Ranking the Eagles’ Most Impactful Losses in Week 1 of Free Agency
The first week of free agency went as expected for Howie Roseman and his staff.
That’s not to say anything in life doesn’t come with a curveball or two, but nothing in the first week was of the nasty 12 to 6 dropping-off-the-table variety.
The biggest surprise is that C.J. Gardner-Johnson remains unaccounted for after a six-interception season. Going into the process Philadelphia was likely assuming it would have to make a decision far more quickly on the talented and versatile 25-year-old defensive back.
The latest came from Gardner-Johnson’s always interesting social-media presence on late Saturday night, a nod to his agent Kevin Conner and Universal Sports and Entertainment, so perhaps a decision is looming.
The general consensus has been that the longer things go the better it is for the Eagles with CJGJ and most of the teams around the league in the safety market have already staked their claims.
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Over the first week of free agency, the Eagles have lost Pro Football Focus All-Pro Mike linebacker T.J. Edwards to Ian Cunningham and Chicago, one of the best interior pass rushers in the NFL ( Javon Hargrave) to San Francisco, a talented backup left tackle (Andre Dillard) to Tennessee, and a safety who played 99% of the defensive snaps (Marcus Epps) to Las Vegas.
From there the Eagles other starting off-ball LB (Kyzir White) reunited with Jonathan Gannon and Arizona, a nearly 1,300-yard rusher (Miles Sanders) turned back toward Duce Staley and Carolina, the backup quarterback (Gardner Minshew) went to Indianapolis and Shane Steichen, and finally perhaps the most underrated player on the team (Pro Bowl alternate right guard Isaac Seumalo) got back together with Andy Weidl and Pittsburgh late Saturday night.
None of that attrition was unexpected for Roseman and the themes are an incredible disappointment in losing Super Bowl LVII with the talented roster assembled and just how much the rest of the league has chipped away at Jeffrey Lurie’s franchise from both a management perspective and that trickling down to on the field.
READ MORE: Grading the Eagles' Moves in Free Agency - Sports Illustrated
As for the outsiders coming in (potential RB1 Rashaad Penny, second-chance cornerback Greedy Williams, and new backup QB Marcus Mariota), the themes are players who don’t count toward compensatory picks in 2024 when the Eagles are expected to receive the league-mandated highest limit of four and swinging for the fences for talented players with a prior injury history (in the case of Penny and Williams).
WEEK 1 LOSSES FROM MOST IMPACTFUL TO LEAST:
DT Javon Hargrave to the 49ers - You don’t get to be a $20 million player by accident and Hargrave offers the kind of consistent interior pass rush that few others in the NFL can match. The Eagles were able to get Fletcher Cox back for a 12th season and remain high on third-year player Milton Williams, who started to click late last season.
If you are looking for the silver lining as Hargrave’s pass-rushing acumen grew in 2021-22, his run-stopping prowess went backward so perhaps the Philadelphia defense can improve in the less-sexier part of the process under new DC Sean Desai.
MIKE LB T.J. Edwards to the Bears - This one was a little surprising only because of the contract. Most outlets who do such things had Edwards getting a much bigger deal than he received from Chicago (three years, $19.5M) and when the market settled at a lower price the thought was Roseman might revisit the perception that Edwards, the best LB in Philadelphia since Jordan Hicks early in his career, was a goner.
Turns out the Eagles had already turned the page, according to an NFL source and the decision was between the Bears and New York Giants. That’s interesting because both teams have former Roseman lieutenants in assistant GM positions, Cunningham with the Bears, and the Giants’ Brandon Brown. In other words, the Eagles’ devaluation of the LB position comes straight from the top.
RG Issac Seumalo to the Steelers - Seumlao was another Day 1 guy who lingered all the way until Saturday night before finally getting a three-year deal from the Steelers. There was some thought that Seumalo’s serious Lisfranc fracture in 2021 was a long-term health concern holding up his market and it would have been interesting if he was forced to take a one-year deal if Philadelphia would have done a 180 and tried to bring the popular veteran back.
The plan from early in the process was for Can Jurgens, the second-year heir apparent to Jason Kelce, to move over to RG for the short term.
S Marcus Epps to Las Vegas - Epps is no star but getting two years for $12M on a disappointing safety market speaks to how reliable he was as a player that was always on the field. And if you have to replace a player on the No. 2 defense with the No. 1 passing defense who played that much, don’t sleep on that impact.
Obviously, if the Eagles get Gardner-Johnson back it helps and you can pencil in second-year player Reed Blankenship, who really played well as an undrafted rookie when forced into action last season. If CJGJ goes, everything is on the table including a full-time hybrid role for Avonte Maddox.
RB Miles Sanders to Carolina - Sanders never developed into the receiver or pass protector the Eagles had envisioned after a promising rookie season but the 1,269 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns he produced last season aren’t exactly easy to replace and the head coach had a real affinity for Sanders.
Penny is better from a traits standpoint for this offense but counting on him to stay on the field in Year 6 when it hasn’t happened yet is the definition of swinging for the fences.
LB Kyzir White to Arizona - White was a capable LB2 on a one-year, prove-it contract this past season, and the too-repeated phrase of he’s a JAG (just a guy) fails to take into account all the recent JAGs at the position who never performed like White (think Eric Wilson, L.J Fort, Paul Worrilow, Corey Nelson etc.).
LT Andre Dillard to Tennessee - I’m on record as saying Dillard will be one of the most valuable free-agent signings this year and will turn into a starter with the Titans. Getting that type of player at LT for three years and $29M would be a steal for Tennessee but from the Eagles’ perspective, the 2019 first-round pick was blocked by one of the best young left tackles in the game and backups simply can’t make that kind of money, so all doors were closed.
QB Gardner Minshew to Indianapolis - Minshew was always going to look for a better opportunity and he got it with Steichen and the Colts, who are likely drafting a QB in the top 10. That said, Minshew could have an opportunity to be a bridge early in 2023 and the one thing playing time affords you is that if you play well no one is taking you off the field.
Mariota is a better fit for the Eagles even at a slightly higher price because he’s a defined backup now after flaming out in Tennessee and Atlanta, has more extensive starting experience, and can better duplicate Jalen Hurts’ skill set in the RPO or zone-read looks. However, that last part is wildly overrated.
-John McMullen contributes Eagles coverage for SI.com's Eagles Today and is the NFL Insider for JAKIB Media. You can listen to John, alongside legendary sports-talk host Jody McDonald every morning from 8-10 on ‘Birds 365,” streaming live on YouTube. John is also the host of his own show "Football 24/7 and a daily contributor to ESPN South Jersey. You can reach him at jmcmullen44@gmail.com or on Twitter @JFMcMullen
