2023 Offseason Outlook: Philadelphia Eagles
After a tough loss in the Super Bowl, we break down what the Philadelphia Eagles offseason will look like as they try to get back.
Unfortunately, the Philadelphia Eagles came up just short of winning the Super Bowl. The good news for them however is they still have a great, young quarterback and a lot of talent around him.
This will be a very interesting offseason for the Eagles as they have a lot of free agents, so it will be interesting to see how much of last year’s team they can bring back. They also have two first round picks, including the tenth overall pick.
Any free agent information was found using Spotrac.
Big Picture
Cap Space:
$-1,283,840 – 18th in the NFL
Draft Picks:
- 1st Round 10th Pick (Saints)
- 1st Round 31st Pick (Own)
- 2nd Round 63rd Pick (Own)
- 3rd Round 95th Pick (Own)
- 7th Round (Texans)
- 7th Round (Own)
Notable Free Agents:
- C Jason Kelce
- CB James Bradberry
- DT Javon Hargrave
- DE Brandon Graham
- DT Fletcher Cox
- G Isaac Seumalo
- OLB Kyzir White
- LB T.J. Edwards
- S Chancey Gardner-Johnson
- RB Miles Sanders
- RB Boston Scott
- S Marcus Epps
With so many free agents, it’s impossible to bring everyone from last season’s team back. The question will be who to prioritize bringing back the most?
Luckily for them, while their cap situation isn’t perfect they aren’t one these teams with a ton of negative cap space. In fact they are around the middle of the league in cap space headed into the offseason with around -$1,000,000.
So, by restructuring some contracts they can free up enough money to bring back some of their free agents from last year.
Jalen Hurts Extension
The most important part of the Philadelphia Eagles offseason will be securing Jalen Hurts long term.
Hurts had an exceptional season as he was second in MVP voting and had the Eagles on the doorstep of a Super Bowl title.
The good news is according to reports from ESPN’s Dan Graziano it looks like they will be making the Hurts extension a main priority.
Who to bring back?
Jason Kelce
Center Age: 35.2 Spotrac Market Value: 1 year $11.9 million
Whether Jason Kelce is back with the Eagles next season will come down to whether he retires or not. There’s been rumors of his retirement for years now and they let him pick out his own replacement last draft in Cam Jurgens, so there’s certainly a solid chance he comes back.
If he does decide to come back it’s a very obvious decision for the Eagles to bring him back. He’s one of the best centers of all time still playing at a very high level as he was a first team all pro last year, and he’s important as a leader.
James Bradberry
Cornerback Age: 29.5 Spotrac Market Value: 3 year $45.5 million
The Eagles were able to bring in James Bradberry on a one year deal for this season. Him and Darius Slay formed one of the best corner duos in the league, but unfortunately it’s doubtful that he will return next season.
If they really want him back they can find a way to make the money work, but with his track record and the fact he’s still under 30, the bidding war will likely get pricey.
Javon Hargrave
Defensive Tackle Age: 30.0 Spotrac Market Value: 3 year $60.5 million
Javon Hargrave is one of a number of great free agent acquisitions the Eagles have made in recent memory. He was brought in on a three year $39 million in the 2020 offseason and has been one of the best interior pass rushers in football in that time.
Just like with Bradberry, it’s going to be tough to bring him back. Spotrac projects him to get around $20 million per year on his next contract. As good as Hargrave is, that would be a steep price, especially considering they already have multiple other big contracts on the books and are about to pay Jalen Hurts.
Brandon Graham
Defensive End Age: 34.8 Spotrac Market Value: 1 year $5.7 million
Brandon Graham is amongst the players most likely to be back with the Eagles next season. Even at 34 years old, Graham is still a very good player as he’s apart of arguably the league’s best edge rusher rotation alongside Haason Reddick and Josh Sweat.
Graham has spent all 13 of his seasons so far with the Eagles, so you have to imagine he wants to be back with them. Thus, signing him to a one year deal at a reasonable price should be very doable.
Fletcher Cox
Defensive Tackle Age: 32.2 Spotrac Market Value: 2 year $28 million
Fletcher Cox is similar to Graham in that they’ve both spent their whole career so far with the Eagles.
Cox isn’t quite the player he once was, so I also don’t think it would be too pricey to bring him back. In fact I think Spotrac’s contract projection is a bit off.
Based on his production last season I don’t think they should offer anything above $8 million per year, but if they can get him back for a reasonable price they should do it.
Isaac Seumalo
Guard Age: 29.2 Spotrac Market Value: 2 year $24.25 million
Seumalo is a part of the leagues best offensive line and while he isn’t the biggest name he’s still a very good player.
Spotrac projects him to make $12 million per year on his next contract, which is a bit high for a guard. However, if they can sign him for under $10 million per year that should be something they highly consider.
Kyzir White
Linebacker Age: 26.8 Spotrac Market Value: 2 year $17.2 million
The Eagles signed former Chargers linebacker Kyzir White to a one year $3 million deal last offseason. White had a solid season for them and if they can get him back for around the same price tag I expect them to do so.
T.J. Edwards
Linebacker Age: 26.5 Spotrac Market Value: 4 year $48 million
T.J. Edwards is one of most underrated players on the Eagles defense
After drafting Nakobe Dean last draft I’m expecting that the Eagles will let at least one of White or Edwards leave in free agency.
Chancey Gardner-Johnson
Safety Age: 25.8 Spotrac Market Value: 5 year $66.7 million
Gardner-Johnson has been a starting safety for the Eagles this season. He missed five games after an injury in a week 12 game against the Packers, but returned in week 18 just in time for the playoffs.
He was a good addition to the defense and much like a lot of other Eagles free agents he will be wanted back but may be too pricey to bring back.
Miles Sanders
Running Back Age: 25.8 Spotrac Market Value: 2 year $14.45 million
Miles Sanders has been a productive back for the Eagles over his career. This season he’s having his most productive year as he eclipsed 1,400 rushing yards on Sunday.
At spotrac’s projection of $7 million per year Sanders may have to be another player the Eagles let go. He’s a good back, but with running back being one of the least valuable positions in football it’s not great team building to give them second contracts.
Boston Scott
Running Back Age: 27.8 Spotrac Market Value: 1 year $1.1 million
Scott was signed by the Eagles off of the Saints practice squad in 2018. He has been a solid complimentary back for them since. He should be relatively cheap for them to bring back.
Marcus Epps
Safety Age: 27.0 Spotrac Market Value: NA
Marcus Epps was picked up off waivers by the Eagles after getting drafted in the sixth round in 2019 by the Minnesota Vikings. He has since developed into a starting safety for them. This season he has led the defense in snaps with 1,185.
Epps should be pretty affordable to bring back and I expect them to pursue a short term deal with him.
2023 NFL Mock Draft
The Eagles have put themselves in a good spot to be able to replace some of the free agents that they lose in the draft.
After last year’s trade with the Saints they not only have their own first, second, and third round picks but they also have the tenth overall pick.
The position groups they look to target will become more clear after free agency where we can see who they’re able to bring back and who won’t be back.
Round One Pick 10: CB Christian Gonzalez, Oregon
With James Bradberry being a free agent they may have to look to the draft for a replacement. The tenth overall pick is a good spot for that as Illinois’ Devon Witherspoon and Oregon’s Christian Gonzalez both project as top ten picks.
Christian Gonzalez was a star in the Oregon defense this season after transferring from Colorado as he had four interceptions, including two against his former team.
He has all the traits to develop into an elite corner. He has the skillset to play press man coverage as at 6-foot-2, 201 pounds he has great size to go along with elite athleticism.
Round One Pick 31: LB Trenton Simpson, Clemson
With both of their starting linebackers in T.J. Edwards and Kyzir White being free agents, they may look to the draft for a replacement.
Trenton Simpson brings a unique skillset to the table as a linebacker. His biggest contributions come as a pass rusher. At 6-foot-3, 230 pounds with long arms he can line up on the edge and take on offensive tackles and he’s done that quite a bit at Clemson and has had a lot of success.
He also has solid instincts in the run game, he’s a good tackler, and can contribute as a coverage defender as he even has experience lining up in the slot as he had 225 snaps in the slot last season. In today’s NFL versatility is more valued than it’s ever been, so Simpson’s skillset is going to be coveted.
Round Two Pick 63: S Jordan Battle, Alabama
With Chancey Gardner-Johnson and Marcus Epps being free agents the Eagles may need to look into selecting a safety in the draft.
Jordan Battle would be a good addition to the Eagles secondary as he is a very consistent player. He has excellent instincts in coverage and rarely makes mistakes. Battle has had a great career at Alabama, recording 200+ snaps in each of the past four seasons and was named first-team All-SEC each of the last two seasons.
Round Three Pick 95: RB Kendre Miller, TCU
With Myles Sanders being a free agent the Eagles may opt to add a back in the draft. Bijan Robinson is an option in round one. Robinson would be exceptional in the Eagles offense, but taking running backs in the first round is typically the best team building strategy.
Finding a running back who can play a role in this offense who can fill a role in this offense in the middle rounds is very doable and provides better value than taking a running back in the first round.
Kendre Miller had a very good career at TCU. In particular last season where he rushed for 1,399 yards and 17 touchdowns.
