production hasn’t fallen off in recent years. While his sack total dipped to just four in 2018, Graham still managed to affect rival passers by generating 33.5 quarterback pressures and 11 quarterback hits. Pro Football Focus graded Graham as the league’s ninth-best edge defender last season, assigning him exemplary marks in both run and pass defense.
NFL Reserve/Futures Contracts: 1/15/19
Here are Tuesday’s reserve/futures contract decisions:
Philadelphia Eagles
- WR Johnny Holton
- WR Marken Michel
NFL Reserve/Futures Contracts: 1/14/19
Here are Monday’s reserve/futures contract decisions:
Dallas Cowboys
- T Jake Campos
- RB Jordan Chunn
- CB Treston DeCoud
- CB Donovan Olumba
- LB Kyle Queiro
- DT Aziz Shittu
- G Cody Wichmann
Los Angeles Chargers
- K/P Ty Long
New England Patriots
- OL Ryker Mathews
New York Giants
- OLB Avery Moss
- G Chad Slade
Philadelphia Eagles
- LB Asantay Brown
- C Anthony Fabiano
- G Kaleb Johnson
- CB Jeremiah McKinnon
- WR Braxton Miller
- WR Dorren Miller
- DE Joe Ostman
- RB Donnel Pumphrey
- CB Chandon Sullivan
- TE Will Tye
Seattle Seahawks
- DT Jamie Meder