By Michael Heilman
As the new NFL calendar begins, so does the Philadelphia Eagles 2020 season. The Eagles have already made several moves as they look to rebuild from an underachieving 2019 season that was plagued by injuries. Going into the offseason, Howie Roseman wants to infuse youth into this team.
So far, the Eagles have brought back backup quarterback Nate Sudfeld, punter Cameron Johnston, defensive tackle Hassan Ridgeway, safety Rodney McLeod, and cornerback Jalen Mills. The Eagles are also saying goodbye to a few players including left tackle Jason Peters, running back Jordan Howard (signed w/ Dolphins), running back Corey Clement, linebacker Kamu Grugier Hill (signed w/ Dolphins), linebacker Nigel Bradham, left tackle Halapoulivaati Vaitai (signed w/ Lions), wide receiver Nelson Agholor and safety Malcolm Jenkins. Losing Howard and releasing Clement means the Eagles will either sign a new running back or draft one to pair them with Miles Sanders and Boston Scott.
While Eagles fans were angry that they released Jenkins, they have to understand that this move needed to happen. Jenkins wanted a new contract, but given his age, there is a decline in players of his age on the whole. The Eagles want to get younger, and spending money on a veteran like Jenkins is not smart. What makes fans think by paying Jenkins what he wanted, he would still be able to produce the same caliber of plays. As we’ve seen from other teams and other leagues, giving players, big-time contracts doesn’t mean you’re getting your money’s worth.
This move reminded me of when the Eagles said goodbye to Brian Dawkins, one of the best players in Eagles history. While we didn’t want Dawkins to leave, he took the money as that was his last major contract. In his first year with the Broncos, Dawkins recorded 116 tackles, ten pass deflections, two interceptions, and a forced fumble. Injuries began to take a toll on Dawkins the following year, missing five games in 2010 with a knee injury and two games in 2011 with a neck injury that would result in him retiring after the 2011 season.
In one move that the Eagles made, they signed former Steelers defensive end Javon Hargrave for three-years worth $39 million, and he is only 27-years-old. He was drafted in the third round by the Steelers in the 2016 NFL Draft. He has started 52 of 63 games with 14.5 sacks; one forced fumble return for a touchdown, 168 tackles, 106 of them was solo and 22 quarterback hits. His presents, along with Fletcher Cox, Brandon Graham, Malik Jackson, Josh Sweat, Derek Barnett, should bolster the front four.
While Roseman’s goal is to improve the team by getting younger and faster, they must add linebackers, secondary, wide receivers, and bolster the offensive line. He has not done a good job drafting and developing wide receivers, linebackers, and secondary. While the signing of Hargrave is a good move, they still have a lot of work to do if they want to get back to the Super Bowl.
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