Eagles Sign Carson Wentz
SATURDAY, 8:55am: Not much of a surprise here, but the Eagles have official announced the signing.
FRIDAY, 12:27pm: The Eagles have signed No. 2 overall pick Carson Wentz, sources tell Ed Werder of ESPN.com (via Twitter). Wentz deal contains offsets for guaranteed money, according to Mike Florio of PFT (Twitter link). Wentz, Florio adds, told the Eagles he would agree to offsets before Philly traded up to No. 2 with the intention of drafting him. 
Last month, the Rams paid a king’s ransom to trade up for the No. 1 pick, which raised the asking price for every team vying for the No. 2 pick. That didn’t deter the Eagles, however, as they were locked in on Wentz. Philly shipped the No. 8 pick, a 2016 third-round pick, and a 2016 fourth-round pick, a 2017 first-round pick, and a 2018 second-round pick to the Browns for the No. 2 pick (Wentz) and a 2017 fourth-round choice.
Wentz and Cal’s Jared Goff were considered the top two quarterbacks available in this year’s class, and while Goff is thought to be bit more NFL-ready, Wentz might have the higher ceiling. Prior to the draft, PFR’s Rob DiRe ranked Wentz as the No. 2 QB on the board, praising his size and mobility.
With the Eagles, Wentz should have plenty of time to develop with Sam Bradford serving as the starter. With Wentz in the fold, the Eagles have now signed all of their rookies in the 2016 class.
Eagles Had Offset Agreements With Goff And Wentz?
- On Thursday, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reported that the Eagles received verbal commitments from Jared Goff and Carson Wentz, with both quarterbacks agreeing to accept offset language in their rookie contracts if they were drafted at No. 2 by Philadelphia. Today, Florio followed up on that story by writing that the NFL has no comment on the subject — it’s not clear whether the Eagles violated negotiating rules, or whether the league plans to do anything about it.
Carson Wentz To Sign Eagles Contract Today
Barring an unforeseen problem, the Eagles are expecting No. 2 overall pick Carson Wentz to sign when he arrives in Philadelphia today, a source tells Ed Werder of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
- New Eagles vice president of player personnel Joe Douglas comes with a pretty impressive resume, as Zach Berman of the Philadelphia Inquirer highlights. Douglas previously worked in the Baltimore Ravens’ scouting department for more than 15 years and is credited with pushing the team to acquire talents like credited with helping acquire quarterback Joe Flacco, guard Marshal Yanda, linebacker C.J. Mosley, guard Ben Grubbs, and kicker Justin Tucker.
Bradford’s Agent Wanted Broncos Trade
Sam Bradford has reported to the Eagles for their voluntary camp, but just a few weeks ago, his status with the team was anything but certain. After the Eagles traded up to the No. 2 pick in the draft to select a quarterback, Bradford was feeling rather unloved and asked for a trade. The Broncos, who had quite a bit of uncertainty at the position, kicked the tires on the quarterback. 
[RELATED: Fletcher Cox Absent From Eagles Workouts]
Ultimately, however, Denver moved on from Bradford upon hearing the Eagles’ spit take-inducing asking price. The Broncos are now prepared to head into 2015 with Mark Sanchez and rookie Paxton Lynch under center, but agent Tom Condon says that he tried hard to help facilitate a deal while it was still a possibility.
“We thought we had a chance to go to a really god football team and be there for a long time,” Condon said on The Rich Eisen Show (Twitter link via Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer). “That opportunity was there and the attempt was made. When the Broncos contacted the Eagles and talked about the trade, they couldn’t agree on a price. At that point our options are pretty limited. So, our next best option is to go back and prepare for the season.”
Bradford has accepted his fate for now, but if things pan out with Carson Wentz as the Eagles expect, he might not be a part of the team’s plans beyond 2016. Bradford’s new two-year deal calls for most of its guarantees to be paid in 2016, so the Eagles could move on from him in 2017 if they deem him expendable.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Eagles Hire Joe Douglas As Personnel Chief
MAY 11, 2:49pm: The Eagles have made the hirings of Joe Douglas and Andy Weidl official, announcing that Douglas is the new vice president of player personnel, while Weidl will be the assistant director of player personnel.
“I have known Joe for several years and have admired his work with both the Ravens and the Bears,” Howie Roseman said in a statement. “He is a guy that we had targeted from the outset. I feel that we are very fortunate to have him lead our player personnel department. (Ravens GM) Ozzie Newsome and (Bears GM) Ryan Pace spoke very highly of him and his work. He is passionate about football, passionate about scouting and he played a vital role in the success of the Ravens over the last decade.”
MAY 8, 7:32am: The Eagles are set to hire Douglas as a head of their personnel department, Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Enquirer reports. The move is expected to become official on Monday, according to McLane.
MAY 4, 3:55pm: The Eagles are interviewing Joe Douglas for their personnel chief job, and there’s a very good chance the Bears executive will be hired following that meeting, according to multiple reports. Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune first reported that Douglas, the Bears’ scouting director, would interview for the job opening in Philadelphia.
While Biggs referred to Douglas as a “very strong candidate,” several reporters since then have gone even further. Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes that the interview is “believed to be a mere formality,” while Geoff Mosher of 97.5 The Fanatic (Twitter link) has heard from multiple sources that the job is Douglas’ if he wants it. Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com adds (via Twitter) that the Bears are “bracing” for Douglas’ departure.
Having parted ways with head coach Chip Kelly and top personnel executive Ed Marynowitz at the start of the 2016 offseason, the Eagles handed the reins back to Howie Roseman, but had been on the lookout for an outside hire to head up their personnel department, replacing Marynowitz. After interviewing candidates like Brandon Hunt, Morocco Brown, Dwayne Joseph, and Mark Dominik in the winter, the Eagles decided to put their search on hold until after the draft. Now, they appear to have identified their preferred target, in Douglas.
Douglas, who joined the Bears approximately a year ago, spent the previous 15 years with the Ravens, serving as Baltimore’s national scout from 2012 to 2015. Assuming he is offered the Eagles’ job and accepts it, Douglas is expected to bring Ravens East Coast scout Andy Weidl with him, assigning him a prominent scouting role, tweets Mosher.
Per Mosher (via Twitter), Philadelphia’s official interview with Douglas will take place on Thursday, so we should have an update soon on whether he’ll be leaving Chicago to take the Eagles’ job.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Fletcher Cox Absent From Eagles Workouts
Sam Bradford‘s dispute with the Eagles has garnered all the headlines in recent weeks, but, as Michael David Smith of PFT notes, the quarterback is now back at work while Fletcher Cox‘s holdout continues. Cox is not required to report for the voluntary May workouts, but his absence is certainly notable as we close in on June’s mandatory three-day minicamp. As Joel Corry of CBSSports (on Twitter) points out, Cox will be out more than $76K if he is not in attendance for those practices. 
Eagles executive vice president of football operations Howie Roseman says that Cox is a “huge part” of the team’s future, but the two sides will have to smooth out this contract situation for that to come to fruition. One report last month indicated that the two sides were closing in on a long-term deal that contains more than $52MM in guarantees while Les Bowen of the Philadelphia Inquirer heard that no deal was close. Roughly three weeks later, there’s still no agreement between standout defensive lineman and Philadelphia.
Cox, 25, enjoyed a career-year in 2015, setting a new career high with 9.5 sacks. He also racked up 71 tackles, three forced fumbles, and a pair of fumble recoveries. The performance earned the former first-round pick his first Pro Bowl nod, along with a top-10 spot on Pro Football Focus’ rankings of interior defenders — he placed ninth out of 123 qualified players.
The Mississippi State alum is scheduled to earn $7.799MM before hitting the open market after the 2016 season. The Eagles, of course, do not want to let Cox test the open waters.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Sam Bradford Reports To Eagles
9:24am: While the Eagles’ offseason activities aren’t currently open to the media, Bradford issued a statement today upon returning, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.com:
“I’m excited to be back on the field today with my teammates and coaches. The business-side of football is sometimes a necessary consideration. My attention and efforts are focused on the participation in and preparation for a championship season: I am committed to my teammates and the Eagles organization for nothing less.”
8:41am: Appearing on Sports Radio 94WIP in Philadelphia today, Eagles defensive end Connor Barwin said that quarterback Sam Bradford would be reporting to the Eagles’ offseason activities today (Twitter link via Howard Eskin). And it seems Barwin was right — Bradford has indeed reported to the club and is in the building this morning, a source tells Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com.
According to Tom Condon – Bradford’s agent, who spoke to Sal Paolantonio of ESPN – the signal-caller has rescinded his trade request in addition to rejoining the team (link via Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk). Condon reportedly said during an appearance on Mike & Mike today that Bradford’s camp thought a trade to Denver was a viable possibility until the Broncos drafted Paxton Lynch in the first round.
As Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets, the Eagles are in the second phase of their offseason conditioning — Bradford missed just two of 10 weeks. The team’s offense will take the field for workouts today, and the former No. 1 overall pick will join the unit.
While Bradford may still be unhappy about his situation in Philadelphia, the Eagles had been insistent that they didn’t want to trade him, and public sentiment wasn’t exactly in favor of the player who just received an $11MM signing bonus from the team two months ago. Bradford continues to be on track to open the 2016 season as the Eagles’ starter. With rookie Carson Wentz looming, it remains to be seen how long Bradford will keep that job, and how long he’ll stick in Philadelphia.
Bradford’s new two-year deal calls for most of its guarantees to be paid in 2016, so the Eagles could move on from him in 2017 if they deem him expendable – and Wentz ready – a year from now.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Barwin Expects Sam Bradford Back
According to Connor Barwin, Sam Bradford was caught off guard when the Eagles swapped picks with the Browns to trigger their seminal Carson Wentz selection at No. 2 overall.
Not that it’s a surprise Bradford wasn’t expecting this given his recent actions, but the fourth-year Eagles pass-rusher expects things to cool down for the former No. 1 overall pick and that the presumptive Week 1 starter will return to the team, per Zig Fracassi of Sirius XM Radio (Twitter link).
Signed to a two-year, $35MM deal, Bradford probably represents the Eagles’ best chance of competing right away. He was 7-7 as a starter for last season’s dysfunctional team and completed 65% of his passes, by far a career-high mark. But like 2015 Philadelphia teammate Mark Sanchez, it is a matter of time until the first-round pick takes the reins.
- The Jaguars moved Brandon Linder to center, Gus Bradley told media (including Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union). An 18-game starter at right guard the past two years, Linder missed 13 games due to a shoulder injury last season. After Stefen Wisniewski opted to sign with the Eagles, Linder will be the Jaguars’ fourth center in four years.
Retirement An Option For Sam Bradford?
Given quarterback Sam Bradford‘s unhappiness in Philadelphia, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk examined the seemingly far-fetched possibility of the 28-year-old retiring – at least temporarily. Bradford would have to surrender the $11MM signing bonus he received from the Eagles earlier this offseason if he were to walk away, but he would offset that loss somewhat by avoiding any fines or forfeitures that would accompany a potential holdout.
The appeal of retiring from Bradford’s point of view is that he could wait for another team’s starting quarterback to suffer an injury, whether it be this year or in 2017, thus leading that club to approach the Eagles about a trade. It would be similar to the situation Carson Palmer found himself in five years ago as a disgruntled member of the Bengals. Early in the 2011 season, the Raiders lost starter Jason Campbell to an injury and then made a trade with the Bengals to bring Palmer out of his short-lived retirement.
Most teams’ starting quarterback situations are set right now, and the Eagles haven’t shown a willingness to move Bradford in the wake of trading up to No. 2 in the draft for Carson Wentz and signing Chase Daniel, so Florio opines that retirement could be his most sensible option.
Draft Pick Signings: Eagles, Packers, Bears, Colts
Checking in on the latest rookie signings from around the NFL…
- Two offensive linemen – third-rounder Isaac Seumalo and fifth-rounder Halapoulivaati Vaitai – have agreed to deals with the Eagles, the team tweeted. Seumalo went 79th in the draft after playing various positions, mostly center, along Oregon State’s O-line. Vaitai, the 164th pick, made 30 starts at tackle (primarily on the right side) during his TCU tenure.
- The Colts have signed fourth-round linebacker Antonio Morrison, the 125th overall choice, according to a team press release. Morrison was a four-year starter at Florida.
- Packers general manager Ted Thompson announced the signings of four draftees — fourth-rounders Blake Martinez (linebacker, Stanford) and Dean Lowry (defensive end, Northwestern), fifth-rounder Trevor Davis (receiver, California) and sixth-rounder Kyle Murphy (offensive tackle, Stanford). Those four were Green Bay’s final picks of this year’s draft. The team still has to lock up its top three selections, including first-round defensive lineman Kenny Clark.
- The Bears inked fourth-round defensive back Deiondre’ Hall to a four-year deal worth $2.85MM, including a $510,982 signing bonus, reports Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (on Twitter). Hall, the 127th pick, piled up 13 interceptions during his four years at Northern Iowa.
- The Vikings have signed fourth-round offensive lineman Willie Beavers and fifth-round linebacker Kentrell Brothers, per a team press release. Beavers was a stalwart at left tackle for Western Michigan before the Vikings grabbed him with the 121st choice, while Brothers – the 160th selection – was a prolific defensive playmaker at Missouri.
- The Steelers announced the signing of sixth-round linebacker Travis Feeney, a former University of Washington standout and the 220th overall pick.