It must be nice to be a Philadelphia Eagles fan. Their team is competing in Super Bowl LVII while holding onto a top-10 pick in the 2023 NFL draft thanks to last year’s trade with the New Orleans Saints, which will help keep the Eagles right in the mix next season. But the free agency signing period rolls through the league first, and Philadelphia could have a hard time holding onto all of their players on expiring contracts.
Could some of them end up in New Orleans? The Saints aren’t likely to be big players in free agency given their precarious salary cap situation, but they can get creative and make some moves if a couple of things break their way. Here are four pending Eagles free agents they should be scouting in the Super Bowl:
DT Javon Hargrave, No. 97
If the Saints are going to make a splash at a position besides quarterback, it needs to be defensive tackle. And Hargrave might be the best on the market. He was a terror for the Eagles this year as an interior pass rusher and he’s very disruptive in run defense, even if he sometimes gets moved off the line of scrimmage. He’s going to be expensive, and rightfully so after the year he’s had, but if New Orleans wants to reboot their defensive tackles depth chart and move on from David Onyemata he would be a clear upgrade.
WR Zach Pascal, No. 3
Pascal’s main responsibility has been blocking on run plays, and he’s very skilled in that regard. But he’s also been an effective receiver when called upon — he’s caught 16 of 20 passes thrown his way to convert 9 first downs while doing much of his damage from the slot. He’s got great size at 6-foot-2 and 215 pounds, and he could offer a more dynamic element to the offense than Tre’Quan Smith in the same role without breaking the bank.
RB Boston Scott, No. 35
Hey, here’s a name we haven’t seen in a while. Scott was drafted by the Saints but got picked up by the Eagles when they let him go as a rookie to retain Mike Gillislee (who averaged 2.7 yards per carry and was cut a month later) back in 2018, but enough about that unpleasantness. Scott has consistently run well for Philadelphia whenever his number has been called but his small stature has kept him from seeing a heavy workload. He’s shifty in the open field and strong enough to move the pile and pick up tough first downs. This is a good opportunity for the Saints to fix a past mistake.
QB Gardner Minshew, No. 10
The Saints need a quarterback, and Minshew could be a good bridge to helping a rookie draft pick like Tennessee’s Hendon Hooker settle in. Maybe another team offers Andy Dalton more money in free agency. Maybe Minshew likes his chances of holding onto a starting job on a good roster without proven competition. His ceiling in the NFL is well-established, but the Saints have started games with worse quarterbacks than Minshew in recent years.
