Saying Yes/No to Some of the Big Names who Have been Connected to the Eagles

Apr 6, 2022

It is April, which means the NFL’s focus has almost entirely shifted to the draft that is three weeks away. However, there are still several very notable free agent veterans available – some of which have been linked to the Eagles – plus a couple star receivers who have seemingly been shoehorned into trade rumors. It is certainly far from a lock that the Eagles will end up with any of these players, but let’s take a look at them to see if they would make sense in Philadelphia.

Stephon Gilmore (CB)

Connection: The Chiefs, Bills, and Eagles are reportedly all interested in signing Gilmore.

Analysis: The Bills’ 2012 first-round pick was a very good starting corner in Buffalo for five years before signing a five-year, $65 million deal with the Patriots in free agency, where he became a truly elite player. Gilmore was first-team All-Pro in both 2018 and 2019 (he was also defensive player of the year in 2019), but his relationship with New England became strained because he was really upset with how the team handled the torn quadriceps he suffered late in 2020. The Patriots eventually swallowed their pride and traded him to the Panthers for a 2023 sixth-rounder, and after not playing much for them he is now a healthy, still-unsigned free agent. Gilmore can most likely still be a very useful player, but he is 31 and probably won’t sign for the bargain-bin deal Steven Nelson did last year. If he for some reason is still available in May or later like Nelson was and the Eagles did not use an early draft pick on a cornerback, then sure, he is worth a prove-it deal if he would take one. I do not think it is worth trying to compete and outbid for his services before the draft though, considering he is not a long-term answer and the team has a bunch of young corners they want to eventually look at anyway.

Verdict: No, for now

Tyrann Mathieu

Connection: The Eagles are one of many teams interested in signing Mathieu

Analysis: The “Honey Badger” has had a great career for a third-round safety, winning defensive rookie of the year in 2013, and has been a first-team All-Pro three times. Mathieu is one of the most versatile defensive players in the league. He can play man coverage, zone coverage, and can even rush the passer on blitzes. He played a massive role for Kansas City’s defense over the past three years, and he honestly kind of reminds me of a smaller (and not quite as good) Brian Dawkins. Mathieu turns 30 next month, but in my opinion he can still play, and the Eagles have more of a need at safety than they do at cornerback right now. If there was a veteran I would not mind them spending a little money on this late in free agency, it is him. There should still be a max price limit at some point, given this roster is far from contending and Mathieu is not an absolute superstar, but the idea of the Honey Badger intrigues me much more than Gilmore does.

Verdict: Yes, unless he becomes ridiculously expensive

D.K. Metcalf or A.J. Brown

Connection: Nothing really concrete here, but there has been smoke surrounding each of these two guys. Metcalf has been involved in numerous trade rumors over the past few days that Seattle has tried to shoot down, but the smoke doesn’t start for no reason. Brown is in a similar spot with the Titans. Additionally, he and Jalen Hurts are close friends, and Hurts jokingly (?) tried to lobby Brown to join the Eagles on Instagram.

Analysis: I am lumping these two guys together because I pretty much have the same opinion on both situations given how similar they are to one another. The former Ole Miss teammates have both found their names atop the rumor mill plenty over the past week. It is no apparent fault of theirs, but I find it hard to imagine it happened for absolutely no reason whatsoever. The reality is that this offseason completely and permanently changed the wide receiver market. Ever since Christian Kirk signed that ludicrous deal in free agency with the Jaguars (not that Kirk is to blame – good for him), we have seen elite receivers essentially force their way to new teams that would give them the mammoth contracts they wanted (and given what is now market value, the contracts that they deserved). Naturally, with other great receivers due for extensions, teams are now going to call to see if they can get their own Davante Adams or Tyreek Hill, and odds are that the Seahawks and Titans did not immediately hang up the phone.

Of course we all know who D.K. Metcalf is because of what happened during the 2019 draft. He is a ridiculous physical specimen and is probably the most potent combination of size and speed at the position in the NFL. Brown is no slouch himself though – a 225-pound YAC machine who is almost impossible to bring down in the open field. He was drafted a little earlier than Metcalf, and in my opinion is almost as good. If somehow either one is shopped, the Eagles should absolutely be interested because of both the need and the youth (they are both still just 24 years old). However, they are also not in a spot where they should be vastly overpaying for a receiver, so if the price balloons to more than, say, a first and a third, I would probably let some other team take him. Given what Adams and Hill went for in similar situations, I think that is a fair price for either one of them. Of course, like the aforementioned two, it also needs to come with a shiny new contract extension.

Verdict: Yes, but ONLY if it comes with an agreed-upon contract extension and they do not give up more than one first-round pick

Saying Yes/No to Some of the Big Names who Have been Connected to the Eagles

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