Philadelphia Eagles Made Top-5 'Smartest' Move in Free Agency

Despite recently trading away one of the league's top pass-rushers in Haason Reddick, the Philadelphia Eagles seemingly already had his replacement in Bryce Huff.

Mar 14, 2024; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Bryce Huff speaks during a press / Kyle Ross-USA TODAY Sports

Heading into an offseason where the Philadelphia Eagles were fresh off a disappointing end to their season, it was hard to imagine them saying goodbye to one of their impact players and leading pass-rusher Haason Reddick.

However, weeks following the playoff loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, reports surfaced that the Eagles were going to do exactly that. After two seasons in Philadelphia, where Reddick not only led the team in sacks but proved himself to be one of the league’s top edge rushers, the Eagles were looking to trade him. 

Yet, even after moving on from one of the league's top pass rushers, general manager Howie Roseman has replaced him with potentially another in New York Jets linebacker Bryce Huff, who, following a career year, signed a three-year, $51 million contract with Philly.

This addition by the Eagles is one that Yahoo Sports is calling a top-five “smartest” move of the offseason.

Dec 3, 2023; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Haason Reddick (7). / Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

“There's a risk involved with Huff. He came out of practically nowhere for a 10-sack season. … He was undrafted out of Memphis, but blossomed his fourth season with the New York Jets,” the site writes. “And it wasn't just the 10 sacks. His pass rush productivity (PRP) grade from Pro Football Focus, a rate stat that includes hurries as well as sacks, was second in the NFL only to Micah Parsons. He wasn't just finding sacks, he was a dominant pass rusher on a per-play basis.”

Risky? Sure, as despite compiling a career-high 10 sacks last season, Huff never formally started a game for the Jets. He played in more of a subpackage pass-rushing role, meaning he primarily saw the field on passing downs. This raises the question of whether he can play all three downs for the Eagles and still be impactful. Not to mention, he totaled a combined 7.5 sacks in the three seasons prior.

However, while it could be argued that Huff had a “fluke” season in a contract year, his numbers could always improve with more snaps, which he is certainly going to get in Philadelphia. 

If the Eagles don’t manage to get their money’s worth out of Huff, the three-year deal is very manageable. He’ll have a cap hit under $10 million in the next two seasons before it rises to $11 million in the final year.