The Eagles are rolling up their sleeves and getting down to the dirty work. Chip Kelly is preparing for his first free agency and draft as the franchise’s total personnel czar by first doing some pertinent house cleaning.
The dusting started Friday, when the team severed ties with 32-year-old veteran offensive lineman Todd Herremans (see story), in turn clearing up $2.8 in 2015 cap space that’ll come in handy Tuesday, when free agency is officially reined in.
On Tuesday, the Eagles made the move almost everyone had anticipated even before the season finale, releasing veteran cornerback Cary Williams to save $6.5 million more as the fire sale continued (see story).
The Eagles now have between $32 million and $33 million at their disposal to remake the roster in Kelly’s vision, with more cap casualties potentially coming as the house prepares for its refurbishing.
They’re also thinner on the offensive line, which is badly in need of some youth, and depleted in the secondary, which is about to become the barest position on the roster.
Impending free agent Bradley Fletcher and Nate Allen, two starting defensive backs from last year’s beleaguered secondary, will be joining Williams on the market March 10 when their contracts expire, leaving the Eagles without three-quarters of their starting defensive backfield from last season.
Moreover, the Eagles will have just three cornerbacks under contract when the free-agent signing period commences: Brandon Boykin, Nolan Carroll and Jaylen Watkins.
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Conventional wisdom says the Eagles are primed to become this year’s free agency champions, a title annually given to the team that dumps the most dough on the open market.
But before you start envisioning a star-studded secondary featuring Byron Maxwell at one cornerback spot, Brandon Flowers at the other and Devin McCourty teaming with Malcolm Jenkins at safety, remember that free agent binging is usually the fastest track to failure.
The annual winner of the free-agent sweepstakes is usually paying the consequences of its actions about nine months later. Just ask Oakland and Washington, two free agency Hall of Famers.
Also, nothing we’ve seen so far in Kelly’s roster assembly indicates that he prefers a team chock full of the top-paid guys at their position.
Kelly wants players who buy in to his unique and rigidly structured program, from its sleep recommendations to abnormal practice schedule. The guys who make top dollar in this league tend to be more invested in their own enterprise than their head coach’s.
What the exorbitant cap space guarantees, however, is that the Eagles will be an awfully difficult adversary in the bidding war that will inevitably ensue for the top free agent or two that the team covets.
They’ve got plenty of cash and no reason to cower if another wide-eyed, cash-carrying team has its eyes on the same prize.
Sources who are familiar with some of the Eagles’ free-agent strategy expect Kelly to make a big play for Maxwell, the top corner of the free agent market.
Now that the Patriots have opted to use the franchise tag on their kicker, McCourty could also easily pop up on the Eagles’ radar.
But don’t expect the Eagles to reprise the 2011 “Dream Team” with their mound of millions, loading up the roster with Porches and Lamborghinis.
Instead, look for talks to elevate with wide receiver Jeremy Maclin, whom the team decided not to overpay for one year under the franchise tag, and to give another crack at retaining impending free-agent outside linebacker Brandon Graham.
Per sources close to the situation, the Eagles are expected to meet again soon with Graham’s reps for one more stab at re-signing their 2010 first-round pick before Graham reaches free agency and entertains a flurry of lucrative offers. If Graham wants $7.5 million per year, a realistic asking price given last year’s market for pass rushers, the Eagles can make it happen.
A good chunk of the superfluous money should also go into extensions for the nucleus of Kelly’s squad, which has won 20 of 33 games (32 regular season) since the coach left Oregon to replace Andy Reid. So far under Kelly the Eagles have done extensions for Jason Peters, Jason Kelce, Allen Barbre, Maclin and Donnie Jones.
Defensive end Fletcher Cox will almost surely be among the first wave of third-year pros eligible for an extension whom the Eagles prioritize. They'd be smart to lock up Cox before he plays out the final year of his deal and heads into free agency next season as one of the studs on the market.
Inside linebacker Mychal Kendricks is another third-year pro who can have his contract redone for the first time, and defensive end Cedric Thornton, who can be retained easily on a one-year restricted free agent deal, should be re-signed for more years and more money.
Those are the guys the Eagles are more likely to dumping millions into over the next few weeks, not the many mercenaries who reach free agency, most of them because their former teams didn’t believe they were worth the investment.